A mechanical device that imitates the actions of a living creature, human or animal. Such devices, constructed in the ancient world and in the Middle Ages, benefited from the development of clock mechanisms during the 17th-c. Some are made as toys, but others are useful as research or control mechanisms, and in the remote handling of hazardous materials.
An automaton (plural: automata) is a self-operating machine.
Etymology
Automaton, from the Greek αὐτόματος, automatos, “acting of one’s own will, self-moving,” is more often used to describe non-electronic moving machines, especially those that have been made to resemble human or animal actions, such as the jacks on old public striking clocks, or the cuckoo and any other animated figures on a cuckoo clock.
Ancient automata
The automata of Ancient Greece were intended as toys or tools for demonstrating basic scientific principles, including those built by Hero of Alexandria.
Complex mechanical devices are known to have existed in ancient Greece, though the only surviving example is the Antikythera mechanism. The island was renowned for its automata;
Automata from the 13th to 18th centuries
Al-Jazari is credited for the first recorded designs of a programmable automaton in the 13th century.
The first recorded design of a humanoid automaton is credited to Leonardo da Vinci around the year 1495.
The Renaissance witnessed a considerable revival of interest in automata. Numerous clockwork automata were manufactured in the sixteenth century, principally by the goldsmiths of the Free Imperial Cities of central Europe. Hydraulic and pneumatic automata, similar to those described by Hero, were created for garden grottoes.
A new attitude towards automata is to be found in Descartes when he suggested that the bodies of animals are nothing more than complex machines - the bones, muscles and organs could be replaced with cogs, pistons and cams. The Jesuit Athanasius Kircher produced many automatons to create jesuit shows, including a statue which spoke and listened via a speaking tube.
The world's first successfully-built biomechanical automaton is considered to be The Flute Player, invented by the French engineer Jacques de Vaucanson in 1737.
In 1769, a chess-playing automaton called the Turk, created by Wolfgang von Kempelen, made the rounds of the courts of Europe, but in fact was a famous hoax, operated from inside by a hidden human operator.
Other 18th century automaton makers include the prolific Frenchman Pierre Jaquet-Droz (see Jaquet-Droz automata) and his contemporary Henri Maillardet. Maillardet, a Swiss mechanician, created an automaton capable of drawing four pictures and writing three poems.
According to philosopher Michel Foucault, Frederick the Great, king of Prussia from 1740 to 1786, was "obsessed" with automata .
Japan adopted automata during the Edo period (1603-1867);
The famous magician Jean Eugene Robert-Houdin (1805 - 1871) was known for creating automata for his stage shows. Some famous automata makers -- many French -- of this period were Vichy, Roullet &
Contemporary automata
Contemporary automata continue this tradition with an emphasis on art, rather than technological sophistication. Contemporary automata are represented by the works of Cabaret Mechanical Theatre in the United Kingdom and Dug North in the United States.
A fascinating evolution of the mechanized toys developed during the 18th and 19th century is represented by automata made with paper. The possibility to export the complete design throughout the world with a simple click of the mouse gives paper automata (and in general paper modelling) a great impact. Despite the relative simplicity of the material, paper automata intrinsically are objects with a high degree of technology, where the principles of mechanics meet the artistic creativity. Popular sites where to find paper automata are, among others: CeraCera, paperPino, Flying Pig, Paper Machines Saka Karakrui. Automata is also the proper term used when describing Sim City 4 vehicles.
Other historic examples
Other notable examples of automata include Archytas's dove, mentioned by Aulus Gellius, Noct.
The Smithsonian Institution has in its collection a clockwork monk, about 15 inches high, possibly dating as early as 1560.
Automata in popular culture
Automata crop up in numerous fictional works, including:
L. In August Eschenburg, Pulitzer Prize-winning author, Steven Millhauser, writes the story of a clockmaker's son who spent his life building fantastical automata in 1870s Germany. In the 1993 role-playing game Ultima VII Part Two: Serpent Isle, automata were used by the local inhabitants. It was possible to create an automata via the create automata spell, which could then join your party. In 2000 video role-playing game Grandia II, the automata were soulless battle machines invented during the war between Granas and Valmar (good and evil god, respectively) about 10,000 years prior to the events of the game. In 2002 adventure game Syberia and its sequel, Syberia II, the automata were a key plot device crucial to completing the main quest. In the 2003 PC strategy game Age of Mythology: The Titans, the automata are Atlantean myth units that can repair one another. In the PC game Arcanum you can uppgrade your mechanical spider into a steam-powered automaton Automatons feature as a higher level enemy in the videogame Morrowind. Popular childrens and young adult author Philip Pullman has written a book entitled Clockwork, which deals with automata. The 2006 Doctor Who episode The Girl in the Fireplace featured dangerous space-age automata from the 51st Century running rampant in the 18th century. The Vinci nation from the 2006 real time strategy game Rise of Legends use automata such as the Clockwork Man and Clockwork Spider to supplement their army. In the animated show Futurama, the word "Automaton" is used to describe the Robot Devil in the episode "The Devil's Hands Are Idle Playthings". Sebastian lives in an abandoned and crumbling but palatial apartment which he stocks full of robots, but also clockwork automaton and cuckoo clocks.
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