Today, robots can be designed and manufactured to serve humanity. Ancient Chinese people long harbored a “robot dream,” dreaming of creating humanoid forms to replace human labor. To fulfill this dream, the Chinese created autonomous mechanical devices, which can be considered the forerunners of modern robots.
In the late Spring and Autumn Period, Lu Ban crafted a wooden bird that could fly freely in the air for three days without landing. During the Three Kingdoms period, Zhuge Liang, a renowned military strategist, invented the wooden ox and horse, a human-powered, pedestrian transporter with a rocking cargo box, to transport grain. Although its appearance remains obscure, it is considered the earliest land-based military robot.
Although these devices were simple, they each had their own power sources. According to historical records, the main sources of power for known ancient Chinese robots today were elasticity and hydraulics. For example, the automatically ejected arrows described in “Records of Weixi” and “Jiao’s Talks on the Scrolls” utilized the elasticity of the bow and arrow. The Water-Powered Astronomical Table, designed and constructed by Su Song and others during the Northern Song Dynasty, exemplifies the use of hydraulics as a power source. It combined an armillary sphere, a celestial globe, and a time-telling device into a single device. It consisted of three levels: the upper level housed the armillary sphere, the middle level housed the celestial globe, and the lower level housed the time-telling system. The first level of the wooden pavilion in the time-telling system contained three small doors, each housing a small wooden puppet robot. At a specific time, the puppet would perform actions such as beating drums, ringing bells, and striking bells to signal the time. Its exquisite craftsmanship, meticulous craftsmanship, and ingenious design are truly remarkable, and have been successfully restored by archaeologist Wang Zhenduo.
Such automated devices are numerous. While not comparable to today’s robots, they represent humanity’s initial explorations in robotics and hold a significant place in the history of global science and technology. Since the concept of robotics was coined in the early 20th century, advances in automation technology, particularly the advent of computers, have fueled the emergence and development of modern robotics. With the global growth of robotics technology and the formation of a market, my country has made remarkable progress in robotics research, development, and application. In the mid-1980s, China’s industrial robot research and development entered a new phase, marking a significant climax in the country’s industrial robot development. From the late 1980s to the 1990s, the fundamental science of robotics advanced rapidly, and robotics began to be applied in industrial production and construction, marking a significant step forward in China’s transition from research and development to application. A growing cadre of talented individuals and teams engaged in robotics research, development, and application has also flourished, and industrial bases focused on robotics are thriving.
Today’s robots are developing towards enhanced sensing capabilities and intelligence, not only making our lives more convenient but also becoming valuable assistants. For example, the recent appearance of robot vacuums and household service robots in shopping malls has gradually gained popularity. It is foreseeable that in the near future, robots will become an indispensable part of our lives, and on that day, our ancestors’ “robot dream” will surely come true.