GATE 2027 RA Syllabus & Exam Pattern (Robotics & Automation)
Paper Code RA  ·  New in GATE 2027  ·  IIT Madras

GATE 2027 Robotics and Automation (RA): Syllabus, Exam Pattern and Marks Distribution

IIT Madras has introduced Robotics and Automation as a new GATE paper. It is a 100 mark, 180 minute paper with a common Part A and a Part B optional section that you choose inside the exam window itself, either Electrical or Mechanical.

100 Marks 180 Minutes GA 15 + Common 60 + Optional 25 B1 Electrical or B2 Mechanical
TL;DR — Quick Answer

GATE 2027 RA (Robotics and Automation) is a newly introduced paper by organizing institute IIT Madras. The paper is worth 100 marks in 180 minutes: 15 marks General Aptitude, 60 marks Part A common section, and 25 marks from one optional section.

  • Part A (common, 60 marks): A.1 Engineering Mathematics, A.2 Basics of Mechatronics, A.3 Principles of Robotics and Automation.
  • Part B1 (optional, 25 marks) — Electrical: Analog Circuits and Embedded Systems, Signals and Systems, Control Systems.
  • Part B2 (optional, 25 marks) — Mechanical: Mechanics of Materials, Kinematics and Dynamics, Machine Design and CIM.
  • Key advantage: the B1 or B2 choice is made during the exam, not at application time.
  • Syllabus overlap: Part A mathematics, Python and data structures overlap with GATE DA 2027, making a two-paper attempt practical.

GATE 2027 RA Exam Pattern and Marks Distribution

The RA paper follows the split structure used for papers with an in-exam optional section. Part A is compulsory for everyone; Part B1 or B2 is picked by the candidate at the exam terminal.

Component Sections Covered Marks
General Aptitude (GA)Verbal aptitude, quantitative aptitude, analytical and spatial reasoning15
Part A — Common SectionA.1 Engineering Mathematics, A.2 Basics of Mechatronics, A.3 Principles of Robotics and Automation60
Part B — Optional SectionB1 Electrical Engineering or B2 Mechanical Engineering, selected during the exam25
TotalDuration: 180 minutes100

GATE 2027 RA Paper Explained (Video)

Watch the full breakdown of the new Robotics and Automation paper: syllabus, exam pattern, the B1 vs B2 choice and how to plan your preparation.

Prefer YouTube? Open the video on the PiyushAI channel

Part A: Common Section Syllabus (60 Marks)

Every RA candidate attempts all three sections below regardless of their engineering background.

Section A.1 — Engineering Mathematics

Linear Algebra: Matrices, transpose, determinant, rank, eigenvalues and eigenvectors, trace, adjoint, solutions to systems of linear equations.

Calculus: Functions of a single variable, limit, continuity and differentiability, mean value theorems, indeterminate forms; definite and improper integrals; double and triple integrals; partial derivatives, total derivative, Taylor series in one and two variables, maxima and minima; gradient, divergence and curl, vector identities.

Differential Equations: First order linear and nonlinear equations; higher order linear equations with constant coefficients; Euler-Cauchy equation; initial and boundary value problems; Laplace transforms; solutions of heat, wave and Laplace equations; Fourier series.

Probability and Statistics: Axioms of probability, conditional probability, mean, median, mode, standard deviation, random variables, expectation, binomial, Poisson and normal distributions; hypothesis testing, PDF and CDF.

Numerical Methods: Solutions of linear and non-linear algebraic equations; integration by trapezoidal and Simpson rules; finite differences, explicit single step and multi-step methods for differential equations.

Section A.2 — Basics of Mechatronics

Network Elements: Ideal voltage and current sources, dependent sources, R, L, C, M elements; network solution methods including KCL, KVL, node and mesh analysis; Thevenin, Norton, superposition and maximum power transfer theorems; transient response of DC and AC networks, sinusoidal steady state analysis, resonance, two-port networks, balanced three-phase circuits, complex power and power factor.

