Looking for detailed explanations? See our in-depth Glossary with terms organized by category.
A12 terms
- Accuracy
- The ability of a robot to move to a commanded position in space. Measured as the difference between commanded and actual positions.
- Actuator
- A device that converts energy into motion. Electric motors, hydraulic cylinders, and pneumatic cylinders are common robot actuators.
- AGV
- Automated Guided Vehicle. A mobile robot following fixed paths using markers, wires, or magnetic tape.
- AI (Artificial Intelligence)
- Computer systems able to perform tasks normally requiring human intelligence, including visual perception, decision-making, and language understanding.
- Algorithm
- A step-by-step procedure for solving a problem or accomplishing a task, fundamental to robot programming and control.
- AMR
- Autonomous Mobile Robot. A robot that navigates dynamically using sensors and AI without fixed infrastructure.
- Android
- A robot designed to look and act like a human, more lifelike than a typical humanoid robot.
- Anthropomorphic
- Having human-like characteristics. Anthropomorphic robots have arms, hands, or bodies resembling human form.
- Articulated Robot
- A robot with rotary joints, typically featuring 4-7 axes. The most common industrial robot configuration.
- Automation
- Technology enabling processes to operate with minimal human intervention. Robotics is a key automation enabler.
- Autonomous
- Capable of operating independently without human control. Degrees of autonomy range from semi-autonomous to fully autonomous.
- Axis
- A single degree of freedom in a robot, typically a rotary or linear joint movement.
B4 terms
- Backlash
- Play or looseness in a mechanical system, particularly gear trains. Causes positioning errors in robots.
- Bin Picking
- The task of picking randomly arranged objects from a container. Requires advanced vision and grasp planning.
- Biped
- A two-legged robot or walking machine. Humanoid robots are bipedal.
- Bug Algorithm
- A simple navigation algorithm where a robot follows obstacles until finding a path to its goal.
C10 terms
- Calibration
- The process of adjusting a robot's parameters to match its actual physical characteristics and improve accuracy.
- Cartesian Robot
- A robot with linear axes arranged in X, Y, Z configuration. Also called gantry or linear robots.
- CE Marking
- European certification indicating conformity with health, safety, and environmental standards.
- Closed-Loop Control
- Control system using feedback to compare actual output with desired output and make corrections.
- CNC
- Computer Numerical Control. Automated control of machine tools using programmed commands.
- Cobot
- Collaborative Robot. Designed to work safely alongside humans without safety cages.
- Compliance
- The ability to yield to external forces. Essential for safe human-robot interaction and assembly tasks.
- Computer Vision
- Enabling computers to interpret visual information from cameras. Core technology for robot perception.
- Controller
- The computer system that manages robot motion and operations, processing sensor data and executing programs.
- Cycle Time
- Time required to complete one operation cycle. Key metric for manufacturing productivity.
D9 terms
- Dead Reckoning
- Estimating position by tracking movement from a known starting point. Subject to cumulative errors.
- Deep Learning
- Machine learning using neural networks with many layers. Powers modern computer vision and robot AI.
- Degrees of Freedom (DOF)
- The number of independent movements a robot can make. A 6-DOF arm can position and orient in any direction.
- Delta Robot
- A high-speed parallel robot with three arms. Common in packaging and pick-and-place applications.
- Depth Camera
- A camera capturing distance information for each pixel, enabling 3D perception.
- Dexterous
- Having skill and ease in physical movement, particularly fine motor control. Dexterous robots can perform complex manipulation.
- Digital Twin
- A virtual replica of a physical robot mirroring its real-time behavior.
- Drone
- An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) operated remotely or autonomously.
- Dynamic
- Involving motion, forces, and energy. Dynamic robots can run, jump, and recover from disturbances.
E6 terms
- Effector
- See End Effector. The tool or device at the end of a robot arm.
- Embodied AI
- Artificial intelligence implemented in physical robots that interact with the real world.
- Encoder
- A sensor measuring position or speed of a rotating shaft. Essential for robot joint feedback.
- End Effector
- The device at the end of a robot arm that interacts with objects—grippers, tools, welding torches, etc.
- EOAT
- End of Arm Tooling. All tooling and accessories attached to a robot's wrist.
- Exoskeleton
- A wearable robotic device augmenting human strength, endurance, or mobility.
F5 terms
- Feedback
- Information from sensors about robot state used to adjust control outputs.
- Flexible Manufacturing
- Production systems that can quickly adapt to different products or variations.
- Force Control
- Control strategy regulating forces applied by the robot rather than just position.
- Force Sensor
- A device measuring forces and torques, enabling force-controlled manipulation.
- Forward Kinematics
- Calculating end effector position from joint angles. The 'easy' direction of kinematics.
G5 terms
- Gantry Robot
- A Cartesian robot mounted on an overhead frame, suitable for large work areas.
