Research Project
Facilitating Overcoming Obstacles to Development and Integration (FOODI) of Modern Technologies for Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA)
Research Team
Lead Researcher:
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Dr. Bingbing Li, Manufacturing Systems Engineering
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Dr. Nhut Ho, Mechanical Engineering
Mentor:
- Fred Gross, Interdisciplinary Engineering and Science
Student Team:
- John Vega, ARCS Fellow, MS, Mechanical Engineering
- Jade Dergevorkian, BS, Comp Science
- Isabel Lucero, undergraduate student in Computer Science
- Alyssa Muldong, undergraduate student in Electrical & Computer Engineering
- Luis Arroyo Turcio, graduate student in Manufacturing Systems Engineering & Management
- Nikhil Naik, graduate student in Manufacturing Systems Engineering & Management
- Salman Sattar, BS, Comp Science
- Keira Ebner, student at Calabasas High School
SYNOPSIS
- Through literature research and contacts with academic, industry, and government experts, this project will identify and characterize the key obstacles faced by companies that have started to use modern technologies for controlled environment agriculture (CEA).
- Case studies of successful CEA farms that have used modern technologies will be used to research solutions. Work on creating “digital twins” of CEA facilities to help analyze and address technology integration problems will begin
- Research proposals will be prepared to:
- Develop generative AI tools to analyze solutions to improve technology design, efficiency, and integration that would lower both capital and operating costs that are obstacles to growth of the CEA industry.
- Further develop CEA technologies to overcome obstacles related to operational failures and scalability problems.
- Improve the diversity of crops that can use CEA to reduce market obstacles.
- Enhance education and training for a skilled CEA workforce to overcome management, maintenance, and technology acceptance obstacles.
Abstract
Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA) technologies provide numerous advantages over traditional agriculture, particularly considering climate trends that have altered the suitability of land for cultivation. CEA offers more sustainable food production with significantly reduced water, nutrients, and land usage, and enables food production closer to population centers in various climates. Additionally, CEA is more amenable to automation compared to traditional farming methods. Despite some successes in recent years, many CEA facilities have failed, including those with substantial investments and initial market presence. The primary initial objective of this project is to identify and analyze the obstacles limiting the growth of the CEA industry and understand the factors contributing to both the success and failure of commercial ventures. The project will also propose potential solutions and tools to help overcome these challenges.
Motivation/Research Problem
Many nations face growing food insecurity issues, which are exacerbated by threats to agricultural areas from competing land uses, water shortages, climate change, and rising costs of labor, equipment, and materials. Collectively these issues represent an existential threat to the California economy. CEA has the potential to address these challenges; however, its technology remains underdeveloped and faces numerous obstacles that have led to the failure of many CEA farms and significant investment losses. This research seeks to identify and clarify these obstacles and propose viable solutions.
Research Questions and Research Objectives
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What are the nature and extent of obstacles hindering the growth and stability of CEA farms?
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What is needed to support the growth of CEA in California?
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How can we analyze the use of technology in CEA farms?
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How can technology be improved to reduce the costs of CEA farms?
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How can education and training be enhanced to overcome the shortage of skilled personnel for managing, operating, and maintaining CEA farms?
Research Methods
The initial phase of the project will involve gaining a comprehensive understanding of technology applications in CEA through industry courses, trade shows, AI-aided literature searches, and discussions with experts engaged in academic research, technology implementations, organizations supporting the CEA industry, and government entities. Subsequently, key technological obstacles identified in recent global surveys and AI-aided searches will be categorized into eight areas:
- Costs
- Capital costs for equipment, software, real estate, and infrastructure.
- Operating costs, primarily energy for lighting, heating, cooling, and skilled labor.
- Uncertainty regarding the return on investment for new technologies.
- Market and Scalability Challenges
- Addressing market demand variability with new technologies.
- Competing with existing agricultural operations with lower costs and higher scalability.
- Overexpansion driven by excitement and hype.
