Tejas Ajay Zodage
Birla Institute of Technology & Science Pilani – K.K.Birla Goa Campus, India
Biorobotics Lab, The Robotics Institute, Carnegie Mellon University

I am passionate about Arts and applied sciences. The field of robotics merges them beautifully. Developing mechanisms for robotic systems is my core interest. It’s my aim to develop robotic systems for robust and efficient space exploration.
I was elected as a student secretary of Mechanical Engineering Department at BITS Pilani, Goa for 2016-17. I Participated in a robotics competition “Robocon 2016”, and have been the winner of the design competition “Creation” for two consecutive years. As an intern in CEERI Pilani, India, during the summer of 2016, I have worked in developing micro-accelerometer sensors. To develop mathematical skills needed for robotics, I have worked on a project on mathematical modeling of soft robots. The start-up HITCH hired me as an aesthetic and mechanical designer. To explore more into legged robots, I am Working with a team to develop an energy efficient humanoid.
I was a core member of Electronics and robotics club of our campus, and have taken a lecture series on CAD Software SolidWorks and Fusion 360. I am also a Flautist at Music Club BITS Pilani, Goa, I do pencil sketches and have been a part of organizing committees for various music concerts. Working on various technical and artistic activities helps me to be creative in new projects.
Currently, I am a part of RISS internship program at CMU. I am working in Biorobotics Laboratory under Dr. Howie Choset and Matthew J. Travers on three projects namely Hand Held Stiffness Measuring Device, Pain Project, GOAT-leg.

A. Medical Projects:
There were 8.2 million deaths due to cancer around the world in 2012. The diagnosis of cancer tumors is expensive and time-consuming. Many deaths are caused due to late detection of cancer. For convenient tumor diagnosis, we are working on the Hand Held Stiffness Measuring Device. This is a small pen sized device. The doctor will poke it on an organ at a certain number of points. The software will give location and shape of the tumor based on the stiffness. This will help the doctor to judge the effectiveness of the treatment. It will be faster and cheaper as compared to current methods like MRI and X-ray scans.
For the medical treatments, Patients are subjected to a number of injections and saline every day. To reduce this pain, we are working on the Pain Project. This hand-held device will subject the particular area of the body to conditions like heat, cold and vibrations. This will manipulate the nervous system and the pain won’t be felt.

B. Legged Robot:
The conventional wheeled vehicles are made specifically for planar terrains. They miserably fail in the applications like extraterrestrial planet exploration, transportation in the rural areas etc. Legged vehicles are more efficient, robust and save the cost of road construction. This motivates me to work on the project GOAT-leg. It’s a robot having 3-D agility. I am working on improving the efficiency of this robot using springs. My experience of participating in the robotics competition, personal projects and Mechanical engineering background help me a lot while working on these projects.
I have enjoyed working for all my projects so far. I would like to pursue a doctorate in the field of robotics and am positive that I will serve the mankind with the knowledge I gain. The RISS program is a stepping stone towards my dream

Resume Link: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B–fMFF0DZr1OWU3cEVJbHN1N1k/view?usp=sharing