AgriFoRwArdS Newsletter Issue 19 - January 2025 Edition

Welcome to the 19th issue of the AgriFoRwArdS CDT Newsletter. Scroll down to find out what has been happening within AgriFoRwArdS, and the wider Agri-Food Robotics community, recently.

Make sure to follow us on Linked In to keep up to date with all the latest news and activities!

Highlights of the last quarter

October

• Emmanuel Soumo visited his Industry Partner Crystal Heart Salad to discuss collaboration on his PhD project.
• Garry Clawson became the Global Supply Chain Observatory Lead at the University of Cambridge.
• Karoline Heiwolt‘s dataset ‘Lincoln’s Annotated Spatio-Temporal Strawberry Dataset (LAST-Straw)’ was published on Segments.ai.
• Harry Rogers passed his PhD viva subject to corrections.
• Vijja Wichitwechkarn‘s paper ‘Impact of data for forecasting on performance of model predictive control in buildings with smart energy storage‘ was published in Energy and Buildings.
• Yi Zhang presented her poster ‘Virtual model control for compliant reaching under uncertainties’ at the IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems (IROS 2024) in Abu Dhabi.
• Garry Clawson presented at the MINEX Europe Forum 2024, his presentation was titled ‘Building Transparency in Critical Mineral Supply Chains: Global Supply Chain Observatory’.
• Paul-David Zuercher had his paper titled ‘The power of play: gamification in virtual workplace training‘ published in the European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology.

November

• Yi Zhang and Calvin John represented the CDT at REAP 2024
• Robbie Cato was a judge for the Robotics and Automation Awards 2024 – Read more in the October 2024 newsletter.
• Bradley Hurst started a work placement with farmB.
• Students welcomed winners of the US Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) Research Video Competition. The competition was sponsored by Campden BRI, and the winners from America visited the University of Lincoln where our students presented their research and showcased the amazing things taking place at Riseholme.
• Students contributed to the future of arable and horticultural innovation technology in the UK engaging in UK Agri-Tech Centre horizon scanning report workshop.

December

• Afsaneh Karami presented at the Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (Cefas) PhD Student Conference 2024.
• Liyou Zhou presented his paper titled ‘A Neural Simulator from Open Source Components’ at the IEEE International Conference on Robotic Computing (IRC) 2024.
• Emmanuel Soumo become a Research Assistant in Selective Harvesting for Delicate Produce at the University of Lincoln.
• Xumin Gao presented his paper titled ‘Interactive Image-Based Aphid Counting in Yellow Water Traps under Stirring Actions’ at the Visual Observation and Analysis of Vertebrate and Insect Behavior workshop at the 27th International Conference on Pattern Recognition (ICPR) 2024.

Discover more exciting achievements below!

Bethan completes Defra UKRI Policy Internship

Cohort 3 student Bethan Moncur recently completed a 3-month work placement with the Department for Environment, Food, and Rural Affairs (Defra) as part of the UKRI Policy Internship programme. Here is what Bethan had to say about the experience...

"I had an incredible time as a UKRI Policy Intern at Defra (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs) where I joined the Water Quality and Agriculture Team within the Floods and Water directorate for three months.

The policy area that I focused on was sewage sludge - the solid residual from wastewater treatment - most of which gets applied to agricultural land. Whilst sludge is rich in nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorous, it may also contain contaminants such as heavy metals and pathogens, with increasing concerns about emerging contaminants like PFAS (forever chemicals) and microplastics.

My project looked at how to map a way forward for safe and sustainable sludge use in the future, so I used systems thinking approaches to visualise and map out potential policy developments over time. During the internship, I delivered an implementation report on the sludge regulations for publication on gov.uk. I also updated internal notes on emerging contaminants and future sludge value streams, in addition to engaging water industry stakeholders through workshops.

Key learnings from the internship include the importance of collaboration with specialist bodies (such as the Environment Agency) and how behavioural insights can be used for effective policy design and implementation."

Elijah awarded LINCAM funding

Late last year, Cohort 2 student Elijah Almanzor, who has just completed his studentship, was successful in securing funding through the EPSRC funded Lincam Ceres-Agri-Tech PBIAA, a novel funding mechanism designed to translate and commercialise UK Agri-Tech research within the Greater Lincolnshire and North Cambridgeshire (Lincam) region.

