View source for Automation

{{Short description|Use of various control systems for operating equipment}}
{{About||a hierarchical presentation of automation topics|Outline of automation|other uses|Automation (disambiguation)}}
{{Redirect|Automate}}
{{Distinguish|Automaton}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2020}}
[[File:Control room pt tupper.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|Minimum human intervention is required to control many large facilities, such as this electrical generating station.]]
{{Automation}}

'''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.<ref>{{cite book
|title= Fundamentals of Modern Manufacturing: Materials, Processes, and Systems|last=Groover|first= Mikell|year=2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Agrawal |first1=Ajay |last2=Gans |first2=Joshua S. |last3=Goldfarb |first3=Avi |title=Do we want less automation? |journal=[[Science (journal)|Science]] |date=2023 |volume=381 |issue=6654 |pages=155–158 |doi=10.1126/science.adh9429|pmid=37440634 |bibcode=2023Sci...381..155A |doi-access= }}</ref> Automation has been achieved by various means including [[Mechanical system|mechanical]], [[hydraulic]], [[pneumatic]], [[electrical]], [[electronic devices]], and [[computer]]s, usually in combination. Complicated systems, such as modern [[Factory|factories]], [[airplane]]s, 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 system]]s such as [[machinery]], processes in [[factories]], [[boiler]]s,<ref>Lyshevski, S.E. Electromechanical Systems and Devices 1st Edition. CRC Press, 2008. {{isbn|1420069721}}.</ref> and heat-treating [[oven]]s, switching on [[telephone network]]s, [[steering]], [[Stabilizer (ship)|stabilization of ships]], [[aircraft]] and other applications and [[vehicle]]s with reduced human intervention.<ref>Lamb, Frank. Industrial Automation: Hands On (English Edition). NC, McGraw-Hill Education, 2013. {{isbn|978-0-071-81645-8}}.</ref> 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 Motor Company|Ford]] established an automation department.<ref name="Rifkin 1995">{{cite book |last=Rifkin |first=Jeremy |url=https://archive.org/details/endofwork00jere |title=The End of Work: The Decline of the Global Labor Force and the Dawn of the Post-Market Era |publisher=Putnam Publishing Group |year=1995 |isbn=978-0-87477-779-6 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/endofwork00jere/page/66 66], 75 |url-access=registration}}</ref> It was during this time that the industry was rapidly adopting [[feedback controller]]s, Technological advancements introduced in the 1930s revolutionized various industries significantly.{{sfn|Bennett|1993}}

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.<ref>{{cite report|url=http://www.worldbank.org/en/publication/wdr2019|title=The Changing Nature of Work|publisher = The World Bank|date = 2019}}</ref> [[Technological unemployment|Job losses]] and [[downward mobility]] blamed on automation have been cited as one of many factors in the resurgence of [[New nationalism (21st century)|nationalist]], [[protectionist]] and [[populist]] politics in the US, UK and France, among other countries since the 2010s.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.pcmag.com/commentary/348219/how-robots-caused-brexit-and-the-rise-of-donald-trump|title=How Robots Caused Brexit and the Rise of Donald Trump|last=Dashevsky|first=Evan|date=8 November 2017|website=PC Magazine|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171108041038/https://www.pcmag.com/commentary/348219/how-robots-caused-brexit-and-the-rise-of-donald-trump|archive-date=8 November 2017}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.managementtoday.co.uk/robots-trump-automation-swing-us-election/reputation-matters/article/1440399|title=Robots for Trump: Did automation swing the US election?|last=Torrance|first=Jack|date=25 July 2017|work=Management Today}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2016/dec/29/trump-brexit-society-complex-people-populists|title=The lesson of Trump and Brexit: a society too complex for its people risks everything {{!}} John Harris|last=Harris|first=John|date=29 December 2016|work=The Guardian|language=en-GB|issn=0261-3077}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.brookings.edu/blog/techtank/2018/04/18/will-robots-and-ai-take-your-job-the-economic-and-political-consequences-of-automation/|title=Will robots and AI take your job? The economic and political consequences of automation|author=Darrell West|date=18 April 2018|publisher=Brookings Institution}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.thelocal.fr/20161207/voters-in-eastern-frances-rust-belt-far-right-national-front-le-pen-trump-brexit|title='People are lost': Voters in France's 'Trumplands' look to far right|author=Clare Byrne|date=7 December 2016|publisher=The Local.fr}}</ref>

==History==

===Early history===
[[Image:Clepsydra-Diagram-Fancy.jpeg|thumb|upright|Ctesibius's clepsydra (3rd century BC)]]

It was a preoccupation of the Greeks and Arabs (in the period between about 300&nbsp;BC and about 1200&nbsp;AD) to keep accurate track of time. In [[Ptolemaic Egypt]], about 270&nbsp;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.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Guarnieri|first=M.|s2cid=24885437|date=2010|title=The Roots of Automation Before Mechatronics|journal=IEEE Ind. Electron. M. |volume=4| issue=2| pages=42–43 |doi=10.1109/MIE.2010.936772 |hdl=11577/2424833 |hdl-access=free}}</ref> The appearance of the mechanical clock in the 14th century made the water clock and its feedback control system obsolete.

The [[History of Iran|Persian]] [[Banū Mūsā]] brothers, in their ''[[Book of Ingenious Devices]]'' (850&nbsp;AD), described a number of automatic controls.<ref name=Hassan>[[Ahmad Y Hassan]], [http://www.history-science-technology.com/Articles/articles%2071.htm Transfer Of Islamic Technology To The West, Part II: Transmission Of Islamic Engineering] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080218171021/http://www.history-science-technology.com/Articles/articles%2071.htm |date=18 February 2008 }}</ref> Two-step level controls for fluids, a form of discontinuous [[variable structure control]]s, were developed by the Banu Musa brothers.<ref>{{citation|title=Soft variable-structure controls: a survey|author=J. Adamy & A. Flemming|journal=Automatica|volume=40|issue=11|date=November 2004|pages=1821–1844|doi=10.1016/j.automatica.2004.05.017|url=https://www1.rmr.tu-darmstadt.de/pdf/flemming2004.pdf|access-date=12 July 2019|archive-date=8 March 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210308124345/https://www1.rmr.tu-darmstadt.de/pdf/flemming2004.pdf}}</ref> They also described a [[Control theory|feedback controller]].<ref name=Mayr>[[Otto Mayr]] (1970). ''The Origins of Feedback Control'', [[MIT Press]].</ref><ref name=Hill>[[Donald Routledge Hill]], "Mechanical Engineering in the Medieval Near East", ''Scientific American'', May 1991, p. 64-69.</ref> 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|date=May 2021}}

The [[centrifugal governor]] was invented by [[Christiaan Huygens]] in the seventeenth century, and used to adjust the gap between [[millstone]]s.<ref>{{cite web|title=Charting the Globe and Tracking the Heavens|url=http://www.princeton.edu/~hos/Mahoney/clarklec.html|website=Princeton.edu}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Bellman|first=Richard E.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iwbWCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA36|title=Adaptive Control Processes: A Guided Tour|date=8 December 2015|publisher=Princeton University Press|isbn=978-1-4008-7466-8}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Bennett|first1=S.|title=A History of Control Engineering 1800–1930|publisher=Peter Peregrinus Ltd.|year=1979|isbn=978-0-86341-047-5|location=London|pages=47, 266}}
</ref>

===Industrial Revolution in Western Europe===
[[File:Tower bridge steam engine.jpg|thumb|[[Steam engine]]s promoted automation through the need to control engine speed and power.]]

The introduction of [[Engine|prime movers]], or self-driven machines advanced grain mills, furnaces, boilers, and the [[steam engine]] created a new requirement for automatic control systems including [[thermostat|temperature regulator]]s (invented in 1624; see [[Cornelius Drebbel]]), [[pressure regulator]]s (1681), [[float regulator]]s (1700) and [[speed control]] devices. Another control mechanism was used to tent the sails of windmills. It was patented by Edmund Lee in 1745.<ref name="Bennett 1979 pp"/> Also in 1745, [[Jacques de Vaucanson]] invented the first automated loom. Around 1800, [[Joseph Marie Jacquard]] created [[Jacquard machine|a punch-card system]] to program looms.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Bronowski|first=Jacob|url=http://archive.org/details/ascentofman0000bron_y1z2|title=The Ascent of Man|publisher=BBC Books|year=1990|isbn=978-0-563-20900-3|location=London|page=265|author-link=Jacob Bronowski|orig-date=1973}}</ref>

In 1771 [[Richard Arkwright]] invented the first fully automated spinning mill driven by water power, known at the time as the [[water frame]].<ref>{{cite book|first=Tessie P.|last=Liu|title=The Weaver's Knot: The Contradictions of Class Struggle and Family Solidarity in Western France, 1750–1914|url=https://archive.org/details/weaversknotcontr00liut|url-access=registration|year=1994|publisher=Cornell University Press|isbn=978-0-8014-8019-5|page=[https://archive.org/details/weaversknotcontr00liut/page/91 91]}}</ref> An automatic flour mill was developed by [[Oliver Evans]] in 1785, making it the first completely automated industrial process.<ref>{{cite book|last=Jacobson|first=Howard B.|title=Automation and Society|url=https://archive.org/details/automationsociet00jaco|year=1959|publisher=Philosophical Library|location=New York, NY|page=[https://archive.org/details/automationsociet00jaco/page/8 8]|author2=Joseph S. Roueek}}</ref><ref>{{Hounshell1984}}</ref>

