The Grainger College of Engineering
Center for Autonomous Construction and Manufacturing at Scale

John F. Reid

John F. Reid
John F. Reid
Research Professor

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Biography

Dr. Reid is a Research Professor in Computer Science and Ag & Bio Engineering, and he is the Executive Director in the Center for Digital Agriculture. Reid has more than 35 years of highly accomplished technology leadership experience in industry and academia. From 1986-2000, he served on the faculty at the University of Illinois where his research focused on sensing, automation, and control of food and agricultural systems. He then spent 19 years with Deere and Company where initiated the development of enterprise field robotics capabilities. He has experience in innovation management having served as Director, Enterprise Product Innovation and Technology for 14 years. In 2017 he was recognized as John Deere Technical Fellow for his contributions in Technology Innovation. From 2020-2022, he was Vice President of Enterprise Technologies for Brunswick Corporation.

Reid received his B.S. and M.S. degrees in Agricultural Engineering from Virginia Tech. Reid received his PhD in Agricultural Engineering from Texas A&M University where his dissertation topic was automatic tractor guidance via computer vision. His research interests have broadly focused advancing agricultural and biological systems through advance sensing, automation, and control. He and his collaborators have produced more than 30 patents in these research areas.

Dr. Reid’s external leadership includes Chairmanship of the Innovation Research Interchange from 2018-2019, serving on Board of Directors of Fraunhofer USA from 2013-2022, and Dr. Reid is a full member of the Club of Bologna, a global taskforce for the development of strategies for agricultural mechanization. Awards include University of Illinois University Scholar (1995), ASABE Fellow (2004), and John Deere Fellow (2017) and Virginia Tech Academy of Engineering Excellence (2020). Dr. Reid was elected to the National Academy of Engineering in 2019 for contributions to automation in agriculture.

Education

  • Ph.D. Agricultural Engineering, Texas A&M, 1987
  • M.S. Agricultural Engineering, Virginia Tech, 1982
  • B.S. Agricultural Engineering, Virginia Tech, 1980

Academic Positions

  • Research Professor, Computer Science (50%), Agricultural and Biological Engineering (50%), ECE, 0%; University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign (2022-present) 
  • Full Professor; University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign (1997)
  • Associate Professor; University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign (1992)
  • Assistant Professor; University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign (1986) 

Other Professional Employment

  • Vice President; Enterprise Technologies, Brunswick Corporation (2020-2022)
  • Director, Product Technology & Innovation; John Deere (2006-2020)  
  • Manager, Product Technology; John Deere (2005-2006)
  • Principle Scientist/Engineer; John Deere (2001-2005) 

Professional Societies

  • Society of Automotive Engineers; 2016 COMVEC Autonomous Driving Organizing Committee 
  • American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers; Foundation Board (2014-2018)
  • American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers; Fellow (2004)
  • American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers; Board of Directors (2003-2006)

Other Outside Service

  • Fraunhofer USA, Science and Technology Advisory Council (STAC), 2021-present.
  • Innovation Research Interchange; Chairman (2018-2019)
  • Innovation Research Interchange; Board of Directors (2014-2018)
  • Innovation Research Interchange; Research Technology Management Board of Editors (2012-2022)

Research Interests

  • Translation of research into practice, outcome-driven innovation processes, business model innovation, and innovation management.
  • Circular bioeconomy in agriculture, precision agriculture technologies, agricultural robotics and automation, automation of agricultural and biological systems.
  • Deployment of embodied AI in agriculture, construction, and marine application verticals.

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Chapters in Books

  • Book Chapter: Reid, John F. 2024. Autonomous navigation and path planning for agricultural robots. In van Henten, E. and Edan, Y. (ed.), Advances in agri-food robotics, Burleigh Dodds Science Publishing, Cambridge, UK, 2024, (ISBN: 978 1 80146 277 8).
  • Book Chapter: Robotics in Agriculture and Forestry Marcel Bergman, John Billingsley, John Reid, and Eldert van Henten. In Springer Handbook of Robotics, 2nd Edition. Edited by Siciliano and Khatib. DOI: 10.1007/3-319-32552-1

