Fact Sheet: History of Robotics

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≈250 B.C. - Ctesibius, an ancient Greek engineer and mathematician, invented a water clock
which was the most accurate for nearly 2000 years.
≈60 A.D. - Hero of Alexandria designs the first automated programmable machine. These
'Automata' were made from a container of gradually releasing sand connected to
a spindle via a string. By using different configurations of these pulleys, it was
possible to repeatably move a statue on a pre-defined path.
1898 - The first radio-controlled submersible boat was invented by Nikola Tesla.
1921 - The term 'Robot' was coined by Karel Capek in the play 'Rossum's Universal Robots'.
1941 - Isaac Asimov introduced the word 'Robotics' in the science fiction short story 'Liar!'
1948 - William Grey Walter builds Elmer and Elsie, two of the earliest autonomous robots
with the appearance of turtles. The robots used simple rules to produce complex
behaviours.
1954 - The first silicon transistor was produced by Texas Instruments.
1956 - George Devol applied for a patent for the first programmable robot, later named
'Unimate'.
1957 - Launch of the first artificial satellite, Sputnik 1.

I, Robot Turtle robot Sputnik 1

1961 - First Unimate robot installed at General Motors. Used for welding and die casting.
1965 - Gordon E. Moore introduces the concept 'Moore's law', which predicts the number of
components on a single chip would double every two years.
1966 - Work began on the 'Shakey' robot at Stanford Research Institute. 'Shakey' was capable
of planning, route-finding and moving objects.
1969 - The Apollo 11 mission, puts the first man on the moon. Landing was made inside
the Lunar Module 'Eagle'.

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 Razor Robotics Fact Sheet: History of Robotics

Unimate 1 Shakey Moon Walk

1970 - Luna 17 lands on the moon, carrying the roving remote-controlled robot, Lunokhod 1.
1971 - Intel introduce the first commercially available microprocessor, the 4004.
1975 - The space probes Viking 1 and 2 were launched each with an articulated robot arm.
1976 - The film Star Wars is released introducing R2-D2 and C-3PO.

Lunokhod 1 Intel 4004 R2-D2 and C-3PO

1984 - The film Terminator is released, with Arnold Schwarzenegger as a cybernetic organism
or cyborg.
1986 - Honda starts work on its first humanoid, robot named 'E0' (later to become ASIMO).
1988 - SCAMP designed as the first robot pet with emotions.
1989 - Mark Tilden introduces BEAM robotics, beam being an acronym for Biology, Electronics,
Aesthetics, and Mechanics.
1991 - First HelpMate mobile autonomous robot used in hospitals.
1997 - Sojourner becomes the first rover to land on Mars as part of the Mars Pathfinder
mission.
1998 - Lego enters the robotics market with its first version of Lego Mindstorms.

Asimo Sojourner Lego Mindstorms

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 Razor Robotics Fact Sheet: History of Robotics

1999 - Sony introduces AIBO, an autonomous robotic dog capable of seeing, walking and
interacting with its environment. This was followed a year later by the SDR-3X
humanoid robot later known as QRIO (both discontinued in 2006).
2000 - Honda unveils ASIMO, the first non-prototype release of its humanoid robot.
2001 - US Air force test the first armed unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) fitted with two Hellfire
missiles, designated MQ-1
2002 – iRobot introduces Roomba, a personal robotic vacuum cleaner.

Sony AIBO Sony QRIO iRobot Roomba

2003 - Osaka University unveils their first 'Actroid', the term given for a humanoid robot with
strong visual human characteristics.
2004 - The first DARPA Grand challenge is help. Sponsored by the US department of defence,
the challenge is designed to create autonomous vehicles for warfare.
2004 - The Mars rovers Spirit and Opportunity land on Mars. As of November 25th 2009 The
rover Spirit has completed 2150 days of its 92 day (90 sol) mission.
2010 - NASA and General Motors join forces to develop Robonaut-2, the new version of NASA's
humanoid robot astronaut.

Actroid Mars Rover Robonaut-2

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