This book highlights recent findings in industrial, manufacturing and mechanical engineering, and provides an overview of the state of the art in these fields, mainly in Russia and Eastern Europe. A broad range of topics and issues in modern engineering are discussed, including the dynamics of machines and working processes, friction, wear and lubrication in machines, surface transport and technological machines, manufacturing engineering of industrial facilities, materials engineering, metallurgy, control systems and their industrial applications, industrial mechatronics, automation and robotics. The book gathers selected papers presented at the 5th International Conference on Industrial Engineering (ICIE), held in Sochi, Russia in March 2019. The authors are experts in various fields of engineering, and all papers have been carefully reviewed. Given its scope, the book will be of interest to a wide readership, including mechanical and production engineers, lecturers in engineering disciplines, and engineering graduates.

Future robots are expected to work closely and interact safely with real-world objects and humans alike. Sense of touch is important in this context, as it helps estimate properties such as shape, texture, hardness, material type and many more; provides action related information, such as slip detection; and helps carrying out actions such as rolling an object between fingers without dropping it. This book presents an in-depth description of the solutions available for gathering tactile data, obtaining aforementioned tactile information from the data and effectively using the same in various robotic tasks. The efforts during last four decades or so have yielded a wide spectrum of tactile sensing technologies and engineered solutions for both intrinsic and extrinsic touch sensors. Nowadays, new materials and structures are being explored for obtaining robotic skin with physical features like bendable, conformable, and stretchable. Such features are important for covering various body parts of robots or 3D surfaces. Nonetheless, there exist many more hardware, software and application related issues that must be considered to make tactile sensing an effective component of future robotic platforms. This book presents an in-depth analysis of various system related issues and presents the trade-offs one may face while developing an effective tactile sensing system. For this purpose, human touch sensing has also been explored. The design hints coming out of the investigations into human sense of touch can be useful in improving the effectiveness of tactile sensory modality in robotics and other machines. Better integration of tactile sensors on a robot’s body is prerequisite for the effective utilization of tactile data. The concept of semiconductor devices based sensors is an interesting one, as it allows compact and fast tactile sensing systems with capabilities such as human-like spatio-temporal resolution. This book presents a comprehensive description of semiconductor devices based tactile sensing. In particular, novel Piezo Oxide Semiconductor Field Effect Transistor (POSFET) based approach for high resolution tactile sensing has been discussed in detail. Finally, the extension of semiconductors devices based sensors concept to large and flexile areas has been discussed for obtaining robotic or electronic skin. With its multidisciplinary scope, this book is suitable for graduate students and researchers coming from diverse areas such robotics (bio-robots, humanoids, rehabilitation etc.), applied materials, humans touch sensing, electronics, microsystems, and instrumentation. To better explain the concepts the text is supported by large number of figures.

The microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) industry has experienced explosive growth over the last decade. Applications range from accelerometers and gyroscopes used in automotive safety to high-precision on-chip integrated oscillators for reference generation and mobile phones. MEMS: Fundamental Technology and Applications brings together groundbreaking research in MEMS technology and explores an eclectic set of novel applications enabled by the technology. The book features contributions by top experts from industry and academia from around the world. The contributors explain the theoretical background and supply practical insights on applying the technology. From the historical evolution of nano micro systems to recent trends, they delve into topics including: Thin-film integrated passives as an alternative to discrete passives The possibility of piezoelectric MEMS Solutions for MEMS gyroscopes Advanced interconnect technologies Ambient energy harvesting Bulk acoustic wave resonators Ultrasonic receiver arrays using MEMS sensors Optical MEMS-based spectrometers The integration of MEMS resonators with conventional circuitry A wearable inertial and magnetic MEMS sensor assembly to estimate rigid body movement patterns Wireless microactuators to enable implantable MEMS devices for drug delivery MEMS technologies for tactile sensing and actuation in robotics MEMS-based micro hot-plate devices Inertial measurement units with integrated wireless circuitry to enable convenient, continuous monitoring Sensors using passive acousto-electric devices in wired and wireless systems Throughout, the contributors identify challenges and pose questions that need to be resolved, paving the way for new applications. Offering a wide view of the MEMS landscape, this is an invaluable resource for anyone working to develop and commercialize MEMS applications.

This book introduces readers to the theory, design and applications of automotive transmissions. It covers multiple categories, e.g. AT, AMT, CVT, DCT and transmissions for electric vehicles, each of which has its own configuration and characteristics. In turn, the book addresses the effective design of transmission gear ratios, structures and control strategies, and other topics that will be of particular interest to graduate students, researchers and engineers. Moreover, it includes real-world solutions, simulation methods and testing procedures. Based on the author’s extensive first-hand experience in the field, the book allows readers to gain a deeper understanding of vehicle transmissions.