This unit of study aims to introduce students to the fundamental principles that underlie the study of mechatronic engineering. It lays the foundation for later studies, including advanced mechatronic engineering, computing, control and system design courses. The subject also provides students with the opportunity to develop an understanding of a range of machining and manufacturing processes required to make mechanical components.
Introduction to Mechatronic Engineering (60%): (a) Introduction to mechatronics and to the structure of the BE in Mechatronic Engineering. (b) Systems Modelling and Control - Fundamental concepts which underlie the modelling and control of dynamic systems. (c) Design Process - The process of design synthesis as an important part of engineering. (d) Actuators - Components that exert effort to accomplish a given task. (e) Sensors - Components that take measurements of the environment. (f) Computers - Hardware and software components that, when combined, allow a system to be controlled. (g) Advanced Topics - Case studies relating to the application of mechatronic engineering principles.
Manufacturing Technology (40%): An overview of a range of processes related to the design and manufacture of aerospace components is provided through hands-on experience. Manufacturing Technology practical work is undertaken in: (a) Hand tools, Machining, and Soldering - an introduction to basic manufacturing processes used to fabricate mechatronic engineering hardware. Safety requirements: All students are required to provide their own personal protective equipment (PPE) and comply with the workshop safety rules provided in class. Students who fail to do this will not be permitted to enter the workshops. In particular, approved industrial footwear must be worn, and long hair must be protected by a hair net. Safety glasses must be worn at all times. (b) Solid Modelling - the use of computer aided design (CAD) tools to model geometry and create engineering drawings of engineering components. (c) Microcontrollers - ubiquitous in modern engineered products - will be introduced through experiential learning with development kits.

This unit of study aims to provide a foundation for the study of systems and embedded programming for the degree in Mechatronic Engineering.
It is based around a systems engineering approach to requirements capture, software design, implementation, debugging and testing in the context of the C programming language. Problem definition and decomposition; the design process; designing for testing and defensive coding methods; modular code structure and abstract data types; best practice in programming. Programming in teams; documentation and version control.
The C language: Preprocessor, tokens, storage classes and types; arithmetic, relational and bit manipulation operators; constructs for control flow: if, switch, for, do and while; arrays; pointers and character strings; dynamic memory allocation; functions and parameter passing; derived storage classes: structures and unions; file I/O.

This unit of study aims to provide an introduction to the basic hardware elements of mechatronic systems.
Basic electrical theory: Ohms law, Kirchoff's voltage and current laws, passive component characteristics (resistors, capacitors and inductors).
Number systems and codes; Logic gates and Boolean algebra, universal (NAND) logic gates; Digital arithmetic: operations and circuits, Two's complement addition and subtraction, overflow; Combinational logic circuits; Flip-flops and related devices; Counters and registers, shift register applications; sequential circuits, designs of synchronous, cascadable counters (BCD and binary). Integrated circuit logic families and interfacing; practical issues including, fan out, pull-up/down, grounds, power supplies and decoupling; timing issues, race conditions. Tri-state signals and buses; MSI logic circuits, multiplexers, demultiplexers, decoders, magnitude comparators; Introduction to programmable logic devices.
Brushed DC Motors: Introduction to characteristics and control, motor specifications, torque-speed characteristics, power and efficiency, thermal considerations.
Introduction to BJTs and FETs as switches. PWM control of DC motors; half- and full-bridge configurations; Feedback and operational amplifiers; selected op-amp applications circuits with an emphasis on sensor and actuator interfacing.
The unit of study will include a practical component where students design and implement logic and linear circuits. Purchase of a basic laboratory tool kit as described in classes will be required.

The aim of the unit is to introduce students to microprocessor and microcomputer systems, emphasising assembly language programming and building on the digital logic foundations from first year. In particular, the following subjects are addressed:
Introduction to microprocessors, stored-program computer architecture, instruction codes and addressing modes, instruction execution cycle; Memory devices. Computer architecture and assembly language programming. Microprocessor and microcontroller systems, memory and IO interfacing, interrupts and interrupt handling. Serial and parallel communications. System design, documentation, implementation, debugging and testing.
MTRX2700 is the introductory course in the basics of real Mechatronic systems. This course builds on knowledge obtained in the courses ENGG1801, MTRX1701, ELEC1103 and MTRX1702, MTRX1705. This course extends this knowledge by introducing students to their first practical applications in Mechatronic Engineering. By passing this subject, the student will have obtained the necessary skills to undertake Mechatronics 3 (MTRX3700).

This unit of study aims to provide experience, confidence and competence in the design and implementation of microprocessor-based products and instruments; to impart a detailed knowledge of the software and hardware architecture of a typical modern microcontroller, and an understanding of the use of these resources in product design; and to provide experience of working in a project team to prototype a realistic product to meet a specification.
At the end of this unit students will understand microprocessor system organisation, and the organisation of multiple and distributed processor systems, special purpose architectures (DSPs etc. ) and their application. The student will have a detailed knowledge of the software and hardware architecture of a modern microcontroller. This knowledge will include an in-depth understanding of the relationship between assembly language, high-level language, and the hardware, of the utilisation and interfacing of microcontroller hardware resources, and of the design and development of software comprised of multiple interrupt-driven processes. The student will have the competence to develop prototype microprocessor-based products.
Course content will include single processor systems, multiple and distributed processing systems, special purpose architectures (DSPs etc) and their application; real-time operating systems for microcontrollers; standard interfacing of sensor and actuation systems; ADC/DAC, SSI, parallel, CAN bus etc. ; specific requirements for microprocessor-based products; problem definition and system design; tools for design, development and testing of prototype systems; the unit of study will include a project, where groups of students design, develop and commission a microprocessor-based product.

This unit of study follows a systems engineering approach to the integration of hardware and software components to form mechatronic systems.
Sensors: dead reckoning and inertial sensors; external sensors including ultrasonic, laser, radar and GPS; sensor interfaces, serialisation and data streams.
Methodologies for object-oriented design; the C++ language: classes and class design; overloading; inheritance and polymorphism; iostreams.
Operating system: introduction to structure and principles; facilities for interprocess communication and synchronisation; device drivers and applications programming; Gnu software tools; make and related utilities; communications middleware for distributed software.
Students will complete a six-week project working in groups to design and implement a distributed mechatronic system.

This unit aims to present a broad overview of the technologies associated with industrial and mobile robots. Major topics covered are sensing, mapping, navigation and control of mobile robots and kinematics and control of industrial robots. The subject consists of a series of lectures on robot fundamentals and case studies on practical robot systems. Material covered in lectures is illustrated through experimental laboratory assignments. The objective of the course is to provide students with the essential skills necessary to be able to develop robotic systems for practical applications.
At the end of this unit students will: be familiar with sensor technologies relevant to robotic systems; understand conventions used in robot kinematics and dynamics; understand the dynamics of mobile robotic systems and how they are modeled; have implemented navigation, sensing and control algorithms on a practical robotic system; apply a systematic approach to the design process for robotic systems; understand the practical application of robotic systems in manufacturing, automobile systems and assembly systems; develop the capacity to think critically and independently about new design problems; undertake independent research and analysis and to think creatively about engineering problems.
Course content will include: history and philosophy of robotics; hardware components and subsystems; robot kinematics and dynamics; sensors, measurements and perception; robotic architectures, multiple robot systems; localization, navigation and obstacle avoidance, robot planning; robot learning; robot vision and vision processing.