Task 1
Robotics, a subcategory of manufacturing, is a device that can move or perform tasks by control of a remote or a computer. The actual manifestation of robots are relatively recent, but the idea of robots can be traced back to Greek mythology. The robots in the myths were man-eating devices that could wipe out entire armies. Since then, the idea of robots has greatly improved and become more realistic. Isaac Aminov, a science fiction author and biochemistry professor, first set the foundations of field of robotics by writing the “Three Laws of Robotics” The first programmable robot was built in 1942 when Williard Pollard and Harold Roselund designed a paint sprayer. In 1948, William Grey Walter designed and built the first robot, a turtle that could find its own charging station, with complex autonomous behavior. With his experiment, the concept of artificial intelligence and relating a human brain to a robot’s programs was born. In 1954, the use of robots as an industrial tool was invented by George Devol and Joe Engleberger, who created an industrial arm called Unimate that could operate in an assembly line, replacing humans when doing dangerous tasks. This method was employed more and more by other car companies. After many years of using simple robots for tasks, the field of robotics began to research artificial intelligence. Artificial intelligence can be broadly described as giving a robot a task that is associated with human intelligence, like playing chess or sorting numbers.
By the 1980's, the modern era of artificial intelligence burgeoned, with scientists and engineers developing complex algorithms and abilities to recognize objects by visual cues. Since then, humanoid robots have also gained more popularity and attention. Robots are now the leading power in doing everything from vacuuming with the Roomba to space exploration.
