Robot Languages in the Eighties

The scenario of general-purpose programming systems is rapidly changing; what are the consequences for robot programming? The programming environments built around ADA, UNIX, and lnterlisp are useful for robot programming? After introducing the peculiar aspects of robot programming we will discuss some examples of general-purpose languages applied to robots and languages specifically designed for robotics. Criteria for making a choice between the two approaches should take into account the present state of the art. The need of a strong integration between different components as robots, vision systems, and other automation equipment could support the first approach. The solution of robot and robot users problems has, until now, supported the second approach, as indicated by the choices of European robot manufacturers. Anyway the expression of actions taken by different intelligent agents, as robots can be defined in the future, will require absolutely new linguistic media. We hope that robot programming in the eighties can develop experiences useful for the assessment in the field.