1849 – Flute-Playing Automaton – Innocenzo Manzetti (Italian)

1849 – Flute-Playing Automaton by Innocenzo Manzetti. A comparison photo above showing the Flautist's size with a real person. In 1849  Innocenzo Manzetti constructed a flute-playing automaton, in the shape of a man, life-size, seated on a chair. Hidden inside the chair were levers, connecting rods and compressed air tubes, which made the automaton's lips …

1985 – McAndroid – Jon Barron et al (British)

Popular Science Jul 1985. Humanoid? Android? Robot? The terminology may not be well-defined, but in any event, Jon Barron, a British engineer, has dubbed his prototype anthropomorphic robot McAndroid the Android. Barron appears with his creation in the photo above. Although he figures that the market for the manlike machine will be the entertainment industry …

1928 – “Gakutensoku” Pneumatic Writing Robot – Makoto Nishimura (Japanese)

Gakutensoku (學天則, Japanese for "learning from the laws of nature"), the first robot to be built in Japan, was created in Osaka in 1928. The robot was designed and manufactured by biologist and botanist Makoto Nishimura (1883-1956). Nishimura had served as a professor at Hokkaido Imperial University, studied Marimo and was an editorial adviser to …

Early Science Fair Robots

1931: "Bugs the Mechanical Man" by Bobby Lambert, Charlotte, N.C. USA. 1948: 1949: Elmer the robot, Colorado. Jimmie the Demonstration Robot responds to single words via the telephone.  1950: 1951: 1952: 1953: 1954: 1955: "Reject the Robot" by Tommy Firestine. USA. 1956: "Herbert Watt" the robot. 1957: "Nemo the Magnificant" Robot by Johnny Ventura. USA …

1967 – Robot Fred and James – Archigram Group (British)

Archigram Group's futuristic-type room at Tomorrow's Home Exhibition called 'Living 1990' held at Harrods, 1967. Robot Fred is on the left. IDEAL HOMES Your browser does not support iframes. Possible layouts involving Robot Fred and Robot James. Robot Fred has a smaller footprint than Robot James. LIVING 1990 The Archigram Group was commissioned in 1967 by …