Selected Articles in Journals

  • Reid, J. F., & Searcy, S. W. (1987). Automatic Tractor Guidance with Computer Vision. SAE Transactions, 96, 673–693.
  • Reid, J. F., & Searcy, S. W. 1988. An algorithm for separating guidance information from row crop images. Transactions of the ASAE. 31 (6): 1624-1632. (doi: 10.13031/2013.30910)
  • KA Tarbell, JF Reid. 1991. A computer vision system for characterizing corn growth and development. Transactions of the ASAE 34 (5), 2245-2255 (doi: 10.13031/2013.31864)
  • Humburg , D. S., & Reid, J. F. 1991. Field Performance of Machine Vision for the Selective Harvest of Asparagus. SAE Transactions, 100, 81–92.
  • KA Tarbell , JF Reid, DK Tcheng. 1991. Corn growth and development attributes obtained using inductive learning techniques. Transactions of the ASAE 34 (5), 2264-2266. (doi: 10.13031/2013.31866)
  • JR Reid, C Kim , MR Paulsen. 1991. Computer vision sensing of stress cracks in corn kernels Transactions of the ASAE 34 (5), 2236-22441991. (doi: 10.13031/2013.31863)
  • Humburg, D.S. and J.F. Reid. 1992. Field performance of machine vision for the selective harvest of green asparagus. Transactions of the SAE 100(2): 81-92.
  • Reid, J.F. and S.W. Searcy. 1992. An algorithm for computer vision sensing of a row crop guidance directrix. Transactions of the SAE 100(2): 93-105.
  • Zhang, Q., J.F. Reid, J.B. Litchfield, J. Ren , and S. Chang. 1994. A prototype neural network supervised control system for Bacillus thuringiensis fermentations. Biotechnology and Bioengineering 43: 483-489.
  • Ren, J. , J.F. Reid, and J.B. Litchfield. 1994. Knowledge-based supervision and control of bioprocesses with a machine vision based sensing system. Journal of Biotechnology 36: 25-34.
  • Brodie, J.R., A.C. Hansen, and J.F. Reid. 1994. Size assessment of stacked logs via the Hough transform. Transactions of the ASAE 37(1): 303-310.
  • Zhang, Q., J.B. Litchfield, J.F. Reid, J. Ren , and S. Chang. 1995. Coupling a machine vision sensor and a neural net supervised controller: controlling microbial cultivations. Journal of Biotechnology 38: 219-228.
  • Chang, Y. and J.F. Reid. 1995. Characterization of a color vision system. Transactions of the ASAE. 39(1): 263-273.
  • Ahmad I.S . and Reid J.F. 1996. Evaluation of colour representations for maize images. Journal of Agricultural Engineering Research 63(3): 185-195.
  • Noguchi, N., J.F. Reid, Q. Zhang, L.Tian, and A.C. Hansen. 1999. Vision intelligence for mobile agro-robotic system, Journal of Robotics and Mechatronics 11: 193-199.
  • Zhang, Q., J.F. Reid, and N. Noguchi. 2000. Automated guidance control for agricultural tractor using redundant sensors. SAE 1999 Transactions, Journal of Commercial Vehicles 108: 27-31.
  • Zhang, Q., J.F. Reid, and D. Wu. 2000. Hardware-in-the-loop simulator of an off-road vehicle electrohydraulic steering system. Transactions of the ASAE 43(6): 1323-1330.
  • Reid, J.F., Q. Zhang, N. Noguchi, M. Dickson. 2000. Agricultural automatic guidance research in North America. Computer and Electronics in Agriculture 25: 155-167.
  • Qiu, H., Q. Zhang, J.F. Reid, and D. Wu. 2000. System identification of an electrohydraulic steering system. SAE 1999 Transactions, Journal of Commercial Vehicles 108: 361-367.
  • Pinto, F.A.C. , J.F. Reid, Q. Zhang, and N. Noguchi. 2000. Vehicle guidance parameter determination from crop row images using principal component analysis. Journal of Agricultural Engineering Research 75: 257-264.
  • Kim, Y. , J.F. Reid, A.C. Hansen, and Q. Zhang. 2000. On-field crop stress detection system using multi-spectral imaging sensor. Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering 1(2): 88-94.
  • Wu, D., Q. Zhang, and J.F. Reid, 2001. Adaptive steering controller using a Kalman estimator for wheel-type agricultural tractors. Robotica 19(5): 527-533.
  • Qiu, H., Q. Zhang, J.F. Reid, and D. Wu. 2001. Modeling and simulation of an electrohydraulic steering system. International Journal of Vehicle Design 17: 259-265.
  • Qiu, H., Q. Zhang, and J.F. Reid. 2001. Fuzzy control of electrohydraulic steering systems for agricultural vehicles. Transactions of the ASAE 44(6): 1397-1402.
  • Benson, E.R. , Q. Zhang, J.F. Reid, and M. Dickson. 2001. Fuzzy quality evaluation for agricultural applications. SAE 2000 Transactions, Journal of Commercial Vehicles 109(2): 377-384.
