The TTK Group has committed ₹3.68 crore over the next five years for the newly established TTK Centre for Rehabilitation Research and Device Development (R2D2) at IIT Madras.

TT Jagannathan, Chairman, TTK Prestige and an alumnus of the institute, inaugurated the centre at the Department of Mechanical Engineering where he did his B.Tech in 1970. The centre was launched at the reunion of the institute’s 1970 batch alumnus.

The funding will facilitate sustained efforts of a group headed by Sujatha Srinivasan, Associate Professor, and her students in the department to enable individuals with physical impairments to lead independent lives through the use of orthotic, prosthetic, and other assistive devices.

Srinivasan said that developing assistive devices for people affected by locomotor impairments is a focus area in the centre. Working prototypes have been developed for devices such as a standing wheelchair, a prosthetic knee, a swimming pool lift and a body-motion-controlled wheelchair, says a press release from the institute.

The centre will develop affordable products for rehabilitation needs, work with clinical specialists, NGOs and hospitals to field-test designs, and foster a research environment to evaluate assistive device designs and improve upon them from biomechanical and functional standpoints. It intends to work with like-minded industrial partners so that high quality designs reach the mass market at affordable prices, says the release.

Jagannathan addressing his batch mates said that the foundation provided by institute made it possible for him to comfortably post-graduate in Operations Research from Cornell University and later head the TTK Group and make contributions to product innovation.

In the past, a Chair was created by IITM in the name of TTK in recognition of support extended by TTK Group.

Related Topics
comment COMMENT NOW