Design and development of a 1/10 scale prototype of a Full Dimension Continuous Haulage System manufactured by the Long-Airdox Company. The prototype, which will allow development and testing of path-planning and control algorithms for autonomous navigation and operation in underground coal mines, has been completed. The prototype system, though not an identical copy, clones all full-scale model degrees of freedom and functions necessary for navigation. In addition to the physical structure, a microcontroller-based system was developed for providing the necessary low-level motor controls, data gathering and multiple processor communications. High level software running on a laptop PC with the windows operating system is used for analyzing all measurement data, execution of path-planning and control algorithms and issuing the command data. / Master of Science

Published Article / Mechatronic practitioners are engaged in the assembly and maintenance of complex machines, plants and systems in the engineering sector or in organisations which purchase and operate such mechatronic systems. Mechatronics, often described as the synergy of mechanical and computer systems together with electronic technologies, is increasingly being singled out as a core focus by both the education and business sectors. This international trend is also evident in South Africa and Engineering Faculties now have to provide students with the opportunity not only to acquire theoretical knowledge in Mechatronics but also to develop skills in implementing and designing mechatronics systems.

MEMS technology is a growing field that requires more automative tools to lower the cost of production. Current industry standards of tele-operated 3D manipulated MEMS parts to create new devices are labor intensive and expensive process. Using computer vision as a main feedback tool to recognize parts on chip, it is possible to program a close loop system to instruct a computer to pick and assemble parts on the chip without the aid of a user. To make this process a viable means, new chip designs, robotic systems and computer vision algorithms working along side with motion controllers have to be developed. / Graduate / 0548 / 0544 / 0771 / hsukardi@uvic.ca

Thesis (M.S.)--West Virginia University, 1998. / Title from document title page. "November 20, 1998." Document formatted into pages; contains vii, 75 p. : ill. (some col.). Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references (p. 70-72).

Thesis (Master)--İzmir Institute of Technology, İzmir, 2006 / Keywords: Drag coefficient, Mechatronics systems. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 90-91).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Rhode Island, 2004. / Typescript. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 180-187).

With the increase in electronic equipment implemented in various systems, as well as the increase in calculating power that these devices offer, designers are being empowered to make use of this power in real-time systems to diagnose and protect the systems themselves. This reasoning is too compounded by the focus on efficiency and safety in the design of complex systems, as well as the increasing expense and sensitivity of the electronic components themselves. With this in mind, this dissertation aims at developing a comprehensive measurement, control and reaction system for the electrical diagnosis and ultimately optimisation of complex electrical and electronic systems. This system will serve as a real-time diagnosis tool, which will enable the real-time diagnosis of various components in an electro-mechanical system, which can then be interpreted to determine the working state of the various components. Another sphere of this project will involve the accurate monitoring of the battery status as well as actively balancing the series connected batteries. The focus on the batteries will seek to prolong the life of the batteries, while being able to squeeze as much capacity out of them. The initial design and testing will be based on an AGV system implemented at VWSA, however a main goal throughout the design process will be modularity, i.e. the ease of implementation of this system in other systems. The key technologies used in the development of this system will still comprise of the components used in the original AGV, however new prototype components sourced from Microcare are used for the battery management system, while current sensors directly connected to the PLC’s analog input ports will be used for the active monitoring of currents distributed through the AGV.

