The search for a zero-exposure mine recently took a new concrete step at Chilean copper miner Codelco’s El Teniente Division with the entry into operation of the Arkytas MU-2.1. The remote-controlled robot is already operating in the Esmeralda mine, specifically in the “front” areas where new tunnels are being built.
As these are sectors that have not yet been reinforced with ground support, human entry is prohibited by regulations, a challenge that the team solves by capturing images to digitally recreate the terrain.
Javier Valenzuela, an Engineer with the Innovation Unit of the El Teniente Division, explained that the use of the robot came about “because of how risky it is to enter the front. After a blast, the area had to be isolated for a long time, so the aim was to reduce the exposure of workers to these risks.”
The process in which the robot developed by the company Kinamics is being used is called photogrammetry, where 22 photographs are transformed into 3D models essential for engineering and topography. However, the robot’s versatility allows it to be used to extract information beyond images.
“The objective is for it to be used to survey geomining parameters at extraction points, such as humidity, granulometry and dilution, which are key to making production decisions,” says Valentina Toledo, Specialist Geologist at the Mine Production Planning and Control Unit.
Ignacio Castro, an engineer at Kinamics, highlights that the technology allows it and Codelco to deepen their knowledge of the deposit: “With this robot, we develop capabilities for analysing the face itself to study the veins and how geological structures live in the rock.”
Along these lines, Joaquín Díaz, Head of Topography at Geovita, the first collaborating company to have this robot, stresses that this way of working “considerably eliminates exposure to risk and maintains, and even increases, the quality of the data extracted,” reinforcing the Division’s commitment to operational excellence.
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