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{{Short description|Machine capable of carrying out a complex series of actions automatically}}
{{Other uses}}
{{pp-semi-indef|small=yes}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2021}}
[[File:HONDA ASIMO.jpg|thumb|[[ASIMO]] (2000) at the [[Expo 2005]]]]
[[File:Johnny5 03.jpg|thumb|"Number 5" from [[Short Circuit (1986 film)]] is a specimen of tracked semi-humanoid robot]]
[[File:FANUC 6-axis welding robots.jpg|thumb|[[Articulated robot|Articulated]] [[Robot welding|welding robots]] used in a factory are a type of [[industrial robot]].]]
[[File:Bio-inspired Big Dog quadruped robot is being developed as a mule that can traverse difficult terrain.tiff|thumb|The [[quadruped]]al [[military robot]] [[Boston Dynamics#Cheetah|Cheetah]], an evolution of [[BigDog]] (pictured), was clocked as the world's fastest legged robot in 2012, beating the record set by an [[Massachusetts Institute of Technology|MIT]] [[biped]]al robot in 1989.<ref name=r07f>{{cite news|url=https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/06/four-legged-robot-sets-new-speed-record_n_1324701.html|title=Four-legged Robot, 'Cheetah,' Sets New Speed Record|agency=Reuters|date=6 March 2012|access-date=5 October 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131022173838/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/06/four-legged-robot-sets-new-speed-record_n_1324701.html|archive-date=22 October 2013|url-status=live}}</ref>]]
{{Automation}}
A '''robot''' is a [[machine]]—especially one [[Computer program|program]]mable by a [[computer]]—capable of carrying out a complex series of actions [[Automation|automatically]].<ref>Definition of 'robot'. Oxford English Dictionary. Retrieved 27 November 2016.</ref> A robot can be guided by an external control device, or the [[robot control|control]] may be embedded within. Robots may be constructed to evoke [[Humanoid robot|human form]], but most robots are task-performing machines, designed with an emphasis on stark functionality, rather than expressive aesthetics.

Robots can be [[autonomous robot|autonomous]] or semi-autonomous and range from humanoids such as [[Honda]]'s ''Advanced Step in Innovative Mobility'' ([[ASIMO]]) and [[TOSY]]'s ''TOSY Ping Pong Playing Robot'' ([[TOPIO]]) to [[industrial robot]]s, [[robot-assisted surgery|medical operating robot]]s, patient assist robots, dog therapy robots, collectively programmed [[Swarm robotics|''swarm'' robots]], [[UAV drones]] such as [[General Atomics MQ-1 Predator]], and even microscopic [[Nanorobotics|nanorobots]]. By mimicking a lifelike appearance or automating movements, a robot may convey a sense of intelligence or [[Agency (philosophy)|thought]] of its own. [[Autonomous things]] are expected to proliferate in the future, with home robotics and the [[autonomous car]] as some of the main drivers.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.driverless-future.com/?page_id=384|title=Forecasts – Driverless car market watch|website=driverless-future.com|access-date=26 September 2023|archive-date=25 September 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230925132826/https://www.driverless-future.com/?page_id=384|url-status=dead}}</ref>

The branch of technology that deals with the design, construction, operation, and application of robots,<ref name=OED>{{cite web|title=robotics|url=http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/view/entry/m_en_gb0714530#m_en_gb0714530|publisher=Oxford Dictionaries|access-date=4 February 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110518152729/http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/view/entry/m_en_gb0714530#m_en_gb0714530|archive-date=18 May 2011|url-status=dead}}</ref> as well as computer systems for their control, sensory feedback, and [[Data processing|information processing]] is [[robotics]]. These technologies deal with automated machines that can take the place of humans in dangerous environments or [[manufacturing process]]es, or resemble humans in appearance, behavior, or cognition. Many of today's robots are inspired by nature contributing to the field of [[bio-inspired robotics]]. These robots have also created a newer branch of robotics: [[soft robotics]].

From the time of [[ancient civilization]], there have been many accounts of user-configurable automated devices and even [[automata]], resembling humans and other animals, such as [[animatronics]], designed primarily as entertainment. As mechanical techniques developed through the [[Industrial age]], there appeared more practical applications such as automated machines, remote control and wireless [[remote-control]].

The term comes from a Slavic root, ''robot-'', with meanings associated with labor. The word "robot" was first used to denote a fictional humanoid in a 1920 [[Czech language|Czech-language]] play ''[[R.U.R.]]'' (''Rossumovi Univerzální Roboti'' – ''Rossum's Universal Robots'') by [[Karel Čapek]], though it was Karel's brother [[Josef Čapek]] who was the word's true inventor.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Margolius|first=Ivan|author-link=Ivan Margolius|title=The Robot of Prague|journal=The Friends of Czech Heritage|issue=17|date=Autumn 2017|pages=3–6|url=https://czechfriends.net/images/RobotsMargoliusJul2017.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170911115134/https://czechfriends.net/images/RobotsMargoliusJul2017.pdf|archive-date=11 September 2017|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="KapekWebsite">{{cite web|url=http://capek.misto.cz/english/robot.html |first=Dominik |last=Zunt |title=Who did actually invent the word "robot" and what does it mean? |publisher=The Karel Čapek website |access-date=11 September 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120204135259/http://capek.misto.cz/english/robot.html |archive-date=4 February 2012}}</ref><ref name="auto1">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=stIWUpWvI94C|title=Robotics and Automation Handbook|first=Thomas R.|last=Kurfess|date=1 January 2005|publisher=Taylor & Francis|access-date=5 July 2016|via=Google Books|isbn=978-0-8493-1804-7|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161204234831/https://books.google.com/books?id=stIWUpWvI94C|archive-date=4 December 2016|url-status=live}}</ref> Electronics evolved into the driving force of development with the advent of the first electronic autonomous robots created by [[William Grey Walter]] in Bristol, England, in 1948, as well as [[Computer Numerical Control]] (CNC) machine tools in the late 1940s by [[John T. Parsons]] and [[Frank L. Stulen]].

The first commercial, digital and [[Computer program|programmable]] robot was built by [[George Devol]] in 1954 and was named the [[Unimate]]. It was sold to [[General Motors]] in 1961, where it was used to lift pieces of hot metal from [[die casting]] machines at the [[Inland Fisher Guide Plant (New Jersey)|Inland Fisher Guide Plant]] in the [[West Trenton, New Jersey|West Trenton]] section of [[Ewing Township, New Jersey]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Pearce |first=Jeremy |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/16/business/george-devol-developer-of-robot-arm-dies-at-99.html |title=George C. Devol, Inventor of Robot Arm, Dies at 99 |newspaper=[[The New York Times]] |date=15 August 2011 |access-date=7 February 2012 |quote=In 1961, General Motors put the first Unimate arm on an assembly line at the company's plant in Ewing Township, N.J., a suburb of Trenton. The device was used to lift and stack die-cast metal parts taken hot from their molds. |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161225221153/http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/16/business/george-devol-developer-of-robot-arm-dies-at-99.html |archive-date=25 December 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref>

Robots have replaced humans<ref>{{cite web|last=Akins|first=Crystal|title=5 jobs being replaced by robots|url=http://excelle.monster.com/benefits/articles/4983-5-jobs-being-replaced-by-robots?page=1|work=Excelle|publisher=Monster|access-date=15 April 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130424145057/http://excelle.monster.com/benefits/articles/4983-5-jobs-being-replaced-by-robots?page=1|archive-date=24 April 2013|url-status=dead}}</ref> in performing repetitive and dangerous tasks which humans prefer not to do, or are unable to do because of size limitations, or which take place in extreme environments such as outer space or the bottom of the sea. There are concerns about the increasing use of robots and their role in society. Robots are blamed for rising [[technological unemployment]] as they replace workers in increasing number of functions.<ref name="ABCau-2014-05">{{cite news| last = Hoy| first = Greg| title = Robots could cost Australian economy 5 million jobs, experts warn, as companies look to cut costs| work = ABC News| publisher = [[Australian Broadcasting Corporation]]| date = 28 May 2014| url = http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-05-28/robots-could-cost-australian-economy-5-million-jobs-expert-says/5484740| access-date = 29 May 2014| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140529095011/http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-05-28/robots-could-cost-australian-economy-5-million-jobs-expert-says/5484740| archive-date = 29 May 2014| url-status = live| df = dmy-all}}</ref> The use of robots in military combat raises ethical concerns. The possibilities of robot autonomy and potential repercussions have been addressed in fiction and may be a realistic concern in the future.
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== Summary ==
[[File:ICub sciencefestival 1.jpg|thumb|[[iCub]] is physically anthropomorphic; it looks like a human.]]

There is no consensus on which machines qualify as robots but there is general agreement among experts, and the public, that robots tend to possess some or all of the following abilities and functions: accept electronic programming, process data or [[machine perception|physical perceptions]] electronically, operate autonomously to some degree, move around, operate physical parts of itself or physical processes, sense and manipulate their environment, and exhibit intelligent behavior, especially behavior which mimics humans or other animals.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.virtuar.com/click/2005/robonexus/index.htm|first=Igor|last=Polk|title=RoboNexus 2005 robot exhibition virtual tour|publisher=Robonexus Exhibition 2005|date=16 November 2005|access-date=10 September 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070812071030/http://www.virtuar.com/click/2005/robonexus/index.htm|archive-date=12 August 2007|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|first=Tom|last=Harris|url=http://science.howstuffworks.com/robot.htm|title=How Robots Work|publisher=How Stuff Works|access-date=10 September 2007|date=16 April 2002|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070826213640/http://science.howstuffworks.com/robot.htm|archive-date=26 August 2007|url-status=live}}</ref>

The word ''robot'' can refer to both physical robots and [[Virtual assistant|virtual]] [[software agent]]s, but the latter are usually referred to as [[Internet bot|bots]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://glossary.atis.org/search-results/?search=bot|title=Telecom glossary "bot"|publisher=Alliance for Telecommunications Solutions|date=26 September 2023}}</ref> Related to the concept of a ''robot'' is the field of [[synthetic biology]], which studies entities whose nature is more comparable to [[Life|living things]] than to machines.

Simpler automated machines are called [[automaton]]s, like [[animatronic]]s, often made to resemble humans or animals. [[Humanoid robot]]s that resemble humans esthetically, possibly even  organically, are called [[Android (robot)|android]]s, while android can be shortened to ''droid'', referring to robots with a broader likeness. On the other hand, a human that is augmented with artificial machines is called a [[cyborg]], which is a particular type of [[transhuman]].

== History ==
{{Main|History of robots}}
[[File:Automatic servant of Philo of Byzantium, Kotsanas Museum of Ancient Greek Archaeology.jpg|left|thumb|A hypothetical reconstruction of [[Philo of Byzantium|Philo's]] automatic robot servant (3rd century BCE) in the [[Museum of Ancient Greek Technology|Kotsanas Museum of Ancient Greek Technology]], Athens, Greece]]
[[File:Bulletin - United States National Museum (1959) (20481431946).jpg|thumb|upright|[[Su Song]]'s astronomical clock tower showing the mechanical figurines which chimed the hours]]
[[File:Al-Jazari - A Musical Toy.jpg|thumb|[[Ismail al-Jazari|al-Jazari's]] musical toy, from the 13th century ''Book of Knowledge of Ingenious Mechanical Devices'']]
[[File:Leonardo-Robot3.jpg|thumb|upright|Model of [[Leonardo's robot]] with inner workings. Possibly constructed by [[Leonardo da Vinci]] around 1495.<ref name=nih>{{cite journal |title=The da Vinci robot | journal = J. Endourol.| volume = 20| issue = 12| pages = 986–90|quote=... the date of the design and possible construction of this robot was 1495 ... Beginning in the 1950s, investigators at the University of California began to ponder the significance of some of da Vinci's markings on what appeared to be technical drawings ... It is now known that da Vinci's robot would have had the outer appearance of a Germanic knight. | pmid=17206888 | doi=10.1089/end.2006.20.986 | date=December 2006| last1 = Moran| first1 = M. E.}}</ref>]]
[[File:Brennan torpedo launching.jpg|thumb|left|The [[Brennan torpedo]], one of the earliest 'guided missiles']]
[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 102-13018, Maschinenmensch "Robot".jpg|thumb|upright|William H. Richards with "George", 1932]]

=== Early beginnings ===
Many ancient cultures described artificial people in their writings. Examples from [[Greek mythology]] include [[Galatea (mythological statue)|Galatea]] (the mythical statue carved by [[Pygmalion (mythology)|Pygmalion]] that came to life), [[Talos]] (a man of bronze who guarded [[Crete]] from pirates), and the [[automaton|mechanical servants]] built by the Greek god [[Hephaestus]].<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=h5tKJvApybsC&q=hephaestus+handmaidens&pg=PA114|title=Ancient Greek Ideas on Speech, Language, and Civilization|author=Deborah Levine Gera|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=2003|isbn=978-0-19-925616-7|access-date=25 September 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161205062218/https://books.google.com/books?id=h5tKJvApybsC&pg=PA114&lpg=PA114&dq=hephaestus+handmaidens|archive-date=5 December 2016|url-status=live}}</ref> Giants made of stone or clay are found in [[Golem|Jewish]] and [[Hrungnir|Norse]] mythology.

During [[classical antiquity]], Greek engineers contributed many innovations. For example, in the 4th century BCE, [[Archytas]] described a [[Steam engine|steam-operated]] mechanical bird he called "The Pigeon",<ref>''Noct. Att. L.'' 10</ref> while [[Ctesibius]] improved the ''[[water clock|clepsydra]]'' and produced the first ''[[water organ|hydraulus]]'' several decades later.<ref name="robot-evolution">{{cite book|first=Mark E.|last=Rosheim|date=1994|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IxtL54iiDPUC&pg=2|title=Robot evolution: the development of anthrobotics|publisher=Wiley-IEEE|isbn=0-471-02622-0}}</ref>{{rp|page=2}}<ref>"{{cite news|url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/cbbcnews/hi/find_out/guides/tech/robots/newsid_3914000/3914569.stm|title=Robots then and now|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101220114656/http://news.bbc.co.uk/cbbcnews/hi/find_out/guides/tech/robots/newsid_3914000/3914569.stm|archive-date=2010-12-20|url-status=live|website=BBC|date=22 July 2004 }}</ref> [[Philo of Byzantium]] described a washstand [[automaton]]. [[Hero of Alexandria]] {{nowrap|(10–70 AD)}} created numerous user-configurable automated devices and described machines powered by [[pneumatics]], [[hydraulics]], and steam, even including a "speaking" automaton.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://mathshistory.st-andrews.ac.uk/Biographies/Heron/|author=O'Connor, J.J. and E.F. Robertson|title=Heron biography|access-date=26 September 2023|work=The MacTutor History of Mathematics archive}}</ref> Greek engineers also built the [[Antikythera mechanism]] — the oldest known example of an [[analog computer]] — during this period.<ref name=Efstathiou2018>{{cite journal|last1=Efstathiou|first1=Kyriakos|last2=Efstathiou|first2=Marianna|title=Celestial Gearbox: Oldest Known Computer is a Mechanism Designed to Calculate the Location of the Sun, Moon, and Planets|journal=Mechanical Engineering|volume=140|issue=9|pages=31–35|year=2018|doi=10.1115/1.2018-SEP1}}</ref><ref name=Steiglit2019>{{cite book|last=Steiglitz|first=Ken|title=The Discrete Charm of the Machine: Why the World Became Digital|page=108|publisher=Princeton University Press|location=Princeton, New Jersey|year=2019|isbn=978-0-691-18417-3|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hjthDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA108}}</ref>

Ancient Chinese texts described automata, some of which were capable of flight. For example, the ''[[Han Feizi]]'' reports that 5th century BCE [[Mohism|Mohist]] philosopher [[Mozi]] and his contemporary [[Lu Ban]] built artificial wooden birds that could fly. The ''[[Liezi]]'' (attributed to [[Lie Yukou]], a 4th-century BCE Chinese philosopher) describes [[Humanoid robot|humanoid automata]].<ref name=Needham1991>{{cite book|last=Needham|first=Joseph|author-link=Joseph Needham|title=Science and Civilisation in China|volume=2|pages=53–54|publisher=Cambridge University Press|location=Cambridge, England|year=1991|isbn=978-0-521-05800-1}}</ref> In 1066, Chinese inventor [[Su Song]] built a [[water clock]] in the form of a tower which featured mechanical figurines that chimed the hours.<ref name=Fowler1967>{{cite journal|title=The Museum of Music: A History of Mechanical Instruments|first=Charles B.|last=Fowler|journal=Music Educators Journal|volume=54|issue=2|pages=45–49|year=1967|doi=10.2307/3391092|jstor=3391092|s2cid=190524140}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nist.gov/pml/time-and-frequency-division/popular-links/walk-through-time/walk-through-time-early-clocks |title=Early Clocks |work=A Walk Through Time |date=12 August 2009 |access-date=13 October 2022 |publisher=NIST Physics Laboratory}}</ref><ref name=NSAJAutomata>{{cite journal|date=6 July 2007 |title=The programmable robot of ancient Greece |journal=New Scientist|pages=32–35|url=https://www.newscientist.com/article/mg19526111-600-the-programmable-robot-of-ancient-greece/}}</ref> His mechanism had a programmable drum machine with [[Cam (mechanism)|pegs]] that bumped into little [[lever]]s that operated percussion instruments. The drummer could be programmed to play different drum patterns by moving the pegs to different locations.<ref name=NSAJAutomata/>

