Glossary

The entities that form the foundation of Machine Census.

Robot

A physically embodied machine that senses its environment, determines an action through software, control logic, an operator, or a combination of these, and acts in the physical world to perform a defined task.

Maker

An organization or team responsible for developing a robot. A maker may be a company, business unit, research lab, nonprofit, open-source project, or independent team.

Supplier

An organization or team offering a product used to build, operate, or improve robots, with robotics as an explicit target market or use case.

Deployment

A named operator has the robot doing real work at a site where it operates, whether that work is a trial or part of normal operations. The census records no separate pilot: the press uses both words for the same fact.

Environment

The operating setting for which a robot is designed or in which it has been demonstrated, such as a factory, warehouse, home, hospital, farm, public road, air, water, or hazardous site.

Human interaction

How a robot relates to people while operating, from isolated work in a workspace separated from people, through collaborative work designed to share a workspace with them, to assistive, passenger-carrying, and public-facing operation.

The physical forms most often used to describe a robot. A robot can belong to more than one embodiment type.

Manipulator

A robot arm or other mechanism for interacting with objects. A stationary manipulator is attached to a fixed base or workcell; a mobile manipulator combines one or more arms with a mobile base.

Humanoid

A robot whose body plan is substantially modeled on the human form, typically with a torso, head, arms, and two legs. Human-like appearance alone is not sufficient.

Quadruped

A robot that walks on four articulated legs.

Autonomous mobile robot (AMR)

A wheeled platform that moves goods or equipment through a shared workspace, navigating around obstacles on its own, common in warehouses, factories, and hospitals.

Uncrewed ground vehicle (UGV)

A wheeled or tracked vehicle that works on ground terrain, remotely operated or under its own control, common in defense, security, inspection, and field work.

Uncrewed aerial vehicle (UAV)

An uncrewed aircraft, commonly called a drone, either remotely piloted or under its own control, whether an airplane, helicopter, quadcopter, or another airframe.

Uncrewed surface vessel (USV)

An uncrewed boat or ship that operates at the water's surface, either remotely piloted or under its own control.

Autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV)

An uncrewed vehicle that operates below the water's surface, either remotely piloted or under its own control.

Task terms whose meaning in the census is narrower than everyday usage.

Manipulation

Grasping, moving, assembling, sorting, or otherwise physically changing objects.

General-purpose work

Substantially different physical tasks performed by the same robot without rebuilding it for each one. The label requires demonstrated breadth, not a marketing claim.

How actions are selected and executed.

Teleoperated

A remote operator directs the robot while onboard software may handle stabilization, collision avoidance, or motion assistance.

Supervised autonomy

The robot executes a task on its own while a person monitors progress and can intervene.

Conditional autonomy

The robot operates independently under defined conditions but requires a handoff, intervention, or safe stop when those conditions are not met.

High autonomy

The robot completes assigned tasks with minimal real-time supervision within a defined operating environment.

Who operates a robot and for what purpose. A robot may have several segments, each supported by a cited source. Classify the use, not legal ownership; for each use, choose the most specific label.

Enterprise

Used by an organization for commercial or operational work. State-owned companies and public hospitals are Enterprise when they act as operators rather than public authorities.

Government

Used by a public body to perform a government function, such as defense, policing, emergency response, or civil administration.

Consumer

Used by a private individual for home or personal purposes.

Research

Used primarily for research or experimentation by a university, institute, national lab, or corporate R&D team. Research use wins over the operator's own segment.

The sectors a use case belongs to. A use case may span several. The label names the operating context, not a single job title.

Agriculture

Growing crops and raising livestock, including field work, orchards, greenhouses, and dairy operations.

Construction

Building and civil infrastructure work, on the site and in prefabrication, from layout and earthmoving to interior trades.

Manufacturing

Producing goods in a factory or workshop, including assembly, machine tending, welding, and quality inspection.

Warehousing and logistics

Moving and storing goods inside distribution centers and warehouses, including picking, sortation, palletizing, and trailer loading.

Delivery

Carrying goods the last stretch to a recipient, on sidewalks, roads, or through the air.

Mining

Extracting minerals and aggregates in surface and underground operations, including drilling, hauling, and surveying.

Energy and utilities

Generating and distributing power, water, and gas, including inspection of plants, grids, pipelines, and offshore platforms.

Defense and security

Military and security operations, including reconnaissance, explosive ordnance disposal, perimeter patrol, and force protection.

Healthcare

Clinical and hospital settings, including surgery, rehabilitation, disinfection, and moving supplies between departments.

Retail and hospitality

Stores, restaurants, and hotels, including shelf scanning, restocking, food running, and guest service.

Facilities and cleaning

Maintaining buildings and grounds, including floor cleaning, window washing, security rounds, and groundskeeping.

Maritime

Operations on and under the water, including port handling, hull inspection, survey, and offshore support.

Statuses that communicate what the available sources do and do not support.

Verified

Directly supported by identified, available evidence.

Unverified

Stated by a source or submitter, but not sufficiently supported by the available evidence.

Not publicly available

No reliable public value or supporting information was found.

Estimated

Derived from identified evidence rather than directly published, and explicitly labeled as an estimate.

This glossary explains what Machine Census terms mean. The separate listing policy explains when a robot, maker, supplier, or project qualifies for inclusion.

Definitions will evolve as the census grows. If you believe a term or classification needs correction, send us the relevant evidence.