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Lab News:

  • [Dec 2025]
    • 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.”
  • [Nov 2024]
    • Subhash Tadiparthi (PhD Student) won a UTK-Graduate Student Research Award (Spring -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 (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.

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.