Automation theory
In some ways, automation theory is a self-feeding theory in that as each advancement happens, it will use that step as a building block to making further advances to larger and more significant feats. This means that before we dig into the exact meaning of what automation is, we should look at the history of automation and automation theory over the years. This rich history is what built the automation theory and capabilities that we know and love today, and will give great insight into the future of automation as well.
From the development of the first computer, all the way to recent advances in AI, automation theory has had a significant and life-altering impact on humanity and history. Each one of these developments and inventions has helped forge the way for further automation and efficiency in an exponential way. These advances have created a steady push forward to remove all the manual aspects of any activity or process to help improve the speed, efficiency, and possibilities of the results.
We could probably even go all the way back to the very beginnings of mankind's rise to find the roots of automation theory. The very first automation could have been something as simple as the repeating loop our roaming ancestors took when hunting and/or gathering or even utilizing a tool or their environment to remove repetitive actions in their day-to-day life. Automation does not need to involve technology as we view it today!
Without automation theory, the computer would never have existed, changing the entire world we live in today. And that is only the most recent example of how automation has changed our lives. Look at the world's first moving assembly line for mass production created by Henry Ford (https://corporate.ford.com/articles/history/moving-assembly-line.html). Without that innovation, our entire world would be irrevocably different.
Automation theory has helped advance and shape technology and theories throughout the years, including such recent advances as the following:
- Control functions (electronic digital computer)
- Programming languages and capabilities (computers and machines)
- A vast array of sensor technology (light, electromagnetic, kinetic, and so on)
- Advanced mathematical theory of control systems (evolved during WWII)
- Artificial intelligence (robotics and learning systems)
These advances have set the stage for the highly interconnected and digital world that we experience today. The simultaneous development and maturation of many technologies, in particular, information technologies, have enabled vast levels of interdependence and communication between previously disparate systems that were impossible before. While not a new feature of this development, automation has recently taken center stage in discussions about the future of business, communication, production, and many other aspects of our lives.
To help understand this, we wanted to provide a quick visual representation of automation theory as just described.
Now that we have a strong understanding of the history of automation and how it has affected our lives, let's figure out what exactly it is.