- 4 months ago
Discover how robotics education is evolving to meet the demands of Industry 4.0, AI, and automation. Learn why hands-on learning, interdisciplinary skills, and industry collaboration are shaping the future of robotics careers. Listen now!
Category
📚
LearningTranscript
00:00AI in robotics, game-changer or overhype?
00:03Whatever knowledge we have gathered over the last hundred years almost,
00:06they should not be thrown out and then adopt AI to recreate those.
00:10If you say that I want to write AI tools at the very first day,
00:15I'm 100% with a big space.
00:26Hello, and welcome to RoboFrames, the robotics podcast presented to you by NamTalks.
00:31I'm your host, Ekta Singla, Director, NamTech School of Robotics.
00:35This podcast is an initiative, an effort to address some of the gaps in the evolving robotics ecosystem in India.
00:42Who has not noticed the complete paradigm shift in the robotics tech and the rapid expansion around?
00:49India is certainly transitioning from just being an importer to innovation hub
00:53and the surge of robotics startups around and the complete infrastructure changing in our industries.
01:01But hold on, let's ask, is our education system aligned?
01:04All forms of robotic systems, including cobots, quadrupeds, even humanoids,
01:09they have actually started being utilized in our industrial systems.
01:13But the question is, have they taken their place in our curriculum?
01:17Have they come to our labs?
01:19Multiple questions and multiple doubts.
01:21This is exactly the focus of this particular podcast,
01:23where we will bring to you the best minds, academicians, scientists,
01:27who are connected to us with our knowledge partners, the Robotic Society India.
01:31We are really thankful to them.
01:33So I welcome you all.
01:34Joining with us is Professor Subir Kumar Saha.
01:37Welcome, sir.
01:38Yes.
01:39Professor Saha is the senior professor at IIT Delhi,
01:42presently the project director at HIFC and our founder and vice president at TRS, the robotics society.
01:50Welcome again, sir.
01:51So here is my first question.
01:53So with this 30 years of your span in robotics education,
01:57how do you see this paradigm shift?
01:59I mean, particularly, was it really a surprise even for you or you could actually foresee it even earlier?
02:07Very good question.
02:08When you asked about this paradigm shift, while any system is dynamic,
02:14so this robotics was also gradually changing.
02:17And for last 10-15 years, I see there is a lot of changes, developments in the country.
02:25But one thing I must mention, in last 3-4 years with the AI buzz,
02:29everybody is talking about AI in robotics, physical AI and stuff like that.
02:36And academic institutes, industries are all jumping onto it, you know.
02:41But I think we should move with a very caution move.
02:45As I saw one American famous professor was talking,
02:49that whatever knowledge we have gathered over last 100 years almost, you know,
02:53they should not be thrown out and then adopt AI to recreate those things.
02:58The best way to take forward this change in robotics is to utilize those knowledge,
03:05blend with what AI is coming forward to make it more intelligent, more sophisticated and move forward.
03:13And we have to make ourselves prepared to create the next generation to go through this wave very smoothly.
03:20In fact, it is very much connected to what I'm sure this podcast is first for the students,
03:25because they are always wondering what they should study.
03:29So my second question is related to the same.
03:33How do you assess the curriculum relevance according to the R&D or the industry requirements or employability?
03:40That means it is our duty as academicians, educators,
03:44that we should indulge in such a way that what you mentioned,
03:46keeping the past, the requirements of the fundamentals.
03:49Yes.
03:50And the AI.
03:51I see an analogy with our daily life.
03:54For example, when we are in the kindergarten or in the primary school,
03:59and we would love to write some essay or some sentences,
04:04but unless I learned ABCDs, how can I write sentences in English or our mother tongues?
04:10So here also ABCD of robotics must be learned.
04:12If you say that I want to write AI tools on the very first day,
04:17I'm 100% will be a big failure.
04:19So once you have written the fundamental exams or fundamental practices like learning ABCD,
04:27now you can start forming sentences and essays and things like that.
04:31But learn the basics, keeping in mind you have to learn the advanced topic.
04:36You have to basically carry forward an attitude, how to learn in future also,
04:43because after 10 years again this technology will become obsolete.
04:47And you have to be after the new knowledge.
04:49No, but then there is a point.
04:51I mean, apart from that they must have the attitude to learn, that I agree.
