SeDriCa — Self Driving Car
Mahindra RISE Driverless Car Challenge | UMIC, IIT Bombay
Nov 2018 – May 2020 · Team Manager & Technical Team Member

Part of a 20-member team and one of the 11 finalists among 289 teams competing in the Mahindra RISE Driverless Car Challenge to build India's first self-driving car targeting level 5 autonomy. Received a Mahindra E2O for development.

Contributions:
• Trained Traffic Sign and Traffic Light classifiers (ResNet-50 / ResNet-152) in the computer vision subsystem.
• Handled Path Planning & Decision Making — optimized the vehicle's path using obstacle and traffic-signal data via ROS.
• Implemented the RRT* algorithm and integrated it through ROS, replacing the earlier Hybrid-A* for faster and more accurate path finding.

video| team page

ASME Student Design Challenge 2019
American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) | UMIC, IIT Bombay
Nov 2018 – Feb 2019 · Technical Team Member

Built a remote-controlled bot (“Deepu”) capable of picking, storing and placing balls ranging from table-tennis to basketball size, within a 50×50 cm footprint.

Contributions:
• Programmed Roboteq controller for encoder-geared DC motors driving mecanum wheels.
• Programmed Arduino to simultaneously control a stepper motor and two servo motors.
• Controlled the bot via transmitter during testing to improve speed and accuracy.

Result: Overall Winners of the ASME SDC Asia-Pacific Regionals (Vellore, among 20 colleges). Qualified to represent India at the World Finals in Utah, USA (Nov 2019).

code