41099 Introduction to Mechatronics Engineering
The Complete Study & Assessment Guide · Spring 202641099 Overview
- Spring session undergraduate mechatronics at UTS
- Six credit points
- Weekly online workshop and in person tutorial
- Four practical assessment tasks
- Arduino kit and simulator based
Every mark in this subject comes from something you built and then explained
Introduction to Mechatronics Engineering builds one skill in two halves. The electrical half moves from charge, current and voltage through the circuit laws, dividers and power to the components a small device is made of.
- Assessed by demonstration Four built artefacts: a supervised practical quiz, a group video, a one to one viva and a project showcase.
- The viva is the gate A pass in the Assignment 3 demonstration is required to pass the subject, and a first attempt pass unlocks the higher grades.
- Explain, do not memorise Marks come from justifying component values and program structure while a tutor asks you to change them.
- Budget before you build Check the per pin current guidance and the pack capacity before a demonstration, not during it.
How 41099 is assessed
| Component | Weight | Format |
|---|---|---|
| Assignment 1 (A1): Mechatronics practical demonstration Level 1 | 10% | Supervised 40 minute practical quiz in class with a restricted list of permitted resources, worked from a provided starter circuit and starter code |
| Assignment 2 (A2): Mechatronics practical demonstration Level 2 | 20% | Group integration task, presented and demonstrated on video, with peer marking |
| Assignment 3 (A3): Mechatronics practical demonstration Level 3 · hurdle | 30% | One to one online viva: justify the design, then alter the supplied circuit and program on the spot |
| Assignment 4 (A4): Personalised Mechatronic Project | 40% | Self directed project proposed through a learning contract and presented at the showcase, or a reattempt of the A3 functionality in its place |
The four weights above are published in the subject's own materials for this offering and sum to 100. The subject reports a grade rather than a number, so the result is one of Z, X, P, C, D or H; a pass requires 50 per cent overall together with a pass in the Assignment 3 demonstration, and the higher grades require 65, 75 or 85 per cent, a first attempt pass in that demonstration and participation in the showcase. Per question mark values inside the supervised quiz are stated on the quiz itself rather than in advance. Confirm every weight, date and condition on the subject's assignments area before each deadline.
Assessment structure
Segment widths are drawn from the four published weights, which sum to 100. The third segment is the demonstration that must be passed to pass the subject.
Current 41099 dates
| Date | Item | Control |
|---|---|---|
| Wednesday 12 August 2026 | Assignment 1, in class | Week 3, supervised class time |
| Friday 4 September 2026 | Assignment 2 due | 9:00 pm submission |
| Monday 28 September to Thursday 1 October 2026 | Assignment 3 viva | Booked timeslot in Week 9 |
| Tuesday 3 November 2026 | Assignment 4 showcase | Afternoon session |
Dates are as published in the subject's own assessment overview for this offering. Confirm exact deadlines and submission settings in the live LMS.
What 41099 covers
Introduction to Mechatronics Engineering builds one skill in two halves. The electrical half moves from charge, current and voltage through the circuit laws, dividers and power to the components a small device is made of. The programming half moves from program structure and digital output through input handling, analog conversion and non blocking timing to state machines.
The two halves meet in displays, motors and power budgets, and every assessed task asks you to build something and then explain and change it.
Circuit fundamentals: voltage, current and Ohm's law
charge, current, voltage and resistance · the three forms of Ohm's law · electrical power · the per pin current guidance02Kirchhoff's laws, dividers and electrical power
the current law at a node · the voltage law round a loop · series and parallel combination · the divider rules · where the power goes03Resistors, LEDs, breadboards and schematics
linear against non linear parts · polarity and forward voltage · reading colour bands · breadboard continuity · schematic against wiring diagram04Arduino program structure and digital output
the function that runs once and the function that repeats · pin modes · writing a pin high or low · variables, types and the assignment operator05Digital input: pull resistors, logic levels and debounce
why a floating input lies · pull up, pull down and the internal resistor · active low wiring · contact bounce and the timing test06Analog input, ADC resolution and pulse width modulation
continuous voltage to integer code · ten bits and 1024 levels · resistive sensors through a divider · duty cycle and average voltage07Functions, control flow and non-blocking timing
writing and calling your own functions · choosing a control structure · arrays · why waiting blocks everything · states and transitions08Displays, motors and power budgets
common anode displays and multiplexing · libraries you must be able to explain · three kinds of motor · current and energy budgets · battery safetyThe programming half moves from program structure and digital output through input handling, analog conversion and non blocking timing to state machines. The two halves meet in displays, motors and power budgets.
