Automation

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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
For a hierarchical presentation of automation topics, see Outline of
automation. For other uses, see Automation (disambiguation).
"Automate" redirects here. For other uses, see Automate (disambiguation).
Not to be confused with Automaton.

Part of a series on

Automation

Automation in general

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Impact of automation
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 Minimum human intervention is required to
control many large facilities, such as this electrical generating station.
Automation describes a wide range of technologies that reduce human
intervention in processes, mainly by predetermining decision criteria,
subprocess relationships, and related actions, as well as embodying those
predeterminations in machines.[1][2] Automation has been achieved by
various means
including mechanical, hydraulic, pneumatic, electrical, electronic devices,
and computers, usually in combination. Complicated systems, such as
modern factories, airplanes, and ships typically use combinations of all of
these techniques. The benefit of automation includes labor savings,
reducing waste, savings in electricity costs, savings in material costs, and
improvements to quality, accuracy, and precision.

Automation includes the use of various equipment and control

systems such as machinery, processes in factories, boilers,[3] and heat-
treating ovens, switching on telephone networks, steering, stabilization of
ships, aircraft and other applications and vehicles with reduced human
intervention.[4] Examples range from a household thermostat controlling a
boiler to a large industrial control system with tens of thousands of input
measurements and output control signals. Automation has also found a
home in the banking industry. It can range from simple on-off control to
multi-variable high-level algorithms in terms of control complexity.

In the simplest type of an automatic control loop, a controller compares a

measured value of a process with a desired set value and processes the
resulting error signal to change some input to the process, in such a way
that the process stays at its set point despite disturbances. This closed-
loop control is an application of negative feedback to a system. The
mathematical basis of control theory was begun in the 18th century and
advanced rapidly in the 20th. The term automation, inspired by the earlier
word automatic (coming from automaton), was not widely used before
1947, when Ford established an automation department.[5] It was during this
time that the industry was rapidly adopting feedback controllers, which
were introduced in the 1930s.[6]

The World Bank's World Development Report of 2019 shows evidence that
the new industries and jobs in the technology sector outweigh the
economic effects of workers being displaced by automation.[7] Job
losses and downward mobility blamed on automation have been cited as
one of many factors in the resurgence
of nationalist, protectionist and populist politics in the US, UK and France,
among other countries since the 2010s.[8][9][10][11][12]

History
[edit]
Early history
[edit]

Ctesibius's clepsydra (3rd century BC)

It was a preoccupation of the Greeks and Arabs (in the period between
about 300 BC and about 1200 AD) to keep accurate track of time.
In Ptolemaic Egypt, about 270 BC, Ctesibius described a float regulator for
a water clock, a device not unlike the ball and cock in a modern flush toilet.
This was the earliest feedback-controlled mechanism.[13] The appearance of
the mechanical clock in the 14th century made the water clock and its
feedback control system obsolete.

The Persian Banū Mūsā brothers, in their Book of Ingenious

Devices (850 AD), described a number of automatic controls.[14] Two-step
level controls for fluids, a form of discontinuous variable structure controls,
were developed by the Banu Musa brothers.[15] They also described
a feedback controller.[16][17] The design of feedback control systems up
through the Industrial Revolution was by trial-and-error, together with a
great deal of engineering intuition. It was not until the mid-19th century that
the stability of feedback control systems was analyzed using mathematics,
the formal language of automatic control theory.[citation needed]

The centrifugal governor was invented by Christiaan Huygens in the

seventeenth century, and used to adjust the gap between millstones.[18][19][20]
Industrial Revolution in Western Europe
[edit]

Steam engines promoted automation through

the need to control engine speed and power.
The introduction of prime movers, or self-driven machines advanced grain
mills, furnaces, boilers, and the steam engine created a new requirement
for automatic control systems including temperature regulators (invented in
1624; see Cornelius Drebbel), pressure regulators (1681), float
regulators (1700) and speed control devices. Another control mechanism
was used to tent the sails of windmills. It was patented by Edmund Lee in
1745.[21] Also in 1745, Jacques de Vaucanson invented the first automated
loom. Around 1800, Joseph Marie Jacquard created a punch-card
system to program looms.[22]

In 1771 Richard Arkwright invented the first fully automated spinning mill
driven by water power, known at the time as the water frame.[23] An
automatic flour mill was developed by Oliver Evans in 1785, making it the
first completely automated industrial process.[24][25]
 A flyball governor is an early example of a
feedback control system. An increase in speed would make the
counterweights move outward, sliding a linkage that tended to close the
valve supplying steam, and so slowing the engine.
A centrifugal governor was used by Mr. Bunce of England in 1784 as part
of a model steam crane.[26][27] The centrifugal governor was adopted
by James Watt for use on a steam engine in 1788 after Watt's partner
Boulton saw one at a flour mill Boulton & Watt were building.[21] The
governor could not actually hold a set speed; the engine would assume a
new constant speed in response to load changes. The governor was able
to handle smaller variations such as those caused by fluctuating heat load
to the boiler. Also, there was a tendency for oscillation whenever there was
a speed change. As a consequence, engines equipped with this governor
were not suitable for operations requiring constant speed, such as cotton
spinning.[21]

