Computer science from A to Z

R is for Robot

© INRIA Sophie Auvin - R comme Robot

What do “Star Wars” and a car assembly line have in common?
The answer is that robots rule in both!

Robots are the distant cousins of the mechanical ballerinas that rotate on the top of some music boxes. But what sets them apart from automatons is their capacity to adapt to their environment in their movements and actions.

When designing a robot, researchers do not therefore merely establish a fixed programme of tasks to complete. Unexpected questions may arise, such as what to do when a defective part or an obstacle is encountered. A robot analyses its environment via sensors and interpretation programs, then uses varied knowledge and procedures to determine how to react.

Even if these robots, which look like insects or articulated cranes, are a long way from the humanoids of science fiction, their behaviour - so similar and yet so different from our own - never ceases to surprise us...

Did you know...?

© INRIA / Sophie Chauvin - Robot

Robots are used for the tasks that they can perform better than human beings. These may be repetitive tasks, such as those on an assembly line, high-precision tasks such as the cutting of spare parts, or activities in a hostile environment, such as packaging of toxic waste.

Keywords: Computer science from A to Z Science awareness

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