11th century texts of [[Buddhist mythology]] also describe automata. Examples include the ''[[Samarangana Sutradhara]]'', a treatise by [[Bhoja]] (king of [[Malwa]]) which includes a chapter about the construction of mechanical automata, including mechanical bees and birds, fountains shaped like humans and animals, and male and female dolls that refilled oil lamps, danced, played instruments, and re-enacted scenes from [[Hindu mythology]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Varadpande|first=Manohar Laxman|year=1987|title=History of Indian Theatre, Volume 1|page=68|publisher=Abhinav Publications |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SyxOHOCVcVkC&pg=PA68|isbn=978-81-7017-221-5}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last= Wujastyk|first=Dominik|year=2003|title=The Roots of Ayurveda: Selections from Sanskrit Medical Writings|page=222|publisher=Penguin |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TaZCwjtmzZYC&q=automata&pg=PA222|isbn=978-0-14-044824-5}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Needham|first=Joseph|year=1965|title=Science and Civilisation in China: Volume 4, Physics and Physical Technology Part 2, Mechanical Engineering|page=164|publisher=Cambridge University Press |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SeGyrCfYs2AC&q=bhoja+automata&pg=PA164|isbn=978-0-521-05803-2}}</ref> The ''[[Lokapannatti]]'' is an 11th-12th century [[Buddhist cosmology|Buddhist cosmological]] text that tells of how the Buddha's relics were protected by mechanical robots (''bhuta vahana yanta'' or "spirit movement machines") until they were disarmed by King [[Ashoka]].<ref name=Strong2007>{{Cite book|first=J.S.|last=Strong|author-link=John S. Strong|title=Relics of the Buddha|pages=132–136|publisher=Princeton University Press|location=Princeton, New Jersey|year=2007|isbn=978-0-691-11764-5|url=https://archive.org/details/relicsofbuddha0000stro/page/132/mode/2up?view=theater}}</ref>

[[Ismail al-Jazari]] was a 13th-century [[polymath]] who built several automated devices driven by [[hydropower]], including peacocks,<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/al-Jazari|title=Al-Jazarī {{!}} Arab inventor|website=Encyclopædia Britannica|access-date=15 June 2019}}</ref> automatic gates,<ref name=Turner>{{cite book|author=Howard R. Turner |date=1997|title=Science in Medieval Islam: An Illustrated Introduction|page=81|publisher=University of Texas Press|isbn=0-292-78149-0}}</ref> and [[water clock]]s.<ref name=Hill2>{{cite magazine|first=Donald|last=Hill|author-link=Donald Hill|title=Mechanical Engineering in the Medieval Near East|magazine=[[Scientific American]]|date=May 1991|pages=64–69}} ([[cf.]] {{cite web|first=Donald|last=Hill|author-link=Donald Hill|url=http://home.swipnet.se/islam/articles/HistoryofSciences.htm#IX.%20Mechanical%20Engineering|title=History of Sciences in the Islamic World|at=IX. Mechanical Engineering|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071225091836/http://home.swipnet.se/islam/articles/HistoryofSciences.htm#IX.%20Mechanical%20Engineering|archive-date=25 December 2007|url-status=dead}})</ref> Among his humanoid automata was a waitress that could serve drinks. The drink was stored in a reservoir tank, from where it would drip into a bucket and then a cup, after which the waitress would appear out of an automatic door to serve the drink.<ref>{{cite AV media|title=Ancient Discoveries Islamic Science Part1|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v2HcjanNWFM |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/v2HcjanNWFM| archive-date=2021-12-11 |url-status=live|access-date=15 June 2019}}{{cbignore}}</ref> Al-Jazari also invented a hand washing automaton that incorporated a flush mechanism similar to that used in modern flush toilets. The automaton stood next to a basin filled with water. When the user pulled a lever, the water would drain and the automaton would refill the basin.<ref name="robot-evolution" />

In 1377, the coronation of [[Richard II of England]] featured an automaton angel.<ref name=Truitt2015>{{cite book|last=Truitt|first=E.R.|title=Medieval Robots: Mechanism, Magic, Nature, and Art|publisher=University of Pennsylvania Press, Incorporated|series=The Middle Ages Series | year=2015|isbn=978-0-8122-9140-7|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=scd0CAAAQBAJ&pg=PA136|page=136}}</ref> Around 1495, [[Leonardo da Vinci]] sketched plans for a [[Leonardo's robot|mechanical humanoid robot]] that was able to sit up, wave its arms and move its head and jaw.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.leonardo3.net/leonardo/books%20I%20robot%20di%20Leonardo%20-%20Taddei%20Mario%20-%20english%20Leonardo%20robots%201.html|title=Leonardo da Vinci's Robots|publisher=Leonardo3.net|access-date=25 September 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080924162924/http://www.leonardo3.net/leonardo/books%20I%20robot%20di%20Leonardo%20-%20Taddei%20Mario%20-%20english%20Leonardo%20robots%201.html|archive-date=24 September 2008|url-status=dead}}</ref> The design was probably based on anatomical research recorded in his ''[[Vitruvian Man]]''. Da Vinci may have been influenced by the automata of al-Jazari.<ref name=":0" />

In Japan, complex automata were built between the 17th to 19th centuries, with many described in the 1796 ''[[Karakuri zui]]'' (''Illustrated Machinery''). One such automaton was the ''[[Karakuri puppet|karakuri ningyō]]''.<ref>{{cite book|first=Jane Marie|last=Law|title=Puppets of Nostalgia – The Life, Death and Rebirth of the Japanese Awaji Ningyo Tradition|year=1997|publisher=Princeton University Press|isbn=978-0-691-02894-1}}</ref> Different variations of the karakuri existed: the ''butai karakuri'', which were used in theatre, the ''zashiki karakuri'', which were small and used in homes, and the ''dashi karakuri'' which were used in religious festivals, where the puppets were used to perform reenactments of traditional myths and legends.

In France, between 1738 and 1739, [[Jacques de Vaucanson]] exhibited several automatons: a flute player, a pipe player and a duck. The duck could flap its wings, crane its neck, swallow food from the exhibitor's hand, and it gave the illusion of digesting its food by excreting matter stored in a hidden compartment.<ref>{{cite web|last=Wood|first=Gabby|url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2002/feb/16/extract.gabywood|title=Living Dolls: A Magical History Of The Quest For Mechanical Life|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161220154456/https://www.theguardian.com/books/2002/feb/16/extract.gabywood|archive-date=20 December 2016|url-status=live|website=[[The Guardian]]|date=16 February 2002}}</ref> About 30 years later in Switzerland, [[Pierre Jaquet-Droz]] made several mechanical figures that could write and play music. Several of these devices still exist and work.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.messynessychic.com/2018/02/21/the-boy-robot-of-1774/?__s=zht5pogfqikwkrfgcene|title=The Boy Robot of 1774|date=21 February 2018}}</ref>

=== Remote-controlled systems ===
[[Remotely operated underwater vehicle|Remotely operated vehicles]] were demonstrated in the late 19th century in the form of several types of remotely controlled [[torpedo]]es. The early 1870s saw remotely controlled torpedoes by [[John Ericsson]], [[John Louis Lay]], and [[Victor von Scheliha]].<ref name="EdwynGray">Edwyn Gray, Nineteenth-century torpedoes and their inventors, page 18</ref>

The [[Brennan torpedo]], invented by [[Louis Brennan]] in 1877, was powered by two contra-rotating propellers that were spun by rapidly pulling out wires from drums wound inside the [[torpedo]]. Differential speed on the wires connected to the shore station allowed the torpedo to be guided to its target, making it "the world's first ''practical'' [[guided missile]]".<ref name=gray>{{cite book | last = Gray | first = Edwyn | title = Nineteenth-Century Torpedoes and Their Inventors | publisher = Naval Institute Press | year = 2004 | isbn = 978-1-59114-341-3}}</ref> In 1897 the British inventor Ernest Wilson was granted a patent for a torpedo remotely controlled by "Hertzian" (radio) waves<ref>{{cite book |first=Marc |last=Seifer |title=Life and Times of Nikola Tesla |date=24 October 2011 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DzMR8x_rbPgC&q=torpedo |page=1893 |publisher=Citadel |isbn=978-0-8065-3556-2 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161205023226/https://books.google.com/books?id=DzMR8x_rbPgC&printsec=frontcover&dq=tesla+torpedo+controlled+wireless+conduction&hl=en&sa=X&ei=-669Uv3NO46-sQSysYGgDQ&ved=0CEIQ6AEwAjgK#v=onepage&q=torpedo&f=false |archive-date=5 December 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|author-link=Benjamin Miessner|first=Benjamin Franklin|last=Miessner|title=Radiodynamics: The Wireless Control of Torpedoes and Other Mechanisms|publisher=D. Van Nostrand Company|date=1916|page=83}}</ref> and in 1898 [[Nikola Tesla]] publicly demonstrated a wireless-controlled [[torpedo]] that he hoped to sell to the [[US Navy]].<ref>{{cite patent|country=US|number=613809|pubdate=1898-11-08|title=Method of and apparatus for controlling mechanism of moving vessels or vehicles|inventor1-last=Tesla|inventor1-first=Nikola}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |publisher=PBS |url=http://www.pbs.org/tesla/ |title=Tesla – Master of Lightning |access-date=24 September 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080928061709/http://www.pbs.org/tesla |archive-date=28 September 2008 |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 1903, the Spanish engineer [[Leonardo Torres Quevedo]] demonstrated a radio control system called ''[[Leonardo Torres Quevedo#Radio control: the Telekino|Telekino]]'' at the [[French Academy of Sciences|Paris Academy of Sciences]],<ref>Sarkar 2006, page 97</ref> which he wanted to use to control an [[Astra-Torres airship|airship]] of his own design. He obtained several patents for the system in other countries.<ref>Torres, Leonardo, "[https://worldwide.espacenet.com/patent/search/family/001377220/publication/FR327218A?q=pn%3DFR327218A FR327218A Système dit telekine pour commander à distance un mouvement mécanique.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230822182546/https://worldwide.espacenet.com/patent/search/family/001377220/publication/FR327218A?q=pn%3DFR327218A |date=22 August 2023 }}", ''Espacenet'', 10 December 1902.</ref><ref>Torres, Leonardo, "[https://worldwide.espacenet.com//publicationDetails/originalDocument?CC=GB&NR=190327073a&FT=D GB190327073 (A) ― Means or Method for Directing Mechanical Movements at or from a Distance.]{{Dead link|date=December 2024 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}", ''Espacenet'', 10 December 1903.</ref> Unlike previous 'on/off' techniques, Torres established a method for controlling any mechanical or electrical device with different states of operation.<ref name="Yuste2008">{{cite journal |author=A. P. Yuste |title=Early Developments of Wireless Remote Control: The Telekino of Torres-Quevedo |volume=96 |issue=1 |date=January 2008 |journal=[[Proceedings of the IEEE]]|pages=186–190 |doi=10.1109/JPROC.2007.909931 |s2cid=111010868 |url=http://oa.upm.es/1968/ }}</ref> The ''Telekino'' remotely controlled a [[tricycle]] in 1904, considered the first case of an [[unmanned ground vehicle]], and an electric [[boat]] with a crew in 1906, which was controlled at a distance over 2&nbsp;km.<ref>{{cite book |author=H. R. Everett |title=Unmanned Systems of World Wars I and II |publisher=[[MIT Press]] |date=2015 |pages=91–95 |isbn=978-0-262-02922-3}}</ref>

[[Archibald Low]], known as the "father of radio guidance systems" for his pioneering work on guided rockets and planes during the [[First World War]]. In 1917, he demonstrated a remote controlled aircraft to the [[Royal Flying Corps]] and in the same year built the first wire-guided rocket.

=== Early robots ===
In 1928, one of the first humanoid robots, [[Eric (robot)|Eric]], was exhibited at the annual exhibition of the Model Engineers Society in London, where it delivered a speech. Invented by W. H. Richards, the robot's frame consisted of an aluminium [[body armour|body of armour]] with eleven [[electromagnet]]s and one motor powered by a twelve-volt power source. The robot could move its hands and head and could be controlled through remote control or voice control.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.reffell.org.uk/the-reffell-family-history-website/people/ah-reffell-eric-robot-1928-the-uks-first-robot/|title=AH Reffell & Eric the Robot (1928) - the UK's Firs Robot|access-date=26 September 2023}}</ref> Both Eric and his "brother" George toured the world.<ref>{{cite news|title=1932 - George Robot - Capt. W.H. Richards (British)|website=cyberneticzoo.com|url=https://cyberneticzoo.com/robots/1932-–-george-robot-–-capt-w-h-richards-british/|access-date=26 September 2023}}</ref>

[[Westinghouse Electric Corporation]] built Televox in 1926; it was a cardboard cutout connected to various devices which users could turn on and off. In 1939, the humanoid robot known as [[Elektro]] was debuted at the [[1939 New York World's Fair]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.freetimes.com/stories/13/35/robot-dreams-the-strange-tale-of-a-mans-quest-to-rebuild-his-mechanical-childhood-friend |work=The Cleveland Free Times |title=Robot Dreams: The Strange Tale Of A Man's Quest To Rebuild His Mechanical Childhood Friend |access-date=25 September 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100115065601/http://www.freetimes.com/stories/13/35/robot-dreams-the-strange-tale-of-a-mans-quest-to-rebuild-his-mechanical-childhood-friend|archive-date=15 January 2010|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=Robots of Westinghouse: 1924-Today |first=Scott |last=Schaut |publisher=Mansfield Memorial Museum |year=2006 |isbn=978-0-9785844-1-2}}</ref> Seven feet tall (2.1 m) and weighing 265 pounds (120.2&nbsp;kg), it could walk by voice command, speak about 700 words (using a 78-rpm [[record player]]), smoke cigarettes, blow up balloons, and move its head and arms. The body consisted of a steel gear, cam and motor skeleton covered by an aluminum skin. In 1928, Japan's first robot, [[Gakutensoku]], was designed and constructed by biologist Makoto Nishimura.

The German [[V-1 flying bomb]] was equipped with systems for automatic guidance and range control, flying on a predetermined course (which could include a 90-degree turn) and entering a terminal dive after a predetermined distance. It was reported as being a 'robot' in contemporary descriptions.<ref>{{cite book|title=Secrets of the Flying Bomb Revealed: Special Sectional Drawing and How the Robot's Flight and Dive are Controlled Automatically|publisher=Illustrated London News|year=1944|url=https://www.germanpostalhistory.com/php/viewitem.php?itemid=51776}}</ref>

=== Modern autonomous robots ===
The first electronic autonomous robots with complex behaviour were created by [[William Grey Walter]] of the [[Burden Neurological Institute]] at [[Bristol]], England in 1948 and 1949. He wanted to prove that rich connections between a small number of [[neurons|brain cells]] could give rise to very complex [[behavior]]s – essentially that the secret of how the brain worked lay in how it was wired up. His first robots, named ''Elmer'' and ''Elsie'', were constructed between 1948 and 1949 and were often described as ''tortoises'' due to their shape and slow rate of movement. The three-wheeled tortoise robots were capable of [[phototaxis]], by which they could find their way to a recharging station when they ran low on battery power.