Several improvements to the governor, plus improvements to valve cut-off

timing on the steam engine, made the engine suitable for most industrial
uses before the end of the 19th century. Advances in the steam engine
stayed well ahead of science, both thermodynamics and control theory.
[21]
The governor received relatively little scientific attention until James
Clerk Maxwell published a paper that established the beginning of a
theoretical basis for understanding control theory.
20th century
[edit]
Relay logic was introduced with factory electrification, which underwent
rapid adaption from 1900 through the 1920s. Central electric power stations
were also undergoing rapid growth and the operation of new high-pressure
boilers, steam turbines and electrical substations created a large demand
for instruments and controls. Central control rooms became common in the
1920s, but as late as the early 1930s, most process controls were on-off.
Operators typically monitored charts drawn by recorders that plotted data
from instruments. To make corrections, operators manually opened or
closed valves or turned switches on or off. Control rooms also used color-
coded lights to send signals to workers in the plant to manually make
certain changes.[28]

The development of the electronic amplifier during the 1920s, which was
important for long-distance telephony, required a higher signal-to-noise
ratio, which was solved by negative feedback noise cancellation. This and
other telephony applications contributed to the control theory. In the 1940s
and 1950s, German mathematician Irmgard Flügge-Lotz developed the
theory of discontinuous automatic controls, which found military
applications during the Second World War to fire control systems and
aircraft navigation systems.[6]

Controllers, which were able to make calculated changes in response to

deviations from a set point rather than on-off control, began being
introduced in the 1930s. Controllers allowed manufacturing to continue
showing productivity gains to offset the declining influence of factory
electrification.[29]

Factory productivity was greatly increased by electrification in the 1920s.

U.S. manufacturing productivity growth fell from 5.2%/yr 1919–29 to
2.76%/yr 1929–41. Alexander Field notes that spending on non-medical
instruments increased significantly from 1929 to 1933 and remained strong
thereafter.[29]

The First and Second World Wars saw major advancements in the field
of mass communication and signal processing. Other key advances in
automatic controls include differential equations, stability theory and system
theory (1938), frequency domain analysis (1940), ship control (1950),
and stochastic analysis (1941).

Starting in 1958, various systems based on solid-state[30][31] digital

logic modules for hard-wired programmed logic controllers (the
predecessors of programmable logic controllers [PLC]) emerged to replace
electro-mechanical relay logic in industrial control systems for process
control and automation, including
early Telefunken/AEG Logistat, Siemens Simatic, Philips/Mullard/Valvo [de]
Norbit, BBC Sigmatronic, ACEC Logacec, Akkord [de] Estacord, Krone
Mibakron, Bistat, Datapac, Norlog, SSR, or Procontic systems.[30][32][33][34][35][36]
In 1959 Texaco's Port Arthur Refinery became the first chemical plant to
use digital control.[37] Conversion of factories to digital control began to
spread rapidly in the 1970s as the price of computer hardware fell.
Significant applications
[edit]
The automatic telephone switchboard was introduced in 1892 along with
dial telephones. By 1929, 31.9% of the Bell system was automatic.[38]:
158
Automatic telephone switching originally used vacuum tube amplifiers
and electro-mechanical switches, which consumed a large amount of
electricity. Call volume eventually grew so fast that it was feared the
telephone system would consume all electricity production, prompting Bell
Labs to begin research on the transistor.[39]

The logic performed by telephone switching relays was the inspiration for
the digital computer. The first commercially successful glass bottle-blowing
machine was an automatic model introduced in 1905.[40] The machine,
operated by a two-man crew working 12-hour shifts, could produce 17,280
bottles in 24 hours, compared to 2,880 bottles made by a crew of six men
and boys working in a shop for a day. The cost of making bottles by
machine was 10 to 12 cents per gross compared to $1.80 per gross by the
manual glassblowers and helpers.

