Robot ‘ASC Arjun’ to assist RPF personnel and passengers
RPF IG Alok Bohra and Divisional Railway Manager of Waltair Division Lalit Bohra examining the performance of ASC Arjun in Visakhapatnam
- The robot is designed to assist railway operations in areas such as security surveillance, passenger assistance, crowd management, cleanliness monitoring and safety awareness
- It is capable of identifying intruders using a Face Recognition System (FRS) and can instantly alert the RPF personnel through IoT-enabled notifications
- ASC Arjun can deliver safety and information announcements in English, Hindi and Telugu, enhancing passenger awareness
Visakhapatnam: In a major technological leap aimed at enhancing passenger safety, security and service delivery, Waltair Division of East Coast Railway has introduced a humanoid robot named ‘ASC Arjun’ at Visakhapatnam railway station. This is the first-of-its-kind humanoid robot to be deployed in Indian Railways.
Developed as part of the by the Railway Protection Force’s (RPF) modernisation and digital transformation initiatives, ASC Arjun is designed to assist railway operations in areas such as security surveillance, passenger assistance, crowd management, cleanliness monitoring and safety awareness.
As part of the indigenous innovation, the robot has been crafted and developed in Visakhapatnam under the guidance of RPF IG Alok Bohra and Divisional Railway Manager of Waltair Division Lalit Bohra with the team led by Divisional Security Commandant, AK Dubey worked for over a year to develop the new system.
The robot is capable of identifying intruders using a Face Recognition System (FRS) and can instantly alert the RPF personnel through IoT-enabled notifications. It also performs AI-based passenger density analysis to help prevent congestion and enable proactive crowd control during peak hours by sending alerts to the control room.
In addition, ASC Arjun can deliver safety and information announcements in English, Hindi and Telugu, enhancing passenger awareness. It features semi-autonomous navigation with obstacle avoidance, allowing continuous patrolling and round-the-clock presence thereby reducing manpower burden.
The humanoid also interacts with passengers through friendly gestures and information support, improving public trust and the perception of RPF authority. Continuous monitoring through an integrated dashboard provides a real-time intelligence to assist effective decision-making by RPF and control rooms.
Describing the initiative, the Divisional Railway Manager mentioned that ASC Arjun is equipped with advanced Artificial Intelligence (AI), Internet of Things (IoT) connectivity and real-time monitoring capabilities, enabling it to function as a smart assistant for both RPF personnel as well as passengers.
