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每日英語跟讀 Ep.1008:About Japan - Japan shop deploys robot to check people are wearing face masks
A shop in Japan has enlisted a robot to ensure customers are wearing masks, as the country prepares for a possible third wave of coronavirus infections.
日本一家商店已經招募1台機器人，以確保顧客都有戴上口罩，在該國為了可能的第3波武漢肺炎疫情做準備之際。
Robovie, developed by the Advanced Telecommunications Research Institute International in Kyoto, is able to pick out customers who aren’t wearing masks and politely ask them to cover up. It can also intervene when they fail to socially distance while queuing up to pay.
由京都國際電氣通信基礎技術研究所研發的Robovie，可以找出沒有戴口罩的顧客，並且禮貌地要求他們戴上。當人們排隊結帳時未遵守社交距離，它也可以插手干預。
The trial, which began last week at the club shop of Cerezo Osaka, a professional football team, will run until at least the end of November.
這項實驗上週於大阪櫻花職業足球隊的俱樂部商店開始進行，將至少持續至11月底。
Robovie’s developers hope the experiment will reduce close contact between shoppers and staff, adding that they believe most people will feel less embarrassed by being asked to cover up by a robot than by a fellow human being.
Robovie的研發者們希望這項實驗可減少購物者與員工的近距離接觸，他們也認為，對大部分的民眾而言，由機器人要求他們戴口罩，會比由人要求更不感到尷尬。
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Giant Japanese robot spurs hopes for tourism after virus hit 受病毒衝擊後 巨大的日本機器人為觀光業燃起希望
An 18-metre “Gundam” robot that can walk and move its arms was unveiled in Japan on Monday amid hopes that it will help invigorate tourism hit by COVID-19.
一個18公尺、可以走動及移動手臂的「鋼彈」機器人週一在日本亮相，希望它能幫忙振興受到2019冠狀病毒疾病衝擊的觀光業。
The robot is modelled after a figure in “Mobile Suit Gundam”, a Japanese cartoon first launched in the late 1970s about enormous battle robots piloted by humans. The series spawned multiple spin-offs and toys and gained a worldwide following.
這個機器人仿照「機動戰士鋼彈」其中一款打造，這部日本卡通於1970年代晚期首度發表，描述了由人類操控之大型戰鬥機器人。一系列漫畫催生出多項衍生產品與玩具，並獲得全球關注。
It will be the centrepiece of the Gundam Factory Yokohama, a tourist attraction that opens on Dec. 19 in the port city.
它將是12月19日於橫濱這個港市開張的觀光景點「橫濱鋼彈工廠」最引人入勝的核心。
“I hope this will lead to stimulating tourism demand and revitalising local areas,” Chief Cabinet Secretary Katsunobu Kato told a news conference.
內閣官房長官加藤勝信在記者會說，「我希望這會帶動刺激觀光需求並振興當地。」
Source article: https://features.ltn.com.tw/english/article/paper/1417090 ; https://features.ltn.com.tw/english/article/paper/1417730
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