Chennai: Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras students from the Centre for Innovation (CFI) have set the Asia and India Records for operating the “Largest Number of Robots Cleaning an Area.”
Representatives from the Asia Book of Records and India Book of Records adjudicated the event, which took place between 6 p.m. and 8 p.m. on Sunday (29th October 2017) at Students Activities Centre (SAC) in the campus.
A Provisional Certificate was awarded on Sunday itself after the successful completion of the exercise. The Final certification would follow after Validation and Assessment of the record evidences submitted by the Investigation Team of Asia Book of Records and the India Book of Records.
As many as 270 students belonging to several disciplines fabricated a total of 45 Robots at the CFI Workshop in IIT Madras. Each robot consisted of a high RPM motor at its centre, with two rotating scrub pads that directed the dust into the Central Suction Mechanism, which was collected by a filter in the vacuum tunnel. They were controlled over Bluetooth from an App based on Android platform.
The robots cleaned an area of 750 sq.ft. simultaneously for more than Fifteen Minutes without stopping to set the Record. No manual intervention was allowed inside the cleaning area after the start of the exercise.
Speaking about the initiative, Prof B. Ravindran, Faculty-in-Charge, CFI, said, “Robotics is one of the oldest co-curricular activity “at IIT Madras. In the past, IITM teams have successfully participated in various global competitions. This record is the latest in the list of achievements of the robotics groups at the Centre for Innovation.”
Another major aim of this initiative is to sustain, spread and strengthen the concept of Swachh Bharat Abhiyan (A Clean India Initiative) by some of the most skilled students in the Premier Engineering institute in the country. The City Union Bank (CUB) generously supported this event through their CSR funds to IIT Madras.
Mr. Gaurav Lodha, Student Executive Head, CFI, and a Fourth Year Dual-Degree Student, Department of Civil Engineering, said, “This will also impart technical training to I Year students by teaching them the basics of Electronics, Robotics, Automation, Wireless Communication, 3D Printing, Rapid Prototyping and Software Modelling along with soft skills like Teamwork, Time Management, Problem-Solving, Communication and Leadership.”
A lot of concepts are taught to IIT Madras First Year students, a combination of theory and hands-on experience. This exercise would provide the freshmen a wholesome one-to-one hands-on exposure and an opportunity to make something of their own, Mr. Gaurav Lodha added.
The Asia Book of Records and the India Book of Records issued detailed guidelines and criteria for conduct of the event as per the 2018 Edition of International Protocol of Records (IPR).
