Mechanical engineering is a discipline
of engineering that applies the principles of physics and materials
science for analysis,
design, manufacturing,
and maintenance of mechanical systems.
It is the branch of engineering that involves the production and usage of heat and mechanical power for the design,
production, and operation of machines and tools. It is one of the oldest and broadest engineering disciplines. Mechanical engineering
in our lives diverse subject that derives its breadth from the need to design
and manufacture everything from small individual parts and devices (e.g.,
microscale sensors
and inkjet printer nozzles) to large
systems (e.g., spacecraft and machine tools). The role of a mechanical engineer
is to take a product from an idea to the marketplace. In order to accomplish
this, a broad range of skills are needed. The mechanical engineer needs to
acquire particular skills and knowledge. He/she needs to understand the forces
and the thermal environment that a product, its parts, or its subsystems will
encounter; to design them for functionality, aesthetics, and the ability to
withstand the forces and the thermal environment they will be subjected to; and
to determine the best way to manufacture them and ensure they will operate
without failure. Perhaps the one skill that is the mechanical engineer’s
exclusive domain is the ability to analyze and design objects and systems with
motion. Then, emphasizes on the design and synthesis of mechanical components
and systems. Mechanical engineers are usually involved in research and
development, design and manufacturing, engine and thermal energy systems and
also machinery. Mechanical engineering graduates are highly flexible and could
work in almost every industrial engineering sector.
The engineering field requires an understanding of
core concepts including mechanics, kinematics, thermodynamics, materials
science, and structural analysis. Mechanical engineers
use these core principles along with tools like computer-aided engineering and product lifecycle management to design and analyze manufacturing plants, industrial equipment
and machinery, heating and cooling systems, transport systems, aircraft, watercraft, robotics, medical
devices and more. Since these
skills are required for virtually everything that is made, mechanical
engineering is perhaps the broadest and most diverse of engineering
disciplines. Mechanical engineers play a central role in such industries as
automotive (from the car chassis to its every subsystem—engine, transmission,
sensors); aerospace (airplanes, aircraft engines, control systems for airplanes
and spacecraft); biotechnology (implants, prosthetic devices, fluidic systems
for pharmaceutical industries); computers and electronics (disk drives,
printers, cooling systems, semiconductor tools); microelectromechanical
systems, or MEMS (sensors, actuators, micropower generation); energy conversion
(gas turbines, wind turbines, solar energy, fuel cells); environmental control
(HVAC, air-conditioning, refrigeration, compressors); automation (robots, data
and image acquisition, recognition, control); manufacturing (machining, machine
tools, prototyping, microfabrication).
Mechanical engineering emerged as a field during
the industrial revolution in Europe in the 18th century;
however, its development can be traced back several thousand years around the
world. Mechanical engineering science emerged in the 19th century as a result
of developments in the field of physics. The field has
continually evolved to incorporate advancements in technology, and mechanical
engineers today are pursuing developments in such fields as composites, mechatronics,
and nanotechnology.
Mechanical engineering overlaps with aerospace engineering, building services engineering, civil
engineering, electrical engineering, petroleum engineering, and chemical engineering to varying amounts. The breadth of
the mechanical engineering discipline allows students a variety of career
options beyond some of the industries listed above. Regardless of the
particular path they envision for themselves after they graduate, their
education will have provided them with the creative thinking that allows them
to design an exciting product or system, the analytical tools to achieve their
design goals, the ability to overcome all constraints, and the teamwork needed
to design, market, and produce a system. These valuable skills could also
launch a career in medicine, law, consulting, management, banking, finance, and
so on.
To put it simply, mechanical engineering deals
with anything that moves, including the human body, a very complex machine.
Mechanical engineers learn about materials, solid and fluid mechanics,
thermodynamics, heat transfer, control, instrumentation, design, and
manufacturing to understand mechanical systems. Specialized mechanical
engineering subjects include biomechanics, cartilage-tissue engineering, energy
conversion, laser-assisted materials processing, combustion, MEMS, microfluidic
devices, fracture mechanics, nanomechanics, mechanisms, micropower generation,
tribology (friction and wear), and vibrations. The American Society of
Mechanical Engineers (ASME) currently lists 36 technical divisions, from
advanced energy systems and aerospace engineering to solid-waste engineering
and textile engineering.
