People are constantly making all kinds of robots. China As early as the Western Zhou Dynasty more than 3,000 years ago, there appeared a singing and dancing puppet in China, known as the "advocate", which may be the earliest "robot" in the world.
In modern times, with the first and second industrial revolutions and the invention and application of various mechanical devices, many "robot" toys and handicrafts appeared all over the world. Most of these devices are driven by clockwork mechanism, which uses cams and levers to transmit motion.
1920, the Czech writer K. Kebik first put forward the term robot in a sci-fi script (translated as "Robert" before Chinese). Now it has been used as a special term for robots.
1950, American writer I Asimov put forward the concept of robotics and the so-called "three principles of robotics", namely: 1. Robots must not harm people; 2. The robot must obey the instructions given by people, but it cannot contradict 1; 3. The robot can protect itself from harm without violating the principle of 1 and 2.
In 1950s and 1960s, with the development of mechanism theory and servo theory, robots entered the application stage. 1954, American G.C.Devol announced the patent of "universal robot"; 1960, American AMF company produced Versatran robot with cylindrical coordinates, which can control points and trajectories. It is the first robot used in industrial production in the world.
In 1970s, with the development of computer technology, modern control technology, sensing technology and artificial intelligence technology, robots developed rapidly. 1974, CincinnatiMilacron successfully developed a multi-joint robot; 1979, Unimation company introduced PUMA robot with multi-joints, all-electric drive and multi-CPU secondary control; Adopt VAL special language; It can be equipped with visual, tactile and force sensors. It was an advanced industrial robot at that time. The current industrial robot structure is basically based on this. Robots in this period belong to the type of "teaching/playback". I only have the ability to remember and store, and work repeatedly according to the corresponding procedures, but I basically have no ability to perceive and feedback the surrounding environment. This kind of robot is called the first generation robot.
In 1980s, with the development of sensing technology, including visual sensors and non-visual sensors (force, touch, proximity, etc. ) and information processing technology, the second generation of robots-emotional robots appeared. It can get some information about the working environment and working objects, do some real-time processing and guide the robot to work. The second generation robot has been used and widely used in industrial production.
The third generation robot is an "intelligent robot" currently being studied. It not only has better environmental awareness than the second generation robot, but also has the ability of logical thinking, judgment and decision-making, and can work independently according to work requirements and environmental information.
The development of robots in China dates back to ancient China, such as "Wooden Flowing Cattle and Horses" in the Three Kingdoms and "Song and Dance Artists" in the Zhou Dynasty. It was not until the 1970s that China began to study modern robots, and the "863" project was implemented during the Seventh Five-Year Plan period.
In just 20 years, China's robot technology has occupied a place in the world. In the manufacturing industry, robots such as spraying, handling and assembly have appeared one after another. However, due to the limitation of market and funds, the installed capacity is only 1.20 million units at present, which is still far behind the developed countries. In the future, industrialization is the driving force to promote the development of industrial robots in China.
In terms of special robots, since the first underwater robot was successfully developed, Kangrui 1 and Explorer 1 have been born one after another. In particular, the "Cr-01"6000m underwater robot can record video in deep water, carry out submarine topographic survey and hydrological survey, and automatically record all kinds of data. It has successfully completed various submarine survey tasks in the Pacific Ocean twice, making contributions to China's entry into the advanced ranks of underwater robots. In addition, the nuclear industry has also successfully developed a wall crawling, remote inspection and danger removal robot.
China robot technology is developing towards micro-robot and intelligent robot. Recently, the successful development of 2mm micro-motor system and the birth of the first "Miss Tour Guide" service robot are conducive to promoting the development and application of robots in China.
Development direction of future robots
Robot technology has reached the level of "going into the earth", but they still can't work independently without people. However, people hope that they can imitate human intelligence and work independently under any environmental conditions.
In the future, robots will be able to realize this ideal. They can act completely through their own perception, and they can talk, listen to sounds, see things and think about problems like people. And talk to people through natural language. When you say "I want a cup of tea", it will automatically bring you a cup of tea and politely say "please have a cup of tea". Some robots can even touch people's minds. You don't need to give any instructions to the robot when you plan to go out. It will open the door number for you immediately. There is also an "understanding" robot, which has the ability to observe words and observe colors. When the robot finds you unhappy, it will sing and dance to make you happy. When you are happy, it will play jokes on you humorously and even play tricks on you!
In the future, robots will be intelligent and miniaturized. Micro-robot has a broad application prospect because of its small size and strong working ability. For example, a micro-robot called "invisible killer" will be used in the military. It can penetrate the enemy's defense lines, secretly spy on the enemy, and destroy the enemy's weapons and equipment, communication networks and so on. It is also envisaged to develop a micro-robot, which can run in human blood vessels, identify others and kill cancer cells, thus alleviating the pain of patients.
The development of robots is endless, and the fields are vast. They will eventually come into our lives like televisions and washing machines and become loyal assistants and close friends of mankind.