PositiveNewsCorner

Based on inputs by Shahid Kazi

Indian Railways has developed an AI-powered robot, called USTAAD (Undergear Surveillance Through Artificial Intelligence Assisted Droid’) . The robot will help examine parts of a rail coach in real-time using HD camera and transmit data over WiFi. The robot is developed by the mechanical branch of Central Railway’s Nagpur division.

The Central Railway will use this robot to click pictures and record videos of under-gear parts of trains. Railway engineers can study these videos on a big screen and even record them for sharing it with seniors for their opinions.

With the advanced technical capabilities of USTAAD, the chances of any error due to oversight by the human eye can be eliminated. USTAAD is designed to help engineers because the cramped and narrow spaces between and under the gear parts can be easily captured. The task is made easier as USTAAD is equipped with a HD (high-definition) camera, which can move 320-degrees on X axis and 130 degrees on Y axis. The maximum portion of under-gear parts gets covered with the robot. The camera can capture video as well as still photographs.

The camera can also zoom in or zoom out on the spot, during safety inspections. The robot is equipped with LED flood lights, to shoot in the dark mode. It can capture video in low light condition and includes a dark mode.

Indian Railways is now planning to use USTAAD across zones once an intense internal testing is done.