The funding provides Elijah with the opportunity to complete a project to build on the work of his PhD, with the aim of developing a new robotic system for strawberry packing. Elijah explains a bit more about the project below...

"Our CERES project aims to develop a new robotic system, ‘PaCMate’, for strawberry packing. Packing accounts for a quarter of the total workforce in soft fruit farming, with packers playing a crucial role in minimising giveaways and ensuring quality. However, rising labour costs, staff shortages, and retention challenges, particularly during peak demand periods, have made labour availability a significant issue for the sector. PaCMate will cover for shortages and peak production by offering ‘an extra pair of hands on the line’.

Our goal is to develop an MVP PaCMate at TRL 6. The system will incorporate advanced control and sensing algorithms for food manipulation, including the gentle handling of strawberries by their stems and intelligent packing strategies. A novel approach to safety will enable the robot to operate alongside people in shared workspaces without the need for physical barriers. While the initial focus is on strawberries, we aim to create general-purpose, multi-platform algorithms adaptable to other fresh produce. Ultimately, this will support packers in meeting demand with improved consistency and profitability.

We would like to extend our heartfelt thanks to Louise Sutherland, Emma Garfield, and the entire CERES team for their invaluable assistance and support throughout the application process. Their feedback on the slide deck and practice pitch presentations, as well as their efforts in organising packhouse visits, were immensely insightful. These contributions significantly enhanced the quality of our pitch and undoubtedly played a key role in securing the funding."

Alex Elias ran first workshop at HAI24

Cohort 3 student Alex Elias led his first workshop titled “Challenges and Opportunities for the Adoption and Integration of Human-Robot Interaction Technologies” at the 12th International Conference on Human-Agent Interaction, held at Swansea University in November of last year.

Alex found it to be a great learning opportunity, as well as a chance to disseminate his research;

"the overall experience was immensely rewarding. Organizing the event and coordinating with multiple institutions while handling various issues as they arose tested my resilience and adaptability."

Read more about Alex's experience of running the workshop on the AgriFoRwArdS website - Braving Storm Bert: A Journey to HAI24 in Swansea.

Kyle completes internship at Hike Medical

In October Cohort 3 student Kyle Fogarty returned to his AgriFoRwArdS study following an exciting internship opportunity with custom 3D printed insole company Hike Medical.

The internship allowed Kyle to build upon his PhD work in an industrial setting, and showed the wider applicability of his research outside of the Agri-Food sector too.

Read more about Kyle's internship on the AgriFoRwArdS website - My Internship at Hike Medical.

Cambridge Celebrate First Leavers

The University of Cambridge celebrated the first group of their AgriFoRwArdS Students to complete their studentships late last year. With a wonderful article looking at their accomplishments and next steps now their studentships are at an end.

Read more on the Cambridge Website - Meet the next generation-experts-agri-food-robotics.

2024/25 Events & Activities

The AgriFoRwArdS CDT provides an exciting and varied calendar of events for our students. Below is a snapshot of just some of the activities being arranged for the 2024/25 academic year.

• Career Journeys Discussion Panel (30th January) - This discussion panel focuses on career journeys and succeeding in agri-robotics as a minoritized person or person from an under-represented group. Students will hear from our diverse panel about their experiences, challenges, and wins. They will gain an understanding of potential obstacles and hear how our panel have tried to overcome them.
• Quarterly PhD Research Progress Meeting (3rd March) - Held at the University of Lincoln, with the option to attend online, this time we'll be hearing from some of the Cohort 3 students on their research progress, what they are up to now, and what they have planned next.
• Hands on Robotics Training (4th March) - Students are invited to come to Lincoln to get take part in this hands on session run by CDT Mechatronics Engineer Dr Rob Lloyd. Students will use Agilex LIMO robots to compete various tasks including; getting the docker environment up and running, taking the robots for a drive, and moving on to mapping or chasing colours depending on which course they want to follow.
• CDT Annual Conference (15th & 16th May) - Students and staff will come together for this exciting conference, hosted online by the University of Cambridge.
• CDT Summer School (16th to 20th June) - Students will attend the annual week-long residential summer school, this year hosted by the University of East Anglia.
• AgriFoRwArdS Seminar Day (July - date TBC) - The second of this year's Seminar Days will be held at one of our Industry Partner sites and will be packed full of interesting talks and activities.
• Joint Robotics CDT Annual Conference (2nd to 4th September) - Students are invited to join the other UK Robotics CDT Students at the University of Oxford for this annual get together, to share research and network.

