Bavarian High-Tech Awards: Schweinfurt THWS graduate honoured by Bavaria's Minister for Science Markus Blume
Shubham Joshi, a graduate of the Technical University of Applied Sciences Würzburg-Schweinfurt (THWS), was awarded the Bavarian High-Tech Award in the graduate category. At a formal ceremony in Munich, the Bavarian Minister for Science and the Arts, Markus Blume, presented the former Schweinfurt robotics student with his certificate, which also comes with prize money of 2,000 euros.
The prize is awarded to engineering graduates from Bavarian universities and higher education institutions and recognises outstanding academic or doctoral degrees. A total of five young engineers were honoured in the graduate category. In his keynote address, Minister for Science Markus Blume said: "Congratulations to our award winners: you prove once again that Bavaria’s higher education institutions are hotbeds of innovation and problem-solvers."
Shubham Joshi was honoured for his work on optimising the determination of gripping positions for parcels in logistics. He had previously been awarded a prize by the Hans-Wilhelm Renkhoff Foundation for his bachelor's thesis, and had also received the VDE Bayern Award for the same work. He was nominated for both awards by his supervisor, Professor Dr. Volker Willert. "We are still working together at the moment to finalise further publications," said Professor Dr. Willert. The current bachelor's students in robotics have also continued Shubham Joshi's work at the Center for Robotics at THWS in Schweinfurt – "and he remains in contact with them, for example to explain the software to them."
Improving the lives of people with disabilities
Shubham Joshi is currently studying the master’s programme in robotics at the Technical University of Munich whilst also working at the German Aerospace Center (DLR). What drives him is that he himself has cochlear implants and wants his work to make everyday life easier for people with disabilities. At the DLR, he is working on equipping a wheelchair with a robotic arm that enables people to eat independently or carry out other everyday tasks.
Shubham Joshi's final thesis
This final thesis advances the field of computer vision – that is, computer-based vision – a sub-field of artificial intelligence. In his bachelor's thesis with the title Leveraging Geometric Constraints in 6D Grasp Pose Estimation of the Top Face of Rectangular Cuboids from RGB-D Data, the THWS graduate developed a new approach to quickly and highly accurately calculate the 6D pose (the position and orientation in space) of rectangular surfaces from a camera image, including data from a depth camera. This makes it possible, for example, to determine the spatial position of cardboard boxes even when they are only partially visible, and to calculate the appropriate grasping pose. This is important to ensure that an autonomous robot can reliably and safely grasp and load cardboard boxes in a warehouse. The thesis thus drives forward automation in logistics and relieves people of heavy labour.
About the Bavarian High-Tech Awards
In addition to the five graduate prizes, the Young Talent Prize, worth 30,000 euros, was awarded to Dr. Lukas Burgholzer from the Technical University of Munich. The main prize – the Bavarian Minister-President’s High-Tech Prize – is the most highly endowed award for technology and engineering sciences in Germany, worth 300,000 euros. It was awarded to Professor Dr. Daniela Rus from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the US. She is an expert in robotics and autonomous systems engineering. This marks the second time that the Bavarian State Government, in collaboration with the Bavarian Academy of Sciences (BAdW), has recognised pioneering research and innovation.
More information on the High-Tech Award in the graduate category
About THWS
The Technical University of Applied Sciences Würzburg-Schweinfurt (THWS) is one of the largest universities of applied sciences in Bavaria and has driven teaching and applied research since it was founded in 1971. With about 9,200 students, a diverse range of more than 60 degree programmes and two graduate schools, THWS covers a broad spectrum from technology, economics and social sciences to languages and design. THWS is not only rooted in the region, but also has a strong international focus, which is reflected in numerous collaborations and exchange programmes worldwide and also in diverse English-taught degree programmes.
Contact:
Technical University of Applied Sciences Würzburg-Schweinfurt
Center for Robotics (CERI)
Professor Dr.-Ing. Volker Willert
Ignaz-Schön-Str. 11
97421 Schweinfurt
Press contact:
Technical University of Applied Sciences Würzburg-Schweinfurt
Angela Kreipl
Münzstr. 12
97070 Würzburg
+49 931 3511-8354
