Is A Vending Machine Considered A Robot?
Obviously if it is it wouldn’t be considered a very complicated one. I’m just talking about a basic press a button combination and your snack drops down vending machine.
Tags: Considered, Machine, Robot, Vending
February 10th, 2010 at 11:58 am
It’s a decepticon.
Joking.
Well, yes, I guess it would be considered a very simple MACHINE. I don’t think it would be a robot, but then again, machine is just an umbrella term.
February 10th, 2010 at 3:13 pm
In a very broad sense a robot is an automated device that does a “DDD” job. (Dull, Dirty, Dangerous) In this sense a vending machine could be considered a robot. Nevertheless it usually isn’t.
One important function that robots usually have is the possibility to reprogram them to use them for various tasks. Also robots can usually respond to their environment. A vending machine doesn’t have these.
Nevertheless a vending machine has a mechanical part, it has some electronics, possibly a micro-controller. And it is programmed to do what it does. In this sense it gets pretty close to being a robot.
I’ll give an example. If a vending machine could sense when someone approaches it and offer a snack using an articulated arm. Or maybe just turn in the direction of a visitor then it could definitely be called a robot.
But if we are talking about a regular vending machine then I’d say that it is a mechatronic device not a robot. If you don’t know what is “mechatronics”, search it on wikipedia.
February 10th, 2010 at 7:37 pm
ok let’s see by it defenition;
ro⋅bot
/ˈroʊbət, -bɒt/ Show Spelled Pronunciation [roh-buht, -bot] Show IPA
Use robot in a Sentence
–noun
1. a machine that resembles a human and does mechanical, routine tasks on command. [[NO]]
2. a person who acts and responds in a mechanical, routine manner, usually subject to another’s will; automaton. [[YES]]
3. any machine or mechanical device that operates automatically with humanlike skill. [[NO]]
2 of 3 No. its not a robot…it just a machine
February 10th, 2010 at 9:42 pm
There doesn’t seem to be any official definition of what a robot is, so it’s hard to say. Some definitions require that it be able to move around. My opinion is that a vending machine is a primitive robot, because it can be programmed and it performs different actions depending on your commands (i.e. which button you push, or how much money you put in).
February 11th, 2010 at 2:02 am
No, because the definition of a robot is that it carries out actions automatically, and a vending machine is not automatic. It requires human interaction to carry out it’s task of dropping an object.
February 11th, 2010 at 3:23 am
No, that would be a vending robot. The mechanics of a machine are different.
February 11th, 2010 at 10:10 am
kinda
February 11th, 2010 at 1:17 pm
prob not, or it would be called a vending robot
February 11th, 2010 at 7:19 pm
No….it doesnt walk, move or stuff like that.