The term ‘Robot‘ was originally coined during a play by the name of R.U.R or Rossum’s Universal Robots in 1921. The term ‘Robot’ is derived from the Czech word ‘Robota‘ which means forced labor. The play, written by Karel Capek, was an astounding success when it first opened in the United States, fueling the interest in robots and robotics.

Today’s definitions of a Robot are somewhat different. The Robot Institute of America defines a robot as a reprogrammable and multifunctional manipulator that has been designed to move tools, parts, materials and other specialized devises through programmed motions in order to perform a variety of tasks. The Webster Dictionary has defined a robot as an automatic device that is capable of performing the functions a human would typically perform, or a machine that takes the form of a human.

Robotics is defined as the science and the technology of robots, which involves the design of robots, the manufacturing process and even the application. The term robotics was originally coined in a short story that Isaac Asimov published in 1941. Isaac Asimov was responsible for a great deal of the interest in robotics and robotics during this time. Robotics is a science that requires a good working knowledge of many things, including mechanics, software and electronics. To be successful in the field of robotics, one must have a large working knowledge of many related subjects as well. Anyone who is working in the field of robotics is known as a roboticist.

Before the term ‘robotics’ was coined, interest in the subjects was still present in the form of androids and automata specifically. This interest can be traced back to as early as 400 BC, thanks to the work of Archytas of Tarentum and his mechanical Pigeon. Robots have found uses in a wide variety of different industries, including for home making, academic and research purposes, and exploration, military and industrial applications.

The structure of a robot is almost always mostly mechanical, and is often called a kinematic chain with its functionality is analogous to the skeletal system in a human body. The appearance and the capabilities of robots, however, all vary vastly despite sharing a very similar mechanical, moveable structure that is kept under some form of control.

The kinematic chain structure of a robot is made up of many parts, including links that serve as bones, actuators that serve as muscles, and even joints that allow for a certain degree of freedom. Open serial chains are used in most contemporary robots, with each individual link connecting the link before to the one that comes after it. These robots, which are referred to as serial robots, often resemble a human arm. The development and use of new robotic structures that mimic human, animal and insect structures is comparatively rare, but is still an active area of research.

Isaac Asimov, who was the first to coin the term ‘Robotics’ was also capable of creating the three laws of Robotics, which state the following:

- A robot may not injure a human being, or through inaction, allow a human being to come into harm.

- A robot must obey all orders given to it by human beings, except where such orders would conflict with Law 1.

- A robot must protect its own existence, as long as such protection does not conflict with Law 1 or Law 2.

Although Isaac Asimov’s ideas for Robots and robotics were highly fictionalized for his science fiction novels, they resonated in enough people that the interest in robots is greater than ever.

One of the first robots to be developed was called the clepsydra, or the water clock. Ctesibius of Alexandria developed the Clepsydra in the year 250 BC. Nikola Tesla was responsible for creating the earliest examples of remote-control vehicles during the 1890s. Nikola Tesla is also responsible for the invention of AC electrical power, the radio, Tesla coils, induction motors, and many other electrical devices.

Many new robots and robotic devices were invented during the 1940s and 1950s and classified as ‘early robots‘. These early robots include Grey Walter’s Elsie the tortoise, and the Beast by Johns Hopkins. The Stanford Research Institute or SRI in Palo Alto, California was responsible for ‘Shakey‘, who was a small unstable box robot built on wheels which was capable of solving problems and navigating its environment using memory and logical reasoning.

General Electric Walking Truck was one of the larger robots built in the past, and could walk around four miles an hour. This 3,000 pound four-legged robot was the first legged vehicle that had its own computer brain. Ralph Moser at the General Electric Corporation developed the General Electric Walking Truck during the 1960s. Modern industrial robots began to sprout up in the 1950s and 1960s, most of which were Unimates that were developed by George Devol and Joe Engleberger. The first ever robot company was developed by Engleberger and named ‘Unimation’. Joe Engleberger has often been referred to of the father of robotics as a result of the accomplishments of his robot company Unimation.

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