--The mining sector increasingly adopts digital tools to improve operational efficiency, safety, and data-driven decision-making. One of the key challenges remains the reliable acquisition of high-resolution, geo-referenced spatial information to support core activities such as extraction planning and on-site monitoring. This work presents an integrated system architecture that combines UA V-based sensing, LiDAR terrain modeling, and deep learning-based object detection to generate spatially accurate information for open-pit mining environments. The proposed pipeline includes geo-referencing, 3D reconstruction, and object localization, enabling structured spatial outputs to be integrated into an industrial digital twin platform. Unlike traditional static surveying methods, the system offers higher coverage and automation potential, with modular components suitable for deployment in real-world industrial contexts. While the current implementation operates in post-flight batch mode, it lays the foundation for real-time extensions. The system contributes to the development of AI-enhanced remote sensing in mining by demonstrating a scalable and field-validated geospatial data workflow that supports situational awareness and infrastructure safety. HE mining industry is significantly transforming by integrating emerging digital technologies. One of the primary challenges facing this sector is the lack of high-precision real-time geospatial data to support decision-making in exploration, extraction, and safety monitoring [1], [2]. Traditional data collection methods often involve high costs, time-consuming processes, and potential safety risks. The proposed approach enables the detection of key objects using onboard cameras and deep learning techniques, followed by their projection onto the 3D map for enhanced situational awareness. Additionally, the system leverages geo-referenced images to support visual navigation, improving UA V positioning within the mining environment. Balaska(*corresponding author), I.T Papapetros, K.M Oikonomou and A. Gasteratos are with the Department of Production and Management Engineering, Democritus University of Thrace, Xanthi, Greece. L. Bampis is with the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Democritus University of Thrace, Xanthi, Greece.

Composite indicators are widely used to score or classify units evaluated on multiple criteria. Their construction involves aggregating criteria evaluations, a common practice in Multiple Criteria Decision Aiding (MCDA). In MCDA, various methods have been proposed to address key aspects of multiple criteria evaluations, such as the measurement scales of the criteria, the degree of acceptable compensation between them, and their potential interactions. However, beyond producing a final score or classification, it is essential to ensure the explainability and interpretability of results as well as the procedure's transparency. This paper proposes a method for constructing explainable and interpretable composite indicators using " if..., then... " decision rules. We consider the explainability and interpretability of composite indicators in four scenarios: (i) decision rules explain numerical scores obtained from an aggregation of numerical codes corresponding to ordinal qualifiers; (ii) an obscure numerical composite indicator classifies units into quantiles; (iii) given preference information provided by a Decision Maker in the form of classifications of some reference units, a composite indicator is constructed using decision rules; (iv) the classification of a set of units results from the application of an MCDA method and is explained by decision rules. To induce the rules from scored or classified units, we apply the Dominance-based Rough Set Approach. The resulting decision rules relate the class assignment or unit's score to threshold conditions on values of selected indicators in an intelligible way, clarifying the underlying rationale. Moreover, they serve to recommend composite indicator assessment for new units of interest.

Advancements in digitization have enabled two sided manufacturing-as-a-service (MaaS) marketplaces which has significantly reduced product development time for designers. These platforms provide designers with access to manufacturing resources through a network of suppliers and have instant order placement capabilities. Two key decision making levers are typically used to optimize the operations of these marketplaces: pricing and matching. The existing marketplaces operate in a centralized structure where they have complete control over decision making. However, a decentralized organization of the platform enables transparency of information across clients and suppliers. This dissertation focuses on developing tools for decision making enabling decentralization in MaaS marketplaces. In pricing mechanisms, a data driven method is introduced which enables small service providers to price services based on specific attributes of the services offered. A data mining method recommends a network based price to a supplier based on its attributes and the attributes of other suppliers on the platform. Three different approaches are considered for matching mechanisms. First, a reverse auction mechanism is introduced where designers bid for manufacturing services and the mechanism chooses a supplier which can match the bid requirements and stated price. The second approach uses mechanism design and mathematical programming to develop a stable matching mechanism for matching orders to suppliers based on their preferences. Empirical simulations are used to test the mechanisms in a simulated 3D printing marketplace and to evaluate the impact of stability on its performance. The third approach considers the matching problem in a dynamic and stochastic environment where demand (orders) and supply (supplier capacities) arrive over time and matching is performed online.

