Application of robotics in underground mining industry - a review

摘要

Since mining is one of the hardest and hazardous activities there exists a need of robotics. Reason for deployment of robots in mines are mainly associated with increasing operating cost, need for faster production and health and safety of miners. Though many mining companies in order to improve the productivity and miners safety usually provide training sessions for miners regarding safe and better work practices and uses better machine but this existing conventional approaches are providing diminishing trends of returns. The mining industry is now relying upon robotics and automation to improve productivity and safety by reducing human activity whereever it is impossible for human being to work or even survive without exposing to life threatening danger like charging of blastholes/laying explosives, stabilization of mine roof after blasting, mining in accessible areas where it is not possible to extract earlier. This paper gives an overview of different areas of application of robotics in underground mines.