SURFACE DRILLING using current technology for iSeries rigs including geofencing, path planning and InfoGeoPhoto. The path planning is done in such a way that the cable does not interfere with any other drills on the pad or drag cuttings back into the already drilled holes.
“ The final piece is that we are trying to manage the cable by using sensors and other means to detect it and feed that information in real time back to the AutoMine station – we are working on data integrated models to be able to do that with the active cable location data. The aim is that the complete pattern can be drilled autonomously with an iE Series Rotary drill without any need for intervention.”
The cable reel auto retracts and dispenses, with sensors limiting force on the cable to avoid damaging it. The DR416iE has 420 m of cable capacity, and the smaller models 300 m.
Using geofencing, the rig movement is limited to the dedicated defined perimeter. With automated path planning, the rig is positioned to the first hole and moved downwards in the pattern to progress drilling. With these features, the drill will be in a controlled tramming environment from the control room via automation or the controller to avoid any interference with cables.
Long term, Sandvik is also looking at using AI and sensors to allow accurate cable planning and monitoring even in difficult conditions such as where the cable is buried in snow or mud or underrwater.
In surface drilling Sandvik offers various automation levels – iDrill( on-board operation) and AutoMine( remote operation). Automated onboard functions allow the rig to work from partial to full autonomous. The operator monitors at fleet level and takes control only when required. The on-board automation functions of Sandvik’ s iSeries rotary drill rigs form the basis for the remote operation, minimising the risk of human error.
Additionally, AutoMine AutoCycle enables fully autonomous surface drilling fleet operation of multiple drill rigs from a remote control room, improving operational safety, increasing productivity and fleet utilisation. Through the system, one operator can automate one to three rigs from a remote operator station, trailer or van.
Looking away from electric and autonomous rigs, in other blasthole developments, in February, Sandvik introduced the Sandvik D50KX, the fourth drill rig in its xSeries rotary blasthole line. The compact, mid-class drill delivers high productivity for drilling both rotary and downthe-hole( DTH) production blastholes. Subbiah said this drill is already operating in Indonesia, to where eight units were recently shipped to a customer.“ The KX models are primarily designed
for emerging markets, featuring electric joystick controls that replace the manual control levers from older models. They also incorporate advanced technology such as auto levelling, compressor control, and digital connectivity, allowing customers to access and monitor realtime telemetry data to track the rig’ s performance.” The Sandvik D50KX supports a hole diameter range of 127 to 229 mm and comes equipped with advanced digital connectivity, ensuring precise, clean blastholes, the company says.
Patrick Murphy, President of Rotary Drilling at Sandvik Mining and Rock Solutions, said:“ Sandvik D50KX offers digitally driven, enhanced productivity, helping drill-and-blast operators improve productivity and reduce cost via enhanced digital applications. As demand for our rotary blasthole drills continues to grow, this expansion of our xSeries range reinforces our customer-centric approach.”
The Sandvik D50KX delivers an extended mast single-pass capacity of 11 m with a total depth of 20.1 m and 25,000 kg weight on bit.
A high-precision TIM3D GPS navigation package precisely positions the drill within the predefined pattern, significantly increasing productivity, according to the company. This advanced technology ensures accurate and efficient drilling operations, optimising resource use and minimising downtime.
Operators can leverage My Sandvik digital solutions via the Knowledge Box™, gaining realtime insights into equipment maintenance, productivity and utilisation, while optimising operations and maximising return on investment.
The new rig also supports customers’ sustainability needs, with intelligent system load management helping reduce carbon emissions and extend component life, improving operating costs, Sandvik says. The compressor control system matches compressor volume to application, reducing fuel burn and resulting environmental impact while improving hole quality.
Hexagon says its Drill Assist solution remains the industry’ s only AI-enabled drill automation platform
Hexagon- the AI in the algorithm
Hexagon says its Drill Assist solution remains the industry’ s only AI-enabled drill automation platform. As outlined in a recent Hexagon white paper, standard drill automation solutions rely on Boolean logic for control response. In other words, a parameter is set by an operator or supervisor for each condition that must be monitored by the drill automation system. As an example, algorithms used in existing systems to
protect the drill bit from becoming plugged or stuck down the hole require human input to tell the automation system when each condition occurs. Such technology, Hexagon says, requires one of two approaches:
Performance-biased – an aggressive parameter( such as plugged air pressure) is set, allowing the drill to continue to penetrate the ground until a higher setpoint is reached. This approach results in higher instantaneous productivity but puts the machine at risk of getting stuck or plugged, conditions which cost precious operational time to correct.
Protection-biased – exactly opposite of performance tuning, a conservative parameter is set, resulting in false positives that cost production time spent trying to clear a hole or drill bit that may not actually be plugging up.
It adds that these solutions, while simple to adjust, can be very complicated to properly tune and require subject matter expertise to optimise in addition to a significant investment in operator training. The lack of expertise typically results in the operator setting the drilling parameters based on a menu, which may or may not be close to the actual conditions. The Hexagon solution derives these parameters autonomously, ensuring optimised drilling regardless of everchanging conditions encountered.
Hexagon set out to improve the limitations of existing drill automation solutions by incorporating AI directly into the control
APRIL 2025 | International Mining