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In the context of engineering, automation is when a device or a machine is changed in such a way that it can fulfill the task it was designed for without the need of human interaction. Very often, this means that the machine is fitted with an additional system which takes control of its functions. For example, a centrifugal governor controls a steam engine.
Benefits of automation are that the output of the machine or device are more uniform, and that product quality is improved. A system that is not fully automated needs human interaction is needed: Many of the tasks involved are repetitive and boring. In general, machines are also designed so that humans no longer need to lift heavy weights or do dangerous things. With automation, human intervention is limited or absent.
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A common windmill, the position of the wheel is fixed
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Windmill where the wheel can readjust itself, to capture the wind. An additional gear is needed for rotating the wheel (which can be automated)
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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.
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Steam engines are a technology created during the 1700s used to promote automation.
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Automated pharmacology production
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An automated online assistant on a website, with an avatar for enhanced human–computer interaction.
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KUKA industrial robots being used at a bakery for food production
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Automated laboratory instrument
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Automated milling machines
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Ctesibius's clepsydra (3rd century BC).
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Siemens Simatic S7-400 system in a rack, left-to-right: power supply unit (PSU), CPU, interface module (IM) and communication processor (CP).
