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Indian students develop robotics for Carnegie Mellon
Thursday, 04 March 2004, 20:30 IST
CHENNAI: The Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) is collaborating with an engineering college here to develop advanced robotics programmes, including modifying existing robots in the US institute.
Students of this programme from the SSN School of Advanced Software Engineering, would be awarded with a degree from CMU, while they derive the experience of working with an American university.
CMU has provided two programmes for the SSN School.
While the first project involves modification of CMU's existing robots, another group of SSN scholars are developing a simulator for a million dollar piece of equipment that IT companies need.
Called a wire-bonding machine, this equipment places gold wires precisely on tiny circuit boards used in computers.
Each of these machines now cost half a million dollars with high-resolution cameras and motors.
By 2005 the SSN labs hope to make at least 35 such simulators. The software for this is at present under test.
The robotics project is trying to do away with the laptop and personal digital aid (PDA) on a robot.
The Indian students have succeeded in eliminating the laptop and mounted a processor on board the robot, carrying more intelligent, downloadable software.
"Value add by placing on board an infra red range guide and the cost per robot comes down by as much as 
150,000," the scholars said.
The Indian researchers working on these projects, some of who have left well-paid jobs in prestigious IT companies like Dell, have been drawn from all over the country.
The only requirement for the 30-odd students is that they must work for three years in India.
"The first batch of SSN scholars participated in the Carnegie Mellon programme in winter of 2001," Shashikant V. Albal, director at the SSN School.
There were just five scholars then, including a woman. The current batch has 20 students, Albal said.
The school is supported by CMU, one of America's best-known technical universities where the first pioneering work on artificial intelligence began.
The National Security Agency has designated CMU as its centre of excellence and this university provides "the US government and NASA mission critical applications".
Source: IANS
150,000," the scholars said.
The Indian researchers working on these projects, some of who have left well-paid jobs in prestigious IT companies like Dell, have been drawn from all over the country.
The only requirement for the 30-odd students is that they must work for three years in India.
"The first batch of SSN scholars participated in the Carnegie Mellon programme in winter of 2001," Shashikant V. Albal, director at the SSN School.
There were just five scholars then, including a woman. The current batch has 20 students, Albal said.
The school is supported by CMU, one of America's best-known technical universities where the first pioneering work on artificial intelligence began.
The National Security Agency has designated CMU as its centre of excellence and this university provides "the US government and NASA mission critical applications".
Source: IANS