Meet the University of Miskolc

The University of Miskolc (UNIM) is a private nonprofit higher education institution in Hungary, which began its activity in 1735. The University of Miskolc is a jewel of Miskolc, where the university constructed its campus, and is among the top 10 universities of Hungary, which attracts the best students and professors Hungary can offer.

In the month we celebrate the World Environment Day, we had a conversation with Norbert Zajzon, Assistant Professor and Head of the Department of Mineralogy and Petrology at UNIM.

Name of the institution: University of Miskolc
Business area: Education and research
Name: Norbert Zajzon
Position in the institution: Assistant Professor, Head of the Department of Mineralogy and Petrology, Coordinator of the UNEXMIN and UNEXUP projects
INESC TEC centre with which the company collaborated: Centre for Robotics and Autonomous Systems (CRAS)
Names of the project: UNEXMIN and UNEXUP
Project managers at INESC TEC: José Almeida and Eduardo Silva

What is the connection between UNIM and INESC TEC?

We are project partners in different EU and EIT RawMaterials projects.

What are the main results of this collaboration?

The longest-term project we completed together is the UNEXMIN project, where we successfully completed the UX-1 submersible robot prototype and established the UNEXMIN Georobotics Ltd. as a spin-off for commercialisation. The project was recognised as a success-story; thus, we could win its upscaling project – the UNEXUP project, meaning UNEXmin UPscaling – which is currently running to further develop the robotic system with its new members, UX-1Neo and the UX-2Deep robots, and push them closer to the market.

We also collaborating in different conferences and teaching. We just won an EIT RM teaching and education project – TIMREX – which is going to be an EIT labelled MSc programme for raw materials exploration.

How do you rate your experience with INESC TEC?

My experience is good, as they are experts in their field – the field of robotics – and always looked for solutions for our challenges.

What do you value most in this collaboration?

They are nice persons to work with at a personal level, and as a team. The INESC TEC team is always looking to find ways to complete the tasks and the projects which we work on together, even if it requires extra efforts.

What can we expect from UNIM in the upcoming years?

Continuation of our common work, at a high-quality level; launching of the new project (TIMREX) and find further opportunities to submit new projects and work together in long-term.