- Gazebo
- An open-source 3D robot simulator commonly used with ROS.
- GPS
- Global Positioning System. Satellite-based navigation used by outdoor mobile robots.
- Grasp Planning
- Algorithms determining how a robot should grip an object for stable manipulation.
- Gripper
- An end effector designed to grasp objects. Types include parallel, angular, vacuum, and soft grippers.
H6 terms
- Haptics
- Technology relating to the sense of touch. Haptic feedback lets operators feel what a robot touches.
- Harmonic Drive
- A compact, high-ratio gear commonly used in robot joints. Provides high torque with zero backlash.
- Home Position
- A predefined reference position for robot calibration and program start points.
- HRI
- Human-Robot Interaction. The study of how humans and robots communicate and work together.
- Humanoid
- A robot with human-like form—bipedal, with arms, torso, and head.
- Hydraulic
- Using pressurized fluid to generate force. Hydraulic robots offer high power but require fluid systems.
I9 terms
- IK
- Inverse Kinematics. Calculating joint angles needed to reach a desired end effector position.
- Imitation Learning
- Training robots by demonstrating desired behaviors through teleoperation or observation.
- IMU
- Inertial Measurement Unit. Combines accelerometers and gyroscopes for motion tracking.
- Industrial Robot
- A programmable manipulator for manufacturing applications, typically operating in caged areas.
- Industry 4.0
- The fourth industrial revolution featuring smart factories, IoT, and cyber-physical systems.
- Integration
- Combining robots with other equipment, programming, and safety systems into complete solutions.
- Inverse Kinematics
- Calculating joint angles to achieve a desired end effector position. Often has multiple solutions.
- ISO 10218
- International safety standard for industrial robots.
- ISO/TS 15066
- Technical specification for collaborative robot safety.
J3 terms
- Jerk
- The rate of change of acceleration. Minimizing jerk produces smoother robot motion.
- Joint
- A connection between robot links allowing relative motion—rotary or linear.
- Joystick
- A manual control device for robot teleoperation.
K2 terms
- Kinematics
- The study of motion without considering forces. Describes robot geometry and movement.
- Kinodynamic Planning
- Motion planning considering both geometric and dynamic constraints.
L7 terms
- Latency
- Time delay in a system, critical for real-time robot control and teleoperation.
- LiDAR
- Light Detection and Ranging. Laser-based sensor measuring distances for mapping and navigation.
- Linear Actuator
- An actuator producing straight-line motion rather than rotation.
- Link
- A rigid body connecting joints in a robot arm.
- LLM
- Large Language Model. AI trained on text data, increasingly used for robot instruction and planning.
- Localization
- Determining a robot's position within a known map or environment.
- Locomotion
- The means by which a robot moves—wheels, legs, tracks, propellers, etc.
M9 terms
- Machine Learning
- AI systems that improve through experience without explicit programming.
- Machine Vision
- Using cameras and processing to enable robots to 'see' and interpret visual information.
- Manipulator
- A robot arm designed to manipulate objects, typically with multiple joints.
- Mapping
- Creating a representation of the environment for navigation and planning.
- Mobile Robot
- A robot capable of moving through its environment, as opposed to fixed-base robots.
- Model Predictive Control
- Advanced control using system models to predict and optimize future behavior.
- Motion Planning
- Computing collision-free paths for robot movement between configurations.
- Motor
- A device converting electrical or other energy into mechanical motion.
- MoveIt
- Open-source motion planning framework for ROS.
N2 terms
- Navigation
- The process of determining and following a path through an environment.
- Neural Network
- Computing systems inspired by biological neural networks, fundamental to modern robot AI.
O7 terms
- Object Detection
- Computer vision task of locating and classifying objects in images.
- Obstacle Avoidance
- Capability to detect and navigate around obstacles in the environment.
- Odometry
- Estimating position change using motion sensor data. Subject to drift over time.
- OEM
- Original Equipment Manufacturer. Company making robots or components under its own brand.
- Offline Programming
- Programming robots using simulation without accessing physical hardware.
- Open-Loop Control
- Control without feedback—output based solely on input command.
- OPC UA
- Industrial communication standard for secure machine-to-machine data exchange.
P10 terms
- Path
- A sequence of positions through which a robot moves, without time specification.
- Path Planning
- Computing a collision-free route from start to goal positions.
- Payload
- The maximum weight a robot can carry while maintaining specified performance.
- PID Control
- Proportional-Integral-Derivative control. Fundamental feedback control algorithm.
- Pick and Place
- Basic robot operation of picking objects from one location and placing at another.
- Pneumatic
- Using compressed air to generate force. Pneumatic grippers are common in automation.
- Point Cloud
- A set of 3D points representing surfaces, typically from LiDAR or depth cameras.
- Position Control
- Control strategy commanding the robot to specific positions.
