Integration of reliability and environmental aspects in early design stages of mechatronics

Mechatronics use the synergies from the interaction of electronics, mechanics and information technology. It covers a wide range of components, interconnection technologies, and application specific software. Mechatronics design is a multi-domain exercise involving concurrent design evaluations and respective decision making in various fields of engineering. Whereas small form factors and the improvement of functionality has been the primary design aim in the past, nowadays a focus is also placed on environmental performance and reliability in order to create a sustainable product. As a matter of fact there are no engineering tools available that integrate these particular aspects adequately in the design process. Most environmental and lifetime assessments are done in the post-design phase. At this late stage however, it becomes difficult and costly to change an existing design. In this paper we describe new requirements for mechatronics design. On the example of a miniature robot we outline the principle methodology for (1) a design process integrated environmental assessment and (2) a sustainable lifecycle concept with focus on reliability. The paper outlines a system of coherent partial models, which are used for the description of the principle design solutions. Along the line of these models we discuss an integrated environmental assessment and reliability approach.