Machine learning has revolutionized materials design, yet predicting complex properties like alloy ductility remains challenging due to the influence of processing conditions and microstructural features that resist quantification through traditional reductionist approaches. Here, we present an innovative information fusion architecture that integrates domain-specific texts from materials science literature with quantitative physical descriptors to overcome these limitations. Our framework employs MatSciBERT for advanced textual comprehension and incorporates contrastive learning to automatically extract implicit knowledge regarding processing parameters and microstructural characteristics. Through rigorous ablation studies and comparative experiments, the model demonstrates superior performance, achieving coefficient of determination (R2) values of 0.849 and 0.680 on titanium alloy validation set and refractory multi-principal-element alloy test set. This systematic approach provides a holistic framework for property prediction in complex material systems where quantitative descriptors are incomplete and establishes a foundation for knowledge-guided materials design and informatics-driven materials discovery.

Tokyo 152 - 8552, Japan E - mail: kan.hatakeyama [ [ at ] ] weblab.t.u - tokyo.ac.jp Abstract This review explores the potential of foundation models to advanc e laboratory automation in the materials and chemical sciences. It emphasizes the dual roles of these models: cognitive functions for experimental planning and data analysis, and physical functions for hardware operations. While traditional laboratory automation has relied heavily on specialized, rigid systems, foundation models offer adaptability through their general - purpose intelligence and multimodal capabilities. Recent advancements have demonstrated the fea sibility of using large language models (LLMs) and multimodal robotic systems to handle complex and dynamic laboratory tasks. However, significant challenges remain, including precision manipulation of hardware, integration of multimodal data, and ensuring operational safety. Th is paper outlines a roadmap highlighting future directions, advocating for close interdisciplinary collaboration, benchmark establishment, and strategic human - AI integration to realize fully autonomous experimental laboratories. Keywords Laboratory Automation; Foundation Models; Robotics; Artificial Intelligence; Materials Science 1. Expectations for Foundation Models in Materials Laboratory Automation Laboratory automation, a technology aimed at automating experimental research, is expected to pave the way for a new research paradigm in materials science [1, 2, 3] . By rapidly and comprehensively executing numerous experiments, laboratory automation accelerates research, enhances reproducibility through precisely controlled robotic processes, and enables swift and distributed knowledge sharing among researchers worldwide [1] . This technology is anticipated to contribute significantly to the development of crucial devices and compounds, including catalyst s for energy and chemical conversions, environmentally friendly plastics, solar cells, secondary batteries, fuel cells, thermoelectric conversion modules, nuclear fusion reactors, quantum computers, and energy - efficient computing systems [1, 4, 5] . The success of next - generation laboratory automation depends not only o n experimental hardware but also o n the utilization of artificial intelligence (AI), especially foundation models. Foundation models represent a new AI paradigm encompassing large language models like GPT - 4 [6], multimodal models, and agent - related technologies. These foundation models and generative AI have begun to influenc e chemistry and materials science [7], giving rise to diverse applications including molecular and materials design [8, 9, 10], reaction pathway exploration [11], catalyst design [12], and even autonomous planning of chemical experiments [13] . Additionally, foundation models are being expanded to hardware control mechanisms, enabling natural language - driven robotic operations [14, 15] .

In this research paper, we propose a new type of energy-efficient Green AI architecture to support circular economies and address the contemporary challenge of sustainable resource consumption in modern systems. We introduce a multi-layered framework and meta-architecture that integrates state-of-the-art machine learning algorithms, energy-conscious computational models, and optimization techniques to facilitate decision-making for resource reuse, waste reduction, and sustainable production.We tested the framework on real-world datasets from lithium-ion battery recycling and urban waste management systems, demonstrating its practical applicability. Notably, the key findings of this study indicate a 25 percent reduction in energy consumption during workflows compared to traditional methods and an 18 percent improvement in resource recovery efficiency. Quantitative optimization was based on mathematical models such as mixed-integer linear programming and lifecycle assessments. Moreover, AI algorithms improved classification accuracy on urban waste by 20 percent, while optimized logistics reduced transportation emissions by 30 percent. We present graphical analyses and visualizations of the developed framework, illustrating its impact on energy efficiency and sustainability as reflected in the simulation results. This paper combines the principles of Green AI with practical insights into how such architectural models contribute to circular economies, presenting a fully scalable and scientifically rooted solution aligned with applicable UN Sustainability Goals worldwide. These results open avenues for incorporating newly developed AI technologies into sustainable management strategies, potentially safeguarding local natural capital while advancing technological progress.

