Managing mine-site vehicle speed will increase productivity (and sooner than you think!)

SICK South Africa Product Manager Frederick Langenhoven ponders the possibility of taking bunt monitoring solutions to the next level, and help facilitate increased production on mine sites.

Scanning solutions that aid in ensuring mine-site bund integrity and compliance are being used more and more often. Initially developed for one of the world’s larger mining houses for an Australian operation, bund monitoring hard- and software was launched in that country during 2019. The ability to acquire real-time data on bund integrity, their weakness or failure, has seen those operations decrease bund-related incidents and accidents. It goes without saying that there is a significant cost saving due to fewer accident-related expenses and less vehicle downtime. Our solution for tracking any bund wall integrity changes is a truck-mounted, perception-based, real-time scanning solution. Easy to integrate into the vehicle’s controls, it consists of an onboard embedded processing system, a global navigation satellite system (GNSS) localisation and the AOS LiDAR scanner. This combination provides reliable long-distance detection in all environmental conditions.

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How it works:

The software used has in-built mapping ability, enabling continual bund inspection with results that are updated as each sensor-equipped vehicle follows the production route. The data from scanned bunts is transmitted through a central server and 24/7 reporting system, allowing operational personnel to identify of any section of any bunt needing investigation. Processed data includes information about bunt fault criticality, so responses can be prioritised. Unnecessary responses are limited, as the solution incorporates defined alarm outputs for predetermined objects, reducing false alarms.

Localising the software:

In 2020, SICK South Africa was approached by a coal mine in Mpumalanga for a bunt monitoring solution. As the standards and requirements for haul road bunts around the world vary (affected by geographic location, prevailing weather conditions and other local factors), modifications to the solution were necessary. Once these had been implemented, the mining customer expressed satisfaction with the solution and subsequent results.

Regulating mine vehicle speed for improved production:

Mine vehicle speed is regulated across a mine site and varies according to known ambient conditions. However, conditions change, sometimes as quickly as the time it takes for a second vehicle to reach a  point passed by the first vehicle minutes previously. It is these unknown conditions that have the potential to impact mine-site productivity by slowing or stopping vehicles in the production process.

Some haul road conditions that may reduce productivity by limiting or negating predetermined vehicle speeds include:

• Potholes Rock falls 
• Natural trenches 
• Rubble   
• Thick mud
• Corrugated surfaces

These scenarios mean vehicles must reduce speed and, in extreme circumstances, stop and navigate a way around the obstacle. There are, however, also conditions on many haul roads that permit vehicles to safely increase speed and, therefore, production.

Increased production can only be achieved when all vehicles using the haul roads are in sync with varied speed limits (variable speed control). If they are not, it is possible these circumstances may lead to vehicle congestion at check points, slowing production and wasting fuel. 

Into the (near) future:

Variable speed limiting example:

A non-mining related example that can be transferred to the above explained scenario is the variable speed limiting method used on some highways in the United Kingdom. In the event of an incident, the system reduces the highway speed limit as far as 20 km back, which minimises traffic bottle-necking and subsequent highway congestion. Bringing this to the point at hand, it is entirely possible to incorporate dynamic speed control into the mining trucks, all calculated by information provided by scanning the road ahead.

A work in progress – watch this space:

As pointed out in the beginning of my article, the technology for this futuristic idea is available and in use, albeit for a different purpose (bunt monitoring). A lot of technological refinements are required, and input and output parameters must be defined, but the potential for a solution to improve productivity in light of haul road hazards is on the horizon.SICK in South Africa is in the process of developing this concept, and it is envisaged that testing of the proposed solution will commence during the third quarter of 2021. Watch this space...

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