Horvath, ImreErden, ZuhalMechatronics Engineering2024-09-102024-09-10202401530-98271944-707810.1115/1.40657352-s2.0-85198621880https://doi.org/10.1115/1.4065735Erden, Zuhal/0000-0002-4860-4271We live in an age in which new things are emerging faster than their deep understanding. This statement, in particular, applies to doing research and educating university students concerning next-generation cyber-physical systems (NG-CPSs). The fast evolution of this system paradigm would have expected a rapid and comprehensive paradigmatic change in research and education concerning this family of systems. However, this has not happened yet. Seeking a sufficient explanation, this paper reviews the current literature and attempts to cast light on the most significant recent developments in the field of NG-CPSs. The main assumptions of the authors are that research and education should appear in harmony in academic knowledge acquisition and distribution processes and that the academic education of NG-CPSs should be organized and conducted according to a defendable future vision. Combining the results of a broadly based study of the literature with prognostic critical thinking and personal experiences, this review-based position paper first discusses the current socio-techno-scientific environment, the involved stakeholders, and the demands and two approaches of truly systems-oriented education. Then, it concentrates on (i) the recognized limitations of mono- and interdisciplinary research, (ii) supradisciplinary organization of research, and (iii) transdisciplinary knowledge generation for NG-CPSs. As main contributions, the paper (i) identifies and analyzes the latest theoretical, engineering, and technological developments, (ii) reveals the major trends and their presumably significant implications, and (iii) presents several thought-provoking findings and makes propositions about the desirable actions.eninfo:eu-repo/semantics/closedAccessnext-generation cyber-physical systemssupradisciplinary researchtruly system-driven educationtop-down didactic approachaction proposalscyber-physical system design and operationengineering informaticsknowledge engineeringArticleQ3Q22410WOS:001313608200004