engineering

Rajko Tomović

Rajko Tomović is a engineering topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Rajko Tomović rather than just read about it. In short: Rajko Tomović (1919–2001) was a Serbian and Yugoslav scientist, who developed research programs in robotics, medical information technology, biomedical engineering, rehabilitation engineering, artificial organs, and other disciplines. He is officially credited for creation of the first artificial hand with five fingers in 1963 in Belgrade.

Key takeaways

Rajko Tomović belongs to engineering; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Rajko Tomović to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Rajko Tomović from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Rajko Tomović (1919–2001) was a Serbian and Yugoslav scientist, who developed research programs in robotics, medical information technology, biomedical engineering, rehabilitation engineering, artificial organs, and other disciplines. He is officially credited for creation of the first artificial hand with five fingers in 1963 in Belgrade. A subsequent version, the USC Belgrade hand -- a collaboration between Tomović and roboticist George A. Bekey at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles -- became a landmark in the history of robotic hands. Tomović was a member of Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts (SANU).

Biography Rajko Tomović was born in Baja, Hungary, in 1919. In 1938, he commenced his undergraduate education at the Department for Electro-Mechanical Engineering of the Technical University of Belgrade in 1938. World War II dramatically changed his life, but he persisted in studies and graduated in 1946 with excellence. After graduation he started his highly productive career, characterised by scientific and cultural collaboration. With his extraordinary language skills, and excellent overall education, he communicated at the highest scientific level with colleagues from the Soviet Union, European countries, and North America. In 1952, Tomović received a doctorate in Technical Sciences from the Academy of Sciences of Serbia. In 1950, Tomović started scientific work in the Vinča Institute of Nuclear Sciences. His main interests during the "Vinča period" were analog computers, and he greatly contributed to first analog, digital and hybrid computers ever built in Vinča.

Robotic science In 1960 he moved to the Institute "Mihajlo Pupin" to pursue research in the field of anthropomorphic robotics and water engineering. In 1962, Rajko Tomović joined the Faculty of Electrical Engineering in Belgrade at the Department for Automatic Control. While at the University, Tomović started programs in robotics, information technologies in medicine, bio-medical engineering, rehabilitation engineering, artificial organs, and many other important disciplines that are reaching maturity today. The first artificial hand with five fingers in the world was made in 1963 in Belgrade by academician Tomović and his associates. These so-called "Belgrade hands" are now in the Museum of Robotics in Boston. In the 1980s, Bekey and Tomović worked closely to improve the hand. Bekey and his team added sensors, motors and control systems while greatly improving the device's reliability. Unlike other hands being developed at the time, the Bekey-Tomović version had an adaptable structure that enabled the hand to grasp and hold random objects. In Belgrade, 1972, Tomović made an exoskeleton which was the first machine designed for walking disability. This machine is now in the Museum of Robotics in Moscow. Tomović was also assisted by Miomir Vukobratović and his team. Tomović retired from official duties at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering, yet he never stopped being engaged in various projects, or student supervision, at both the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and in the Academy of Sciences and Arts of Serbia (SANU) where he developed new initiatives, and continued to educate young researchers. Rajko Tomović spent time in the U.S. contributing greatly to the development of new views and methods in robotics, biomedical engineering, and computer sciences. During this period he built a lifelong cooperation with scientists from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), University of Southern California (USC), Los Angeles, Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, and many other research institutions. His contacts and communication spread over Canada, the U.S., the Soviet Union, Poland, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Bulgaria, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, and many other countries. He was a chief of project CER-10, the first Yugoslav digital computer from 1960.

Academy of Science memberships Based in his research results and his contributions to science he was elected as a member of the Vojvodina Academy of Science and Arts (VANU), and afterwards he became a member of the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts (SANU). He was also elected as an external member of the Slovenian Academy of Academy of Sciences and Arts (SAZU). Tomović was decorated with the highest state medals and awards. He received the National 7 July Award, the AVNOJ Award, and much recognition for his research.

Social and cultural activities Tomović was one of the founders of the Yugoslav Committee for Electronics, Telecommunication, Automatics and Nuclear Sciences (ETAN), Yugoslav Society for Computers, Yugoslav Society for Biomedical Engineering, Center for Multidisciplinary Studies of the University of Belgrade, Center for Strategic Social and Technical Planning in Novi Sad, and many other institutions. He was a member of various high-level state organizations and a recognized member of the only political party in Yugoslavia.

Work

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Illustrations

Rajko Tomović: Academician Dr Rajko Tomović, ETF Belgrade — Academician Dr Rajko Tomović, ETF Belgrade

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Rajko Tomović

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Rajko Tomović claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In engineering, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Rajko Tomović before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Rajko Tomović ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Rajko Tomović

In research: Rajko Tomović appears in engineering research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Rajko Tomović in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Rajko Tomović is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1919 births, 2001 deaths, 20th-century Serbian engineers, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Rajko Tomović outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Rajko Tomović in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Rajko Tomović means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Rajko Tomović out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Rajko Tomović in simple terms?

Why does Rajko Tomović matter?

Because it connects several engineering ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Rajko Tomović?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Rajko Tomović.