The present invention relates to a system and method for
performance analysis of mines using OITDS (Operator Independent
Truck Dispatch System), and in particular to a OITDS system, which
5 contains state of the art optimization algorithms, which utilize the
processing power and network bandwidth of modern computer systems
to provide optimized truck allocation.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[002] The present invention proposes a practical approach to the
10 problem of truck dispatching in open pit mines. This approach is
implemented by using the OITDS. Execution of mine not just relies on
creation hardware like shoves/dumpers however particularly affected by
accessibility and usage of administration gear like dozers, scrapers,
graders and other gear. An incorporated investigation of accessibility of
15 all the hardware in a mine can just enhance the efficiency through
upgraded usage of generation gear regardless of their accessibility.
[003] There are several problems with the existing system, and to
overcome the aforesaid issues the present invention is really effective
establish higher productivity by giving them precisely. Already many
20 researcher worked on the same subject matter. According to Alarie and
Gamache (2002), two goals were targeted in solving dispatching
problems: increase productivity and reduce operating costs.
3
Lizotte, Bonates and Leclerc (1987) claim that truck/shovel operations
are undoubtedly the major form of material handling system used in
open pit mine operations throughout the world.
Considering that the movement of material in an open pit mine
5 corresponds to about 50 per cent of operating costs (see Alarie and
Gamachi, 2002; and Ercelebi and Bascetin, 2009), to perform such
transportation using a fleet efficiently and without waste implies a
considerable saving of resources.
According to Beaulieu and Gamache (2006), fleet management
10 systems in open pit mines consist essentially in systems that can
dispatch trucks to shovels, crushers, waste dumps or stockpiles and
when these trucks reach the service point for loading or dumping,
making decisions based on both the state of the equipment and the
state of the haulage network in the mine.
15 Munirathinam and Yingling (1994) report that it is in this context that the
‘automatic truck dispatching systems’ become important, as they can
increase the production of the current hauling fl eet or achieve the
production target using a smaller number of trucks. This may be
achieved through a careful analysis of the shovel and truck scheduling
20 in real time and the consequent choice of the optimum assignment of
the trucks allowing increased hauling fleet utilisation and reduced
operational delays.
Alarie and Gamache (2002) highlight some peculiarities in the nature of
the problem of routing vehicles in mines that are not found in other
25 routing problems, such as the fact that the pickup and delivery points
4
stay the same during a long period of time such as shift duration, which
varies between eight and 12 hours, travelling distances are short
compared to the length of the shift (cycle times of a few minutes) and
the frequency of demand by the pickup points is large (eg at every
5 loading and dumping done). Thus, the efficiency of the transport fleet
depends on its size and the haulage distances where an insufficient
number of trucks (under-trucked scenario) will result in unproductive
periods, and too many trucks (over-trucked scenario) will increase the
length of queues at the shovels.
10 Also, according to Alarie and Gamache (2002), there are two main
approaches to truck dispatching known as single stage and multistage.
In the single stage approach the trucks are dispatched without
considering any constraint or production target, usually following some
‘rule of thumb’. In the multistage approach, the truck dispatch problem
15 is divided into stages, typically two, where the first stage sets production
targets for each shovel through a linear or nonlinear programming
formulation, while the second stage assigns trucks to shovels following
the plan defined in the previous stage to reduce production deviations,
usually by means of heuristics that can allow faster computing of
20 solutions faster, making it possible to answer requests for dispatch in
real time.
[004] While, in the present invention, various issues has been resolved
and achieves increased productivity, aims at efficient and effective
utilisations of resources. Further, the mining activity in substantial
25 opencast mines are ending up increasingly more perplexing because of
5
developing number of overwhelming earths moving apparatuses, its
subsequent administration in differing mining condition.
[005] Accordingly, there remains a need in the prior art for a technical
convergence to make the system and method effective, it is in this context
5 that the present invention provides a system, apparatus and method for
performance analysis of mines using OITDS (Operator Independent Truck
Dispatch System), which is implemented with the help of various modules.
Therefore, it would be useful and desirable to have an apparatus, system
and method to meet the above-mentioned needs.
10 SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT INVENTION
[006] The present invention provides an apparatus, system and method
for performance analysis of mines using OITDS (Operator Independent
Truck Dispatch System). The present invention have been developed a
novel efficient algorithm and generally, which utilize the processing
15 power and network bandwidth of modern computer systems to provide
optimized truck allocation. By utilizing the innovative distributed SQL
database architecture of OITDS, these algorithms achieve precise truck
tracking, arrival time prediction, and idle time prediction not possible
with RPC message-based systems of the past. The system and method
20 can be provided electronically over the Internet or the Virtual Private
Network VPN to the user's desktop, PDA, or a digital cell, smart phone,
or other devices for receiving and processing the predetermined set of
data as are known to those skilled in the art.
6
[007] One important aspect of the present invention is to develop a
system and method having novel hardware and software interaction to
analyses the utilization of Heavy Earth Moving Machinery (HEMM). To
determine the Productivity of Heavy Earth Moving Machinery (HEMM).
5 To determine the availability of Heavy Earth Moving Machinery
(HEMM). To analyze the improvement of mines by using various
programming module.
[008] Another important aspect of the present invention is to provide a
productivity monitor tool, the incorporated observing and direction
10 arrangement which uncovers site efficiency for draglines, impact gap
drills, electric scoops, dozers, excavators, pull trucks, loaders and
helper resources. The present invention which naturally provides
streamlined truck and scoop assignments; expanded efficiency;
checking and report scratch execution markers (KPIs) and limits
15 working expenses. Operators, maintenance personnel, engineers,
managers and supervisors all are benefitted from the unparalleled
capabilities of an OITDS mine management solution by the present
invention. The present invention provides a support tool for quick and
accurate decision making in varying mining conditions.