  • Zhang, Q., D. Wu, J.F. Reid, and E.R. Benson . 2002. Using model recognition to design an electrohydraulic steering controller for off-road vehicles. Mechatronics 12(6): 845-858.
  • Rovira-Más, F. , Q., Zhang, J.F. Reid, and J.D. Will. 2003. Machine vision based automated tractor guidance. International Journal of Smart Engineering Design 5(4): 467-480
  • Noguchi, N., ,J.D. Will, J.F. Reid, and Q. Zhang. 2003. Development of master-slave robot system for farm management. Computer and Electronics in Agriculture 44(1): 1-19
  • ER Benson, JF Reid, Q Zhang. 2003. Biosystems Engineering (2003) 86 (4), 389–398 doi:10.1016/j.biosystemseng.2003.07.002.
  • Benson, E.R., J.F. Reid, and Q. Zhang. 2003. Machine vision-based guidance system for an agricultural small-grain harvester. Transactions of the ASAE 46(4): 1255-1264.
  • Rovira-Más, F., Q., Zhang, J.F. Reid, and J.D. Will. 2004. Automated tractor navigation using stereo disparity images. Transactions of the ASAE. American Society of Agricultural Engineers 47(4): 1289-1300. DOI: 10.13031/2013.16563
  • S. Han, Q. Zhang, B. Ni and J.F. Reid. 2004. A Guidance Directrix Approach for Designing a Vision-Based Vehicle Guidance System. Computer and Electronics in Agriculture 43(3): 179-195.
  • Kim Y. and J. F. Reid. 2004. Multispectral imaging technology for site-specific crop fertilization. Encyclopedia of Agricultural, Food, and Biological Engineering DOI:10.1081/E-EAFE-120026899: 1-5. Published online Aug. 25, 2004.
  • Rovira-Más, F. JF Reid, S Han. 2005. Obstacle detection using stereo vision to enhance safety of autonomous machines. Transactions of the ASAE 48 (6), 2389-2397.
  • Rovira-Más, F.., Q Zhang, JF Reid. 2005. Creation of three-dimensional crop maps based on aerial stereoimages. Biosystems Engineering 90 (3), 251-259.
  • Rovira-Más, F., Zhang Q, Reid JF, Will JD. 2005. Hough-transform-based vision algorithm for crop row detection of an automated agricultural vehicle. Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, Part D: Journal of Automobile Engineering 219(8):999-1010. doi:10.1243/095440705X34667
  • Kim Y. and J. F. Reid. 2006. Modeling and calibration of a multi-spectral imaging sensor for in-field crop nitrogen assessment. Applied Engineering in Agriculture 22(6): 935-941.
  • Rovira-Más, F., JF Reid, Q Zhang. 2006. Stereovision data processing with 3D density maps for agricultural vehicles. Transactions of the ASABE 49 (4), 1213-1222. (doi: 10.13031/2013.21721)
  • Kim Y., J. F. Reid., and S. Han. 2006. On-the-go nitrogen sensing and fertilizer control for site-specific crop management. International Journal of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering 7(1):18-26.
  • Kim Y.and J. F. Reid. 2006. Spectral sensing for plant stress assessment: a review. International Journal of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering 7(1): 27-41.
  • Kim Y.and J. F. Reid. 2007. Bidirectional effect on a spectral image sensor for in-field crop reflectance assessment. International Journal of Remote Sensing 28(21): 4913-4926.
  • Kim Y., J. F. Reid, and Q. Zhang. 2008. Fuzzy logic control of a multispectral imaging sensor for in-field crop sensing. Computers and Electronics in Agriculture 60(2): 279-288.
  • Rovira-Más, F. S Han, JF Reid. 2008. Trajectory-based algorithm for the quantitative evaluation of automatically steered vehicles. Transactions of the ASABE 51 (5), 1545-1552
  • Rovira-Más, F. Q Zhang, JF Reid. 2008. Stereo vision three-dimensional terrain maps for precision agriculture. Computers and Electronics in Agriculture 60 (2), 133-143
  • JF Reid. 2011. The impact of mechanization on agriculture. The Bridge 41 (3), 22-29. National Academy of Engineering.
  • J Schueller, J Reid. 2022. The digitalization of production agriculture. The Bridge 52 (2), 35-40. National Academy of Engineering.
  • Guy R Aby, John M Shutske, John F Reid, Cheryl Beseler, Salah F Issa. 2024. Identification of Advantages and Limitations of Current Risk Assessment and Hazard Analysis Methods when Applied on Autonomous Agricultural Machineries. Journal of Agricultural Safety and Health. 30(2): 35-52. (doi: 10.13031/jash.15873) @2024

