Mechatronics

Learn how to study, analyze, select, and design a successful mechatronic product This innovative, cutting-edge publication presents the essential nature of mechatronics, a field at the crossroads of information technology and mechanical and electrical engineering. Readers learn how to blend mechanisms, electronics, sensors, control strategies, and software into a functional design. Given the breadth that the field of mechatronics draws upon, this publication provides a critical service to readers by paring down the topics to the most essential ones. A common thread throughout the publication is tailoring performance to the actual needs of the user, rather than designing «by the book.» Practical methods clarify engineering trade-offs needed to design and manufacture competitive state-of-the-art products and systems. Key features include: * Easy-to-construct set of laboratory experiments to give readers practice in controlling difficult systems using discrete-time algorithms * Essentials of control theory, concentrating on state-space and easily constructed simulations in JavaScript, including typical mechatronic systems with gross nonlinearities where linear methods give the «wrong answer» * Hot topics that include advances in the automotive, multimedia, robotics, defense, medical, and consumer industries * Author-provided Web site at www.EssMech.com offers additional resources, including videos, dynamic simulation examples, software tools, and downloads There are hundreds of choices involved in all but the simplest of mechatronic design tasks. Using this publication as a reference, electrical, mechanical, and computer designers and engineers can find the most efficient, cost-effective methods to transform their goals into successful commercial products. With its use of laboratory experiments, this publication is also recommended as a graduate-level textbook. Author Web site located at www.EssMech.com provides in-depth support material that includes links to simulations for modeling dynamic systems with real-time interactions, image processing examples, and 3D robot modeling software, enabling readers to «construct» and manipulate their own mechanism as well as other useful links.

Comprehensively covers the fundamental scientific principles and technologies that are used in the design of modern computer-controlled machines and processes. Covers embedded microcontroller based design of machines Includes MATLAB®/Simulink®-based embedded control software development Considers electrohydraulic motion control systems, with extensive applications in construction equipment industry Discusses electric motion control, servo systems, and coordinated multi-axis automated motion control for factory automation applications Accompanied by a website hosting a solution manual

Mechanical Engineering is defined nowadays as a discipline “which involves the application of principles of physics, design, manufacturing and maintenance of mechanical systems”. Recently, mechanical engineering has also focused on some cutting-edge subjects such as nanomechanics and nanotechnology, mechatronics and robotics, computational mechanics, biomechanics, alternative energies, as well as aspects related to sustainable mechanical engineering. This book covers mechanical engineering higher education with a particular emphasis on quality assurance and the improvement of academic institutions, mechatronics education and the transfer of knowledge between university and industry.

Comprehensively covers the fundamentals of vehicle dynamics with application to automotive mechatronics Presents a number of different design, analysis and implementation considerations related to automobiles, including power requirements, converters, performance, fuel consumption and vehicle dynamic models Covers the dynamics, modeling and control of not only the entire vehicle system, but also of key elements of the vehicle such as transmissions, and hybrid systems integration Includes exercise problems and MATLAB® codes Accompanied by a website hosting animations

This book addresses the steps needed to monitor health assessment systems and the anticipation of their failures: choice and location of sensors, data acquisition and processing, health assessment and prediction of the duration of residual useful life. The digital revolution and mechatronics foreshadowed the advent of the 4.0 industry where equipment has the ability to communicate. The ubiquity of sensors (300,000 sensors in the new generations of aircraft) produces a flood of data requiring us to give meaning to information and leads to the need for efficient processing and a relevant interpretation. The process of traceability and capitalization of data is a key element in the context of the evolution of the maintenance towards predictive strategies.

Hydrostatic Transmissions and Actuators takes a pedagogical approach and begins with an overview of the subject, providing basic definitions and introducing fundamental concepts. Hydrostatic transmissions and hydrostatic actuators are then examined in more detail with coverage of pumps and motors, hydrostatic solutions to single-rod actuators, energy management and efficiency and dynamic response. Consideration is also given to current and emerging applications of hydrostatic transmissions and actuators in automobiles, mobile equipment, wind turbines, wave energy harvesting and airplanes. End of chapter exercises and real world industrial examples are included throughout and a companion website hosting a solution manual is also available. Hydrostatic Transmissions and Actuators is an up to date and comprehensive textbook suitable for courses on fluid power systems and technology, and mechatronics systems design.

