Program Plan at a Glance

Total number of credits: 64 (17 Core + 21 Soft Core + 26 Thesis Project)

Notes:

1.       17 Credits are from the mandatory (Core) courses

2. List of Soft Core courses is below
3. Electives can be any course offered in IISc (with due permission of the instructor)

Final project will focus on research or technology innovations for industrial or research problems, and will include a mix of analysis, design and implementation.

Program Details

Note: Explanation of the credits

a:b => ‘a’ hours/week of lectures and ‘b’x 3 hours/week of laboratory work.

Core Courses:

Soft Core courses:

Laboratory Modules (will be embedded in the courses as well as in CP280):

Relevance and Need of the Program

Robotics and autonomous systems are an integral part of Industry 4.0 and robotic automation will see an exponential growth in the future. The shortage of skilled labor in transport, agriculture, and supply chain management; operations in hazardous environment like mines and waste processing and recovery; remote monitoring, space explorations and defense will drive the future of robotic automation solutions. Co-design of Cyber and Physical components of such systems and their safe operation along with humans in unstructured and uncertain environments will be key characteristics of such systems.

Robotics and Autonomous Systems have also changed over the last decade – with the confluence of AI/ML with cheap sensors/Actuators and Battery technologies

With substantial investments by the Govt of India and Govt. Of Karnataka in this area at IISc through the AI & Robotics Park Initiative (ARTPARK), as well as investments from companies like Cisco, Nokia, Garrett etc. via CSR grants – IISc has started developing state of the art experimental facilities in Connected Robots and Autonomous Systems. These facilities to not only support our research, but also develop rich experiential/laboratory-based training programs for the students.

Robotics and Autonomous System has always fascinated our UG students as evidenced by their keen participation in many robotic competitions. However, there is no comprehensive course program in this domain in the country that can train then in the foundational aspects as well as the experimental aspects of the subject.

Key Learning Outcomes of the program

▫  Foundational concepts in Mathematical Foundations like Linear Algebra, Computational Techniques, Probability and Statistics, Control & Optimization, Statistical Signal Processing, Planning & Decisions, Stochastic and Data driven Control, AI for Robotics, Dynamics & Kinematics, Formal Techniques for CPS

▫  Applied concepts in Networking for Robotics & Autonomous Systems, Real-Time Embedded Systems, Sensing & Actuation Systems, Applied Machine Learning for Speech & Vision, Reinforcement Learning for Robot Control, Swarm & Team Robotics, Human-Machine Interactions & social robotics, Security, Safety & Privacy for Autonomous Systems, Autonomous ground/air Robots, Navigation & Guidance, Perception via Signal & Image Processing

▫  Experiential learning via laboratory modules for: Mobile robot programming, Control of Industrial Robot Arms, Programming of Legged Robots, Programming of Drone Systems, Tele-Robotics, Secure Data Pipelines, Robot Simulation Frameworks, VR/AR & Speech Interfaces for Robots, ROS/ROS2 Software stacks, Machine Learning for Robots, Robot hardware for Sensor & Actuator Systems, 3D Design and Prototyping for Robotics, Drone Piloting, Game engine programming, GPU Programming.

About RBCCPS

RBCCPS under Div. Of Inter-Disciplinary Sciences, is in a unique intersection of Div. Of EECS and Mechanical Sciences and hence can offer such training spanning both the disciplines – and will be the pillar of this program. ARTPark (AI & Robotics Technologies Park) has been incubated by RBCCPS and will provide laboratory support.

How will this program benefit Industry?

Graduates will have a good exposure to foundational and applied topics in Robotics and Autonomous Systems. Hands on exposure to engineering with robots – including mechanical prototyping, ROS/ROS2 programming, AI/ML based programming, VR/AR and other HCI Technologies, 5G and WiFi6 experimentation, indoor and outdoor ground, and aerial robot experiences, will make them well rounded and prepared for many industry problems. They will be able to contribute effectively to create innovative technologies and products in the emerging AI & Robotics applications in industry 4.0, medical, agriculture, mining, defense, smart cities etc.

How will this program benefit academia?

Good theoretical and practical grounding will prepare the graduates of this program to participate in innovative experimental research in Robotics and Autonomous Systems.

Target Audience

Students with UG/PG background in EE, ECE, CS, Mech, Aero and related fields

Target Stakeholder Beneficiaries

Industries in Robotics and Autonomous Systems like: ABB, Bosch, TCS, Wipro, GE, Defense PSUs, Amazon, Flipkart, Target, Nokia, Google, CAIR, ADA, NAL, Intel, Siemens, etc. and many startups

Research Labs in academia like in IISc and IITs.

Laboratory Facilities:

• Robot Arms,
• Indoor Mobile Robots & Drones,
• Outdoor Mobile Robots & Drones,
• Outdoor autonomous driving testbed
• Indoor Connected Robots Lab
• Humanoid Robots,
• Legged Platforms & Treadmills,
• Indoor Mocap system,
• Indoor Drone Testbed, Windshaping Facility & Indoor Drones,
• Ware-house Robotics Testbed,
• Electronics and Mechanical Prototyping Facilities

Fees:

As per IISc Norms

Selection:

• Background Degree: BE, BTech, BS (4years)/Equivalent with Gate about
• For Ministry of Education (MOE) Scholarship: GATE needed in one of (EE, EC, ME, AE, IN, CS)
• Sponsored Candidates: Selection as per institute norms
• Selection based on : Gate (70%) + Interview (30%)

Numbers:

30/year for first two years – increasing to 50/year post that. Allot 10% for sponsored students.