[前言]2009年有个学期作业，做了一个关于云计算的调研，自Google2006年提出云计算这个概念后，引起了广泛关注，后来IaaS，PaaS, SaaS, 大数据，分布式计算，无联网，深度学习.....这些关键词逐步火热了起来。对这些概念有了一定的认识，在班上讨论时，突然冒出了云计算和机器人结合的想法，随后就经常关注云计算的发展，想办法跟自己的爱好-机器人结合起来，还把这个想法告诉一些老师和朋友。有老师说，我想得太大太宽泛了，这个主题不适合做研究。虽然后来做了关于护理机器人的研究，但是没有放弃云机器人（Cloud Robotics），时刻关注着方面的发展动向。现在云机器人是已经成为机器人领域的一个新的热点新方向，将机器人技与云计算相结合，以增强单个机器人的能力，同时将广泛扩展机器人的应用领域，加速和简化机器人系统的开发过程，降低机器人的构造和使用成本，无论是家庭机器人，工业机器人，医疗机器人，都具有极其深远的意义。比如，在云端可以建立知识库，深度学习，云辅助的图像识别和语音识别，移动机器人 导航（如 Google 街景，语义环境模型，水下 环境模型库）,  大规模协作机器人，模块化机器人，职业机器人，等等。

https://sites.google.com/site/ruijiaoli/blogs/page

The concept of cloud robotics attempts to invoke cloud computing technology in robotics. Cloud computing is computing in which large groups of remote servers are networked to allow centralized data storage and online access to computer services or resources. Clouds can be classified as public, private or hybrid. Robots can benefit from the powerful computational, storage, and communications resources of modern data centers in the cloud. In addition, it removes overheads for maintenance and updates, and reduces dependence of local computing. Robots can take advantage of the rapid increase in data transfer rates to offload tasks without hard real time requirements from cloud. We can develop ubiquitous system for robots with powerful capability but reduce the cost of computing with cloud computing. And it possible to build robots have intelligent "brain" in "cloud"- knowledge base, virtual world environment model (may like Google street view), image processing and querying, large scale robots collaboration, augmented human~robot interaction (remote communication and reasoning). Such robot systems are capable of adapting variety of situations and providing different service from human‘s delegation. With regard to this concept, We can propose a various functional cloud robotics based system such as intelligent healthcare system, smart home with domestic robots, education robots, intelligent robot workers/ professionals.......

In 2012, robotics celebrated its 50 year anniversary in terms of deployment of the first industrial robot at a manufacturing site. Since then, significant progress has been achieved. Robots are being used across the various domains of manufacturing, services, healthcare/medical, defense, and space. Robotics was initially introduced for dirty, dull, and dangerous tasks. Today, robotics are used in a much wider set of applications, and a key factor is to empower people in their daily lives across work, leisure, and domestic tasks. Three factors drive the adoption of robots: i) improved productivity in the increasingly competitive international environment; ii) improved quality of life in the presence of a significantly aging society; and iii) removing first responders and soldiers from the immediate danger/action. Economic growth, quality of life, and safety of our first responders continue to be key drivers for the adoption of robots.

Robotics is one of a few technologies that has the potential to have an impact that is as transformative as the Internet. Robotics is already now a key technology for inshoring of jobs by companies such as Apple, Lenovo, Tesla, Foxconn, and many others and citizens who used to have to rely on family or nurses for basic tasks such as shaving, preparing a meal, or going to the restroom are having a higher degree of independence. In the aftermath of the earthquake in Fukushima, it was evident that it would be a challenge to get an actual sense of the resulting destruction without the deployment of robots for assessment of the magnitude of the damage and assessment of the environmental impact. Currently, many small factories in East China employe robot to work for some repeated work to reduced their product cost, which is their only chance to keep competitive in the market as a several factory managers said. On the other hand, with the increasing demand of robots, the development and manufacture of robots has been becoming a large market, Google has acquired more than ten robotics company to enlarge its business in robot. Other traditional robot companies such as KUKA, ABB robot, iRobot, SIASUN etc. have notable growth of markets from their financial reports.

To fully evaluate the potential of using robotics across the set of available applications, a group of more than 160 people came together in five workshops to identify: i) business/application drivers; ii) the current set of gaps to provide solutions to end users; and iii) R&D priorities to enable delivery on the business drivers. The meetings were topical across manufacturing, healthcare/medical robotics, service robotics, defense, and space. The workshops took place during the second half of 2012. At each workshop, there was a mixture present of industry users, academic researchers, and government program managers to ensure a broader coverage of the topics discussed. Robotics is one of a few technologies capable of near term building new companies, creating new jobs, and addressing a number of issues of national importance.