Mechatronics and Agriculture

What are you planning on eating for dinner tonight? Close your eyes and picture it for a second – the burger you’re going to order at your favorite spot in town, or the meal you’ll create from wholesome, packaged ingredients purchased at your local supermarket. Most people never stop to think about the ancient science that makes a meal possible – do you?

The average consumer doesn’t have the time or interest to wonder how ingredients become mashed potatoes, macaroni and cheese, or a chocolate candy bar. That’s because the science of agriculture – “farming,” or finding ways to turn plants and animals into food and products, is so distant from most of our busy, urban lives that we take for granted that somehow, the food we need will just appear.

In the Beginning . . .

As early as 15,000 years ago, human beings were encouraging certain plants to grow, discouraging others, and domesticating animals for food and companionship. Human life was dependent on locating and sustaining plants and animals for human consumption. No rain? Not enough rain? That could mean the destruction of an entire civilization. Going “to work” every day meant that every member of society spent their days focused on the most immediate needs of the community – cultivating and storing food for the future. Fast forward a few thousand years, and that game has changed considerably.

Now, the western world luxuriates in the convenience of packaged food, massive farming operations, and an agricultural industry that most people never have to even acknowledge exists. Why? Because of mechatronics.

Mechatronics is a field that few know, and everyone needs. It’s the secret to maintaining our quality of life – our burgers and butterfingers. It’s the combination of information technology, engineering, and computer control, and it’s the cutting-edge science holding the key to feeding a planet covered in human beings.

Here are just a few of the ways that modern mechatronics has changed the ancient art of agriculture:

  • Historically, human beings were responsible for even the most menial of agricultural tasks – think picking each individual fruit from the vine, or planting seeds one by one. Now, machines and automation have taken over. Mechatronics means more food, faster. That’s important, because the world’s population has exploded in the last hundred years, and that growth doesn’t appear to be slowing down any time soon.
  • Modern mechatronics have created agricultural perfection: when’s the last time you had to think about the soil acidity required to produce the juicy tomato in the salsa on your burrito? The fields of robotics and sensor technology have amplified our food beyond what our ancestors could have imagined.
  • Human beings can’t control the weather – yet. But our modern agricultural technologies give us crops where crops were once impossible and livestock far from its native origins. No matter how severe the draught in California, the livestock and avocado trees continue to produce. Have we conquered the climate with mechatronics? Perhaps!
  • Perhaps most importantly, people in western society are no longer even capable of securing their own food! Completely dependent on mechanized processes, there is never a need to hunt down a gluten-free taco in its den, or find a safe place to store diet soda through the dry season.

There’s a deep responsibility in the field of mechatronics, embedded in the fun and satisfaction that come with hands-on experience. There are agricultural technologies at work that few people understand. This is the arena that produces modern convenience: supermarkets packed with boxes and bags and fresh produce. This science has transformed a struggling species from hunters and gatherers to expert food producers, so distant and removed from the source of our meals that they hardly pause to think about them at all. Behind all of that are experts in the field of mechatronics, and they are feeding our planet. It is an awesome responsibility.

Ready to Innovate? Get on the Path to Mechatronics!

If you love the idea of re-engineering an ancient science with cutting-edge technology, Mechatronics may be the field for you. ECPI University's Bachelor of Science in Electronics Engineering Technology with a concentration in Mechatronics can have you improving lives and altering the scope of our world, and you can get there in as little as 2.5 years with our accelerated, year-round program. It's time to get your hands dirty. Call us today. It could be the Best Decision You Ever Make!

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