MIT Tata Center for
Technology & Design
Overview
2014 Call for Proposals
Information Session
tatacenter.mit.edu
Tata Center Overview
• Design in context of developing
world
• Not necessarily Bottom of the
Pyramid
• Window for graduate students
and faculty
• Students spend time in India
• Develop technologically
sophisticated products & services
• Shovel ready thesis
• No “studies” per se, rather projects
with connections to designs/
implementation
• Commercial or government
implementation is the goal
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Tata Center Key Data
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47 Graduate Student Tata Fellows
30 Faculty representing 20 Departments/ Programs
7 Postdocs & 6 Staff
25 current projects in 5 focus areas
• Projects can be single or multi-student
Health
Agriculture
Energy
Water
Housing/Infrastructure
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What is a Tata Center project?
• Mitigates the “constraints” associated with the
developing world
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Scale
Cost
Infrastructure Dependency
Access to Energy, Water, etc.
• Develops solutions needed by the developing world
that wouldn’t otherwise become available
• Informed through close interactions with Indian
communities, business and government
• Embodied in a thesis that provides the basis for new
product or system in the developing world
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Single Student Project Example:
Prosthetic Foot Development
• Katy Olesavanage Video
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Multi-Student Project:
Ad hoc Electric Grid Architecture for Universal Access
Develop a technology platform for electricity delivery
• Peer-to-peer transactions mediated primarily by distributed intelligence
• An intelligent ‘point-of-connection’ in place of current power electronics
Principal Investigator/Project Coordinator: Rajeev Ram (EECS)
Post Doctoral Fellow: Reja Amatya (MITEI)
Electrification market
analysis and design &
construct GIS model
Systems level design &
analysis of proposed
electrification scheme
Distributed control
algorithm (software) for
electricity distribution
Power electronics
design/construct, point of
connection (hardware)
Y. Borofsky (DUSP)
I. Perez-Arriaga (ESD)
D. Ellman (TPP)
I. Perez-Arriaga (ESD)
D. Strawser (ME/Aero)
B. Williams (Aero)
W. Inam (EECS)
D. Perrault (EECS)
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Learning on the ground…..visits to
energy service providers in India
Mera Gao Power
(MGP): DC micro
grid operator
Husk Power: AC mini-grid
operator
Selco: Solar Home System
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OMC Power: Anchor
customer (Telecom tower)
Tata Fellowship
• Admitted by an MIT department, then apply to Tata Center
• 2 years’ stipend, tuition & research budget support
• Develop stakeholder-driven technical & business model solutions
for the resource constrained Indian environment, but with focus
on wider applicability
• Integrates with department degree requirements
• Significant travel to India: 6 week summer, 2 week IAP
• Requires participation in the Tata Seminar (15.s17, 6 credits first
fall/spring, 3 credits 2nd year onwards)
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RFP Details
• Open to all MIT community members with PI status
• Focus on solving concrete challenges in India!
• Require technology or business model development/application
• Preference given to Tata focus areas, other areas considered
- Energy
- Water
- Housing/Infrastructure
- Health Care
- Agriculture
- Waste
• Explain relevance of fieldwork in India & timeline to completion
• PIs are strongly encouraged to actively participate in India
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RFP Awards
• Awards consist of full 2-year fellowship for each student
• 2nd year award is contingent on student progress at the end of the 1st year
• $25,000 in funds per student per year to PI for use on the project
or related activities
• Equipment budget of up to $25,000 per project
• Must be specified in the proposal
• One time award per project
• Funds for students/PIs to travel to India as needed
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Proposal Guidelines
Submission Requirements
Cover page
Project Title
Name, title, department of PI, Co-PI, investigators
Phone, email address of primary contact
Number of Full-time Graduate Students Requested
Equipment Funds Requested
Abstract
Brief description of problem/goals to be addressed
Applications should be submitted online.
URL will be announced when the RFP is formally released on Dec. 13, 2013
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RFP Process & Timing
Optional 1-page abstract
• Submit by:
• Feedback by:
Monday, January 6, 2014.
Monday, January 20, 2014
Full Release RFP:
Friday, December 13, 2014
Proposal Deadline:
Monday, Feb. 17, 2014
Awards Announced:
Monday, March 3, 2014
Fellowship Nominations:
no later than May 31, 2014
Project Start Date:
June 1, 2014 (or later)
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For more information contact:
Dr. Rich Roth, Executive Director
rroth@mit.edu | +1.617.253.6487
Patricia Reilly, Assistant Director
reilly@mit.edu | +1.617.324.7026
Dr. Rob Stoner, Co-Director
stoner@mit.edu | +1.617.715.5472
Professor Charlie Fine, Co-Director
charley@mit.edu | +1.617.253.3632
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