· From Pre-seed mentoring to incubation to Acceleration -IHFC showcases all under one roof
                             · Prof. Abhay Karandikar, Secretary, DST, Graces the Occasion as the Chief Guest

New Delhi - The I-Hub Foundation for Cobotics (IHFC) at the Indian Institute of Technology Delhi (IIT Delhi) proudly marked its 5th anniversary, celebrating half a decade of pioneering innovation and technological advancement. As IHFC embarks on its sixth year, it continues its mission as a catalyst for innovation, empowerment, and upskilling, with a strong focus on developing advanced indigenous technology for societal progress.
The celebration commenced with addresses from Chief Guest, Prof. Abhay Karandikar, Secretary, Department of Science and Technology (DST), Government of India; Prof. Rangan Banerjee, Director, IIT Delhi; and Prof. Subir Kumar Saha, Project Director, IHFC, followed by a thank-you note to ecosystem partners and launching new collaborative calls by Mr. Ashutosh Dutt Sharma, CEO, IHFC.

(Photo: Prof. Abhay Karandikar, Secretary, DST)

Speaking at the event, Prof. Abhay Karandikar, Secretary, DST, highlighted the vision behind creating hubs like IHFC, "The DST's National Mission on Interdisciplinary Cyber Physical System was a 'game-changing paradigm' in funding, leading to the creation of independent Section 8 companies like IHFC within academic institutions, a first for the DST. This unique structure was designed to become a 'fulcrum of fostering the industry academy of collaboration'. The mission has been successful in creating a platform for translational research and fostering collaborations with industry and end-users. We view hubs such as IHFC crucial for providing a pipeline of deep-tech startups and industry linkages."

Prof. Rangan Banerjee, Director, IIT Delhi, said, “We are delighted to celebrate five years of IHFC. With the support of the DST, IHFC has catalysed research, incubation, and capacity building in collaborative robotics. We have established 10 co-innovation partners across the country and have supported innovative products in drones, strategic sector applications, medical cobotics, and agriculture. We look forward to enabling the development of cost-effective cobotics products to impact the lives of Indians and be globally competitive.”

The key highlight of the event was an exhibition inaugurated by Prof. Karandikar, where 25 of IHFC supported R&D Projects, Startups and Pre-seed projects were showcased.

Amongst the technologies showcased, which was a mix of pre-seed projects, incubated startups, startups and R&D projects, the ones, which stood apart were the ones with TRL readiness of 7-9.

Startups

· Arka Aerospace - Redefining UAV performance for both commercial and defence sectors.

· Articulus Surgicals - creating accessible robotic system enabling minimal invasive surgeries in medtech.

· Botlabs Dynamic - The name behind the best drone swarming show in entertainment industry.

· Exobot - Advanced affordable bionic limbs

· Kaidoko - Harnessing AI for Cognitive Psychometrics and behavioural analysis

· Pixuate - For real tine AI driven video analytics to enhance security across industry

· Rancho Labs - Creating Robotic solution for educational activities

· Tsaw drones- Delivering advanced UAV systems customised for defence and space missions

· Xterra-Specialises on autonomous legged robots for inspection, surveillance defence and security

In R&D

· Orthopaedic Bending late – Only one in the world to reduce chances of errors during complicated Ortho surgeries. This
    automates bending of ortho plates for precise fit making surgeries faster and errors reduced.

· ENRICH - Smart affordable prosthetic hand. EMG controlled for upper limb amputees

· Photonic FMCWRadar Module - Smart light-based radar tracking cars and drones with 3D precision.

· FMCW Radar Transmitter - Low noise radar transmitter that sends signals at 6-12-24 ghtz simultaneously giving rare,
   flexible control for hi precision radar performance. BLDC motors - Cost effective with improved efficiency and high-speed
   indigenised BLDC motor for agriculture, industry, defence and more reducing imports.

Pre-seed projects-- READY program-

· NeuroDhrishti - Smart AI glasses (multimodal glasses, combined computer vision, voice AI and smart sensors) to
   empower the visually impaired and elderly.

· SolarGuard - AI driven drone systems for optimised solar panel maintenance.

· MORPH T1280 - Next gen tri-propulsion hybrid transforming robot

· DiagnoPlus - AI based error detection in diagnostic reports for brain tumour and lung CT scan

Over the last five years, IHFC has established itself as a key player in India’s technology landscape, fostering collaboration between academia and industry. Its initiatives include developing indigenous technologies and establishing state-of-the-art facilities such as the Medical Cobotics Centres, Drone Technology Park, and Co-Innovation Centres across premier institutes in India. Today, IHFC supports over 40 startups, 46 R&D projects, 10 co-innovation centers, and maintains 5 international collaborations.

Reflecting on IHFC’s journey, Prof. Subir Kumar Saha, Project Director, IHFC, said, “IHFC has been focused on creating indigenous technologies that make an impact. Over the last five years, we have worked tirelessly to build a robust ecosystem for developing deep-tech solutions in collaborative robotics.”

Mr. Ashutosh Dutta Sharma, CEO, IHFC, said, “As we step into our sixth year, we look forward to accelerating our mission of translating groundbreaking research into commercial technologies that will empower society and strengthen India’s technological prowess.”

                      

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