How the idea of mechatronics has developed and evolved at the Silesian University of Technology

Nowadays, engineering has become more and more interdisciplinary, and engineering education has become responsible for the development and delivery of modem curricula in order to answer tomorrow's needs and challenges. It would seem that the curriculum in mechatronics developed at the Silesian University of Technology (SUT), Gliwice, Poland, exhibits all the aspects a modem curriculum in engineering education. A Mechatronics Division was established in the Faculty of Electrical Engineering at the Silesian University of Technology in 1999 for the purpose of educating future engineers in mechatronics. The paper presents the development of the idea of mechatronics over past years, as well as some experiences and achievements in teaching mechatronics and delivering interdisciplinary courses at the SUT during last five years. The last part of the paper deals with a newly founded satellite centre of the UNESCO International Centre for Engineering Education (UICEE), called the Centre for Engineering Education in Mechatronics (CEEM).