Page 187 - Modern Robotics Building Versatile Macines

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CHRONOLOGY

1921 The play Rossum’s Universal Robots by Karel Capek adapts
a Czech word meaning serf, or “forced laborer,” to describe
machines that can perform complex tasks

1940s World War II spurs developments in computers, communica-
tion, and control devices

1942 Science fiction writer Isaac Asimov coins the term robotics
and devises his “Three Laws” governing robot behavior

1944 Norbert Wiener calls for interdisciplinary conferences and
research linking computing, control engineering, and biologi-
cal sciences
1948 Norbert Wiener publishes Cybernetics, a comprehensive analysis
of communication and control in machines and living things
1950 Grey Walter’s robotic “tortoises” demonstrate how simple
interactions can lead to complex behavior
1956 Joseph Engelberger and George Devol found Unimation and
begin development of the first industrial robot
1961 The first Unimate robot begins work at a General Motors
automobile factory
1963 The computer-controlled Rancho Arm demonstrates the util-
ity of robots for helping handicapped persons
1970 SRI International’s Shakey is the first robot to navigate auton-
omously using artificial intelligence

1979 The Stanford Cart, further developed by Hans Moravec, uses
cameras and a computer to thread its way through a room
filled with chairs

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