Intelligent technical systems, which combine mechanical, electrical and software engineering with methods from control engineering and advanced mathematics, go far beyond the state of the art in mechatronics and open up fascinating perspectives. Among these systems are so-called self-optimizing systems, which are able to adapt their behavior autonomously and flexibly to changing operating conditions. The Collaborative Research Center 614 "Self-optimizing concepts and structures in mechanical engineering" pursued the long-term aim to enable others to develop dependable self-optimizing systems. Assuring their dependability poses new challenges. However, self-optimization also offers the possibility to adapt the system's behavior to improve de...