Professor

K.C. Ting graduated from the National Taiwan University with a B.S. degree, the University of Kentucky with an M.S., and the University of Illinois with his Ph.D. All three degrees are in agricultural engineering. He successfully completed an ESCOP/ACOP Leadership Development Course organized by Experiment Station Committee on Organization and Policy, Academic Committee on Organization and Policy, and the USDA Cooperative State Research Service during 1993-94. He was on the faculty of the University of Houston during 1980-85, Rutgers University, New Jersey during 1985-2000, and The Ohio State University during 2000-2004. He served as chair of the Mechanical Engineering Technology Department at the University of Houston during 1984-85, director of the Bioresource Engineering Graduate Program at Rutgers University during 1986-93, chair of the Bioresource Engineering Department, Rutgers University during 1993-1999, and chair of the Department of Food, Agricultural and Biological Engineering at The Ohio State University during 2000-2004. He joined the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign as Professor and Head of the Agricultural and Biological Engineering Department on November 1, 2004. He teaches and conducts research on automation, systems analysis, alternative energy, thermal control, and computerized simulation, optimization and decision support for bio-production and bio-processing systems including phytomation, phytoremediation, advanced life support, and bioenergy. Recent projects include concurrent science, engineering and technology (ConSEnT), systems informatics and analysis of advanced life support systems for human long duration space exploration, robotics for plant and food production, phytoremediation engineering design, and biomass feedstock production engineering. He served as the leader of the Systems Studies & Modeling Team within the New Jersey NASA Specialized Center Of Research and Training (NJ-NSCORT) during 1996-2000. NJ-NSCORT was a five-year, five-million dollar program. He served as the editor of the Information and Electrical Technologies Division of Transactions of the ASAE (American Society of Agricultural Engineers; currently ASABE with B being Biological) and Journal of Applied Engineering in Agriculture during 1996-2000. He is a co-editor/co-author of an ASAE monograph entitled "Robotics for Bioproduction Systems." He is also a co-editor of a special issue of Artificial Intelligence Review on Artificial Intelligence for Biology and Agriculture published by Kluwer Academic Publishers in February 1998. He has authored/co-authored over 240 articles, conference papers, and project reports. He is currently a member of editorial boards for two journals and one encyclopedia published in Japan, Korea, and U.S. He was appointed the Honorary Theme Editor, UNESCO Encyclopedia of Life Support Systems, for the theme "Systems Analysis and Modeling in Food and Agriculture" in February 2004. He was an Editor-in-Chief for the journal of Computers and Electronics in Agriculture published by Elsevier during 2007-2010. He is one of the creators of the concepts of "Phytomation (i.e. plant based engineering systems)" and "Automation-Culture-Environment oriented Systems analysis (ACESys)." He currently leads a BP Energy Biosciences Institute program on “Engineering Solutions for Biomass Feedstock Production.” He holds a professional engineer license in New Jersey. He has been invited to deliver over 90 presentations (many of them were keynotes) at conferences and workshops in many countries and, in many cases, he also served as a member of the organizing committees. He has hosted many international visiting scholars at Rutgers University, The Ohio State University, and the University of Illinois. He has served on several external review teams to evaluate academic and research programs at the college and department levels. He served as a member of the Publications Council of ASAE during 1997-2003 and is currently a member of the Board of Trustees of ASABE Foundation. He has served as an engineering consultant for several companies in the US and Taiwan, an adviser on Taiwan agricultural automation and controlled environment plant production systems projects, an advisor for the Mie University Advisory Program in Japan, and an Honorary Scientist for the Korean Rural Development Administration. He is a member of the African Scientific Committee for establishment of future African Institutes of Science and Technology. He has a patent on a robotic end-effector for transplanting of seedlings. He is a recipient of three best paper awards. He was the 1997 Alpha Zeta Professor of the Year of Cook College, Rutgers University. He was appointed guest chair professor of Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China in 2006 and Honorary Professor of the National Bio-Environment Engineering Laboratory of the Ministry of Agriculture, China Agricultural University, Beijing, China in 1996. He is a member of seven honorary societies. He has been a member of ASME and ASABE since 1980. He was elected to Fellow of ASABE in July 2001 and to Fellow of ASME, International (American Society of Mechanical Engineers) in July 2002. He participated as a fellow of Food Systems Leadership Institute during 2006-2008. He was a recipient of the ASABE 2008 Kishida International Award and 2011 James R. and Karen A. Gilley Academic Leadership Award.

Bio-based Processing and Production Systems, Biomass and Renewable Energy, Precision and Information Agriculture, Agricultural and Biosystems Management, Agricultural Safety and Health, Food Quality and Safety, Environmental Stewardship