The Center for Digital Agriculture and the Prairie Research Institute have partnered to offer seed funding for joint research projects.
The initiative aims to facilitate collaborations that find innovative solutions for societal challenges using digital technologies to enhance agricultural sustainability. In addition to sparking joint research and development activities, the partnership aims to lead to sponsored funding, private sector partnerships, workforce development and training, and service to the State of Illinois and beyond.
“PRI is a vital engine for science-driven impact across Illinois and beyond, and CDA is excited to join forces to apply cutting-edge digital tools to pressing challenges in agriculture and the environment,” said CDA Executive Director John Reid. “We hope this collaboration not only accelerates innovation but also attracts new resources to support the outstanding scientists, engineers, and students working across our collective teams.”
Two collaborative research proposals have been selected.
Using an innovative drone-mounted microwave radiofrequency system, researchers in one project can sense soil and crop moisture, monitoring plant stress and catching it early — before typical signs of water stress are visible. A scalable solution, the technology could improve production and irrigation. Leading the project are Mohamad Alipour, researcher, professor of civil and environmental engineering, and CDA affiliate; Trent Ford, Illinois State Climatologist and PRI research scientist; and Elahe Soltanaghai, computer science faculty and CDA affiliate.
The second proposal aims to develop a more efficient and cost-effective method to monitor western corn rootworm, which is currently a manual process using insect traps. The researchers propose training deep learning algorithms to identify the insects in images gathered by an unmanned aerial vehicle. This technology has the potential to promote sustainable agricultural practices as it scales up for broader use. Leading the project are Joseph Spencer, PRI insect behaviorist; Sunoj Shajahan, agricultural and biological engineering professor and CDA affiliate; and Sagnika Das, a graduate research assistant in crop sciences.
“Collaborative work like this is vital for innovation to occur and for generating solutions to challenges facing such a crucial industry,” said PRI Executive Director Praveen Kumar. “PRI has a long history of providing science and tools farmers can use, so partnering with the Center for Digital Agriculture on this initiative is a natural fit to inspire research and development of scalable solutions that help farmers do their work sustainably.”
The partnership combines CDA’s focus on agriculture and technology with PRI’s scientific expertise in geology, ecology and biodiversity, hydrology and water, weather and climate, pollution prevention, and sustainable energy.
CDA formed to help agricultural producers, researchers, and industries keep pace with the ways technology is transforming how we feed and support a growing global population. Increased global productivity and sustainability require technical innovations that involve CDA’s primary themes: Automation, Data, Animals and Crops, and People.
PRI provides scientific expertise and transformative research to the people of Illinois and beyond. PRI is home to the five state scientific surveys: the Illinois Natural History Survey, Illinois State Archaeological Survey, Illinois State Geological Survey, Illinois State Water Survey, and Illinois Sustainable Technology Center.
The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign is home to both CDA and PRI.