Sectional electric drives were developed using control theory. Sectional

electric drives are used on different sections of a machine where a precise
differential must be maintained between the sections. In steel rolling, the
metal elongates as it passes through pairs of rollers, which must run at
successively faster speeds. In paper making paper, the sheet shrinks as it
passes around steam-heated drying arranged in groups, which must run at
successively slower speeds. The first application of a sectional electric
drive was on a paper machine in 1919.[41] One of the most important
developments in the steel industry during the 20th century was continuous
wide strip rolling, developed by Armco in 1928.[42]
 Automated pharmacology production
Before automation, many chemicals were made in batches. In 1930, with
the widespread use of instruments and the emerging use of controllers, the
founder of Dow Chemical Co. was advocating continuous production.[43]

Self-acting machine tools that displaced hand dexterity so they could be

operated by boys and unskilled laborers were developed by James
Nasmyth in the 1840s.[44] Machine tools were automated with Numerical
control (NC) using punched paper tape in the 1950s. This soon evolved
into computerized numerical control (CNC).

Today extensive automation is practiced in practically every type of

manufacturing and assembly process. Some of the larger processes
include electrical power generation, oil refining, chemicals, steel mills,
plastics, cement plants, fertilizer plants, pulp and paper mills, automobile
and truck assembly, aircraft production, glass manufacturing, natural gas
separation plants, food and beverage processing, canning and bottling and
manufacture of various kinds of parts. Robots are especially useful in
hazardous applications like automobile spray painting. Robots are also
used to assemble electronic circuit boards. Automotive welding is done with
robots and automatic welders are used in applications like pipelines.
Space/computer age
[edit]
With the advent of the space age in 1957, controls design, particularly in
the United States, turned away from the frequency-domain techniques of
classical control theory and backed into the differential equation techniques
of the late 19th century, which were couched in the time domain. During the
1940s and 1950s, German mathematician Irmgard Flugge-Lotz developed
the theory of discontinuous automatic control, which became widely used
in hysteresis control systems such as navigation systems, fire-control
systems, and electronics. Through Flugge-Lotz and others, the modern era
saw time-domain design for nonlinear
systems (1961), navigation (1960), optimal control and estimation
theory (1962), nonlinear control theory (1969), digital control and filtering
theory (1974), and the personal computer (1983).

Advantages, disadvantages, and limitations

[edit]
Perhaps the most cited advantage of automation in industry is that it is
associated with faster production and cheaper labor costs. Another benefit
could be that it replaces hard, physical, or monotonous work.[45] Additionally,
tasks that take place in hazardous environments or that are otherwise
beyond human capabilities can be done by machines, as machines can
operate even under extreme temperatures or in atmospheres that are
radioactive or toxic. They can also be maintained with simple quality
checks. However, at the time being, not all tasks can be automated, and
some tasks are more expensive to automate than others. Initial costs of
installing the machinery in factory settings are high, and failure to maintain
a system could result in the loss of the product itself.

Moreover, some studies seem to indicate that industrial automation could

impose ill effects beyond operational concerns, including worker
displacement due to systemic loss of employment and compounded
environmental damage; however, these findings are both convoluted and
controversial in nature, and could potentially be circumvented.[46]

The main advantages of automation are:

 Increased throughput or productivity

 Improved quality
 Increased predictability
 Improved robustness (consistency), of processes or product
 Increased consistency of output
 Reduced direct human labor costs and expenses
 Reduced cycle time
 Increased accuracy
 Relieving humans of monotonously repetitive work [47]
 Required work in development, deployment, maintenance, and
operation of automated processes — often structured as "jobs"
 Increased human freedom to do other things
Automation primarily describes machines replacing human action, but it is
also loosely associated with mechanization, machines replacing human
labor. Coupled with mechanization, extending human capabilities in terms
of size, strength, speed, endurance, visual range & acuity, hearing
frequency & precision, electromagnetic sensing & effecting, etc.,
advantages include:[48]

 Relieving humans of dangerous work stresses and occupational

injuries (e.g., fewer strained backs from lifting heavy objects)
 Removing humans from dangerous environments (e.g. fire, space,
volcanoes, nuclear facilities, underwater, etc.)
The main disadvantages of automation are:

 High initial cost

 Faster production without human intervention can mean faster
unchecked production of defects where automated processes are
defective.
 Scaled-up capacities can mean scaled-up problems when systems fail
— releasing dangerous toxins, forces, energies, etc., at scaled-up rates.
 Human adaptiveness is often poorly understood by automation initiators.
It is often difficult to anticipate every contingency and develop fully
preplanned automated responses for every situation. The discoveries
inherent in automating processes can require unanticipated iterations to
resolve, causing unanticipated costs and delays.
 People anticipating employment income may be seriously disrupted by
others deploying automation where no similar income is readily
available.
Paradox of automation
[edit]
The paradox of automation says that the more efficient the automated
system, the more crucial the human contribution of the operators. Humans
are less involved, but their involvement becomes more critical. Lisanne
Bainbridge, a cognitive psychologist, identified these issues notably in her
widely cited paper "Ironies of Automation."[49] If an automated system has
an error, it will multiply that error until it is fixed or shut down. This is where
human operators come in.[50] A fatal example of this was Air France Flight
447, where a failure of automation put the pilots into a manual situation
they were not prepared for.[51]
Limitations
[edit]
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 Current technology is unable to automate all the desired tasks.