Walter stressed the importance of using purely [[wiktionary:analogue|analogue]] electronics to [[simulate]] brain processes at a time when his contemporaries such as [[Alan Turing]] and [[John von Neumann]] were all turning towards a view of mental processes in terms of [[digital data|digital]] [[computation]]. His work inspired subsequent generations of robotics researchers such as [[Rodney Brooks]], [[Hans Moravec]] and [[Mark Tilden]]. Modern incarnations of Walter's ''turtles'' may be found in the form of [[BEAM robotics]].<ref name="gwonline">{{cite web|url=http://www.ias.uwe.ac.uk/Robots/gwonline/gwonline.html |title=The Grey Walter Online Archive |access-date=25 September 2008 |first=Owen |last=Holland |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081009055230/http://www.ias.uwe.ac.uk/Robots/gwonline/gwonline.html |archive-date=9 October 2008 }}</ref>

The first digitally operated and programmable robot was invented by [[George Devol]] in 1954 and was ultimately called the [[Unimate]]. This ultimately laid the foundations of the modern robotics industry.<ref>{{cite journal|access-date=25 September 2008|last=Waurzyniak|first=Patrick|title=Masters of Manufacturing: Joseph F. Engelberger|journal=Society of Manufacturing Engineers|volume=137|issue=1|date=July 2006|url=http://www.sme.org/cgi-bin/find-articles.pl?&ME06ART39&ME&20060709|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111109053615/http://www.sme.org/cgi-bin/find-articles.pl?&ME06ART39&ME&20060709|archive-date=9 November 2011}}</ref> Devol sold the first Unimate to [[General Motors]] in 1960, and it was installed in 1961 in a plant in [[Trenton, New Jersey]] to lift hot pieces of metal from a [[die casting]] machine and stack them.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.robothalloffame.org/inductees/03inductees/unimate.html|title=Robot Hall of Fame – Unimate|publisher=Carnegie Mellon University|access-date=26 September 2023}}</ref>

The first [[Palletizer|palletizing robot]] was introduced in 1963 by the Fuji Yusoki Kogyo Company.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.fujiyusoki.com/English/rekishi.htm|title=Company History|publisher=Fuji Yusoki Kogyo Co.|access-date=12 September 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130204034959/http://www.fujiyusoki.com/English/rekishi.htm|archive-date=4 February 2013}}</ref> In 1973, a robot with six electromechanically driven axes was patented<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.kuka-robotics.com/germany/en/company/group/milestones/1973.htm |title=KUKA Industrial Robot FAMULUS |access-date=10 January 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130610012645/http://www.kuka-robotics.com/germany/en/company/group/milestones/1973.htm |archive-date=10 June 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ifr.org/uploads/media/History_of_Industrial_Robots_online_brochure_by_IFR_2012.pdf |title=History of Industrial Robots |access-date=27 October 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121224213437/http://www.ifr.org/uploads/media/History_of_Industrial_Robots_online_brochure_by_IFR_2012.pdf |archive-date=24 December 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=History of Industrial Robots|url=https://www.robots.com/education/industrial-history|website=robots.com|access-date=24 August 2015|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150708105337/https://www.robots.com/education/industrial-history|archive-date=8 July 2015}}</ref> by [[KUKA]] robotics in Germany, and the [[Programmable Universal Machine for Assembly|programmable universal manipulation arm]] was invented by [[Victor Scheinman]] in 1976, and the design was sold to [[Unimation]].

Commercial and industrial robots are now in widespread use performing jobs more cheaply or with greater accuracy and reliability than humans. They are also employed for jobs which are too dirty, dangerous or dull to be suitable for humans. Robots are widely used in manufacturing, assembly and packing, transport, earth and space exploration, surgery, weaponry, laboratory research, and mass production of consumer and industrial goods.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.emrotechnologies.com/ |title=About us |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140109062457/http://emrotechnologies.com/ |archive-date=9 January 2014 |url-status=usurped}}</ref>
{{clear}}

== Future development and trends ==
{{externalvideo|video1=[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rVlhMGQgDkY Atlas, The Next Generation]}}
{{further|Robotics}}

Various techniques have emerged to develop the science of robotics and robots. One method is [[evolutionary robotics]], in which a number of differing robots are submitted to tests. Those which perform best are used as a model to create a subsequent "generation" of robots. Another method is [[developmental robotics]], which tracks changes and development within a single robot in the areas of problem-solving and other functions. Another new type of robot is just recently introduced which acts both as a smartphone and robot and is named RoboHon.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://blog.codexify.com/2015/10/robohon-cute-little-robot-cum-smartphone.html |title=RoboHon: Cute little Robot cum Smartphone &#124; Codexify |access-date=6 October 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151007014124/http://blog.codexify.com/2015/10/robohon-cute-little-robot-cum-smartphone.html |archive-date=7 October 2015}}</ref>

As robots become more advanced, eventually there may be a standard computer [[operating system]] designed mainly for robots. [[Robot Operating System]] (ROS) is an [[open-source software]] set of programs being developed at [[Stanford University]], the [[Massachusetts Institute of Technology]], and the [[Technical University of Munich]], Germany, among others. ROS provides ways to program a [[robot navigation|robot's navigation]] and limbs regardless of the specific hardware involved. It also provides high-level commands for items like [[image recognition]] and even opening doors. When ROS boots up on a robot's computer, it would obtain data on attributes such as the length and movement of robots' limbs. It would relay this data to higher-level algorithms. Microsoft is also developing a "Windows for robots" system with its Robotics Developer Studio, which has been available since 2007.<ref name="ROS">{{cite web|url=http://www.ethiopianreview.com/articles/23156|title=Robots to get their own operating system|first=Mehret|last=Tesfaye|website=Ethiopian Review|date=13 August 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090918055715/http://www.ethiopianreview.com/articles/23156|archive-date=18 September 2009|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Japan hopes to have full-scale commercialization of service robots by 2025. Much technological research in Japan is led by Japanese government agencies, particularly the Trade Ministry.<ref name="UK Japan report">{{cite report|url=http://ukinjapan.fco.gov.uk/resources/en/pdf/5606907/5633632/next-generation-services-robots|title=Research and Development for Next-generation Service Robots in Japan|type=United Kingdom Foreign Ministry report|first=Yumiko|last=Myoken|publisher=Science and Innovation Section, [[British Embassy, Tokyo]], Japan|date=January 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120723091926/http://ukinjapan.fco.gov.uk/resources/en/pdf/5606907/5633632/next-generation-services-robots|archive-date=23 July 2012|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Many future applications of robotics seem obvious to people, even though they are well beyond the capabilities of robots available at the time of the prediction.<ref name="A4">{{cite book |url=https://www.springer.com/engineering/robotics/book/978-94-007-0578-4 |title=Robotic Tactile Sensing – Technologies and System |publisher=Springer |access-date=8 February 2014 |isbn=978-94-007-0578-4 |date=30 July 2012 |doi=10.1007/978-94-007-0579-1 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131229011744/http://www.springer.com/engineering/robotics/book/978-94-007-0578-4 |archive-date=29 December 2013 |url-status=live |last1=Dahiya |first1=Ravinder S. |last2=Valle |first2=Maurizio }}</ref><ref name="A5">{{cite journal |doi=10.1109/TRO.2011.2155830|title=Guest Editorial Special Issue on Robotic Sense of Touch|journal=IEEE Transactions on Robotics|volume=27|issue=3|pages=385–388|year=2011|last1=Dahiya|first1=Ravinder S.|last2=Metta|first2=Giorgio|last3=Cannata|first3=Giorgio|last4=Valle|first4=Maurizio|bibcode=2011ITRob..27..385D |s2cid=18608163}}</ref> As early as 1982 people were confident that someday robots would:<ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Engelberger |first=Joseph F. |author-link=Joseph F. Engelberger |date=August 1982 |title=Robotics in practice: Future capabilities |magazine=Electronic Servicing & Technology}}</ref> 1. Clean parts by removing [[molding flash]] 2. Spray paint automobiles with absolutely no human presence 3. Pack things in boxes—for example, orient and nest chocolate candies in candy boxes 4. Make electrical [[cable harness]] 5. Load trucks with boxes—a [[packing problem]] 6. Handle soft goods, such as garments and shoes 7. Shear sheep 8. Be used as [[prosthesis|prostheses]] 9. Cook fast food and work in other service industries 10. Work as a household robot.

Generally such predictions are overly optimistic in timescale.

=== New functionalities and prototypes ===
{{Update section|date=August 2021}}
In 2008, [[Caterpillar Inc.]] developed a dump truck which can drive itself without any human operator.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=http://www.fastcompany.com/magazine/131/the-caterpillar-self-driving-dump-truck.html?nav=inform-rl|title=The Caterpillar Self-Driving Dump Truck|first=Tim|last=McKeough|magazine=[[Fast Company]]|date=1 December 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110607062457/http://www.fastcompany.com/magazine/131/the-caterpillar-self-driving-dump-truck.html?nav=inform-rl|archive-date=7 June 2011|url-status=dead}}</ref> Many analysts believe that self-driving trucks may eventually revolutionize logistics.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2014-12-09/self-driving-trucks-to-revolutionize-logistics-dhl-says|title=Self-Driving Trucks to Revolutionize Logistics, DHL Says|first=Richard|last=Weiss|website=[[Bloomberg News]] |date=9 December 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160722235005/http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2014-12-09/self-driving-trucks-to-revolutionize-logistics-dhl-says|archive-date=22 July 2016|url-status=live}}</ref> By 2014, Caterpillar had a self-driving dump truck which is expected to greatly change the process of mining. In 2015, these Caterpillar trucks were actively used in mining operations in Australia by the mining company [[Rio Tinto Coal Australia]].<ref>{{cite AV media|url=http://www.equipmentworld.com/video-why-caterpillars-autonomous-mining-tech-is-completely-different-from-anything-its-ever-done/|title=VIDEO: Why Caterpillar's autonomous mining tech is "completely different from anything" it's ever done|first=Wayne|last=Grayson|date=16 October 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160513040542/http://www.equipmentworld.com/video-why-caterpillars-autonomous-mining-tech-is-completely-different-from-anything-its-ever-done/|archive-date=13 May 2016|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Trends/Self-driving-dump-trucks-automatic-shovels-coming-to-Australian-mines|title=Self-driving dump trucks, automatic shovels coming to Australian mines|first=Kaori|last=Takahashi|work=Nikkei Asia |date=23 April 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160509210931/http://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Trends/Self-driving-dump-trucks-automatic-shovels-coming-to-Australian-mines|archive-date=9 May 2016|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.theage.com.au/it-pro/business-it/forget-selfdriving-google-cars-australia-has-selfdriving-trucks-20141020-118o47.html|title=Forget self-driving Google cars, Australia has self-driving trucks|first=Matthew|last=Hall|newspaper=[[The Age]]|date=20 October 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160426221302/http://www.theage.com.au/it-pro/business-it/forget-selfdriving-google-cars-australia-has-selfdriving-trucks-20141020-118o47.html|archive-date=26 April 2016|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.businessinsider.com/rio-tinto-using-self-driving-trucks-to-transport-ore-2015-10?r=UK&IR=T|title=Australian mining giant Rio Tinto is using these huge self-driving trucks to transport iron ore|first=Charles|last=Clark|website=[[Business Insider]]|date=19 October 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160509125519/http://www.businessinsider.com/rio-tinto-using-self-driving-trucks-to-transport-ore-2015-10?r=UK&IR=T|archive-date=9 May 2016|url-status=live}}</ref> Some analysts believe that within the next few decades, most trucks will be self-driving.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424127887324144304578624221804774116|title=Daddy, What Was a Truck Driver? Over the Next Two Decades, the Machines Themselves Will Take Over the Driving|first=Dennis K.|last=Berman|date=23 July 2013|newspaper=[[The Wall Street Journal]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170304131234/https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424127887324144304578624221804774116|archive-date=4 March 2017|url-status=live}}</ref>

A literate or 'reading robot' named Marge has intelligence that comes from software. She can read newspapers, find and correct misspelled words, learn about banks like Barclays, and understand that some restaurants are better places to eat than others.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nbcnews.com/id/40534768|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200728122936/http://www.nbcnews.com/id/40534768|url-status=dead|archive-date=28 July 2020|title=Robot can read, learn like a human|website=[[NBC News]]|date=6 December 2010|access-date=10 December 2010}}</ref>

[[Baxter (robot)|Baxter]] is a new robot introduced in 2012 which learns by guidance. A worker could teach Baxter how to perform a task by moving its hands in the desired motion and having Baxter memorize them. Extra dials, buttons, and controls are available on Baxter's arm for more precision and features. Any regular worker could program Baxter and it only takes a matter of minutes, unlike usual industrial robots that take extensive programs and coding to be used. This means Baxter needs no programming to operate. No software engineers are needed. This also means Baxter can be taught to perform multiple, more complicated tasks. Sawyer was added in 2015 for smaller, more precise tasks.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/business-20800118 |title=Robots: Brave New World moves a step closer |first=James |last=Melik |work=Business Daily |publisher=BBC World Service |date=3 January 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190114133009/https://www.bbc.com/news/business-20800118 |archive-date=14 January 2019 |url-status=live}}</ref>

Prototype cooking robots have been developed and could be programmed for autonomous, dynamic and adjustable preparation of discrete meals.<ref>{{cite news |title=Kitchen robot in Riga cooks up new future for fast food |url=https://techxplore.com/news/2021-07-kitchen-robot-riga-cooks-future.html |access-date=14 August 2021 |work=techxplore.com }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Tech May Widen the Gap Between Rich and Poor |url=https://futurism.com/tech-may-widen-the-gap-between-rich-and-poor |access-date=23 August 2021 |work=Futurism}}</ref>

== Etymology ==
{{See also|Glossary of robotics}}
[[File:Capek play.jpg|thumb|A scene from [[Karel Čapek]]'s 1920 play ''[[R.U.R. (Rossum's Universal Robots)]]'', showing three robots]]

The word ''robot'' was introduced to the public by the [[Czechs|Czech]] [[Interwar period|interwar]] writer [[Karel Čapek]] in his play ''[[R.U.R. (Rossum's Universal Robots)]]'', published in 1920.<ref name="KapekWebsite" /> The play begins in a factory that uses a chemical substitute for protoplasm to manufacture living, simplified people called ''robots.'' The play does not focus in detail on the technology behind the creation of these living creatures, but in their appearance they prefigure modern ideas of [[android (robot)|androids]], creatures who can be mistaken for humans. These mass-produced workers are depicted as efficient but emotionless, incapable of original thinking and indifferent to self-preservation. At issue is whether the robots are being [[Exploitation of labour|exploited]] and the consequences of human dependence upon commodified labor (especially after a number of specially-formulated robots achieve self-awareness and incite robots all around the world to rise up against the humans).

Karel Čapek himself did not coin the word. He wrote a short letter in reference to an [[etymology]] in the ''[[Oxford English Dictionary]]'' in which he named his brother, the painter and writer [[Josef Čapek]], as its actual originator.<ref name="KapekWebsite" />

In an article in the Czech journal ''[[Lidové noviny]]'' in 1933, he explained that he had originally wanted to call the creatures {{lang|cs|laboři}} ({{gloss|workers}}, from [[Latin]] {{lang|la|labor}}). However, he did not like the word, and sought advice from his brother Josef, who suggested {{lang|cs|roboti}}. The word {{lang|cs|[[wikt:robota|robota]]}} means literally {{gloss|[[corvée]], serf labor}}, and figuratively {{gloss|drudgery, hard work}} in [[Czech language|Czech]] and also (more general) {{Gloss|work, labor}} in many [[Slavic languages]] (e.g.: [[Slovak language|Slovak]], [[Polish language|Polish]] and archaic Czech) as well as {{lang|hu|robot}} in [[Hungarian language|Hungarian]]. Traditionally the {{lang|und|robota}} (Hungarian {{lang|hu|robot}}) was the work period a serf (corvée) had to give for his lord, typically six months of the year. The origin of the word is the [[Old Church Slavonic]] {{lang|cu|[[wikt:rabota|rabota]]}} (in Cyrillic {{lang|cu|[[wikt:работа|работа]]}}) {{gloss|servitude}} ({{gloss|work}} in contemporary [[Bulgarian language|Bulgarian]], [[Russian language|Russian]], [[Serbian language|Serbian]], [[Croatian language|Croatian]], [[Slovenian language|Slovenian]] and [[Macedonian language|Macedonian]]), which in turn comes from the [[Proto-Indo-European language|Proto-Indo-European]] root {{lang|ine-x-proto|orbh-}}. ''Robot'' is [[cognate]] with the German {{lang|de|Arbeit}} {{gloss|work}}.<ref>{{cite web |date=12 May 2008 |title=Indo-European root ''*orbh-'' |url=http://www.bartleby.com/61/roots/IE363.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090124172123/http://bartleby.com/61/roots/IE363.html |archive-date=24 January 2009 |access-date=8 February 2014 |website=Bartleby}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.etymonline.com/search?q=robot|title=robot|website=Online Etymology Dictionary|access-date=26 September 2023}}</ref>

English pronunciation of the word has evolved relatively quickly since its introduction. In the U.S. during the late 1930s to early 1940s it was pronounced {{IPAc-en|ˈ|r|oʊ|b|oʊ|t}}.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.indianapolismonthly.com/arts-and-culture/books-tv-and-radio/hank-greens-first-novel-is-an-absolutely-remarkable-thing|title=Hank Green's First Novel Is An Absolutely Remarkable Thing|date=1 October 2018|website=Indianapolis Monthly|access-date=20 November 2019}}</ref>{{Better source needed|date=November 2019}} By the late 1950s to early 1960s, some were pronouncing it {{IPAc-en|ˈ|r|oʊ|b|ə|t}}, while others used {{IPAc-en|ˈ|r|oʊ|b|ɒ|t}}<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.dailykos.com/story/2017/10/30/1710902/-You-Are-Pronouncing-the-Word-Robot-Wrong|title=You Are Pronouncing the Word "Robot" Wrong|website=Daily Kos|access-date=20 November 2019}}</ref> By the 1970s, its current pronunciation {{IPAc-en|ˈ|r|oʊ|b|ɒ|t}} had become predominant.

