In general, robots fall into two categories, industrial and service, according to a definition provided by the International Federation of Robotics (IFR), an industry alliance based in Frankfurt, Germany.

A robot-led automation boom is taking place in China as more companies use industrial robots for manufacturing and equipment operation.

The market value of industrial robots in China surpassed 1 billion yuan in 2012, up 67 percent from the previous year, said Zhao Xinmin, head of the statistics department at the China Machinery Industry Federation.

Service robots have long been a niche market, however, where overall revenue only reached 7 percent of that for industrial robots in 2011, IFR data showed.

According to New York-based consulting firm ABI Research, the global consumer robotics market is poised to hit $6.5 billion by 2017 from $1.6 billion in 2012.

ABI also said Asian companies are fueling new momentum in the industry by delivering newer task-based products such as window-cleaning robots.