Robots have become common in warehouses across America.

機(jī)器人在美國(guó)各地的倉(cāng)庫(kù)中已經(jīng)很普遍。

Warehouses are centers where products are stored and organized before they are sent to buyers.

倉(cāng)庫(kù)是將產(chǎn)品發(fā)送給買方之前進(jìn)行存儲(chǔ)和組織的中心。

Manufacturers of robots say the machines can do the most repetitive and difficult jobs. But critics warn that they are also creating new forms of stress and even injuries.

機(jī)器人制造商說，這些機(jī)器可以完成最重復(fù)和最困難的工作。但是批評(píng)者警告說，他們還在制造新的壓力甚至傷害的形式。

Working with robots

與機(jī)器人合作

Amanda Taillon's job is to enter a robot-only area to fix problems in one of Amazon's warehouses in the state of Connecticut. Sometimes she has to pick up a fallen toy or ease a traffic jam.

阿曼達(dá)·塔永（Amanda Taillon）的工作是進(jìn)入僅機(jī)器人區(qū)域，以解決康涅狄格州亞馬遜亞馬遜倉(cāng)庫(kù)中的問題。有時(shí)她不得不拿起一個(gè)掉落的玩具或緩解交通堵塞。

She uses a belt that works like a superhero's force field. It can command the nearest robots to stop and the others to slow down or change their paths.

她使用的皮帶像超級(jí)英雄的力場(chǎng)一樣工作。它可以命令最近的機(jī)器人停止，其他機(jī)器人減速或改變其路徑。

"They weigh a lot," she said of the robots.

她說：“它們很重?！?/span>

Criticisms of robots and AI

對(duì)機(jī)器人和AI的批評(píng)

Critics say that this kind of human-machine cooperation has its problems. They say that keeping up with the pace of the new technology is hurting human workers' health and morale.

批評(píng)家說，這種人機(jī)合作有其問題。他們說，跟上新技術(shù)的步伐正在損害人類工人的健康和士氣。

Beth Gutelius studies urban economic development at the University of Illinois at Chicago. She has spoken with warehouse operators around the U.S.

Beth Gutelius在芝加哥的伊利諾伊大學(xué)研究城市經(jīng)濟(jì)發(fā)展。她曾與美國(guó)各地的倉(cāng)庫(kù)運(yùn)營(yíng)商進(jìn)行過交談。

She said human burnout is a problem in warehouses where robotics and artificial intelligence, or AI software are being used. She said that is because the robots add more work and increase the pressure on workers to speed up their performance.

她說，在使用機(jī)器人技術(shù)和人工智能或AI軟件的倉(cāng)庫(kù)中，人的倦怠是一個(gè)問題。她說，這是因?yàn)闄C(jī)器人增加了工作量，并增加了工人加快工作績(jī)效的壓力。

Recently, reporters investigated injury rates at Amazon warehouses. They found that robotic warehouses reported more injuries than those without the machines.

最近，記者調(diào)查了亞馬遜倉(cāng)庫(kù)的受傷率。他們發(fā)現(xiàn)，與沒有機(jī)器的倉(cāng)庫(kù)相比，機(jī)器倉(cāng)庫(kù)的受傷人數(shù)更多。

Reporters with the Center for Investigative Reporting's website Reveal studied records from 28 Amazon warehouses in 16 states. They found that the rate of serious injuries was more than two times the warehousing industry average.

報(bào)道調(diào)查中心網(wǎng)站Reveal的記者研究了來自16個(gè)州的28個(gè)亞馬遜倉(cāng)庫(kù)的記錄。他們發(fā)現(xiàn)嚴(yán)重傷害的發(fā)生率是倉(cāng)儲(chǔ)行業(yè)平均水平的兩倍以上。

Amazon, however, says that it is misleading to compare its rate with other companies. That is because the company says it has an "aggressive stance on recording injuries no matter how big or small."

然而，亞馬遜表示，將其價(jià)格與其他公司進(jìn)行比較會(huì)產(chǎn)生誤導(dǎo)。這是因?yàn)樵摴颈硎?，它“?duì)記錄傷害大小都持積極態(tài)度”。

The Reveal report also found a connection between robots and safety problems, such as in Tracy, California. There, the serious injury rate nearly quadrupled in the four years after robots were introduced.

Reveal報(bào)告還發(fā)現(xiàn)了機(jī)器人與安全問題之間的聯(lián)系，例如在加利福尼亞州的特雷西。在引入機(jī)器人之后的四年中，那里的嚴(yán)重傷害率幾乎翻了兩番。

Amazon has not released information on how its safety record at robot-powered warehouses compares to those without. But company officials believe that Amazon workers are able to deal with the new technology.

亞馬遜尚未發(fā)布有關(guān)其在機(jī)器人倉(cāng)庫(kù)中的安全記錄與無人倉(cāng)庫(kù)的安全記錄相比的信息。但是公司官員認(rèn)為，亞馬遜的員工有能力應(yīng)對(duì)新技術(shù)。

Benefits of using robots

使用機(jī)器人的好處

Companies say they cannot quickly fulfill buyers' demands for packages without fast-moving pods, robots and other forms of automation.

公司表示，如果沒有快速移動(dòng)的吊艙，機(jī)器人和其他自動(dòng)化形式，他們將無法迅速滿足買家對(duì)包裹的需求。

The increased use of robots and AI is changing warehouse work in a way that the head of Amazon Robotics says can "extend human capability." The idea is that robots can help people to do what they are best at: problem solving.