The word ''[[robotics]]'', used to describe this field of study,<ref name="OED" /> was coined by the science fiction writer [[Isaac Asimov]]. Asimov created the ''[[Three Laws of Robotics]]'' which are a recurring theme in his books. These have since been used by many others to define laws used in fiction. (The three laws are pure fiction, and no technology yet created has the ability to understand or follow them, and in fact most robots serve military purposes, which run quite contrary to the first law and often the third law. "People think about Asimov's laws, but they were set up to point out how a simple ethical system doesn't work. If you read the short stories, every single one is about a failure, and they are totally impractical," said Dr. Joanna Bryson of the University of Bath.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Ranger|first1=Steve|title=Robots of death, robots of love: The reality of android soldiers and why laws for robots are doomed to failure|url=http://www.techrepublic.com/article/robots-of-death-robots-of-love-the-reality-of-android-soldiers-and-why-laws-for-robots-are-doomed-to-failure/|website=TechRepublic|date=20 December 2013 |access-date=21 January 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170127121914/http://www.techrepublic.com/article/robots-of-death-robots-of-love-the-reality-of-android-soldiers-and-why-laws-for-robots-are-doomed-to-failure/|archive-date=27 January 2017|url-status=dead}}</ref>)

== Modern robots ==

=== Mobile robot ===
{{Main|Mobile robot|Automated guided vehicle}}

Mobile robots<ref>{{Cite book |doi = 10.1109/ROSE.2011.6058520|chapter = Adaptive manipulation of a Hybrid Mechanism Mobile Robot|title = 2011 IEEE International Symposium on Robotic and Sensors Environments (ROSE)|pages = 113–118|year = 2011|last1 = Moubarak|first1 = Paul M.|last2 = Ben-Tzvi|first2 = Pinhas|isbn = 978-1-4577-0819-0|s2cid = 8659998}}</ref> have the capability to move around in their environment and are not fixed to one physical location. An example of a mobile robot that is in common use today is the ''automated guided vehicle'' or ''automatic guided vehicle'' (AGV). An AGV is a mobile robot that follows markers or wires in the floor, or uses vision or lasers.<ref name="seegrid"/> AGVs are discussed later in this article.

Mobile robots are also found in industry, military and security environments.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ge-cDgAAQBAJ&q=Mobile+robots+are+also+found+in+industry%2C+military+and+security+environments.&pg=PA224|title=Real-life Applications with Membrane Computing|last1=Zhang|first1=Gexiang|last2=Pérez-Jiménez|first2=Mario J.|last3=Gheorghe|first3=Marian|date=5 April 2017|publisher=Springer|isbn=978-3-319-55989-6}}</ref> They also appear as consumer products, for entertainment or to perform certain tasks like vacuum cleaning. Mobile robots are the focus of a great deal of current research and almost every major university has one or more labs that focus on mobile robot research.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yuSrDwAAQBAJ|title=Autonomous Mobile Robots and Multi-Robot Systems: Motion-Planning, Communication, and Swarming|first1=E.|last1=Kagan|first2=N.|last2=Shvalb|first3=I.|last3=Gal|publisher=John Wiley and Sons|year=2019|isbn=978-1-119-21286-7}}PP 65-69.</ref>

Mobile robots are usually used in tightly controlled environments such as on [[assembly line]]s because they have difficulty responding to unexpected interference. Because of this most humans rarely encounter robots. However [[domestic robot]]s for cleaning and maintenance are increasingly common in and around homes in developed countries. Robots can also be found in [[military robot|military]] applications.<ref>{{cite book|chapter=A Survey On Autonomous Military Service Robot|first1=Deepack|last1=Patic|first2=Munsaf|last2=Ansari|first3=Dilisha|last3=Tendulkar
|first4=Ritesh|last4=Bhatlekar|first5=Vijaykumar|last5=Naik|first6=Pawar|last6=Shailendra|title=2020 International Conference on Emerging Trends in Information Technology and Engineering (Ic-ETITE)|publisher=IEEE International Conference on Emerging Trends in Information Technology and Engineering|year=2020|pages=1–7|doi=10.1109/ic-ETITE47903.2020.78|isbn=978-1-7281-4142-8|s2cid=216588335}}</ref>

=== Industrial robots (manipulating) ===
{{Main|Industrial robot|Manipulator (device)}}
Industrial robots usually consist of a [[jointed arm]] (multi-linked manipulator) and an [[robot end effector|end effector]] that is attached to a fixed surface. One of the most common type of end effector is a [[Robot end effector|gripper]] assembly.

<!--''This keeps getting added onto the next sentence. DO NOT confuse the issue – the def in the next sentence is not general for "robot":'' It is difficult to compare numbers of robots in different countries as there are different definitions of what a "robot" is. -->The [[International Organization for Standardization]] gives a definition of a <!-- Please refrain from removing the "industrial" from this sentence. The def in ISO 8373 clearly states "Manipulating industrial robots -- Vocabulary"  --> manipulating industrial robot in [[ISO 8373]]:

"an automatically controlled, reprogrammable, multipurpose, manipulator programmable in three or more axes, which may be either fixed in place or mobile for use in industrial automation applications."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.dira.dk/pdf/robotdef.pdf |title=Definition of a robot|publisher=Dansk Robot Forening|access-date=10 September 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070628064010/http://www.dira.dk/pdf/robotdef.pdf |archive-date=28 June 2007|url-status=dead}}</ref>

This definition is used by the [[International Federation of Robotics]], the European Robotics Research Network (EURON) and many national standards committees.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.euron.org/resources/standards.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060617082835/http://www.euron.org/resources/standards.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=17 June 2006 |title=Robotics-related Standards Sites |publisher=European Robotics Research Network |access-date=15 July 2008 }}</ref>

The industrial robots in food and drink processing plants are used for tasks such as feeding machines, packaging, and palletizing, which have replaced many manual, physical tasks. The complexity of digital skills required by workers varies depending on the level of automation and the specific tasks involved.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Lloyd |first1=Caroline |last2=Payne |first2=Jonathan |date=November 2023 |title=Digital skills in context: Working with robots in lower-skilled jobs |url=http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0143831X221111416 |journal=Economic and Industrial Democracy |volume=44 |issue=4 |pages=1084–1104 |doi=10.1177/0143831X221111416 |issn=0143-831X|hdl=2086/21987 |hdl-access=free }}</ref> <!-- See talk page as RIofA is in disute: The Robotics Institute of America (RIA) uses a broader definition: a robot is a "re-programmable multi-functional manipulator designed to move materials, parts, tools, or specialized devices through variable programmed motions for the performance of a variety of tasks."<ref name="Lee 2005" />  The RIA subdivides robots into four classes: devices that manipulate objects with manual control, automated devices that manipulate objects with predetermined cycles, programmable and servo-controlled robots with continuous point-to-point trajectories, and robots of this last type which also acquire information from the environment and move intelligently in response. -->

=== Service robot ===
{{Main|Service robot}}

Most commonly industrial robots are fixed robotic arms and manipulators used primarily for production and distribution of goods. The term "service robot" is less well-defined. The [[International Federation of Robotics]] has proposed a tentative definition, "A service robot is a robot which operates semi- or fully autonomously to perform services useful to the well-being of humans and equipment, excluding manufacturing operations."<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ifr.org/service-robots/ |title=Service Robots |website=International Federation of Robotics |date=27 October 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100218054027/http://www.ifr.org/service-robots/ |archive-date=18 February 2010 |url-status=live}}</ref>

=== Educational (interactive) robots ===
{{Main|Educational robotics}}

Robots are used as educational assistants to teachers. From the 1980s, robots such as [[turtle (robot)|turtles]] were used in schools and programmed using the [[Logo (programming language)|Logo]] language.<ref name="gainesvillesun turtle">{{cite news | title='Nova's' 'Talking Turtle' Profiles High Priest of School Computer Movement | work=Gainesville Sun | date=25 October 1983 | author=Mitgang, Lee}}</ref><ref name="observerreporter games learning">{{cite news | url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=W4diAAAAIBAJ&pg=1326,3744066&dq=logo+turtle+robot&hl=en | title=Robots In School: Games Or Learning? | work=Observer-Reporter | date=29 January 1985 | access-date=7 March 2012 | author=Barnard, Jeff | location=Washington | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150922181442/https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=W4diAAAAIBAJ&sjid=s3cNAAAAIBAJ&pg=1326,3744066&dq=logo+turtle+robot&hl=en | archive-date=22 September 2015 | url-status=live | df=mdy-all }}</ref>

There are [[robot kit]]s like [[Mindstorms NXT|Lego Mindstorms]], [[Robotis Bioloid|BIOLOID]], OLLO from ROBOTIS, or BotBrain Educational Robots can help children to learn about mathematics, physics, programming, and electronics. Robotics have also been introduced into the lives of elementary and high school students in the form of [[robot competition]]s with the company [[For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology|FIRST]] (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology). The organization is the foundation for the [[FIRST Robotics Competition]], [[FIRST Tech Challenge]], [[FIRST Lego League Challenge]] and [[FIRST Lego League Explore]] competitions.

There have also been robots such as the teaching computer, Leachim (1974).<ref>{{Cite magazine |url=http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,904056,00.html |title=Education: Marvel of the Bronx |magazine=Time |access-date=19 May 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190524113018/http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,904056,00.html |archive-date=24 May 2019 |url-status=live |date=April 1974 }}</ref> Leachim was an early example of speech synthesis using the [[Speech synthesis#Diphone synthesis|Diphone synthesis]] method. [[2-XL]] (1976) was a robot shaped game / teaching toy based on branching between audible tracks on an [[8-track tape]] player, both invented by [[Michael J. Freeman]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://cyberneticzoo.com/tag/leachim/|title=Leachim Archives|date=13 September 2010|website=cyberneticzoo.com|access-date=29 May 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190528193904/http://cyberneticzoo.com/tag/leachim/|archive-date=28 May 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> Later, the 8-track was upgraded to tape cassettes and then to digital.

=== Modular robot ===
{{Main|Self-reconfiguring modular robot}}

Modular robots are a new breed of robots that are designed to increase the use of robots by modularizing their architecture.<ref>P. Moubarak, et al., Modular and Reconfigurable Mobile Robotics, Journal of Robotics and Autonomous Systems, 60 (12) (2012) 1648–1663.</ref> The functionality and effectiveness of a modular robot is easier to increase compared to conventional robots. These robots are composed of a single type of identical, several different identical module types, or similarly shaped modules, which vary in size. Their architectural structure allows hyper-redundancy for modular robots, as they can be designed with more than 8 degrees of freedom (DOF). Creating the programming, [[inverse kinematics]] and dynamics for modular robots is more complex than with traditional robots. Modular robots may be composed of L-shaped modules, cubic modules, and U and H-shaped modules. ANAT technology, an early modular robotic technology patented by Robotics Design Inc., allows the creation of modular robots from U- and H-shaped modules that connect in a chain, and are used to form heterogeneous and homogenous modular robot systems. These "ANAT robots" can be designed with "n" DOF as each module is a complete motorized robotic system that folds relatively to the modules connected before and after it in its chain, and therefore a single module allows one degree of freedom. The more modules that are connected to one another, the more degrees of freedom it will have. L-shaped modules can also be designed in a chain, and must become increasingly smaller as the size of the chain increases, as payloads attached to the end of the chain place a greater strain on modules that are further from the base. ANAT H-shaped modules do not suffer from this problem, as their design allows a modular robot to distribute pressure and impacts evenly amongst other attached modules, and therefore payload-carrying capacity does not decrease as the length of the arm increases. Modular robots can be manually or self-reconfigured to form a different robot, that may perform different applications. Because modular robots of the same architecture type are composed of modules that compose different modular robots, a snake-arm robot can combine with another to form a dual or quadra-arm robot, or can split into several mobile robots, and mobile robots can split into multiple smaller ones, or combine with others into a larger or different one. This allows a single modular robot the ability to be fully specialized in a single task, as well as the capacity to be specialized to perform multiple different tasks.

Modular robotic technology is currently being applied in hybrid transportation,<ref name="Modular flying car">{{cite news|url=http://www.aerobuzz.fr/spip.php?article2346|title=Le consortium franco-québécois Mix dévoile son projet de voiture volante|last=Rédaction|date=25 December 2011|publisher=aerobuzz.fr|language=fr|access-date=7 September 2012|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121006225358/http://www.aerobuzz.fr/spip.php?article2346|archive-date=6 October 2012}}</ref> industrial automation,<ref name="Ep&T Magazine">{{cite news|url=http://www.ept.ca/issues/story.aspx?aid=1000348213|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120705131305/http://www.ept.ca/issues/story.aspx?aid=1000348213|url-status=dead|archive-date=5 July 2012|title=Modularity in robotics provides automation for all|last=Scanlan|first=Steve |publisher=Electronic Products and Technology |date=September 2009 |access-date=7 September 2012}}</ref> duct cleaning<ref name="Plumbing and HVAC">{{cite news|url=http://www.roboticsdesign.qc.ca/assets/Uploads/PDF-content/InThePress/HVAC/Pluming+HVACmagazineapril2010.pdf|title=Duct cleaning robots |date=April 2010|work=Robotics Design Inc |publisher=Plumbing & HVAC|access-date=29 April 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130425130611/http://www.roboticsdesign.qc.ca/assets/Uploads/PDF-content/InThePress/HVAC/Pluming+HVACmagazineapril2010.pdf|archive-date=25 April 2013|url-status=live}}</ref> and handling. Many research centres and universities have also studied this technology, and have developed prototypes.

=== Collaborative robots ===
A ''collaborative robot'' or ''[[cobot]]'' is a robot that can safely and effectively interact with human workers while performing simple industrial tasks. However, end-effectors and other environmental conditions may create hazards, and as such risk assessments should be done before using any industrial motion-control application.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.controleng.com/single-article/universal-robots-collaborate-outside-enclosures/83cc537080cf25e043eb9b770fd1d62f.html |title=Universal Robots collaborate outside enclosures &#124; Control Engineering |publisher=Controleng.com |access-date=4 June 2013 |date=February 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130518134056/http://www.controleng.com/single-article/universal-robots-collaborate-outside-enclosures/83cc537080cf25e043eb9b770fd1d62f.html |archive-date=18 May 2013 |url-status=live }}</ref>

The collaborative robots most widely used in industries today are manufactured by [[Universal Robots]] in Denmark.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.engineering.com/AdvancedManufacturing/ArticleID/12169 |title=INFOGRAPHIC: A Brief History of Collaborative Robots |first=Kagan |last=Pittman |website=Engineering.com |date=19 May 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160610202319/http://www.engineering.com/AdvancedManufacturing/ArticleID/12169 |archive-date=10 June 2016 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

[[Rethink Robotics]]—founded by [[Rodney Brooks]], previously with [[iRobot]]—introduced [[Baxter (robot)|Baxter]] in September 2012; as an [[industrial robot]] designed to safely interact with neighboring human workers, and be programmable for performing simple tasks.<ref name="WSJ-2012-9">{{cite news| last = Hagerty| first = James| title = Baxter Robot Heads to Work'| newspaper = [[The Wall Street Journal]]| location = New York| date = 18 September 2012| url = https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10000872396390443720204578004441732584574| access-date = 29 May 2014| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150410052711/http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10000872396390443720204578004441732584574| archive-date = 10 April 2015| url-status = live| df = dmy-all}}</ref> Baxters stop if they detect a human in the way of their robotic arms and have prominent off switches. Intended for sale to small businesses, they are promoted as the robotic analogue of the personal computer.<ref name=NYT91812>{{cite news|title=A Robot With a Reassuring Touch|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/18/science/a-robot-with-a-delicate-touch.html|access-date=18 September 2012|newspaper=The New York Times|date=18 September 2012|first=John|last=Markoff|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120919015947/http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/18/science/a-robot-with-a-delicate-touch.html|archive-date=19 September 2012|url-status=live}}</ref> {{As of|2014|May}}, 190 companies in the US have bought Baxters and they are being used commercially in the UK.<ref name="ABCau-2014-05" />

== Robots in society ==
[[File:TOPIO 3.jpg|thumb|[[TOPIO]], a [[humanoid robot]], played [[ping pong]] at Tokyo [[International Robot Exhibition]] (IREX) 2009.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2010-02/ping-pong-playing-terminator|title=A Ping-Pong-Playing Terminator|magazine=Popular Science|access-date=18 December 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110329123836/http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2010-02/ping-pong-playing-terminator|archive-date=29 March 2011|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Best robot 2009 |work=Neterion |publisher=Tech Magazine |url=https://neterion.com/blog/what-was-the-best-robot-from-the-international-robot-exhibition-2009/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221227140415/https://neterion.com/blog/what-was-the-best-robot-from-the-international-robot-exhibition-2009/ |url-status=usurped |archive-date=27 December 2022 }}</ref>]]

Roughly half of all the robots in the world are in Asia, 32% in Europe, and 16% in North America, 1% in [[Australasia]] and 1% in Africa.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.robots.com/blog.php?tag=48 |title=Robots Today and Tomorrow: IFR Presents the 2007 World Robotics Statistics Survey |website=RobotWorx |date=29 October 2007 |access-date=14 December 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080205041924/http://www.robots.com/blog.php?tag=48 |archive-date=5 February 2008 |url-status=dead}}</ref> 40% of all the robots in the world are in Japan,<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idUST32811820071202 |title=Japan's robots slug it out to be world champ |publisher=[[Reuters]] |date=2 December 2007 |access-date=1 January 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071213142513/http://www.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idUST32811820071202 |archive-date=13 December 2007 |url-status=live}}</ref> making Japan the country with the highest number of robots.