Articles in Conference Proceedings

Abstracts (in print or accepted)

  • Reid, John F. 2024. The Digital Transformation of Agriculture: Advancing Productivity towards a Circular Bioeconomy. CIGR 2024 (Jeju, South Korea).

Refereed Conference Papers and Presentations

Patents

Magazine Articles

Reports

  • Noguchi, N, J.F. Reid, Q. Zhang, J.D. Will, and K. Ishii. 2001. Development of robot tractor based on RTK-GPS and gyroscope. ASAE Paper 01-1195, ASAE, St. Joseph, MI.
  • Noguchi, N, J.F. Reid, A. Zhang, and J.D. Will. 2001. Turning function for robot tractor based on spline function. ASAE Paper 01-1196, ASAE, St. Joseph, MI.
  • Benson, E.R., Q. Zhang, J.F. Reid, and M. Dickson. 2000. Fuzzy quality evaluation for agricultural applications. SAE Paper No. 2000-01-2621, SAE, Warrendale, PA.
  • Benson, E.R., J.F. Reid, Q. Zhang and F.A.C. Pinto. 2000. An adaptive fuzzy crop edge detection method for machine vision. ASAE Paper 001020, ASAE, St. Joseph, MI.
  • Qiu, H., Zhang, Q. and J.R. Reid, 2000. Fuzzy control of electrohydraulic steering system. ASAE Paper 001020, ASAE, St. Joseph, MI.
  • Will, J.D., N. Noguchi, J.F. Reid and Q. Zhang, 2000. Sensor fusion framework for heading determination using GPS and inertial measurement. ASAE Paper 001070, ASAE, St. Joseph, MI.
  • Benson, E.R., J.F. Reid and Q. Zhang, 2000. Development of an automated combine guidance system. ASAE Paper 003137, ASAE, St. Joseph, MI.
  • Qiu, H., Q. Zhang, J.F. Reid, and D. Wu, 1999. Modeling and simulation of an electrohydraulic steering system. ASAE Paper 993076, ASAE, St. Joseph, MI.
  • Zhang, Q., J.F. Reid, and N. Noguchi, 1999. Automated guidance control for agricultural tractor using redundant sensors. SAE Technical Paper Series 1999-01-1874, SAE, Warrendale, PA.
  • Ahmad, I.S., J.F. Reid, N. Noguchi, and A.C. Hansen. 1999. Nitrogen sensing for precision agriculture using chlorophyll maps. ASAE Paper 993035. St. Joseph, MI. UILU-ENG-99-7029.
  • Pinto, F., J.F. Reid, Q. Zhang, and N. Noguchi. 1999. Guidance parameter determination using an artificial neural network classifier. ASAE Paper 993004. St. Joseph, MI. UILU-99-7024.
  • Qiu, H., Q. Zhang, J.F. Reid, and D. Wu. 1999. Modeling and simulation of an electrohydraulic steering system. ASAE Paper 993076. St. Joseph, MI. UILU-99-7019.
  • Qiu, H. Q. Zhang, J.F. Reid, and D. Wu. 1999. System identification of an electrohydraulic steering system. SAE paper 1999-01-2854. UILU-ENG-99-7028.
  • Will, J.D., D.D. Moore, E.N. Viall, J.F. Reid and Q. Zhang. 1999. Wireless networking for control and automation of off-road equipment. ASAE Paper 993183. St. Joseph, MI. UILU-ENG-99-7031.
  • Wu, D., Q. Zhang, J.F. Reid, and H. Qiu. 1999. Adaptive control of electrohydraulic steering system for wheel-type agricultural tractors. ASAE paper 993079. St. Joseph, MI. UILU-ENG-99-7018
  • Noguchi, N., Reid, J.F., Q. Zhang. and L.F. Tian. 1998. Vision intelligence for precision farming using fuzzy logic optimized genetic algorithm and artificial neural network. ASAE Paper 983034. St. Joseph, MI. UILU-ENG-98-7020.
  • Benson, E., Stombaugh, T., Noguchi, N., Will, J., and J.F. Reid. 1998. An evaluation of a geomagnetic direction sensor for vehicle guidance in precision agriculture applications. ASAE Paper 983203. St. Joseph, MI. UILU-ENG-98-7011.
  • Noguchi, N., J.F. Reid, J.Will, and E. Benson. 1998. Vehicle automation system based on multi-sensor integration. ASAE Paper 983111. St. Joseph, MI. UILU-ENG-98-7021.
  • Reid, J.F. 1998. A status report on Autonomous Guidance of Agricultural Vehicles in the US: New Frontiers in the 21st Century. RSJ Meeting, Sapporo, Japan. UILU-ENG-98-7026.