The focus of this thesis is on the vertical integration of mechatronics in the mechanical engineering curriculum at Virginia Tech. It reports the details of an experimental strategy to integrate mechatronics at an early level in the education of engineers. A proposal was submitted to and accepted by the NSF/SUCCEED coalition to fund this experiment. Through this assistance, the experiment of vertically integrating mechatronics was initiated. The methodology in which it was integrated is presented -- through optional participation in a sophomore design class and a required design project in a junior system dynamics course. The material developed for the vertical integration of mechatronics is in the appendices. This material is appropriate for other institutions to use to vertically integrate mechatronics into their curriculums, which is part of the NSF/SUCCEED coalition's initiative. For the sophomore class, ME 2024, Introduction to Engineering Design and Economics, selected sections were exposed to the concepts of mechatronic design, along with the normal course material. Students in the mechatronic sections were given an opportunity to incorporate the use of a custom-built VT Project Box and the PIC Visual Development (PVD) software, both of which were created specifically for the task of vertical integration of mechatronics. Throughout the semester, the students were given several demonstrations of mechatronic systems through the use of the project box and software. Many students decided to implement mechatronic concepts in their final design projects. A smaller number of students made a decision to use the project box and software to develop a prototype of their final design project. Candid remarks about the students experiences, obtained from a survey at the semester's end, indicated that the vertical integration of mechatronics was a motivational feature in the second-year curriculum. For the junior class, ME 3514, System Dynamics, all sections were exposed to the concepts of mechatronics, along with the normal course material. The students were required to acquire steady-state velocity data from a DC motor and create an analytical model of the motor to predict the steady-state velocity for a given duty cycle of a pulse-width modulated controller. After the collection of the data and the creation of the analytical model, the students compared the results of simulations to the actual data collected, and report the comparison to the instructor in a memorandum. The collection of the steady-state velocity data was accomplished using the PVD software and the VT Project Box. The essentials of mechatronics was communicated to the students in two lectures, and the students gained hands-on experience with mechatronics through the use of the project box and the software. The lecture material covered the basics of mechatronics, the Mechatronics course at Virginia Tech, and detailed information about the design project. The assessment of the vertical integration of mechatronics into this junior course was accomplished by surveying all of the students in the course. The results of the survey indicated that the inclusion of mechatronics material increased the students understanding of the course material and also increased their interest in mechatronics. / Master of Science

The advancements made in technology over the past several decades have brought the field of humanoid robotics closer to integration into the everyday lives of humans. Despite these advances, the cost of these systems consistently remains high, thus limiting the environments in which these robots can be deployed. In this thesis, a pair of low-cost, bio-mimetic legs for a humanoid robot was developed with 12 degrees of freedom: three at the hip, one at the knee, and two at the ankle. Prior to developing the robot, a survey of the human-sized robotic legs released from 2006-2012 was conducted. The analysis included a summary of the key performance metrics and trends in series of human-sized robots. Recommendations were developed for future data reporting that will allow improved comparison of different prototypes. The design of the new robotic legs in this thesis utilized human anatomy data to devise performance parameters and select actuators. The developed system was able to achieve comparable ROM, size, weight, and torque to a six-foot tall human. Position and zero-moment point sensors were integrated for use in balancing, and a control architecture was developed. A model of the leg dynamics was created for designing balancing and walking algorithms. In addition, hydraulic actuators were evaluated for use in humanoid robotics, and testing was conducted in order to create a position control methodology. Finally, a predictive deadband controller was designed that was able to achieve accuracy of less than one degree using a valve with slow switching speed. / Master of Science

In this thesis a mechatronics education desk is developed. The system developed is a low cost, versatile mechatronics education and teaching environment that aims to facilitate hands-on education of undergradutate level mechatronics students. The desk is formed of three main modules that address the needs of mechatronics education: The WorkDesk, Mechatronic Building Blocks and Experimental Setups. These parts are well designed and presented to form a complete and coordinated solution for mechatronics education. The WorkDesk is a platform devoted to the mechatronics engineering trainee, which provides mechanical, electrical and software prototyping that enables studying, testing and parts integration for mechatronic projects. The components building up the WorkDesk are selected or developed to facilitate mechatronics design and prototyping. Mechatronic building blocks necessary for mechatronics teaching are identified and selected to be a part of the system. In order to support these modules, low cost custom building blocks are also developed. These include, an autonomous mobile robot kit and a versatile interface board called ready2go. Demonstrative experiments with custom developed building blocks are also presented. Two experimental setups are developed and presented in the scope of the thesis. The setups, Intelligent Money Selector and Heater/Cooler, address and demonstrate many aspects of mechatronic systems as well as aid introducing systems approach in mechatronics education. As a consequence, a mechatronics education desk is developed and presented with many hands-on educational case studies. The system developed forms an extensible and flexible software and hardware architecture and platform that enables integration of additional mechatronics education modules.