Abstract

We present a multidisciplinary historical review of manual remote control, automation, autonomy, and self-organization roughly covering the last century. Some conceptual analysis is given using hierarchical classifications. We show the relationships between control theory, computer science, and communication theory. We observe that the three disciplines have progressed at least partially independently, but we can see also some convergence towards similar system models, often using different terminology. We expect that multidisciplinary studies will turn out to be useful for avoiding overlapping work and for making faster progress. Furthermore, a unified terminology would facilitate communication between disciplines. This review provides a starting point for building such terminology.