Uddhav Bhattarai

I am a Robotics Data Scientist at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) specializing in robotics, autonomous systems, and embodied AI. My work focuses on the development of intelligent, integrated robotic platforms by leveraging learning-enabled control, Vision Foundation Models (VFM), and vision-language-action (VLA) models to accelerate scientific discovery. I work at the intersection of perception and action through Sim2Real transfer, multi-modal sensor fusion, and advanced control frameworks.

I completed my Ph.D. at Washington State University [Advisor: Prof. Manoj Karkee; now at Cornell], where I worked on the development of ground and aerial robotic systems for orchard and vineyard operations. My research focused on developing machine vision algorithms leveraging weakly and semi-supervised deep learning and sensor fusion for scene understanding and robotic automation.

Before joining PNNL, I was a Postdoctoral Scholar at University of California, Davis [PI: Prof. Stavros G. Vougioukas] where I developed low cost, scalable AI-based solutions for processing terabyte-scale data for human activity recognition, efficiency evaluation, and precision yield monitoring in agriculture.

news

Apr 30, 2026	Served as Associate Editor for 2026 IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems (IROS 2026), Pittsburgh, PA, USA
Feb 23, 2026	Joined Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) as Robotics Data Scientist.
Mar 13, 2025	Served as Associate Editor for 2025 IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems (IROS 2025), Hangzhou, China
Jul 01, 2023	Joined Bio-Automation Lab University of California Davis as Postdoctoral Scholar.
May 15, 2023	Completed internship at FFRobotics as Technical Consultant.

selected publications

COMPAG

A vision-based robotic system for precision pollination of apples

Uddhav Bhattarai , Ranjan Sapkota , Safal Kshetri , and 4 more authors

Computers and Electronics in Agriculture, 2025

Bib

@article{bhattarai2025vision,
  title = {A vision-based robotic system for precision pollination of apples},
  author = {Bhattarai, Uddhav and Sapkota, Ranjan and Kshetri, Safal and Mo, Changki and Whiting, Matthew D and Zhang, Qin and Karkee, Manoj},
  journal = {Computers and Electronics in Agriculture},
  volume = {234},
  pages = {110158},
  year = {2025},
  publisher = {Elsevier},
  category = {journal},
  google_scholar_id = {blknAaTinKkC},
  doi = {https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compag.2025.110158}
}

COMPAG

AgRegNet: A deep regression network for flower and fruit density estimation, localization, and counting in orchards

Uddhav Bhattarai , Santosh Bhusal , Qin Zhang , and 1 more author

Computers and Electronics in Agriculture, 2024

Bib

@article{bhattarai2024agregnet,
  title = {AgRegNet: A deep regression network for flower and fruit density estimation, localization, and counting in orchards},
  author = {Bhattarai, Uddhav and Bhusal, Santosh and Zhang, Qin and Karkee, Manoj},
  journal = {Computers and Electronics in Agriculture},
  volume = {227},
  pages = {109534},
  year = {2024},
  publisher = {Elsevier},
  category = {journal},
  google_scholar_id = {Zph67rFs4hoC},
  doi = {https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compag.2024.109534}
}

JFR

Design, integration, and field evaluation of a robotic blossom thinning system for tree fruit crops

Uddhav Bhattarai , Qin Zhang , and Manoj Karkee

Journal of Field Robotics, 2024

Bib

@article{bhattarai2024design,
  title = {Design, integration, and field evaluation of a robotic blossom thinning system for tree fruit crops},
  author = {Bhattarai, Uddhav and Zhang, Qin and Karkee, Manoj},
  journal = {Journal of Field Robotics},
  volume = {41},
  number = {5},
  pages = {1366--1385},
  year = {2024},
  publisher = {Wiley Online Library},
  category = {journal},
  google_scholar_id = {kNdYIx-mwKoC},
  doi = {https://doi.org/10.1002/rob.22330}
}

IEEE-RAM

Semiautonomous Precision Pruning of Upright Fruiting Offshoot Orchard Systems: An Integrated Approach

Alexander You , Nidhi Parayil , Josyula Gopala Krishna , and 7 more authors

IEEE Robotics & Automation Magazine, 2023

Bib

@article{you2023semiautonomous,
  category = {journal},
  title = {Semiautonomous Precision Pruning of Upright Fruiting Offshoot Orchard Systems: An Integrated Approach},
  author = {You, Alexander and Parayil, Nidhi and Krishna, Josyula Gopala and Bhattarai, Uddhav and Sapkota, Ranjan and Ahmed, Dawood and Whiting, Matthew and Karkee, Manoj and Grimm, Cindy M and Davidson, Joseph R},
  journal = {IEEE Robotics \& Automation Magazine},
  year = {2023},
  publisher = {IEEE},
  dimensions = {true},
  google_scholar_id = {maZDTaKrznsC},
  doi = {https://doi.org/10.1109/MRA.2023.3309098}
}

COMPAG

Automated execution of a pest bird deterrence system using a programmable unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV)

Santosh Bhusal , Manoj Karkee , Uddhav Bhattarai , and 2 more authors

Computers and Electronics in Agriculture, 2022

Bib

@article{bhusal2022automated,
  category = {journal},
  title = {Automated execution of a pest bird deterrence system using a programmable unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV)},
  author = {Bhusal, Santosh and Karkee, Manoj and Bhattarai, Uddhav and Majeed, Yaqoob and Zhang, Qin},
  journal = {Computers and Electronics in Agriculture},
  volume = {198},
  pages = {106972},
  year = {2022},
  publisher = {Elsevier},
  google_scholar_id = {W7OEmFMy1HYC},
  doi = {https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compag.2022.106972}
}

COMPIND

A weakly-supervised approach for flower/fruit counting in apple orchards

Uddhav Bhattarai , and Manoj Karkee

Computers in Industry, 2022

Bib

@article{bhattarai2022weakly,
  category = {journal},
  title = {A weakly-supervised approach for flower/fruit counting in apple orchards},
  author = {Bhattarai, Uddhav and Karkee, Manoj},
  journal = {Computers in Industry},
  volume = {138},
  pages = {103635},
  year = {2022},
  publisher = {Elsevier},
  google_scholar_id = {Tyk-4Ss8FVUC},
  doi = {https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compind.2022.103635}
}