越來越多的機(jī)器人和AI使用正在改變倉(cāng)儲(chǔ)工作，而亞馬遜機(jī)器人負(fù)責(zé)人表示可以“擴(kuò)展人員能力”。這個(gè)想法是機(jī)器人可以幫助人們做自己最擅長(zhǎng)的事情：解決問題。

Tye Brady is Amazon Robotics' chief technologist. He said having people and robots work together permits the company to offer lower prices. Brady said worker safety remains very important.

Tye Brady是Amazon Robotics的首席技術(shù)專家。他說，讓人們和機(jī)器人一起工作可以使公司提供更低的價(jià)格。布雷迪說，工人的安全仍然非常重要。

But Gutelius, the University of Illinois researcher, said that the hope for easy human-machine operations is not a reality. "It sounds quite lovely, but I rarely hear from a worker's perspective that that's what it feels like," she said.

但是伊利諾伊大學(xué)的研究員古特利烏斯說，實(shí)現(xiàn)簡(jiǎn)單的人機(jī)操作的希望是不現(xiàn)實(shí)的。她說：“聽起來很可愛，但從工人的角度來看，我很少聽到那樣的感覺?！?/span>

Large growth in warehouse robots

倉(cāng)庫(kù)機(jī)器人的大幅增長(zhǎng)

Amazon has more than 200,000 "drives," or robotic vehicles, that move goods through its warehouses around the U.S. That is two times the number it had in 2018.

亞馬遜擁有超過20萬個(gè)“驅(qū)動(dòng)器”或機(jī)器人車輛，它們通過其在美國(guó)各地的倉(cāng)庫(kù)搬運(yùn)貨物。這是2018年的兩倍。

Much of the growth in warehouse robotics came in 2012 when Amazon bought Kiva Systems. Afterwards, Kiva Systems became Amazon Robotics. For seven years, the company has been designing and building Amazon's robots.

倉(cāng)庫(kù)機(jī)器人技術(shù)的大部分增長(zhǎng)來自于2012年亞馬遜收購(gòu)Kiva Systems時(shí)。之后，Kiva Systems成為Amazon Robotics。七年來，該公司一直在設(shè)計(jì)和制造亞馬遜的機(jī)器人。

Amazon's move to buy Kiva influenced its competitors, said Jim Liefer. He is chief of the San Francisco company, Kindred AI. It makes an AI robotic arm used by companies such as The Gap clothing store.

吉姆·利弗（Jim Liefer）表示，亞馬遜收購(gòu)基瓦（Kiva）的舉動(dòng)影響了其競(jìng)爭(zhēng)對(duì)手。他是舊金山公司Kindred AI的負(fù)責(zé)人。它制造了The Gap服裝店等公司使用的AI機(jī)械手。

Melonee Wise is chief of California-based Fetch Robotics. The company sells robotic carts. She credits Amazon with causing the industry to develop new technologies.

Melonee Wise是總部位于加利福尼亞的Fetch Robotics的負(fù)責(zé)人。該公司銷售機(jī)器人推車。她稱贊亞馬遜帶動(dòng)了該行業(yè)開發(fā)新技術(shù)。

But she said Amazon's system forces workers to do "un-ergonomic moves" such as reaching up very high or down low.

但是她說，亞馬遜的系統(tǒng)迫使工人采取“不符合人體工程學(xué)的舉動(dòng)”，例如達(dá)到很高或更低的高度。

"They have robots that live in cages," she said. "Our robots are designed to work safely around people."

她說：“他們的機(jī)器人住在籠子里?！?“我們的機(jī)器人旨在在人周圍安全地工作?！?/span>

Getting used to working with robots

習(xí)慣于使用機(jī)器人

Taillon, the Amazon employee you met at the beginning of this report, said that she has gotten used to working with robots.

您在本報(bào)告開頭遇到的亞馬遜員工Taillon說，她已經(jīng)習(xí)慣于使用機(jī)器人。

She described how she felt when first working with them.

她描述了初次與他們合作時(shí)的感受。

"When you're out there, and you can hear them moving around, but you can't see them, it's like, ‘Where are they going to come from?'," she said. "It's a little nerve-racking at first."

她說：“當(dāng)你在外面的時(shí)候，你可以聽到他們?cè)谒奶幾邉?dòng)，但看不到它們，就像'他們從哪里來？”。 “起初有點(diǎn)令人不安?！?/span>

重點(diǎn)詞匯：

Words in This Story：

repetitive – n. having parts, actions, etc., that are repeated many times in a way that is boring or unpleasant

pace – n. the speed at which something happens

morale – n. the feelings of enthusiasm and loyalty that a person or group has about a task or job

burnout – n. the condition of someone who has become very physically and emotionally tired after doing a difficult job for a long time

stance – n. a publicly stated opinion — usually singular

quadruple – v. to become four times bigger in value or number

automation – n. running or operating (something, such as a factory or system) by using machines, computers, etc., instead of people to do the work

perspective – n. a way of thinking about and understanding something (such as a particular issue or life in general)

artificial intelligence – n. the power of a machine to copy intelligent human behavior

ergonomic – n. the parts or qualities of something's design that make it easy or safe to use

nerve-racking – adj. causing a person to feel very nervous