MINING NETWORKS & CONNECTIVITY
Becker Mining further advances underground comms &
automation
For decades, Becker Mining Systems' proven Mincos Automation systems
Promos and Betacontrol have been deployed in underground mines
around the world - from Mexico to France and Germany, Russia, China and
Australia. "With Promos4.0 we have designed a state-of-the-art fieldbus
system for underground mining applications. Promos4.0 integrates new
technologies and unique solutions to form a powerful intrinsically safe
fieldbus system. With the powerful Promos4.0 system data is transferred
more than 20 times faster than before. With a datarate of 500 kB/sec
along the bus more automation tasks can be fulfilled with one system.
Voice transmission is now completely digital for better sound quality and
less cross talk interference. The Mining Master Smart 4.0 is the main plc
control unit. It can handle two separate fieldbus lines with lengths of up to
4,000 m and up to 96 devices each."
Digital inputs and outputs are now easer to connect than ever as every
Emergency Stop and Intercom Station can optionally be equipped with two
M12 digital I/O connections. Bluetooth connectivity is available for every
Intercom Station, so diagnostics and parametrisation can be executed
underground via an intuitive interface with a mobile device.
With a patent-pending cable pull switch design mine users can reliably
switch off your conveyor and any other machine when required. The
system has a number of in-built safety features including cable break
detection and self diagnostics.
The company adds: “Our completely new Intercom Stations are
integrated with Emergency Stops and optionally come with cable pull
switches. With specifically designed speakers the sound pressure level
was increased by 14 dB and now generates the much-requested sound
levels of 110 dB. That is enough for even the toughest and loudest
environments. Loudness can of course be adjusted accordingly to the
needs of the installation. You can also communicate from one bus line to
another or call the dispatcher on surface via the phone button. Likewise
the dispatcher can communicate into any fieldbus line underground. The
speakers are protected from dust and water and have been IP66 certified.
As speakers on the outside tend to be a weakpoint for many operators, we
made them easily exchangeable.”
There are also two HMI panels that present two solutions for controlling
the fieldbus connections away from the head unit. A basic HMI panel with
ten configurable illuminated buttons and an Emergency Stop and a larger
HMI panel with a 7" touchscreen display, 20 configurable illuminated
Becker Mining's
Promos4.0 integrates new
technologies and unique
solutions to form a powerful
intrinsically safe fieldbus
system
buttons, an integrated Intercom and Emergency Stop. Finally, with the
Diagnostic and Service Tool (DST) Software all devices can be monitored
remotely from anywhere and it also allows for remote firmware updates on
every device.
New Smartcom WRAP260
The newly developed Smartcom WRAP260 series from Becker Mining
consists of intrinsically safe routers and switches that can be operated
with a battery-backup power supply. This allows the continued operation
of a safety-critical infrastructure even if the power supply fails. The devices
come with ingress protection ratings of IP65 and IP67.
The WRAP260 router is offered in different versions to meet different
customer requirements. In the
WRAP260 up to three
combined routers in one
housing can be used for large
areas and guarantee a high data
throughput even with
Triple and
double
Smartcom
many subscribers. The
WRAP260 router
models
WRAP260.1 Double Router
with two WiFi modules offers a costeffective
entry into a large WiFi
infrastructure. In addition, the WRAP260.2 Triple Router with three WiFi
modules enables the setup of a WiFi backbone and offers four Gb fibre
optic connections.
All router models are equipped with the robust BOS-CMKK connector
system for fibre optic single mode lines (1 Gb/sec). The BOS-CMKK
connector system is proven, easy to handle and IP68 certified. The cable
length between two participants can be up to 20 km. All routers can be
optioned with tagging & tracking functionality for RTLS systems.
"Large amounts of data (video cameras, process data, voice
information) require a powerful communication infrastructure in modern
mines. The WRAP260.3 Single Switch is the ideal basis for this task. The
WRAP260 variants Single Switch (5 Gb/sec Ports), Double Switch (10
Gb/sec Ports) and Gateway Switch (5x1 Gb/sec, 3x100 Mb/sec) cover all
requirements."
The WRAP260.5 Gateway Switch is used to switch between existing
devices with a data rate of 100 Mb/sec and newer devices with 1 Gb/sec
data rate. It has five fibre single mode (1 Gb/sec) and three fibre single
mode (100 Mb/sec) connectors. This system thus enables the construction
of an underground data infrastructure in the combination of 100 Mb/sec
and 1 Gb/sec in fibre optics.
The complete WRAP260 system is equipped with the powerful
operating system Mikrotik Router OS. It offers extensive configuration
possibilities (traffic shaping, firewall, VPN, QoS, RSTP for redundant
structures) for the construction of a powerful infrastructure. All
connections on the devices are pluggable to keep the installation as
simple as possible. Local LED status indicators provide a convenient
overview of the status of the devices. All devices can be conveniently
remotely configured from above ground. If a network has been configured,
the routers can easily be installed and pass on the configuration onto their
neighbor unit. The WRAP260 series is available and has been certified
with IECEx, ATEX and EAC. The range has also been certified for the South
African market and Queensland, Australia.
40 International Mining | SEPTEMBER 2020