The University of Georgia Institute for Integrative Precision Agriculture (IIPA) has awarded six new seed grants to help launch research projects at the intersection of agriculture, engineering, and artificial intelligence, among other areas.
The grants, totaling $390,480, represent a commitment by UGA and the institute to fostering the creation of new multidisciplinary teams. The six accepted proposals include 16 researchers from three colleges and eight schools or departments. They address problems ranging from plant surgical robotics implementation in maize, sensors to detect contamination in poultry, a smart ultrasonic cavitation system for waterborne plant disease management, and more.
“Agriculture is the top industry in Georgia and a major driver for technology, business, and workforce innovation,” said Chris King, interim vice president for research. “These grants enable UGA researchers to continue applying emerging technologies across a range of domains in agriculture. The work that begins with these grants today will go on to help feed tomorrow’s population, both in the state and beyond.”
Launched in 2022, IIPA advances research that supports a reliable food supply for a growing global population. Precision agriculture maximizes crop yields through data-driven decision-making tools like sensors, drones, satellite imagery, artificial intelligence, and robotics. At the core of this mission is the convergence of expertise from a wide range of domains, which was a key focus in this year’s grants.
“IIPA is making a concerted effort to bring together researchers from different disciplines to solve the grand agricultural challenges of today and tomorrow,” said George Vellidis, IIPA director with joint appointments in UGA’s College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences and College of Engineering. “These seed grants represent a commitment by our institute to foster interdisciplinary research, education, extension, and outreach. Past grants are already beginning to bear fruit, and we expect the same from each of these new awardees.”
Explore the six awardees below:
Developing Automated Machine Vision Systems for Non-Invasive Monitoring of Thermal Stress and Welfare – Anderson Alves, College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences; Thirimachos Bourlai, College of Engineering; Sha Tao, College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences
Vision-Guided Plant Surgical Robotics for Precision Miniaturized Sensor Implantation in Maize – Xin Zhang, College of Engineering; Leonardo Bastos, College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences; Liang Dong, joint College of Agricultural and Environmental Science and College of Engineering
ROBO-Root3D: Miniaturized Robot for Underground Nondestructive 3D Root Phenotyping – Beiwen Li, College of Engineering; Zenglu Li, College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences
A Novel Sensor for Rabid Quantitative Detection of Campylobacter Contamination for Poultry Safety Applications – Ramaraja Ramasamy, College of Engineering; Aaron Bodie, College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences
Smart Ultrasonic Cavitation System for Pathogen Control and Water Quality Management in Hydroponic CEA Facilities – Md Sultan Mahmud, College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences; Benjamin Davis, College of Engineering; Ruchika Kashyap, College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences; Whitney Pagan, College of Engineering
A Fully Integrated System for Continuous Monitoring of Airborne Infectious Diseases in Poultry Production Environments – Liang Dong, joint College of Agricultural and Environmental Science and College of Engineering; Lilong Chai, College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences; Binu Velayudhan, College of Veterinary Medicine.