We want to make sure the training and events we are offering are geared towards our students' interests. So students, if you have any suggestions for visits or training that you would like us to consider in 2024/25, please get in touch!

AgriFoRwArdS Seminar Day a Success

We finished the year with everyone travelling to Lincoln for the AgriFoRwArdS Seminar Series Day, the first of the 2024/25 academic year, and the Quarterly PhD Research Progress Meeting.

The two-day event focused on developing the entrepreneurial and communication skills of our students, with guest speakers Louise Sutherland (Agri-Tech Project Development Director, CERES) and Prof Simon Pearson (Head of School of Agri-Food Technology and Manufacturing, University of Lincoln) speaking about innovation communication with different stakeholders, and making the transition from student to running a business respectively. AgriFoRwArdS EDI Lead Prof Abigail Powell also got involved, running a workshop for students and staff focused on inclusive leadership.

We also had the opportunity to attend the Lincoln Institute for Agri-Food Technology (LIAT) Breakfast Briefing, where Prof Simon Parsons (Professor of Machine Learning and Director of SUSTAIN CDT, University of Lincoln) and Dr Mercedes Torres Torres (Head of Machine Learning, B-Hive Innovations Ltd) discussed exploring the role of artificial intelligence in agriculture.

As part of the programme we heard from AgriFoRwArdS students who started their PhD study in October 2024, who gave their updates on the first few months of their PhD study, and their plans moving forward.

On the evening of day one, the team held a festive get together. Usually these events take place locally at each university, but we jumped at the chance of getting everyone together to celebrate the amazing achievements of 2024, and the wonderful community that AgriFoRwArdS had become.

Embodied Intelligence Conference: Celebrating 5 years of innovation

2025 marks the 5-year anniversary of the Embodied Intelligence Conference, which focuses on the major topics of embodied intelligence research. Since its launch in 2021, the Embodied Intelligence Conference has become a hub for ground-breaking discussions on the interplay between mind, body and intelligent systems. In the run up to the EI'25 Conference, we revisit some of the most impactful moments from past conferences, which you can watch on LinkedIn.

This year's conference will be taking place on 2nd-5th April and introduces several exciting changes, including a new timeline for proceedings submissions — the deadline will be 31st of August 2025. We are delighted to offer master classes with plenary speakers and selected distinguished researchers. These sessions will provide an opportunity for early-stage researchers to present and discuss research ideas that can be developed for publication in the conference proceedings.

EI’25 Conference Speakers:

• Karen Adolph, NYU
• Hiroki Ueda, Osaka University
• John Hutchinson, RVC University of London
• Nicola S. Clayton, University of Cambridge
• Eric Diller, University of Toronto
• Robert Riener, ETH Zurich
• Michael Levin, Tufts University

We look forward to your participation. Registration is OPEN on the conference website.

CDT Director presents at CUPGRA 2024

The CUPGRA 35th Annual Cambridge Potato Conference took place on the 10th and 11th December 2024, at Robinsons College, University of Cambridge.

The theme this year was ‘'Potato Crisis! What Crisis?' - Learning with others to turn problems into opportunities....’ and our very own CDT Director, Prof Marc Hanheide, was invited to present 'The role of robots: insights from horticulture and remaining challenges' as part of the 'exploring the way forward' session.

Prof Abigail Powell

Prof Abigail Powell is Professor of Sociology and Social Policy at the University of Lincoln, where she is Director of Research in the Eleanor Glanville Institute, focused on equality, diversity and inclusion. In this role, she leads the research and academic team to develop and deliver impactful research that drives evidence-based solutions to disrupt the cultures and structures underpinning exclusion and inequalities in order to build inclusive learning environments, workplaces and communities.

Abigail is also the new Co-Investigator and Equality Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Lead for the AgriFoRwArdS CDT. Within this role Abigail drives the EDI agenda for the AgriFoRwArdS CDT, including chairing the EDI Panel, leading on EDI activities and training, and championing a supportive environment for all our students.

Abigail’s goal is to support, facilitate and create positive social change. Her research is underpinned by her passion for social justice and equality. Abigail is an expert in the gender division of labour (in the home and workplace), with a particular focus on gender in male dominated occupations; youth studies; financial wellbeing; and complex evaluation and impact measurement. Abigail has published widely in sociology, social policy, management and industrial relations journals, as well as translating research findings for a range of audiences, including academics, policy-makers and the public.

