[ti:Robots Do It All at Japanese Car Factory] [by:www.51voa.com] [00:00.00]更多听力请访问51VOA.COM [00:00.04]There are very few human workers [00:02.84]at a new Nissan car factory outside of Tokyo. [00:06.24]Most of the work is done by robots. [00:09.96]The car maker said the factory [00:12.40]should be running in the first part of 2022. [00:16.96]Robots have worked for car makers for a long time. [00:20.28]But humans were often needed [00:22.16]to examine the quality of the machines’ work. [00:25.28]Now the machines are smarter. [00:28.28]They use data and artificial intelligence [00:32.24]to learn from mistakes and make corrections. [00:37.08]Hideyuki Sakamoto is a Nissan Vice President. [00:41.40]He gave a tour of the production area in early October. [00:46.52]He said robotic technology has made progress [00:50.04]to the point that workers center their attention [00:53.80]on maintaining the machines and studying data. [00:58.04]The factory in Tochigi will produce [01:02.56]three versions of a car called the Ariya. [01:07.28]It will make traditional gas engines, electric engines [01:12.48]and a hybrid, which combines electric and gas. [01:18.60]The cars can all be made on the same production line. [01:23.84]As the cars move, large robotic arms move cameras [01:28.76]along the car surfaces to make sure there are no mistakes. [01:34.68]Nissan said the developments at the Tochigi factory [01:39.08]are likely to spread to factories around the world in time. [01:45.08]One of the changes has to do with how paint is put on the cars. [01:50.20]In the past, car bodies and bumpers on the front and back [01:55.60]needed to be painted separately [01:58.32]because they are made from different materials. [02:01.96]Now, however, the parts can be painted at the same time. [02:06.92]The new method reduces energy use by 25 percent. [02:13.60]Another machine in the factory makes a part [02:16.12]that is being used instead of rare earth magnets [02:20.48]in the electric cars. [02:23.68]Sakamoto said all the new methods [02:27.52]should help Nissan save money and to faster deal with [02:32.88]changes in the car market and worker availability. [02:37.72]The company also needs to meet government requirements for [02:41.68]limiting the release of carbon gases linked to global warming. [02:47.64]Nissan expects to regain profitable operations this financial year. [02:55.20]But the carmaker faced problems when its former chief Carlos Ghosn [03:01.12]was arrested in Japan for financial wrongdoing. [03:05.32]Ghosn then fled to Lebanon to avoid trial. [03:10.84]I’m Dan Friedell. 更多听力请访问51VOA.COM