IIT Bombay Prof Develops Autonomous Tech for the Repair and Restoration of High-Value Aerospace Components

New technology can autonomously repair & restore high-value components such as moulds, turbine blades & aerospace components

A professor from IIT Bombay has developed a completely autonomous technology for the repair and restoration of high-value components such as moulds, turbine blades, and other aerospace components that require minimal human intervention. It is expected that this technology will leap-frog the restoration and repair industry to the next level and help in nucleation of a viable cutting-edge laser manufacturing ecosystem for Atmanirbhar Bharat.

The existing repair techniques like welding and thermal spraying are ad hoc and do not provide accuracy and precision. Moreover, all the existing technologies are manual, and the quality of repair depends upon the skill set of the person.

Prof. Ramesh Kumar Singh, Professor, Mechanical Engineering Department, IIT Bombay, has developed a novel technology that uses a laser for excellent process control and is completely autonomous with minimal to zero human intervention. This ensures restoration with enhanced quality and repeatability.

The complete developed system with its all subsystems. There are two options for the manipulation of the deposition head: one with 6 Axis robotic manipulators and the second with gantry-based 5 Axis systems. A 3D printed hollow cylinder, plate, and punch of H13 tool steel hard-faced with CPM 9V steel are also shown

The technology developed with support from the Advanced Manufacturing Technologies Program of the Department of Science & Technology, Government of India, has undergone validation and testing.

With the help of the technology, the defective component which requires repair will be scanned autonomously for damage detection via a laser scanner, and the deposition path will be determined based on certain algorithms. The laser-directed energy deposition (LDED) technique will be used to deposit the material, followed by finishing and automated inspection of the restored product.

The developed system consists of a robotic restoration system and is designed to function autonomously for all key activities, namely, scanning path planning, damage detection, deposition, finishing, and inspection. In addition, the process parameters will be obtained from physics-based models to induce favourable residual stress, which is one of the key limitations in restoration via additive manufacturing. This paves the way for the development of ‘science enabled technology’ solutions, which according to Prof. Ramesh Kumar Singh, are not available for restoration of high-value components.

The final integration of the two systems-- the laser-directed energy deposition and the defect scanning systems, is underway, and the project is at 7th stage of the Technology Readiness Level. Prof. Ramesh has allied with Bharat Forge, Aditya Birla Science and Technology Company and Interface Design Associates for its industrial uptake.

 The Scanning System for the damage assessment of components. The 3-D point cloud can be acquired by data-fusion of 2-D profiles obtained continuously from laser scanners and the position of robot end-effecter. The actual and scanned 3D free form components are also shown.

"The developed technology is very impactful, and a game-changer for the restoration and repair segment of the manufacturing industry and has huge market potential. The components which can be reconditioned via this technology are very high-value. The level of accuracy and precision, which is possible through this technology, is phenomenal and is far ahead of the current state-of-the-art methods," mentioned Prof. Ramesh.

According to Prof. Ramesh, it is expected that the pay-off from the technology would include the entire machine cost with around repair of twenty-odd components.

Source - www.pib.gov.in

Combating Counterfeit Drugs Using Blockchain Technology

This content has been authored by Ashwani Kumar, Vice President, Technology at Coforge (Formerly known as NIIT Technologies), an Indian MNC serving clients across the globe in IT solutions.

Featuring among one of the most unfortunate and malice practices of the modern age, counterfeit drugs open the can of worms of the pharmaceutical industry. Counterfeit drugs not only represent an inordinate amount of black money made through illicit means but also bring forth large scale health hazards for genuine patients. Great healthcare, infrastructure and availability of medicines at affordable prices are some pressing issues that every nation in the world is striving towards. 

Healthcare, just like education, is a basic right of every person. However, the greed of some people to make filthy money at the cost of human lives has poisoned the system. But with the advancement of technology, is it not possible to tackle and resolve this burning issue of counterfeit drugs using blockchain technology?

Well, quite a few tech companies are working in this field, for instance, Coforge, where Ashwani Kumar is the VP, technology. They have developed innovative applications that resolve the issue of counterfeit drugs to a large extent. We will talk more about what Coforge is doing in the latter half of this article. But first, let us briefly understand what blockchain technology is.

Understanding The Fundamentals of Blockchain Technology

This technology has been overtly spoken about in recent times. However, it remains to be established if its wide-scale implementation potential has been fully unveiled. As a matter of fact, a whole bunch of people consider blockchain technology synonymous with cryptocurrency or simply, Bitcoin. Only after understanding the underlying algorithms and working behind blockchain technology, could one begin to grasp the scope and potential that it holds. 

For the uninitiated, the simple way to understand blockchain technology is the following: A huge amount of data (transactions) are stored in blocks that are connected to each other via a chain that is the distributed ledger making the entire technology decentralised.

Since the proof of every single transaction on the blockchain is stored publicly, it becomes nigh impossible to edit or delete these entries. Each block gets its own hash code which is available to thousands of computers globally. Therefore, if a hacker were to invade the space to commit fraud, he has to change the hash codes of every block while every computer on the server will be notified of the same. That is the essence of blockchain technology that makes it so secure and transparent. Such relevant characteristics of any modern technology can find application in any field. That is why the question arises if blockchain technology can tackle the issue of counterfeit drugs? The short answer is yes!

Modern Technology As A Weapon Against Eliminating Counterfeit Drugs

With the issue of counterfeit drugs, fraud could happen at any stage right from manufacturing to distribution. Hence, comprehensive monitoring systems are needed to keep track of every aspect, starting from raw materials, manufacturing, to warehouses, carrying and forwarding agents, retailers, pharmacies and the consumers. For that, there are dedicated services by large IT firms like Coforge, which we had mentioned earlier. 

Ashwani Kumar has the domain expertise of years and the company has invested its resources in developing effective strategies to, ideally, eradicate counterfeit drugs. The application achieves this by recognising fake content of the QR code or barcode that is used extensively at every phase of the industry. 

The dashboard preview of the application pinpoints the offenders where the fraud has been committed. The customers are not mere spectators but also have the power to report such instances. The insights to the suspected activity are classified by region, category or product type in the form of visual graphs and charts. Using the in-house developed application based on blockchain technology, the users could track their orders to ensure the authenticity of the medicine.

In inference, there is sufficient evidence available in the form of companies like Coforge, to ascertain that blockchain technology could prove to be an effective weapon against the menace of counterfeit drugs. In an ideal scenario, more companies will come forward using this technology to resolve such grave issues of our times.