Cal Coopmans

Cal Coopmans is a Research Assistant Professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Utah State University, where he also serves as Director of AggieAir, a leading unmanned aerial systems (UAS) research program. His work bridges aerospace engineering, cyber-physical systems, and environmental science, with a focus on applying drone technology to agricultural and ecological monitoring.

Dr. Coopmans earned his PhD in Electrical Engineering from Utah State University in 2014, with a dissertation on cyber-physical systems enabled by UAS-based personal remote sensing. He also holds an MS in Electrical Engineering from USU (2010) and a BS in Computer Engineering from Montana State University (2004), with minors in Mathematics and Computer Science.

His research interests include uncrewed systems, aerial remote sensing, image processing, lidar, mechatronics, and autonomous control systems. He teaches graduate courses in Electrical Engineering, particularly special topics in uncrewed systems and robotics.

The recent publications of Dr. Coopmans reflect a strong trend in using small UAS (sUAS) for high-resolution environmental monitoring, particularly in agriculture. His work frequently involves thermal and multispectral imaging, machine learning, and energy balance modeling (e.g., TSEB) to estimate evapotranspiration, leaf area index, and water stress in crops like vineyards and turfgrass. He also contributes to UAS system design, including the development of the GreatBlue VTOL fixed-wing drone.

Dr. Coopmans has mentored several graduate students in the Electrical & Computer Engineering program, including Richard Michael Snider, Sadikul Alim Toki, Mitchell Lee Bailey, and Stockton Gerald Slack. While no formal scientific awards are listed in the provided text, his extensive peer-reviewed publications and leadership in AggieAir indicate significant scholarly impact.

He is actively involved in interdisciplinary research, collaborating with experts in hydrology, agriculture, and environmental science. His lab, AggieAir, functions as a hub for UAS-based data collection and analysis, supporting projects in irrigation management, ecosystem monitoring, and precision agriculture.