  • Pinto, F. and J.F. Reid. 1998. Heading angle and offset determination using principle components analysis. ASAE Paper 983113. St. Joseph, MI. UILU-ENG-98-7010.
  • Reid, J.F. 1998. Precision Guidance of Agricultural Vehicles. JSME Meeting, Sapporo, Japan. UILU-ENG-7031.
  • Will, J., T. Stombaugh, E. Benson, N. Noguchi, and J.F. Reid. 1998. Development of a flexible platform for automatic agricultural guidance research. ASAE Paper 983202. St. Joseph, MI. UILU-ENG-98-7015.
  • Wu, D., Q. Zhang and J.F. Reid. 1998. Dynamic simulation of wheel-type tractor steering. UILU-ENG-98-7008.
  • Wu, D., Q. Zhang, J.F. Reid, H. Qiu, and E.R. Benson. 1998. Model recognition and simulation of an E/H steering controller on off-road equipment. UILU-ENG-98-7033.
  • Ahmad, I.S. , J F Reid, M R Paulsen. 1997. Neuro-Fuzzy Inference of Soybean Seed. ASAE Annual Meeting Paper 973041, Minneapolis, MN.
  • Ahmad, I.S., J.F. Reid, and M.R. Paulsen. 1994. Morphological feature extraction by machine vision of damaged soybean seeds. ASAE Summer Meeting Paper 943014, Kansas City, MO.
  • Chang, Y., L.E. Bode, and J.F. Reid. 1994. A gray scale sieving algorithm for particle image analysis. ASAE Winter Meeting Paper 943605, Atlanta, GA
  • Ahmad, I., J.F. Reid, M.R. Paulsen, and J.B Sinclair. 1993. Soybean seed classification using learning vector quantization. ASAE Winter Meeting Paper 933605 (Chicago, IL) UIUL-ENG-93-7015.
  • Zhang, Q., J.F. Reid, J.B. Litchfield. 1992. A prototype neural network supervised control system for Bacillus thuringiensis fermentations. Paper 923592, ASAE, St. Joseph, MI.
  • Reid, J.F. and S.W. Searcy. 1991. An algorithm for computer vision sensing of a row crop guidance directrix. 1991 SAE International Off-Highway and Powerplant Congress and Exposition, Paper 911752. SAE, Warrendale, PA.
  • Humburg, D.S. and J.F. Reid. 1991. Field performance of machine vision for the selective harvest of green asparagus. 1991 SAE International Off-Highway and Powerplant Congress and Exposition, Paper 911751. SAE, Warrendale, PA.
  • Humburg, D.S. and J.F. Reid. 1990. A machine vision algorithm for identification of harvestable spears of asparagus. ASAE Paper 90-7025. St. Joseph, MI.
  • Humburg, Daniel S. and John F. Reid. 1990. Field performance of machine vision for the selective harvest of asparagus. ASAE Paper 907523, St. Joseph, MI 49085-9659
  • Humburg, D.S. and J.F. Reid. 1990. A machine vision algorithm for identification of harvestable spears of asparagus. ASAE Paper 90-7025. St. Joseph, MI.
  • JF Reid. 1998. A Status Report on Autonomous Guidance of Agricultural Vehicles in the US: New Frontiers in the 21st Century. UILU-ENG-98-7026
  • JF Reid. 1998. Precision Guidance of Agricultural Vehicles. UILU-ENG-98-7031.

Honors

  • Fellow, International Academy of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering (2024)
  • National Academy of Engineering;  (2019 )
  • John Deere Fellow;  (2017 )
  • ASABE Fellow;  (2004 )
  • University Scholar; The program recognizes excellence while helping to identify and retain the university's most talented teachers, scholars, and researchers; UIUC (1995-1997 )

Teaching Honors

  • Incomplete List of Faculty Recognized as Excellent by Their Students (1993 )
  • Incomplete List of Faculty Recognized as Excellent by Their Students (1995 )
  • Karl Gardner Advising Award (1997)

Research Honors

  • Japanese Society for the Promotion of Science Research Fellowship  (1995-1997)

Other Honors

  • Academy of Engineering Excellence;  (2020)
  • Club of Bologna, Full Member  (2001)

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