Infusing mechatronics and robotics concepts in engineering curriculum

Abstract

Mechatronics and Robotics have continued to grow in importance in recent years which has led many colleges and universities to start offering courses on these topics. A brand new technical elective course, "Introduction to Mechatronics", was offered for the first time in spring 2012 at the author's institution. While the course provides for ten weeks of instruction in Mechatronics, as an elective it does not reach a sufficient number of students. The author received a competitive grant internal to the institution for a project to infuse mechatronics and robotics concepts and applications throughout the engineering curriculum. The project was completed during academic year 2011-12. Several hands-on modules were developed for three courses in the engineering curriculum, spanning the entire freshman to senior experience. The modules were developed with "active learning" principles in mind, to ensure students' full participation in the learning process in the classroom. The author chose the affordable and now widely adopted LEGO Mindstorms platform to illustrate basic mechatronics concepts and applications. The targeted courses were the freshman "Introduction to Engineering and Design" course, junior "Kinematics" course, and senior "Dynamic Systems and Control" course. The modules were deployed in the three courses throughout the academic year, and were assessed using a variety of assessment tools including rubrics and student surveys. In end-of-course surveys students expressed satisfaction with the hands-on modules and suggested ways to improve the experience. The paper will present the modules developed for the three courses, including learning objectives, hands-on activities, performance results, and survey data. Conclusions and future plans will be addressed. © American Society for Engineering Education, 2013.