 Many operations using automation have large amounts of invested
capital and produce high volumes of products, making malfunctions
extremely costly and potentially hazardous. Therefore, some personnel
is needed to ensure that the entire system functions properly and that
safety and product quality are maintained.[52]
 As a process becomes increasingly automated, there is less and less
labor to be saved or quality improvement to be gained. This is an
example of both diminishing returns and the logistic function.
 As more and more processes become automated, there are fewer
remaining non-automated processes. This is an example of the
exhaustion of opportunities. New technological paradigms may,
however, set new limits that surpass the previous limits.
Current limitations
[edit]
Many roles for humans in industrial processes presently lie beyond the
scope of automation. Human-level pattern recognition, language
comprehension, and language production ability are well beyond the
capabilities of modern mechanical and computer systems (but see Watson
computer). Tasks requiring subjective assessment or synthesis of complex
sensory data, such as scents and sounds, as well as high-level tasks such
as strategic planning, currently require human expertise. In many cases,
the use of humans is more cost-effective than mechanical approaches
even where the automation of industrial tasks is possible.
Therefore, algorithmic management as the digital rationalization of human
labor instead of its substitution has emerged as an alternative technological
strategy.[53] Overcoming these obstacles is a theorized path to post-
scarcity economics.[54]
Societal impact and unemployment
[edit]
Main article: Technological unemployment
Increased automation often causes workers to feel anxious about losing
their jobs as technology renders their skills or experience unnecessary.
Early in the Industrial Revolution, when inventions like the steam
engine were making some job categories expendable, workers forcefully
resisted these changes. Luddites, for instance, were English textile
workers who protested the introduction of weaving machines by destroying
them.[55] More recently, some residents of Chandler, Arizona, have slashed
tires and pelted rocks at self-driving car, in protest over the cars' perceived
threat to human safety and job prospects.[56]

The relative anxiety about automation reflected in opinion polls seems to

correlate closely with the strength of organized labor in that region or
nation. For example, while a study by the Pew Research Center indicated
that 72% of Americans are worried about increasing automation in the
workplace, 80% of Swedes see automation and artificial intelligence (AI) as
a good thing, due to the country's still-powerful unions and a more robust
national safety net.[57]

In the U.S., 47% of all current jobs have the potential to be fully automated
by 2033, according to the research of experts Carl Benedikt Frey and
Michael Osborne. Furthermore, wages and educational attainment appear
to be strongly negatively correlated with an occupation's risk of being
automated.[58] Even highly skilled professional jobs like
a lawyer, doctor, engineer, journalist are at risk of automation.[59]

Prospects are particularly bleak for occupations that do not presently

require a university degree, such as truck driving.[60] Even in high-tech
corridors like Silicon Valley, concern is spreading about a future in which a
sizable percentage of adults have little chance of sustaining gainful
employment.[61] "In The Second Machine Age, Erik Brynjolfsson and Andrew
McAfee argue that "...there's never been a better time to be a worker with
special skills or the right education, because these people can use
technology to create and capture value. However, there's never been a
worse time to be a worker with only 'ordinary' skills and abilities to offer,
because computers, robots, and other digital technologies are acquiring
these skills and abilities at an extraordinary rate."[62] As the example of
Sweden suggests, however, the transition to a more automated future need
not inspire panic, if there is sufficient political will to promote the retraining
of workers whose positions are being rendered obsolete.
According to a 2020 study in the Journal of Political Economy, automation
has robust negative effects on employment and wages: "One more robot
per thousand workers reduces the employment-to-population ratio by 0.2
percentage points and wages by 0.42%."[63]

Research by Carl Benedikt Frey and Michael Osborne of the Oxford Martin
School argued that employees engaged in "tasks following well-defined
procedures that can easily be performed by sophisticated algorithms" are at
risk of displacement, and 47% of jobs in the US were at risk. The study,
released as a working paper in 2013 and published in 2017, predicted that
automation would put low-paid physical occupations most at risk, by
surveying a group of colleagues on their opinions.[64] However, according to
a study published in McKinsey Quarterly[65] in 2015 the impact of
computerization in most cases is not the replacement of employees but the
automation of portions of the tasks they perform.[66] The methodology of the
McKinsey study has been heavily criticized for being intransparent and
relying on subjective assessments.[67] The methodology of Frey and
Osborne has been subjected to criticism, as lacking evidence, historical
awareness, or credible methodology.[68][69] Additionally, the Organisation for
Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) found that across the 21
OECD countries, 9% of jobs are automatable.[70]

