Curated By: Sukanya Nandy
Last Updated: September 22, 2023, 18:31 IST
The cobotics centre also launched its first call for proposals for young start-ups, with funding up to Rs 1 crore available in digital healthcare and medical healthcare using the above application areas
The Department of Science and Technology (DST), Government of India, has funded this joint facility to be operated by the technology hubs of IIT Delhi and IIIT Delhi
The technology innovation hub of IIIT-Delhi (iHub Anubhuti-IIITD Foundation) and that of IIT Delhi (iHub Foundation for Cobotics) has inaugurated a joint medical facility — Medical Cobotics Centre or MCC on the Indraprastha Institute of Information Technology (IIIT) Delhi campus today. The training programmes will be designed in consultation with leading doctors and experts, mainly drawn from the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS).
The Medical Cobotics Centre will act as a training facility for doctors, paramedics, technicians, engineers, biomedical researchers, and entrepreneurs. It is also equipped to offer hands-on simulation training to the medical fraternity across the country, said IIIT Delhi. The Cobotics centre also launched its first call for proposals for young start-ups, with funding up to Rs 1 crore available in digital healthcare and medical healthcare using the above application areas.
The Department of Science and Technology (DST), Government of India, has funded this joint facility to be operated by the technology hubs of both institutes.
The centre is also aimed at having cutting-edge technologies that will enable advanced medical research and development in the areas of healthcare robotics and digital healthcare. It will also act as a test bed for many young start-ups in the medical field that are developing innovations in medical technology in digital medical healthcare and healthcare using AR/VR, AI, Cobotics, Robotics, cognitive sciences, etc, the official press release stated.
During the inauguration ceremony, Dr Akhilesh Gupta, Secretary, SERB and Senior Advisor, DST, GOI said, “This inauguration marks a unique convergence of engineers and doctors, symbolizing the deep collaboration within this MCC and the importance of simulation in testing various medical technologies. In general, most people believe that doctors have unlimited abilities. However, it is important to understand that doctors are also humans who rely on technology to deliver effective treatments.”
“IIT Delhi is delighted to announce the opening of the Medical Cobotics Centre. Healthcare and engineering combine to provide the next frontier. We believe the medical simulator will add to our existing initiatives on medical devices like mPRAGATI to create an innovative ecosystem to provide modern healthcare and create partnerships between IIT Delhi, IIIT, AIIMS and other hospitals”, said Prof Rangan Banerjee, Director, IIT Delhi.
Prof Ranjan Bose, Director, IIIT Delhi, said, “This is indeed a momentous occasion that the Technology Innovation Hubs of two top institutes have come together and are collaborating on a very important area – medical cobotics. There are some well-known advantages of medical cobotics where humans work alongside intelligent and automated technology to improve accuracy and efficiency without losing the human touch.” He further added, “This Centre would strive to develop smart solutions to improve the quality of patient care, augment operational efficiencies and create safer work environments for our healthcare practitioners.”