There is no written final paper: the four assessed events are a supervised practical quiz, a group integration task presented on video, a one to one viva demonstration, and a personalised project taken to a showcase.
What the assessment structure asks you to practise
The electrical half decides what is possible
Circuit reasoning is what tells you that an output pin supplies only about forty milliamps, that a light emitting part needs a resistor to set its current, and that a sensor resistance has to become a voltage before anything can read it.
Those three facts shape most of the design decisions a tutor will ask you to justify.
The programming half decides when
Program structure is about lifetime and timing rather than syntax. Configuration happens once and behaviour repeats; a blocking wait stops everything while an elapsed time test lets several things share one loop.
A device with modes is written as named states with explicit transition conditions, which is also the form that is easiest to explain aloud.
The assessment rewards the explanation, not the build
A working device that cannot be modified on request scores badly; a simpler device whose every value can be justified scores well.
Prepare by rehearsing the answer to why this and not something else for every component and every structure in your own work.
Size a limiting resistor and defend every number in it
- 2Subtract the part's forward voltage from the supply to find the resistor's share.
- 2Divide by the design current, then move to a stock value in the safe direction.
- 2Recompute the resulting current and check it against the published maximum.
Key terms
- Node
- A connection of two or more elements in a circuit.
- Voltage divider
- A series resistor pair that splits a supply voltage in proportion to the two resistances.
- Forward voltage
- The voltage a light emitting part drops once it is conducting, set by its material and colour.
- Limiting resistor
- The series resistor whose value decides the operating current of a light emitting part.
- Schematic
- A drawing of which components exist and how they are connected, independent of physical layout.
- Pin mode
- The configured electrical role of a pin, either sending voltage to a circuit or reading voltage from one.
- Floating input
- An input pin with no defined connection, whose reading is unpredictable.
- Pull up resistor
- A resistor tying an input to the supply so an open switch reads a high level.
- Contact bounce
- The rapid chatter of a mechanical switch as its contacts settle.
- Resolution
- The size of the smallest input change a converter can report as a different code.
- Duty cycle
- The fraction of each switching period for which the output is at its high level.
- State machine
- A program organised as named states, each with actions and conditions that advance it.
- Stall current
- The much larger current a motor draws when something prevents it from turning.
- Battery capacity
- The charge a pack can deliver over time, rated in amp hours or milliamp hours.
41099 FAQ
How do the electrical and programming halves of this subject fit together?
The subject teaches electricity first and code second, then joins them. Circuit reasoning decides what a pin may be asked to drive and what a sensor voltage means, while program structure decides when those decisions are made. Almost every problem late in the subject needs both halves at once, which is why the assessment asks you to explain a device rather than to recite either half.
How are the four assessment tasks weighted?
The subject's own materials publish four weights that sum to one hundred: the supervised practical quiz at ten per cent, the group integration task and video at twenty, the one to one viva demonstration at thirty, and the personalised project and showcase at forty. The result you receive is a grade rather than a number, but those weights are what produce it.
Which task must be passed to pass the subject?
The viva demonstration. To receive a pass you need fifty per cent overall and a pass in that demonstration, and a student who does not pass it at the first attempt may reattempt its functionality in place of the personalised project. That reattempt route preserves a pass; the higher grades additionally require a first attempt pass and participation in the showcase.
Are the practice questions in this guide official assessment questions?
No. Every question, worked example and point allocation here is written independently as a study aid. The subject does publish what each tutor checked checkpoint is worth inside the supervised quiz, but those values are not published in advance, so nothing in this guide claims to reproduce a marking scheme.
What does the viva actually ask students to do?
It asks you to justify a supplied design and then alter it on the spot while a tutor watches. That means the preparation is not rehearsing a working device but being able to answer why each component value and each program structure was chosen, and knowing where in your own work you would go to change a timing, invert a level or move an output.
How should a device be prepared for the showcase?
Freeze the program and save a dated copy, then run the device on the supply it will actually use for as long as the session lasts. Reseat every connection and stop touching the board. Rehearse four sentences covering what it does, how input reaches the decision, why each value was chosen and what you would change next. Pack spare wires and a charged pack.
Where should students confirm dates and task details?
On the subject's own pages. The assignments area lists the tasks, their weighting and their due dates, and the subject information page is named as the definitive source when anything appears in more than one place. Dates reproduced in any independent guide, including this one, should be confirmed there before each deadline.
How to prepare for the assessments
Revision in this subject is rehearsal for an explanation. For each chapter, state what is shared in the circuit, choose the relation that matches it, work one independent case, and then say out loud why each value was chosen and what you would change if the requirement moved.
Finish every answer the way the demonstration does: name the component or line you would alter, predict the new number, and say what measurement would confirm it.
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