The Obama administration pointed out that every 3 months "about 6

percent of jobs in the economy are destroyed by shrinking or closing
businesses, while a slightly larger percentage of jobs are added."[71] A
recent MIT economics study of automation in the U.S. from 1990 to 2007
found that there may be a negative impact on employment and wages
when robots are introduced to an industry. When one robot is added per
one thousand workers, the employment to population ratio decreases
between 0.18 and 0.34 percentages and wages are reduced by 0.25–0.5
percentage points. During the time period studied, the US did not have
many robots in the economy which restricts the impact of automation.
However, automation is expected to triple (conservative estimate) or
quadruple (a generous estimate) leading these numbers to become
substantially higher.[72]

Based on a formula by Gilles Saint-Paul, an economist at Toulouse 1

University, the demand for unskilled human capital declines at a slower rate
than the demand for skilled human capital increases.[73] In the long run and
for society as a whole it has led to cheaper products, lower average work
hours, and new industries forming (i.e., robotics industries, computer
industries, design industries). These new industries provide many high
salary skill-based jobs to the economy. By 2030, between 3 and 14 percent
of the global workforce will be forced to switch job categories due to
automation eliminating jobs in an entire sector. While the number of jobs
lost to automation is often offset by jobs gained from technological
advances, the same type of job loss is not the same one replaced and that
leading to increasing unemployment in the lower-middle class. This occurs
largely in the US and developed countries where technological advances
contribute to higher demand for highly skilled labor but demand for middle-
wage labor continues to fall. Economists call this trend "income
polarization" where unskilled labor wages are driven down and skilled labor
is driven up and it is predicted to continue in developed economies.[74]

Unemployment is becoming a problem in the U.S. due to the exponential

growth rate of automation and technology. According to Kim, Kim, and Lee
(2017:1), "[a] seminal study by Frey and Osborne in 2013 predicted that
47% of the 702 examined occupations in the U.S. faced a high risk of
decreased employment rate within the next 10–25 years as a result of
computerization." As many jobs are becoming obsolete, which is causing
job displacement, one possible solution would be for the government to
assist with a universal basic income (UBI) program. UBI would be a
guaranteed, non-taxed income of around 1000 dollars per month, paid to all
U.S. citizens over the age of 21. UBI would help those who are displaced
take on jobs that pay less money and still afford to get by. It would also give
those that are employed with jobs that are likely to be replaced by
automation and technology extra money to spend on education and training
on new demanding employment skills. UBI, however, should be seen as a
short-term solution as it doesn't fully address the issue of income inequality
which will be exacerbated by job displacement.

Lights-out manufacturing
[edit]
Main article: Lights out (manufacturing)
Lights-out manufacturing is a production system with no human workers, to
eliminate labor costs.

Lights out manufacturing grew in popularity in the U.S. when General

Motors in 1982 implemented humans "hands-off" manufacturing to "replace
risk-averse bureaucracy with automation and robots". However, the factory
never reached full "lights out" status.[75]
The expansion of lights out manufacturing requires:[76]

 Reliability of equipment
 Long-term mechanic capabilities
 Planned preventive maintenance
 Commitment from the staff
Health and environment
[edit]
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The costs of automation to the environment are different depending on the

technology, product or engine automated. There are automated engines
that consume more energy resources from the Earth in comparison with
previous engines and vice versa.[citation needed] Hazardous operations, such as oil
refining, the manufacturing of industrial chemicals, and all forms of metal
working, were always early contenders for automation.[dubious – discuss][citation needed]

The automation of vehicles could prove to have a substantial impact on the

environment, although the nature of this impact could be beneficial or
harmful depending on several factors. Because automated vehicles are
much less likely to get into accidents compared to human-driven vehicles,
some precautions built into current models (such as anti-lock
brakes or laminated glass) would not be required for self-driving versions.
Removal of these safety features reduces the weight of the vehicle, and
coupled with more precise acceleration and braking, as well as fuel-efficient
route mapping, can increase fuel economy and reduce emissions. Despite
this, some researchers theorize that an increase in the production of self-
driving cars could lead to a boom in vehicle ownership and usage, which
could potentially negate any environmental benefits of self-driving cars if
they are used more frequently.[77]

Automation of homes and home appliances is also thought to impact the

environment. A study of energy consumption of automated homes in
Finland showed that smart homes could reduce energy consumption by
monitoring levels of consumption in different areas of the home and
adjusting consumption to reduce energy leaks (e.g. automatically reducing
consumption during the nighttime when activity is low). This study, along
with others, indicated that the smart home's ability to monitor and adjust
consumption levels would reduce unnecessary energy usage. However,
some research suggests that smart homes might not be as efficient as non-
automated homes. A more recent study has indicated that, while monitoring
and adjusting consumption levels do decrease unnecessary energy use,
this process requires monitoring systems that also consume an amount of
energy. The energy required to run these systems sometimes negates their
benefits, resulting in little to no ecological benefit.[78]

Convertibility and turnaround time

[edit]
Main article: Turnaround time
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Another major shift in automation is the increased demand for flexibility and
convertibility in manufacturing processes. Manufacturers are increasingly
demanding the ability to easily switch from manufacturing Product A to
manufacturing Product B without having to completely rebuild
the production lines. Flexibility and distributed processes have led to the
introduction of Automated Guided Vehicles with Natural Features
Navigation.

