Lockheed Martin to fund Delhi undergrads' next-gen UAV

Impressed by the talent of a group of engineering undergraduates who won top honours at an international competition for unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), US aerospace major Lockheed Martin announced Tuesday it would fund their efforts to create a new generation machine that would have civilian and military applications.

"Here is a group of students who are undergraduates and have worked on a technology they don't even have classes on," said Ray O. Johnson, Lockheed Martin senior vice president and chief technology officer, while announcing the company would ink a deal with the Delhi Technology University (DTU), to which the 10 students belong.

"We will provide the broad parameters of the design requirements to be implemented by the students," he added.

While congratulating the students, Johnson said: "This partnership is one more example of Lockheed Martin's long-term commitment to India and the partnerships which we seek to develop and nurture."

The company will provide the student group with Lockheed Martin-generated design space to structure their efforts. The team will be required to make an initial design and then develop a flying prototype - with the drones hopefully going into production by the Commonwealth Games in October 2010.

"These will be ideal vehicles for carrying out aerial surveillance at the Games' venues and also for controlling traffic," P.B. Sharma, the vice chancellor of the DTU, which was previously known as the Delhi College of Engineering (DCE).

Sharma, along with other DTU faculty, had guided the 10 students who won the director's award for the best team effort for demonstrating a successful flight of a UAV at the 2009 Association of Unmanned Vehicles System International (AUVSI) Student Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) competition.

Explaining the salient features of the new UAV, Rochak Chadha, a third year student of electronics and communications engineering, said the effort would be to increase its endurance to 10 hours from an hour the existing machine can stay aloft.

"It will also run on an electric motor against the present petrol engine, we will downsize the autopilot and change the camera system for greater resolution and clarity," Chadha added.

Speaking about what motivated the team to start work on the existing craft, Chadha said: "Technology for UAV's is woefully lacking and the defence forces have to import these from Israel. We wanted to work on the ultimate level of robotics and to create something that was commercially viable."

"The global UAV market is currently estimated at $3.4 billion and has the potential to rise to $7 billion in 10 years," he added.

Asked if the defence ministry has been approached for potential purchase of the UAV, Sharma replied: "The defence ministry and ADA (Aeronautical Development Agency) are aware of our capabilities. But more than that, there is tremendous potential for the machine in the civilian sector."

Indian Company, AZIMUTH, Offers First Complete Online Course to Become a Medical Transcriptionist in India

T
oday Azimuth Academy (www.azimuthacademy.com) announced its new online course for Medical Transcriptionists. Online workers can get trained from the comfort of their homes at the time and pace of their choice. The duration for online MT Training is about 750 hours or approximately 4 months. Upon positive completion, jobs are guaranteed.

Whether it is for the convenience of the work hours, the independence, the savings of the long commute hours, the only choice to work in a very remote area.for many, online work is the solution.

Azimuth Academy is the training division of Azimuth, a leading BPO - Medical Transcription service provider based in Pondicherry, South India. It has associates that have been working from home for several years from various different locations, including from outside India.

The company has already successfully trained hundreds of medical transcriptionists and opens its training online (in complement to its Pondicherry Campus) to any graduate with good English comprehension skills. The candidate needs to have an Internet connection and a computer and must be reasonably at ease with the Internet in order to browse through the online course materials.

The number of Medical Transcriptionist in India is estimated to be around 20,000. There is a shortage of well-trained and qualified MTs and all graduates from the online or on campus training from Azimuth Academy are placed in the Company or in other reputed MT companies. The demand for high quality services is very strong in the US also.

The enrollment and attending the online Azimuth Academy course is very easy. Terry Leger MD and CEO for Azimuth says "We have put a lot of effort over the past 2 years in the development of an easy to use and efficient training course." The learning management system of Azimuth Academy is based on the world's best e-learning SCORM standards. In fact one can see a demo at www azimuthacademy.com.

"Our candidates come from very different background and all enjoy the convenience of the online training. They are recently graduated freshers, housewives returning to the job market, job seekers looking for a better opportunity etc. The new affordable Internet access from home makes the online training very attractive" adds Mr. Leger.

At their own pace the students get to their home computer and study for a few hours with the multi media online materials. All the necessary techniques are covered. Language of medicine, medical transcription rules etc. Live teachers' assistance is just a click or a phone call away. Technical support and assistance is 24 hours a day.

The average salaries for qualified MTs are quite high and the cost of the training is easily covered by only 2 months income after the training.

Azimuth guarantees placements for the qualified MTs after successful completion of training.

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