Document Type

Article

Publication Date

Summer 8-7-2026

Abstract

Hazardous mining environments, including abandoned underground workings and disturbed surface areas, remain difficult to explore safely because of unstable ground conditions, limited accessibility, and unknown terrain characteristics. The Boston Dynamics SPOT quadruped platform supports remote exploration and data collection in these environments; however, effective operation requires a better understanding of how measurable terrain characteristics relate to SPOT traversability performance.

This study combined terrestrial laser scanning (TLS)-based terrain characterization with field-based SPOT testing to evaluate traversability performance in representative mining environments. High-resolution TLS data acquired using a Maptek laser scanner were processed to quantify terrain slope and rock fragmentation, while field experiments evaluated SPOT locomotion stability and traversal success. Fifty traverses were completed across five representative terrain types. TLS-based slope and fragmentation analyses were conducted on fragmented rock and mixed muck terrains, where terrain slope and particle-size distribution (D50 and D90) were quantified.

Linear and multiple regression analyses were performed to examine relationships between terrain characteristics and SPOT traversability metrics. Increased terrain slope and fragment size were associated with reduced locomotion stability and traversal success. Multiple regression analysis showed that terrain slope and D50 together explained substantial variation in SPOT traversability performance, accounting for 75.5% of the variation in locomotion stability and 85.4% of the variation in traversal success.

By integrating TLS-based terrain characterization with field-based SPOT traversability testing, this study provides a quantitative approach for relating measured terrain conditions to SPOT traversability performance, supporting improved SPOT deployment planning and remote assessment of mining environments.

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