Change direct speech into indirect

1) I asked: “What is the major development in manufacturing in the twenty-first century?”. 2) They said: “The present day stage of automation is based on the revolution in computer technology, in computerization of the whole national economy.” 3) The scientists promised: “In the ultimate automated factory there will be few, if any, operators or quality control inspectors.” 4) The students asked: “What was a later development in industrial automation?” 5) He concluded: “The necessity of some form of automated handling processes became obvious.” 6) They declared: “According to available data, our industry receives annually thousands of robots of different types and purposes.”

Additional Text

(for individual work)

Read and translate the text.

Man/Machine Interfaсe

Life in the automated factory is based on communications. Sensors gather data, computers send commands, PCs control machines and management. It makes decisions based of data from these devices. Sensors, computers, processors and man must all talk to each other.

There have been a number of recent developments in machine-to-machine interfaces. Networks, hardware and software that allow various processors to share and exchange data, are moving into the factory. These networks are connecting whole processors together, allowing more flexibility and control of manufacturing.

A major problem with networks, though, is interfacing processors that do not use the same language. Rules are being developed that will make it easier for these different processors to communicate.

Man-to-machine communications have seen dramatic developments. The computer is no longer an unyielding, unforgiving device that insists you conform to its method of working. The computer has become friendly, even inviting. Complex mnemonics and performing functions in a specific sequence have been replaced with graphic representations commands and cursor device know as a mouse. Now, getting a computer to perform a function is as easy as pointing your finger to the graphic representation of the function you want performed and pressing a button on the mouse. And programs exist for all types of business needs including teaching someone unfamiliar with computers how to run one.

A new technology that's also making it easier for man to interface with machines is speech recognition. Here, you enter information into a machine with your voice; a device in the machine translates the sounds into signals the computer or machine can work with. This method of entering data is faster and more accurate than using a keyboard to enter information.

Divide the text into the logical parts and give a title to each one.

Put questions to the text.

Discuss it with your groupmates.

Unit 3

Text Study. Robots Move in.

Additional Text. What can Robots Do?

Grammar. Revision of Tense Forms.

Text Study

I. Pre-reading Exercises

1. Repeat the words in chorus:

Glass-tube, environmental, furnaces, exhausting, to be surrounded by, constructively, modifiable, to be reoriented.

2. While reading the text you will come across a number of international words. Try to guess what Ukrainian words they remind of you:

Operator, metal, temperature, radiation, monotonous, toxic, material, scene, practically, giant, problem, social, economic.

3. Pay attention to some grammatical points:

1) You can find robots practically anywhere you look. 2) The experts themselves are yet to clear up many questions. 3) Robot must be constructively designed together with the machine tools it is to operate and must be logically incorporated within the system of machines, machine tools and other units.

II. Reading

Read the text and be ready to find in the text the answers to the following questions:

· What kinds of robots are people surrounded now?

· How are specialized enterprises reoriented as to the production of robots?

Robots Move in

Imagine the real working conditions for a human operator by, for example, transfer of a hot formed glass-tube, removal of hot metal die castings or plastics injection. The environmental temperature is above 50°C and the melting furnaces produce direct and reflexive heat radiation. This kind of job is very difficult, exhausting, monotonous and unpleasant. In the case of machining radioactive or toxic material the work becomes highly dangerous for a man's life.

The necessity of some form of automated handling processes became obvious. So robots appeared on the scene with their high safety and reliability level.

We are now surrounded by robots, big ones, little ones, and medium-sized ones. They serve us in thousands of ways every day.

You can find robots practically anywhere you look. In factories there are giant robots. They pick up great amounts of raw materials and pass them to other, robots which press, stamp and shape the raw material into a wide variety of things. Robot usage has been expanding for industrial spraying, hot handling, assembly, welding, etc.

According to available data, our industry receives annually thousands of robots of different types and purposes. Today, robotic systems, lines and modules are already operating at the leading plants of the motor, electrical engineering, machine-tool industries.

Robotics is just beginning to make inroads in industrial production worldwide. It is not a simple process; the experts themselves are yet to clear up many questions. But everyone agrees even now that the robot by itself does nothing – it must be constructively designed together with the machine tools it is to operate and must be logically incorporated within the system of machines, machine tools and other units.

The problem is not to design individual robots but robotical complexes, flexible and automated production systems that are easily modifiable for the manufacture of ever new kinds of products. Single-handed, even the "cleverest" and most skilful robot is not yet a soldier in the field. Even many robots are not effective piecemeal, unless they are united into a technological chain. Specialized enterprises are reoriented from the production of industrial robots by piece, toward the manufacture of complete systems and robotized complex instruments with the assessment of their performance by the end result the quality and volume of the produce made with their assistance.

This task is presently being tackled by our industry and economy. As to robotization, the utmost economic and social effect will be brought about by systems capable of taking over all the routine stages of designing, design support and the production of output.

Robots release workers from monotonous and very hard work, requiring no skilled labour, in hot shops and in production with hazardous working conditions.

Vocabulary Notes

working conditions — умови праці

human-operator — людина-оператор

environmental temperature [In'aIqrqnmqntl] — температура оточуючого середовища

plastics injection [In'dZekS(q)n] — вдування пластмаси

reliability level [I"laIqbIqtI] — рівень надійності

to pick up — підбирати

a wide variety (of things) — широка різноманітність (речей)

industrial spraying — промислове розпилення

hot handling — термообробка

to make inroads (in) ['InrqVdz] — втручатися (в)

to clear up — з'ясувати

robot by itself ['rqVbPt] — робот сам по собі

robotical complex — роботизований комплекс

flexible and automated production systems — гнучкі та автоматизовані виробничі системи

single-handed robot — одноцільовий робот

piecemeal = by piece ['pJsmJl] — частинами, частково

assessment of their performance [q'sesmqnt] — оцінка їх роботи

design support —конструкторське забезпечення

hazardous working conditions ['hxzqdqs] — ризиковані (небезпечні)умови праці

to bring about —здійснювати

to take over —передавати (обов’язки, позиції тощо)

Comprehension