ABSTRACT
Summary
A mechatronic system incorporates a combination of technologies in mechanics, electronics, and information engineering. As such, there will often be trade-offs when an overall optimum design is desired although more than one design objective may exist in the context of a multiobjective design criterion. In this chapter, a convenient and optimal design scheme that can incorporate various design criteria in a concurrent manner is presented through the use of the mechatronic design quotient (MDQ). Specifically, this design approach is adopted in the optimization of the length ratio of a robotic device known as the Acrobot. The chapter illustrates how the MDQ approach leads to a reasonably optimal decision for this mechatronic system.