[[File:Catalonia Terrassa mNATEC MaquinaDeVapor ReguladorDeWatt.jpg|thumb|right| 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]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1DNWAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA29-IA1|title=A course of lectures on the Steam Engine, delivered before the Members of the London Mechanics' Institution ... To which is subjoined, a copy of the rare ... work on Steam Navigation, originally published by J. Hulls in 1737. Illustrated by ... engravings|first=Charles Frederick|last=Partington|date=1 January 1826}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-xJFAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA296 |section=A Catalogue of the Models, Machine, &c. |title=Transactions of the Society Instituted at London for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures, and Commerce |volume=XXXXI |date=1813}}</ref> 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.<ref name="Bennett 1979 pp">{{Harvnb|Bennett|1979|pp=}}</ref> 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.<ref name="Bennett 1979 pp" />

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.<ref name="Bennett 1979 pp" /> 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 ===
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.<ref>{{Harvnb|Bennett|1993|pp=31}}</ref>

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 system]]s and aircraft [[navigation system]]s.{{sfn|Bennett|1993}}

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.<ref name="Field_2011">{{cite book|title=A Great Leap Forward: 1930s Depression and U.S. Economic Growth |last=Field |first= Alexander J.|year= 2011 |publisher =Yale University Press|location= New Haven, London|isbn=978-0-300-15109-1 }}</ref>

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.<ref name="Field_2011"/>

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 equation]]s, [[stability theory]] and [[system theory]] (1938), [[Frequency response|frequency domain analysis]] (1940), [[Motion control|ship control]] (1950), and [[stochastic analysis]] (1941).

Starting in 1958, various systems based on [[solid-state (electronics)|solid-state]]<ref name="Wireless-World_1960"/><ref name="MBLE_1962_Norbit"/> [[digital electronics|digital logic]] modules for hard-wired programmed logic controllers (the predecessors of [[programmable logic controller]]s [PLC]) emerged to replace electro-mechanical relay logic in [[industrial control system]]s for [[process control]] and automation, including early [[Telefunken]]/[[AEG (German company)|AEG]] [[Logistat]], [[Siemens]] [[Simatic]], [[Philips]]/[[Mullard]]/{{interlanguage link|Valvo (company){{!}}Valvo|de|Valvo}} [[Norbit module|Norbit]], [[BBC]] [[Sigmatronic]], [[ACEC (company)|ACEC]] [[Logacec]], {{interlanguage link|Akkord-Radio{{!}}Akkord|de|Akkord-Radio}} [[Estacord]], Krone<!-- AG --> Mibakron, Bistat, Datapac, Norlog, SSR, or <!-- ABB -->Procontic systems.<ref name="Wireless-World_1960"/><ref name="Akkord_Estacord"/><ref name="Klingelnberg_1967"/><ref name="Parr_1993"/><ref name="Weissel_1995"/><ref name="Walker_2012"/>

In 1959 [[Texaco]]'s [[Port Arthur Refinery]] became the first chemical plant to use [[digital control]].<ref>{{Harvnb|Rifkin|1995|pp=}}</ref>
Conversion of factories to digital control began to spread rapidly in the 1970s as the price of [[computer hardware]] fell.

===Significant applications===
The automatic [[telephone switchboard]] was introduced in 1892 along with dial telephones. By 1929, 31.9% of the Bell system was automatic.<ref name="Jerome 1934">{{Cite book
 | last1 = Jerome
 | first1 = Harry
 | title = Mechanization in Industry, National Bureau of Economic Research
 | year = 1934
 | url = https://www.nber.org/chapters/c5238.pdf
 }}</ref>{{rp|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]].<ref>{{cite book |title=A Century of Innovation: Twenty Engineering Achievements That Transformed Our Lives|last=Constable |first=George|author2=Somerville, Bob |year=1964 |publisher=Joseph Henry Press|isbn= 978-0-309-08908-1}}</ref>

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.<ref>{{cite web
 |title        = The American Society of Mechanical Engineers Designates the Owens "AR" Bottle Machine as an International Historic Engineering Landmark
 |year         = 1983
 |url          = https://www.asme.org/getmedia/a9e54878-05b1-4a91-a027-fe3b7e08699e/86-Owens-AR-Bottle-Machine.aspx
 |archive-url  = https://web.archive.org/web/20171018180627/https://www.asme.org/getmedia/a9e54878-05b1-4a91-a027-fe3b7e08699e/86-Owens-AR-Bottle-Machine.aspx
 |archive-date = 18 October 2017
 }}</ref> 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.<ref>{{Harvnb|Bennett|1993|pp=7}}</ref> One of the most important developments in the steel industry during the 20th century was continuous wide strip rolling, developed by Armco in 1928.<ref>
{{cite book
|title=The Unbound Prometheus: Technological Change and Industrial Development in Western Europe from 1750 to the Present
 |last=Landes	
 |first= David. S.
|year= 1969|publisher =Press Syndicate of the University of Cambridge
|location= Cambridge, New York
|isbn=  978-0-521-09418-4|page=475
}}
</ref>
[[File:Automated liquid oral dose.jpg|thumb|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]].<ref>{{Harvnb|Bennett|1993|pp=65}}Note 1</ref>

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.<ref>
{{cite book
|title=Science and Technology in the Industrial Revolution
 |url=https://archive.org/details/sciencetechnolog00aemu
 |url-access=registration
 |last=Musson 
|author2=Robinson
|year=1969 |publisher =University of Toronto Press
|isbn=978-0-8020-1637-9
 }}
</ref> [[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===

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 [[bang-bang control|hysteresis control systems]] such as [[navigation system]]s, [[fire-control system]]s, 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 [[Filtration (mathematics)|filtering theory]] (1974), and the [[personal computer]] (1983).

== Advantages, disadvantages, and limitations ==

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.<ref>{{Cite book|title = Industrial Automation: Hands on|last = Lamb|first = Frank|year = 2013|pages = 1–4}}</ref> Additionally, tasks that take place in [[Occupational hazard|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.<ref>{{Cite news|title=The Risk of Automation for Jobs in OECD Countries: A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS|last=Arnzt|first=Melanie|date=14 May 2016|id = {{ProQuest|1790436902}}}}</ref>

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 variation|cycle time]]
*Increased accuracy
*Relieving humans of monotonously repetitive work<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.bma-automation.com/Prozessautomatisierung.2102.0.html?id=2102&L=1|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130517174600/http://www.bma-automation.com/Prozessautomatisierung.2102.0.html?id=2102&L=1|title=Process automation, retrieved on 20.02.2010|archive-date=17 May 2013}}</ref>
*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:<ref>Bartelt, Terry. Industrial Automated Systems: Instrumentation and Motion Control. Cengage Learning, 2010.</ref>
*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 ===
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."<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Bainbridge|first=Lisanne|date=November 1983|title=Ironies of automation|journal=Automatica|volume=19|issue=6|pages=775–779|doi=10.1016/0005-1098(83)90046-8|s2cid=12667742 }}</ref> 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.<ref>{{cite web|last=Kaufman|first=Josh|title=Paradox of Automation – The Personal MBA|url=http://personalmba.com/paradox-of-automation/|website=Personalmba.com}}</ref> 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.<ref>{{cite web|title=Children of the Magenta (Automation Paradox, pt. 1) – 99% Invisible|url=http://99percentinvisible.org/episode/children-of-the-magenta-automation-paradox-pt-1/|website=99percentinvisible.org|date=23 June 2015 }}</ref>

===Limitations===
{{Unreferenced section|date=May 2019}}
* 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.<ref>{{cite book |title=Artificial Intelligence and Robotics and Their Impact on the Workplace |url=https://www.ibanet.org/Document/Default.aspx?DocumentUid=c06aa1a3-d355-4866-beda-9a3a8779ba6e}}</ref>
* 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====
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.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Schaupp |first=Simon |date=2022-05-23 |title=COVID-19, economic crises and digitalisation: How algorithmic management became an alternative to automation |journal=New Technology, Work and Employment |volume=38 |issue=2 |language=en |pages=311–329 |doi=10.1111/ntwe.12246 |issn=0268-1072 |pmc=9347406 |pmid=35936383}}</ref> Overcoming these obstacles is a theorized path to [[post-scarcity]] economics.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Benanav |first=Aaron |title=Automation and the future of work |date=2020 |isbn=978-1-83976-129-4 |location=London |publisher=Verso |oclc=1147891672}}</ref>

===Societal impact and unemployment===
{{main|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 manufacturing|textile workers]] who protested the introduction of [[weaving machines]] by destroying them.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.britannica.com/event/Luddite|title=Luddite|website=Encyclopedia Britannica|access-date=28 December 2017}}</ref> 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.<ref>{{cite news |last= Romero|first= Simon|date= 31 December 2018|title= Wielding Rocks and Knives, Arizonans Attack Self-Driving Cars|url= https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/31/us/waymo-self-driving-cars-arizona-attacks.html|work= The New York Times}}</ref>

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 [[Social safety net|safety net]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/27/business/the-robots-are-coming-and-sweden-is-fine.html|title=The Robots are Coming, and Sweden is Fine|last=Goodman|first=Peter S.|work=The New York Times|date=27 December 2017}}</ref>

