Detonators are indispensable in blasting system as without these explosives cannot initiate. The advancements in initiation devices over the period 1600 to 1940's were quite sluggish. However, with the advent of modern technologies like electronics there have been significant advances in this direction. The electronic detonators have revolutionized the 'hole-to-hole' and 'row-to-row' delay system. The scatter in the delays and ensuing dilemma in blasting related predictions can be resolved with a better degree of accuracy. Several authors have published many advantages of this detonator earlier. Away from the features of controlled firing time of explosive charges, safety, and fragmentation advantages, there is more to such devices. Significant reductions in vibrations have been reported earlier with the use of accurate millisecond delays between blast-holes and better blasts have been executed with application of frequency channelling. This paper reveals the psychological advantage of the system in mitigating the human response and annoyance in the nearby habitats of the mines with the use of electronic delay detonators. It is demonstrated that the air overpressure created by other detonators prior to actual blasting is practically absent in the case of electronic detonators. The vibration in this case leaves the nearby areas before the air pressure pulse reaches the respective place. This prevents human response to blasting since people get alerted only after the vibrations have passed a particular place. A case study in favour of such assertion is presented here.
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