04:55Isn't it important to work on the curriculum model too?
04:59Because it's not that we should keep on the students, that they must try ahead.
05:04Because they are trying even today, it becomes very hard for them to cope up with the curriculum.
05:09And then in the evenings, late evenings, being in the part of robotics club,
05:13they are learning what they think is important for the future.
05:17Should there be some model where probably our society like robotics society should…
05:22Right.
05:23About maybe 20 years ago, when we started robotics club at IIT Delhi,
05:28that time students used to spend time, hours building robots, taking part in competitions.
05:37Sometime not going to the classes and there is a complaint from the institute.
05:42In any dynamical system, the course curriculum reviews and everything,
05:46whichever system we belong to, we must propose to our administration to bring these changes.
05:52But till that change does not come, does it mean we will keep quiet?
05:56My answer is no.
05:58So, I give some projects to the students to get exposed to hardware, to the software.
06:05So, till that formal changes do not come, let us adopt as a faculty
06:11and let us through our robotics society or in other forums,
06:15we share with our colleagues to bring this hands-on training part as a part of learning activities.
06:22Absolutely, sir.
06:22In fact, I am sure that this is one of the takeaways.
06:25Practical learning is the key.
06:28Practical learning is the key.
06:28Sure.
06:28But that comes with the cost.
06:30Yes.
06:30What should be their preference in the infrastructure or the tech which can be purchased in the institutes?
06:38Normally the educators because somebody may like to just spend crores or lakhs.
06:43Not everyone can spend.
06:44So, is there any specific further takeaways for them in this line?
06:49Okay, here my suggestion would be, you know, start small.
06:54When I say start small, there are the motors, small DC motors available, some metallic frames are available.
07:02You buy some low cost items, build things like people make, students make line following, they call it robot, but
07:10actually it's like a toy.
07:11Let your hands be dirty with those things, you know, and get some exposure.
07:16So, my suggestion is twofold, rather threefold actually.
07:20The first is students or the professors should buy low cost things, make things, break things.
07:28Second is, you know, take part in various competition.
07:31I have a philosophy called competition based education.
07:34Because competition is important compared to practical lessons in the laboratory classes.
07:40Because in laboratory classes you make things, but you do not know how good or bad until your teacher says
07:47this is good or bad.
07:48But teacher saying good does not mean it will survive in the industrial scenario, you know.
07:53But competition almost replicas the industrial scenario, you know.
07:57When you have a best technology, but still you may lose the game.
08:02And here my favorite example is difference between coconut water versus Coca-Cola.
08:06We all know coconut water is very healthy for us, but which sells more is Coca-Cola, right.
08:13So, that way three phase, start building something with whatever is available.
08:16The second is tech party in competition, need not be national level competition.
08:20You can have in a class, three teams are participating and competing.
08:23And the third is, wherever the infrastructure is available, go there and see industrial scenario, what kind of equipments are
08:30used in the industry.
08:31That's right. In fact, that connects to one of the point which is always in my mind.
08:36Competitions, they do take part, but when they indulge into that and give I think sometimes one or two years
08:42and learn also, there is no takeaway later to that.
08:47I mean, there is a learning, but once they are winning and they are very good in their practical sense.
08:53So, at least for their higher studies, don't you think like some other connectivity of this, maybe it can be
09:00connected to some of the admissions or what else they can get because of this participation?
09:06It's a very pertinent question. It is unfortunate that third year, fourth year students, particularly fourth year students do not
09:15take part in large number.
09:16This is an unfortunate part. It was not the case ten years before, you know, because you asked me the
09:22paradigm shift at the beginning.
09:24I think this is one of the paradigm shift has happened. If a student is taking part in robotic competition
09:30and then they come to me for final year project.
09:33Almost every engineering colleges has a final year BTEC projects kind of thing. I said, did you take part in
09:39robotic competition?
09:40They said, yes. I said, your project should be around that topic. They would say, sir, it is done. I
09:47have won or lost whatever it is.
09:49I said, okay, you lost. Why you are lost? No, sir, that bolt has broken actually. I said, that is
09:56your BTEC project.
09:56Why bolt was broken? If you have designed properly, load condition taken, if you did the RFE analysis properly.
10:04So, can you redesign it and tell me what is the correct one? So, obviously, not everybody have been patient
10:10enough to take it forward.