According to one estimate, 47% of all current jobs in the US have the potential to be fully automated by 2033.<ref name=":5" /> Furthermore, wages and educational attainment appear to be strongly negatively correlated with an occupation's risk of being automated.<ref name=":5">{{cite news|url=http://www.oxfordmartin.ox.ac.uk/downloads/academic/The_Future_of_Employment.pdf|title=THE FUTURE OF EMPLOYMENT: HOW SUSCEPTIBLE ARE JOBS TO COMPUTERISATION?|last1=Frey|first1=C. B.|last2=Osborne|first2=M.A.|date=17 September 2013}}</ref> [[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."<ref>{{Cite book |last=Brynjolfsson |first=Erik |title=The second machine age: work, progress, and prosperity in a time of brilliant technologies |date=2014 |others=Andrew McAfee |isbn=978-0-393-23935-5 |edition=First |location=New York |publisher=W. W. Norton |oclc=867423744}}</ref> Others however argue that highly skilled professional jobs like a [[lawyer]], [[doctor (title)|doctor]], [[engineer]], [[journalist]] are also at risk of automation.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Susskind |first1=Richard |last2=Susskind |first2=Daniel |date=11 October 2016 |title=Technology Will Replace Many Doctors, Lawyers, and Other Professionals |url=https://hbr.org/2016/10/robots-will-replace-doctors-lawyers-and-other-professionals |journal=Harvard Business Review}}</ref>

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%."<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Acemoglu |first1=Daron |last2=Restrepo |first2=Pascual |s2cid=201370532 |date=2020 |title=Robots and Jobs: Evidence from US Labor Markets |journal=Journal of Political Economy |volume=128 |issue=6 |pages=2188–2244 |doi=10.1086/705716 |issn=0022-3808 |url=http://www.nber.org/papers/w23285.pdf |hdl=1721.1/130324 |hdl-access=free}}</ref> A 2025 study in the ''[[American Economic Journal]]'' found that the introduction of industrial robots reduced 1993 and 2014 led to reduced employment of men and women by 3.7 and 1.6 percentage points.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Lerch |first=Benjamin |date=2025 |title=From Blue- to Steel-Collar Jobs: The Decline in Employment Gaps? |url=http://doc.rero.ch/record/330892/files/wp2102.pdf |journal=American Economic Journal: Macroeconomics |language=en |volume=17 |issue=1 |pages=126–160 |doi=10.1257/mac.20220051 |issn=1945-7707}}</ref>

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.<ref name="OMS913">{{cite web|author1=Carl Benedikt Frey|author2=Michael Osborne|date=September 2013|title=The Future of Employment: How susceptible are jobs to computerisation?|url=http://www.oxfordmartin.ox.ac.uk/publications/view/1314|publisher=[[Oxford Martin School]]|format=publication}}</ref> However, according to a study published in ''[[McKinsey Quarterly]]''<ref name="MKQ1115">{{cite magazine |author=Chui, Michael |author2=James Manyika |author3=Mehdi Miremadi |date=November 2015 |title=Four fundamentals of workplace automation |url=http://www.mckinsey.com//Insights/Business_Technology/Four_fundamentals_of_workplace_automation |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151107195208/http://www.mckinsey.com//Insights/Business_Technology/Four_fundamentals_of_workplace_automation |archive-date=2015-11-07 |magazine=[[McKinsey Quarterly]] |quote=Very few occupations will be automated in their entirety in the near or medium term. Rather, certain activities are more likely to be automated....}}</ref> 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.<ref name="NYT11615">{{cite news|author1=Steve Lohr|date=6 November 2015|title=Automation Will Change Jobs More Than Kill Them|work=The New York Times|url=http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/11/06/automation-will-change-jobs-more-than-kill-them/|quote=technology-driven automation will affect almost every occupation and can change work, according to new research from McKinsey}}</ref> The [[methodology]] of the McKinsey study has been heavily criticized for being intransparent and relying on subjective assessments.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Arntz er al|date=Summer 2017|title=Future of work|journal=Economic Lettets}}</ref> The methodology of Frey and Osborne has been subjected to criticism, as lacking evidence, historical awareness, or credible methodology.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Autor|first1=David H.|year=2015|title=Why Are There Still So Many Jobs? The History and Future of Workplace Automation|url=https://dspace.mit.edu/bitstream/1721.1/109476/1/Autor_Why%20are%20there.pdf|journal=Journal of Economic Perspectives|volume=29|issue=3|pages=3–30|doi=10.1257/jep.29.3.3|hdl=1721.1/109476|doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{cite SSRN |last1=McGaughey |first1=Ewan |date=10 January 2018 |title=Will Robots Automate Your Job Away? Full Employment, Basic Income, and Economic Democracy |ssrn=3044448}}</ref> Additionally, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development ([[OECD]]) found that across the 21 OECD countries, 9% of jobs are automatable.<ref>{{cite journal |author=Arntzi, Melanie |author2=Terry Gregoryi |author3=Ulrich Zierahni |year=2016 |title=The Risk of Automation for Jobs in OECD Countries |journal=OECD Social, Employment and Migration Working Papers |issue=189 |doi=10.1787/5jlz9h56dvq7-en |doi-access=free}}</ref>

Based on a formula by [[Gilles Saint-Paul]], an economist at [[Toulouse 1 University Capitole|Toulouse 1 University]], the demand for unskilled human capital declines at a slower rate than the demand for skilled human capital increases.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Saint-Paul|first1=Gilles|title=Innovation and Inequality: How Does Technical Progress Affect Workers?|date=21 July 2008|publisher=Princeton University Press |isbn=978-0-691-12830-6}}</ref> In the long run and for society as a whole it has led to cheaper products, [[Working time#Gradual decrease|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.<ref>{{cite book|author=McKinsey Global Institute|url=https://www.mckinsey.com/~/media/McKinsey/Global%20Themes/Future%20of%20Organizations/What%20the%20future%20of%20work%20will%20mean%20for%20jobs%20skills%20and%20wages/MGI-Jobs-Lost-Jobs-Gained-Report-December-6-2017.ashx|title=Jobs Lost, Jobs Gained: Workforce Transitions in a Time of Automation|date=December 2017|publisher=Mckinsey & Company|pages=1–20}}</ref>

==Lights-out manufacturing==
{{Main|Lights out (manufacturing)}}
Lights-out manufacturing is a production system with no human workers, to eliminate labor costs. It 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.<ref name="RCR Wireless News">{{Cite news|url=https://www.rcrwireless.com/20160810/internet-of-things/lights-out-manufacturing-tag31-tag99|title=Lights out manufacturing and its impact on society|date=10 August 2016|work=RCR Wireless News}}</ref>

The expansion of lights out manufacturing requires:<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://cnc-machine-tools.com/checklist-for-lights-out-manufacturing/|title=Checklist for Lights-Out Manufacturing|date=4 September 2017|work=CNC machine tools|access-date=28 February 2018|archive-date=28 February 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180228101440/https://cnc-machine-tools.com/checklist-for-lights-out-manufacturing/|url-status=usurped}}</ref>
* Reliability of equipment
* Long-term mechanic capabilities
* Planned preventive maintenance
* Commitment from the staff

==Health and environment==
{{Original research section|date=March 2018}}

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|date=October 2013}} Hazardous operations, such as [[oil refining]], the manufacturing of [[Chemical industry|industrial chemicals]], and all forms of [[metal working]], were always early contenders for automation.{{dubious|date=October 2013}}{{citation needed|date=October 2013}}

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 vehicle]]s are much less likely to get into accidents compared to human-driven vehicles, some precautions built into current models (such as [[anti-lock brake]]s 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 in automobiles|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.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://time.com/4476614/self-driving-cars-environment/ |title=Self-Driving Cars Could Help Save the Environment—Or Ruin It. It Depends on Us|magazine=Time }}</ref>

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 home]]s 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.<ref>{{cite journal |title=Environmental Impacts and Benefits of Smart Home Automation: Life Cycle Assessment of Home Energy Management System|journal=IFAC-Papers on Line|volume=48|page=880|doi=10.1016/j.ifacol.2015.05.158|year=2015|last1=Louis|first1=Jean-Nicolas|last2=Calo|first2=Antonio|last3=Leiviskä|first3=Kauko|last4=Pongrácz|first4=Eva|url=http://jultika.oulu.fi/files/nbnfi-fe201703082017.pdf|doi-access=free}}</ref>

==Convertibility and turnaround time==
{{Main|Turnaround time}}
{{Unreferenced section|date=May 2019}}
Another major shift in automation is the increased demand for [[Stiffness|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 line]]s. Flexibility and distributed processes have led to the introduction of [[Automated Guided Vehicle]]s with Natural Features Navigation.

