10. Classification flowchart

The flowchart follows on the next page.

Schematic Classification

START
└─ Does the robot look like a human being?
  ├─ Yes
  │  └─ Is it shorter than 1 meter?
  │    ├─ Yes → Automaton
  │    └─ No
  │      └─ Is it taller than 5 meters?
  │        ├─ Yes → Colossal
  │        └─ No
  │          └─ Mechanical face & body?
  │            ├─ Yes → Mechanoid
  │            └─ No
  │              └─ Human-like skin?
  │              ├─ Yes → Synthoid
  │                └─ No
  │                  └─ Pliable?
  │                    ├─ Yes → Plastoid
  │                    └─ No
  │                      └─ Hologram?
  │                        ├─ Yes → Virtuoid
  │                        └─ No → Ethereal
  └─ No
    └─ Does it look like an animal or insect?
      ├─ Yes
      │  └─ Is it larger than 1mm?
      │    ├─ Yes → Zooid
      │    └─ No
      │      └─ Is it larger than 1µm?
      │        ├─ Yes → Microbot
      │        └─ No → Nanobot
      └─ No
        └─ Is it a megastructure larger than 1 million m³?
          ├─ Yes
          │ └─ Planet-like?
          │   ├─ Yes → Planetoid
          │   └─ No
          │     └─ Designed to travel great distances?
          │       ├─ Yes → Starship
          │       └─ No → Arcology
          └─ No
            └─ Has it been designed for significant travel distances?
              ├─ Yes
              │ └─ Space/underground/extraterrestrial?
              │   ├─ Yes → Rover
              │   └─ No
              │     └─ In air?
              │       ├─ Yes → Drone
              │       └─ No
              │         └─ On/under water?
              │           ├─ Yes → Mariner
              │           └─ No → Auton
              └─ No
                └─ Designed to operate in fixed physical environments?
                  ├─ Yes
                  │ └─ Stationary?
                  │   ├─ Yes → Terminal
                  │   └─ No
                  │     └─ Arm-like?
                  │       ├─ Yes → Articulator
                  │       └─ No
                  │         └─ Mobile but over 200kg?
                  │           ├─ Yes → Mechatron
                  │           └─ No
                  │             └─ Toy-like or under 1 meter?
                  │               ├─ Yes → Automaton
                  │                 └─ No → Servon
                  └─ No
                    └─ Does it transcends physical bounds?
                      ├─ Yes
                      │ └─ Can change form?
                      │   ├─ Yes → Morphbot
                      │   └─ No
                      │     └─ Holographic/digital yet physical?
                      │       ├─ Yes → Virtuoid
                      │       └─ No → Ethereal
                      │
                      │
                      └── No → Not a robot
                      

There will be situations where a robot may span multiple types or schemes. For example, the robot Eelume is an eel like robot, with a robotic arm that was designed to operate underwater. Would the Eelume be classed then as a Zooid robot within the Bionics type, an Articulator robot within the Automata type, or a Mariner robot within the Vessels type?

In this case, the prime architect can make an adjudication on which scheme is most appropriate, or outside of that, they should follow the sequence outlined in the flowchart above. The first point at which they answer in the affirmative is how they should classify their robot.