W. H. Richards and A. H. Reffell · entertainment humanoid
Eric
A robot that opened the 1928 Model Engineers exhibition in London with a short speech, sitting, standing and bowing while two operators controlled it and a voice was relayed by radio. It wore 'R.U.R.' on its chest; the Science Museum rebuilt it in 2016.
- Price
- —Build cost reported as 140 pounds sterling (not a sale price)
- Height
- —Not published
- Weight
- —Not published
- Payload
- —Not published
- Speed
- —Not published
- Battery
- —Not published
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Why it matters
Britain's first robot.
Real-world use
Toured the US, including New York in 1929, then disappeared; a rebuilt Eric is in the Science Museum collection.
Timeline
- First shown
- 1928-09-20
- Released
- Not yet
Maker
W. H. Richards and A. H. ReffellCompanyPrivate individuals; Eric cost about 140 pounds sterling to build and George almost 2,000 pounds (period press)
Public attention
A historic robot: no longer sold or in use, so it is not ranked against current humanoids.
- 1,705 views of its Wikipedia article in the last 90 days (Eric (robot))
- 2 news stories from reputable press listed on this page
Measures how much people read and write about a robot, not how good it is. Measured 2026-10-14; same method for every robot. How it is measured
What’s inside
The parts the company has talked about publicly.
- Movement
- Stationary
- Actuators & motors
- Electric motors, cables and electromagnets: period reports describe a 12-volt motor in the foot box, another motor driving a fibre roller, and electromagnets with steel springs pulling pulleys whose cables worked levers for the arms and head; a platform motor turned pulleys in the knees to raise and lower the figure, with counterweights in the legs. The Science Museum's catalogue entry credits the original with 13 electric motors.
- Hands
- No working hands; the arms could be raised and lowered by the cable-and-lever mechanism.
- Sensors & vision
- Eyes were white light bulbs with painted pupils; Richards talked of adding selenium-cell eyes, but there is no confirmation this was built.
- Battery & power
- Battery powered according to 1929 press: six 6-volt Exide batteries plus 48-volt battery sets for other mechanisms. Richards claimed 12 V for movement and 35,000 V for the speech effect, which threw blue sparks from its teeth (maker claim, unverified).
- Materials & build
- Aluminium outer shell styled like a suit of armour; Richards said it also used copper, steel, wiring and dynamos, with roughly three miles of wire inside. About six feet tall and about 140 lb, per period reports. Built for about 140 pounds sterling.
- AI & software
- No computer. Two operators controlled it; the voice was said to arrive live by radio, and Richards claimed a Marconi licence. It answered a fixed set of roughly 50-60 prepared questions, and its control method was kept secret.
- Other details
- Wore the letters 'R.U.R.' on its chest, a nod to Karel Capek's 1920 play. The 2016 replica by Giles Walker (190 cm tall) is in the Science Museum Group collection, object 2016-339, and was built from drawings published in Model Engineer magazine.
From the maker
Eric is the only humanoid from W. H. Richards and A. H. Reffell in the atlas.
Watch Eric
Made, sold and where
Unit counts are usually company figures; analysts often disagree.
- Price
- Not publishedBuild cost reported as 140 pounds sterling (not a sale price)
- How to get one
- No official buying page found
- Built
- 1 original (1928); 1 replica built 2015-16
- Sold or delivered
- Not sold; one-off showpiece
- Where it is sold or used
- England (original); London (2016 replica by Giles Walker)
- Customers and pilots
- Exhibited at the Society of Model Engineers show in London, then toured the US (New York, 1929); replica owned by the Science Museum, London
News
The latest 2, newest first. Summaries are ours; tap through for the original.
- Science Museum crowdfunds a rebuild of Eric
Curator Ben Russell launched a Kickstarter seeking about 35,000 pounds so roboticist Giles Walker could rebuild Eric from archive material.
Vice (Motherboard) - Replica Eric enters the Science Museum collection
The rebuilt Eric was catalogued as a 2015-16 replica made for the museum's 2017 Robots exhibition.
Science Museum Group
Sources
Figures come from press coverage. Every link below backs something on this page.
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