Oxbotica has announced the completion of a $47 million Series B investment to help accelerate commercial deployment of its autonomy software platform in mines around the world.

The news is an endorsement of Oxbotica’s go-to-market strategy, deploying its autonomy software in industrial use cases in advance of rolling out in urban passenger transportation applications in the future, it said.

Oxbotica is developing an Open Autonomy software platform for the mining industry, providing operators, integrators and manufacturers the autonomy functionality and flexibility they need − be that full stack, or on a component-by-component basis, it said. Back in June, it signed an MoU with Wenco International Mining Systems Ltd to further develop this solution for mining.

The company’s product is a software platform providing “Universal Autonomy”, it said, in a vast array of vehicle types both on and off road.

“The ability to move all vehicles, irrespective of size or type, with the same autonomy system means a mine can be orchestrated in a way not currently available,” the company said.

On the same day of this announcement, Halma announced it has agreed a strategic partnership with Oxbotica.

Navtech, a Halma company specialising in radar technology, has an existing relationship with Oxbotica focused on developing a radar-based navigation and perception system.

This new strategic partnership will deepen the relationship and provide additional technologies and capabilities to accelerate its autonomous vehicle solutions, according to Halma.

Andrew Williams, Halma’s Group Chief Executive, said: “Oxbotica’s vision – working to make roads safer, environments cleaner and industries more efficient – is aligned with our purpose to grow a safer, cleaner and healthier future for everyone, every day. Our partnership will enable Oxbotica to accelerate the roll-out of its autonomy software globally and will bring exciting new capabilities for Navtech to develop its radar technology solutions and accelerate its growth.”

Oxbotica was founded in 2014 by Oxford University professors, Paul Newman and Ingmar Posner. Since then, the company has grown from a UK robotics start-up to one of the world’s leading autonomy companies, Oxbotica says.