Digital electronics helped too. Former analog-based instrumentation was

replaced by digital equivalents which can be more accurate and flexible,
and offer greater scope for more
sophisticated configuration, parametrization, and operation. This was
accompanied by the fieldbus revolution which provided a networked (i.e. a
single cable) means of communicating between control systems and field-
level instrumentation, eliminating hard-wiring.

Discrete manufacturing plants adopted these technologies fast. The more

conservative process industries with their longer plant life cycles have been
slower to adopt and analog-based measurement and control still dominate.
The growing use of Industrial Ethernet on the factory floor is pushing these
trends still further, enabling manufacturing plants to be integrated more
tightly within the enterprise, via the internet if necessary. Global competition
has also increased demand for Reconfigurable Manufacturing Systems.[79]

Automation tools
[edit]
Engineers can now have numerical control over automated devices. The
result has been a rapidly expanding range of applications and human
activities. Computer-aided technologies (or CAx) now serve as the basis for
mathematical and organizational tools used to create complex systems.
Notable examples of CAx include computer-aided design (CAD software)
and computer-aided manufacturing (CAM software). The improved design,
analysis, and manufacture of products enabled by CAx has been beneficial
for industry.[80]

Information technology, together with industrial machinery and processes,

can assist in the design, implementation, and monitoring of control
systems. One example of an industrial control system is a programmable
logic controller (PLC). PLCs are specialized hardened computers which are
frequently used to synchronize the flow of inputs from
(physical) sensors and events with the flow of outputs to actuators and
events.[81]

An automated online assistant on a website,

with an avatar for enhanced human–computer interaction
Human-machine interfaces (HMI) or computer human interfaces (CHI),
formerly known as man-machine interfaces, are usually employed to
communicate with PLCs and other computers. Service personnel who
monitor and control through HMIs can be called by different names. In the
industrial process and manufacturing environments, they are called
operators or something similar. In boiler houses and central utility
departments, they are called stationary engineers.[82]

Different types of automation tools exist:

 ANN – Artificial neural network

 DCS – Distributed control system
 HMI – Human machine interface
 RPA – Robotic process automation
 SCADA – Supervisory control and data acquisition
 PLC – Programmable logic controller
 Instrumentation
 Motion control
 Robotics
Host simulation software (HSS) is a commonly used testing tool that is
used to test the equipment software. HSS is used to test equipment
performance concerning factory automation standards (timeouts, response
time, processing time).[83]

Cognitive automation
[edit]
Cognitive automation, as a subset of AI, is an emerging genus of
automation enabled by cognitive computing. Its primary concern is the
automation of clerical tasks and workflows that consist of
structuring unstructured data.[citation needed] Cognitive automation relies on
multiple disciplines: natural language processing, real-time
computing, machine learning algorithms, big data analytics, and evidence-
based learning.[84]

According to Deloitte, cognitive automation enables the replication of

human tasks and judgment "at rapid speeds and considerable
scale."[85] Such tasks include:

 Document redaction
 Data extraction and document synthesis / reporting
 Contract management
 Natural language search
 Customer, employee, and stakeholder onboarding
 Manual activities and verifications
 Follow-up and email communications
Recent and emerging applications
[edit]
Main article: Emerging technologies
CAD AI
[edit]
Artificially intelligent computer-aided design (CAD) can use text-to-3D,
image-to-3D, and video-to-3D to automate in 3D modeling.[86] Ai CAD
libraries could also be developed using linked open
data of schematics and diagrams.[87] Ai CAD assistants are used as tools to
help streamline workflow.[88]
Automated power production
[edit]
Technologies like solar panels, wind turbines, and other renewable
energy sources—together with smart grids, micro-grids, battery storage—
can automate power production.
Agricultural production
[edit]
Main article: Agriculture
Many agricultural operations are automated with machinery and
equipment to improve their diagnosis, decision-making and/or performing.
Agricultural automation can relieve the drudgery of agricultural work,
improve the timeliness and precision of agricultural operations, raise
productivity and resource-use efficiency, build resilience, and improve food
quality and safety.[89] Increased productivity can free up labour, allowing
agricultural households to spend more time elsewhere.[90]

