An apparatus, or so-called industrial robot, grasping an object, transferring the same from a position to the other and performing preselcted actions at that position. The apparatus belongs to a technically different category from the conventional robots of circular cylindrical coordinates type and spherical coordinates type which are widely used in the industrial fields today. A joint shaft is arranged at the base end of an arm so that it is connected to a power unit. On the forward end of said arm is arranged other joint shaft so that other arm is jointed to the first mentioned arm at said other joint shaft. Said first mentioned arm also carries at the forward end thereof a further joint shaft for pivotably connecting a further arm. A mechanism for grasping the object to be transferred and/or handled is mounted on the forward end of said further arm. Said first mentioned arm, other arm and further arm are freely pivotable in a common plane around the axis of each of said first mentioned joint shaft, other joint shaft and further joint shafts, respectively, and form together an articulated arm assembly. The articulated arm assembly having the foregoing construction is quite similar in motion to the hand and arm of human body, and form the main portion of the articulated industrial robot.