Industrial robot technology is no longer considered an amusing conversation piece or an interesting research- project without any real applications. The technology has moved away from this position into the realms of actuality with acceptance in many production applications.This paper looks at the various classes of industrial robot and the factors which are likely to stimulate further development and perhaps remove some of the disillusionment felt by early users and robot manufacturers.The robot is not human in its capabilities and the author emphasises that this is one of the first things to realise when dealing with the subject.