VOA慢速英语2021 日产汽车新工厂全部实现机器自动化

There are very few human workers at a new Nissan car factory outside of Tokyo. Most of the work is done by robots.

东京郊外一家日产汽车新厂的工人很少。大部分工作都是由机器人来完成的。

The car maker¹ said the factory should be running in the first part of 2022.

这家汽车制造商表示，该厂可能会于2022年上半年投入运营。

Robots have worked for car makers² for a long time. But humans were often needed to examine the quality of the machines’ work. Now the machines are smarter. They use data and artificial intelligence to learn from mistakes and make corrections.

机器人已经为汽车制造商工作了很长时间。但是通常需要人类来检查这些机器的工作质量。现在这些机器更智能了。它们使用数据和人工智能从错误中学习并进行改正。

Hideyuki Sakamoto is a Nissan Vice³ President. He gave a tour of the production area in early October.

坂本秀行是日产公司副总裁。他在10月初参观了该生产区。

He said robotic technology has made progress to the point that workers center their attention on maintaining the machines and studying data.

他说，机器人技术已经取得了进步，工人们可以将他们的注意力集中到维护机器和研究数据上。

The factory in Tochigi will produce three versions of a car called the Ariya. It will make traditional gas engines, electric engines and a hybrid⁴, which combines electric and gas.

枥木工厂将生产三种版本的Ariya汽车。它将制造传统燃油发动机、电力发动机以及结合燃油和电力的混合动力发动机。

The cars can all be made on the same production line. As the cars move, large robotic arms move cameras along the car surfaces to make sure there are no mistakes. Nissan said the developments at the Tochigi factory are likely to spread to factories around the world in time.

这些汽车全部可以在同一条生产线上生产。随着汽车的移动，大型机械臂沿着汽车表面移动摄像头，以确保没有错误。日产公司表示，枥木工厂这一新进展可能会及时传播到世界各地的工厂。

One of the changes has to do with how paint is put on the cars. In the past, car bodies and bumpers⁵ on the front and back needed to be painted separately because they are made from different materials. Now, however, the parts can be painted at the same time. The new method reduces energy use by 25 percent.

其中一项变化跟汽车的喷漆方式相关。过去，车身和前后保险杠需要分别喷漆，因为它们是由不同材料制成。但是现在可以同时对这些部件进行喷漆。新方法将节省25%的能源消耗。

Another machine in the factory makes a part that is being used instead of rare earth magnets in the electric cars.

这家工厂另一台机器制造的一个零件被用于代替电动汽车中的稀土磁铁。

Sakamoto said all the new methods should help Nissan save money and to faster deal with changes in the car market and worker availability. The company also needs to meet government requirements for limiting the release of carbon gases linked to global warming.

坂本秀行表示，所有新方法都能帮助日产节约资金，并更快地应对汽车市场和员工可用性的变化。该公司还需要满足政府对限制与全球变暖相关的碳气体排放的要求。

Nissan expects to regain⁶ profitable⁷ operations this financial year. But the carmaker faced problems when its former chief Carlos Ghosn was arrested in Japan for financial wrongdoing. Ghosn then fled to Lebanon to avoid trial.

日产预计本年度将恢复盈利运营。但是，当其前任首席执行官卡洛斯·戈恩因金融不法行为在日本被捕时，这家汽车制造商面临各种问题。戈恩随后逃往黎巴嫩以避免审判。

1 maker   

n.制造者，制造商

参考例句：

• He is a trouble maker，You must be distant with him.他是个捣蛋鬼，你不要跟他在一起。
• A cabinet maker must be a master craftsman.家具木工必须是技艺高超的手艺人。

2 makers   

n.制造者，制造商（maker的复数形式）

参考例句：

• The makers of the product assured us that there had been no sacrifice of quality. 这一产品的制造商向我们保证说他们没有牺牲质量。
• The makers are about to launch out a new product. 制造商们马上要生产一种新产品。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

4 hybrid   

n.(动，植）杂种，混合物

参考例句：

• That is a hybrid perpetual rose.那是一株杂交的四季开花的蔷薇。
• The hybrid was tall,handsome,and intelligent.那混血儿高大、英俊、又聪明。

5 bumpers   

（汽车上的）保险杠，缓冲器( bumper的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Our bumpers just grazed (ie touched each other) as we passed. 我们错车时保险互相蹭了一下。
• Car stickers can be attached to the bumpers or windows. 汽车贴纸可以贴在防撞杆上或车窗上。

6 regain   

vt.重新获得，收复，恢复

参考例句：

• He is making a bid to regain his World No.1 ranking.他正为重登世界排名第一位而努力。
• The government is desperate to regain credibility with the public.政府急于重新获取公众的信任。

7 profitable   

adj.有益的，能带来利益的，有利可图的

参考例句：

• That business became profitable last year.那项生意去年变得很赚钱。
• The convention business is very profitable for the hotel industry.承办会议业务能给旅馆业带来很高的利润。