Awards issued prior to january 20, 2025, were funded under previous administrations and may not reflect the priorities and policies of the current administration.** american chicken farmers struggle…

Awards issued prior to january 20, 2025, were funded under previous administrations and may not reflect the priorities and policies of the current administration.** american chicken farmers struggle to attract and retain the needed labor to operate farms that are expanding in size and scale. Manual labor is currently required to walk up and down the barn to stimulate the flock and check on the birds. Birds eye robotics' proposed innovation, the caretaker robot, seeks to reduce labor costs associated with checking broiler barns and flock stimulation while improving bird welfare and performance. The caretaker is a fully autonomous robotic in-barn solution. Phase i successfully developed a proof-of-concept unit to autonomously navigate broiler barns. Phase II technical objectives relate to in-barn localization, indications of mortality occasions, barn route planning, and flock redistribution. Senior personnel will research and develop autonomous robot technologies that incorporate the unique and under researched aspects of large scale commercial broiler barns. These are inherently dark, dusty and difficult to navigate environments. The birds eyerobotics vision is to bring the cutting edge of precision AG technology to an often-overlooked industry. Poultry farmers who desire to expand their operations will now have the capabilities to do so. Commercialization efforts will enable a robotics-as-a-service business model in which the caretaker is paid for on a per-barn per-year basis. Upon completion of phase II, birds eye will deliver units as part of signed purchase orders and commercial agreements with some of the largest poultry integrators in america.