Router
A router is a computer networking device that can send data packets to the correct destinations through a process known as routing. Routing occurs at Network layer (layer 3) of the OSI Reference model.
A router is different from a switch. A switch connects devices to form a local area network. A router acts as a junction between two or more networks to transfer data packets among them. The networks connected by routers can use similar or different networking protocols.
The first router was created at Stanford University by a staff researcher named William Yeager in January of 1980.