Digital electronics helped too. Former analog-based [[Instrumentation (computer programming)|instrumentation]] was replaced by digital equivalents which can be more accurate and flexible, and offer greater scope for more sophisticated [[Configuration management|configuration]], [[Parametrization (geometry)|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 System]]s.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Essential Guide to Modern Factory Automation {{!}} Smartsheet |url=https://www.smartsheet.com/factory-manufacturing-automation |access-date=2023-12-19 |website=www.smartsheet.com |language=en}}</ref>

==Automation tools==
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.<ref>{{cite journal |title=Engineers' CAx education—it's not only CAD |journal=Computer-Aided Design |volume=36 |issue=14 |page=1439 |doi=10.1016/j.cad.2004.02.011|year=2004 |last1=Werner Dankwort |first1=C |last2=Weidlich |first2=Roland |last3=Guenther |first3=Birgit |last4=Blaurock |first4=Joerg E }}</ref>

[[Information technology]], together with [[industrial machinery]] and [[industrial process|process]]es, can assist in the design, implementation, and monitoring of control systems. One example of an [[industrial control systems|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) [[sensor]]s and events with the flow of outputs to actuators and events.<ref name="Reference.com">
{{cite web|url=http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/Automation|title=Automation - Definitions from Dictionary.com|publisher=dictionary.reference.com|access-date=22 April 2008| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20080429002933/http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/automation| archive-date= 29 April 2008 | url-status= live}}</ref>

[[File:Automated online assistant.png|thumb|An [[automated online assistant]] on a website, with an [[avatar (computing)|avatar]] for enhanced [[human–computer interaction]]]]
[[Human-computer interaction|Human-machine interface]]s (HMI) or [[Human–computer interaction|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''.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos228.htm |title=Stationary Engineers and Boiler Operators |access-date=2 January 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120130085801/http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos228.htm |archive-date=30 January 2012 }}</ref>

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).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.hcltech.com/sites/default/files/effective_host_simulation.pdf |title=Effective host stimulation |website=www.hcltech.com }}</ref>

== Cognitive automation ==
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]].{{cn|date=June 2024}} Cognitive automation relies on multiple disciplines: [[natural language processing]], [[real-time computing]], [[machine learning algorithms]], [[big data analytics]], and [[evidence-based learning]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.10xds.com/blog/what-is-cognitive-automation/|title=What is Cognitive Automation – An Introduction|date=19 August 2019|website=10xDS}}</ref>

According to [[Deloitte]], cognitive automation enables the replication of human tasks and judgment "at rapid speeds and considerable scale."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www2.deloitte.com/us/en/pages/deloitte-analytics/articles/cognitive-automation.html|title=Cognitive automation: Streamlining knowledge processes {{!}} Deloitte US|website=Deloitte United States|access-date=30 July 2017|archive-date=30 July 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170730222928/https://www2.deloitte.com/us/en/pages/deloitte-analytics/articles/cognitive-automation.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> Such tasks include:
*[[Redaction|Document redaction]]
*[[Data extraction]] and document synthesis / reporting
*[[Contract management]]
*[[Natural language search]]
* Customer, employee, and [[Stakeholder (corporate)|stakeholder]] [[onboarding]]
* Manual activities and verifications
* Follow-up and email communications

==Recent and emerging applications==
{{Main|Emerging technologies}}

===CAD AI===
Artificially intelligent [[computer-aided design]] (CAD) can use text-to-3D, image-to-3D, and video-to-3D to automate in [[3D modeling]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.eweek.com/artificial-intelligence/best-ai-3d-generators/|title=10 Best Artificial Intelligence (AI) 3D Generators|first=Aminu|last=Abdullahi|date=November 17, 2023|website=eWEEK}}</ref>  AI [[Library (computing)#CAD library|CAD libraries]] could also be developed using [[Linked data|linked]] [[open data]] of [[schematic|schematics]]  and [[diagram]]s.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://insights.globalspec.com/article/21167/slash-cad-model-build-times-with-new-ai-driven-part-creation-methodology|title=Slash CAD model build times with new AI-driven part creation methodology &#124; GlobalSpec}}</ref>  Ai CAD [[Virtual assistant|assistants]] are used as tools to help streamline workflow.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.scan2cad.com/blog/cad/ai-cad/|title=The Role of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the CAD Industry|date=March 22, 2023}}</ref>

=== Automated power production ===
Technologies like [[solar panel]]s, [[Wind farm|wind turbines]], and other [[renewable energy]] sources—together with [[smart grid]]s, [[Distributed generation|micro-grids]], [[battery storage]]—can automate power production.

=== Agricultural production ===
{{Main|Agriculture}}
Many agricultural operations are automated with [[Agricultural machinery|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.<ref name=":1">{{Cite book |title=In Brief to The State of Food and Agriculture 2022. Leveraging automation in agriculture for transforming agrifood systems |publisher=Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations |location=Rome | year=2022 |language=en |doi=10.4060/cc2459en |doi-access=free |isbn=978-92-5-137005-6}}</ref> Increased productivity can free up labour, allowing agricultural households to spend more time elsewhere.<ref name=":2">{{Cite book |title=The State of Food and Agriculture 2022.Leveraging agricultural automation for transforming agrifood systems |publisher=Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations |location=Rome | year=2022 |language=en |doi=10.4060/cb9479en |doi-access=free |isbn=978-92-5-136043-9}}</ref>

The technological evolution in agriculture has resulted in progressive shifts to digital equipment and robotics.<ref name=":1" /> Motorized mechanization using engine power automates the performance of agricultural operations such as ploughing and milking.<ref name=":3">{{Cite book |author=Santos Valle, S. |author2=Kienzle, J. |url=https://www.fao.org/documents/card/en/c/cb2186en |title=Agriculture 4.0 – Agricultural robotics and automated equipment for sustainable crop production |publisher=Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations |location=Rome |year=2020 |isbn=}}</ref> With digital automation technologies, it also becomes possible to automate diagnosis and decision-making of agricultural operations.<ref name=":1" /> For example, autonomous crop robots can harvest and seed crops, while drones can gather information to help automate input application.<ref name=":2" /> Precision agriculture often employs such automation technologies<ref name=":2" />

Motorized mechanization has generally increased in recent years.<ref name=":4">{{Cite web |title=FAOSTAT: Discontinued archives and data series: Machinery |url=https://www.fao.org/faostat/en/#data/RM |access-date=1 December 2021 |website=FAO}}</ref> Sub-Saharan Africa is the only region where the adoption of motorized mechanization has stalled over the past decades.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Daum |first1=Thomas |last2=Birner |first2=Regina |date=2020-09-01 |title=Agricultural mechanization in Africa: Myths, realities and an emerging research agenda |journal=Global Food Security |language=en |volume=26 |page=100393 |doi=10.1016/j.gfs.2020.100393 |s2cid=225280050 |issn=2211-9124|doi-access=free |bibcode=2020GlFS...2600393D }}</ref><ref name=":2" />

Automation technologies are increasingly used for managing livestock, though evidence on adoption is lacking. Global automatic milking system sales have increased over recent years,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Global milking robots market size by type, by herd size, by geographic scope and forecast |url=https://www.verifiedmarketresearch.com/product/milking-robots-market/ |access-date=24 July 2022 |website=Verified Market Research}}</ref> but adoption is likely mostly in Northern Europe,<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Rodenburg |first=Jack |date=2017 |title=Robotic milking: Technology, farm design, and effects on work flow |journal=Journal of Dairy Science |volume=100 |issue=9 |pages=7729–7738 |doi=10.3168/jds.2016-11715 |pmid=28711263 |s2cid=11934286 |issn=0022-0302|doi-access=free }}</ref> and likely almost absent in low- and middle-income countries.<ref>{{Cite book |title=Economics of adoption for digital automated technologies in agriculture. Background paper for The State of Food and Agriculture 2022 |publisher=Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations |location=Rome | year=2022 |language=en |doi=10.4060/cc2624en |doi-access=free |isbn=978-92-5-137080-3}}</ref><ref name=":2" /> Automated feeding machines for both cows and poultry also exist, but data and evidence regarding their adoption trends and drivers is likewise scarce.<ref name=":2" /><ref name=":4" />

===Retail===
{{Main|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]].<ref name=":0">{{cite news|title=The decline of established American retailing threatens jobs|newspaper=The Economist|url=https://www.economist.com/news/briefing/21721900-love-affair-shopping-has-gone-online-decline-established-american-retailing|access-date=28 May 2017}}</ref>
[[File:016 Coca-Cola vending machine at Kyoto Station, Japan - コカコーラ 自動販売機.JPG|thumb|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|date=September 2017}} 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 {{Convert | 7 | e9ft2 | e6m2 | abbr=off}}. [[Amazon (company)|Amazon]] has gained much of the growth in recent years for online shopping, accounting for half of the growth in online retail in 2016.<ref name=":0" /> 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 (company)|Amazon]] using [[Kiva Systems]].

