IIT-Kharagpur to offer course in Microbotics

As part of the Global Initiative of Academic Networks (GIAN), a programme aimed at strengthening research collaborations between Indian and foreign institutes, Indian Institute of Technology-Kharagpur has launched a course in microbotics, or micro-robotics — the field dealing with tiny robots capable of handling very small components. The course is being offered

Sixty students from IITKharagpur and other colleges have already registered for the course. IITKharagpur is planning to pursue highend research in robotics, including microbotics with commercial applications

“This is the first time that microbotics and Nanorobotics manipulation is taught as a course by an Indian institute,” said CS Kumar, coordinator of the course at IITKharagpur.

Robotics, though, is already being taught in various engineering streams, such as mechanical engineering, ocean engineering and materials science.

The applications of microbotics include automated underwater vehicle, automated ground vehicle for mapping or accessing areas inaccessible to men, spy robots and healthcare.

Microbotics is the field of miniature robotics, in particular mobile robots with characteristic dimensions less than 1 mm. A nanorobot is a tiny machine designed to perform a specific task or tasks, repeatedly and with precision at nanoscale dimensions, that is, dimensions of a few nanometres. A nanometre is one billionth of a metre.

Robotics is an integrated branch comprising domain expertise from mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, electronic engineering and computer science that deals with the design, construction, operation, and application of robots, as well as computer systems for their control, sensory feedback and information processing.

These technologies deal with automated machines that can take the place of humans in dangerous environments or manufacturing processes, or resemble humans in appearance, behaviour or cognition. Robotics engineers design robots, maintain them, develop new applications for them and conduct research to expand the potential of robotics.