Researchers and scholars from across the globe are presenting their papers at the Sixth International Symposium on Mechatronics and its Applications (ISMA’09), which held its opening ceremony today, Tuesday, March 24, at American University of Sharjah (AUS). The event is being held under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Dr. Sultan Bin Mohammad Al Qassimi, Member of the Supreme Council and Ruler of Sharjah.

The event, which will run March 24–26, will include the presentation of 70 papers from renowned institutions and research centers from 20 countries including Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Japan, Taiwan, Pakistan, Egypt, UAE and USA among others, making it a truly international affair. Dr. Peter Heath, Chancellor of AUS, along with senior university officials, faculty and industry experts from across the UAE, were present at the opening session.

“This symposium has become an important tradition here at AUS,” said Chancellor Heath in his opening address. “It was founded by our College of Engineering’s mechatronics program in response to the increasing need for specialized skills in this area. And since first convening at AUS in 2004, the ISMA has provided an important regional forum that joins engineers and technical managers from industry, and academics from universities for discussions of new high-tech trends and their effects on the technical development of the region.”

Chancellor Heath said that the research environment in the UAE overall is presently undergoing a transformation. “His Highness Sheikh Dr. Sultan Bin Mohammad Al Qassimi, Member of the UAE Supreme Council, Ruler of Sharjah, and President of AUS, continues to play a major role in this endeavor. He has developed an ambitious project to create a number of high-quality research institutes in University City. Similarly, he has designated land next to AUS to be developed as a science and research park over the next few years,” he added.

“This event marks a milestone in the development of regional mechatronics,” said Dr. Mohammad Ameen Jarrah, General Symposium Chair, and Professor of Mechanical Engineering, AUS. “It has proven to be a truly international forum attracting first-class scientists and professionals from around the world. The ISMA industrial track and workshops are designed to help the region’s industry engineers and technical staff by exposing them to the frontiers of research and development in mechatronics and its wide range of applications.”

The technical program at this year’s conference covers a broad range of topics, explained Dr. Jarrah. “These include autonomous systems and robotics, sensors and fusion, wireless sensor and actuator networks, mechatronics applications and automation, system dynamics and control, signal and image processing applications, MEMS and NEMS technologies and their applications, and unmanned autonomous aerial vehicles,” he said.

Professor Oussama Khatib, the President of the International Foundation of Robotics Research (IFRR), Stanford University; Professor Ronald C. Arkin, Associate Dean for Research, Georgia Institute of Technology; and Professor Kevin Craig, Robert C. Greenheck Chair in Engineering Design, Marquette University College of Engineering, are the three world-renowned keynote speakers at the event. The conference will feature three tutorials as well as a dozen technical sessions by distinguished researchers.

This yearly event was founded by the AUS Mechatronics Engineering Graduate Program in response to the increasing need for mechatronics in the region. The conference aims to provide a forum for engineers and technical managers from industry as well as academics to meet and discuss new high-tech trends and their effects on the technical development in the region.

Mechatronics, identified as one of the top 10 emerging technologies that will change the world, reflects the trends in modern products combining mechanics, electrics, opto-electronics, and digital signal processing and miniaturization of components and prefabricated parts. To survive in today’s rapidly changing world, companies design products and use equipment that are equipped with more “intelligence” and computational power. Intelligent components are improving system performance, comfort and safety with innovations such as decision making and complete autonomy. Mechatronics examples range from aerospace systems and sophisticated process control to home appliances and personal smart devices.

Following the outstanding success of the previous ISMA conferences, the steering committee has implemented a new structure for the symposium as an IEEE-indexed conference. ISMA’09 is the second ISMA conference reflecting this development.

Along with AUS, this year’s event has been sponsored by the generous support of Emirates Aluminium Company (EMAL).

March 24, 2009