The technological evolution in agriculture has resulted in progressive shifts

to digital equipment and robotics.[89] Motorized mechanization using engine
power automates the performance of agricultural operations such as
ploughing and milking.[91] With digital automation technologies, it also
becomes possible to automate diagnosis and decision-making of
agricultural operations.[89] For example, autonomous crop robots can
harvest and seed crops, while drones can gather information to help
automate input application.[90] Precision agriculture often employs such
automation technologies[90]

Motorized mechanization has generally increased in recent years.[92] Sub-

Saharan Africa is the only region where the adoption of motorized
mechanization has stalled over the past decades.[93][90]

Automation technologies are increasingly used for managing livestock,

though evidence on adoption is lacking. Global automatic milking system
sales have increased over recent years,[94] but adoption is likely mostly in
Northern Europe,[95] and likely almost absent in low- and middle-income
countries.[96][90] Automated feeding machines for both cows and poultry also
exist, but data and evidence regarding their adoption trends and drivers is
likewise scarce.[90][92]
Retail
[edit]
Main article: Automated retail
Many supermarkets and even smaller stores are rapidly introducing self-
checkout systems reducing the need for employing checkout workers. In
the U.S., the retail industry employs 15.9 million people as of 2017 (around
1 in 9 Americans in the workforce). Globally, an estimated 192 million
workers could be affected by automation according to research by Eurasia
Group.[97]

A soft drink vending machine in Japan, an example of automated retail

Online shopping could be considered a form of automated retail as the
payment and checkout are through an automated online transaction
processing system, with the share of online retail accounting jumping from
5.1% in 2011 to 8.3% in 2016. [citation needed] However, two-thirds of books,
music, and films are now purchased online. In addition, automation and
online shopping could reduce demands for shopping malls, and retail
property, which in the United States is currently estimated to account for
31% of all commercial property or around 7 billion square feet (650 million
square metres). Amazon has gained much of the growth in recent years for
online shopping, accounting for half of the growth in online retail in 2016.
[97]
Other forms of automation can also be an integral part of online
shopping, for example, the deployment of automated warehouse robotics
such as that applied by Amazon using Kiva Systems.
Food and drink
[edit]
Main article: Automated restaurant

KUKA industrial robots being used at a bakery

for food production
The food retail industry has started to apply automation to the ordering
process; McDonald's has introduced touch screen ordering and payment
systems in many of its restaurants, reducing the need for as many cashier
employees.[98] The University of Texas at Austin has introduced fully
automated cafe retail locations.[99] Some Cafes and restaurants have
utilized mobile and tablet "apps" to make the ordering process more
efficient by customers ordering and paying on their device.[100] Some
restaurants have automated food delivery to tables of customers using
a Conveyor belt system. The use of robots is sometimes employed to
replace waiting staff.[101]
Construction
[edit]
Main article: Automation in construction
Automation in construction is the combination of methods, processes, and
systems that allow for greater machine autonomy in construction activities.
Construction automation may have multiple goals, including but not limited
to, reducing jobsite injuries, decreasing activity completion times, and
assisting with quality control and quality assurance.[102]
Mining
[edit]
Main article: Automated mining
Automated mining involves the removal of human labor from
the mining process.[103] The mining industry is currently in the transition
towards automation. Currently, it can still require a large amount of human
capital, particularly in the third world where labor costs are low so there is
less incentive for increasing efficiency through automation.
Video surveillance
[edit]
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) started the
research and development of automated visual surveillance and monitoring
(VSAM) program, between 1997 and 1999, and airborne video surveillance
(AVS) programs, from 1998 to 2002. Currently, there is a major effort
underway in the vision community to develop a fully-automated tracking
surveillance system. Automated video surveillance monitors people and
vehicles in real-time within a busy environment. Existing automated
surveillance systems are based on the environment they are primarily
designed to observe, i.e., indoor, outdoor or airborne, the number of
sensors that the automated system can handle and the mobility of sensors,
i.e., stationary camera vs. mobile camera. The purpose of a surveillance
system is to record properties and trajectories of objects in a given area,
generate warnings or notify the designated authorities in case of
occurrence of particular events.[104]
Highway systems
[edit]
Main articles: Automated highway systems and Vehicular automation
As demands for safety and mobility have grown and technological
possibilities have multiplied, interest in automation has grown. Seeking to
accelerate the development and introduction of fully automated vehicles
and highways, the U.S. Congress authorized more than $650 million over
six years for intelligent transport systems (ITS) and demonstration projects
in the 1991 Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act (ISTEA).
Congress legislated in ISTEA that:[105]

