Computer ScienceExam code: 0984
Robotics
Automated and Emerging Technologies
A robot is a programmable mechanical machine that senses its environment, processes that information and performs physical actions to carry out a task.
Robotics is the branch of engineering and computer science that designs, builds and programs robots. A robot is really a particular kind of automated system (topic 15): it has the same sensor-microprocessor-actuator pipeline, but with an added physical body that can move or manipulate things in the real world.
Dumb robots vs smart robots
One way to group robots is into two broad categories:
| Dumb robots | Smart robots | |
|---|---|---|
| How they behave | Repeat a fixed sequence of programmed instructions over and over | Adapt to changing conditions and learn from data |
| Use AI? | No | Yes |
| Flexibility | Low: cannot handle anything outside the programmed routine | High: cope with novelty and respond to feedback |
| Example | A robotic arm that welds the same point on every chassis on a car assembly line | A surgical robot that adjusts its movements based on live imaging during an operation |
As AI and machine learning improve, the boundary between dumb and smart robots is blurring; many modern industrial robots now have learning features that older generations lacked.