Artificial intelligence, like the term "robot," is difficult to define. Ultimate AI will be the entertainment of the human thought process - a man-made machine with our intellectual abilities. These include the ability to learn about anything, the ability to speak logically, the ability to use language, and the ability to formulate original ideas. Robotics ists have nowhere to reach this level of artificial intelligence, but they have made great strides with more limited AI. Today's AI machines can mimic certain aspects of intellectual ability.
Computers can solve problems in already limited areas. The basic idea of solving AI problems is very simple, although its implementation is complicated. First, the AI robot or computer collects information about a situation through sensors or human input. The computer compares this information with the stored data and determines what the information means. The computer operates through a variety of possible actions and predicts which action will be most successful based on the information gathered. Of course, a computer can only solve problems that are programmed to solve it - it does not have the usual analytical capability. Chess computers are one example of this type of machine.
Some modern robots also have the ability to learn with limited capacity. Learning robots detect if an action (for example, leg movement) achieves the desired result (navigating an obstacle). The robot stores this information and tries to take successful action the next time it encounters the same situation. Again, modern computers can only do this in very limited cases. They cannot absorb the kind of information that a human being can. Some robots can learn by imitating human action. In Japan, robotics institutes have taught robots to dance by demonstrating their movements.
However, robots will play a big role in our daily lives in the future. In the next few decades, robots will gradually move away from the industrial and scientific worlds and into everyday life. Similarly, computers spread into the home in the 1980s.
The best way to understand robots is to look at specific designs. The following links will show you various robot projects around the world.