Autonomous Underground Mining Vehicles Are a Thing Now
Depending on how tests of below-ground and above-ground equipment progress, multiple technologies could be incorporated into single vehicles to make them maximally adaptable to operator needs.
Mining 24 Hours a Day with Robots
Tom Simonite for MIT Technology Review: Each of these trucks is the size of a small two-story house. None has a driver or anyone else on board.
Mining company Rio Tinto has 73 of these titans hauling iron ore 24 hours a day at four mines in Australia’s Mars-red northwest corner. At this one, known as West Angelas, the vehicles work alongside robotic rock drilling rigs. The company is also upgrading the locomotives that haul ore hundreds of miles to port—the upgrades will allow the trains to drive themselves, and be loaded and unloaded automatically.
Rio Tinto intends its automated operations in Australia to preview a more efficient future for all of its mines—one that will also reduce the need for human miners. The rising capabilities and falling costs of robotics technology are allowing mining and oil companies to reimagine the dirty, dangerous business of getting resources out of the ground. Cont'd...
Gemini-Scout Mine Rescue Robot
Reliability, ability to travel across varied terrains, and accurate operation are essential elements for the drive system and camera controls on mining rescue robots.
Robots Explore Dangerous Mines with Novel Sensor Fusion Technology
The 3D Riegl scanning laser range finder and an Acumine 2D scanning millimeter wave radar were transported on Husky and used to record video footage and densely sampled data sets. The data is being submitted to the International Journal of Robotics Research to ensure that this insight and information is available to the robotics community.
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Featured Product
3MP HDR IP69K Camera for Robotics & Autonomous Vehicles
STURDeCAM31 from e-con Systems® is designed to make robotics and autonomous vehicles safer and more reliable. Powered by the Sony® ISX031 sensor and featuring GMSL2 interface, this compact 3MP camera delivers 120dB HDR + LFM imaging with zero motion blur — even in the most challenging outdoor conditions. Engineered to automotive-grade standards, STURDeCAM31 is IP69K certified, making it resistant to dust, water, vibration, and extreme temperatures. With support for up to 8 synchronized cameras, it enables powerful surround-view and bird's eye systems on NVIDIA® Jetson AGX Orin™.
Robotics and Automation - Featured Company
Elmo Motion Control Inc.
Elmo has been a motion control technology leader for over 35 years, with millions of servo drives working 24/7 worldwide. Elmo offers complete motion control solutions from design to delivery of cutting-edge servo drives, network-based multi-axis motion controllers, and integrated servo motors. All solutions can be customized and configured using Elmo's proprietary advanced and easy-to-use software tools for any machine in any industry, such as semiconductors, lasers, robots, life sciences, industrial automation, AGV, and more. The company employs more than 350 personnel with headquarters in Israel and offices in the United States, China, Germany, Italy, Korea, Singapore, and an additional manufacturing facility in Poland. Elmo has a worldwide distribution network. By advancing motion control with state-of-the-art technology, Elmo makes smart machines even smarter. As of 2022, Elmo is a Bosch Rexroth company.
