IIT Bombay Techfest 2015: Key highlights

IIT-B’s 2015 Techfest, which attracted students, startups and tech enthusiasts across the country, culminated yesterday with a spectacular live musical show. The three-day event showcased some mind-boggling tech innovations from India and abroad, along with some exciting events and lectures by renowned personalities, including Dr. A.P.J Abdul Kalam, mathematician Manjul Bhargava, and Google Doodle’s Ryan Germick.

While the Techfest had plenty of talking points, here are some of the key highlights that stole the show.

Tigers Mannheim - A group of German students showcased soccer-playing robots called “Tigers Mannheim.” This tiny group of robots make use of clever algorithms to communicate with each other to manoeuvre the ball into the opponent’s goal.

Beach Bot - The Beach Bot, designed to look like a turtle, is an autonomous robot that can create large scale sand art. Showcased by a Swiss group of mechanical engineers, the Beach Bot makes use of CAD processes to engrave beautiful artwork on sand.

Bionico Hand - Nicholas Huchet showcased the low-cost prosthetic arm, that can help amputees pick up objects and do light-weight work. The device makes use of 3D printed parts, which significantly reduces the cost and time of manufacturing. It’s an open-source project and is still under development.

Dr. A.P.J Abdul Kalam’s speech: The ex-President of India addressed the crowds to support his dream of digitalising rural parts of India. “In two years, India should move away from consumption of costly fuel to providing solar energy. Youngsters will be the pioneers of India’s future development. I am sharing this with you, so that you can become future ambassadors for solar power,” he said.

Oculus Rift - Techfest 2015 showcased the Oculus Rift in order to give scores of students across India a glimpse of the virtual reality gaming headset. This was the first time that the headset was showcased in India, giving students an opportunity to get to grips with the capabilities of 6D virtual reality and help them think of innovative applications.

The festival presented several other robot exhibits, including the eco-friendly Hovis, Humanoids and a bio-inspired flying devices. Other attractions included 3D chess, virtual navigation, F1 simulator, laser tag, body zorbing and an all-terrain vehicle, keeping young tech enthusiasts entertained throughout the three-day event.