Wallington, New Jersey
Robots are everywhere, in our everyday lives from the robot vacuums that clean our floors, to the medical robots that help out during different surgeries to the newly emerging robot self-driving cars. But what is a robot?
What is a Robot?
At the base of it a robot is a machine that is meant to do tasks, robots have a job to accomplish. They can be designed to be controlled by a computer or by a person directly through something like a controller but the robot must be given commands to follow. Their shape is dependent on the job they need to do, some can be really small like nano-bots, which are smaller than the size of a penny, or massive like the arms used in assemblies at factories. Some robots can even be given instructions on how to adapt using artificial intelligence and sensors so they can “learn.” These robots can analyze their surroundings, make decisions and even improve their performance as time goes on.
What is Robotics?
If robotics had to be summarized into a single sentence it would be: The science of building robots. Whether that be physically building the robot out of steel or plastic, designing and drawing out each part, or coding the robots, robots need many different types of skills and there’s a place for everyone. Robotics takes diverse talents and mixes them together to help the world! By working together, individuals from various backgrounds can innovate and push boundaries.
How do Robots Work?
Robots need a variety of parts to work such as sensors, power, instructions and motors. For a robot to work it needs to be powered by something that can be electricity, solar power, wind power or a variety of other things. Sensors are what take in things from the environment usually referred to as “input.” It can vary from a lot of things, one sensor can be able to detect light in a room but another could be detecting the distance of objects from the sensor. Motors turn electricity into movement. A common place we see them is a fan or a wheel. The instructions are maybe the most important part of the robot, without the instructions the robot would not be able to function, it would just be a chunk of steel. The instructions control the robot and make it complete the task it was designed to do.
Robots of the Future!
One of the biggest examples of new innovation in robots are self driving vehicles. Self driving vehicles help make driving easier and are slowly emerging into the mainstream. They can make the roads safer and make driving more efficient. Robots are now in space too with NASA sending rovers onto the moon and mars for exploration and research. In the future robot assistants could be in your home too, helping you cook and clean. It could be helpful for many people and change the ways in which we live!
Find out more about innovation! Check out more from STEM-E!
https://www.steme.org/event-details/spectators-2025-pickleball-festival-tournament-free
https://www.steme.org/blog
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