Precision process planning in Computer Numerical Control (CNC) machining demands rapid, context-aware decisions on tool selection, feed-speed pairs, and multi-axis routing, placing immense cognitive and procedural burdens on engineers from design specification through final part inspection. Conventional rule-based computer-aided process planning and knowledge-engineering shells freeze domain know-how into static tables, which become limited when dealing with unseen topologies, novel material states, shifting cost-quality-sustainability weightings, or shop-floor constraints such as tool unavailability and energy caps. Large language models (LLMs) promise flexible, instruction-driven reasoning for tasks but they routinely hallucinate numeric values and provide no provenance. We present Augmented Retrieval Knowledge Network Enhanced Search & Synthesis (ARKNESS), the end-to-end framework that fuses zero-shot Knowledge Graph (KG) construction with retrieval-augmented generation to deliver verifiable, numerically exact answers for CNC process planning. ARKNESS (1) automatically distills heterogeneous machining documents, G-code annotations, and vendor datasheets into augmented triple, multi-relational graphs without manual labeling, and (2) couples any on-prem LLM with a retriever that injects the minimal, evidence-linked subgraph needed to answer a query. Benchmarked on 155 industry-curated questions spanning tool sizing and feed-speed optimization, a lightweight 3B-parameter Llama-3 augmented by ARKNESS matches GPT-4o accuracy while achieving a +25 percentage point gain in multiple-choice accuracy, +22.4 pp in F1, and 8.1x ROUGE-L on open-ended responses.

While language models are increasingly utilized in materials science, typical models rely on frequency-centric tokenization methods originally developed for natural language processing. However, these methods frequently produce excessive fragmentation and semantic loss, failing to maintain the structural and semantic integrity of material concepts. To address this issue, we propose MATTER, a novel tokenization approach that integrates material knowledge into tokenization. Based on MatDetector trained on our materials knowledge base and a re-ranking method prioritizing material concepts in token merging, MATTER maintains the structural integrity of identified material concepts and prevents fragmentation during tokenization, ensuring their semantic meaning remains intact. The experimental results demonstrate that MATTER outperforms existing tokenization methods, achieving an average performance gain of $4\%$ and $2\%$ in the generation and classification tasks, respectively. These results underscore the importance of domain knowledge for tokenization strategies in scientific text processing. Our code is available at https://github.com/yerimoh/MATTER

In this paper, a compressed air-actuated soft robotic module was developed by incorporating a shape memory alloy (SMA) wire into its structure to achieve the desired bending angle with greater precision. First, a fiber-reinforced bending module with a strain-limiting layer made of polypropylene was fabricated. The SMA wire was then placed in a silicon matrix, which was used as a new strain-limiting layer. A simple closed-loop control algorithm was used to regulate the bending angle of the soft robot within its workspace. A camera was utilized to measure the angular changes in the vertical plane. Different angles, ranging from 0 to 65 degrees, were covered to evaluate the performance of the module and the bending angle control algorithm. The experimental tests demonstrate that using the SMA wire results in more precise control of bending in the vertical plane. In addition, it is possible to bend more with less working pressure. The error range was reduced from an average of 5 degrees to 2 degrees, and the rise time was reduced from an average of 19 seconds to 3 seconds.

Recent advances in Foundation Models for Materials Science are poised to revolutionize the discovery, manufacture, and design of novel materials with tailored properties and responses. Although great strides have been made, successes have been restricted to materials classes where multi-million sample data repositories can be readily curated (e.g., atomistic structures). Unfortunately, for many structural and functional materials (e.g., mesoscale structured metal alloys), such datasets are too costly or prohibitive to construct; instead, datasets are limited to very few examples. To address this challenge, we introduce a novel machine learning approach for learning from hyper-sparse, complex spatial data in scientific domains. Our core contribution is a physics-driven data augmentation scheme that leverages an ensemble of local generative models, trained on as few as five experimental observations, and coordinates them through a novel diversity curation strategy to generate a large-scale, physically diverse dataset. We utilize this framework to construct PolyMicros, the first Foundation Model for polycrystalline materials (a structural material class important across a broad range of industrial and scientific applications). We demonstrate the utility of PolyMicros by zero-shot solving several long standing challenges related to accelerating 3D experimental microscopy. Finally, we make both our models and datasets openly available to the community.