69 The word mechatronics was invented by Tetsuro Mori, a Japanese engineer from the Yaskawa Electric Corporation A typical mechatronic system is the lift: the electronic system picks up signals from the environment (the pressure on the button in the elevator cabin), and processes and transforms them into mechanical motion Do you know any names of the robots sent to Mars to explore its surface? MECHATRONICS Mechatronics is the branch of engineering that deals with both mechanical and electrical systems. It includes a combination of robotics, electronics, information technology and product engineering, and its aim is to produce solutions that unify all of these various subfields. The field of mechatronics was originally intended to just be a combination of mechanics and electronics; however, as the complexity of technical systems has continued to evolve, the definition has been broadened to include more technical areas (such as telecommunications and computer control systems), embracing automation, robotics, and electromechanical engineering in a single discipline. Applications of mechatronics in industry ONLINE RESOURCES Automation and mechatronics to acquire: acquisire to broaden: allargare household: domestico to lead: condurre surgery: intervento washer: lavatrice Manufacturing processes are designed as a chain in which one stage leads to the next. Mechatronics has a key role in advanced manufacturing since it improves the automated processes by incorporating devices like barcode readers and imaging and sound processors along the production line. The most common applications of mechatronics in industry are in the following fields: machine vision (MV), used to provide the image-based automatic inspection and analysis technology necessary to enable self-driving cars. Manufacturers such as Tesla, BMW, Volvo and Audi use multiple cameras and ultrasonic sensors to acquire images from the environment so that their autonomous cars can detect objects, signs, and traffic signals; automotive engineering, for example in the design of subsystems such as the anti-lock braking system (ABS), proximity sensors (which slow down a car automatically), software-controlled fuel injection, and traction control systems; industrial automation technology, which uses control systems for operating equipment such as machinery and tools. Other applications Besides industry, mechatronics has several other applications: in health care: robotic surgery started in 2000; in houses: many household appliances have been created, such as refrigerators that can order milk when it is almost finished or washers that text you when the load is ready for the dryer; in space exploration: for example, robotic arms on the International Space Station and robots that examine planet surfaces. 158 ELECTRONICS AND ELECTROTECHNOLOGY