New and Emerging Technologies Flashcards
What are factories split into?
Shops; a pressing shop, an axle shop, a body shop, a paint shop, a plastics shop and a casting shop.
What is it called when robots are used to carry out repetitive tasks
Automation
Why are robots useful?
They create more job opportunities such as fixing them and programming, they ensure all products are identical, they can do this at high speeds with very high precision that make initial costs worthwhile.
What is the skill called where individuals or organisations look for business opportunities/ gaps in markets and take risks in order to make things happen?
Enterprise
What is it called when new ideas are brought to markets, and new inventions or developments are made.
Innovation
What is crowdfunding?
A method of funding by raising money from large numbers of people instead of getting money from institutions or a small number of wealthy people.
What is a future method of marketing where social networks and websites are used to increase brand awareness?
Virtual marketing and retailing
What is a co-operative?
A company business owned and self-managed by its workers.
Fair trade
A movement created to help producers in developing or low income countries to achieve fair and better trading conditions.
Sustainability
Meeting present-day demands and needs without compromising the needs of future generations.
Finite resources
A resource that does not renew itself quickly enough to meet the needs of future generations such as coil or oil.
Non-finite resources
Resources that can replenish quickly enough to meet present and future needs such as water or plant life.
Ecological footprint
The impact of a person or community on the environment; the amount of land needed to supply the natural resources they use.
Social footprint
The impact of a company or organisation has on people and communities
Landfill
Putting waste into the ground and burying it as a method of waste disposal. It causes pollution of the local environment, contamination of groundwater and soil, generates methane gas and smells rank.
Resource recovery
A process that recovers certain disposed materials for specific uses.
Energy recovery
Some disposed materials can be used to generate energy, this is called energy recovery.
Incineration
A waste treatment process that involves the burning of waste materials.
Technology push
Where new technology or materials are developed and designers take the opportunity presented by this to design new products.
Market pull
Where users want a product to be improved or redeveloped to meet their needs.
How does technology change jobs?
Designers now use CAD software instead of pencils and paper, office workers use computers rather than typewriters, bank clerks use computers and telephones rather than sitting at a desk etc.
Culture
The values, beliefs, customs and behaviours used by groups and societies to interact with each other and the world.
Fashion
Fashion can be a huge factor in designing as subcultures can become markets for design. Fashion can also push products further out and make them trend.
How does society influence design?
Designers have the responsibility to design products that meet the needs of everyone in society. Different groups will have different needs that designers also need to take into account.
How does the environment influence design?
The continuous improvement of efficiency and performance leads to a reduction in environmental impact, materials need to be considered as they may be made from finite resources or require a lot of energy to manufacture (most of this energy comes from fossil fuels, and limiting material waste also helps to reduce environmental impact.
CAD
Computer Aided Design. Allows for designers to draw, design and model on-screen.
CAM
Computer Aided Manufacturing. Allows CAD drawings to be made by a machine.
FMS
Flexible Manufacturing System. A system in which production is organised into cells of machines performing different tasks.
CNC
Computer Numerically Controlled. Machine tools that are controlled by a computer.
JIT
Just In Time. A production method that means materials and components are ordered to arrive at the product assembly point just in time for production.
Lean Manufacturing
Focusing on reduction of waste when manufacturing.
Planned Obsolescence
Planning or designing a product to have a short lifespan. Apple is an example because their old products go out of fashion and they change their connections meaning people have to buy new chargers, leads and wired headphones.
Maintenance
Performing functions on a product that will help to keep it functioning.
Designing for Maintenance
Allowing for access into the product to replace or repair worn parts, using different modules so one module can be replaced or repaired instead of the entire product, or modules can be changed to upgrade the product.
Ethics
Consumers like their products to be low-cost and good quality but that means paying workers less, using automation to cut workforces or manufacturing in countries with lower labour costs.
End of Life Disposal
How products are disposed can have a significant impact on the environment. It is better to recycle so the product isn’t placed in landfill.
Input components
PTM, LDR and Thermistors
Process component
Microcontroller
Output components
Buzzer, speaker and LEDs
Microcontrollers
Can be programmed to add functionality to products such as timing and counting, they are a small computer with an integrated unit. They can be programmed in a variety of computer languages and have flash memory
System diagram
A diagram that breaks down an operation into input, process and output
LDRs
Found in nightlights and streetlamps, resistance changes the flow of electrical current as the light intensity alters
Thermistors
Found in toaster and freezers, resistance increasing with temperature are called PTCs and the opposite is an NTC
Switches and pressure sensors
Useful for stopping a machine if the guard is open, if an object has reached a specific distance or by turning things off and on via pressure
Lamps and LEDs
Lamps work via thin tungsten filament which produces heat resulting in wasted energy so they are being replaced by LEDs
Buzzers and speakers
Buzzers are typically used in alarm devices and timers, loudspeakers are devices that convert electrical signals into sound
