Zenith Underwater eXploration
Beyond human reach. ZUX develops autonomous underwater robots for aquaculture net cage operations — built for zero-visibility, high-pressure environments where human presence is no longer possible.
Zenith means the highest point.
We chose it for machines that work at the deepest.
The sea floor is one of the last places on earth where human presence is still a liability — too dark, too cold, too deep, too long. ZUX was built to operate where humans cannot.
Developed by Polarlys Innovation AS in Trondheim, Norway, ZUX autonomous underwater robots are designed for aquaculture net cage maintenance — cage cleaning, waste collection, and net repair — operating at depth, without divers.
Alongside the ZUX robotics programme, Polarlys acts as agent, distributor, and sales representative for marine sensors and oceanographic instruments across the Nordic aquaculture market.
All ZUX robots share a common modular platform — interchangeable tool modules, unified control architecture, and a single docking base per cage site. Currently in active development.
Autonomous removal of biofouling from net cage surfaces. Operates across the full depth profile of a cage without diver intervention.
A robot working along the cage bottom, continuously collecting settled waste — uneaten feed, faeces, debris — with minimal disturbance to fish above.
An intervention robot for identifying and repairing damage to net cage panels — locating holes, tears, and weak points, then applying emergency repair at depth.
Polarlys Innovation AS acts as agent, distributor, and sales representative for marine sensors and oceanographic instruments in the Nordic market.
We connect manufacturers with aquaculture operators and research institutions across Norway — covering water quality monitoring, current profiling, acoustic systems, and underwater positioning.
Manufacturers seeking Nordic representation, or operators with specific sensing requirements, are welcome to reach out.
DO, pH, temperature, salinity, turbidity — single-parameter probes and multiparameter sondes for continuous in-situ monitoring.
Acoustic Doppler current profilers (ADCP) and single-point current meters for hydrodynamic characterisation of cage sites.
USBL, LBL, and DVL systems for subsea asset tracking and autonomous robot navigation within net cage structures.
Echosounders, fishfinders, and scanning sonar for biomass estimation, fish behaviour monitoring, and cage structural inspection.
Four core engineering challenges drive the ZUX development programme.
ZUX robots plan, navigate, and execute maintenance tasks without operator input. Once deployed, they complete their mission autonomously — covering the full cage, adapting to conditions, and returning to base when the job is done.
One ZUX platform supports interchangeable tool modules — cleaning, waste collection, repair, inspection — so operators deploy fewer vehicles per cage site. Module exchange is designed for rapid cage-side turnaround without specialised tooling.
Robot operations are coordinated with feeding cycles and fish behaviour to minimise stress on the fish population. ZUX scheduling systems select optimal operating windows automatically, ensuring farm operations and robot missions run in harmony.
ZUX systems are designed to integrate with existing farm management infrastructure — reporting mission status, collected data, and maintenance logs directly to the operator, with minimal setup required.
We welcome enquiries from aquaculture operators, sensor manufacturers, research partners, and investors.