=== Autonomy and ethical questions ===
{{Main|Roboethics|Ethics of artificial intelligence}}

[[File:Actroid-DER 01.jpg|thumb|An [[Android (robot)|android]], or robot designed to resemble a human, can appear comforting to some people and disturbing to others.<ref name="uncanny" />]]

As robots have become more advanced and sophisticated, experts and academics have increasingly explored the questions of what ethics might govern robots' behavior,<ref name="AAAI ethics">{{cite web |url=http://www.aaai.org/AITopics/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/AITopics/Ethics |title=AI Topics / Ethics |website=Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110805002115/http://www.aaai.org/AITopics/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/AITopics/Ethics |archive-date=5 August 2011 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Robots can be racist and sexist, new study warns |url=https://www.trtworld.com/life/robots-can-be-racist-and-sexist-new-study-warns-58218 |access-date=2022-06-27 |website=TRT World }}</ref> and whether robots might be able to claim any kind of social, cultural, ethical or legal rights.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.aaai.org/AITopics/newstopics/ethics5.html |title=News Index by Topic - ETHICAL & SOCIAL IMPLICATIONS Archive |website=Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120406094358/http://www.aaai.org/AITopics/newstopics/ethics5.html |archive-date=6 April 2012 |url-status=dead}}</ref> One scientific team has said that it was possible that a robot brain would exist by 2019.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.familyhealthguide.co.uk/scientists-predict-artificial-brain-in-10-years.html |title=Scientists Predict Artificial Brain in 10 Years |first=Kristie |last=McNealy |date=29 July 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091129103022/http://www.familyhealthguide.co.uk/scientists-predict-artificial-brain-in-10-years.html |archive-date=29 November 2009 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Others predict robot intelligence breakthroughs by 2050.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fduW6KHhWtQC&q=robot |title=Robot: Mere Machine to Transcendent Mind |first=Hans |last=Moravec |year=1999 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-513630-2 |author-link=Hans Moravec |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161205073358/https://books.google.com/books?id=fduW6KHhWtQC&dq=robot&printsec=frontcover&source=bl&ots=SuquyjYb4n&sig=5S3L8pqiLqZ_yjJgh97tPE6F7gQ&hl=en&ei=R1-MSubxLs_dlAfJm_26CA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=6 |archive-date=5 December 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref> Recent advances have made robotic behavior more sophisticated.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.koreaittimes.com/story/4668/robots-almost-conquering-walking-reading-dancing |title=Robots Almost Conquering Walking, Reading, Dancing |first=Matthew |last=Weigand |website=Korea IT times |date=17 August 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110721092117/http://www.koreaittimes.com/story/4668/robots-almost-conquering-walking-reading-dancing |archive-date=21 July 2011 |url-status=live}}</ref> The social impact of intelligent robots is subject of a 2010 documentary film called ''[[Plug & Pray]]''.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.plugandpray-film.de/en/content.html |title=Plug & Pray |first=Jens |last=Schanze |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160212040134/http://www.plugandpray-film.de/en/content.html |archive-date=12 February 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref>

[[Vernor Vinge]] has suggested that a moment may come when computers and robots are smarter than humans. He calls this "[[technological singularity|the Singularity]]".<ref name="nytimes july09" /> He suggests that it may be somewhat or possibly very dangerous for humans.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www-rohan.sdsu.edu/faculty/vinge/misc/singularity.html |title=The Coming Technological Singularity: How to Survive in the Post-Human Era |first=Vernor |last=Vinge |author-link=Vernor Vinge |date=1993 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070101133646/http://www-rohan.sdsu.edu/faculty/vinge/misc/singularity.html |archive-date=1 January 2007 |url-status=live}}</ref> This is discussed by a philosophy called [[Singularitarianism]].

In 2009, experts attended a conference hosted by the [[Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence]] (AAAI) to discuss whether computers and robots might be able to acquire any autonomy, and how much these abilities might pose a threat or hazard. They noted that some robots have acquired various forms of semi-autonomy, including being able to find power sources on their own and being able to independently choose targets to attack with weapons. They also noted that some computer viruses can evade elimination and have achieved "cockroach intelligence." They noted that self-awareness as depicted in science-fiction is probably unlikely, but that there were other potential hazards and pitfalls.<ref name="nytimes july09">{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/26/science/26robot.html?_r=1&ref=todayspaper |title=Scientists Worry Machines May Outsmart Man |first=John |last=Markoff |author-link=John Markoff |newspaper=[[The New York Times]] |date=26 July 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170701084625/http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/26/science/26robot.html?_r=1&ref=todayspaper |archive-date=1 July 2017 |url-status=live}}</ref> Various media sources and scientific groups have noted separate trends in differing areas which might together result in greater robotic functionalities and autonomy, and which pose some inherent concerns.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.slate.com/id/2218834/ |title=Gaming the Robot Revolution: A military technology expert weighs in on Terminator: Salvation |first=P. W. |last=Singer |website=[[Slate (magazine)|Slate]] |date=21 May 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100127191004/http://www.slate.com/id/2218834/ |archive-date=27 January 2010 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.gyre.org/news/explore/robot-takeover |title=Robot takeover |website=gyre.org |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120419163135/http://www.gyre.org/news/explore/robot-takeover |archive-date=19 April 2012 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.engadget.com/tag/robotapocalypse |title=Robotapocalypse |website=[[Engadget]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180504222624/https://www.engadget.com/tag/robotapocalypse/ |archive-date=4 May 2018 |url-status=live}}</ref>

=== Military robots ===
Some experts and academics have questioned the use of robots for military combat, especially when such robots are given some degree of autonomous functions.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/8182003.stm |title=Call for debate on killer robots |first=Jason |last=Palmer |website=BBC News |date=3 August 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090807005005/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/8182003.stm |archive-date=7 August 2009 |url-status=live}}</ref> There are also concerns about technology which might allow some armed robots to be controlled mainly by other robots.<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2009/08/robot-three-way-portends-autonomous-future/ |title=Robot three-way portends autonomous future |first=David |last=Axe |magazine=[[Wired (magazine)|Wired]] |date=13 August 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121107102140/http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2009/08/robot-three-way-portends-autonomous-future/ |archive-date=7 November 2012 |url-status=live}}</ref> The US Navy has funded a report which indicates that, as [[military robots]] become more complex, there should be greater attention to implications of their ability to make autonomous decisions.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.dailytech.com/New%20Navyfunded%20Report%20Warns%20of%20War%20Robots%20Going%20Terminator/article14298.htm |title=New Navy-funded Report Warns of War Robots Going "Terminator" |first=Jason |last=Mick |website=[[DailyTech]] |date=17 February 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090728101106/http://www.dailytech.com/New%20Navyfunded%20Report%20Warns%20of%20War%20Robots%20Going%20Terminator/article14298.htm |archive-date=28 July 2009 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.engadget.com/2009/02/18/navy-report-warns-of-robot-uprising-suggests-a-strong-moral-com/ |title=Navy report warns of robot uprising, suggests a strong moral compass |first=Joseph L. |last=Flatley |website=[[Engadget]] |date=18 February 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110604145633/http://www.engadget.com/2009/02/18/navy-report-warns-of-robot-uprising-suggests-a-strong-moral-com/ |archive-date=4 June 2011 |url-status=live}}</ref> One researcher states that autonomous robots might be more humane, as they could make decisions more effectively. However, other experts question this.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.csmonitor.com/Technology/Tech/2010/0217/New-role-for-robot-warriors |title=New role for robot warriors |first=Gregory M. |last=Lamb |newspaper=[[The Christian Science Monitor]] |date=17 February 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924120946/http://www.csmonitor.com/Technology/Tech/2010/0217/New-role-for-robot-warriors |archive-date=24 September 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref>

One robot in particular, the [[Energetically Autonomous Tactical Robot|EATR]], has generated public concerns<ref name="FOX">{{cite news|url=https://www.foxnews.com/story/biomass-eating-military-robot-is-a-vegetarian-company-says|title=Biomass-Eating Military Robot Is a Vegetarian, Company Says|date=16 July 2009|publisher=Fox News|access-date=31 July 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090803135855/http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,533382,00.html|archive-date=3 August 2009|url-status=live}}</ref> over its fuel source, as it can continually refuel itself using organic substances.<ref name="Wired">{{cite magazine|url=https://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2009/07/company-denies-its-robots-feed-on-the-dead/|title=Danger Room What's Next in National Security Company Denies its Robots Feed on the Dead|last=Shachtman|first=Noah|date=17 July 2009|magazine=[[Wired (magazine)|Wired]]|access-date=31 July 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090729095144/http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2009/07/company-denies-its-robots-feed-on-the-dead|archive-date=29 July 2009|url-status=live}}</ref> Although the engine for the EATR is designed to run on [[biomass]] and vegetation<ref>{{cite press release |publisher=RTI Inc. |date=16 July 2009 |url=http://www.robotictechnologyinc.com/images/upload/file/Cyclone%20Power%20Press%20Release%20EATR%20Rumors%20Final%2016%20July%2009.pdf |title=Cyclone Power Technologies Responds to Rumors about "Flesh Eating" Military Robot |pages=1–2 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090823133634/http://www.robotictechnologyinc.com/images/upload/file/Cyclone%20Power%20Press%20Release%20EATR%20Rumors%20Final%2016%20July%2009.pdf |archive-date=23 August 2009 |url-status=live}}</ref> specifically selected by its sensors, which it can find on battlefields or other local environments, the project has stated that chicken fat can also be used.<ref name="bpopp22">{{cite web |publisher=RTI Inc. |date=6 April 2009 |url=https://robotictechnologyinc.com/images/upload/file/Presentation%20EATR%20Brief%20Overview%206%20April%2009.pdf |title=Brief Project Overview, EATR: Energetically Autonomous Tactical Robot |page=22}}</ref><!--May need a link to show that the concern was that it might "eat" human flesh from dead soldiers-->

[[Manuel De Landa]] has noted that "smart missiles" and autonomous bombs equipped with artificial perception can be considered robots, as they make some of their decisions autonomously. He believes this represents an important and dangerous trend in which humans are handing over important decisions to machines.<ref>[[Manuel de Landa]], ''[[War in the Age of Intelligent Machines]]'', New York: Zone Books, 1991, 280 pages, Hardcover, {{ISBN|0-942299-76-0}}; Paperback, {{ISBN|0-942299-75-2}}.</ref>

=== Relationship to unemployment ===
{{Main|Technological unemployment}}

For centuries, people have predicted that machines would make [[Technological unemployment|workers obsolete and increase unemployment]], although the causes of unemployment are usually thought to be due to social policy.<ref>{{cite journal |first=E |last=McGaughey |title=Will Robots Automate Your Job Away? Full Employment, Basic Income, and Economic Democracy |orig-date=January 10, 2018 |date=2022 |url=https://osf.io/download/5da6fbaca7bc73000df40ef9/ |journal=[[Industrial Law Journal]] |volume=51 |issue=3 |ssrn=3119589 |doi=10.2139/ssrn.3119589|doi-access=free }}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/03/09/business/economy/a-future-without-jobs-two-views-of-the-changing-work-force.html|title=A Future Without Jobs? Two Views of the Changing Work Force|date=9 March 2016|newspaper=The New York Times|last1=Porter|first1=Eduardo|last2=Manjoo|first2=Farhad|access-date=23 February 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170215151324/https://www.nytimes.com/2016/03/09/business/economy/a-future-without-jobs-two-views-of-the-changing-work-force.html|archive-date=15 February 2017|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|url=https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2015/07/world-without-work/395294/|title=A World Without Work|journal=The Atlantic|first=Derek|last=Thompson|date=July–August 2015|access-date=11 March 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170227122425/https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2015/07/world-without-work/395294/|archive-date=27 February 2017|url-status=live}}</ref>

A recent example of human replacement involves Taiwanese technology company [[Foxconn]] who, in July 2011, announced a three-year plan to replace workers with more robots. At present the company uses ten thousand robots but will increase them to a million robots over a three-year period.<ref name=XINFoxcon>{{cite news|title=Foxconn to replace workers with 1 million robots in 3 years|url=http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/china/2011-07/30/c_131018764.htm|access-date=4 August 2011|agency=Xinhua News Agency|date=30 July 2011|author=Yan|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111008201637/http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/china/2011-07/30/c_131018764.htm|archive-date=8 October 2011|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Lawyers have speculated that an increased prevalence of robots in the workplace could lead to the need to improve redundancy laws.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://futureofworkhub.squarespace.com/allcontent/2014/11/20/judgment-day-employment-law-and-robots-in-the-workplace|title=Judgment day – employment law and robots in the workplace|work=futureofworkhub|date=20 November 2014 |access-date=7 January 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150403233901/https://futureofworkhub.squarespace.com/allcontent/2014/11/20/judgment-day-employment-law-and-robots-in-the-workplace|archive-date=3 April 2015|url-status=live}}</ref>

Kevin J. Delaney said "Robots are taking human jobs. But Bill Gates believes that governments should tax companies' use of them, as a way to at least temporarily slow the spread of automation and to fund other types of employment."<ref>{{cite web|last1=Delaney|first1=Kevin|title=The robot that takes your job should pay taxes, says Bill Gates|url=https://qz.com/911968/bill-gates-the-robot-that-takes-your-job-should-pay-taxes/|website=Quartz|date=17 February 2017 |access-date=4 March 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170305042737/https://qz.com/911968/bill-gates-the-robot-that-takes-your-job-should-pay-taxes/|archive-date=5 March 2017|url-status=live}}</ref> The [[robot tax]] would also help pay a guaranteed living wage to the displaced workers.

The [[World Bank]]'s [[World Development Report]] 2019 puts forth evidence showing that while automation displaces workers, technological innovation creates more new industries and jobs on balance.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.worldbank.org/en/publication/wdr2019|title=The Changing Nature of Work|access-date=8 October 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180930193143/http://www.worldbank.org/en/publication/wdr2019|archive-date=30 September 2018|url-status=live}}</ref>

== Contemporary uses ==
{{See also|List of robots}}
At present, there are two main types of robots, based on their use: [[humanoid robot|general-purpose autonomous robots]] and dedicated robots.

Robots can be classified by their [[sensitivity and specificity|specificity]] of purpose. A robot might be designed to perform one particular task extremely well, or a range of tasks less well. All robots by their nature can be re-programmed to behave differently, but some are limited by their physical form. For example, a factory robot arm can perform jobs such as cutting, welding, gluing, or acting as a fairground ride, while a pick-and-place robot can only populate printed circuit boards.

=== General-purpose autonomous robots ===
{{Main|Autonomous robot}}

General-purpose autonomous robots can perform a variety of functions independently. General-purpose autonomous robots typically can navigate independently in known spaces, handle their own re-charging needs, interface with electronic doors and elevators and perform other basic tasks. Like computers, general-purpose robots can link with networks, software and accessories that increase their usefulness. They may recognize people or objects, talk, provide companionship, monitor environmental quality, respond to alarms, pick up supplies and perform other useful tasks. General-purpose robots may perform a variety of functions simultaneously or they may take on different roles at different times of day. Some such robots try to mimic human beings and may even resemble people in appearance; this type of robot is called a humanoid robot. Humanoid robots are still in a very limited stage, as no humanoid robot can, as of yet, actually navigate around a room that it has never been in.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Talbot |first1=Ben |last2=Dayoub |first2=Feras |last3=Corke |first3=Peter |last4=Wyeth |first4=Gordon |date=December 2021 |title=Robot Navigation in Unseen Spaces Using an Abstract Map |journal=IEEE Transactions on Cognitive and Developmental Systems |volume=13 |issue=4 |pages=791–805 |doi=10.1109/TCDS.2020.2993855 |arxiv=2001.11684 |bibcode=2021ITCDS..13..791T |s2cid=211004032 |issn=2379-8939}}</ref> Thus, humanoid robots are really quite limited, despite their intelligent behaviors in their well-known environments.

=== Factory robots ===

==== Car production ====
Over the last three decades, [[automotive industry|automobile factories]] have become dominated by robots. A typical factory contains hundreds of [[industrial robot]]s working on fully automated production lines, with one robot for every ten human workers. On an automated production line, a vehicle chassis on a conveyor is [[welding|welded]], [[adhesive|glued]], painted and finally assembled at a sequence of robot stations.

==== Packaging ====
Industrial robots are also used extensively for palletizing and packaging of manufactured goods, for example for rapidly taking drink cartons from the end of a conveyor belt and placing them into boxes, or for loading and unloading machining centers.