[T]he Secretary of Transportation shall develop an automated highway and

vehicle prototype from which future fully automated intelligent vehicle-
highway systems can be developed. Such development shall include
research in human factors to ensure the success of the man-machine
relationship. The goal of this program is to have the first fully automated
highway roadway or an automated test track in operation by 1997. This
system shall accommodate the installation of equipment in new and
existing motor vehicles.
Full automation commonly defined as requiring no control or very limited
control by the driver; such automation would be accomplished through a
combination of sensor, computer, and communications systems in vehicles
and along the roadway. Fully automated driving would, in theory, allow
closer vehicle spacing and higher speeds, which could enhance traffic
capacity in places where additional road building is physically impossible,
politically unacceptable, or prohibitively expensive. Automated controls also
might enhance road safety by reducing the opportunity for driver error,
which causes a large share of motor vehicle crashes. Other potential
benefits include improved air quality (as a result of more-efficient traffic
flows), increased fuel economy, and spin-off technologies generated during
research and development related to automated highway systems.[106]
Waste management
[edit]
Automated side loader operation
Automated waste collection trucks prevent the need for as many workers
as well as easing the level of labor required to provide the service.[107]
Business process
[edit]
Main article: Business process automation
Business process automation (BPA) is the technology-enabled automation
of complex business processes.[108] It can help to streamline a business for
simplicity, achieve digital transformation, increase service quality, improve
service delivery or contain costs. BPA consists of integrating applications,
restructuring labor resources and using software applications throughout
the organization. Robotic process automation (RPA; or RPAAI for self-
guided RPA 2.0) is an emerging field within BPA and uses AI. BPAs can be
implemented in a number of business areas including marketing, sales and
workflow.
Home
[edit]
Main article: Home automation
Home automation (also called domotics) designates an emerging practice
of increased automation of household appliances and features in
residential dwellings, particularly through electronic means that allow for
things impracticable, overly expensive or simply not possible in recent past
decades. The rise in the usage of home automation solutions has taken a
turn reflecting the increased dependency of people on such automation
solutions. However, the increased comfort that gets added through these
automation solutions is remarkable.[109]
Laboratory
[edit]
Main article: Laboratory automation

Automated laboratory instrument

Automation is essential for many scientific and clinical applications.
[110]
Therefore, automation has been extensively employed in laboratories.
From as early as 1980 fully automated laboratories have already been
working.[111] However, automation has not become widespread in
laboratories due to its high cost. This may change with the ability of
integrating low-cost devices with standard laboratory equipment.[112]
[113]
Autosamplers are common devices used in laboratory automation.
Logistics automation
[edit]
Main article: Logistics automation
Logistics automation is the application of computer software or automated
machinery to improve the efficiency of logistics operations. Typically this
refers to operations within a warehouse or distribution center, with broader
tasks undertaken by supply chain engineering systems and enterprise
resource planning systems.
Industrial automation
[edit]
See also: Building automation and Laboratory automation
Industrial automation deals primarily with the automation
of manufacturing, quality control, and material handling processes.
General-purpose controllers for industrial processes include programmable
logic controllers, stand-alone I/O modules, and computers. Industrial
automation is to replace the human action and manual command-response
activities with the use of mechanized equipment and logical programming
commands. One trend is increased use of machine vision[114] to provide
automatic inspection and robot guidance functions, another is a continuing
increase in the use of robots. Industrial automation is simply required in
industries.
Industrial Automation and Industry 4.0
[edit]
See also: Work 4.0
The rise of industrial automation is directly tied to the "Fourth Industrial
Revolution", which is better known now as Industry 4.0. Originating from
Germany, Industry 4.0 encompasses numerous devices, concepts, and
machines,[115] as well as the advancement of the industrial internet of
things (IIoT). An "Internet of Things is a seamless integration of diverse
physical objects in the Internet through a virtual representation."[116] These
new revolutionary advancements have drawn attention to the world of
automation in an entirely new light and shown ways for it to grow to
increase productivity and efficiency in machinery and manufacturing
facilities. Industry 4.0 works with the IIoT and software/hardware to connect
in a way that (through communication technologies) add enhancements
and improve manufacturing processes. Being able to create smarter, safer,
and more advanced manufacturing is now possible with these new
technologies. It opens up a manufacturing platform that is more reliable,
consistent, and efficient than before. Implementation of systems such
as SCADA is an example of software that takes place in Industrial
Automation today. SCADA is a supervisory data collection software, just
one of the many used in Industrial Automation.[117] Industry 4.0 vastly covers
many areas in manufacturing and will continue to do so as time goes on.[115]
Industrial robotics
[edit]
 Automated milling machines
Industrial robotics is a sub-branch in industrial automation that aids in
various manufacturing processes. Such manufacturing processes include
machining, welding, painting, assembling and material handling to name a
few.[118] Industrial robots use various mechanical, electric