Nercita Leads National Key R&D Project on Smart Agricultural Equipment with Large Model Integration

We are thrilled to announce that the National Engineering Research Center for Information Technology in Agriculture (Nercita) has been approved to lead a major project under the 2024 National Key R&D Program. The project, titled “Application of Human-Machine-Environment-Agronomy Intelligent Collaborative Models in Unmanned Open-Field Vegetable Scenarios” (Project No. 2024YFD200800), represents a groundbreaking effort to integrate large-scale models into the field of smart agricultural equipment.

Project Highlights

• Duration: December 2024 to November 2027
• Total Funding: 21.5 million CNY, including 20 million CNY from central government grants
• Project Leader: Dr. Ya Xiong, Nercita

Key Research Focus

1. Large Model Integration: Developing and applying advanced large-scale models to optimize collaborative interactions between humans, machines, and agricultural environments.
2. Unmanned Operations: Achieving full automation in large-scale open-field vegetable production.
3. Smart Equipment Development: Addressing complex challenges in task variability and labor-intensive operations through intelligent systems.

Participating Institutions

This national-level project involves collaboration with top-tier academic and research institutions, including:

• China Agricultural University
• Shandong Agricultural University
• Yangzhou University
• National Agricultural Mechanization Institute
• Beijing Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences

The approval of this project under the National Key R&D Program underscores the critical role of large models and cutting-edge technologies in advancing smart agricultural equipment. This initiative not only reflects Nercita’s leadership in agricultural robotics and AI integration but also marks a major step toward sustainable, intelligent, and efficient farming solutions.