When it comes to robotics, a significant success was recorded on the territory of the former Yugoslavia. Namely, the very first robot TIOSS was made in Zagreb as early as 1961, and the so-called model Belgrade Hand (Beogradska šaka), a model representing the world’s first prosthetic robotic hand was presented in Belgrade as early as 1963, and during the seventies, the first models of industrial robots that were to be used in domestic production were developed. The Mihajlo Pupin Institute was also highly significant for the development of robotics in Yugoslavia, as some of the first industrial robots were created there, after which the further development of robotics in our region continued. Professor Miomir Vukobratović also played a significant role in this institute, presenting the zero-moment point theory in 1968, which successfully tackled the problem of the way in which humanoids, and bipedal robots can walk and maintain balance. This theory represented a global significant progress, and it appears not to be the only example of the fact that scientists and inventions originating in Yugoslavia were crucial for the further global development of robotics.
The first robot in Croatia, TIOSS, was developed in 1961.
The first robot in Croatia, TIOSS, was developed at the beginning of the 1960s, more precisely in 1961, by Branimir Makanec, who, at that time, was a first-year student of the Faculty of Electrical Engineering in Zagreb. TIOSS was publicly presented in 1965 at the Zagreb Fair, where he distributed propaganda leaflets, saying: Here you go, and after the leaflet had been taken, he would repeat the same action. In 1966, the very next year, he walked around Ban Jelačić Square in Zagreb.
The robot had two eyes with light sensors and was programmed to look in a direction with more light. Makanec points out that during the period when the robot was created, he was studying neurophysiology as a hobby, thinking about developing a real robot. He named it TIOSS, which is an abbreviation of the Croatian expression teledirigirani izvršni organ samoupravljačkog sustava (remote-controlled executive organ of the self-management system). He collected parts for TIOSS from garbage dumps and assembled them into a metal casing shaped to be as human-like as possible.
The robot weighed about 150 kilograms, was about 220 centimeters tall, and could reach a speed of 30 kilometers per hour. An electricity-powered accumulator charger was placed in the left leg of the robot, while the right one contained relays that controlled logical functions, i.e. obeyed program commands sent by the computer. A microphone was placed in the robot’s chest and a speaker and two optical sensors were placed in its head, responding to light changes. The robot also had metal eyelids, so in bright light it looked like as if it were blinking. Its head could rotate left and right, and due to the sensor, it always turned towards the brightest light.
Branimir Makanec and the group Kibernetičari: TIOSS, robot, 1961.–1965.
1963 – The Belgrade Hand – a model representing the world’s first prosthetic robotic hand was created in Yugoslavia
“The Belgrade Hand” is a model of the world’s first prosthetic robotic hand and represents the precursor of all bionic prostheses. It had myoelectric control and sensory feedback and was able to perform two key actions – squeezing into a fist and rounding up with outstretched fingers. It was created in 1963 by Rajko Tomović and Midorag Rakić, professors at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering in Belgrade. The hand had five fingers, which contained touch and myoelectric control sensors, i.e. sensors for control using an electrical signal.
In the 1960s, Tomović initiated research on orthopedic aids and started making the first prosthetic robotic hand. He was one of the main participants in the development of the first computing machine for the electric power industry, the first analog computer of domestic production, the first domestic electronic computer, as well as the first Yugoslav digital computer CER 10, developed in 1960. In 1963, along with Miodrag Rakić, his colleague from the Faculty of Electrical Engineering in Belgrade, he started pioneering work on the production of an artificial organ with the sense of touch in the Laboratory for Automatic Control at the Mihajlo Pupin Institute. In their scientific research, they used theoretical research papers in the field of rehabilitation and orthotic robotics.
The hand has never been used for medical purposes, but it has been used for further research in the field of robotics that has influenced the further development of robotic arms in the world. Today, the model of the hand can be seen at the Museum of Science and Technology in Belgrade.
1978 – the first robot UMS-1 used in the domestic industry in Yugoslavia was developed
The first industrial robot to be used in practice was the UMS-1 robot, designed and manufactured at the Institute in 1978 and used at the Teleoptik factory for the installation of thermostat assemblies for cars. In the years that followed, several successful prototypes of industrial robots with software such as UMS2-1980, UMS3-1981, etc. were developed. Prototypes of industrial robots were made in cooperation with leading Yugoslav companies.
Industrial robot UMS, 1978.
1980 – the first industrial robot, Goro, was created in Ljubljana
The robotics industry in Slovenia was formed in the 1980s with the development of two early models – Goro and Roki. The first industrial robot Goro 1 was developed in IJS and manufactured in Gorenje, and its operation started in 1980. After its launch, the scientists started designing the next series of Goro robots, and only two of the first version’s components “survived”, as the others were used to build the newer versions. Later versions were used by Gorenje for the jobs of painting, enameling and varnishing of appliances, which are unhealthy for humans due to the emission of strong odors or harmful substances.
Photo: Jože Suhadolnik
Within a year of the first presentation of the Goro 1 model, in 1981, the Faculty of Electrical Engineering of the University of Ljubljana started cooperating with another large industrial company – Iskra. The result of this cooperation was Roki, a high-precision robot that started being used in 1987 at the counter factory of Iskra, where it took over the processing of induction counter casings. Robots before Roki were intended for performing heavy tasks, while Roki was intended for performing more precise tasks – when talking about previous robots, we can talk about accuracy in the terms of millimeters, but when it comes to Roki – in tens of millimeters.
References:
www.delo.si/novice/znanoteh/goro-riko-roki-in-druscina/
www.digitalna-umjetnost-u-hrvatskoj.eu/hr
Beogradska šaka Wikipedia
www.politika.rs/sr/clanak/458366/Mozaik/Beogradska-saka
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