II. Complete the sentences with the facts from the text:

1. It is necessary to note that robotics is based on two related technologies: … 2. Numerical control (NC) is … .

3. A teleoperator is … .

4. As a rule, numerical control provides … .

5. Teleoperator technology contributes … .

III. Answer the questions:

1. What is industrial robotics?

2. What technologies is robotics based on?

3. What can you say about numerical control?

4. What do you know about a teleoperator?

5. What concept does numerical control provide?

6. What notion does teleoperator technology contribute?

7. When was the first industrial robot installed?

8. What operations did it perform?

IV. Retell the text in short using the plan below:

1. Two related technologies of industrial robotics .

2. Numerical control.

3. Teleoperator.

4. The concept of a programmable industrial machine.

5. The notion of a mechanical arm.

6. The development of the first industrial robot.

Text 10 b

Translate the text in written form using a dictionary:

Adaptive robots

The development in robotics is towards adaptive robots having sensory abilities. Initially, the requirement is for robots to have a sense of vision and touch. This will allow a robot to identify the correct part among dissimilar items and pick it up regardless of its position. Robots of this type are being introduced into assembly lines.

The theoretical basis of the work needed to develop sophisticated adaptive robots is referred to as "Artificial Intelligence" (AI). A robot's ability to "see", for example, is a problem in "pattern recognition". Problems in this area are concerned more with developing suitable software rather than with building suitable robots.

Although this discussion has centred on industrial robots, robots and robotic principles are being used in unmanned space missions and in deep ocean diving equipment.

Text 10 c

Look through the text and do the tasks below:

ROBOTS' NERVOUS SYSTEM

Robots, in order to perform many functions, need a nervous system and organs of sense¹ as well as a brain². A human being has eyes and ears, a nose, a mouth and a sense of feel⁸. Depending on the task it is to perform, a robot can have any of these built into it.

Robots’ eyes, for example, are generally made up of photoelectric cells³. A robot’s eye can consist of one cell, or of hundreds of cells placed close together. A one-cell eye isn't able to do much more than tell the difference between light and dark, while some of more complex ones are able to see colour and to detect movement.

Robots can be taught to hear various types of sounds. Usually they are made so that they can hear only those sounds which are important to them. For instance, a robot designed to hear the sound of a jet aircraft⁴ would have no reason to hear the voice of a bird. Robots’ ears are better than human ears for a given single function because they are not distracted by unimportant sounds.

Robots’ hearing is possible because sound is a form of energy. It comes in waves. Some sound waves have high frequency⁵, others have low frequencies. A robot can be adjusted to detect differences in frequency. If sounds of a given frequency are important to a robot's job, it acts on them. Otherwise, the brain ignores the sound.

Robots’ noses can detect different odours⁶ because the elements that make up those odours change the composition of the air that carries them. Robots’ noses are adjusted to analyse the air passing through their nostrils and from the air composition tell what that air smells⁷ like.

Robots feel⁸ in the same way that humans do. Tiny wire fingers can go across a surface and, from the way the surface pushes the wires around, the robot can tell whether the surface is smooth⁹ or rough¹⁰. Robots can also tell the difference between two temperatures. Another kind of robots’ feel⁸ sensor¹¹ can feel⁸ the exact temperature more accurately than any thermometer.

Notes:

¹ sense – чувство

² brain – мозг

³ cell – элемент

⁴ jet aircraft – реактивный самолет

⁵ frequency – частота

⁶ odour – запах

⁷ to smell – пахнуть

⁸ to feel – чувствовать; осязать; ощущать

feel – осязание; ощущение

⁹ smooth – ровный; гладкий

¹⁰ rough – неровный; грубый

¹¹ sensor – чувствительный элемент; датчик

1. Translate the title of the text.

2. Formulate the main idea of the text.

3. Choose the main information from every paragraph.

4. Make up the plan of the text.

5. Write down the annotation of the text in Russian.

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