MineView – Digital Underground Mining

The rock mechanical assessment of underground mining structures such as drifts and tunnels is still mostly carried out manually and visually by qualified personnel. These procedures are time-consuming, prone to error, and associated with significant risks. At the same time, there is a lack of robust, networked systems that enable continuous real-time monitoring, evaluation, and response to unstable areas. The integration of digital technologies such as sensor systems, artificial intelligence (AI), autonomous robotics, and wireless communication into the complex underground environment has so far been limited.

The MineView project aims to close this gap by developing a holistic, autonomous system for rock condition assessment in underground mining. It combines multi-dimensional data acquisition (e.g. via robots, drones, and sensors embedded in rock), and AI-driven algorithms for interpretation, classification, and early warning.

MOSA: EXPERIENCE, ENCOUNTER, EXPLORE

On 3 June 2025, the new educational project MOSA – short for Montanuni Outdoor Science Activities – was launched. Numerous interested visitors, including pupils from the Leoben district as well as students and staff from the Montanuniversität planted 1,600 plants in carbon-enriched soil along the newly created nature trail next to the university’s research center for hydrogen and carbon.

MOSA stands for practical learning outdoors with all senses. The project brings research from the university directly to the field and demonstrates in an exciting way how resources can be used effectively. Through stations along the new nature trail, students, teachers and the interested public can interactively experience how new technologies, circular economy, biodiversity, carbon applications and renewable resources intertwine.

On the newly created area, the Montanuniversität Leoben enables active understanding of different future scenarios and thus also makes a significant contribution to the implementation of sustainable technologies.

Anja Vujakovic

SAFE Living Lab

SAFE – Sustainable Agriculture and Forestry Experienced focuses on the targeted networking of science and society. The emphasis here is on cooperation, joint design and joint production of knowledge between researchers, industry players, political decision-makers and practitioners. To make this possible, a special framework in the form of aliving lab is being created. A living lab is a freely accessible area where research meets practice and where everyone can explore, experience and actively learn. To this end, an approximately 1.5-hectare site at the Montanuniversität Leoben is being converted into a communication and science location for sustainable technologies related to soil health, diversity and the sustainable use of resources. This location is particularly well suited due to its proximity to the university’s newly established research centre for hydrogen and carbon.
In addition, the site offers direct access to heavily frequented cycling and hiking trails and is located within the city limits of Leoben.

The SAFE Living Lab shall include:

• Research & Teaching in the Soil Health Learning Garden: Aligned with a holistic learning approach, this initiative focuses on carbon applications in agriculture, emphasizing its role in resilience and humus formation.
• Forest of the Future: Adapting to climate change necessitates a transformation of local forestry and forest management. A section of the Living Lab will be designed as a “Forest of the Future” to illustrate these changes and the associated management strategies.
• Biodiversity: Measures like 3D soil boxes, biodiversity hotspots and deadwood hedges will visually demonstrate biodiversity’s importance to sustainable agriculture and forestry.
• Education Path: The Education Path serves as the connecting element between the different thematic areas of the SAFE Living Lab. It acts as a guide, reference point, and starting/ending location for educational activities.
• Recreational areas within the SAFE Living Lab are designed to provide visitors with spaces for relaxation and sensory engagement, while also promoting sustainable resource use.

SAFE is intended to serve as a regional flagship project for direct exchange and, through the implementation of a living lab, act as a bridge between research, industry and society. With these goals in mind, SAFE aims to make a significant contribution to:

The key to success lies in engaging, inspiring, and actively involving a broad range of people, mobilizing them to participate in content-driven participatory and educational processes. These individuals will, in turn, act as multipliers, spreading knowledge and competences within their own communities.

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Project Partners:

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