A robot can be defined as a programable, self controlled device consisting of electronic,
electrical, or mechanical units. The notion of robots or robot-like automates can be traced
back to medieval times. Although people of that era didn’t have a term to describe what we
would eventually call a robot, they were nevertheless imagining mechanisms that could
perform human like tasks.
As early as 270 BC an ancient engineer named Ctesibus made organs and water clocks with
moveable figures. In medieval times, automatons, human-like figures run by hidden
mechanisms, were used to impress peasant worshipers in church into believing in a higher
power. The automatons, like the “Clock Jack”, created the illusion of self-motion (moving
without assistance). The “Clock Jack” was a mechanical figure that could strike time on a
bell with its axe. This technology was virtually unheard of in the 13th century.
By the 18th century, miniature automatons became more popular as toys for the......
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