===Food and drink===
{{Main|Automated restaurant}}
[[File:Factory Automation Robotics Palettizing Bread.jpg|thumb|[[KUKA]] [[industrial robot]]s 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.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.itbusiness.ca/blog/mcdonalds-automation-a-sign-of-declining-service-sector-employment/20398|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130919201318/http://www.itbusiness.ca/blog/mcdonalds-automation-a-sign-of-declining-service-sector-employment/20398|archive-date=19 September 2013|title=McDonald's automation a sign of declining service sector employment |work=IT Business|date=19 September 2013}}</ref> [[The University of Texas at Austin]] has introduced fully automated cafe retail locations.<ref>[http://singularityhub.com/2012/05/09/automation-comes-to-the-coffeehouse-with-robotic-baristas/ Automation Comes To The Coffeehouse With Robotic Baristas]. Singularity Hub. Retrieved on 12 July 2013.</ref> Some cafes and restaurants have utilized mobile and tablet "[[Mobile app|apps]]" to make the ordering process more efficient by customers ordering and paying on their device.<ref>[http://www.bighospitality.co.uk/Business/New-Pizza-Express-app-lets-diners-pay-bill-using-iPhone New Pizza Express app lets diners pay bill using iPhone]. Bighospitality.co.uk. Retrieved on 12 July 2013.</ref> Some restaurants have automated food delivery to tables of customers using a [[Conveyor belt sushi|conveyor belt system]]. The use of [[robots]] is sometimes employed to replace [[waiting staff]].<ref>[https://techcrunch.com/2010/03/12/wheelie-toshibas-new-robot-is-cute-autonomous-and-maybe-even-useful-video/ Wheelie: Toshiba's new robot is cute, autonomous and maybe even useful (video)]. TechCrunch (12 March 2010). Retrieved on 12 July 2013.</ref>

===Construction===
{{Main|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]].<ref>{{cite web |title=The impact and opportunities of automation in construction |url=https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/operations/our-insights/the-impact-and-opportunities-of-automation-in-construction |website=McKinsey & Company |access-date=13 November 2020}}</ref>

===Mining===
{{main|Automated mining}} Automated mining involves the removal of human labor from the [[mining]] process.<ref>"[http://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/mining-energy/rio-to-trial-automated-mining/story-e6frg9df-1111115351260 Rio to trial automated mining]." ''[[The Australian]]''.</ref> The [[Mining#Industry|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===

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 [[Space Tracking and Surveillance System|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.<ref>Javed, O, & Shah, M. (2008). [https://books.google.com/books?id=UVcVLjtst74C Automated multi-camera surveillance]. City of Publication: Springer-Verlag New York Inc.</ref>

===Highway systems===
{{main|Automated highway systems|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 system]]s (ITS) and demonstration projects in the 1991 ''[[Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act]]'' (ISTEA). Congress legislated in ISTEA that:<ref>''[[Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act]]'' 1991, part B, Section 6054(b)</ref><blockquote>[T]he [[United States Secretary of Transportation|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.</blockquote>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.<ref>Menzies, Thomas R., ed. 1998. "[https://books.google.com/books?id=pj4XHb_x1wYC National Automated Highway System Research Program: A Review]." [[Transportation Research Board|''Transportation Research Board Special Report'']] 253. Washington, D.C.: [[National Academy Press]]. pp. 2–50.</ref>

===Waste management===
[[File:Automated side loader operation.webm|thumb|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.<ref>Hepker, Aaron. (27 November 2012) [http://www.kcrg.com/news/local/Automated-Garbage-Trucks-Hitting-Cedar-Rapids-Streets-181070351.html Automated Garbage Trucks Hitting Cedar Rapids Streets | KCRG-TV9 | Cedar Rapids, Iowa News, Sports, and Weather | Local News] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130116072459/http://www.kcrg.com/news/local/Automated-Garbage-Trucks-Hitting-Cedar-Rapids-Streets-181070351.html |date=16 January 2013 }}. Kcrg.com. Retrieved on 12 July 2013.</ref>

===Business process===
{{main|Business process automation}}
Business process automation (BPA) is the technology-enabled automation of complex [[business process]]es.<ref>{{cite web|title=Business Process Automation – Gartner IT Glossary|url=https://www.gartner.com/it-glossary/bpa-business-process-automation|access-date=20 January 2019|website=Gartner.com}}</ref> 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===
{{main|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.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.domautics.com/home-automation-system|title=Smart & Intelligent Home Automation Solutions|date=15 May 2018|access-date=19 September 2018|archive-date=19 September 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180919132559/http://www.domautics.com/home-automation-system|url-status=dead}}</ref>

===Laboratory===
{{Main|Laboratory automation}}

[[File:GammaGIF.gif|alt=Automated laboratory instrument|thumb|Automated laboratory instrument]]

Automation is essential for many scientific and clinical applications.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Practical Laboratory Automation: Made Easy with AutoIt|last=Carvalho|first=Matheus|publisher=Wiley VCH|year=2017|isbn=978-3-527-34158-0}}</ref> Therefore, automation has been extensively employed in laboratories. From as early as 1980 fully automated laboratories have already been working.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Boyd|first=James|s2cid=108766687|date=18 January 2002|title=Robotic Laboratory Automation|journal=Science|volume=295|issue=5554|pages=517–518|doi=10.1126/science.295.5554.517|issn=0036-8075|pmid=11799250}}</ref> 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.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Carvalho|first=Matheus C.|date=1 August 2013|title=Integration of Analytical Instruments with Computer Scripting|journal=Journal of Laboratory Automation|volume=18|issue=4|pages=328–333|doi=10.1177/2211068213476288|issn=2211-0682|pmid=23413273|doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|title=Chapter 1 - Introduction to Open-Source Hardware for Science|last=Pearce|first=Joshua M.|date=1 January 2014|publisher=Elsevier|isbn=978-0-12-410462-4|location=Boston|pages=1–11|doi=10.1016/b978-0-12-410462-4.00001-9|chapter=Introduction to Open-Source Hardware for Science}}</ref> [[Autosampler]]s are common devices used in laboratory automation.

===Logistics automation===
{{main|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===
{{See also|Building automation|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 controller]]s, [[Stand-alone power system|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]]<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.controleng.com/articles/what-is-machine-vision-and-how-can-it-help/|title=What is machine vision, and how can it help?|date=6 December 2018|website=Control Engineering}}</ref> 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====
{{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,<ref name="doi.org">{{Cite journal | doi=10.11113/jt.v78.9285|title = Industry 4.0: A Review on Industrial Automation and Robotic| journal=Jurnal Teknologi| volume=78| issue=6–13|year = 2016|last1 = Kamarul Bahrin|first1 = Mohd Aiman| last2=Othman| first2=Mohd Fauzi| last3=Nor Azli| first3=Nor Hayati| last4=Talib| first4=Muhamad Farihin| doi-access=}}</ref> as well as the advancement of the [[industrial internet of things]] (IIoT). An "[[Internet of things|Internet of Things]] is a seamless integration of diverse physical objects in the Internet through a virtual representation."<ref>{{Cite book | doi=10.1109/IMIS.2012.134|chapter = Integrating Building Automation Systems and IPv6 in the Internet of Things|title = 2012 Sixth International Conference on Innovative Mobile and Internet Services in Ubiquitous Computing| pages=683–688|year = 2012|last1 = Jung|first1 = Markus| last2=Reinisch| first2=Christian| last3=Kastner| first3=Wolfgang|s2cid = 11670295| isbn=978-1-4673-1328-5}}</ref> 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 [[Information and communications technology|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.<ref>{{cite journal | last=Pérez-López | first=Esteban | title=Los sistemas SCADA en la automatización industrial | journal=Revista Tecnología en Marcha | volume=28 | issue=4 | date=2015-12-11 | issn=2215-3241 | doi=10.18845/tm.v28i4.2438 | doi-access=free | page=3 | doi-broken-date=4 December 2024 |url=https://revistas.tec.ac.cr/index.php/tec_marcha/article/download/2438/2224}}</ref> Industry 4.0 vastly covers many areas in manufacturing and will continue to do so as time goes on.<ref name="doi.org" />

====Industrial robotics====
[[File:Workmaster.jpg|alt=Large automated milling machines inside a big warehouse-style lab room|thumb|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.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Shell|first1=Richard|title=Handbook of Industrial Automation|url=https://archive.org/details/handbookindustri00shel_442|url-access=limited|date=2000|page=[https://archive.org/details/handbookindustri00shel_442/page/n305 46]|publisher=Taylor & Francis |isbn=978-0-8247-0373-8}}</ref> Industrial robots use various mechanical, electrical as well as software systems to allow for high precision, accuracy and speed that far exceed any human performance. The birth of industrial robots came shortly after World War II as the U.S. saw the need for a quicker way to produce industrial and consumer goods.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Kurfess|first1=Thomas|title=Robotics and Automation Handbook|url=https://archive.org/details/roboticsautomati00kurf_743|url-access=limited|date=2005|page=[https://archive.org/details/roboticsautomati00kurf_743/page/n35 5]|publisher=Taylor & Francis |isbn=978-0-8493-1804-7}}</ref> Servos, digital logic and solid-state electronics allowed engineers to build better and faster systems and over time these systems were improved and revised to the point where a single robot is capable of running 24 hours a day with little or no maintenance. In 1997, there were 700,000 industrial robots in use, the number has risen to 1.8M in 2017<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.pwc.com/gx/en/ceo-agenda/ceosurvey/2017/gx/talent.html|title=Managing man and machine|last=PricewaterhouseCoopers|work=PwC|access-date=4 December 2017}}</ref> In recent years, AI with [[robotics]] is also used in creating an automatic labeling solution, using robotic arms as the automatic label applicator, and AI for learning and detecting the products to be labelled.<ref>{{cite web|url= https://milliontech.com/solutions/label-printing/irls-intelligent-robotics-labeling-system|title=AI Automatic Label Applicator & Labelling System|publisher=Milliontech|date=18 January 2018
}}</ref>

====Programmable Logic Controllers====
Industrial automation incorporates programmable logic controllers in the manufacturing process. [[Programmable logic controller]]s (PLCs) use a processing system which allows for variation of controls of inputs and outputs using simple programming. PLCs make use of programmable memory, storing instructions and functions like logic, sequencing, timing, counting, etc. Using a logic-based language, a PLC can receive a variety of inputs and return a variety of logical outputs, the input devices being sensors and output devices being motors, valves, etc. PLCs are similar to computers, however, while computers are optimized for calculations, PLCs are optimized for control tasks and use in industrial environments. They are built so that only basic logic-based programming knowledge is needed and to handle vibrations, high temperatures, humidity, and noise. The greatest advantage PLCs offer is their flexibility. With the same basic controllers, a PLC can operate a range of different control systems. PLCs make it unnecessary to rewire a system to change the control system. This flexibility leads to a cost-effective system for complex and varied control systems.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Bolten|first1=William|title=Programmable Logic Controllers|date=2009|edition=5th|page=3}}</ref>

PLCs can range from small "building brick" devices with tens of I/O in a housing integral with the processor, to large rack-mounted modular devices with a count of thousands of I/O, and which are often networked to other PLC and [[SCADA]] systems.

