ABSTRACT
The Autohelm 800 tiller pilot is a particularly good example of an integrated mechatronic product. Full account has been taken of the need to simplify the user interface within an aesthetically pleasing design. At the same time it can withstand the rigours of its working environment from sunlight to icing, to submersion in green sea and other corrosive fluids, and to being snagged in ropes or dropped in moments of panic. Autohelm is available with programmable dodge and tacking features and accepts inputs from wind vanes. Units can even be interfaced to radio navigation receivers, with which it is possible to program waypoints and execute course changes automatically. Such products could not have been brought to the marketplace without an integrated mechatronic design approach.
