IIT Kharagpur has inaugurated a new research laboratory, MANAS — the Multi-modal AI in Navigation and Automation for Surgical Robotics Laboratory — in collaboration with the Intuitive Foundation, the non-profit arm funded by Intuitive Surgical, the global leader in robotic-assisted minimally invasive care. The launch marks a major step in India’s medical technology research, bringing together artificial intelligence, robotics and surgical sciences.
The MANAS initiative aims to develop detailed digital models of surgical care pathways that can support safer guidance, AI-enabled decision support and responsible early-stage automation in future robotic-assisted procedures. By mapping surgical decisions and workflows, the research seeks to help surgeons work with greater consistency and confidence, contributing to more standardised and predictable patient outcomes.
The laboratory was inaugurated by Dr Catherine Mohr, President of the Intuitive Foundation, alongside Prof Suman Chakraborty, Director of IIT Kharagpur, Prof Surjya K. Pal, Dean of Research and Development, and Prof Partha Pratim Chakrabarti, with senior representatives from Intuitive India also in attendance. The programme at IIT Kharagpur is led by Prof Debdoot Sheet and Prof Subhamoy Mandal.
Central to the research at MANAS will be the use of the da Vinci Research Kit (dVRK), a non-clinical research platform created from retired da Vinci robotic systems that allows researchers to link digital models with real robotic movements. Experiments will be conducted in controlled laboratory environments using phantoms, synthetic tissues and anatomical models, with no human surgery involved.
The work will draw on real clinical insights, including documentation of cholecystectomy procedures, to refine digital models and identify decision points and tasks suited for AI guidance or selective automation. The programme is supported by IIT Kharagpur’s collaboration with Nil Ratan Sircar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata, reinforcing the connection between computational research and practical surgical expertise.
Researchers expect MANAS to produce two key outcomes: a complete digital footprint of surgical pathways that integrates diagnostic, planned and intra-operative information to highlight safer techniques and trace sources of complications, and the responsible introduction of targeted automation for repeatable, well-defined tasks, allowing surgeons to focus on complex decision-making.
This collaboration underlines IIT Kharagpur’s commitment to advancing cutting-edge research with global relevance and societal benefit, and it positions the institute as a significant contributor to the future of AI-driven robotic surgery research.
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