They can be designed for multiple arrangements of digital and analog [[Input/output stream|inputs and outputs]] (I/O), extended temperature ranges, immunity to [[noise (electronics)|electrical noise]], and resistance to vibration and impact. Programs to control machine operation are typically stored in battery-backed-up or [[non-volatile memory]].

It was from the automotive industry in the United States that the PLC was born. Before the PLC, control, sequencing, and safety interlock logic for manufacturing automobiles was mainly composed of [[relay]]s, [[cam timer]]s, [[drum sequencer (controller)|drum sequencer]]s, and dedicated closed-loop controllers. Since these could number in the hundreds or even thousands, the process for updating such facilities for the yearly model [[changeover|change-over]] was very time-consuming and expensive, as [[electrician]]s needed to individually rewire the relays to change their operational characteristics.

When digital computers became available, being general-purpose programmable devices, they were soon applied to control sequential and combinatorial logic in industrial processes. However, these early computers required specialist programmers and stringent operating environmental control for temperature, cleanliness, and power quality. To meet these challenges, the PLC was developed with several key attributes. It would tolerate the shop-floor environment, it would support discrete (bit-form) input and output in an easily extensible manner, it would not require years of training to use, and it would permit its operation to be monitored. Since many industrial processes have timescales easily addressed by millisecond response times, modern (fast, small, reliable) electronics greatly facilitate building reliable controllers, and performance could be traded off for reliability.<ref name=Parr00>E. A. Parr, ''Industrial Control Handbook'', Industrial Press Inc., 1999 {{ISBN|0-8311-3085-7}}</ref>

====Agent-assisted automation====
{{main|Agent-assisted automation}}
Agent-assisted automation refers to automation used by call center agents to handle customer inquiries. The key benefit of agent-assisted automation is compliance and error-proofing. Agents are sometimes not fully trained or they forget or ignore key steps in the process. The use of automation ensures that what is supposed to happen on the call actually does, every time. There are two basic types: desktop automation and automated voice solutions.

==Control==
{{cleanup merge|Automatic control|21=section|date=March 2023}}

{{Main|Control system}}

=== Open-loop and closed-loop ===
{{excerpt|Control loop#Open-loop and closed-loop}}

=== Discrete control (on/off) ===
One of the simplest types of control is ''on-off'' control. An example is a thermostat used on household appliances which either open or close an electrical contact. (Thermostats were originally developed as true feedback-control mechanisms rather than the on-off common household appliance thermostat.)

Sequence control, in which a programmed sequence of ''discrete'' operations is performed, often based on system logic that involves system states. An elevator control system is an example of sequence control.

===PID controller===
{{main|PID controller}}
[[File:PID en.svg|thumb|upright=1.5|A [[block diagram]] of a PID controller in a feedback loop, where r(''t'') is the desired process value or "set point", and y(''t'') is the measured process value]]

A proportional–integral–derivative controller (PID controller) is a [[control loop]] [[feedback mechanism]] ([[controller (control theory)|controller]]) widely used in [[industrial control system]]s.

In a PID loop, the controller continuously calculates an ''error value'' <math>e(t)</math> as the difference between a desired [[Setpoint (control system)|setpoint]] and a measured [[process variable]] and applies a correction based on [[Proportional control|proportional]], [[integral]], and [[derivative]] terms, respectively (sometimes denoted ''P'', ''I'', and ''D'') which give their name to the controller type.

The theoretical understanding and application date from the 1920s, and they are implemented in nearly all analog control systems; originally in mechanical controllers, and then using discrete electronics and latterly in industrial process computers.

===Sequential control and logical sequence or system state control===
{{main|Programmable logic controller}}

Sequential control may be either to a fixed sequence or to a logical one that will perform different actions depending on various system states. An example of an adjustable but otherwise fixed sequence is a timer on a lawn sprinkler.

States refer to the various conditions that can occur in a use or sequence scenario of the system. An example is an elevator, which uses logic based on the system state to perform certain actions in response to its state and operator input. For example, if the operator presses the floor n button, the system will respond depending on whether the elevator is stopped or moving, going up or down, or if the door is open or closed, and other conditions.<ref>The elevator example is commonly used in programming texts, such as [[Unified Modeling Language]]</ref>

Early development of sequential control was [[relay logic]], by which [[electrical relay]]s engage electrical contacts which either start or interrupt power to a device. Relays were first used in telegraph networks before being developed for controlling other devices, such as when starting and stopping industrial-sized electric motors or opening and closing [[solenoid valve]]s. Using relays for control purposes allowed event-driven control, where actions could be triggered out of sequence, in response to external events. These were more flexible in their response than the rigid single-sequence [[cam timer]]s. More complicated examples involved maintaining safe sequences for devices such as swing bridge controls, where a lock bolt needed to be disengaged before the bridge could be moved, and the lock bolt could not be released until the safety gates had already been closed.

The total number of relays and cam timers can number into the hundreds or even thousands in some factories. Early [[computer programming|programming]] techniques and languages were needed to make such systems manageable, one of the first being [[ladder logic]], where diagrams of the interconnected relays resembled the rungs of a ladder. Special computers called [[programmable logic controllers]] were later designed to replace these collections of hardware with a single, more easily re-programmed unit.

In a typical hard-wired motor start and stop circuit (called a ''control circuit'') a motor is started by pushing a "Start" or "Run" button that activates a pair of electrical relays. The "lock-in" relay locks in contacts that keep the control circuit energized when the push-button is released. (The start button is a normally open contact and the stop button is a normally closed contact.) Another relay energizes a switch that powers the device that throws the motor starter switch (three sets of contacts for three-phase industrial power) in the main power circuit. Large motors use high voltage and experience high in-rush current, making speed important in making and breaking contact. This can be dangerous for personnel and property with manual switches. The "lock-in" contacts in the start circuit and the main power contacts for the motor are held engaged by their respective electromagnets until a "stop" or "off" button is pressed, which de-energizes the lock in relay.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.exman.com/mshoass.html|title=MOTOR STARTERS START STOPS HAND OFF AUTO|website=Exman.com|access-date=14 September 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140413062641/http://www.exman.com/mshoass.html|archive-date=13 April 2014}}</ref>
[[Image:Finite state machine example with comments.svg|thumb|This state diagram shows how [[Unified modeling language|UML]] can be used for designing a door system that can only be opened and closed.|alt=]]
Commonly [[interlock (engineering)|interlock]]s are added to a control circuit. Suppose that the motor in the example is powering machinery that has a critical need for lubrication. In this case, an interlock could be added to ensure that the oil pump is running before the motor starts. Timers, limit switches, and electric eyes are other common elements in control circuits.

Solenoid valves are widely used on [[compressed air]] or [[hydraulic fluid]] for powering [[actuator]]s on [[Mechanical system|mechanical]] components. While [[motor]]s are used to supply continuous [[Rotary actuator|rotary motion]], actuators are typically a better choice for intermittently creating a limited range of movement for a mechanical component, such as moving various mechanical arms, opening or closing [[valve]]s, raising heavy press-rolls, applying pressure to presses.

===Computer control===
Computers can perform both sequential control and feedback control, and typically a single computer will do both in an industrial application. [[Programmable logic controller]]s (PLCs) are a type of special-purpose [[microprocessor]] that replaced many hardware components such as timers and drum sequencers used in relay logic–type systems. General-purpose process control computers have increasingly replaced stand-alone controllers, with a single computer able to perform the operations of hundreds of controllers. Process control computers can process data from a network of PLCs, instruments, and controllers to implement typical (such as PID) control of many individual variables or, in some cases, to implement complex control [[algorithm]]s using multiple inputs and mathematical manipulations. They can also analyze data and create real-time graphical displays for operators and run reports for operators, engineers, and management.

Control of an [[automated teller machine]] (ATM) is an example of an interactive process in which a computer will perform a logic-derived response to a user selection based on information retrieved from a networked database. The ATM process has similarities with other online transaction processes. The different logical responses are called ''scenarios''. Such processes are typically designed with the aid of [[use case]]s and [[flowchart]]s, which guide the writing of the software code. The earliest feedback control mechanism was the water clock invented by Greek engineer Ctesibius (285–222 BC).

