Adjacent Words

Automation definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

AUTOM'ATION, n. [Gr. self. The Greek plural, automata, is sometimes used; but the regular English plural, automatons, is preferable.]
A self-moving machine, or one which moves by invisible springs.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: the act of implementing the control of equipment with advanced technology; usually involving electronic hardware; "automation replaces human workers by machines" [syn: automation, mechanization, mechanisation]
2: the condition of being automatically operated or controlled; "automation increases productivity"
3: equipment used to achieve automatic control or operation; "this factory floor is a showcase for automation and robotic equipment"

Merriam Webster's

noun Etymology: ¹automatic Date: 1912 1. the technique of making an apparatus, a process, or a system operate automatically 2. the state of being operated automatically 3. automatically controlled operation of an apparatus, process, or system by mechanical or electronic devices that take the place of human labor

Britannica Concise

Term coined about 1946 by a Ford Motor Co. engineer, used to describe a wide variety of systems in which there is a significant substitution of mechanical, electrical, or computerized action for human effort and intelligence. In general usage, automation can be defined as a technology concerned with performing a process by means of programmed commands combined with automatic feedback control (see control system) to ensure proper execution of the instructions. The resulting system is capable of operating without human intervention.

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. 1 the use of automatic equipment to save mental and manual labour. 2 the automatic control of the manufacture of a product through its successive stages. Etymology: irreg. f. AUTOMATIC + -ATION

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

see automate