**AWARDS ISSUED PRIOR TO JANUARY 20, 2025, WERE FUNDED UNDER PREVIOUS ADMINISTRATIONS AND MAY NOT REFLECT THE PRIORITIES AND POLICIES OF THE CURRENT ADMINISTRATION.** ANNUALLY, VAST AMOUNTS OF AGRICULTURAL AND FOOD PRODUCTS ARE PRODUCED WHICH REQUIRE PROCESSING BEFORE REACHING CONSUMERS. LABOR SHORTAGES AND TURNOVER ARE INCREASINGLY AFFECTING FACILITIES CRITICAL IN THE AMERICAN FOOD SUPPLY CHAIN. AUTOMATING THESE PROCESSES WILL EASE THESE LABOR PRESSURES, INCREASE OUTPUT AND ENHANCE LABOR SAFETY, WHILE ULTIMATELY INCREASING AVAILABILITY OF FOOD AND LOWERING COSTS. OUR PROPOSED MANUFACTURING TECHNOLOGY WILL MAKE THE DIFFICULT PICKING OR LOADING PROCESSES EASIER, BENEFITING BOTH CONSUMERS AND FOOD PROCESSORS.THE FOOD PROCESSING AND MANUFACTURING INDUSTRIES, LIKE SO MANY OTHERS, FIND THEMSELVES IN THE MIDST OF THEIR SECOND REVOLUTION IN A HUNDRED YEARS. FIRST, IT WAS THE MACHINES THAT CAME TO STANDARDIZE AND STREAMLINE THE FOOD PRODUCTION PROCESS FOR HUMAN WORKERS AND NOW IT IS AI DRIVEN AUTOMATION THAT WILL RELIEVE THE TANDEM PRESSURES OF LABOR SHORTAGES AND AN EVER PRESENT DRIVE FOR GREATER EFFICIENCY AND PRODUCTIVITY. DESPITE ALL THE ADVANCES MADEIN THE WAKE OF THE RISING AUTOMATION TIDAL WAVE, SOME VERY BASIC ELEMENTS OF THE PRODUCTION PROCESS HAVE REMAINED TOO COMPLEX FOR MACHINES TO PROCESS. THE PICKING AND LOADING OF OBJECTS ONTO A PROCESS LINE IS ONE OF THE MOST UNIVERSALLY APPLICABLE EXAMPLES OF THIS CLASS.THE CRUX OF THE PROBLEM LIES IN THE DIVERSITY AND UNPREDICTABILITY OF SHAPES FOUND EVEN WITHIN THE SAME PRODUCT, AS WELL AS THE INHERENTLY RANDOM ORIENTATION OF OBJECTS DUMPED ONTO A CONVEYOR. IN ORDER TO PROPERLY PROCESS A PRODUCT, A SYSTEM MUST KNOW EXACTLY WHERE AND HOW THE OBJECT LIES, OR ELSE THE MACHINE WILL FUNCTION INEFFICIENTLY, EVEN UNUSABLY SO. THIS EXACT ARRANGEMENT OF UNPREDICTABLE OBJECTS IN A PREDICTABLE MANNER HAS BEEN A VERY CHALLENGING ISSUE TO TACKLE, AND PREVIOUS ATTEMPTS TO CREATE SUCH A SYSTEM HAVE FAILED. HOWEVER, WITH RECENT ADVANCES IN IMAGING TECHNOLOGY, AI DEVELOPMENT, AND ADVANCED ROBOTIC CONTROL SCHEMES, AN OPPORTUNITY HAS ARISEN FOR SUCH A SYSTEM TO BE DEVELOPED.FOR EXAMPLE, POULTRY LINES REQUIRE WORKERS TO HANG CHICKEN DURING PROCESSING. TASKS REQUIRE WORKERS TO IDENTIFY, PICK UP, AND LOAD EACH CHICKEN BY ITS LEGS UPSIDE DOWN TO THE MOVING CHUCKLE LINES. THESE TASKS ARE VERY LABOR INTENSIVE (LIFTING 5-8 LBS/CHICKEN), AND HAVE VERY HIGH LABOR TURNOVER RATE, ESPECIALLY IN THE LIVE HANGING STAGE. SEAFOOD PROCESSING SUCH AS OYSTER SORTING AND CRAB MEAT PICKING ALSO SHARE SIMILAR CHALLENGES. IN COASTAL CRAB HOUSE MEAT PICKING, IT IS VERY CHALLENGING TO PICK AND LOAD EACH CRAB FOR MACHINE PROCESSING. THE CRAB'S APPEARANCE, ORIENTATION, SIZE, AND OVERLAPPING OF CRABS IN A LOADING TABLE ARE VERY CHALLENGING FACTORS FOR A MACHINE TO PICK AND LOAD EACH ITEM FOR PROCESSING. WE PROPOSE A THREE-PART SYSTEM TO DETECT, DECIDE ON, AND DYNAMICALLY PICK DIVERSE OBJECTS FROM A LOADING AREA ONTO A CONVEYOR. WE WILL USE LASER PRECISION 3D IMAGING PAIRED WITH A HIGH-SPEED CAMERA TO MAP OUT THE TOPOGRAPHY OF A REGION OF INTEREST. THEN, AN ADVANCED AND HIGHLY TRAINED AI WILL DEDUCE THE PICKING TARGET. FINALLY, A ROBOTIC ARM WITH SPECIALLY DESIGNED FINGERS WILL TRANSFER EACH OBJECT TO A TARGET CONVEYOR IN THE PRECISE MANNER FOR SUBSEQUENT PROCESSING. THIS PROJECT WILL RESULT IN A SIGNIFICANT IMPACT WITHIN THE FOOD SMART MANUFACTURING. THE NEW TECHNOLOGY OF AUTOMATED LOADING WILL REDUCE THE LABOR INTENSITY AND INCREASE THE RELIABILITY AND PRODUCTIVITY OF FOOD MANUFACTURING PLANTS. THE INTELLIGENT LOADING SYSTEM WILL CREATE NEW OPPORTUNITIES TO MAKE SUBSEQUENT PROCESSING MISSIONS ACHIEVABLE THAT OTHERWISE WOULD BE GIVEN UP BECAUSE OF THE LOADING OBSTACLE. SUCH MACHINES WILL ALSO RAISE THE NEED FOR LOCAL HIGH-SKILL LABOR TRAINING PROGRAMS TO OPERATE AND MAINTAIN THE HIGH-TECH MACHINERY. NO LONGER WILL THERE BE FRICTION BETWEEN THE LOCAL LABOR SUPPLY AND THE FOOD AND AGRICULTURAL INDUSTRIES DUE TO A LONGSTANDING RELIANCE ON H1-B GUEST WORKERS. THE STIGMA OF BEING DISREGARDED BY WHAT WAS ONCE A SOURCE OF LOCAL PRIDE WILL BE LIFTED. THIS PROJECT HAS THE POTENTIAL TO IMPACT MANY RURAL COMMUNITIES, SUCH AS THE CHESAPEAKE BAY WATERSHED COMMUNITY, POULTRY PROCESSING PLANTS, AND BEYOND, ESPECIALLY FOR THE YOUNGER GENERATIONS. IT WILL ENHANCE THE COMPETITIVENESS OF U.S. AGRICULTURAL AND FOOD PRODUCTS IN THE GLOBAL MARKET THROUGH SMART AGRICULTURE TECHNOLOGY ADVANCEMENT.