Whatever the question, the answer is that we need more robots
A remote-controlled drone flies across the room, but it can do much more than fly. It can map the room, help with farming, deliver shipments, even play music, as roboticist Vijay Kumar, professor at the University of Pennsylvania illustrates.
Called ‘the father of the drone’ and in Mumbai to speak at the TEDxGateway event, Kumar spoke to HT Education about drones, robotics and what India needs to do to strengthen its encourage student innovation.
There are obvious risks with robots replacing jobs…
The idea is not to have robots because they may be cheaper than humans; it is to make robots do jobs that humans cannot, or in most cases, will not do.
I’m convinced that whatever the question, the answer is we don’t have enough robots. For instance, if our underwater robots had the maturity of on-ground ones, we would have found that missing Malaysian Airlines flight in 24 hours. Currently, we know more about outer space than our own planet, because we don’t have enough robots.
If the 1700s saw the Industrial Revolution, and the 2000s the Internet Revolution, I’m certain that the next phase the world will embrace is the Industrial Internet Revolution, harnessing the massive potential of robotics — smartphones are forms of robots, as are 3D printers. But automated machines can change the way we live.
How do you think India’s engineers can partake in this revolution?
India has really made its mark in technology. The software industry that India is so well known for and the robotics industry that India is not well known for are not that far apart. As I see it, the problem is that we don’t have companies like Google or Amazon who are spearheading the revolution. Instead, we have companies like Infosys, who are great at meeting current needs, but are not leaders in building path-breaking technology.
Moreover, civil authorities recently cracked down on drones, shutting India out of a whole revolution. Authorities, industry and universities need to be at the centre of this revolution.
What do you think Indian institutes can do to increase the level of student innovation?
Importantly, we need to teach students to see what will be, not what is. I studied at IIT-Kanpur, which has a profound influence on my work. When I was at IIT, though, the institutes were actively training students to meet demands that were not coming from India, to send engineers like myself abroad. We were taught to think at IIT, but I’m not sure that’s happening today.
I work with several bright Indian-origin students at the university, but very few of them now come from IIT backgrounds.
Can Indian institutes encourage robotics even with their investment handicap? Absolutely. That’s the myth about robotics — in actuality, you can buy most of the raw material offthe-shelves, at a very low cost. Robots are things you can make in your garage — it’s all about using software intelligently.
All you need is a creative bent of mind, the drive and a good understanding of the science of robotics. As part of the GREAT Britain campaign, the British Council, UK’s international organisation for educational opportunities and cultural relations launched the Great Britain Scholarships — India 2015 in Mumbai on November 17. The announcement was made at the Education UK Exhibition, popular with students who are looking to study and live in the UK.
To further strengthen partnership between the two countries, the British Council announced 401 scholarships this year, compared to over 750 in the past two years to be attained for batches starting September 2015 and January 2016 worth `151 million (1.51 million pounds.)
Sixty UK Universities across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland participated in the day-long exhibition which provided information on undergraduate, postgraduate and research programmes in the UK as well as details on student life and culture. Immigration officers of the British High Commission assisted visitors at the UK student visa and immigration stall with all queries pertaining to the student visa regulations and policies. Students could also attend seminars by UK institutions on popular subjects such as management, information technology, engineering and IELTS, the world’s most popular English language test.
“The UK welcomes India’s best talent, to gain internationally recognised qualifications from top-ranking global institutions, says Sharon Memis, director, British Council-West India. “The campaign will empower aspiring Indian students to make an informed decision about studying and living in the UK,” she adds.
“The UK has a world class reputation in education and skills, and provides globally recognised ‘STEM’ education,” says Kumar Iyer, British deputy high commissioner- Mumbai and director general UK Trade and Investment India. “It is a melting pot of disciplines, where people can find an unparalleled environment with inspiring teaching, state of the art facilities and a first rate research environment,” he adds.