The African mining industry could increase its competitiveness by using intelligent transport systems (ITSs), which could reduce fuel consumption by as much as 30%, says construction equipment manufacturer and distributor Volvo Construction Equipment (CE) research coordinator Peter Wallin.

Volvo CE is developing wireless machine communication technology, which could have multiple benefits for the mining industry.

“Increasing machine intelligence and making it possible for machines to communicate with each other reduce operational costs through improved fuel efficiency, while safety is increased and productivity improved,” says Wallin.

“If mines can increase their fuel efficiency by 30%, it would certainly impact positively on their competitiveness,” he adds.

An ITS increases fuel efficiency by delivering material timeously, Wallin says, explaining that, in a typical quarry business, blasted rocks are transported to a crusher using rigid trucks or articulated haulers, which are usually operated at full speed, resulting in a waiting period before the rocks can be loaded.

“Using an ITS allows for the transport vehicle to arrive on time for the material to be loaded, thereby reducing the time usually wasted during the waiting period,” he adds.

In addition, an ITS also increases safety, as collisions can be avoided by equipping vehicles with a wireless transmitter.

Volvo CE is currently not distributing these types of systems, but is considering various aspects of the ITS, Wallin says.

Meanwhile, he believes that the same concept, which is currently being implemented in Australia’s Pilbara region, where mining major Rio Tinto is planning to use driverless trains, could be implemented in Africa.

“Autonomous systems could definitely be implemented on larger mine sites in Africa and at sites where the operation is predictable,” Wallin says, adding that, generally, it is more problematic to implement autonomous systems at smaller sites that might not have a dedicated machine for every task.

Testing
Volvo CE has conducted tests to calculate the potential that the fuel savings of machine-to-machine (M2M) communication could bring to articulated haulers working in the quarry and aggregates segment.

The test project monitored a hauler, loaded with rocks from an excavator, travelling to the crushing site. The machine was fitted with an internal measurement system to verify the fuel consumption. It was operated by different drivers at con- stant and varied speeds, which included different periods of idle time, stops and no stops along the way.

Tests showed that when the hauler travelled faster than what was necessary to the crusher and, as a result, had to wait before unloading, fuel consumption was up to 30% higher, compared with the hauler travelling at a constant speed and arriving at the opportune moment.

“In conjunction with the tests carried out in Braås, Sweden, we’ve visited customer sites and monitored how the machines are used,” says Wallin.

“Currently, sites are not optimised and, usually, there is not a structure stating when the haulers should arrive at the crusher. “Often, the machines are driven at maximum speed, but, when the amount of idle time is considered, this is clearly not always necessary. When the machines are stationary, waiting to unload, time and money are wasted.

Using M2M communication will enable the operator to know exactly when to arrive at the crusher and at what speed to travel to get there.

“The next stage of the test project will be the provision of information to the operator, such as target speed and arrival time, inside the cab,” Wallin continues.

“This real-time information will support and guide operators in executing the most fuel- efficient operation and could be presented in future concepts like heads-up displays and other innovative approaches. “If all the equipment at a job site were fitted with this technology, the machines could be linked to a central control point, such as a tablet device used by the site manager, to optimise the efficiency of the fleet. The results from the test project will determine if, when and how this technology will reach the market,” Wallin says.

Engineering suport services company Babcock International Group is the exclusive distributor for Volvo CE in South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, Zambia, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Swaziland and Lesotho.