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Wadhwani's engineers developed a sophisticated robot that can handle a wide range of applications in the factory with a change of computer programs, compared with the generally single-purpose arms made overseas. That versatility saved American Robot the enormous cost of developing a broad product line to handle different tasks.

Merlin has some features designed to help ease it into the factory of the future. Rather than devise yet another proprietary operating system, the internal program that tells a computer how to do its work, American Robot licensed American Telephone & Telegraph's UNIX system and then adapted it for Merlin. Many analysts think that UNIX will become the industry standard for minicomputers; if that happens, software written for Merlin will run on many other industrial computers. UNIX also enables computers to perform several tasks simultaneously, making it easier to put additional robots and automated systems on the factory floor under the command of a single computer system.

The company similarly declined to write a proprietary programming language, deciding instead to adapt Basic for its robots. Already in widespread use -- schoolchildren learn it as one of their first programming languages -- Basic could become another CIM standard. Almost any engineer familiar with computers can program Merlin, a distinct advantage in the many factories that have a smorgasbord of computer languages. "Most factory people aren't computer jocks," says Wadhwani. "We thought Basic would be a minimum threat to people."

The computers that command Merlin have a hierarchical structure patterned after corporate organizational charts. At the lowest level, comparable to that of a production-line worker, is the company's "universal controller," a powerful 32-bit computer. Its software tells a single robot arm and vision system what to do, and enables technicians to program both in the same language, Basic. The computer at level two, called a "cluster controller," has software that coordinates many lower-level controllers in a work cell or up to 64 robots performing different tasks.

The minicomputer at level three, made by another vendor, in turn will run many cluster controllers and work cells. Like a factory manager, it will issue orders to the entire facility and retrieve production data in return. At level four -- that of the chief operating officer -- a big mainframe computer will coordinate production scheduling, inventory management, and quality-control reporting.

In addition to the robots and the software, Wadhwani's third major focus is on supplying complete systems for production tasks. American Robot introduced a conveyor belt last June that comes in two-foot-long modules; customers can fit together up to 100 of the modules to construct exactly the product they need. The company is also selling an artificial-vision system that gauges or inspects parts and assemblies.On the factory floor, the same computer and software that control Merlin can control the conveyor belt and vision system, too.

American Robot hasn't been around long enough to have much of a track record, but several major companies are using or testing its robot. At Storage Technology Corp., four Merlins carry out some of the critical steps in the assembly of disk drives. Because the smallest specks of dust can ruin a disk drive, scrap rates are very high even in the best "clean rooms" where they are made.

The Merlins take over some of the handling tasks normally performed by human operators, who cause much of the contamination problem. Two robots help assemble the disk drives, working with a precision that people can't attain. Mounted on 25-foot-long tracks, two other Merlins carry the disk drives to the testing stations. All four communicate with the other computerized equipment in the room.

Another electronics company, Fairchild Camera and Instrument Corp., is using Merlin to test printed circuit boards. Merlin picks a circuit board from a bin and position it on an automatic tester, which tells it a few seconds later whether to place the board in the active bin or the repair bin. American Robot is pursuing other applications as well: In welding, for example, a company can buy equipment from outside vendors and integrate it with Merlin; then it can sell the complete system, ready to use.

Because developing and selling these systems is so costly, the lack of strict controls can land even the best technology in the hands of a bankruptcy judge. To hold down expenses, Wadhwani contracts out production of the Merlins. He is also trying to avoid developing one-of-a-kind systems; instead, he emphasizes such systems as the welding robot, which the company could sell to hundreds of customers. Finally, by licensing the technology to foreign companies -- American Robot has agreements in the United Kingdom as well as in Japan -- he can increase sales without additional marketing expenses.

Wadhwani will have to circle on the mat for some time before it becomes clear whether American Robot can survive as one of the profitable few. Even if his strategy proves wise, other companies may implement it better. It seems certain, though, that the company will win or lose under the new rules of competition -- as a second-generation manufacturer selling systems and software instead of just robots.

In this next round, with American software married in many cases to cheap Japanese robots, U.S. companies could win back the market they lost decisively to Japan in the 1970s. In the process, they seem likely to reshape American factories as well.

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