AgriMerge – Merging large scale and high granularity data for agricultural land assessment

About the Project

We are entering an extraordinary new era driven by global advances in Artificial Intelligence (NextGen technologies). We view the rapid improvements as a unique opportunity to transform and achieve significant, ethical and lasting benefits for our country and the world.

We are committed to make our AI models safe and responsible and in sharing our research models and data responsibly. To help International, National and local organisations to better understand, utilise and protect themselves and the general-public, and realise the benefits from the NextGen Technologies.

We play a role as global leaders in AI research (DMU Computer Science is 5th in the world for citations and 18th amongst UK Universities in the Shanghai ranking). We are at the forefront of global conversations about AI and its future influence, participating on international platforms like the UN. We have strong industry links, that directly fund our research.

The aim is to enhance Precision Agriculture (PA) integrating data with AI. Image analysis is a primary tool for analysing and modelling many aspects of land and crop conditions, with two main sources of data, Satellite and Drone acquired images. Each source has its advantages and disadvantages, but both are used inform crop management and optimize agricultural practices, improve crop yield and enhance sustainability.

Data Fusion: We will combine satellite images (covering vast areas of land) and low altitude drone captured images (detail and precision in small areas) to create a comprehensive dataset. This integrated data will capture both macro-level information and fine-grained details.

With Machine Learning Models We’ll develop models that enable extracting high granularity features from large areas of land; effectively creating a scalable high precision analysis.

This project directly supports SDG2, mainly focused on efficient use of land and supporting global food security.

The research is based in the School of Computing with a direct link to our Research Insitute for Digital Research Communications and Responsible Innovations

Academic = Prof. Mario Gongora

The PhD Programme

The DMU PhD provides a solid education for a research career whether you stay in academic research or move to industry. There is a well-developed Researcher Development Programme which you will undertake alongside your research, supporting you through each year of your PhD. Working closely with your supervisors you will undertake open-ended research. As part of a vibrant PhD community in the Faculty you will have training opportunities which lead to presentations at international conference and in writing papers in leading academic journals as the research progresses into the later stages of the PhD. The student will graduate with skills and knowledge at the for front of academic and industrial expectations.

Entry Requirements

You must have achieved or close to achieving a UK Honours Degree with at least an upper second class (2:1) or a Masters Degree or an academic or professional qualification with relevant experience in the sector or industry which is deemed to be equivalent, or international equivalent

Closing date: 1 year from the date of uploading. Applications will be considered in the order that they are received, the position will be considered filled when a suitable candidate has been identified.

Starting date: There are three intakes a year at DMU and it is expected the successful candidate will start either in January 2026, April 2026 or October 2026.