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Renier Strydom, Africa regional manager at
MICROMINE | Intuitive Mining Solutions, says that, in the
context of underground safety, MICROMINE software
contributes by not only making mining easier, but also
facilitating the design of safer mines and assisting operations.
moving vehicle — and this is accurate to
within 10 centimetres.”
When a miner — equipped with a VLF
receiver and buzzer unit — enters this
zone, the system sends a warning through
a flashing light and buzzing sound, to alert
them that they are entering an unsafe area.
Importantly, the behaviour of the VLF waves
will allow the miner to be alerted even if
they are behind a corner or otherwise out of
sight of the vehicle operator, when within the
detection range.
A second zone, closer to the vehicle, is
also set up in the PDS to warn the vehicle
operator that there is a pedestrian nearby.
If the pedestrian does not respond to the
warnings and moves even closer, they
enter a third zone that could now activate
the mechanical intervention: switching the
vehicle automatically to ‘creep’ mode.
Should the pedestrian enter the last zone
defined by the PDS — even closer to the
vehicle — then a second intervention comes
into play, stopping the machine in its tracks to
avoid any possible collision or injury.
While no mine will be 100% safe anytime
in the near future, the ongoing advances in
safety serve as a comfort that we are moving
a step closer to Zero Harm in this
hazardous environment. ■