Lights-Out Manufacturing

Robotics

The interdisciplinary field involving design, construction, operation, and use of robots for automating tasks.

Industrial Robot

A programmable mechanical device used in manufacturing for tasks like welding, painting, assembly, and material handling.

Collaborative Robot

A robot designed to work alongside humans in a shared workspace, equipped with safety features.

Simultaneous Localisation and Mapping

A computational technique where a robot builds a map of an unknown environment while tracking its own location.

Kinematics

The study of motion without considering forces, used in robotics for calculating joint positions and movements.

Inverse Kinematics

Computing the joint parameters needed to place a robot's end effector at a desired position and orientation.

End Effector

The device at the end of a robotic arm designed to interact with the environment, such as grippers or tools.

Degrees of Freedom

The number of independent parameters that define a robot's configuration and range of motion.

Soft Robotics

A subfield of robotics dealing with constructing robots from highly compliant materials similar to biological organisms.

Surgical Robot

A robotic system designed to assist surgeons in performing precise, minimally invasive surgical procedures.

Agricultural Robot

A robot designed for agricultural applications including planting, harvesting, monitoring, and soil analysis.

Warehouse Automation

Using robots and automated systems to manage inventory, pick orders, and optimise warehouse operations.

The capability of a robot to detect and measure physical forces applied to it during interaction with objects.

An open-source framework providing tools and libraries for robot software development.

A field studying the coordination of multiple robots using decentralised control inspired by collective biological behaviour.

Systems that monitor robot speed, position, and force to ensure safe operation near humans.

The automated control of machining tools using a computer and coded programmed instructions.

An unmanned aerial vehicle operated remotely or autonomously for applications like surveillance, delivery, and mapping.

A comprehensive network of digital models and simulation tools replicating the entire production process.

A robot that can navigate and perform tasks in its environment without human guidance.