The first test of the UX-1Neo took place in May 2021 at the closed and flooded uranium mine in Urgeiriça, Portugal.
The choice of location was not random. We have visited the mine several times during the UNEXMIN project, we know the site, and the mine staff are very welcoming.
The shaft we used is theoretically more than 700 m deep, but the UX-1Neo robot found a blockage at ~170 m depth, so we could not dive any further. The conditions were ideal for testing the newly built robot’s sensors and navigation tools, and we also used the data to create a 3D photogrammetric model of the side passages. These models are excellent for studying geological formations, and the results can even be incorporated into a comprehensive geological model.
The results of the test were encouraging, and the UX-1Neo passed the challenges successfully.