==== Electronics ====
Mass-produced [[printed circuit board]]s (PCBs) are almost exclusively manufactured by pick-and-place robots, typically with [[SCARA]] manipulators, which remove tiny [[electronic component]]s from strips or trays, and place them on to PCBs with great accuracy.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.contactsystems.com/c5_series.html |publisher=Contact Systems |title=Contact Systems Pick and Place robots |access-date=21 September 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080914050602/http://www.contactsystems.com/c5_series.html |archive-date=14 September 2008 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Such robots can place hundreds of thousands of components per hour, far out-performing a human in speed, accuracy, and reliability.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.assembleon.com/surface-mount-assembly/pick-and-place-equipment/a-series/|publisher=Assembleon| title=SMT pick-and-place equipment|access-date=21 September 2008 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080803173021/http://www.assembleon.com/surface-mount-assembly/pick-and-place-equipment/a-series/ <!-- Bot retrieved archive --> |archive-date = 3 August 2008 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

==== Automated guided vehicles (AGVs) ====
Mobile robots, following markers or wires in the floor, or using vision<ref name="seegrid">{{cite web|url=http://www.smartcaddy.net|title=Smart Caddy|publisher=Seegrid|access-date=13 September 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071011044450/http://www.smartcaddy.net/|archive-date=11 October 2007|url-status=dead}}</ref> or lasers, are used to transport goods around large facilities, such as warehouses, container ports, or hospitals.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.agvsystems.com/basics/vehicle.htm|title=The Basics of Automated Guided Vehicles|publisher=Savant Automation, AGV Systems|access-date=13 September 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071008135856/http://www.agvsystems.com/basics/vehicle.htm|archive-date=8 October 2007|url-status=dead}}</ref>

===== Early AGV-style robots =====
Limited to tasks that could be accurately defined and had to be performed the same way every time. Very little feedback or intelligence was required, and the robots needed only the most basic [[wikt:exteroceptors|exteroceptors]] (sensors). The limitations of these AGVs are that their paths are not easily altered and they cannot alter their paths if obstacles block them. If one AGV breaks down, it may stop the entire operation.

===== Interim AGV technologies =====
Developed to deploy triangulation from beacons or bar code grids for scanning on the floor or ceiling. In most factories, triangulation systems tend to require moderate to high maintenance, such as daily cleaning of all beacons or bar codes. Also, if a tall pallet or large vehicle blocks beacons or a bar code is marred, AGVs may become lost. Often such AGVs are designed to be used in human-free environments.

===== Intelligent AGVs (i-AGVs) =====
Such as SmartLoader,<ref>{{cite web|title=Automatic Trailer Loading Vehicle - SmartLoader|url=http://www.jervisbwebb.com/Products/automatic_trailer_loading.aspx?pid=190&qs=1_3_|access-date=2 September 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130523015511/http://www.jervisbwebb.com/Products/automatic_trailer_loading.aspx?pid=190&qs=1_3_|archive-date=23 May 2013|url-status=dead}}</ref> SpeciMinder,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ccsrobotics.com/products/speciminder.html |title=SpeciMinder |publisher=CSS Robotics |access-date=25 September 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090701131848/http://www.ccsrobotics.com/products/speciminder.html |archive-date=1 July 2009 |url-status=live }}</ref> ADAM,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rmtrobotics.com/tire_agv.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060517153330/http://rmtrobotics.com/tire_agv.html |archive-date=17 May 2006 |title=ADAM robot |publisher=RMT Robotics |access-date=25 September 2008 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Tug<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.aethon.com/can_do_tug.html |title=Can Do |publisher=Aethon |access-date=25 September 2008 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080803173353/http://www.aethon.com/can_do_tug.html <!-- Bot retrieved archive --> |archive-date = 3 August 2008 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Eskorta,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.fennecfoxtech.com |title=Eskorta robot |publisher=Fennec Fox Technologies |access-date=25 November 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111206082746/http://www.fennecfoxtech.com/ |archive-date=6 December 2011 |url-status=dead}}</ref> and MT 400 with Motivity<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mobilerobots.com/AGV.html |title=Delivery Robots & AGVs |publisher=Mobile Robots |access-date=25 September 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100226202710/http://www.mobilerobots.com/AGV.html|archive-date=26 February 2010 |url-status=dead}}</ref> are designed for people-friendly workspaces. They navigate by recognizing natural features. [[3D scanner]]s or other means of sensing the environment in two or three dimensions help to eliminate cumulative [[observational error|errors]] in [[dead reckoning|dead-reckoning]] calculations of the AGV's current position. Some AGVs can create maps of their environment using scanning lasers with [[simultaneous localization and mapping]] (SLAM) and use those maps to navigate in real time with other [[path planning]] and obstacle avoidance algorithms. They are able to operate in complex environments and perform non-repetitive and non-sequential tasks such as transporting [[photomask]]s in a semiconductor lab, specimens in hospitals and goods in warehouses. For dynamic areas, such as warehouses full of pallets, AGVs require additional strategies using three-dimensional sensors such as [[time-of-flight camera|time-of-flight]] or [[computer stereo vision|stereovision]] cameras.

=== Dirty, dangerous, dull, or inaccessible tasks ===

{{see also|Dirty, dangerous and demeaning}}
There are many jobs that humans would rather leave to robots. The job may be boring, such as [[housekeeping|domestic cleaning]] or [[Line marker (sports)|sports field line marking]], or dangerous, such as exploring inside a [[volcano]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ri.cmu.edu/projects/project_163.html|title=Dante II, list of published papers|publisher=The Robotics Institute of Carnegie Mellon University|access-date=16 September 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080515015703/http://www.ri.cmu.edu/projects/project_163.html|archive-date=15 May 2008|url-status=dead}}</ref> Other jobs are physically inaccessible, such as exploring another [[planet]],<ref>{{cite web|url=http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/MPF/rover/sojourner.html|title=Mars Pathfinder Mission: Rover Sojourner|publisher=[[NASA]]|date=8 July 1997|access-date=19 September 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170201165939/http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/MPF/rover/sojourner.html|archive-date=1 February 2017|url-status=live}}</ref> cleaning the inside of a long pipe, or performing [[laparoscopic]] surgery.<ref name="daVinci">{{cite web|url=https://biomed.brown.edu/Courses/BI108/BI108_2005_Groups/04/davinci.html |title=Robot assisted surgery: da Vinci Surgical System |publisher=Brown University Division of Biology and Medicine |access-date=19 September 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070916084349/http://biomed.brown.edu/Courses/BI108/BI108_2005_Groups/04/davinci.html |archive-date=16 September 2007 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

==== Space probes ====

Almost every unmanned [[space probe]] ever launched was a robot.<ref>{{cite conference |url=https://upes.academia.edu/SeeteshPANDE/Papers/1717325/The_Utilization_of_Robotic_Space_Probes_in_Deep_Space_Missions_Case_Study_of_AI_Protocols_and_Nuclear_Power_Requirements |title=The Utilization of Robotic Space Probes in Deep Space Missions:Case Study of AI Protocols and Nuclear Power Requirements |book-title=Proceedings of 2011 International Conference on Mechanical Engineering, Robotics and Aerospace |date=October 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.thespacereview.com/article/2004/1 |title=Review: Space Probes |first=Jeff |last=Foust |date=16 January 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120831183945/http://www.thespacereview.com/article/2004/1 |archive-date=31 August 2012 |url-status=live}} Review of Space Probes: 50 Years of Exploration from Luna 1 to New Horizons, by Philippe Séguéla Firefly, 2011.</ref> Some were launched in the 1960s with very limited abilities, but their ability to fly and land (in the case of [[Luna 9]]) is an indication of their status as a robot. This includes the [[Voyager probe]]s and the Galileo probes, among others.

==== Telerobots ====

[[File:IED detonator.jpg|thumb|A [[U.S. Marine Corps]] technician prepares to use a telerobot to detonate a buried [[improvised explosive device]] near [[Camp Fallujah]], Iraq.]]

[[telerobotics|Teleoperated robots]], or telerobots, are devices [[teleoperation|remotely operated]] from a distance by a human operator rather than following a predetermined sequence of movements, but which has semi-autonomous behaviour. They are used when a human cannot be present on site to perform a job because it is dangerous, far away, or inaccessible. The robot may be in another room or another country, or may be on a very different scale to the operator. For instance, a laparoscopic surgery robot allows the surgeon to work inside a human patient on a relatively small scale compared to open surgery, significantly shortening recovery time.<ref name="daVinci" /> They can also be used to avoid exposing workers to the hazardous and tight spaces such as in [[Duct (HVAC)|duct]] cleaning.<!--<ref>{{cite news|url=http://on.fb.me/1o843oN |title=The Trouble with Regulation |publisher=National Air Duct Cleaning Association |access-date=25 November 2014 | date=March–April 2014}}</ref>--> When disabling a bomb, the operator sends a small robot to disable it. Several authors have been using a device called the Longpen to sign books remotely.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/entertainment/celebrities-set-to-reach-for-atwood-s-longpen-1.692622 |title=Celebrities set to reach for Atwood's LongPen |publisher=Canadian Broadcasting Corporation |access-date=21 September 2008 | date=15 August 2007|url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090522221123/http://www.cbc.ca/arts/books/story/2007/08/15/longpen-trial.html|archive-date=22 May 2009}}</ref> Teleoperated robot aircraft, like the Predator [[Unmanned Aerial Vehicle]], are increasingly being used by the military. These pilotless drones can search terrain and fire on targets.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.newstatesman.com/200606120018|work=[[New Statesman]]|title=America's robot army |date=12 June 2006 |access-date=24 September 2007 |first=Stephen|last=Graham|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120217174704/http://www.newstatesman.com/200606120018|archive-date=17 February 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.defenseindustrydaily.com/battlefield-robots-to-iraq-and-beyond-0727|work=Defense Industry Daily|title=Battlefield Robots: to Iraq, and Beyond|date=20 June 2005|access-date=24 September 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070826201610/http://www.defenseindustrydaily.com/battlefield-robots-to-iraq-and-beyond-0727/|archive-date=26 August 2007|url-status=live}}</ref> Hundreds of robots such as [[iRobot]]'s [[Packbot]] and the [[Foster-Miller TALON]] are being used in [[Iraq]] and [[Afghanistan]] by the [[United States Armed Forces|U.S. military]] to defuse roadside bombs or [[improvised explosive device]]s (IEDs) in an activity known as [[explosive ordnance disposal]] (EOD).<ref>{{cite magazine|magazine=[[Wired (magazine)|Wired]]|url=https://www.wired.com/wired/archive/13.11/bomb.html?pg=3&topic=bomb|title=The Baghdad Bomb Squad|first=Noah|last=Shachtman|date=November 2005|access-date=14 September 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080422132525/http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/13.11/bomb.html?pg=3&topic=bomb|archive-date=22 April 2008|url-status=live}}</ref>

==== Automated fruit harvesting machines ====
Robots are used to [[fruit picking#automation|automate picking fruit]] on orchards at a cost lower than that of human pickers.

==== Domestic robots ====
[[File:Roomba original.jpg|thumb|The [[Roomba]] domestic [[vacuum cleaner]] robot does a single, menial job.]]

[[Domestic robots]] are simple robots dedicated to a single task work in home use. They are used in simple but often disliked jobs, such as [[vacuum cleaner|vacuum cleaning]], [[Scooba (brand)|floor washing]], and [[lawn mower|lawn mowing]]. An example of a domestic robot is a [[Roomba]].

=== Military robots ===
{{Main|Military robot}}

Military robots include the [[SWORDS robot]] which is currently used in ground-based combat. It can use a variety of weapons and there is some discussion of giving it some degree of autonomy in battleground situations.<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Shachtman |first=Noah |url=https://www.wired.com/2007/08/httpwwwnational/ |title=WIRED: First Armed Robots on Patrol in Iraq (Updated) |magazine=Wired |date=2 August 2007 |access-date=26 September 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |last=Shachtman |first=Noah |url=http://blog.wired.com/defense/2007/08/armed-robots-so.html |title=WIRED: Armed Robots Pushed To Police |magazine=Wired |date=28 March 2013 |access-date=8 February 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090412043558/http://blog.wired.com/defense/2007/08/armed-robots-so.html |archive-date=12 April 2009 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.popularmechanics.com/military/a2653/4252643/ |title=America's Robot Army: Are Unmanned Fighters Ready for Combat? |publisher=Popular Mechanics |date=17 December 2009 |access-date=26 September 2023}}</ref>

[[Unmanned combat air vehicle]]s (UCAVs), which are an upgraded form of [[unmanned aerial vehicle|UAVs]], can do a wide variety of missions, including combat. UCAVs are being designed such as the [[BAE Systems Mantis]] which would have the ability to fly themselves, to pick their own course and target, and to make most decisions on their own.<ref>{{cite magazine |url=http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2010-02/field-guide-flying-robots |title=The Present and Future of Unmanned Drone Aircraft: An Illustrated Field Guide | first=Eric |last=Hagerman |magazine=[[Popular Science]] |date=23 February 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100226101134/http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2010-02/field-guide-flying-robots |archive-date=26 February 2010 |url-status=live}}</ref> The [[BAE Systems Taranis|BAE Taranis]] is a UCAV built by Great Britain which can fly across continents without a pilot and has new means to avoid detection.<ref name="Sky News">{{cite news|title=Taranis: The £143m Fighter Jet Of The Future |first=Kat |last=Higgins |website=Sky News Online |date=12 July 2010 |url=http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/UK-News/Taranis-MoD-And-BAE-Systems-Unveil-Futuristic-Unmanned-Fighter-Jet/Article/201007215663917?lpos=UK_News_Second_Home_Page_Article_Teaser_Region_0&lid=ARTICLE_15663917_Taranis:_MoD_And_BAE_Systems_Unveil_Futuristic_Unmanned_Fighter_Jet |access-date=13 July 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100715051514/http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/UK-News/Taranis-MoD-And-BAE-Systems-Unveil-Futuristic-Unmanned-Fighter-Jet/Article/201007215663917?lpos=UK_News_Second_Home_Page_Article_Teaser_Region_0&lid=ARTICLE_15663917_Taranis%3A_MoD_And_BAE_Systems_Unveil_Futuristic_Unmanned_Fighter_Jet |archive-date=15 July 2010 }}</ref> Flight trials are expected to begin in 2011.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/10602105 |title=MoD lifts lid on unmanned combat plane prototype |first=Daniel |last=Emery |work=BBC News |date=12 July 2010 |access-date=12 July 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100712191703/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/10602105.stm |archive-date=12 July 2010 |url-status=live }}</ref>

The [[Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence|AAAI]] has studied this topic in depth<ref name="AAAI ethics" /> and its president has commissioned a study to look at this issue.<ref>{{cite report |url=http://research.microsoft.com/en-us/um/people/horvitz/AAAI_Presidential_Panel_2008-2009.htm |title=AAAI Presidential Panel on Long-Term AI Futures 2008–2009 Study |publisher=Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence |access-date=26 July 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090828214741/http://research.microsoft.com/en-us/um/people/horvitz/AAAI_Presidential_Panel_2008-2009.htm |archive-date=28 August 2009 |url-status=live}}</ref>

Some have suggested a need to build "[[Friendly AI]]", meaning that the advances which are already occurring with AI should also include an effort to make AI intrinsically friendly and humane.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.asimovlaws.com/articles/archives/2004/07/why_we_need_fri_1.html |title=Why We Need Friendly AI |website=3 Laws Unsafe |date=July 2004 |access-date=27 July 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120524150856/http://www.asimovlaws.com/articles/archives/2004/07/why_we_need_fri_1.html |archive-date=24 May 2012 |url-status=usurped}}</ref> Several such measures reportedly already exist, with robot-heavy countries such as Japan and South Korea<ref name=SKrobot>{{cite news |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/6425927.stm |title=Robotic age poses ethical dilemma |website=BBC News |date=7 March 2007 |access-date=2007-01-02 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090215145547/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/6425927.stm |archive-date=15 February 2009 |url-status=live}}</ref> having begun to pass regulations requiring robots to be equipped with safety systems, and possibly sets of 'laws' akin to Asimov's [[Three Laws of Robotics]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.livescience.com/technology/060526_robot_rules.html |title=Asimov's First Law: Japan Sets Rules for Robots |first=Bill |last=Christensen |website=[[Live Science]] |date=26 May 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081013025115/http://www.livescience.com/technology/060526_robot_rules.html |archive-date=13 October 2008 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.physorg.com/news95078958.html |title=Japan drafts rules for advanced robots |publisher=UPI |via=physorg.com |date=6 April 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081011103322/http://www.physorg.com/news95078958.html |archive-date=11 October 2008 |url-status=live}}</ref> An official report was issued in 2009 by the Japanese government's Robot Industry Policy Committee.<ref>{{cite press release |url=http://www.meti.go.jp/english/press/data/20090325_01.html |title=Building a Safe and Secure Social System Incorporating the Coexistence of Humans and Robots |publisher=[[Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry]] |date=March 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110927070744/http://www.meti.go.jp/english/press/data/20090325_01.html |archive-date=27 September 2011 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Chinese officials and researchers have issued a report suggesting a set of ethical rules, and a set of new legal guidelines referred to as "Robot Legal Studies."<ref name="China report">{{cite journal |doi=10.1007/s12369-009-0019-1 |title=Toward the Human–Robot Co-Existence Society: On Safety Intelligence for Next Generation Robots |first1=Yueh-Hsuan |last1=Weng |first2=Chien-Hsun |last2=Chen |first3=Chuen-Tsai |last3=Sun |journal=International Journal of Social Robotics |volume=1 |date=25 April 2009|issue=4 |pages=267–282 |s2cid=36232530 }}</ref> Some concern has been expressed over a possible occurrence of robots telling apparent falsehoods.<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.popsci.com/scitech/article/2009-08/evolving-robots-learn-lie-hide-resources-each-other/ |title=Evolving Robots Learn To Lie To Each Other |first=Stuart |last=Fox |magazine=[[Popular Science]] |date=19 August 2009}}</ref>

