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The Warren Centre Engineering Building J13 Sydney University NSW 2006 T: (02) 9351 3752 F: (02) 9351 2012 E: warrenc@eng.usyd.edu.au |
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The Warren Centre Engineering Building J13 Sydney University NSW 2006 T: (02) 9351 3752 F: (02) 9351 2012 E: warrenc@eng.usyd.edu.au |
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| ISSUE 38, June 2004 |
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Micro-sleeps can cause macro damage A 150-tonne truck drifts across the centerline of the haul road and side-swipes another coming the other way. Expensive, but not fatal in this instance. A haul truck drives through a curve in the road and takes out a pipeline, pouring 322,000 litres of raffinate into the ground. The common factor in these and many other cases is driver fatigue. Despite excellent training, experience and impeccable safety records, the driver was micro sleeping, a manifestation of fatigue or impaired alertness. Fatigue is a problem in all 24-hour operations. Our biological clocks switch the brain automatically to low levels of alertness after lunch and during the night to induce sleepiness. In the mining industry haul truck accidents due to driver error and fatigue are a significant cause of death, accident and injury. In response to the industry’s request, the Centre for Autonomous Systems in conjunction with CRC Mining created HaulCheckTM to prevent fatigue-related accidents on haul roads. The system uses an on-board monitoring system to create a ‘virtual corridor’ within the haul road by measuring the relative distance from PVC markers placed along the side of the road. If the truck strays too close to either side of the haul road, the driver is alerted by a multi-level series of visual and auditory alarms. In addition, operators of other trucks are alerted to the potential hazard. The monitoring device, fitted to the left-hand side of the truck, uses a scanning laser sensor to measure the distance from the PVC markers, which are placed preset distances apart along the left-hand side of a haul road. If the truck veers out of the virtual corridor, the driver is alerted. In addition, the system logs all alerts so drivers in at-risk situations can be notified and managed. The system also incorporates a GPS, allowing easy identification and logging of the location of any problem areas. An add-on range of proximity warning systems is currently under development to provide truck to light vehicle and truck to personnel communication that is compatible with the HaulCheck system. Fourteen new Komatsu trucks destined for the Alcoa site in Western Australia are being fitted with HaulCheck systems together with 20 odd light vehicles and personnel. This is an order in the vicinity of $1 million dollars. The HaulCheck laser guidance system is marketed by AcuMine Pty Ltd and distributed by Komatsu Australia Pty Ltd AcuMine was a spinout company of the University of Sydney, CRC Mining and researchers from the Australian Centre for Field Robotics (ACFR). Another product marketed by AcuMine is OreCheck™, a millimetre wave radar that is positioned at the bottom of shafts that transport the ore and are known as an ore pass. If a steady flow of ore is not maintained in the ore pass, the shaft becomes blocked, ore builds up, and the weight can smash the equipment that transfers the ore to trucks. The monitoring system provides real-time continuous monitoring of the level of a mine ore pass, even when ore is continuously fed in. It uses millimeter wave radar technology with a narrow beam width to avoid reflections from the walls of a narrow ore pass, with a range of over 350m. Installations at the WMC Olympic Dam mine and the Phelps Dodge mine in Colorado work reliably and save thousands of dollars of infrastructure damage. StopeCheck™ is designed to help mines optimise the backfill ratio of rubble and concrete used to fill a mine cavity. Too much concrete is costly, too little means the fill is unstable. StopeCheck provides real-time visual feedback to the surface from within the stope. In trials at Olympic Dam it was able to map the contours of the walls and floor with a high degree of predictability and accuracy, providing outstanding online visualisation. Data from the radar is transmitted in real time across the mines network and is available to mine staff at any time, enabling immediate adjustment of the backfill ratio when necessary. Professor Hugh Durrant-Whyte, Director of ACFR, is a 2003 Warren Centre Innovation Hero. |
Driver error and fatigue are significant dangers in the mining industry.
Haulcheck alerts drivers when they stray off roads.
A scanner uses a laser sensor to measure the distance of the vehicle from PVC markers.
Schematic of a potential OreCheck application. |
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Nanotech Resource Book 2004 Innovation Lecture Handbook | ||
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22 July
2004
An international forum of sustainable
transport initiatives Click here for more information and to register. Email: ac21@usyd.edu.au
Difficulties with
the above, Venue: Sydney Convention Centre & various Sydney University venues Web: www.usyd.edu.au/ac21 Email: ac21@usyd.edu.au 21st & 22nd July 2004 Australian Energy & Utility Summit 2004 The future of Australia's energy and utility sector Venue: Sydney Convention Centre Click here for more information or Contact Anthony Sprange (02) 9922 5609Email: anthonys@acevents.com.au
"Disruptive Technologies - Risk and Reward" An ATSE workshop Email: Dr John Nutt, ATSE for more info. 23 & 24 September 2004 Engineers Australia - Engineering Leadership Conference 2004 Venue: Sydney Convention and Exhibition Centre Click here for more information on the web or here to request info by Email 27 to 29 September 2004 CHEMECA 2004 Venue: Australian Technology Park, Sydney Click here for more information on the web or here to request info by Email 15 & 16 November 2004 ATSE 2004 Symposium - "Living Longer, Living Better" Venue: Adelaide Hilton Hotel see www.atse.org.au for more details Paula Williamson (03) 9347 0622 or paulaw@atse.org.au
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