==See also==
{{Portal|Electronics|Technology}}
{{div col|colwidth=20em}}
* [[Artificial Intelligence]]
* ''[[Automate This]]''
* [[Automated storage and retrieval system]]
* [[Automation engineering]]
* [[Automation Master]]
* [[Automation technician]]
* [[Cognitive computing]]
* [[Control engineering]]
* [[Critique of work]]
* [[Cybernetics]]
* [[Data-driven control system]]
* [[Dirty, dangerous and demeaning]]
* [[Feedforward control]]
* ''[[Fully Automated Luxury Communism]]''
* [[Futures studies]]
* ''[[The Human Use of Human Beings]]''
* [[Industrial Revolution]]
* [[Industry 4.0]]
* [[Intelligent automation]]
* ''[[Inventing the Future: Postcapitalism and a World Without Work]]''
* [[Machine to machine]]
* [[Mobile manipulator]]
* [[Multi-agent system]]
* [[Post-work society]]
* [[Process control]]
* [[Productivity improving technologies]]
* ''[[The Right to Be Lazy]]''
* [[Right to repair]]
* [[Robot tax]]
* [[Robotic process automation]]
* [[Semi-automation]]
* [[Technological unemployment]]
* ''[[The War on Normal People]]''
{{div col end}}

== References ==
=== Citations ===
{{Reflist
|refs=
<ref name="MBLE_1962_Norbit">{{cite journal |title=les relais statiques Norbit |language=fr |date=September 1962<!-- or 1961? --> |journal=[[Revue MBLE]] |url=http://www.radiocollection.be/images/mble_img/mble_auto17.jpg |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180618235651/http://www.radiocollection.be/images/mble_img/mble_auto17.jpg |archive-date=18 June 2018}} [https://web.archive.org/web/20180619105935/http://www.radiocollection.be/images/mble_img/mble_auto10.jpg]
[https://web.archive.org/web/20180619105944/http://www.radiocollection.be/images/mble_img/mble_auto11.jpg]
[https://web.archive.org/web/20180619110132/http://www.radiocollection.be/images/mble_img/mble_auto12.jpg]
[https://web.archive.org/web/20180619110140/http://www.radiocollection.be/images/mble_img/mble_auto13.jpg]
[https://web.archive.org/web/20180619110249/http://www.radiocollection.be/images/mble_img/mble_auto14.jpg]
[https://web.archive.org/web/20180619110302/http://www.radiocollection.be/images/mble_img/mble_auto15.jpg]
[https://web.archive.org/web/20180619110254/http://www.radiocollection.be/images/mble_img/mble_auto16.jpg]</ref>
<ref name="Walker_2012">{{cite book |title=The Programmable Logic Controller: its prehistory, emergence and application |author-first=Mark John |author-last=Walker |date=8 September 2012 |type=PhD thesis |location=Department of Communication and Systems Faculty of Mathematics, Computing and Technology |publisher=[[The Open University]] |pages=223, 269, 308 |url=http://oro.open.ac.uk/54687/1/594090.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180620115412/http://oro.open.ac.uk/54687/1/594090.pdf |archive-date=20 June 2018}}</ref>
<ref name="Wireless-World_1960">{{cite journal |title=INTERKAMA 1960 – Dusseldorf Exhibition of Automation and Instruments |date=December 1960 |volume=66 |number=12 |journal=[[Wireless World]] |pages=588–589 |url=https://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-Wireless-World/60s/Wireless-World-1960-12.pdf |quote=[…] Another point noticed was the widespread use of small-package [[solid-state (electronics)|solid-state]] [[digital logic|logic]] (such as "[[Logical AND|and]]," "[[Logical OR|or]]," "[[Logical NOT|not]]") and [[instrumentation]] (timers, amplifiers, etc.) units. There would seem to be a good case here for the various manufacturers to standardise practical details such as mounting, connections and power supplies so that a [[Siemens]] "[[Simatic]]," say, is directly interchangeable with an [[Ateliers des Constructions Electronique de Charleroi]] "[[Logacec]]," a [[Telefunken]] "[[Logistat]]," or a [[Mullard]] "[[Norbit module|Norbit]]" or "[[Combi-element]]." […]}}</ref>
<ref name="Akkord_Estacord">{{cite book |publisher={{interlanguage link|Akkord-Radio{{!}}Akkord-Radio GmbH|de|Akkord-Radio}} |location=Herxheim/Pfalz, Germany |title=Estacord – Das universelle Bausteinsystem für kontaktlose Steuerungen |language=German |date=<!-- ca. 1960-1962? --> |type=Catalog}}</ref>
<ref name="Klingelnberg_1967">{{cite book |title=Technisches Hilfsbuch |language=de |author-first=W. Ferdinand |author-last=Klingelnberg 
|editor-first1=Fritz |editor-last1=Pohl |editor-first2=Rudolf |editor-last2=Reindl |edition=softcover reprint of 15th hardcover |publisher=[[Springer-Verlag]] |date=2013 |orig-date=1967, 1960, 1939<!-- 1940, 1942, 1944, 1953 --> |isbn=978-3-64288368-2 |id=0512 |lccn=67-23459 |doi=10.1007/978-3-642-88367-5 |page=135 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_zymBgAAQBAJ&pg=PA135}}</ref>
<ref name="Weissel_1995">{{cite book |title=Digitale Schaltungstechnik |chapter=4.1. Grundschaltungen mit Bipolar- und Feldeffekttransistoren |language=de |author-first1=Ralph |author-last1=Weißel |author-first2=Franz |author-last2=Schubert |publisher=[[Springer-Verlag]] |date=7 March 2013 |orig-date=1995, 1990 |isbn=978-3-540-57012-7 |doi=10.1007/978-3-642-78387-6 |edition=reprint of 2nd |page=116 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=h3DRBgAAQBAJ&pg=PA116|series=Springer-Lehrbuch }}</ref>
<ref name="Parr_1993">{{cite book |title=Logic Designer's Handbook: Circuits and Systems |author-first=E. Andrew |author-last=Parr |edition=revised 2nd |publisher=B.H. Newnes / Butterworth-Heinemann Ltd. / Reed International Books |date=1993 |orig-date=1984 |isbn=978-0-7506-0535-9 |pages=45–46 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Yk8vBQAAQBAJ&pg=PA482}}</ref>
}}

=== Sources ===
{{Refbegin|30em}}
* {{cite journal |first=David H. |last=Autor |title=Why Are There Still So Many Jobs? The History and Future of Workplace Automation |year=2015 |volume=29 |page=3 |number=3 |journal=Journal of Economic Perspectives |url=https://economics.mit.edu/files/11563 |doi=10.1257/jep.29.3.3 |hdl=1721.1/109476 |doi-access=free |access-date=16 January 2018 |archive-date=1 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220901060615/http://economics.mit.edu/files/11563 |hdl-access=free }}
* {{cite book|title=A History of Control Engineering 1930-1955 |last=Bennett |first= S. |year=1993 |publisher =Peter Peregrinus Ltd. On behalf of the Institution of Electrical Engineers
|location= London |isbn= 978-0-86341-280-6}}
* {{Citation | editor-last = Dunlop | editor-first = John T.  | year = 1962 | title = Automation and Technological Change: Report of the Twenty-first American Assembly | publisher = Prentice-Hall | location = Englewood Cliffs, NJ, USA | postscript =. }}
* E. McGaughey, 'Will Robots Automate Your Job Away? Full Employment, Basic Income, and Economic Democracy' (2018) [https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3044448 SSRN, part 2(3)]
* {{Citation | last = Ouellette | first = Robert | year = 1983 | title = Automation Impacts on Industry | publisher = Ann Arbor Science Publishers | location = Ann Arbor, MI, USA | isbn = 978-0-250-40609-8 | postscript =. }}
* {{Citation |editor-last=Trevathan |editor-first=Vernon L. |year=2006 |title=A Guide to the Automation Body of Knowledge |edition=2nd |publisher=International Society of Automation |location=Research Triangle Park, NC, USA |url=http://www.isa.org/autobok/ |isbn=978-1-55617-984-6 |postscript=. |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080704074027/http://www.isa.org/autobok |archive-date=4 July 2008 }}
* {{Citation | last = Frohm | first = Jorgen | year = 2008 | title = Levels of Automation in Production Systems | publisher = Chalmers University of Technology | url = http://publications.lib.chalmers.se | isbn = 978-91-7385-055-1 | postscript = . }}
* Executive Office of the President, Artificial Intelligence, Automation and the Economy ([https://trumpwhitehouse.archives.gov/sites/whitehouse.gov/files/images/EMBARGOED%20AI%20Economy%20Report.pdf December 2016])
{{Refend}}
* {{Free-content attribution
| title = In Brief to The State of Food and Agriculture 2022 – Leveraging automation in agriculture for transforming agrifood systems
| author = FAO
| publisher = FAO
| page numbers = 
| source = 
| documentURL = https://doi.org/10.4060/cc2459en
| license statement URL = https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:In_brief_-_The_State_of_Food_and_Agriculture_2022.pdf
| license = CC BY-SA 3.0
}}

