Southwest Florida Research & Education Center

Precision Agriculture Engineering

Dr. Yiannis Ampatzidis

Dr. Yiannis Ampatzidis began as an Assistant Professor in 2017 and leads a research and extension precision agriculture engineering program in the Southwest Florida Research and Education Center (SWFREC) in Immokalee.

Dr. Ampatzidis works in the area of mechanization and automation of specialty crop production. He focuses on the design, development and testing of sensors and control systems for optimal management of inputs, resources and products. Dr. Ampatzidis’ current research focuses on mechanical harvest of specialty crops, mechatronics, artificial intelligence, machine vision, precision agriculture, precision irrigation, smart machines, UAVs and machine systems. Dr. Ampatzidis has a special interest in development, implementation and evaluation of agricultural machines and control systems for high value crops (precision agriculture applications, remote sensing, embedded systems developing and programming, UAVs-drones, GIS applications).

Research

Automation, Mechatronics, Robotics
Sensors/Sensing, Smart Machinery
Machine vision, Artificial Intelligence, Internet of Things
Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) - Drones
Precision Agriculture technology and management
Development and implementation of automated technologies for specialty crops production
Farm mechanization

Yiannis Ampatzidis - Research Publications
- Cost-efficient high-resolution monitoring for specialty crops using AgI-GAN and AI-driven analytics
  CF Lacerda, Y Ampatzidis, AOC Neto, V Partel
  Computers and Electronics in Agriculture 237, 110678
- Advanced canopy size estimation in strawberry production: a machine learning approach using YOLOv11 and SAM
  Z Huang, WS Lee, P Yang, Y Ampatzidis, A Shinsuke, NA Peres
  Computers and Electronics in Agriculture 236, 110501
- A Novel Hybrid Technique for Detecting and Classifying Hyperspectral Images of Tomato Fungal Diseases Based on Deep Feature Extraction and Manhattan Distance
  G Ma, SM Javidan, Y Ampatzidis, Z Zhang
  Sensors 25 (14), 4285
- Optimizing tomato yield prediction using phenologically timed UAV-based spectral data and machine learning
  C Trentin, Y Ampatzidis, S Tasioulas, P Tsouvaltzis
  Smart Agricultural Technology, 101158
- A Bio-Inspired Framework for Apple Leaf Disease Detection: Integrating Lesion Localization, Ant Colony Optimization, and Machine Learning
  X Li, F Huang, H Sun, J He, SM Javidan, Y Ampatzidis, Z Zhang
  Smart Agricultural Technology, 101141
- AI-driven autonomous spraying for precision weed management in specialty crop production
  V Vijayakumar, A Neto, Y Ampatzidis
  Precision agriculture'25, 1014-1021
- Enhancing prediction accuracy of key biomass partitioning traits in wheat using multi‐kernel genomic prediction models integrating secondary traits and environmental covariates
  S Kunwar, MA Babar, D Jarquin, Y Ampatzidis, N Khan, JP Acharya, ...
  The Plant Genome 18 (2), e70052
- AI-driven time series analysis for predicting strawberry weekly yields integrating fruit monitoring and weather data for optimized harvest planning
  S Liu, Y Ampatzidis, C Zhou, WS Lee
  Computers and Electronics in Agriculture 233, 110212
- Enhanced AI-driven sensing and analytics platform for precision orchard management
  Y Ampatzidis, S Liu, H Guan, AADC Neto
  Autonomous Air and Ground Sensing Systems for Agricultural Optimization and …
- Investigating feature types for automated multiclass citrus peel disease detection
  Q Frederick, T Burks, A Watson, M Ritenour, J Schueller, Y Ampatzidis, ...
  Autonomous Air and Ground Sensing Systems for Agricultural Optimization and …
- Leveraging Multi-Omics Data with Machine Learning to Predict Grain Yield in Small vs. Big Plot Wheat Trials
  J McBreen, MA Babar, D Jarquin, Y Ampatzidis, N Khan, S Kunwar, ...
  Agronomy 15 (6), 1315
- AI-Driven Identification of Grapevine Fungal Spores via Microscopic Imaging and Feature Optimization with Cuckoo Search Algorithm: ClassifierSVM with linear kernelDTk …
  X Shi, SM Javidan, Y Ampatzidis, Z Zhang
  Smart Agricultural Technology, 101029
- Potential for automation of citrus psyllid pest identification using computer vision-based artificial intelligence recognition
  D Pullock, C Zhou, Y Ampatzidis, K Krüger, A Manrakhan, C Weldon
  MDPI
- AgriSenAI: Automating UAV thermal and multispectral image processing for precision agriculture
  BB Tulu, F Teshome, Y Ampatzidis, NS Hailegnaw, HK Bayabil
  SoftwareX 30, 102083
- Regulatory Requirements to Operate Spraying Drones: AE608, 2/2025
  W Liu, Y Ampatzidis
  EDIS 2025 (2)
- AI-driven non-destructive detection of meat freshness using a multi-indicator sensor array and smartphone technology
  SA Mehdizadeh, M Noshad, M Chaharlangi, Y Ampatzidis
  Smart Agricultural Technology 10, 100822
- Enhancing genomic‐based forward prediction accuracy in wheat by integrating UAV‐derived hyperspectral and environmental data with machine learning under heat‐stressed environments
  J McBreen, MA Babar, D Jarquin, Y Ampatzidis, N Khan, S Kunwar, ...
  The Plant Genome 18 (1), e20554
- An Intelligent Group Learning Framework for Detecting Common Tomato Diseases Using Simple and Weighted Majority Voting with Deep Learning Models
  SM Javidan, Y Ampatzidis, A Banakar, K Asefpour Vakilian, K Rahnama
  AgriEngineering 7 (2), 31
- Variable Rate Technology and Its Application in Precision Agriculture: AE607, 1/2025
  V Sharma, UBP Vaddevolu, S Bhambota, Y Ampatzidis, H Bayabil, ...
  EDIS 2025 (1)
- The Accuracy of Remote Sensing Technologies for Tree Height Estimation: A Comparative Evaluation in Citrus Orchards
  W Liu, Y Ampatzidis, B Wilkinson
  2025 ASABE Annual International Meeting, 1
- View All Yiannis Ampatzidis's Research Publications