10:11So, those gone, they have left out. But for those who continued, it took ten years for me from there
10:18like BTEC project, someone did it.
10:21Following year, another set of students did another BTEC project. So, doing this, ten years after, we could actually commercialize
10:29a product, licensing a product to the company.
10:32So, here I think faculty has a very important role to play. You have not published anything. You have not
10:37patented anything.
10:38If you work another six months with me in improving this competitive thing, you may publish a paper so that
10:46higher studies, you will get an acceptance very fast.
10:49Then they may think it is the same boring thing. I say, no, it is not boring thing. I will
10:53give some new values to you. So, there I have to be innovative enough to do this.
10:57If I think, no, no, I would not like to spend time, then sorry, it will not happen.
11:01Do you think we, I am not saying the faculty, I am also a faculty, are keeping pace with the
11:09advancements or the technology required?
11:11Because we are the ones who have to actually keep them aligned. So, first, how, or maybe a takeaway or
11:19your advice to our educators, that how can they keep themselves up-skilled?
11:23Okay. So, you have asked very, very, very difficult questions, you know, to be very honest. They do keep pace
11:30for sure, but the end objectives are different, right?
11:36Someone thinks that I should be working with these upcoming technologies, update myself in order to prepare first promotions, then
11:47administrative positions, then awards, rewards, what not actually, right?
11:51Then there is another set of people actually, you know, who would be thinking, well, they are there, of course,
11:57though, but will it serve the society in the long run?
12:03If you ask me, for example, when I see there is a large number of unemployability exists. Now, unemployability does
12:10not mean that job does not exist.
12:13Unemployability only means the skill set is not there for the jobs which are available in the market.
12:18When I think that what will be the skill set should be there in a fastest possible manner.
12:24We are talking about faculty development program, just to give an example of any faculty development program you take it,
12:30right? Online, offline, it does not matter, you know.
12:32But why do they come? Because they come for a piece of paper, which is called certificate, which will be
12:37utilized their promotion.
12:38Now, how do you engage those participants? Because participants came, that is his or her own choice, you cannot deny.
12:47But as a faculty, can I engage this faculty? So I have created program like TOP, team-based online, offline
12:53project.
12:54Fifty faculty comes, divide into teams, ask them to choose a project from one of the expert's lectures.
13:02Five days, the program continues. Can they work on five days?
13:06And what are the different topics around that thing? Say, literature survey on vision system, for example.
13:11And after five days present, what happens in this project?
13:15When they are learning from Google and some other sources, they will be able to correlate the lecture by the
13:20expert on vision system better.
13:23Then these five teams are interacting amongst each other.
13:26Ah, you are from Andhra Pradesh or I am from Kashmir, you know.
13:29So they are having a networking. So this soft skill set, which otherwise do not exist, will be implemented.
13:36So that way you have to create new innovative processes.
13:40One of my colleagues from I.T. Madras asked, Asaha, in this building, how much steel is there?
13:48I said, this is a very strange question you are asking.
13:51Maybe 25 percent. Is this steel visible? I said, no.
13:55He said, society is exactly like this. 25 percent of the people are not visible.
14:00What is visible? The concrete, the paint, which this will change every five to ten years, right?
14:06So it is your choice. I give this thing analogy with my mother, for example, or my wife, you know.
14:13Mostly ladies in the society. They are mostly not visible.
14:17But without them, I think no child is born to the best possible manner.
14:21Thank you very much, sir. We are glad to have you in our first episode.
14:25And I am sure that will be very helpful for our audience too.
14:28And where this crux is the takeaway.
14:31And we have understood in a way that how it is not important that everybody needs to go in the
14:37same way.
14:38And we have our own ways to contribute in the ecosystem we are talking about.
14:42And the way we are talking about the boom coming in robotics.
14:45It is you who have to see, even if it is interdisciplinary, how you would like to contribute.
14:50This was just a one point which had been discussed.
14:53I am sure from a person like Professor Sahar, this itself will be a very good beginning for many.
14:57Thank you very much.
14:58Thank you, Hector, for inviting me in the first of this podcast.
15:02And India has a very bright future in the area of robotics.
15:07So to the viewers, please, you know, go get up and enjoy the future.
15:12Good days which are coming.
15:14Yes, and stay tuned for our next episode. Bye.