- Proprioception
- A robot's sense of its own body position from internal sensors.
- Proximity Sensor
- Sensor detecting nearby objects without physical contact.
Q2 terms
- Quadruped
- A four-legged robot designed for walking and running locomotion.
- Quality Control
- Inspection processes ensuring products meet specifications. Robots increasingly used for QC.
R11 terms
- Reach
- Maximum distance from robot base to end effector. Defines work envelope size.
- Real-Time
- Systems responding within guaranteed time limits, essential for robot control.
- Redundancy
- Having more degrees of freedom than needed for a task, providing flexibility.
- Reinforcement Learning
- Machine learning through trial and error with rewards for desired behavior.
- Repeatability
- Ability to return to the same position repeatedly. Typically better than accuracy.
- RGB-D Camera
- Camera providing both color (RGB) and depth information.
- Robot
- A programmable machine capable of carrying out complex actions automatically.
- Robot Density
- Number of industrial robots per 10,000 manufacturing employees. Measures automation adoption.
- ROI
- Return on Investment. Measure of profitability for robot investments.
- ROS
- Robot Operating System. Open-source middleware for robot software development.
- ROS 2
- Second generation ROS with real-time support and improved security.
S17 terms
- Safety Scanner
- Laser device monitoring areas and triggering safety stops on intrusion.
- SCARA
- Selective Compliance Assembly Robot Arm. Four-axis robot ideal for assembly tasks.
- Semantic Segmentation
- Classifying each pixel in an image by category for scene understanding.
- Sensor
- Device detecting physical properties like position, force, temperature, or light.
- Sensor Fusion
- Combining data from multiple sensors to improve perception accuracy.
- Servo
- Motor with feedback control for precise position, velocity, or torque regulation.
- Sim-to-Real
- Transferring robot behaviors trained in simulation to physical robots.
- Simulation
- Virtual environment for testing robot software without physical hardware.
- Singularity
- Robot configuration where axes align, causing loss of degrees of freedom.
- Six-Axis Robot
- A robot arm with six rotary joints, offering full position and orientation control.
- SLAM
- Simultaneous Localization and Mapping. Building maps while tracking robot position.
- Soft Gripper
- Gripper made from compliant materials conforming to object shapes.
- Soft Robotics
- Robots made from flexible materials rather than rigid links.
- Speed
- Rate of motion, typically measured in degrees/second for joints or meters/second for linear axes.
- Stepper Motor
- Motor moving in discrete steps for precise open-loop position control.
- Swarm Robotics
- Coordinated behavior of large numbers of simple robots.
- System Integrator
- Company designing and building complete robot systems from components.
T8 terms
- Tactile Sensor
- Sensor detecting touch, pressure, or texture for manipulation feedback.
- TCP
- Tool Center Point. Reference point at end effector used for programming.
- Teach Pendant
- Handheld device for manually controlling and programming industrial robots.
- Teleoperation
- Remote control of a robot by a human operator.
- Telepresence
- Technology enabling a person to feel present at a remote location through a robot.
- Time-of-Flight
- Distance measurement by timing how long light takes to return from a target.
- Torque
- Rotational force. Robot joints are often rated by maximum torque.
- Trajectory
- A time-parameterized path specifying position, velocity, and acceleration over time.
U6 terms
- UAV
- Unmanned Aerial Vehicle. Aircraft operating without human pilot aboard.
- UGV
- Unmanned Ground Vehicle. Vehicle operating on ground without human aboard.
- Ultrasonic Sensor
- Sensor using sound waves to measure distance to objects.
- Uptime
- Percentage of time a robot is operational. Critical metric for manufacturing.
- URDF
- Unified Robot Description Format. XML format for robot models in ROS.
- USV
- Unmanned Surface Vehicle. Autonomous or remote vessel on water surface.
V4 terms
- Vacuum Gripper
- End effector using suction to pick up objects with flat surfaces.
- Velocity Control
- Control strategy commanding robot speed rather than position.
- Vision System
- Cameras and processing enabling robots to see and interpret environments.
- VLM
- Vision-Language Model. AI understanding both images and text for robot instruction.
W5 terms
- Waypoint
- An intermediate point along a robot's planned path.
- Weld Robot
- Industrial robot designed for welding operations—arc, spot, or laser welding.
- Work Cell
- A defined area containing a robot and associated equipment for a specific task.
- Work Envelope
- The 3D space within which a robot can position its end effector.
- Workspace
- See Work Envelope. The reachable area of a robot.
X1 terms
- X-Y Table
- A two-axis positioning system moving in horizontal plane.
Y1 terms
- Yaw
- Rotation around the vertical axis. One of three orientation angles (roll, pitch, yaw).
Z2 terms
- Zero Position
- A reference configuration where all joint angles are defined as zero.
- Zone
- A defined area in a robot workspace, often used for safety monitoring.