Kenneth Y. Goldberg

Department of Industrial Engineering and Operations Research University of California Berkeley, California

Almost all cultures have myths about artificial creatures: the Homunculus, Golem, Sorcerer's Apprentice, and, of course, Frankenstein. One theme that runs through these myths is that things generally turn out rather badly for the mortals who attempt to play creator.

In 1923 the playwright Karel Capek coined the word "robot"—"worker" in Czech. Industrialization was in full swing; Capek's extrapolation of this trend, combined with the development of the electronic computer in the 1940s, fired the imagination of many science fiction writers. Robots were the focus of Asimov's I Robot series and were featured in many popular films (2001) and television shows (Lost in Space).

What is a robot? The definition is surprisingly controversial, even among roboticists. At one extreme are humanoids, friendly or unfriendly, with anthropomorphic features. At the other extreme are the repetition-loving mechanical arms of industrial automation. The former are highly flexible, the latter highly efficient. Roboticists such as Whitney (1986) suggest that there is an inherent design tradeoff between flexibility and efficiency: a humanoid household robot would not be nearly as efficient at the standard home dishwashing machine. Neither is it obvious that anthropomorphism is necessary: machines with flapping wings were far less successful at flying than fixed-wing aircraft.

The International Standards Organization defines an industrial robot as "an automatically controlled, reprogrammable, multipurpose, manipulator with three or more axes" (ISO 8373), a reasonable definition that excludes dishwashers and most talking dolls. The first U.S. patent for a robot that falls under this definition was granted to George Devol in 1956. In the 1960s, research and develop-

Front Matter (R1-R12)

Biomaterials and Optical Imaging for Biomedicine (1-34)

Advanced Materials (35-62)

Simulation in Manufacturing (63-84)

Robotics (85-110)

Dinner Speech (111-122)

Contributors (123-130)

Program (131-134)

Participants (135-144)

Glossary (145-146)