ROBOT

Robots are any autonomously run machines that eliminate the need for human labor, even if they may not look like humans or carry out tasks in a way that is humanlike. Robotics, then, is the branch of engineering that deals with the creation, maintenance, and use of robots.

Although the idea of artificial humans predates written history (see automaton), the contemporary word robot is derived from the Czech word robota, which means "forced labor" or "serf," and is used in Karel apek's play R.U.R. (1920). The robots in the play were created people that factory owners heartlessly mistreated until they rebelled and ultimately wiped out humanity. It wasn't clear whether they were mechanical or biological, like the monster in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein (1818), but the mechanical option sparked the creation of electrical humanoids by a whole generation of inventors.

Runaround, a work of science fiction by Isaac Asimov, introduced the word robotics (1942). It established a new level of plausibility regarding the possible difficulty of creating sentient robots and the potential technological and societal issues that might arise, along with Asimov's other robot stories.

In this article, the history of robotics and robots is explored. See the page automation for more details on industrial uses.7

A commercial robot

Machines with adaptable behavior and a few physically human-like traits have been designed for industry, but not having a humanoid form. The programmable Unimate, a hydraulic heavy-lifting arm with electronic control that could repeat any pattern of movements, was the first stationary industrial robot. It was created by Unimation Inc., a business established in 1956 by American engineer Joseph Engelberger. It was created in 1954 by American engineer George Devol. In Trenton, New Jersey, a General Motors Corporation die-casting facility unveiled a prototype of the Unimate in 1959. The first production-line robot was introduced to the GM factory in 1961 by Condec Corp. (after purchasing Unimation the year before); its unpleasant (for humans) mission was to remove and stack hot metal pieces from a furnace.