Efficient electromagnetic modeling of wireless signal propagation in underground mine tunnels

摘要

Electromagnetic (EM) modeling and simulation of wireless signal propagation in underground mines presents extraordinary challenges and is an open EM research problem with unparalleled difficulty in many of its aspects. A working underground mine at modern wireless communication frequencies is electrically an extremely large (spanning hundreds and thousands of wavelengths) and complex EM system. The EM complexity is in both the geometry of the mine sections (tunnels of varying dimensions, with bends, corners, indents, rough walls, etc.) and obstacles (such as machinery, tools, mine wagons/carts, rail tracks, cables, piles of ore, debris, RF/microwave transmitters/receivers, and humans) and the material composition of the tunnel/chamber walls