Cyber Physical Systems and India’s national mission

Why in the News

Cyber Physical Systems (CPS) and India’s mission to build national capacity in the field were profiled.

Core Facts

1. Definition: Cyber Physical Systems integrate computation, networking and physical processes. Sensors and actuators link software control to physical machines.
2. Applications: Uses span smart manufacturing, autonomous systems, healthcare and defence.
3. National effort: The National Mission on Interdisciplinary Cyber Physical Systems (NM-ICPS) drives India’s work in this area.
4. Nodal department: The Department of Science and Technology (DST) implements the mission.

Static Context

1. Mission approval: The mission was approved in 2018 and carries an outlay of about 3,660 crore rupees over five years.
2. Hub model: The mission set up 25 Technology Innovation Hubs (TIHs) at institutions such as the Indian Institutes of Technology and the Indian Institute of Science.
3. Scope: Covered technologies include Artificial Intelligence, the Internet of Things, robotics and machine learning.

Prelims Angle

1. The nodal department for NM-ICPS is the DST.
2. The mission runs through Technology Innovation Hubs.
3. The definition of a Cyber Physical System is a likely conceptual hook.

Mains Angle

1. GS3, awareness in the field of Information Technology and robotics: A question can ask how emerging technologies serve the economy and national security.
2. The capacity side: It can probe skilling and research capacity.

Matching Previous Year Question

“[2020] With the present state of development, Artificial Intelligence can effectively do which of the following? (1) Bring down electricity consumption in industrial units (2) Create meaningful short stories and songs (3) Disease diagnosis (4) Text-to-Speech Conversion (5) Wireless transmission of electrical energy Select the correct answer using the code given below: (a) 1, 2, 3 and 5 only (b) 1, 3 and 4 only (c) 2, 4 and 5 only (d) 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 Answer: (b)”