Fremddisziplinär bestimmte mechatronische entwicklungsprojekte

This article presents a discussion of continous problems that are specific to mechatronic development projects defined by external disciplines. Observations from a case study in connection with the problems of interdisciplinarity in general are first presented. The case study concerned the development of a heart-lung machine through a cooperation of mechanical engineers and medical experts. Building on this, procedural models for product development in mechanical engineering are compared with procedural models used in the area of medicine. From this comparison are derived ideas for the implementation of mechatronic development projects determined by external disciplines and the need for research for adaptation and development of product development methods.