Extension

Dr. Ampatzidis’s extension program in precision and smart agriculture focuses on developing and delivering educational initiatives that promote the adoption and evaluation of cutting-edge technologies to enhance the profitability and environmental sustainability of Florida’s high-value crop industry. The program integrates expertise from diverse academic fields, particularly automation, robotics, artificial intelligence (AI), unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), and advanced sensor technologies, to support innovation in high-value crop production.

Ampatzidis - UF/IFAS Publications

Education
- Ph.D. Agricultural Engineering, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece (AUTH), 2010
- M.S. Agricultural Engineering, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece (AUTH), 2005
- B.S. Agricultural Engineering, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece (AUTH), 2008
- B.S. Agricultural Sciences, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece (AUTH), 2002

Professional Experience
- August 2025 - Present
  Professor, Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, University of Florida
- August 2021 - August 2025
  Associate Professor, Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, University of Florida
- July 2017 - August 2021
  Assistant Professor, Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, University of Florida
- June 2017 - July 2017
  Associate Professor, Department of Physics and Engineering, California State University, Bakersfield (CSUB)
- September 2013 - June 2017
  Assistant Professor, Department of Physics and Engineering, California State University, Bakersfield (CSUB)
- January 2011 - August 2013
  Postdoctoral Research Associate, Center for Precision and Automated Agricultural Systems (CPAAS), Washington State University
- July 2006 - December 2010
  Researcher, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (AUTH)
- December 2009 - March 2010
  Researcher, National Agricultural Research Foundation, Institute of Soil Science, Thessaloniki, Greece
- May 2007 - May 2008
  Agronomist-manager, “Agios Georgios E.P.E.”, Greece

Awards and Honors
- 2024-2027 UF Research Foundation (UFRF) Professorship award
- 2024 Leadership Enhancement and Administrative Development (LEAD) UF/IFAS Cohort 16.
- 2023 UF Standing Innovation for the “Smart Tree Sprayer Utilizing Sensor Fusion and Artificial Intelligence”.
- 2020 Superior Paper Award (Top 5 in 2020) from the Computers and Electronics in Agriculture for the paper entitled “Agroview: Cloud-based application to process, analyze and visualize UAV-collected data for precision agriculture applications utilizing artificial intelligence”.
- 2020 UF/IFAS High Impact Research Publication for the paper entitled “Agroview: Cloud-based application to process, analyze and visualize UAV-collected data for precision agriculture applications utilizing artificial intelligence”.
- ASABE AE50 winner for the Agroview technology (2020 top innovative new product); Recognized in the January/February issue of Resource magazine.
- UF Invention of the Year for the “Agroview: Cloud-based and Artificial Intelligence-based Software to Analyze and Visualize UAV Collected Data”, 2020
- Florida Venture Forum Aerospace & Technology Competition, 1st Runner Up for the Agroview technology, 2020
- Cade Prize finalist for the Agroview technology, 2020
- Silver Award for Excellence in CSUB Research, 2015-2016
- Bronze Award for Excellence in CSUB Research, 2014-2015
- USDA E. Kika De La Garza Science Fellow, 2014
- Bronze Award for Excellence in CSUB Research, 2013-2014
- Certificate of Reviewing Excellence, Computers and Electronics in Agriculture Journal, 2013
- ASHS Extension Publication Award winner for the paper: "Training System Affects Sweet Cherry Harvest Efficiency" [HortScience 48(5):547-555]., 2013
- Full scholarship from “State Scholarships Foundation”, Greece. Competition 2005 in the specialty “Automations in Precision Agriculture” (Duration: 42 months), 2005-2009
- Erasmus Program, The Royal Veterinary and Agricultural University (KVL), Copenhagen, Denmark (Duration: 6 months), 2004-2005

Publications
- Research Publications
- Extension Publications

Other Professional Activities
- Associate and Special Content Editor: Computers and Electronics in Agriculture (2021-Today)
- Associate Editor: Transactions of ASABE (ITSC community) (2025-present)
- Associate Editor: Frontiers in Plant Science, Technical Advances in Plant Science (2022-Today)
- Co Editor in Chief: Artificial Intelligence, (2020-Today).
- Guest Editor: Transactions of ASABE (2021-2025)
- Guest Editor: Frontiers in “Plant Science” and in “Artificial Intelligence” (2019-Today).
- Guest Editor: Artificial Intelligence journal (2019-Today).
- Guest Editor: Remote Sensing journal (2020-Today).
- Editorial Advisory Board Member of Computer and Electronics in Agriculture Journal.
- Editorial Board of Agricultural Science Journal.
- American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE).
- Florida ASABE
- American Society of Horticultural Science
- Florida State Horticultural Society
- Hellenic and European Society of Agricultural Engineers (ΕΓΜΕ, EurAgEng).
- European Federation for Information Technology in Agriculture, Food and the Environment (EFITA).
- Vice Chair, ASABE California-Nevada Section
- Chair, ASABEITSC-318 Mechatronics and Biorobotics Committee