Automation within the automobile industry

Abstract

Industry 4.0 entails a paradigm change and a challenge for economy and employment. The advances of this industry generate major demands regarding the level of education required in these jobs. We have conducted a research in relation with the glaring improvements that new technologies have brought since the First Industrial Revolution to this moment, specifically, in the automotive industry. This work includes three main sections. The first section explains the concept of automation, its evolution through the different industrial revolutions, the factors that have helped its development as well as the benefits and drawbacks that we may find. At the end of the section, we mention the consequence of robotics on the employment. The second section focuses on automotive industry, and analysis its evolution throughout history, the several existing levels of automation along with the advantages and disadvantages of these, as well as the way Industry 4.0 have promoted the popularity within the sector of Smart Factories. And finally, the third section judges the current relevance of the Autonomous Vehicle (AV) which is already functioning as test projects in some countries, and every time, there are more companies that are interested in investing in its development.