Inkonova secures first commercial order for the Batonomous system, from LKAB
Inkonova’s Batonomous received the first commercial service purchase order for a scanning mission using the Batonomous system (autonomy for aerial robotics without light or infrastructure -GPS, beacons, video, etc..) from LKAB Malmberget. The PO came after a prior demo of the system there in late February this year, the demo was conducted in Gällivare in Northern Sweden, beyond the Arctic Circle. LKAB owns the biggest underground iron ore mine in the world, located in Kiruna. The service mission is scheduled for the first half of June 2018.
The mission aims to survey zones deemed difficult or impossible with the previous state of technology. The inclination, the terrain of the shaft, the danger of collapse and falling rocks, the absence of light, GPS, vision and prior knowledge, all make it a challenge to survey and map these areas. Nevertheless, the lack of data from these zones cause weeks of delay, and a multitude of errors, and thus millions in monetary loss.
The Batonomous technology, along with our other systems, specialize in enabling autonomous aerial robotics in spaces where no other survey platforms can be used, particularly in autonomous navigation where all infrastructure (such as GPS, light, beacons, etc..) is absent, no prior map exists, and the environment has a challenge . Underground mines are the main ones now, but as mentioned before, they are not the only.
Inkonova’s aerial robotics solutions have been since 2016 catering for the underground mining market in North America, South America, Africa and Europe with products such as the TILT Ranger, TILT Scout and most recently the Batonomous.
