Show-Me State Times

Saint Louis University, in partnership with The Ohio State University and Purdue University, will establish the Center for Accurate Georeferencing of the Environment (CAGE), an industry-university cooperative research center. The initiative is supported by a $2.25 million grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF), with SLU receiving $500,000 to support its campus operations.

“This center across the three universities will address today’s challenges in Artificial Intelligence and geospatial,” said Vasit Sagan, Ph.D., professor of geospatial science and associate vice president for geospatial research at SLU.

Sagan explained that CAGE will focus on user-oriented and use-inspired research. Each university team will contribute expertise to solve specific problems. At SLU, researchers will concentrate on core geospatial sciences such as remote sensing and GPS/PNT, as well as Artificial Intelligence applications in areas like GPS alternatives, precision agriculture, and geospatial data analytics driven by industry needs.

Ohio State's team will work on foundational aspects of geodesy, photogrammetry, and computer vision. Purdue's researchers plan to focus on navigation and robotic automation for monitoring infrastructure and natural resources.

The center will collaborate with more than a dozen industry partners and government agencies who provide membership funds for research efforts. These organizations will form a board that identifies R&D challenges and votes to fund proposals from the three universities.

“They will vote to fund the research and development,” Sagan said. “We will develop solutions to current, concrete problems facing the government and industry today.”

Over the next five years, industry partners are expected to contribute an additional $1 million per year to CAGE. The NSF grant covers operational costs for the center, which is scheduled to launch in early 2026 with its board formation. Project selection is anticipated in late spring.

“This is a unique NSF-funded Industry-University Cooperative Research Center,” Sagan said. “It allows industry to come in and support advancing scientific research and development.”

The NSF’s Industry-University Cooperative Research Centers program aims to generate breakthrough research through collaboration between industry innovators, academic teams, and government agencies.

Charles Toth, Ph.D., serves as site lead at Ohio State University while Ayman Habib, Ph.D., directs Purdue’s site.

Saint Louis University established its School of Science and Engineering in 2022 by merging select departments from the College of Arts and Sciences with Parks College of Engineering, Aviation and Technology. More information about the school can be found at slu.edu/science-and-engineering.