Unimationwas the world's first robotics company. It was founded in 1962 byJoseph F. EngelbergerandGeorge Devoland was located inDanbury, Connecticut.[1]Devol had already applied for a patent an industrial robotic arm in 1954;U.S. patent 2,988,237was issued in 1961.[2][3][4]
| Industry | Robotics |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1962 |
| Founders | |
| Headquarters | , United States |
Devol collaborated with Engelberger, who served as president of the company, to engineer and produce an industrial robot under the brand nameUnimate.They introduced their new robot in 1961 at a trade show in Chicago.[2] The first Unimate prototypes were controlled byvacuum tubesused as digital switches though later versions usedtransistors.Further, parts available off-the-shelf in the late 1950s, such asdigital encoders,were not adequate for the Unimate, so with Devol's guidance and a team of skilled engineers, Unimation designed and machined practically every part in the first Unimates. They also invented a variety of new technologies, including a unique rotatingdrum memorysystem with data parity controls.
In 1960, Devol personally sold the firstUnimaterobot, which was shipped in 1961 toGeneral Motors.[5]GM first used the machine fordie castinghandling andspot weldingof car bodies.[6]The first Unimate robot was installed at GM'sInland Fisher Guide PlantinEwing Township, New Jerseyin 1961[7][8]to lift hot pieces of metal from a die-casting machine and stack them.[9]Soon companies such asChrysler,Ford,andFiatsaw the necessity for large Unimate purchases.
The introduction of robotics to the manufacturing process effectively transformed the automotive industry,[2][10][11]withChryslerand theFord Motor Companysoon following General Motors' lead and installing Unimates in their manufacturing facilities.[8]The rapid adoption of the technology also provided Unimation with a working business model: after selling the first Unimate at a $35,000 loss, as demand increased, the company was able to begin building the robotic arms for significantly less and thus began to turn a substantial profit.[12]
Unimation was purchased byWestinghouse(1983).[13][14]Westinghouse later sold Unimation to the Swiss companyStäubli(1988) after the robotics industry shifted from the hydraulic models built by Unimation to electrically powered robots.[13][15]
PUMA
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ThePUMA(ProgrammableUniversalMachine forAssembly,orProgrammableUniversalManipulationArm) was developed byVictor Scheinmanat Unimation in 1978. Initially developed forGeneral Motors,the PUMA was based on the earlier Vicarm design Scheinman invented while atStanford University.
References
edit- ^"Invasion Of The Robots".Businessweek.March 2, 1997.RetrievedDecember 1,2015.
- ^abcMunson, George (December 2, 2010)."THE RISE AND FALL OF UNIMATION, INC. – Story of robotics innovation & triumph that changed the world!".Archived fromthe originalon 2021-07-30.RetrievedDecember 1,2015.
- ^Modern Robotics: Building Versatile Machines(2006) by Harry HendersonISBN978-0816057450,pp. 31-4
- ^Robots: Explore the World of Robots and How They Work for Us(2015) by Rick LeiderISBN978-1632204394
- ^""Unimate." Encyclopædia Britannica. 2008. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. 08 Oct. 2008 ".Britannica.com.Retrieved2012-03-15.
- ^"The History and Benefits of Industrial Robots".Used-Robots.com. Archived fromthe originalon 2010-01-31.Retrieved2012-03-15.
- ^"Unimate".Razor Robotics. Archived fromthe originalon December 8, 2015.RetrievedDecember 1,2015.
- ^abPearce, Jeremy (August 15, 2011)."George C. Devol, Inventor of Robot Arm, Dies at 99".The New York Times.RetrievedDecember 1,2015.
- ^Mickle, Paul."1961: A peep into the automated future",The Trentonian.Accessed August 11, 2011. "Without any fanfare, the world's first working robot joined the assembly line at the General Motors plant in Ewing Township in the spring of 1961.... It was an automated die-casting mold that dropped red-hot door handles and other such car parts into pools of cooling liquid on a line that moved them along to workers for trimming and buffing. Its most distinct feature was a grip on a steel armature that eliminated the need for a man to touch car parts just made from molten steel."
- ^Kilbane, Doris (December 1, 2008)."Joseph Engelberger: Robotics Move From Industry To Space To Elder Care".Electronic Design.RetrievedDecember 1,2015.
- ^"Joseph F. Engelberger, Father of Robotics".Robotics Industries Association. December 1, 2015.RetrievedDecember 1,2015.
- ^Spice, Byron (November 11, 2003)."4 robots clank into Hall of Fame; 2 fictional, 2 real".Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.RetrievedDecember 1,2015.
- ^ab"COMPANY NEWS; Westinghouse to Sell Unimation to Staubli".The New York Times.1988-12-08.
- ^"SHAKEOUT IN ROBOT INDUSTRY".The New York Times.1983-01-12.
- ^Anandan, Tanya (2017-04-28)."The Robotmakers – Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow".Association For Advancing Automation.
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