- Technological Limitations and Failure
- Technologies that do not scale efficiently or integrate with existing infrastructure
- Underdeveloped technologies.
- Excessive use of new technologies due to excitement and hype.
- Technology Integration Issues
- Compatibility issues with equipment from different suppliers.
- Hardware and software integration challenges.
- Complexity of New Technologies
- Shortages of skilled labor for operating and maintaining new technology.
- Managing complex operations with underdeveloped software.
- Technology Adoption Issues
- Consumer perceptions of new technologies.
- Organizational resistance to change and training.
- Technology Limitations Relating to Crop Variety
- Current CEA technologies are unsuitable for certain high-value crops.
- Disease and pest problems despite the controlled environment.
- Government Obstacles and Incentives
- Regulatory uncertainty.
- Inconsistent incentives for local and sustainable farming across jurisdictions.
Research Results and Deliverables
- A presentation at an ARCS Seminar this semester on the findings related to the research questions.
- A paper on obstacles to the implementation of CEA technology and related solutions based on contributions from all team members.
- An annotated bibliography created by all team members.
- Case studies conducted by individual students.
- Digital twins of some cases.
- Recommendations for creating a startup/company in California that can compete with companies in other states.
Commercialization Opportunities
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Digital twins of CEA facilities could be marketed as analytical tools to entrepreneurs or consulting firms specializing in technology integration.
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Improved designs and equipment resulting from identified solutions could be licensed or sold to companies supplying CEA farms.
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Students from the project can initiate or join start-up companies to use CEA or help other companies use CEA.
Research Timeline
Spring Semester
Week of February 9
- All team members accept ARCS contracts and attend orientation.
- Prepare to use Google Drive for document sharing.
- Exchange contact information, including phone numbers and email addresses.
- Set up Zoom Workplace for periodic meetings.
- Share general availability for scheduling meetings.
- Prepare to use APA formatting for annotated bibliography entries
Week of February 16
- All team members take the CEA introductory course (2.5 hours online).
- Register some or all team members for Indoor AgCon (preferably by 2/21).
- Review the 2024 CEA Census Report.
- Schedule a team meeting for the last week of February.
Week of February 23
- Hold a team meeting to discuss learning and organization for individual and team efforts.
- Begin dividing research on obstacles among team members as follow-up to the team meeting.
March 2025
- Establish organization and assignments to implement the research plan, including expected deliverables.
- Attend Indoor Ag-Con (March 11 and 12) for some or all team members.
- Hold a team meeting to discuss and possibly adjust the research plan.
April 2025
- Conduct individual research online and through direct contact with experts as needed.
- Hold a team meeting to discuss ongoing research efforts, overlaps, and gaps.
May 2025:
- Complete drafts of all deliverables from team members.
- Hold a team meeting to discuss draft integration.
Summer 2025
- Publish a paper on obstacles to the implementation of CEA technology and related solutions based on completed work.
- Organize the annotated bibliography and prepare case studies for publication.
- Develop proposals to fund research to address documented obstacles (with some existing and possibly new team members).
Fall Semester 2025
- Market proposals for projects based on solutions.
- Create digital twins based on case studies.
- Form teams for funded projects.
Lead Researcher:
-
Dr. Bingbing Li, Manufacturing Systems Engineering
-
Dr. Nhut Ho, Mechanical Engineering
Mentor:
- Fred Gross, Interdisciplinary Engineering and Science
Student Team:
- John Vega, ARCS Fellow, MS, Mechanical Engineering
- Jade Dergevorkian, BS, Comp Science
- Isabel Lucero, undergraduate student in Computer Science
- Alyssa Muldong, undergraduate student in Electrical & Computer Engineering
- Luis Arroyo Turcio, graduate student in Manufacturing Systems Engineering & Management
- Nikhil Naik, graduate student in Manufacturing Systems Engineering & Management
- Salman Sattar, BS, Comp Science
- Keira Ebner, student at Calabasas High School