In the automotive and aerospace industries, the need for strong yet light materials has given rise to extensive research into aluminum and magnesium alloys and formable titanium alloys. All of these are categorized as light weight materials. The distinguishing feature of light weight materials is that they are low density, but they have a wide range of properties and, as a result, a wide range of applications. This book provides researchers and students with an overview of the recent advancements in light weight material processing, manufacturing and characterization. It contains chapters by eminent researchers on topics associated with light weight materials, including on the current buzzword “composite materials”. First, this book describes the current status of light weight materials. Then, it studies applications of these materials, given that, as the densities vary, so do the applications, ranging from automobiles and aviation to bio-mechatronics. This book will therefore serve as an excellent guide to this field.

The Physics of Microdroplets gives the reader the theoretical and numerical tools to understand, explain, calculate, and predict the often nonintuitive observed behavior of droplets in microsystems. Microdrops and interfaces are now a common feature in most fluidic microsystems, from biology, to biotechnology, materials science, 3D-microelectronics, optofluidics, and mechatronics. On the other hand, the behavior of droplets and interfaces in today's microsystems is complicated and involves complex 3D geometrical considerations. From a numerical standpoint, the treatment of interfaces separating different immiscible phases is difficult. After a chapter dedicated to the general theory of wetting, this practical book successively details: The theory of 3D liquid interfaces The formulas for volume and surface of sessile and pancake droplets The behavior of sessile droplets The behavior of droplets between tapered plates and in wedges The behavior of droplets in microchannels The effect of capillarity with the analysis of capillary rise The onset of spontaneous capillary flow in open microfluidic systems The interaction between droplets, like engulfment The theory and application of electrowetting The state of the art for the approach of 3D-microelectronics using capillary alignment

This innovative approach to the fundamentals of electric power provides the most rigorous, comprehensive and modern treatment available. To impart a thorough grounding in electric power systems, it begins with an informative discussion on per-unit normalizations, symmetrical components and iterative load flow calculations. Covering important topics within the power system, such as protection and DC transmission, this book looks at both traditional power plants and those used for extracting sustainable energy from wind and sunlight. With classroom-tested material, this book also presents: the principles of electromechanical energy conversion and magnetic circuits; synchronous machines – the most important generators of electric power; power electronics; induction and direct current electric motors. Homework problems with varying levels of difficulty are included at the end of each chapter, and an online solutions manual for tutors is available. A useful Appendix contains a review of elementary network theory. For senior undergraduate and postgraduate students studying advanced electric power systems as well as engineers re-training in this area, this textbook will be an indispensable resource. It will also benefit engineers in electronic power systems, power electronic systems, electric motors and generators, robotics and mechatronics. www.wiley.com/go/kirtley_electric

In recent years, control systems have become more sophisticated in order to meet increased performance and safety requirements for modern technological systems. Engineers are becoming more aware that conventional feedback control design for a complex system may result in unsatisfactory performance, or even instability, in the event of malfunctions in actuators, sensors or other system components. In order to circumvent such weaknesses, new approaches to control system design have emerged which can tolerate component malfunctions while maintaining acceptable stability and performance. These types of control systems are often known as fault-tolerant control systems (FTCS). More precisely, FTCS are control systems which possess the ability to accommodate component failure automatically. Analysis and Synthesis of Fault-Tolerant Control Systems comprehensively covers the analysis and synthesis methods of fault tolerant control systems. It unifies the methods for developing controllers and filters for a wide class of dynamical systems and reports on the recent technical advances in design methodologies. MATLAB® is used throughout the book, to demonstrate methods of analysis and design. Key features: • Provides advanced theoretical methods and typical practical applications • Provides access to a spectrum of control design methods applied to industrial systems • Includes case studies and illustrative examples • Contains end-of-chapter problems Analysis and Synthesis of Fault-Tolerant Control Systems is a comprehensive reference for researchers and practitioners working in this area, and is also a valuable source of information for graduates and senior undergraduates in control, mechanical, aerospace, electrical and mechatronics engineering departments.