==Further reading==
{{Refbegin|2}}
* Acemoglu, Daron, and Pascual Restrepo. "Automation and New Tasks: How Technology Displaces and Reinstates Labor." The Journal of Economic Perspectives, vol. 33, no. 2, [[American Economic Association]], 2019, pp.&nbsp;3–30, {{JSTOR|26621237}}.
* Norton, Andrew. Automation and Inequality: The Changing World of Work in the Global South. [[International Institute for Environment and Development]], 2017, {{JSTOR|resrep02662}}.
* Danaher, John. "The Case for Technological Unemployment." Automation and Utopia: Human Flourishing in a World without Work, [[Harvard University Press]], 2019, pp.&nbsp;25–52, {{doi|10.2307/j.ctvn5txpc.4}}.
* Reinsch, William, and Jack Caporal. "The Digital Economy & Data Governance." Key Trends in the Global Economy through 2030, edited by Matthew P. Goodman and Scott Miller, [[Center for Strategic and International Studies]] (CSIS), 2020, pp.&nbsp;18–21, {{JSTOR|resrep26050.6}}.
* {{cite book|title=Robotics: A Very Short Introduction|author=Winfield, A.|isbn=978-0-191-64648-5|series=Very Short Introductions|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=74-Llv77FxYC|year=2012|publisher=[[Oxford University Press]]}} 
* {{Cite journal |last1=Zhang |first1=Y. |last2=Yan |first2=W. |last3=Yu |first3=Q. |year=2017 |title=Intelligent fault diagnosis for automation equipment: A review |journal=IEEE Transactions on Automation Science and Engineering |volume=14 |issue=2 |pages=671–694 |doi=10.1109/TAES.2016.2593492|doi-broken-date=29 April 2025 }}
* {{Cite journal |last1=Lee |first1=Jay |last2=Bagheri |first2=Behrad |last3=Kao |first3=Hung-An |year=2015 |title=A Cyber-Physical Systems architecture for Industry 4.0-based manufacturing systems |journal=Manufacturing Letters |volume=3 |pages=18–23 |doi=10.1016/j.mfglet.2014.12.001}}
* {{Cite journal |last1=Lee |first1=Jay |last2=Lapira |first2=Edgar |last3=Bagheri |first3=Behrad |last4=Kao |first4=Hung-An |year=2013 |title=Recent advances and trends in predictive manufacturing systems in big data environment |journal=Manufacturing Letters |volume=1 |pages=38–41 |doi=10.1016/j.mfglet.2013.09.005}}
* {{Cite journal |last1=Bogue |first1=Robert |year=2018 |title=Advances in robotics: a review of current developments |journal=Industrial Robot: International Journal |volume=45 |issue=1 |pages=1–16 |doi=10.1108/IR-09-2017-0199|doi-broken-date=29 April 2025 }}
* {{Cite journal |last1=Köppen-Seliger |first1=O. |last2=Haar |first2=S. |year=2019 |title=Human–robot collaboration in assembly automation |journal=CIRP Annals |volume=68 |issue=1 |pages=5–8 |doi=10.1016/j.cirp.2019.04.031}}
* {{Cite book |last=Groover |first=Mikell P. |year=2016 |title=Automation, Production Systems, and Computer-Integrated Manufacturing |edition=4th |publisher=Prentice Hall |isbn=978-0133499616}}
* {{Cite book |last1=Brynjolfsson |first1=Erik |last2=McAfee |first2=Andrew |year=2014 |title=The Second Machine Age: Work, Progress, and Prosperity in a Time of Brilliant Technologies |publisher=W. W. Norton & Company |isbn=978-0393239355}}
* {{Cite book |editor-last=Nof |editor-first=Shimon Y. |year=2009 |title=Handbook of Industrial Robotics |edition=2nd |publisher=Wiley |isbn=978-0470544032}}
* {{Cite book |last=Schwab |first=Klaus |year=2017 |title=The Fourth Industrial Revolution |publisher=Crown Business |isbn=978-1524761317}}
* {{Cite book |last=Ford |first=Martin |year=2015 |title=Rise of the Robots: Technology and the Threat of a Jobless Future |publisher=Basic Books |isbn=978-0465097536}}
* {{Cite journal |last1=Qi |first1=Q. |last2=Tao |first2=F. |year=2020 |title=Digital twin and big data towards smart manufacturing and Industry 4.0: 360 degree comparison |journal=IEEE Access |volume=8 |pages=202951–202971 |doi=10.1109/ACCESS.2020.3035756|doi-broken-date=29 April 2025 }}
* {{Cite journal |last1=Singh |first1=Y. |last2=Singh |first2=P. |year=2021 |title=Machine learning in industrial automation: A review |journal=Artificial Intelligence Review |volume=55 |issue=2 |pages=1355–1392 |doi=10.1007/s10462-021-09971-6|doi-broken-date=29 April 2025 }}
* {{Cite journal |last1=Xu |first1=X. |last2=Davidson |first2=V. |year=2020 |title=Industry 4.0: State of the art and future trends |journal=International Journal of Production Research |volume=58 |issue=4 |pages=1217–1229 |doi=10.1080/00207543.2020.1753109|doi-broken-date=29 April 2025 }}
* {{Cite journal |last1=O’Donovan |first1=P. |last2=Leahy |first2=K. |year=2019 |title=Big data in manufacturing: A systematic review of the literature and challenges |journal=CIRP Journal of Manufacturing Science and Technology |volume=28 |pages=14–25 |doi=10.1016/j.cirpj.2019.03.003|doi-broken-date=29 April 2025 }}
* {{Cite journal |last1=Yang |first1=C. |last2=Li |first2=D. |year=2022 |title=Data-driven predictive maintenance scheduling for industrial automation systems |journal=Journal of Manufacturing Systems |volume=62 |pages=80–95 |doi=10.1016/j.jmsy.2021.12.003}}
* {{Cite book |editor-last1=Siciliano |editor-first1=Bruno |editor-last2=Khatib |editor-first2=Oussama |year=2016 |title=Springer Handbook of Robotics |edition=2nd |publisher=Springer |isbn=978-3319325507}}
* {{Cite book |last=Corke |first=Peter |year=2017 |title=Robotics, Vision and Control: Fundamental Algorithms in MATLAB |edition=2nd |publisher=Springer |isbn=978-3319544129}}
* {{Cite book |last=Bequette |first=B. Wayne |year=2015 |title=Process Control: Modeling, Design, and Simulation |publisher=Prentice Hall |isbn=978-0133496585}}
* {{Cite book |last1=Webb |first1=John W. |last2=Reis |first2=Ronald A. |year=2016 |title=Programmable Logic Controllers: Principles and Applications |edition=6th |publisher=Prentice Hall |isbn=978-0134383955}}
* {{Cite book |editor-last=Leitao |editor-first=Paulo |year=2020 |title=Advances in Production Management Systems: Digitalization for Productivity and Sustainability |series=IFIP Advances in Information and Communication Technology |volume=601 |publisher=Springer |isbn=978-3030428725}}
* {{cite book |last1=Ghosh |first1=Bhaskar |last2=Prasad |first2=Rajendra |last3=Pallail |first3=Gayathri |title=The Automation Advantage: Embrace the Future of Productivity and Improve Speed, Quality, and Customer Experience Through AI |date=2021 |publisher=McGraw-Hill |isbn=978-1260473292}}
* {{cite book |last1=Bornet |first1=Pascal |last2=Barkin |first2=Ian |last3=Wirtz |first3=Jochen |title=Intelligent Automation: Welcome to the World of Hyperautomation |date=2021 |publisher=World Scientific Publishing |isbn=978-9811238161 |doi=10.1142/12239}}
* {{cite book |editor-last=Thangam |editor-first=Dhanabalan |title=Advancements in Intelligent Process Automation |series=Advances in Computational Intelligence and Robotics |date=2025 |publisher=IGI Global |isbn=979-8369353806 |doi=10.4018/979-8-3693-5380-6}}
* {{cite book |last1=Nof |first1=Shimon Y. |editor=true |title=Springer Handbook of Automation |date=2009 |publisher=Springer |isbn=978-3540788300 |doi=10.1007/978-3-540-78831-7}}
* {{cite book |last1=Brynjolfsson |first1=Erik |last2=McAfee |first2=Andrew |year=2014 |title=The Second Machine Age: Work, Progress, and Prosperity in a Time of Brilliant Technologies |publisher=W. W. Norton & Company |isbn=978-0393239355}}
* {{cite book |last=Groover |first=Mikell P. |year=2018 |title=Automation, Production Systems, and Computer-Integrated Manufacturing |edition=5th |publisher=Pearson |isbn=978-0134611235}}
* {{cite book |last=Danaher |first=John |year=2019 |title=Automation and Utopia: Human Flourishing in a World Without Work |publisher=Harvard University Press |isbn=978-0674984240}}
* {{cite book |last=Ford |first=Martin |year=2015 |title=Rise of the Robots: Technology and the Threat of a Jobless Future |publisher=Basic Books |isbn=978-0465059997}}
* {{cite journal |last1=Autor |first1=David |last2=Salomons |first2=Anna |year=2018 |title=Is automation labor-displacing? Productivity growth, employment, and the labor share |journal=Brookings Papers on Economic Activity |volume=2018 |issue=1 |pages=1–63 |doi=10.1353/eca.2018.0000 |hdl=1721.1/124228 |url=https://www.brookings.edu/bpea-articles/is-automation-labor-displacing-productivity-growth-employment-and-the-labor-share/|hdl-access=free }}
* {{cite journal |last1=Acemoglu |first1=Daron |last2=Restrepo |first2=Pascual |year=2019 |title=Automation and New Tasks: How Technology Displaces and Reinstates Labor |journal=Journal of Economic Perspectives |volume=33 |issue=2 |pages=3–30 |doi=10.1257/jep.33.2.3|hdl=1721.1/128829 |hdl-access=free }}
* {{cite journal |last1=Frey |first1=Carl Benedikt |last2=Osborne |first2=Michael A. |year=2017 |title=The future of employment: How susceptible are jobs to computerisation? |journal=Technological Forecasting and Social Change |volume=114 |pages=254–280 |doi=10.1016/j.techfore.2016.08.019|url=https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:4ed9f1bd-27e9-4e30-997e-5fc8405b0491 }}
{{Refend}}

{{Sister project links|wikt=automation|commons=Category:Automation|n=no|s=no|b=no}}

{{Clear}}
{{Robotics|state=collapsed}}
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[[Category:Automation| ]]
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