Related topics: artificial intelligence
Robot
hideRobot is a virtual or mechanical artificial agent. In practice, it is usually an electro-mechanical system which, by its appearance or movements, conveys a sense that it has intent or agency of its own. The word robot can refer to both physical robots and virtual software agents, but the latter are usually referred to as bots. There is no consensus on which machines qualify as robots, but there is general agreement among experts and the public that robots tend to do some or all of the following: move around, operate a mechanical limb, sense and manipulate their environment, and exhibit intelligent behavior, especially behavior which mimics humans or other animals. In South Africa, robot is an informal and commonly used term for a set of traffic lights.
Stories of artificial helpers and companions and attempts to create them have a long history but fully autonomous machines only appeared in the 20th century. The first digitally operated and programmable robot, the Unimate, was installed in 1961 to lift hot pieces of metal from a die casting machine and stack them. Today, commercial and industrial robots are 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.
Modern robots are usually used in tightly controlled environments such as on assembly lines because they have difficulty responding to unexpected interference. Because of this, most humans rarely encounter robots. However, domestic robots for cleaning and maintenance are increasingly common in and around homes in developed countries, particularly in Japan. Robots can also be found in the military.
For more information about Robot, read the full article at
Wikipedia.
This text uses material from Wikipedia and is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.
News tagged with robot
Samsung launches a new vacuuming robot
Electronics / Consumer & Gadgets
Nov 06, 2009 |
4.4 / 5 (7) |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Samsung Electronics has launched its latest autonomous robot vacuum cleaner, the Tango, which is capable of vacuuming hardwood floors, carpets, and even beds without human assistance.
Success in 'space elevator' competition (Update 3)
Space & Earth / Space Exploration
Nov 05, 2009 |
4.4 / 5 (34) |
53
(AP) -- A robot powered by a ground-based laser beam climbed a long cable dangling from a helicopter on Wednesday to qualify for prize money in a $2 million competition to test the potential reality of the ...
UCI robot to aid brain research
Nov 04, 2009 |
5 / 5 (1) |
0
(PhysOrg.com) -- A robot powered by a computerized model of a rodent brain will help researchers from UC Irvine and UC San Diego understand how people recognize and adapt to change.
Robots primed for 'are you being served' role in Arabic
Nov 03, 2009 |
3.4 / 5 (5) |
0
A laboratory in the UAE has built what it says is the world's first Arabic-speaking robot which could soon go into mass production to serve as staff in shopping malls.
AIDA Robot Aims To Change The Way We Interact With Our Car (w/ Video)
Technology / Computer Sciences
Nov 01, 2009 |
3.9 / 5 (16) |
10
(PhysOrg.com) -- MIT researchers and designers are developing the Affective Intelligent Driving Agent (AIDA) - a new in-car personal robot that aims to change the way we interact with our car. The project ...
Amnesia-Like Behavior Returns on Spirit
Space & Earth / Space Exploration
Oct 31, 2009 |
4.8 / 5 (8) |
3
(PhysOrg.com) -- Until Oct. 24, NASA's Mars Exploration Rover had gone more than six months without an episode of amnesia-like symptoms like those that appeared on four occasions earlier this year.
Underground mission to Mars
Oct 29, 2009 |
5 / 5 (2) |
1
The Netherlands is home to around 120,000 kilometres of underground gas pipelines. Researcher Edwin Dertien of Dutch University of Twente is working on a robot which can inspect the gas pipelines independently. ...
Robot Armada Might Scale New Worlds
Space & Earth / Space Exploration
Oct 28, 2009 |
4.3 / 5 (11) |
5
(PhysOrg.com) -- An armada of robots may one day fly above the mountain tops of Saturn's moon Titan, cross its vast dunes and sail in its liquid lakes.
Robotic perception, on purpose
Technology / Computer Sciences
Oct 26, 2009 |
5 / 5 (1) |
0
(PhysOrg.com) -- European researchers developed technology that enables a robot to combine data from both sound and vision to create combined, purposeful perception. In the process, they have taken the field ...
New robot skier takes to the slopes (w/ Video)
Oct 23, 2009 |
3.5 / 5 (6) |
1
(PhysOrg.com) -- A new robot skier has been invented that can be fitted with off-the-shelf skis. This is not the first skiing robot, since Japanese scientists have produced their own (see PhysOrg.com article here), but is bigger and heavie ...
Is Your Microrobot Up for the (NIST) Challenge?
Oct 20, 2009 |
not rated yet |
0
(PhysOrg.com) -- The scientists and engineers who introduced the world to tiny robots demonstrating soccer skills are creating the next level of friendly competition designed to advance microrobotics -- the ...
Is my robot happy to see me?
Medicine & Health / Psychology & Psychiatry
Oct 19, 2009 |
not rated yet |
0
(PhysOrg.com) -- People are social creatures. Robots... not so much. When we think of robots, we think of cold, metallic computers without emotion. If science fiction has taught us anything, though, it's that ...
Spider pill to seek out diseases
Oct 16, 2009 |
4.8 / 5 (8) |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- A remotely controlled 'spider pill' with eight moving legs and a miniature camera may become the next tool of choice in diagnosing cancers of the stomach and colon.
iRobot Unveils Morphing Blob Robot (w/ Video)
Oct 15, 2009 |
4.4 / 5 (25) |
4
(PhysOrg.com) -- iRobot's latest robot is unique on many levels. The doughy blob moves by inflating and deflating - a new technique its developers call "jamming." As the researchers explain in the video below, ...
Older adults want robots that do more than vacuum, human factors/ergonomics researchers find
Other Sciences / Social Sciences
Oct 14, 2009 |
3 / 5 (2) |
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Researchers at Georgia Tech have discovered that, contrary to previous assumptions, older adults are more amenable than younger ones to having a robot "perform critical monitoring tasks that would require little interaction ...
