The development of mechatronics can be broadly divided into three stages. The first stage was prior to the 1960s, which can be called the initial stage. During this period, people consciously or unconsciously made use of the early achievements of electronic technology to improve the performance of mechanical products. Especially during the Second World War, the war stimulated the integration of mechanical products and electronic technology. The military technologies that combined mechanics and electronics were later converted to civilian use after the war and played a positive role in the post-war economic recovery. At that time, research and development were generally still in a spontaneous state. Since electronic technology had not yet reached a sufficient level of development at that time, the integration of mechanical and electronic technologies could not be widely and deeply developed, and the products that had been developed could not be widely promoted.

The second stage, from the 1970s to the 1980s, can be called the stage of vigorous development. During this period, the development of computer technology, control technology, and communication technology laid the technical foundation for the development of mechatronics. The rapid development of large-scale, very-large-scale integrated circuits and microcomputers provided a substantial material foundation for mechatronics. The characteristics of this period are: ① the term "mechatronics" was first widely accepted in Japan and became widely recognized worldwide around the late 1980s; ② mechatronic technologies and products achieved tremendous development; ③ various countries began to pay great attention and support to mechatronic technologies and products.

From the late 1990s, a new stage began in which mechatronics advanced toward intelligence, and mechatronics entered a period of in-depth development. On the one hand, optics, communication technologies, etc., were integrated into mechatronics, and microfabrication technology also emerged in mechatronics, giving rise to new branches such as opto-mechatronics and micro-mechatronics. On the other hand, in-depth research was conducted on modeling, design, analysis, and integration methods of mechatronic systems, as well as on the disciplinary system and development trends of mechatronics. At the same time, the tremendous progress made in artificial intelligence, neural network technology, and optical fiber technology opened up broad prospects for the development of mechatronics. These studies will promote the further establishment of a complete foundation and the gradual formation of a comprehensive scientific system for mechatronics.

China began research and application in this field only in the early 1980s. The State Council established a leading group for mechatronics and included this technology in the "863 Program." When formulating the Ninth Five-Year Plan and the 2010 Development Outline, full consideration was given to international trends in mechatronics development and their potential impacts. Many universities, research institutions, and some large and medium-sized enterprises have done a great deal of work on the development and application of this technology and have achieved certain results. However, there is still a considerable gap compared with advanced countries such as Japan.