Pompeii, a four-legged robot for routine inspection activities and acquisition of useful data

At the Archaeological Park of Pompeii arrives Spot, the quadruped robot capable of inspecting places, even small ones, safely, acquiring and recording data useful for the study and design of interventions. This is one of the latest trials in the monitoring of archaeological structures: new technological solutions are thus being made at the service of archaeology.

These trials are part of the wider Pompeii Archaeological Park Smart@POMPEI project, aimed at smart, sustainable and inclusive management of the Park through an integrated technological solution that makes Pompeii a Smart Archaeological Park. For these activities, the Park is relying on the collaboration of Information Technology companies in continuous research and innovation, such as Leica Geosystems (part of Hexagon) and Sprint Reply, a Reply Group company specializing in robotics and process automation.

The Leica BLK2FLY, the first flying laser scanner capable of autonomous 3-D scanning, and Boston Dynamics’ SPOT, the quadruped robot that moves over different types of terrain, enabling the automation of routine inspection tasks anddata acquisition in a safe manner, were used in this first phase of experimentation. SPOT has been equipped in two modes with Leica BLKARC and the Spot CAM+ sensor, respectively.

These intelligent platforms make possible the accessibility of data, acquired during robot inspections, and are useful for applications in the Pompeii Archaeological Park.

"Today, thanks to the collaboration with high-tech companies and as a result of these successful experiments, we want to test the use of these robots in the underground tunnels of clandestine excavators that we are surveying in the area around Pompeii, as part of a memorandum of understanding with the Torre Annunziata Public Prosecutor’s Office," said Park Director Gabriel Zuchtriegel. “Often safety conditions in tunnels excavated by grave robbers are very critical, so the use of a robot could be a breakthrough that would allow us to proceed more quickly and in total safety.”

Pompeii, a four-legged robot for routine inspection activities and acquisition of useful data

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