Funding

1. Smart-TBI: Wearable Sweat Biosensors and AI-Driven Multimodal Data Fusion for Early Detection and Monitoring of Traumatic Brain Injury
Source: Trauma Research and Combat Casualty Care Collaborative
Amount: $500,000
Oct 2025 - July 2027
Overall Objectives: The primary research goal of this project is to develop a Smart-TBI platform: an AI-integrated sweat sensing platform to improve patient outcomes in TBI
Press Release: UT Tyler Continues TBI Care Research Project Through UT System Collaborative   

2. NASA MOSAICS 80NSSC24K1623
Multiplexed phytohormone and nitrate sensors for real-time analysis of plant responses to pathogenic stress in spaceflight-like conditions
Source: NASA
Amount: $300,000 
Jan 2025 - Dec 2026  
Overall Objectives: The primary research goal of this project is to study how plants respond to diseases in space conditions using a sensor system with real-time monitoring capabilities. Our mentoring goal is to involve STEM students in managing crops in space using sensors.
Press Release: NASA Funds Research Projects Advancing STEM Career Development - NASA

3. NSF MRI 2408664
MRI: Track 1 Acquisition of a micro/nanofabrication tool for fabricating three-dimensional devices, enabling cleanroom-free research, education, and training in East TX  
Source: National Science Foundation 
Amount: $828,570
July 2024 – June 2027
Overall Objectives: The overarching goal of this proposal is to secure a three-dimensional (3D) fabrication instrument, NanoOneBio, with sub-micrometer resolution through the NSF MRI Track 1 program.

4. UT System 
Wearable sweat monitoring device for real-time analysis of Traumatic Brain Injury biomarkers
Source: Trauma Research and Combat Casualty Care Collaborative  
Amount: $100,000
April 2024 – July 2025
Overall Objectives: The main goal of this project is to develop and test a sweat sensor for monitoring TBI biomarkers.
Press Release: Grants Funded | Trauma Research and Combat Casualty Care Collaborative TRC4

5. USDA-NIFA 2023-67021-40548
Smart sensor-suite for monitoring field volatile organic compound and ion fluxes toward nitrogen stress management in cotton plants
Source: United States Department of Agriculture 
Amount: $300,000 
May 2023 – April 2026
Overall Objectives: The objective of this project is the early identification of nitrogen stress in cotton plants using low-cost, field-deployable volatile organic compound sensors and a soil sensor suite.

6. USDA-ARS 58-6030-3-005
Utilization of Cutting-edge Real-time Sensor Technology in Sugarcane Breeding and Production 
Source: United States Department of Agriculture 
Amount: $350,474 
August 2023 – July 2026
Overall Objectives: The objective of this project is to determine the optimum sugar production in sugarcane plants through real-time sucrose monitoring.

7. NSF ECCS 2138701
ERI: Crop-FIT: Technology to Support Integrated Wearable Fitness Trackers for Plants
Source: National Science Foundation 
Amount: $199,999
May 2022 – April 2026
Overall Objectives: The overarching goal of this project is to: a. develop a new stem sensor to understand environment-plant interactions under drought, salinity, and temperature stresses, and b. design a fiber-optic root endoscope/spectroscope system.
Press Release: New technology provides fitness tracker for crops

8. NSF TI 2141084 
PFI-TT: A Fiber-Optic Sensing System for Multiplexed Gas Detection
Source: National Science Foundation 
Amount: $250,000 (lead institution: Iowa State University)
March 2022 – February 2026
Overall Objectives: The objective is to design an integrated optical sensing system capable of sensing a multiplicity of gases, emitted in crop/animal farming operations.

9. NASA 80NSSC23K0401
Leaf Sensor Network for In Situ and Multiparametric Analysis of Crop Stressors
Source: National Aeronautics and Space Administration
Amount: $100,000 
March 2023 – February 2025
Overall Objectives: The objective of this project is to develop plant wearable sensors for monitoring their stress responses under spaceflight-like conditions.
Press Release: UT Tyler one step closer to sending plants to space

10. USDA-ARS 58-6066-2-042
Aqua-FIT: Early Diagnosis of Water Toxicity Driven by Fish-mounted Low-cost and Miniaturized Sensors
Source: United States Department of Agriculture 
Amount: $319,000 
September 2022 – December 2026
Overall Objectives: This project proposes to monitor and manage water toxicity levels in a catfish pond using a fish-mounted sub-aquatic sensor system.
Press Release: UT professor is creating technology to help save fishes | cbs19.tv

11. UT System’s STARs Award  
Source: The University of Texas System  
Amount: $400,000 
September 2023-August 2026
Overall Objectives: The goal of the award is to establish a research center in the area of technology-driven precision farming and enhance the sustainable agriculture research portfolio of the university and East Texas. The funding is to enhance the research infrastructure with the equipment and materials required to advance the research.

12. Southwest Ag
StressFit: A Multiplexed Wearable Sensor Suite for Simultaneously Measuring Dehydration and Fatigue in AgFF Workers
Source: Southwest Center for Ag Health, Injury Prevention, Education
Amount: $20,000 
October 2024 – September 2025
Overall Objectives: The overall objective of this proposal is to develop and test an integrated wearable sweat sensor, which will monitor the kinetics of multiple analytes in sweat to enhance our understanding of the progression of fatigue and dehydration in agricultural workers.

13. AAUW Research Publication Grant in Engineering, Medicine and Science
Integrated fitness tracker for plants toward next generation of smart farming
Source: American Association of University Women  
Amount: $35,000 
July 2022 – June 2023
Overall Objectives: The overall objective of this proposal is to develop and characterize plant stem sensors for real-time monitoring of their stress responses. 

14. Infusing Entrepreneurship into the UT Tyler Engineering Curriculum and Building a Sustainable East Texas Entrepreneurship Innovation Hub
Source: VentureWell Foundation
Amount: $29,500
Feb. 2021 – Aug. 2025
Overall Objectives: The goal of the project is to infuse entrepreneurial education into the existing biomedical and healthcare-centered courses in the College of Engineering curriculum at UT Tyler and create entrepreneurship immersion programs that will produce student-led start-up ventures.

15. UT System’s Rising STARs Award
Source: The University of Texas System 
Amount: $300,000 
September 2020-August 2023
Overall Objectives: The goal of the award is to establish a research center in the area of technology-driven precision farming and enhance the sustainable agriculture research portfolio of the university and East Texas. The funding is to enhance the research infrastructure with the equipment and materials required to advance the research.