La mecatrónica en la formación básica: innovación en el laboratorio para aprender física en ingeniería y tecnicatura en mecatrónica

Abstract

Students entering Mechatronics Engineering and Technical degree often have high expectations about their professional future, but become discouraged when they realized that practical applications are addressed only in advanced years. This work proposes an educational innovation in the Basic Cycle, integrating contents of Physics I and II with the design of didactic devices using Arduino. Practical activities were developed, such as the graphical representation of the charging and discharging cycles of a capacitor using an ATmega32U4 microcontroller, allowing real-time visualization of voltage variations. This approach encourages students to take an active role by designing, programming, and experimenting with physical phenomena and their mechatronic applications, enhancing their motivation and learning. The increasing accessibility of these technologies makes it feasible to scale up the number of kits for classroom use, moving away from passive demonstrations toward hands-on experimentation. To evaluate the outcomes, we applied the Technology Readiness Level (TRL) methodology and conducted a short survey to assess students’ comprehension and their perception of the integration between physics and mechatronics. The results show a successful implementation, supporting the idea of extending this teaching strategy to other courses within the Basic Cycle of Mechatronics programs.