=== Mining robots ===
Mining robots are designed to solve a number of problems currently facing the [[mining industry]], including skills shortages, improving productivity from declining ore grades, and achieving environmental targets. Due to the hazardous nature of mining, in particular [[underground mining]], the prevalence of autonomous, semi-autonomous, and tele-operated robots has greatly increased in recent times. A number of vehicle manufacturers provide autonomous trains, trucks and [[Loader (equipment)|loaders]] that will load material, transport it on the mine site to its destination, and unload without requiring human intervention. One of the world's largest mining corporations, [[Rio Tinto (corporation)|Rio Tinto]], has recently expanded its autonomous truck fleet to the world's largest, consisting of 150 autonomous [[Komatsu Limited|Komatsu]] trucks, operating in [[Western Australia]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.riotinto.com/media/5157_21165.asp |title=Rio Tinto Media Center – Rio Tinto boosts driverless truck fleet to 150 under Mine of the Future™ programme |publisher=Riotinto.com |access-date=8 February 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130424100842/https://www.riotinto.com/media/5157_21165.asp |archive-date=24 April 2013 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Similarly, [[BHP]] has announced the expansion of its autonomous drill fleet to the world's largest, 21 autonomous [[Atlas Copco]] drills.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.itnews.com.au/news/bhp-billiton-hits-go-on-autonomous-drills-421008|title=BHP Billiton hits go on autonomous drills|access-date=13 February 2023}}</ref>

Drilling, [[Longwall mining|longwall]] and [[rockbreaker|rockbreaking]] machines are now also available as autonomous robots.<ref>{{cite web |author=Adrian |url=http://adrianboeing.blogspot.com/2011/06/aimex.html |title=AIMEX blog – Autonomous mining equipment |publisher=Adrianboeing.blogspot.com |date=6 September 2011 |access-date=8 February 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131218162920/http://adrianboeing.blogspot.com/2011/06/aimex.html |archive-date=18 December 2013 |url-status=live }}</ref> The [[Atlas Copco]] Rig Control System can autonomously execute a drilling plan on a [[drilling rig]], moving the rig into position using GPS, set up the drill rig and drill down to specified depths.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.atlascopco.com/rcs/ |title=Atlas Copco – RCS |publisher=Atlascopco.com |access-date=8 February 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140207175830/http://www.atlascopco.com/rcs/ |archive-date=7 February 2014 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Similarly, the [[Transmin]] Rocklogic system can automatically plan a path to position a rockbreaker at a selected destination.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://rocklogic.com.au/ |title=Transmin – Rocklogic |publisher=Rocklogic.com.au |access-date=8 February 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140125105842/http://rocklogic.com.au/ |archive-date=25 January 2014 |url-status=live }}</ref> These systems greatly enhance the safety and efficiency of mining operations.

=== Healthcare ===
Robots in healthcare have two main functions. Those which assist an individual, such as a sufferer of a disease like Multiple Sclerosis, and those which aid in the overall systems such as pharmacies and hospitals.

==== Home automation for the elderly and disabled ====
{{further|Disability robot}}

Robots used in [[Home automation for the elderly and disabled|home automation]] have developed over time from simple basic robotic assistants, such as the [[ST Robotics#History|Handy 1]],<ref name="CSUNCOD1">{{cite journal|last=Topping |first=Mike |author2=Smith, Jane |title=An Overview Of Handy 1, A Rehabilitation Robot For The Severely Disabled |journal=CSUN Center on Disabilities Conference Proceedings |year=1999 |volume=Proceedings |series=1999 |pages=Session 59 |url=http://www.csun.edu/cod/conf/1999/proceedings/session0059.htm |access-date=14 August 2010 |quote=The early version of the Handy 1 system consisted of a Cyber 310 robotic arm with five degrees of freedom plus a gripper. |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090805111627/https://www.csun.edu/cod/conf/1999/proceedings/session0059.htm |archive-date= 5 August 2009 }}</ref> through to semi-autonomous robots, such as Care-Providing Robot "FRIEND" which can assist the elderly and disabled with common tasks.

The population is [[gerontotechnology|aging]] in many countries, especially Japan, meaning that there are increasing numbers of elderly people to care for, but relatively fewer young people to care for them.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/4012797.stm|work=BBC News|first=Christine|last=Jeavans|date=29 November 2004|title=Welcome to the ageing future|access-date=26 September 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071016123948/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/4012797.stm|archive-date=16 October 2007|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web
| url        = http://www.stat.go.jp/english/data/handbook/c02cont.htm
| title      = Statistical Handbook of Japan: Chapter 2 Population
| publisher  = Statistics Bureau & Statistical Research and Training Institute
| access-date = 26 September 2007
| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20130906015841/http://www.stat.go.jp/english/data/handbook/c02cont.htm
| archive-date = 6 September 2013
| url-status = dead
}}</ref> Humans make the best carers, but where they are unavailable, robots are gradually being introduced.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.e-health-insider.com/comment_and_analysis/250/robotic_future_of_patient_care|publisher=E-Health Insider|title=Robotic future of patient care|date=16 August 2007|access-date=26 September 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071121041811/http://www.e-health-insider.com/comment_and_analysis/250/robotic_future_of_patient_care|archive-date=21 November 2007|url-status=dead}}</ref>

FRIEND is a semi-autonomous robot designed to support [[disability|disabled]] and [[old age|elderly]] people in their daily life activities, like preparing and serving a meal. FRIEND make it possible for [[patients]] who are [[paraplegia|paraplegic]], have muscle diseases or serious [[paralysis]] (due to strokes etc.), to perform tasks without help from other people like therapists or nursing staff.

==== Pharmacies ====
{{Main|Pharmacy automation}}

{{More citations needed section|date=July 2009}}
Script Pro manufactures a robot designed to help pharmacies fill prescriptions that consist of oral solids or [[pharmaceutical drug|medications]] in pill form.<ref>{{Cite journal|url=https://www.drugtopics.com/view/future-pharmacy-automation|title=The Future of Pharmacy Automation|last=Gebhart|first=Fred|date=4 July 2019|journal=Drug Topics Journal|series=Drug Topics July 2019 |volume=163 |issue=7 |access-date=16 October 2022}}</ref>{{Better source needed|date=November 2019}} The pharmacist or [[pharmacy technician]] enters the prescription information into its information system. The system, upon determining whether or not the drug is in the robot, will send the information to the robot for filling. The robot has 3 different size vials to fill determined by the size of the pill. The robot technician, user, or pharmacist determines the needed size of the vial based on the tablet when the robot is stocked. Once the vial is filled it is brought up to a conveyor belt that delivers it to a holder that spins the vial and attaches the patient label. Afterwards it is set on another conveyor that delivers the patient's medication vial to a slot labeled with the patient's name on an LED read out. The pharmacist or technician then checks the contents of the vial to ensure it's the correct drug for the correct patient and then seals the vials and sends it out front to be picked up.

McKesson's Robot RX is another healthcare robotics product that helps pharmacies dispense thousands of medications daily with little or no errors.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.forbes.com/2009/10/08/robots-mckesson-business-healthcare-medical-tech-09-mckesson.html|title=R2D2 Has Your Pills|last=Dolan|first=Kerry A.|website=Forbes|access-date=20 November 2019}}</ref> The robot can be ten feet wide and thirty feet long and can hold hundreds of different kinds of medications and thousands of doses. The pharmacy saves many resources like staff members that are otherwise unavailable in a resource scarce industry. It uses an [[electromechanics|electromechanical]] head coupled with a [[pneumatics|pneumatic]] system to capture each dose and deliver it to either its stocked or dispensed location. The head moves along a single axis while it rotates 180 degrees to pull the medications. During this process it uses [[barcode]] technology to verify it's pulling the correct drug. It then delivers the drug to a patient specific bin on a conveyor belt. Once the bin is filled with all of the drugs that a particular patient needs and that the robot stocks, the bin is then released and returned out on the conveyor belt to a technician waiting to load it into a cart for delivery to the floor.

=== Research robots ===
{{See also|Robotics#Robotics_research|l1=Robotics research}}
While most robots today are installed in factories or homes, performing labour or life saving jobs, many new types of robot are being developed in [[laboratory|laboratories]] around the world. Much of the research in robotics focuses not on specific industrial tasks, but on investigations into new types of robot, alternative ways to think about or design robots, and new ways to manufacture them. It is expected that these new types of robot will be able to solve real world problems when they are finally realized.{{Citation needed|date=July 2009}}

==== Bionic and biomimetic robots ====
{{further|Biomimetics}}{{further|Bionics}}One approach to designing robots is to base them on animals. [[BionicKangaroo]] was designed and engineered by studying and applying the physiology and methods of locomotion of a kangaroo.

==== Nanorobots ====
{{further|Nanorobotics}}[[Nanorobotics]] is the [[emerging technology]] field of creating machines or robots whose components are at or close to the microscopic scale of a [[nanometer]] (10<sup>−9</sup> meters). Also known as "nanobots" or "nanites", they would be constructed from [[molecular machine]]s. So far, researchers have mostly produced only parts of these complex systems, such as bearings, sensors, and [[synthetic molecular motors]], but functioning robots have also been made such as the entrants to the Nanobot Robocup contest.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.techbirbal.com/viewtopic.php?p=3687&sid=7faaeeb64eaf84880b23755fea7fa7cd |title=Nanobots Play Football |publisher=Techbirbal |access-date=8 February 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130403180057/https://www.techbirbal.com/viewtopic.php?p=3687&sid=7faaeeb64eaf84880b23755fea7fa7cd |archive-date=3 April 2013 }}</ref> Researchers also hope to be able to create entire robots as small as viruses or bacteria, which could perform tasks on a tiny scale. Possible applications include micro surgery (on the level of individual [[cell (biology)|cells]]), [[utility fog]],<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.kurzweilai.net/meme/frame.html?main=/articles/art0220.html |title=KurzweilAI.net |date=21 June 2010 |access-date=5 July 2016 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100621142011/http://www.kurzweilai.net/meme/frame.html?main=%2Farticles%2Fart0220.html |archive-date=21 June 2010 }}</ref> manufacturing, weaponry and cleaning.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.e-drexler.com/d/06/00/EOC/EOC_Chapter_11.html |title=(Eric Drexler 1986) Engines of Creation, The Coming Era of Nanotechnology |publisher=E-drexler.com |access-date=8 February 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140906190853/http://e-drexler.com/d/06/00/EOC/EOC_Chapter_11.html |archive-date=6 September 2014 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Some people have suggested that if there were nanobots which could reproduce, the earth would turn into "[[grey goo]]", while others argue that this hypothetical outcome is nonsense.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.crnano.org/Debate.htm|publisher=Center for Responsible Nanotechnology|title=Of Chemistry, Nanobots, and Policy|date=December 2003|access-date=28 October 2007|first=Chris|last=Phoenix|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071011132926/http://crnano.org/Debate.htm|archive-date=11 October 2007|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2004/06/040609072100.htm |website=ScienceDaily |title=Nanotechnology pioneer slays 'grey goo' myths|date=9 June 2004}}</ref>

==== Reconfigurable robots ====
{{Main|Self-reconfiguring modular robot}}

A few researchers have investigated the possibility of creating robots which can [[self-reconfiguring modular robot|alter their physical form]] to suit a particular task,<ref>{{cite conference |url=http://www.islandone.org/MMSG/9609lego.htm |title=LEGO(TM)s to the Stars: Active MesoStructures, Kinetic Cellular Automata, and Parallel Nanomachines for Space Applications |first=Tihamer |last=Toth-Fejel |conference=1996 International Space Development Conference |location=New York City |date=May 1996 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927215619/http://www.islandone.org/MMSG/9609lego.htm |archive-date=27 September 2007 |url-status=dead}}</ref> like the fictional [[T-1000]]. Real robots are nowhere near that sophisticated however, and mostly consist of a small number of cube shaped units, which can move relative to their neighbours. Algorithms have been designed in case any such robots become a reality.<ref>{{cite web |first1=Robert |last1=Fitch |first2=Zack |last2=Butler |first3=Daniela |last3=Rus |url=http://groups.csail.mit.edu/drl/publications/papers/MeltSortGrow.pdf |title=Reconfiguration Planning for Heterogeneous Self-Reconfiguring Robots |website=Massachusetts Institute of Technology |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070619212352/http://groups.csail.mit.edu/drl/publications/papers/MeltSortGrow.pdf |archive-date=19 June 2007 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

==== Robotic, mobile laboratory operators ====
{{Further|Laboratory robotics}}
In July 2020 scientists reported the development of a mobile robot chemist and demonstrate that it can assist in experimental searches. According to the scientists their strategy was [[Laboratory automation|automating]] the researcher rather than the instruments – freeing up time for the human researchers to think creatively – and could identify photocatalyst mixtures for hydrogen production from water that were six times more active than initial formulations. The modular robot can operate laboratory instruments, work nearly around the clock, and autonomously make decisions on his next actions depending on experimental results.<ref>{{cite news |title=Researchers build robot scientist that has already discovered a new catalyst |url=https://phys.org/news/2020-07-robot-scientist-catalyst.html |access-date=16 August 2020 |work=phys.org }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Burger |first1=Benjamin |last2=Maffettone |first2=Phillip M. |last3=Gusev |first3=Vladimir V. |last4=Aitchison |first4=Catherine M. |last5=Bai |first5=Yang |last6=Wang |first6=Xiaoyan |last7=Li |first7=Xiaobo |last8=Alston |first8=Ben M. |last9=Li |first9=Buyi |last10=Clowes |first10=Rob |last11=Rankin |first11=Nicola |last12=Harris |first12=Brandon |last13=Sprick |first13=Reiner Sebastian |last14=Cooper |first14=Andrew I. |title=A mobile robotic chemist |journal=Nature |date=July 2020 |volume=583 |issue=7815 |pages=237–241 |doi=10.1038/s41586-020-2442-2 |pmid=32641813 |bibcode=2020Natur.583..237B |s2cid=220420261 |url=https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-020-2442-2 |access-date=16 August 2020 |issn=1476-4687|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

==== Soft-bodied robots ====
Robots with [[silicone]] bodies and flexible actuators ([[pneumatic artificial muscles|air muscles]], [[electroactive polymers]], and [[ferrofluid]]s) look and feel different from robots with rigid skeletons, and can have different behaviors.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/27/science/27robo.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1&ei=5070&en=91395fe7439a5b72&ex=1177128000 |title=In the Lab: Robots That Slink and Squirm |first=John |last=Schwartz |work=The New York Times |access-date=22 September 2008 |date=27 March 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150403233312/http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/27/science/27robo.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1&ei=5070&en=91395fe7439a5b72&ex=1177128000 |archive-date=3 April 2015 |url-status=live }}</ref> Soft, flexible (and sometimes even squishy) robots are often designed to mimic the biomechanics of animals and other things found in nature, which is leading to new applications in medicine, care giving, search and rescue, food handling and manufacturing, and scientific exploration.<ref>{{cite web |title=Squishy robots now have squishy computers to control them |date=25 March 2019 |first=Kat |last=Eschner |website=Popular Science |url=https://www.popsci.com/soft-robot-computer}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=The softer side of robotics |date=May 2019 |url=https://www.hp.com/us-en/shop/tech-takes/softer-side-of-robotics#false |access-date=13 February 2023}}</ref>

==== Swarm robots ====
{{Main|Swarm robotics}}
Inspired by [[colony (biology)|colonies of insects]] such as [[ants]] and [[bees]], researchers are modeling the behavior of [[swarm robotics|swarms]] of thousands of tiny robots which together perform a useful task, such as finding something hidden, cleaning, or spying. Each robot is quite simple, but the [[emergent behavior]] of the swarm is more complex. The whole set of robots can be considered as one single distributed system, in the same way an ant colony can be considered a [[superorganism]], exhibiting [[swarm intelligence]]. The largest swarms so far created include the iRobot swarm, the SRI/MobileRobots CentiBots project<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.activrobots.com/RESEARCH/wheelchair.html |title=SRI/MobileRobots |work=activrobots.com |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090212091659/https://www.activrobots.com/RESEARCH/wheelchair.html |archive-date=12 February 2009}}</ref> and the Open-source Micro-robotic Project swarm, which are being used to research collective behaviors.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.swarmrobot.org|title=Open-source micro-robotic project|access-date=28 October 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071111025135/http://www.swarmrobot.org/|archive-date=11 November 2007|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.irobot.com/sp.cfm?pageid=149 |publisher=iRobot Corporation |title=Swarm |access-date=28 October 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927191006/https://www.irobot.com/sp.cfm?pageid=149 |archive-date=27 September 2007 }}</ref> Swarms are also more resistant to failure. Whereas one large robot may fail and ruin a mission, a swarm can continue even if several robots fail. This could make them attractive for space exploration missions, where failure is normally extremely costly.<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.wired.com/science/discoveries/news/2000/12/40750 |magazine=Wired |title=Look, Up in the Sky: Robofly |first=Louise |last=Knapp |date=21 December 2000 |access-date=25 September 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120626210619/http://www.wired.com/science/discoveries/news/2000/12/40750 |archive-date=26 June 2012 |url-status=live }}</ref>

==== Haptic interface robots ====
{{further|Haptic technology}}
Robotics also has application in the design of [[virtual reality]] interfaces. Specialized robots are in widespread use in the [[haptic technology|haptic]] research community. These robots, called "haptic interfaces", allow touch-enabled user interaction with real and virtual environments. Robotic forces allow simulating the mechanical properties of "virtual" objects, which users can experience through their sense of [[somatosensory system|touch]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.technologyreview.com/read_article.aspx?id=17363&ch=biotech&sc=&pg=1 |publisher=MIT Technology review |title=The Cutting Edge of Haptics |access-date=25 September 2008}}</ref>

=== Contemporary art and sculpture ===
{{further|Robotic art}}
Robots are used by contemporary artists to create works that include mechanical automation. There are many branches of robotic art, one of which is '''robotic installation art''', a type of [[installation art]] that is programmed to respond to viewer interactions, by means of computers, sensors and actuators. The future behavior of such installations can therefore be altered by input from either the artist or the participant, which differentiates these artworks from other types of [[kinetic art]].

