🤖 Unit 9 — Paper 1
Unit 9 — Mechatronics
Unit 9 brings together mechanical, electrical and software engineering into one discipline: mechatronics. Modern machines — from robots and drones to washing machines and cars — are mechatronic systems. You'll study how mechanical mechanisms are driven by motors and controlled by electronics and software, giving you a complete picture of how intelligent automated systems are designed and built.
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Some topics covered in this unit
Mechanical systems and mechanisms — gears, cams, linkages, levers and how they transmit and transform motion
Actuators and drives — DC motors, stepper motors, servo motors, pneumatic and hydraulic actuators
Sensors in mechatronic systems — encoders, proximity sensors, limit switches and how feedback is used for control
Microcontrollers and embedded systems — how programmable controllers like Arduino and Raspberry Pi are used in mechatronic applications
System integration — how mechanical, electrical and software elements are combined into a working system
Robotics and automation — robot configurations, degrees of freedom, end effectors and industrial robot applications
Sample question
Actuators
A stepper motor moves 1.8° per step. How many steps are needed to complete one full revolution?
✓ Correct answer: C — 200. One full revolution = 360°. Steps needed = 360 ÷ 1.8 = 200 steps. Stepper motors move in fixed angular increments (steps), making them ideal for precise positioning in CNC machines, 3D printers and robotics.
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