Dept. of Automation Engineering, NFU

The Department of Automation Engineering was established on August 1, 1988, with the undergraduate program launched in 1997. The department focuses on cultivating professional talents in automation engineering and improving the workforce quality of Taiwan's automation industry. Emphasizing both theory and practice, our program encourages independent thinking and creativity. Located next to the Huwei Science Park in central Taiwan, the department is positioned at a key hub for innovative technology development.

Whether in precision machinery, optoelectronics, or other high-tech industries, high precision is required. Achieving such precision relies on advanced control system technology and optical inspection systems. Applying these technologies to products also requires integration of mechatronic and optical systems. To maintain international competitiveness, innovative design and feasibility assessments are essential. Productization requires mechanical design, manufacturing, and analytical skills. With rising labor costs in Taiwan, many industries have relocated production and R&D abroad. Therefore, training automation engineering professionals is critical to sustaining the competitiveness of Taiwan's high-tech sector. Our department focuses on mechatronic-optical integration systems, emphasizing system integration, automatic control, and manufacturing management, organized into three groups: Mechanical/Manufacturing Management, Automatic Control Systems, and Measurement/System Integration. The curriculum spans five areas: Mechanics, Information Management, Control Technology, Measurement, and Mechatronic Integration, covering foundational, professional, advanced, and practical courses. Laboratories are divided into common and specialized labs, training students in systems intelligence and technical skills in automation engineering.

The department currently has 15 full-time faculty and 2 adjunct faculty members, 418 undergraduate students, and 56 master’s students, with a student-to-teacher ratio of 29.6.

The department specializes in mechatronic-optical integrated systems, with focus on system integration, automatic control, and manufacturing management, organized into three groups: Mechanical/Manufacturing Management, Automatic Control Systems, and Measurement/System Integration. The curriculum covers five domains: Mechanics, Information Management, Control Technology, Measurement, and Mechatronic Integration, with foundational, professional, advanced, and practical courses. Laboratories are divided into common and specialized labs, training students in system intelligence and technical skills in automation engineering.

Teaching Features:

1. Integration of foundational theory with practical training, divided into foundational, professional, and practical courses. Core professional courses emphasize practical skills, with 15 credits (15 hours) of theory and 10 credits (26 hours) of practice, totaling 99 hours of core coursework and 37 hours of practice, accounting for one-third of the curriculum. Elective courses also emphasize a balance of theory and practice. The Manufacturing group has 44 credits (48 hours), the Control group 34 credits (40 hours), and the Mechatronics Integration group 50 credits (57 hours), with balanced instruction across the three groups.
2. Faculty with industrial experience and participation in industry-academia projects account for 93.3%
   • Among 15 faculty members, 14 hold doctorates: 7 professors, 5 associate professors, and 3 assistant professors. Fourteen have practical industry experience and participate in industry-academia projects, representing 93.3% of the faculty.
   • Professors Bo-Cheng Lin, Rong-Feng Tsai, and Hsin-Hung Cho were promoted to professor/assistant professor based on technical reports.
3. Faculty expertise aligns with department teaching and research.

    

   • Control Technology: Jin-Chung Shen, Hsin-Chang Ho, Rong-Feng Tsai, Kuan-Chi Li, Shi-Hsin Chen, Hsin-Hung Cho
   • Mechatronic System Technology: Wen-Yu Jue, Wen-Hsiang Hsieh, Yong-Zhao Ji, Ru-Nan Guo, Meng-Tze Li, Cheng-Dao Li
   • Manufacturing/Management Technology: Bo-Cheng Lin, Ming-Biao Tsai, Yao-Chang Cheng, Deng-Yu Yang (Adjunct), Ming-Kun Tsai (Adjunct)
4. Faculty have strong capability in industry-academia collaboration and practical results, producing:
   • 9 international patents, 76 domestic patents;
   • 26 technology transfers;
   • 48 NSC research projects;
   • 15 NSC industry-academia projects;
   • 3 other NSC projects;
   • 3 Ministry of Education commissioned projects;
   • 10 Ministry of Education industry-academia projects;
   • 4 other Ministry of Education projects;
   • 1 other government project;
   • 21 industry-academia corporate projects;
   • 2 other unit industry-academia projects;
   • 9 internal university funding projects.
5. Forward-looking and innovative technology development:
   • Nano-measurement and control applied to imprint equipment positioning accuracy ±20nm;
   • Prof. Wen-Yu Jue received the 2004 Ministry of Economic Affairs National Invention Award Gold Medal for "A method using laser diode and quadrant detector to measure rotation axis error";
   • Prof. Rong-Feng Tsai received the 2006 Ministry of Economic Affairs National Invention Award Gold Medal for "Wide-angle jet aeration equipment";
   • Innovative technologies include optical path design, precision measurement, precision system platforms, key components, precision control, and MEMS devices, with domestic and international patents.