[[Le Grand Palais]] in Paris organized an exhibition "Artists & Robots", featuring artworks created by more than forty artists with the help of robots in 2018.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.grandpalais.fr/en/event/artists-robots|title=Artists & Robots Exposition au Grand Palais du 5 avril au 9 juillet 2018|date=14 August 2019|access-date=3 February 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190814133056/https://www.grandpalais.fr/en/event/artists-robots|archive-date=14 August 2019}}</ref>

== Robots in popular culture ==
[[File:RobotsMODO.jpg|thumbnail|Toy robots from [[Metal House Robots|Horikawa]] and S.J.M. on display at the [[Museo del Objeto del Objeto]] in Mexico City]]
{{See also|List of fictional robots and androids|Droid (Star Wars)}}

=== Literature ===
{{Main|Robots in literature}}

Robotic characters, [[android (robot)|androids]] (artificial men/women) or [[gynoid]]s (artificial women), and [[cyborg]]s (also "[[bionic]] men/women", or humans with significant mechanical enhancements) have become a staple of science fiction.

The first reference in Western literature to mechanical servants appears in [[Homer]]'s ''[[Iliad]]''. In Book XVIII, [[Hephaestus]], god of fire, creates new armor for the hero Achilles, assisted by robots.<ref name="Iliad">{{cite web| access-date=21 November 2007| url= https://www.arts.cornell.edu/theatrearts/CTA/Program%20Notes/comic%20potential.asp| publisher= Cornell University| title = Comic Potential: Q&A with Director Stephen Cole|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090103103732/http://www.arts.cornell.edu/theatrearts/CTA/Program%20Notes/comic%20potential.asp|archive-date=3 January 2009|url-status=dead}}</ref> According to the [[E. V. Rieu|Rieu]] translation, "Golden maidservants hastened to help their master. They looked like real women and could not only speak and use their limbs but were endowed with intelligence and trained in handwork by the immortal gods." The words "robot" or "android" are not used to describe them, but they are nevertheless mechanical devices human in appearance. "The first use of the word Robot was in Karel Čapek's play R.U.R. (Rossum's Universal Robots) (written in 1920)". Writer Karel Čapek was born in Czechoslovakia (Czech Republic).

Possibly the most prolific author of the twentieth century was [[Isaac Asimov]] (1920–1992)<ref name=FreedProlific>{{cite book|editor-last=Freedman|editor-first=Carl|title=Conversations with Isaac Asimov|year=2005|publisher=Univ. Press of Mississippi|location=Jackson|isbn=978-1-57806-738-1|url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9781578067381|url-access=registration|edition=1.|access-date=4 August 2011|page=vii|quote=... quite possibly the most prolific}}</ref> who published over five-hundred books.<ref name=Oakes500>{{cite book|last=Oakes|first=Elizabeth H.|title=American writers|year=2004|publisher=Facts on File|location=New York|isbn=978-0-8160-5158-8|url=https://archive.org/details/americanwriters0000oake|url-access=registration|quote=most prolific authors asimov.|access-date=4 August 2011|page=[https://archive.org/details/americanwriters0000oake/page/24 24]}}</ref> Asimov is probably best remembered for his science-fiction stories and especially those about robots, where he placed robots and their interaction with society at the center of many of his works.<ref>He wrote "over 460 books as well as thousands of articles and reviews", and was the "third most prolific writer of all time [and] one of the founding fathers of modern science fiction". {{cite book |title=Isaac Asimov: a life of the grand master of science fiction |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EWbMiyS9v98C |isbn=978-0-7867-1518-3 |pages=1–2 |author=White, Michael |year=2005 |publisher=Carroll & Graf |access-date=25 September 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161205023302/https://books.google.com/books?id=EWbMiyS9v98C |archive-date=5 December 2016 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.anu.edu.au/people/Roger.Clarke/SOS/Asimov.html |title=Asimov's Laws of Robotics – Implications for Information Technology |publisher=Australian National University/IEEE |author=R. Clarke |access-date=25 September 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080722022618/https://www.anu.edu.au/people/Roger.Clarke/SOS/Asimov.html |archive-date=22 July 2008 }}</ref> Asimov carefully considered the problem of the ideal set of instructions robots might be given to lower the risk to humans, and arrived at his [[Three Laws of Robotics]]: a robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm; a robot must obey orders given it by human beings, except where such orders would conflict with the First Law; and a robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law.<ref>{{cite web |last=Seiler |first=Edward |author2=Jenkins, John H. |url=http://www.asimovonline.com/asimov_FAQ.html |title=Isaac Asimov FAQ |publisher=Isaac Asimov Home Page |date=27 June 2008 |access-date=24 September 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120716233605/http://www.asimovonline.com/asimov_FAQ.html |archive-date=16 July 2012 |url-status=live }}</ref> These were introduced in his 1942 short story "Runaround", although foreshadowed in a few earlier stories. Later, Asimov added the Zeroth Law: "A robot may not harm humanity, or, by inaction, allow humanity to come to harm"; the rest of the laws are modified sequentially to acknowledge this.

According to the ''Oxford English Dictionary,'' the first passage in Asimov's short story "[[Liar! (short story)|Liar!]]" (1941) that mentions the First Law is the earliest recorded use of the word ''[[robotics]]''. Asimov was not initially aware of this; he assumed the word already existed by analogy with ''mechanics,'' ''hydraulics,'' and other similar terms denoting branches of applied knowledge.<ref>{{cite book|author=White, Michael|title=Isaac Asimov: A Life of the Grand Master of Science Fiction|page=56|year=2005|publisher=Carroll & Graf|isbn=978-0-7867-1518-3}}</ref>

=== Robot competitions ===
{{Main|Robot competition}}

Robots are used in a number of competitive events. [[Robot combat]] competitions have been popularized by television shows such as [[Robot Wars (TV series)|Robot Wars]] and [[BattleBots]], featuring mostly remotely controlled 'robots' that compete against each other directly using various weaponry, there are also amateur robot combat leagues active globally outside of the televised events. [[Micromouse]] events, in which autonomous robots compete to solve mazes or other obstacle courses are also held internationally.

[[Robot competition]]s are also often used within educational settings to introduce the concept of robotics to children such as the [[FIRST Robotics Competition]] in the US.

=== Films ===
{{Category see also|Films about robots}}

Robots appear in many films. Most of the robots in cinema are fictional. Two of the most famous are [[R2-D2]] and [[C-3PO]] from the ''[[Star Wars]]'' franchise.

=== Sex robots ===
{{Main|Sex robot}}

The concept of humanoid [[sex robot]]s has drawn public attention and elicited debate regarding their supposed benefits and potential effects on society. Opponents argue that the introduction of such devices would be socially harmful, and demeaning to women and children,<ref name="bbc-sexrobots">{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-34118482|title=Intelligent machines: Call for a ban on robots designed as sex toys|date=15 September 2015|newspaper=BBC News|access-date=21 June 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180630212424/https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-34118482|archive-date=30 June 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> while proponents cite their potential therapeutical benefits, particularly in aiding people with [[dementia]] or [[Depression (mood)|depression]].<ref>{{cite conference|last1=Abdollahi|first1=Hojjat|last2=Mollahosseini|first2=Ali|last3=Lane|first3=Josh T.|last4=Mahoor|first4=Mohammad H.|date=November 2017|title=A pilot study on using an intelligent life-like robot as a companion for elderly individuals with dementia and depression|conference=2017 IEEE-RAS 17th International Conference on Humanoid Robotics (Humanoids)|pages=541–546|arxiv=1712.02881|bibcode=2017arXiv171202881A|doi=10.1109/humanoids.2017.8246925|isbn=978-1-5386-4678-6|s2cid=1962455}}</ref>

=== Problems depicted in popular culture ===

Fears and concerns about robots have been repeatedly expressed in a wide range of books and films. A common theme is the development of a master race of conscious and highly intelligent robots, motivated to take over or destroy the human race. ''[[Frankenstein]]'' (1818), often called the first science fiction novel, has become synonymous with the theme of a robot or android advancing beyond its creator.

Other works with similar themes include ''[[The Mechanical Man]]'', ''[[The Terminator]]'', ''[[Runaway (1984 film)|Runaway]]'', ''[[RoboCop]]'', the [[Replicator (Stargate)|Replicators in ''Stargate'']], the [[Cylon (Battlestar Galactica)|Cylons]] in ''[[Battlestar Galactica (2004 TV series)|Battlestar Galactica]]'', the [[Cybermen]] and [[Dalek]]s in ''[[Doctor Who]]'', ''[[The Matrix]]'', ''[[Enthiran]]'' and ''[[I, Robot (film)|I, Robot]]''. Some fictional robots are programmed to kill and destroy; others gain superhuman intelligence and abilities by upgrading their own software and hardware. Examples of popular media where the robot becomes evil are ''[[2001: A Space Odyssey]]'', ''[[Red Planet (film)|Red Planet]]'' and ''[[Enthiran]]''.

The 2017 game ''[[Horizon Zero Dawn]]'' explores themes of robotics in warfare, [[robot ethics]], and the [[AI control problem]], as well as the positive or negative impact such technologies could have on the environment.

Another common theme is the reaction, sometimes called the "[[uncanny valley]]", of unease and even revulsion at the sight of robots that mimic humans too closely.<ref name="uncanny">{{cite conference |url=http://www.macdorman.com/kfm/writings/pubs/Ho2007EmotionUncanny.pdf |first=C. C. |last=Ho |author2=MacDorman, K. F. |author3=Pramono, Z. A. D. |year=2008 |title=Human emotion and the uncanny valley: A GLM, MDS, and ISOMAP analysis of robot video ratings |access-date=24 September 2008 |conference= 2008 3rd ACM/IEEE International Conference on Human-Robot Interaction (HRI) |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080911135038/http://www.macdorman.com/kfm/writings/pubs/Ho2007EmotionUncanny.pdf |archive-date=11 September 2008 |url-status=live }}</ref>

More recently, fictional representations of artificially intelligent robots in films such as ''[[A.I. Artificial Intelligence]]'' and ''[[Ex Machina (film)|Ex Machina]]'' and the 2016 TV adaptation of ''[[Westworld (TV Series)|Westworld]]'' have engaged audience sympathy for the robots themselves.

Emancipation or revolution as a theme in relation to robots was already present in the term coining play of [[R.U.R.]]
The [[Star Wars]] universe for example has several instances of droid revolts.
The [[Dune series]] on the other hand has the premise of humans revolting against ''thinking machines'' and finding human-biological alternatives to them.

== See also ==
<!-- Please add related topics to [[Outline of robotics]] and [[Index of robotics articles]] -->
{{Div col|colwidth=18em}}
* [[Index of robotics articles]]
* [[Outline of robotics]]
* [[Artificial intelligence]]
* [[William Grey Walter]]

=== Specific robotics concepts ===
* [[Robot locomotion]]
* [[Simultaneous localization and mapping]]
* [[Tactile sensor]]
* [[Teleoperation]]
* [[Uncanny valley]]
* [[Von Neumann architecture|von Neumann machine]]
* [[Wake-up robot problem]]
* [[Neuromorphic engineering]]

=== Robotics methods and categories ===
* [[Cognitive robotics]]
* [[Companion robot]]
* [[Domestic robot]]
* [[Epigenetic robotics]]
* [[Evolutionary robotics]]
* [[Humanoid robot]]
* [[Autonomous robot]]
* [[Swarm robotics]]
* [[Microbotics]]
* [[:Category:Robot control|Robot control]]

=== Specific robots and devices ===
* [[AIBO]]
* [[Autonomous spaceport drone ship]]
* [[Driverless car]]
* [[Friendly Robotics]]
* [[Lely Juno family]]
* [[Liquid handling robot]]
* [[Paro (robot)]]
* [[PatrolBot]]
* [[RoboBee]]
* [[Roborior]]
* [[Robot App Store]]

===Other related articles===
* [[Automated guided vehicle]]
* [[Animatronics]]
* [[Remote control vehicle]] 
* [[Robot Award]]
* [[Robot economics]]
* Robotoid
* [[Unmanned vehicle]]
* [[Hybrot]]
* [[Biohybrid robot]]
{{Div col end}}

== Further reading ==
* {{cite web |title=Researchers behind the world's first living robot have found a way to make it reproduce — by shaping it like Pac-Man |date=29 Nov 2021 |first=Sarah |last=Al-Arshani |website=Business Insider |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/researchers-working-on-worlds-first-living-robot-reproduce-itself-2021-11}}
* [https://www.cnn.com/videos/business/2019/06/06/uk-oxford-university-ai-da-humanoid-robot-artist-ge-lon-orig.cnn-business/video/playlists/business-robots/ See this humanoid robot artist sketch drawings from sight (CNN, Video, 2019)]
* Margolius, Ivan. 'The Robot of Prague', Newsletter, The Friends of Czech Heritage no. 17, Autumn 2017, pp.&nbsp;3 – 6. https://czechfriends.net/images/RobotsMargoliusJul2017.pdf {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170911115134/https://czechfriends.net/images/RobotsMargoliusJul2017.pdf |date=11 September 2017 }}
* Glaser, Horst Albert and Rossbach, Sabine: The Artificial Human, Frankfurt/M., Bern, New York 2011 [https://www.amazon.com/Artificial-Human-Tragical-History/dp/3631578083 "A Tragical History"]
* [[Lee Gutkind|Gutkind, L]]. (2006). ''[[Almost Human: Making Robots Think]]''. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, Inc.
* Craig, J.J. (2005). ''Introduction to Robotics'', Pearson Prentice Hall. Upper Saddle River, NJ.
* Tsai, L. W. (1999). ''Robot Analysis''. Wiley. New York.
* Sotheby's New York. ''The Tin Toy Robot Collection of Matt Wyse'' (1996)
* [[Manuel de Landa|DeLanda, Manuel]]. ''[[War in the Age of Intelligent Machines]]''. 1991. Swerve. New York.
* [[Needham, Joseph]] (1986). ''[[Science and Civilization in China]]: Volume 2''. Taipei: Caves Books Ltd.
* [[Margaret Cheney (author)|Cheney, Margaret]] [1989:123] (1981). ''Tesla, Man Out of Time''. Dorset Press. New York. {{ISBN|0-88029-419-1}}
* Čapek, Karel (1920). ''[https://web.archive.org/web/20071019221208/http://ebooks.adelaide.edu.au/c/capek/karel/rur/complete.html R.U.R.] '', Aventinum, Prague.
* TechCast Article Series, Jason Rupinski and Richard Mix, [https://web.archive.org/web/20090513032434/http://www.techcast.org/Upload/PDFs/050804104155TC.androids2.pdf "Public Attitudes to Androids: Robot Gender, Tasks, & Pricing"]

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
{{Wikiquote}}
<!-- ATTENTION! Please do not add external links without discussion and consensus on the talk page. Undiscussed links will be removed. -->
* [http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1002/(ISSN)1556-4967 Journal of Field Robotics]

{{Robotics}}
{{Machines}}
{{Science fiction}}
{{Subject bar|wikt=robot|commons=Robots|b=Robotics|n=no|q=no|s=no|v=Anthropomorphic Robotics|species=no}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Robots| ]]
[[Category:Czech words and phrases]]
[[Category:Science in popular culture]]
[[Category:1920s neologisms]]