Digital Circuits: Boolean algebra, combinational circuits (multiplexers, encoders, decoders) and sequential circuits (flip-flops, counters).

Sensors: Resistive, capacitive, inductive, piezoelectric and Hall effect sensors with signal conditioning circuits; transducers for displacement (linear and angular), velocity, acceleration, force, torque and pressure.

Actuators: Principles of operation, performance and torque-speed characteristics of hydraulic and pneumatic actuators, DC motors, stepper motors and servo motors.

Engineering Mechanics: Free-body diagrams and equilibrium; friction and its applications including rolling friction and belt-pulley; trusses and frames; kinematics and dynamics of rigid bodies in plane motion.

Programming: Flowcharts and pseudo code; Python programming covering data types, operators, expressions, conditional statements (if, elif, else, case), looping statements (while, for), loop control statements (break, continue), functions, arrays, dictionary, strings and recursion.

Data Structures: Stack, queue, linked list, binary search tree, binary heap, graph.

Section A.3 — Principles of Robotics and Automation

Robotics: Robotic classification into serial and parallel manipulators, geometrical configuration, links and joints, coordinate systems and degrees of freedom; rotation matrices in 2D and 3D; homogeneous transformations, forward kinematics. Robot applications including point-to-point and continuous path control, types of end-effectors, robot accuracy and repeatability.

Computer Integrated Manufacturing: Automation in manufacturing, Programmable Logic Controllers (PLCs) in manufacturing, automated material handling systems, automated storage and retrieval systems, automated identification, detection and capture systems; computer numerical control; basics of single and multi-axis positioning systems; basics of concurrent design and manufacturing planning for automation.

Part B: Optional Section Syllabus (25 Marks)

Choose one of the two tracks below. The selection happens inside the exam interface, so you can decide after seeing the questions.

Option B1

Part B1 — Electrical Engineering

B1.1 Analog Circuits and Embedded Systems: Analog filters (low-pass, high-pass, band-pass, band-reject); amplifiers covering biasing, equivalent circuit and frequency response, feedback amplifiers, operational amplifier characteristics and applications; oscillators; voltage controlled oscillators and timers, Schmitt triggers, sample and hold circuits, A/D and D/A converters; switched mode power supplies. Microprocessor and microcontroller applications, components of microcontrollers (CPU, memory, I/O ports, timers), interrupt handling; memory and input-output interfacing; basics of data acquisition systems.

B1.2 Signals and Systems: Representation of continuous and discrete time signals, shifting and scaling properties, linear time-invariant and causal systems, Fourier series representation of continuous and discrete time periodic signals, Shannon sampling theorem, definitions and properties of Fourier Transform, Laplace Transform and Z transform; RMS value and average value calculation.

B1.3 Control Systems: Mathematical modeling and representation of systems, feedback principle, transfer function, block diagrams and signal flow graphs, transient and steady-state analysis of LTI systems, stability analysis using Routh-Hurwitz and Nyquist criteria, Bode plots, root loci, lag, lead and lead-lag compensators; P, PI and PID controllers.

Option B2

Part B2 — Mechanical Engineering

B2.1 Mechanics of Materials: Stress and strain, elastic constants, Poisson ratio; Mohr circle for plane stress and plane strain; thin cylinders; shear force and bending moment diagrams; bending and shear stresses; concept of shear centre; deflection of beams; torsion of circular shafts; Euler theory of columns; Castigliano theorems; thermal stresses; strain gauges and rosettes; testing of materials with universal testing machine; testing of hardness and impact strength.

B2.2 Kinematics and Dynamics: Displacement, velocity and acceleration analysis of plane mechanisms; dynamic analysis of linkages; gears and gear trains; balancing of reciprocating and rotating masses; gyroscope; vibrations covering free and forced vibration of single degree of freedom systems, effect of damping, vibration isolation, resonance, critical speeds of shafts.

B2.3 Machine Design and Computer Integrated Manufacturing: Design for static and dynamic loading; failure theories; fatigue strength and the S-N diagram; principles of design of machine elements such as bolted, riveted and welded joints; shafts, rolling and sliding contact bearings, brakes and clutches, springs. Basic concepts of CAD and CAM and their integration tools; additive manufacturing.

