History of Robots By 2257585 1921 When the term robot was invented 1942 When the first programmable paint sprayer 1968 The first computer controlled walking robot 1968 First manually controlled walking truck 1985 Four legged walking machine 1985 A six legged walking machine 1988 The first HelpMate service robot went to work 1996 The first robot that studied how fish swim 1998 Robot that interacted emotionally with people 1999 Released the first robotic dog