Elements of Autonomous Shuttle Car Operation in Underground Coal Mines

The last few decades, the mining industry has turned to autonomous systems in its efforts to modernize and advance its methods and techniques. Automation in such complex working environments can play a critical role in improving worker safety and mine productivity. Moreover, as the global demand for minerals continues to increase, such technologies will enable access to deeper and more difficult orebodies. The research in this paper seeks to demonstrate the feasibility of autonomous machinery in the underground coal mining production cycle. By introducing autonomous shuttle cars, the operator can be removed from dusty, noisy, and potentially dangerous conditions and be placed in a relatively safe location while supervising the machine instead of operating it. This paper presents preliminary results for autonomous navigation of shuttle cars in the underground coal mining cycle. A lab scale prototype equipped with several exteroceptive and proprioceptive sensors has been developed and is being tested in a mock mine plan, simulating several navigation scenarios within a room and pillar section.