Dictionary of Electrical Engineering

Commonly used terms in the Electrical industry.

automation
refers to the bringing together of machine tools, materials handling process, and controls with little worker intervention, including
1. a continuous flow production process that integrates various mechanisms to produce an item with relatively few or no worker operations, usually through electronic control;
2. self-regulating machines (feedback) that can perform highly precise operations in sequence; and
3. electronic computing machines. In common use, however, the term is often used in reference to any type of advanced mechanization or as a synonym for technological progress; more specifically, it is usually associated with cybernetics.