News

Lab News:

• [Jan 2026]
  • Badgujar, Swaminathan, and Hawkins were awarded a $362,200 grant for a two-year project from the Center for Produce Safety. The project, titled “Automated Compost Monitoring with Low-Cost RFID, Drones, and Machine Learning for Improved Control and Pathogen Safety.”
• [Dec 2025]
  • Rajesh Gund (PhD Student) won a UTK-Graduate Student Research Award (Fall-GSRA-2025) of $4,920 for a project proposal, “Developing an insect trap monitoring and replacement robot for large food grain storage structures.”
• [Dec 2024]
  • Badgujar, Gerken, and Scheff were awarded a $324,800 grant from USDA-NIFA (Crop Protection and Pest Management Program) for a two-year project. The project, titled “Better trap design, identification automation, and spatial modeling for better stored product insect pest control.”
• [Dec 2024]
  • Badgujar, and Gan were awarded a $53,000 grant from the Center for Produce Safety for a one-year project. The project, titled “Developing an Automated and Digital Tool for Integrated Bird Management in Fresh Produce Fields.”
• [Nov 2024]
  • Subhash Tadiparthi (PhD Student) won a UTK-Graduate Student Research Award (Fall-GSRA-2025) of $4,900 for a project proposal, “Bird pest management in fresh produce fields with artificial intelligence-based digital tools.”
• [April 2024]
  • Subhash Tadiparthi (PhD Student) won a UTK Graduate Student Research Award (Spring-GSRA-2024) of $4,870 for a project proposal, “Investigation of the potential applications of an autonomous ground robot for row crop (corn) scouting.”
• [June 2024]
  • Subhash Tadiparthi (PhD Student) was selected as part of the Rocky Top Research Coaches (RTRC) program for Summer 2024 and was awarded a stipend of $1,000.
• [Dec 2024]
  • Badgujar, Gan, and McNeal were awarded a $29,500 grant from Tennessee Corn Promotion Board for a one-year project. The project, titled “Investigation of Potential Applications of Small Autonomous Ground Vehicle (AGV) for Corn Production in Tennessee .”

Media Articles:

1. Feedstuff Magazine (2025). Research grant will help improve pest management in grain storage. Online source: https://www.feedstuffs.com/agribusiness-news/research-grant-will-help-improve-pest-management-in-grain-storage 
2. World-Grain Magazine (2025). USDA grant tackles grain storage pest monitoring. Online source: https://www.world-grain.com/articles/20910-usda-grant-tackles-grain-storage-pest-monitoring 
3. Science Magazine (2025). UTIA Researchers Awarded Grant to Enhance Pest Management Strategies in Grain Storage. Online source: https://scienmag.com/utia-researchers-awarded-grant-to-enhance-pest-management-strategies-in-grain-storage/ 
4. Food Safety magazine (2025). Researchers Developing Automatic AI Deterrent Technology for High-Risk Birds in Produce Fields. Online source: https://www.food-safety.com/articles/10271-researchers-developing-automatic-ai-deterrent-technology-for-high-risk-birds-in-produce-fields  

Opportunities:

We are looking for a MS and PhD student (fully-funded). If you are interested in our research, please email Chetan Badgujar with your CV.

Interested in robotics, machinery, or artificial intelligence-related projects, or have any questions: Please feel free to reach out to us.