3D Laser Mapping

High-Specification Laser Scanning Systems for Monitoring Mine Safety and Activity

3D Laser Mapping specialises in high-specification laser scanning systems for

monitoring mine safety and activity. The company’s fixed and mobile laser
systems provide a continuous electronic eye to automatically monitor mines 24
hours a day. The systems provide significant improvements in mine safety and
automatically map and measure production. A live, online reporting capability
provides remote support and monitoring from anywhere in the world via the
Internet.

Long-range mine laser scanners

With specifications that other monitoring techniques cannot achieve, laser

scanning opens up a whole new dimension in monitoring. 3D Laser Mapping
employs the latest long-range laser scanners, which can capture up to 11,000 point
measurements per second, to an accuracy of 10mm and at a range of up to 6,000m.

Fixed mine laser-scanning system

3D Laser Mapping’s SiteMonitor fixed laser-scanning system is designed to

measure and monitor the stability of rock faces and slopes to improve mine safety.
An Internet reporting service allows operations to be remotely monitored in real
time from any location in the world.

SiteMonitor also monitors and helps optimise production by generating a digital

terrain map of the mine that can be used to continually measure extraction or fill
rates and volumes. An analysis module allows data analysis and interpretation,
including 3D viewing, automated cross-section production and the graphical
display of measurements over a set time period.

Mine safety monitoring equipment

3D Laser Mapping’s range of mine safety monitoring equipment includes

SiteMonitor analysis software, which tracks and compares displacement
measurements over time. It features an alarm module that can be programmed to
monitor recordings for unexpected or unusual measurements. This provides an
early warning of abnormal movement and therefore potential failures in the active
mining area that may impact on production, cause damage to equipment or even
cause injury to personnel.
3D mapping technology – mobile, fixed and airborne laser systems

3D Laser Mapping offers a range of mobile, fixed and airborne laser systems that
can be used for site surveys, perimeter security, research and exploration. 3D Laser
Mapping has, for example, developed an innovative remote-controlled laser
mapping vehicle called 3DR1 for use underground where mine entry is unsafe.

Global support for mine safety monitoring laser-scanning systems

Through a worldwide network of distributors 3D Laser Mapping is able to provide

frontline support and service for a growing international client base. Using the
internet-based support option SiteMonitor data is already being continuously
streamed from gold, platinum and diamond mines in Africa to 3D Laser Mapping’s
global operations centre in Nottingham, UK.

https://www.mining-technology.com/contractors/exploration/3d-laser-mapping/
Innovative technology for wireless underground communication
by Ryerson University
In recent years, the tragic story of mine accidents has been retold many times in
international headlines. But thanks to the work of Ryerson University researcher
Xavier Fernando, countless miners' lives could be saved in the future with state-of-
the-art technology that makes wireless communication possible deep within the
Earth’s crust.

Fernando, a professor in Ryerson's Department of Electrical and Computer

Engineering, is designing and developing highly reliable underground wireless
communication systems that will ensure miners' safety before and after disasters.

"Ever since the United States passed the MINER (Mine Improvement and New
Emergency Response) Act of 2006 (the country's most significant mine safety
legislation in 30 years), there has been much more interest in the area of
underground communications," said Fernando. "The mining industry is excited; it
has been looking for better and more reliable forms of communication."

In the harsh environment and changing topology of a mine, reliable

communication is a high-stakes issue. While cell phones have become the default
means of communication in the mainstream, since their base stations are located
above ground, they are unfortunately useless underground. In addition, disasters
can bring down electricity and communications cables, block tunnels and cause
fires – all of which may hamper rescue efforts and endanger lives.

In response to these challenges, Fernando is making use of an innovative

technology to provide communications coverage for confined spaces such as mines
and tunnels. His solution to bringing signals underground is transmitting radio
signals over optical fibres. This technology, called ROF for short, provides enough
bandwidth to handle and maintain signals underground. What's more, optical fibres
are readily available and are unaffected by the electromagnetic interference or
radiation commonly emitted by mining equipment.

ROF is already used to provide wireless-communication access to the $985-million

Niagara Tunnel, a massive hydroelectricity project sponsored by Ontario Power
Generation. ROF also played a significant role in the 2000 Summer Olympics in
Sydney, Australia. The wireless network there was able to support 500,000 phone
calls during the opening ceremonies.

In the mining industry, ROF technology can also help officials identify miners and
continuously track their movements. Therefore, in the event of a collapse, it would
be easier to predict where each miner is located.
While ROF technology offers many solutions, it also presents a problem: since
fibre-optic communication lines are not linear, signals can be scattered, creating
distortion at the receivers. However, Fernando has created and holds a patent for an
algorithm that almost entirely compensates for the distortion.

Partnering with Mine Radio Systems (MRS) of Goodwood, Ont., Fernando

anticipates many potential applications – there are numerous mining and tunnelling
projects underway around the world, and each one of them requires high-tech
communication systems.

To the same end, Fernando is also investigating a system of "Through-the-Earth"

(TTE) signalling. Unlike higher-frequency communications, the ultra-low
frequencies used in TTE technology (approximately 10 kilohertz) can penetrate
water and rock. This capability would be invaluable to the mining industryas well,
said Fernando.

