iGrow News AgTech Funding Agriculture Grants University of Nevada, Reno Deploys AI Robot to Modernize Sheep Farming
Agriculture Grants University Research

University of Nevada, Reno Deploys AI Robot to Modernize Sheep Farming

The University of Nevada, Reno has received two grants of $1,150,000 each over four years, funded by the USDA's Agriculture and Food Research Initiative, to advance sheep production, health, and grazing management.
Parikshit Maini, standing at left, poses with students in the Systems and Algorithms for Robot Autonomy Lab, several of whom will help develop RoboHydra, a robotic watering system that guides sheep across grazing pastures while using facial-recognition artificial intelligence to track their health and movement. Seated, from left: Emanuel Gutierrez-Cornejo, Nathaniel Rose, Hannah Chuang, Arif Ahmed and Dominic Palmieri. Standing, from left: Maini and Jairo Cadena-Mendez. Photo by Parikshit Maini.

Key Takeaways:

  • The University of Nevada, Reno has received two grants of $1,150,000 each over four years, funded by the USDA's Agriculture and Food Research Initiative, to advance sheep production, health, and grazing management.
  • The first project centers on “RoboHydra,” an autonomous robotic watering system paired with a facial-recognition AI model capable of identifying individual sheep and capturing detailed health and performance data.
  • The full-size RoboHydra platform will weigh up to 4,000 pounds and carry up to 1,100 pounds of water — enough to support a flock of approximately 50 sheep.
  • A second, complementary project led by Andrew Hess will expand data collection to the national level, pairing health, feed, wool, and carcass data with genetic, microbial, and economic information from sheep operations across multiple states.
  • Both projects aim to develop practical tools for producers, including breeding indexes and decision-support systems to help manage disease risk, feed efficiency, and climate adaptability.

University of Nevada, Reno Launches AI and Robotics Projects to Support Sheep Industry

Researchers at the University of Nevada, Reno are developing an autonomous robotic watering system integrated with artificial intelligence to digitally identify individual sheep and monitor their health and performance in real pasture conditions. The initiative is one of two complementary research projects recently awarded $1,150,000 each over four years through the USDA's Agriculture and Food Research Initiative, a program of the National Institute of Food and Agriculture.

RoboHydra: An Autonomous Watering System for the Range

How the Robot Works

The first project introduces RoboHydra, described as a first-of-its-kind system in the sheep industry. Rather than relying on fixed water troughs, RoboHydra will carry a closed water tank and use a push-activated bowl that allows sheep to drink on demand. A flow meter will track individual water consumption, and an onboard computer will use that data to evaluate grazing and water-use patterns and determine when and where the robot should move next.

The system is designed to guide sheep toward underused pastures, promoting more uniform grazing and improved rangeland soil health.

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