Most of us have seen 3CPO in Star Wars, the replicants Roy Batty and Zhora (played by Rutger Hauer and Joan Cassidy respectively) in the original Blade Runner, Rosey from The Jetsons, Robby the Robot in Forbidden Planet, Gort in The Day the Earth Stood Still or Terminator T-1. Or the disembodied Samantha (the voice of Scarlett Johansson) in HER, an artificial intelligence (AI) sentient character for whom Theodore Twombly (Joaquin Phoenix) has a crush on.

Yet these science fictional characters and scores of other robots have shaped our visions of what a humanoid or hybrid anthropomorphic device “looks like.” It’s hard to forget those classic humanoids, even in a world of dedicated robotic arms for industrial and medical projects, mobile robots for food service, first-responder rescue and safety devices, all built for specific purposes.

Click here to continue reading.