What Is Robotics? | Coursera

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Get a clear answer to the question, “What is robotics?” Then, learn more information about robots and robotics, including how you can turn robotics into a career.
Robotics blends engineering and other technologies to create robots, some of which are human-controlled and others autonomous.
Robotic technology has applications across a range of areas, from accident response assistance and emergency risk assessment to bricklaying and hotel guest services.
Robotics offers benefits such as increased human safety, productivity, and accuracy, as well as cost savings and reduced loneliness.
You can begin your robotics career by earning a degree or other credentials and building robotics skills, such as analytical thinking, programming, and problem-solving.
Explore the field of robotics, learning more about the various types of robots, who uses them, how they’re used, and how you can begin a career in this field. To deepen your knowledge of some of the technology used to power robots, enroll in the Machine Learning Specialization from Stanford University and DeepLearning.AI. In as little as two months, you’ll have the opportunity to master fundamental artificial intelligence (AI) concepts and develop practical, beginner friendly, machine learning skills.
Robotics blends engineering and technology to create intelligent machines called robots. Sometimes human-controlled and other times autonomous, robots can provide entertainment or perform tasks that people might find tedious, complex, or hazardous to health or safety. If you work in robotics, you may design, develop, operate, and maintain robots.
In the 1950s, George C. Devol, an inventor from Kentucky, developed and patented the first-ever reprogrammable robot, "Unimate." However, the product failed to take off in the industrial space. A decade later, Joseph Frederick Engelberger, a businessman and engineer, acquired Devol's patent, adapted Unimate for industrial use, and founded Unimation to market it. Engelberger is recognized as "the father of robotics" for his contributions [1].
You can find robotics used across many industries, from automation to agriculture to health care. Those who might use some form of robotics include:
Automobile manufacturers
Financial consultants
Robotics can assist with various essential functions for professionals and ordinary homeowners. The following are some common examples of uses for robots:
Auto accident response
Crop planting, pollination, and harvesting
Emergency risk analysis
Hotel guest services
Military sentry duty
Mining ore transport
Restaurant table service and floor cleaning
Specimen collection on other planets
Robotics engineers design and build robots to perform different functions. Explore five different types of robotics and their various designs.
1. Pre-programmed: These robots have a pre-programmed design. They function to perform specific tasks, and they only execute the functions within their programming, with no deviation. Examples of pre-programmed robots include a mechanical arm with a single task on an assembly line and a robot that performs a specific medical procedure.
2. Teleoperated: These robots often operate in conditions that humans cannot or in those that might pose safety risks to people. They work through human-directed remote control. Some examples include robots that perform underwater tasks, such as repairing pipelines or submarines, and robots that search for and rescue humans following a disaster like an earthquake.
3. Autonomous: These robots operate independently of human supervision. Autonomous robots perceive the environment through built-in sensors and adapt accordingly. Examples of robots that work independently include delivery robots and devices for vacuuming floors.
4. Augmenting: These robots enhance or replace human functions. Augmenting robots have sensors that may respond to a human’s brain or other body parts like muscles. Examples of augmenting robots include prosthetic limbs that can help humans with injury or disease regain motor function and exoskeletons that augment physical abilities.
5. Humanoid: These robots have a design that mimics humans, either in action or appearance. Humanoid robots help humans with personal assistance, education, entertainment, manufacturing, research, and search and rescue. Examples of humanoid robots include Atlas, designed by Boston Dynamics, and Sophia, designed by Hanson Robotics.
As evidenced by the different types of robots in use today, the field of robotics offers a wide array of benefits to society as a whole. Standard benefits are:
Increased human safety when robots perform tasks in dangerous environments
Higher workplace productivity when robots handle difficult or repetitive tasks
Greater accuracy at work when robots perform jobs susceptible to human error
Lower costs in the workplace when robots supplement human efforts with longer hours, with no need for breaks, and increased accuracy without the element of human error
Reduced loneliness when robots provide personal assistance for people living alone
Robots and autonomous systems are set to eliminate 5 million more jobs than they create by 2030, according to the World Economic Forum [2]. More drawbacks of robotics include:
An inability for robots to think critically
An inability for robots to manage unexpected circumstances
Lack of empathy when robots perform tasks like customer service
Costs for new robot-related training in workplaces
Security risks associated with robot hacking
It may help to follow certain steps to start a career path in robotics. Consider earning a degree or other credentials, building your robotics skills, and exploring different robotics careers you can pursue.