Using state-of-the-art techniques for positioning mining equipment
- Drilling Technologies, Richardson, TX (United States)
The careful positioning of the drill rigs that drill the holes into which explosives are then loaded is critical to the success of the subsequent blast. Today a system of satellites in space, each transmitting radio signals, is being used to provide the data to allow for tracking and positioning of various types of ground-based mobile equipment. The system is the Global Positioning System or GPS for short. This paper focuses on the application of GPS to surface mining and in particular the navigating of rotary drills from hole-to-hole and their final precise positioning to drill each blast hole. The basic principles of GPS are reviewed. The need for further enhancements in the form of Differential Global Positioning System (DGPS) is explained. The unique way in which the radio signal carrier frequency is modulated and how that modulation allows precise determination of the distances to the satellites is covered. Also, some of the problems and limitations of applying DGPS to surface mining applications are presented. The issue of using DGPS to assist a drill rig operator in navigating from hole-to-hole and then ultimately positioning a drill rig where blast holes are to be drilled is then presented. Using the criteria that the centerline of the bit should fall within the diameter of the hole to be drilled, three different combinations of On-The-Fly position fix accuracies and data update rates are used to evaluate how likely it would be for the operator to locate the bit. Finally, cost estimates for DGPS installed on drill rigs are presented.
- OSTI ID:
- 398381
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-960234--
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
Rotary blasthole drilling update
Focus on rotary drill rigs