"With this technology, officials could still maintain communication with a miner

who is trapped and is likely covered by dirt and rocks."

https://phys.org/news/2010-11-technology-wireless-underground.html
The future of mining: eight bold industry predictions
By Talal Husseini
Technological advances in the areas of artificial intelligence, automation and
blockchain are beginning to permeate the age-old profession. Mining Technology
asks industry experts to give their insight into how such developments will shape
the future of mining.

The future of mining: optimising efficiency with the Industrial Internet of Things

The clever implementation of digital technologies like the Industrial Internet of

Things (IIoT) and automation could transform mining, making it safer, more
productive, efficient, sustainable, and profitable, and therefore better able to take
on the challenges it faces. When we consider that over the last 15 years, the
average cost of producing copper has risen by more than 300%, while the grade
has dropped by 30%, these new efficiencies offer a cost-effective way to increase
profitability.

“IIoT technology enables mining organisations to collect vast quantities of

data about their operations remotely and in real time through internet-
connected sensors.”

One of the biggest areas of promise is in IIoT’s ability to transform expensive and
inefficient manual and mechanical processes into digital ones. IIoT technology
enables mining organisations to collect vast quantities of data about their
operations remotely and in real time through internet-connected sensors. This data
can then be acted upon and used to improve efficiency on site, ensure a safe
environment for miners and monitor the operational status of machinery.

Take transport and haulage. Sensors are currently used to collect data on how long
trucks are kept waiting at different points within a mine, such as the time to be
loaded. This data can then be analysed and used to improve the efficiency of
haulage operations, for example reducing or increasing the number of trucks
required hour to hour to ensure production is optimised around fuel usage, minimal
maintenance time and haul distance.

Advanced IIoT solutions can even form the backbone of a fleet of completely
autonomous haul trucks, drills and excavators which can deliver additional
savings, reducing fuel and staffing costs and optimising operating efficiency.

– Joe Carr, director of mining innovation, Inmarsat

The future of mining: smart mines and artificial intelligence

The mining industry is a combination of brute force and some of the most

advanced scientific and mathematical processes used in any industry. The
application of technology will continue to remove people from the brute force
aspect of the business, whilst advancing the ability to find, extract and
process mined materials, quicker, cheaper and at a better rate per tonne.

Given the onerous nature of the work, the future will see mine employees focused
on the business aspects of mining, such as managing a company’s strategic
relationships, and not in the field. Machines will not only be able to operate
autonomously to a pre-determined plan, but will process data themselves and make
decisions when circumstances change and sensors detect different conditions.

Not only will the mines themselves be intelligent and all assets connected, but the
value chain from mine all the way to the ultimate user of the materials will be
connected, so that production can be planned and flexed to meet demand and adapt
to resulting changes in commodity price. Artificial intelligence will make decisions
on production and routes to market, informed by learning from connected global
trends and the real-time capabilities of the companies’ mining properties.

– Chris Mason, director of sales for EMEA, Rajant Corporation

The future of mining: blockchain and the mining sector

The recent modest recovery in mining productivity has been threatened again as
demand improves and prices recover, and as a result, the industry is under pressure
to focus on methods to improve efficiency. Naturally this falls on the supply chain,
and we believe, blockchain and smart contracts will be a key building block to
achieve this.

“These drones not only scan the mines from perspectives that are dangerous
and near-inaccessible to humans, they also instantaneously communicate any
information they pick up.”

For example, Freeport-McMoRan is already using drones to create steeper pit

slope angles in its mines, reducing the stripping ratio and amount of waste rock
hauled before ore can be extracted. These drones not only scan the mines from
perspectives that are dangerous and near-inaccessible to humans, they also
instantaneously communicate any information they pick up. This makes for a more
rapid and detailed analysis of the mine slopes without having to deploy highly
skilled geologists or geotechnical engineers into an inherently hazardous
environment or affecting production by closing haul roads.

With machines becoming progressively more capable of acting with little manual
intervention, a future where adaptable and autonomous machines carry out the on-
site, operational tasks of mining while human employees monitor them remotely
looks probable and highly profitable.

– Joe Carr, director of mining innovation, Inmarsat

The future of mining: overcoming the skills gap

Critical infrastructure industries such as mining are struggling to attract and retain
the right technological capabilities. Ultimately, the main barrier for graduates
entering these industries is proprietary outdated technologies, which demands
time-consuming and expensive training and limits future job prospects. As a result,
the job market stagnates and older generations are the only people with the
knowledge of how specific systems work.

However, the operational technology and automation space is moving to the same
compute stack –and if we can streamline software languages, these various parties
will soon begin to speak the same language. This will reduce costs and streamline
effectively so that there are enough people within an organisation and the wider
industry sharing the same knowledge and skillsets. The alternative future is one
where we see an ever-increasing skills gap.

Looking ahead, companies will need to agree on technical standards that are open,
based on common languages. This means process control systems in one
organisation are compatible with those from another. This will not only make it
easier and cheaper for existing staff to replace and repair control systems, it will
also be easier for new talent to be attracted to and retained within the mining
sector.

– Ed Harrington, director, The Open Group’s Open Process Automation Forum

The future of mining: preserving authenticity in the gold supply chain

Traditionally, gold investments have taken the form of share investments into gold
exchange-traded funds or acquisition of physical gold bars, which then need to be
stored. The introduction of blockchain technology and its inherent attributes brings
about many advantages to the transfer of gold.

https://www.mining-technology.com/mining-safety/future-of-mining-industry-
predictions