Our 15 faculty members have produced 77 international journal papers, 9 international patents, 76 domestic patents, and 26 technology transfers, totaling 188 outputs, averaging 12.53 outputs per faculty member.

1. Within the past five years, the university obtained 179 domestic patents and 6 international patents. Among these, the department achieved 51 domestic patents (28.5% of the university total) and 4 international patents (66.7% of the university total).
2. Within the past five years, there were 251 technology transfer cases (including preliminary transfers), generating NT$33.79 million, with an average of NT$134,600 per case. The department contributed 27 cases (10.8% of university total) with NT$7.41 million (21.9% of total), averaging NT$274,400 per case.
3. Within the past five years, there were 42 general technology transfer projects generating NT$21.4 million, averaging NT$506,500 per project. The department contributed 12 projects (28.6% of university total) with NT$6.45 million (30.1%), averaging NT$537,500 per project.
4. Within the past five years, the university had 425 government/industry-funded projects totaling NT$285.267 million, averaging NT$671,200 per project. The department conducted 24 projects (5.65% of university total) totaling NT$44.657 million (15.65%), averaging NT$1.86 million per project.
5. Within the past five years, the department carried out 106 collaborative projects, averaging 1.33 projects per faculty member per year.

The department is located on the 3rd to 5th floors of the Comprehensive Engineering Building 1, with a total floor area of approximately 4,400 m². Additionally, three classrooms allocated by the university are used, covering about 234 m². Current spaces, in addition to the department office, meeting room, and two specialized classrooms, include the following laboratories for teaching and research:

1. Each faculty member has an individual research office (~16 m²) and an individual project lab (~14 m²) for supervising student projects.
2. Teaching laboratories include: Computer-Aided Engineering Lab, Microprocessor Lab, Mechatronics Lab, Sensing and Measurement Lab, Electrical Lab, Control Engineering Lab, and Integrated Electronics Lab. These labs support undergraduate foundational experiments and practical training.
3. Research laboratories include: Multi-axis Machine Calibration Lab, Manufacturing Integration Lab, Intelligent Systems Lab, Manipulator Lab, Precision Measurement and Micro-optomechatronic Lab, Innovative Mechanism Lab, and Imaging Control & Spray Application Lab. These labs primarily support faculty research projects and graduate/undergraduate project guidance. Currently, research space is insufficient relative to faculty and student demand.

Industry collaboration provides additional equipment. Local companies have donated practical machinery, such as Yin Tai Technology’s thermal rise testing machine and Tai Li Fu Co.’s stamping test machine for automation factories. Delta Electronics donated 32 sets of PLC equipment including PLC units (DVP32ES200R), I/O expansion modules (DVP16XP211R), AD/DA modules (DVP06XA-E2), and HMIs (DOP-B05S101), worth approximately NT$458,000. In 2010, in collaboration with Delta Electronics, the department established the Delta Automation Lab in the Microprocessor Lab, with NT$458,560 in PLC equipment donated by Delta and NT$646,800 in servo motors, drivers, and HMIs donated by Youshi Co., totaling NT$1.1 million in PLC teaching modules. These facilities integrate existing teaching resources with industry practice, training students in system integration and practical application, and providing opportunities for internships and industry-academia collaboration.