What are the future development trends of mechatronics?

　　Development History and Trends of Mechatronics Technology

　　Since the advent of electronic technology, the combination of electronic technology and mechanical technology has begun. However, it was only after the emergence of semiconductor integrated circuits, especially large-scale integrated circuits represented by microprocessors, that "mechatronics" technology made significant progress and attracted widespread attention.

　　(I) Development History of "Mechatronics"

　　1. The advent of CNC machine tools marked the first page in the history of "mechatronics";

　　2. Microelectronics technology brought vitality to "mechatronics";

　　3. The development of programmable logic controllers and "power electronics" provided a solid foundation for "mechatronics";

　　4. New technologies such as laser technology, fuzzy technology, and information technology have brought "mechatronics" to a new level.

　　(II) Development Trends of "Mechatronics"

　　1. Opto-mechatronics. A general mechatronics system consists of sensing systems, energy systems, information processing systems, and mechanical structures. Therefore, introducing optical technology and utilizing its inherent advantages can effectively improve the sensing system, energy (power) system, and information processing system of mechatronics systems. Opto-mechatronics is an important trend in the development of mechatronic products.

　　2. Autonomous distribution systematization—flexibility. Future mechatronic products will have sufficient "redundancy" in their control and execution systems, strong "flexibility," and the ability to better cope with unexpected events. They will be designed as "autonomous distribution systems." In autonomous distribution systems, each subsystem works independently, serving the overall system while possessing its own "autonomy," allowing it to react differently to various environmental conditions. Its characteristic is that subsystems can generate their own information and add it to the given information; under the overall premise, specific "actions" can be changed. This significantly increases the system's adaptability (flexibility) without affecting the entire system due to the failure of a single subsystem.

　　3. Holographic systematization—intelligence. Future mechatronic products will exhibit increasingly obvious "holographic" characteristics and higher levels of intelligence. This is mainly due to the development of fuzzy technology and information technology (especially software and chip technology). In addition, the system's hierarchical structure will change from a simple "top-down" form to a complex, bidirectional connection with more redundancy.

　　4. "Bio-software"-ization—biomimetic systematization. Future mechatronic devices will be highly dependent on information and often unstable in a "static" state but stable in a dynamic (working) state. This is somewhat similar to living organisms: when the control system (brain) stops working, the organism "dies," but when the control system (brain) is working, the organism is very active. Some excellent biological structures discovered in the field of biomimetics research can provide new bodies for mechatronic products, but how to make these new bodies have a living "life" remains to be further studied. This research area is called "bio-software" or "bio-system," and the characteristic of biological organisms is that hardware (body) and software (brain) are integrated and inseparable. It seems that although mechatronic products have a trend towards bio-systematization, there is still a long way to go.

　　5. Micro-mechatronics—miniaturization. Currently, using etching technology in the manufacturing process of semiconductor devices, sub-micron mechanical components have been produced in laboratories. When this achievement is applied to actual products, there is no need to distinguish between mechanical parts and controllers. At that time, mechanics and electronics can be completely "integrated," and the body, actuator, sensor, and CPU can be integrated together, resulting in a very small size and forming an autonomous component. This micro-mechanics is an important direction for the development of mechatronics.