EDI Spotlight on... Microaggressions

Issues around equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) can be a minefield, particularly as our understanding about what’s ok (or not) is constantly evolving. This year we are introducing our EDI spotlight series of short videos and explainers to help you navigate EDI-related issues.

In the first of this series, Rhianne Sterling-Morris explains what microaggressions are and why they are harmful. We encourage you to watch the video (it’s only 2 minutes) and reflect on your own behaviours.

If there are topics you would like us to cover in future newsletters, please let us know.

How do we affect change in how menstrual health is supported in multi-institutional programmes?

UKRI research councils fund thousands of PhD students through the use of CDTs (Centres for Doctoral Training), DTPs (Doctoral Training Partnerships), and CTPs (Collaborative Training Partnerships). These programmes are usually multi-institutional. How do we affect change in how menstrual health is supported in these multi-institutional programmes? Equality, diversity and inclusion is increasingly becoming a consideration in the application to form a CDT with UKRI funding.

Regarding gender diversity, EPSRC's expectations say "Underrepresentation of women in the engineering and physical sciences remains one of our greatest EDI challenges, with gender diversity in our 8 large grant portfolio an area of particular concern." EDICa has found evidence that menstrual health is one strand of supporting gender diversity.

But with PhD students belonging to a myriad of institutions, what solutions can be practically implemented to effect change regarding menstrual health in these multi-institutional doctoral training programmes? Join us for a roundtable discussion on 12 February 2025, 13:00-15:00 on Zoom. Click here to https://go.hw.ac.uk/EDICa/CDT-Workshop. This invitation is for supervisors, principal investigators, managers of programmes, and postgraduate researchers.

Translating Research into Impact - Agri-Tech Potential

Register here - https://forms.gle/53cbxCCENsPVteX28

Have you thought about joining the Institution of Agricultural Engineers?

The Institution of Agricultural Engineers (IAgrE) is the only professional body for those working in engineering, science and technology in agriculture, horticulture, forestry, grounds care and other specialised land-based industries. Whether its tractors and combines or autonomous horticultural technology and soil science, the Institution covers it all, the common theme being the land.

As a professional Institution they organise a variety of content for their members, such as conferences, seminars, awards, podcasts, etc. They publish the Landwards journal for their members, a quarterly publication packed with articles covering many diverse areas, from student projects to ground breaking agri-tech. They also own and publish a leading international academic journal Biosystems Engineering.

IAgrE is licensed by both the Engineering Council and the Society for the Environment to award professional recognition, such as CEng. If you’re proud of your achievements, then why not get yourself registered, top employers expect it and fully support it, it will also help your career development.

They provide support for education and training in our sector such as recognition and accreditation of training courses, apprenticeships, degrees, etc. and advise on course content to ensure the learning material is right for industry.

“At IAgrE we pride ourselves in providing a personal tailored service to our members, with us you are very much a name not a number. We’re a close knit sector and being part of IAgrE is a great way of networking across many different businesses and sectors.

Supported by major businesses and educational establishments in the UK and overseas, we continue to be a voice for our profession, with people development and professionalism as our prime focus. Whether you’re in academia, education, research or industry, we are the experienced professional home for engineers, scientists and technologists for the land-based industries,” said Charlie Nicklin CEO.

Visit their website for more information, www.iagre.org.

Research Labs

There are a number of research centres, labs, and groups associated with the AgriFoRwArdS CDT. Make sure to follow them on social media to keep up to date with the latest news!

• Lincoln Centre for Autonomous Systems (L-CAS)
• Bio-Inspired Robotics Laboratory (BIRL)
• Computational Biology Lab
• Lincoln Institute for Agri-Food Technology (LIAT)
• Colour and Imaging Lab
• Observatory for Human Machine Collaboration (OHMC)

If you have any comments, information or news you wish to share with the AgriFoRwArdS community, please do get in touch - We'd love to hear from you.

The AgriFoRwArdS CDT Delivery Team - agriforwards.cdt@lincoln.ac.uk

Visit us on the web at www.agriforwards-cdt.ac.uk and don’t forget to subscribe to the AgriFoRwArdS CDT YouTube channel, and follow us on LinkedIn.