1. [n]  a highly technical implementation for the control of equipment; usually involving electronic hardware; "automation replaces human workers by machines"
2. [n]  equipment used to achieve automatic control or operation; "this factory floor is a showcase for automation and robotic equipment"
3. [n]  the condition of being automatically operated or controlled; "automation increases productivity"

Automation
With up to 80 of accidents attributed to pilot error, this new series is critically important. It identifies and examines the ten top areas of concern to pilot safety. Each book contains real-life pilot stories drawn from FAA/NASA databases, valuable save-yourself techniques and an action agenda of preventive techniques pilots can implement to avoid risks.

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Automatic, as opposed to human, operation or control of a process, equipment or a system; or the techniques and equipment used to achieve this. Most often applied to computer (or at least electronic) control of a manufacturing process.

See also design automation, office automation, manularity, Manufacturing Automation Protocol, PEARL, QBE.