Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur(IIT Kanpur) is an educational and research institute funded by Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD), Government of India. Over the past five decades, IITKanpur has been striving to develop itself into an institution of excellence in consonance with the needs of the country. These goals have been achieved through a meaningful education program, original research of the highest standard and leadership in various spheres of technology. With path-breaking innovations in both its curriculum and research, IIT Kanpur has gained a considerable reputation.

IIT Kanpur has 14 departments and 5 interdisciplinary programmes viz. Aerospace Engineering, Biological Sciences and Bioengineering, Chemical Engineering, Civil Engineering, Computer Science and Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Materials Science and Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Humanities and Social Sciences Chemistry, Earth Sciences, Mathematics& Statistics, Physics, Industrial Management and Engineering, Environmental Engineering and Management, Laser Technology, Materials Science, Nuclear Engineering, Design programme.

IIT Kanpur has 7 Research Centers, 4 National Facilities, and in house innovation & incubation center endowed with state-of-the-art facilities. 

Some unique facilities available at IIT Kanpur are National Wind Tunnel Facility to meet the national needs in aeronautical and non-aeronautical activities; a 6-rack Real Time Digital Simulation (RTDS)facility to carry out advanced research on practical power   systems; the Pseudo-Dynamic (PsD) testing facility to provide a means for simulation of earthquake  loading for prototypical structures as large as a full-scale three-storey building or a 15m long bridge; Engine Research Lab, a flexible internal combustion system with provision to vary fuel injection strategies and timing, supercharging boost pressure, control and measurement of fuel injection pressure and injection pattern.

The Institute established SIDBI Innovation and Incubation Center (SIIC) (http://www.iitk.ac.in/siic/index.html) for to foster innovation, research, and entrepreneurial activities in technology-based areas. SIIC provides a platform to start-ups prospective entrepreneurs and intrapreneurs to convert their innovative ideas into commercially viable products. Number of companies being incubated at the center are 21 and number of companies already graduated are 31. SIIC also provides services related to patenting and commercialization activity.

Examples of technologies licensed are Hydroxyapatite Poly (etheretherketone) Nanocomposities and method of manufacturing, Flexible temperature sensor and sensor array, Image based structural characterization of Fibrous materials,

Four dimensional reconstruction and characterization system, Incandescent Lamp, Carbon Nanofiber/Carbon Nanocoil coated substrate and Nano composites, Systems and methods for imaging characteristics of a sample and for identifying regions of damage in the sample, Zinc Chalcogenides, Doped Zinc Chalcogenides and methods of making, Aluminum based n-type semiconductors as Organic Photonic Presursors for Inorganic Photonic materials in bulk, film and Nanowire form, Convergent Matrix Factorization based entire frame.

Examples of Technologies Deployed in the Field are Electronic Fuel Injection for Diesel Locomotives (Indian Railways), Digital Mandi for Indian Kisan (BSNL).

Examples of Technologies Transferred or Developed for Specific Enterprises are Grid connected Power Electronic interface for Solar PV (CDAC, Trivandrum), SCOSTA operating system for Smart Cards (Indian Navy), Smart Card solutions, operating system and associated applications(Embsol Technologies Pvt. Ltd.), Development of Anupravaha, a general purpose CFD solver (Department of Atomic Energy), Track Side Bogie Monitoring system(Indian Railways), Wheels and Axles of Improved Metallurgy (Indian Railways)., Corrosion prevention of Rails (Indian Railways), Environmental Friendly Coach Toilet Discharge system (Indian Railways), Satellite Imaging for Rail Navigation(Indian Railways).

IIT Kanpur has strong industry bonds. Our current national and international partners are Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited, Thermax Limited, Samsung India Software Operations Pvt. Ltd., Syndicate Bank, GE India Technology Centre Pvt. Ltd., Intel Technology Limited, Larson & Toubro Ltd, Tata Consultancy Services, Unilever Industries Private Limited, Rashtriya IspatNigam Limited, Boeing, USA, Tata Steel Nederland Technology BV, The Procter& Gamble Company, USA, Eaton Corporation, USA, Honda R&D Co. Ltd., Japan, IHI Corporation, Japan, Chevron USA, EADS France, Cromoz Inc., USA, Pratt & Whitney Canada Corporation, Canada.

The Institute has collaborations for exchange of faculty, students, staff, and academic material with several academic institutes. Our current partners are PolitecnicoDi Torino, Italia, University of Waterloo, Canada, Yale University, USA University of Texas At San Antonio (UTSA), Texas, USA, California Institute of Technology, USA, Ecole Polytechnique, France, Rice University, USA, EcoleCentrale de Paris, France, University of Melbourne, Australia, University of Kansas, USA, National University of Singapore, The University of Melbourne.

At IIT Kanpur, students are at the center of all activities which stimulates their intellectual growth to realize their true potential. Few examples of students research are Abhyast (with Boeing), an Unmanned Ground Vehicle (UGV) that could successfully perform simple path planning and obstacle avoidance; Nanosatellite Jugnu launched recently by ISRO to image the earth’s surface and transmit a Beacon – blinking signal, at all times – all over the earth.

The faculty and students of IIT Kanpur continue to break new grounds at the frontiers of research. They have published research papers in reputed national and international journals. They have been duly recognized in the form of various awards and honors including fellowships of professional societies, editorship of international journals, best paper awards to the students, patents, and collaboration with the private sector.

We are certainly on a growth curve with all the productivity indices on the rise. The importance of funding from private sources, innovation and IPR, creation of research facilities, collaborative ventures in the form of Centers are felt across the Institute. Research as a theme spans the entire Institute and the involvement of undergraduates can now be seen.