Elements of Mechatronics
The main mechatronic system components are as follows:Mechanical:
Mechanical components refer to a mechatronic system's mechanical composition, mechanism, thermo-fluid, and hydraulic aspects. The mechanical component may contain static / dynamic features and interact purposefully with its setting. Mechatronics mechanical components involve physical energy to generate movement, strength, heat, etc.
Electro-Mechanical:
Sensors and actuators are referred to by electromechanical components. Sensors can be used to measure a range of physical factors, such as light using photo-resistor, amount and motion using potentiometer, direction / tilt using magnetic sensor, microphone noise, stress and pressure using strain gauge; micro-switch contact; thermistor and humidity temperature using conductivity sensor. In the physical phase, actuators such as light emitting diode (LED), DC servomotor, stepper motor, relay, solenoid, receiver, shape memory alloy, electromagnet, and pump perform controlled intervention. Sensing and actuation alternatives based on IC have also become omnipresent in latest years. (e.g., digital-compass, -potentiometer, etc.).
Electrical/Electronic:
Electrical elements refer to electrical parts (for example, resistor (R), condenser (C), inducer (L), transformer, etc.), circuits, and analog signals. Electronic components include analog / digital computers, transistors, thyristors, opto-isolators, operational amplifiers, electronic energy, and signal conditioning. The electrical / electronic components are used to combine electro-mechanical sensors and actuators with the hardware components of the control panel.
Control Interface/ Computing Hardware:
Control interface / computing hardware elements refer to analog-to-digital (A2D) converter, digital-to-analog (D2A) converter, digital input / output (I / O), counters, timers, microprocessor, microcontroller, data acquisition and control (DAC) board, and digital signal processing (DSP) board. The control interface hardware allows analog / digital interfacing, i.e., communication of sensor signal to the control computer and communication of control signal from the control computer to the actuator. To calculate control activities to be implemented by the actuator, the control computing hardware implements a control algorithm that utilizes sensor readings.
Computer:
Computer components refer to hardware / software used to conduct computer-assisted dynamic system analysis, optimization, layout, and simulation ; virtual instrumentation ; fast prototype control ; simulation of hardware in the loop ; and data acquisition and control based on PC.