B1 or B2: Which Optional Section Should You Pick?

Your background Recommended Why
Electrical, Electronics, Instrumentation, MechatronicsB1Signals, control and analog circuits overlap heavily with your core curriculum
Mechanical, Production, Industrial, AutomobileB2Strength of materials, theory of machines and machine design are already familiar
Mechatronics or Robotics with balanced exposurePrepare both, decide in examThe section is selected at the terminal, so you can compare both question sets

How to Prepare for GATE 2027 RA

  • Anchor on Part A. It carries 60 of 100 marks. Engineering Mathematics alone rewards steady daily practice and overlaps with every other GATE paper.
  • Do not skip the programming block. Python syntax, loop tracing and data structures are scoring for anyone who practices, and many mechanical candidates leave these marks on the table.
  • Master transformation matrices early. Rotation matrices, homogeneous transformations and forward kinematics form the identity of this paper and appear in numerical form.
  • Borrow PYQs from adjacent papers. Since RA is new, practise Part A topics using GATE ME, EE, IN and PI previous year questions, and DA papers for probability and numerical methods.
  • Keep the optional section light but sharp. 25 marks does not justify unlimited time. Cover the three named subsections well rather than chasing depth beyond the syllabus.
  • Practise the 180 minute clock. Sectional switching between Part A and Part B needs a rehearsed time plan.
Also Consider — GATE DA 2027

Preparing for RA? GATE DA 2027 Shares a Large Part of Your Syllabus

Section A.1 Engineering Mathematics and the Python and data structures block in Section A.2 map directly onto the GATE Data Science and Artificial Intelligence paper. Many RA aspirants attempt DA as a second paper because the additional effort is smaller than it looks.

  • Shared ground: Linear algebra, calculus, probability and statistics, and numerical methods appear in both papers.
  • Shared programming: Python fundamentals plus stack, queue, linked list, binary search tree, binary heap and graph are common to RA Section A.2 and GATE DA.
  • Two shots, one preparation: A second paper widens your PSU and M.Tech admission options without a second syllabus from scratch.
View GATE DA 2027 Course and Test Series

Start GATE 2027 RA Preparation with PiyushAI

Structured lectures, syllabus-mapped notes and topic-wise practice sets for Engineering Mathematics, Mechatronics, Robotics and both optional tracks. Taught by Piyush Wairale, M.Tech IIT Madras.

Explore GATE 2027 Courses

support@piyushai.com  ·  +91 9423071961  ·  Amravati, Maharashtra

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Robotics and Automation a new paper in GATE 2027?

Yes. RA is introduced by IIT Madras, the organizing institute for GATE 2027, and carries 100 marks over 180 minutes.

What is the GATE 2027 RA marks distribution?

General Aptitude 15 marks, Part A common section 60 marks, and Part B optional section 25 marks, totalling 100 marks.

When do I choose between B1 Electrical and B2 Mechanical?

During the exam itself. The choice is not locked at application time, so you can prepare one track thoroughly and still switch if the questions favour the other.

Which subjects fall under Part A?

Section A.1 Engineering Mathematics, Section A.2 Basics of Mechatronics, and Section A.3 Principles of Robotics and Automation.

Does the RA syllabus include Python programming?

Yes. Section A.2 covers flowcharts, pseudo code and Python fundamentals, plus data structures such as stack, queue, linked list, binary search tree, binary heap and graph.

Can I prepare for GATE RA and GATE DA together?

Yes. RA Section A.1 Engineering Mathematics and the Python and data structures topics in Section A.2 overlap substantially with the GATE Data Science and Artificial Intelligence syllabus, so many candidates attempt both with largely shared preparation. See the GATE DA 2027 course and test series.

Who should attempt GATE 2027 RA?

Candidates from Mechanical, Electrical, Electronics, Instrumentation, Mechatronics and allied branches targeting robotics, automation, control or manufacturing programmes and PSU automation roles.