Computer Engineering Commons^™

Robotic Realities: Near Term Prospects And Problems, Robert U. Ayres, Steven M. Miller

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

Industrial robots are automation, but with a difference. Other machine tools are extensions of human capabilities, while robots are seen mainly as substitutes for human workers. Robots will find most of their industrial applications during the next decade or two in the metal-working sectors, where they will begin to displace semiskilled machine operatives in medium to large batch production operations. They cannot substitute for skilled machinists or other workers doing nonroutine jobs, or specialized, dedicated hard automation used in mass production. The current generation of robots, lacking sensory data processing and interpretation capabilities, can potentially replace up to 1.3 million …