An enormous galaxy is filled with various types of life forms and robots. Therefor creating a broad standard for the discussion and classification of robots is necessary and the basic outline of robots across human space is listed below:
Class A: Highly intelligent sentient robots. These types of robots can be citizens as well in more progressive star nations.
Class B: Intelligent property: sex bots, research assistants, home and health aides, etc.
Class C: Dumb bots; any robot that performs mindless tasks (ie construction robots, assembly bots).
Class K: Killer robots: all military bots and ANY armed robot.
A robot is a machine, controlled by a computer brain, capable of perceiving and manipulating its environment. Robots are typically designed for jobs that are considered too tedious, unpleasant or dangerous for human beings. This chapter provides a detailed, step-by-step system for designing many types of robots, from domestic servants to lethal warbots. These rules won't spend much time on static industrial robots but will concentrate instead on the more interesting mobile robots of the future. The first thing to come up with is a general idea of the robot's purpose and capabilities. Then go through the design process from start to finish. The end result will be a robot that can be used either as a character or as a piece of equipment. Some suggested concepts for robots are described below.
Agricultural or Gardening Robot: This is a robotic piece of farm machinery or a smaller gardening robot.
Android: An android is a humanoid robot (with a head, two arms and two legs) that closely resembles a human. Androids may he specialized for a particular task, or he general-purpose robots built to do everything a human can do.
Assassin or Hunter Robot: These robots generally emphasize sneakiness over combat capability. Some arc androids disguised to look and act like people. Then there are mobile robot bombs disguised as something else, or tiny mechanical killers that use their small size to hide while they stalk their target. Hunting and extermination robots are similar in concept, but are usually used for hunting animals or pests rather than humans, and are sometimes disguised to resemble their prey or predator animals.
Battlesuit or Powered Exoskeleton: These robotic bodies are "worn" much like suits of armor. A battlesuit is a weapon while an exoskeleton is a tool.
Bodyguard Robot: A personal protection robot is usually an android with superhuman strength, concealed weapons, good sensors and intelligence to spot danger, and a high dexterity to react quickly. Bodyguards are often programmed to act as chauffeurs or companions.
Cargo Loading or Delivery Robot: This robot is designed to load or carry cargo or baggage. Faster versions can be built as couriers for packages, milk, mail, etc.
Construction, Mining or Salvage Robot: A rugged robot, it is designed for heavy-duty work, often underwater, in space, on alien worlds or the battlefield.
Computer: The robot design rules can also be used to create Computers rather than robots. To create a computer, just build a robot lacking a propulsion system or arms. An immobile computer can remotely control robots, using them as its arms and legs.
Criminal Robot: Any robot can be used for criminal activities. Robot bodyguards and soldiers make good mob enforcers, sentient computers can be crime bosses, pleasure robots can work as prostitutes or assassins, cargo robots can be programmed to smuggle freight, tech robots can refurbish stolen goods, domestic robots can steal things, and so on. Most criminal 'boss are simply ordinary models reprogrammed, but some robots may be specifically modified or built for criminal activities.
Cyborg: A fusion of man and machine. This book uses the term specifically to refer to a robotic body controlled by a built-in human brain.
Domestic or Serving Robot: Of the available robot maids, servants, butlers, janitors, bartenders, cooks, waiters, and secretaries, some are humanoid and glamorous, others are strictly functional with built-in appliances.
Exploration Robot: A robot probe designed for survey or scouting, usually in hostile environments: underwater, space, arctic regions, or on alien worlds, most have extensive sensor arrays. Some have weapons to ward off wildlife or equipment to capture specimens. Exploration 'hots may even be disguised as living creatures to perform covert surveys.
Robot Double: An android can be designed to impersonate a specific individual. Public figures might use them – or might he replaced by them as part of a plot. Less sinister uses include stunt doubles, actors in historical dramas or displays in shop windows or theme parks. Eccentric inventors sometimes build android doubles of themselves or their children.
Machine Race: A robot can he part of a "species" of sentient or semi-sentient machines. A race of machines may he composed of a variety of robots built for specialized tasks (a caste system, perhaps with sentient super-computers at the top) or use a single flexible "general-purpose" model of' robot. A machine race may look like anything, even android versions of its original creators.
Nanny or Teacher Robot: Built to look after kids or teach, these are often humanoid, but inhuman models with many arms and emergency medical systems are also common. Some have non-lethal weapons to protect their charges.
Performer or Orator: These are robots designed to sway a crowd – robot rock stars, preachers, demagogues, actors, etc.They are often fitted with enhanced vocal systems or appearances; some are intelligent, while others are remote-controlled puppets. Often, hut not always, they look human.
Petbot: Built to look and act like an animal, these arc common in areas where real pets are unavailable or forbidden. Petbots are usually cute, often furry, and sometimes intelligent. Larger and more expensive models often serve as bodyguards, nannies, or mounts.
Police Robot: A robot can be designed to assist police officers (often in bomb disposal, evidence gathering or riot control), or perhaps, to patrol and investigate on its own. Robots used by police SWAT teams are often indistinguishable front security or warbots.
Recon or Newsbot: Built for surveillance or military reconnaissance, or for news gathering, these are usually fast and equipped with many sensors.
Medical or Rescue Robot: Designed to provide emergency services, these come in all shapes and sizes from static "docbot" or "automed" machines with dozens of arms and built-in medical instruments to fully mobile paramedics and fire fighters. Variations on this theme include robots designed to perform bio-medical experiments and "torture robots" used for interrogations.
Robot Monster: A robot designed with a fearsome appearance may he a weapon of terror or simply an alien machine. These are often very large, and some look like monstrous animals. While most of its weapons are usually built for close combat, dramatic ranged weapons like flamers are also common.
Pleasure Robot: A robot designed as a sexual surrogate is almost always an android. While many are indistinguishable froin humans, others are deliberately given exotic features like unusual skin or hair, or even fur. Some are very intelligent, to make them charming companions as well as toys, or to enable them to double as secretaries, bodyguards or the like.
Prototype: Any kind of robot can be a newly-invented prototype, perhaps the only one of its type.
Security Robot: Robots designed to protect an installation are normally small enough to fit through doors and more lightly armed and armored than warbots.
Sports Robot: These are robots designed to engage in athletic or gladiatorial events. They are most often humanoid, although seldom identical to humans. They could be used for inter-robot competitions or as sparring partners, animated practice dummies or coaches.
Special Ops Robot: A robot commando or secret agent. It combines elements of the bodyguard, police, assassin and war-hot with exotic spy gadgets designed to help it do its job. It is often an android or has built-in stealth and disguise systems to help it infiltrate.
Super Robot: Robot superheroes or villains are often androids, or at least humanoids, usually as smart as a human, and a lot stronger and faster. They can often fly and have exotic built-in weapons or gadgets like contragravity, or psychotronic generators.
Techbot: A technical robot designed for maintenance and repairs. Unlike the larger construction robots, it is normally small enough to operate indoors or to serve as vehicle or ship crew. Some are very small, to navigate narrow air ducts and service crawlways.
Transport Robot: A robot designed to carry people. This may be a simple car, ship or other craft with a robot brain, or it may be a robotic mount.
Von Neumann Machine: A robot (usually for exploration) equipped with enough intelligence and tools that it can use local resources to build a replica of itself (and then copy its own programs). Since they replicate themselves, Von Neumann machine robot starships could quickly explore a large area of space. Some are built with more aggressive purposes, such as colonization or extermination.
Warbot: A heavily armed and armored robot designed to replace soldiers or (if large enough) combat vehicles.