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Jan 14, 1495
Greek philosopher Aristotle
Around 1495 Leonardo da Vinci sketched plans for a humanoid robot -
Life-Sized Automatons
The life-sized automatons were created including a famous mechanical duck made by Jacques de Vaucanson that could crane its neck, flap its wings and even swallow food. -
The ‘Lilliput’
The first true robot toy was produced in Japan. The ‘Lilliput’ was a wind-up toy which walked. It was made from tinplate and stood just 15cm tall. -
Robot ‘arm’
George Devol and Joe Engelberger design the first programmable robot ‘arm’. This later became the first industrial robot, completing dangerous and repetitive tasks on an assembly line at General Motors -
IBM 360
The IBM 360 becomes the first computer to be mass-produced. -
The first LEGO
The first LEGO based educational products are put on the market and Honda launches a project to build a walking humanoid robot. -
The first Robocup
On May 11, a computer built by IBM known as Deep Blue beat world chess champion Garry Kasparov. The first Robocup tournament is held in Japan. The goal of Robocup is to have a fully automated team of robots beat the worlds best soccer team by the year 2050. -
first version of AIBO
Sony releases the first version of AIBO, a robotic dog with the ability to learn, entertain and communicate with its owner. More advanced versions have followed. -
Epsom release the smallest known robot
Epsom release the smallest known robot, standing 7cm high and weighing just 10 grams. The robot helicopter is intended to be used as a ‘flying camera’ during natural disasters. -
Roomba robotic vacuum
After being first introduced in 2002, the popular Roomba robotic vacuum cleaner has sold over 2.5 million units, proving that there is a strong demand for this type of domestic robotic technology.
