SURFACE MINING TRUCKS
emission solutions such as electric drive for all trucks and excavator types , trolley assist and cable reeler beginning in 2022 . Additionally , the first renewable fuel option for the internal combustion engine drive train for machines with Liebherr combustions engines is available . And secondly , it will offer proven fossil fuel free mining equipment by 2030 at the latest . The equipment for digging , hauling and dozing will be based on different drive train technologies such as a battery power module , a H2 fuel cell power module and internal combustion engines with several further renewable fuel solutions depending on the equipment type .
Elsewhere , the “ OEM and FMS agnostic ” AHS market coming up behind the big two is evolving very rapidly , taking advantage of a more open and flexible approach , appealing to larger mines but also mid-Tier miners at the same time . One of the largest and most high profile is the Roy Hill iron ore mine AHS project , under a contract with Epiroc , with the project led by ASI Mining using its technology on both Hitachi EH5000 and Caterpillar 793F trucks and using Wenco ’ s FMS . It has had four phases – starting with a design phase , then initial deployment and testing phase in a sandbox setting , then a performance phase , operating a small fleet in a production environment to meet KPI targets . The last phase is expansion which involves rollout of AHS across the entire fleet , which is now happening and will signal the point at which the full AHS functionality and performance has been achieved to the satisfaction of the client , and they will sign off on expansion . Drew Larsen , ASI Mining Business Development Director at ASI Mining recently told IM : “ For ASI Mining , we will have a complete , fully commercialised version of our AHS , at scale , that can not only meet the needs of big complex mines , but also almost any open pit operation out there . It ’ s important to emphasise that it ’ s not just about achieving the functionality and safety requirements , but also the performance around critical KPIs that indicates our system can deliver on the value proposition of AHS .”
Two big developments in new AHS players - SafeAI technology running on contractor MACA ' s Hitachi EH3500 truck in Australia ( left ) and Auto-mate technology applied to a Cat 775 truck in Israel ( right )
ASI Mining aside , other notable players in this new phase of autonomy in mining include SafeAI , Auto-mate , Pronto AI , VIST Group and xtonomy , though these are by no means the only examples . You also have contractors working on solutions themselves – notably Brazil ’ s U & M , which had successfully automated Caterpillar 777 trucks in several client trials using its own technology and has subsequently moved into a commercial phase with clients , including with larger autonomous BEV truck models , but details are now covered by NDAs .
Autonomy filtering down through the industry
SafeAI , a leader in autonomous heavy equipment , and MACA , one of the world ’ s leading diversified contracting groups , recently announced a partnership in the form of an MoU to retrofit a mixed fleet of 100 mining trucks across multiple locations . Together with SafeAI ’ s Australian partner , Position Partners , the companies will create one of the largest autonomous heavy equipment fleets in Australia , “ powering safer , more productive and more costeffective mine sites .”
SafeAI has built a next generation autonomous platform that brings the latest in artificial intelligence ( AI ) to heavy industry . The company ’ s platform is interoperable and vehicle-agnostic , enabling mining and construction companies to retrofit any vehicle , from any manufacturer , with autonomous technology . With advanced multimodal sensors and significant onboard processing power , SafeAI-enabled equipment can independently make efficient , accurate decisions to keep operations running smoothly and safely , 24 / 7 .
In its statement to the ASX , MACA said : “ The SafeAI team brings decades of combined
experience in building some of the earliest autonomous mining and construction equipment , holds several patents on that technology and has deep expertise in developing critical safety protocols and technology for autonomous passenger cars , as well as development in advanced AI technology . Position Partners is the distributor of SafeAI and provides positioning and machine control solutions for mining , construction and earthmoving activities .”
The MoU is binding with key terms including that the parties will work collaboratively on the deployment of autonomy and development of future applications ; the MoU providing MACA the first 100 SafeAI Autonomy Solutions in Australia ; each party retaining the rights to their respective IP ; and Position Partners providing operational and site support to MACA .
“ The mining industry has had autonomous equipment for more than twenty years – but we ’ ve gone as far as we can go with the first iteration of this technology ,” said Bibhrajit Halder , Founder and CEO of SafeAI . “ SafeAI and MACA are going all in on the next generation of autonomy – a generation that is AI-powered , versatile and scalable to bring meaningful , widespread change to the mining industry .”
MACA , a rapidly-growing contract miner that recently reported a $ 13 billion pipeline of opportunities , needed a solution capable of scaling with its business . SafeAI ’ s interoperable retrofit technology unlocks newfound scalability and versatility by enabling the company to optimise its existing fleet , rather than forcing it to complete a highly time-consuming and costly transition to an entirely new fleet of autonomous vehicles .
“ This technology is a game changer for our business , our customers and our industry ,” said Shane Clark , MACA ’ s General Manager of Estimating and Technical Services . “ SafeAI ’ s versatile , scalable solution is unmatched in our industry right now , and has profound implications for site safety , efficiency and costeffectiveness . We expect to see quick takeup from our customers as they begin to see the
56 International Mining | MAY 2022