20 [009] The present invention provides the desired result, which can only
be achieved after making an effort to act upon the information
generated by OITDS in a timely manner.
[010] Another important aspect of the present invention, which is
implemented on the varied devices with dedicated user interfaces and
25 their Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs) and the like, PC,
7
Microcontroller and with other known processors to have computer
algorithms and instruction up gradation for supporting many
applications domain where web mining usage is required.
[011] In this respect, before explaining at least one object of the
5 invention in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited
in its application to the details of set of rules and to the arrangements of
the various models set forth in the following description or illustrated in
the drawings. The invention is capable of other objects and of being
practiced and carried out in various ways, according to the need of that
10 industry. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and
terminology employed herein are for the purpose of description and
should not be regarded as limiting.
[012] These together with other objects of the invention, along with the
various features of novelty which characterize the invention, are pointed
15 out with particularity in the disclosure. For a better understanding of the
invention, its operating advantages and the specific objects attained by
its uses, reference should be made to the accompanying drawings and
descriptive matter in which there are illustrated preferred embodiments
of the invention.
20 BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[013]The invention will be better understood and objects other than
those set forth above will become apparent when consideration is given
to the following detailed description thereof. Such description makes
reference to the annexed drawings wherein:
8
[014] FIG. 1 illustrates a hardware block diagram for an involved entity,
in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[015] While the present invention is described herein by way of
5 example using embodiments and illustrative drawings, those skilled in
the art will recognize that the invention is not limited to the
embodiments of drawing or drawings described and are not intended to
represent the scale of the various components. Further, some
components that may form a part of the invention may not be illustrated
10 in certain figures, for ease of illustration, and such omissions do not limit
the embodiments outlined in any way. It should be understood that the
drawings and detailed description thereto are not intended to limit the
invention to the particular form disclosed, but on the contrary, the
invention is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives
15 falling within the scope of the present invention as defined by the
appended claims. As used throughout this description, the word "may"
is used in a permissive sense (i.e. meaning having the potential to),
rather than the mandatory sense, (i.e. meaning must). Further, the
words "a" or "an" mean "at least one” and the word “plurality” means
20 “one or more” unless otherwise mentioned. Furthermore, the
terminology and phraseology used herein is solely used for descriptive
purposes and should not be construed as limiting in scope. Language
such as "including," "comprising," "having," "containing," or "involving,"
and variations thereof, is intended to be broad and encompass the
9
subject matter listed thereafter, equivalents, and additional subject
matter not recited, and is not intended to exclude other additives,
components, integers or steps. Likewise, the term "comprising" is
considered synonymous with the terms "including" or "containing" for
5 applicable legal purposes. Any discussion of documents, acts,
materials, devices, articles and the like is included in the specification
solely for the purpose of providing a context for the present invention. It
is not suggested or represented that any or all of these matters form
part of the prior art base or were common general knowledge in the
10 field relevant to the present invention.
[016] In this disclosure, whenever a composition or an element or a
group of elements is preceded with the transitional phrase “comprising”,
it is understood that we also contemplate the same composition,
element or group of elements with transitional phrases “consisting of”,
15 “consisting”, “selected from the group of consisting of, “including”, or “is”
preceding the recitation of the composition, element or group of
elements and vice versa.
[017] The present invention is described hereinafter by various
embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein
20 reference numerals used in the accompanying drawing correspond to
the like elements throughout the description. This invention may,
however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be
construed as limited to the embodiment set forth herein. Rather, the
embodiment is provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and
25 complete and will fully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled
10
in the art. In the following detailed description, numeric values and
ranges are provided for various aspects of the implementations
described. These values and ranges are to be treated as examples only
and are not intended to limit the scope of the claims. In addition, a
5 number of programming modules are identified as suitable for various
facets of the implementations. These modules are to be treated as
exemplary and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention.
[018] The system comprises, but not limited to, a memory unit to store
input-output data values on a computation server and/or at client side; a
10 processing unit provided with the embedded with computation server
and at client side computer or any digital device, having a web user
interface and a plurality of modules, further the memory unit is disposed
in communication with the processor and storing processor executable
instructions, the instructions comprising instructions to: an optimizer
15 module at computation server and further, implemented by truck
modules on the field; ETA and queue information is used to generate
assignments to shovels; truck modules are optionally to make
assignment decisions in case the network or the system are down;
historical dig rates/parameters are maintained for each shovel to avoid
20 under or over feeding. Further, the optimizer module is based on the
linear programming to compute optimal shovel to dump routing to
maximize production.
[019] In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, the
processing unit is further configured with the gеnеratеd item sеts using
25 the big item sеts found within the preceding pass, without consider the
11
transactions. Further, the processing unit is configured to use the
database at the primary pass.
[020] In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, the
distributed database architecture provides reliable operation in networks
5 with incomplete radio coverage. System control logic performed onboard truck for accurate timing and reliable data acquisition. It further
provides sophisticated operator interface including real-time mine
routing map, operator KPI’s, and shift production. Further, it eliminates
single server point of failure resulting in increased system reliability and
10 availability.
[021] In accordance with another embodiment of the present invention,
the system uses industry standard wireless network protocols,
commodity radio hardware assures cost effective, extensible, and highbandwidth network. High bandwidth combined with on-board SQL
15 database architecture provides capacity for detailed data acquisition
and analysis. OITDS utilizes RSA encryption, firewalls, and VPN
technology to secure the wireless network.
[022] Preferable, but not limited to, SQL database access on server and
mobile devices. SQL database design provides easy integration with
20 reporting services and data analysis tools.
Sophisticated location and haul route management & optimization
[023] Best path algorithm supplies routing information directly to truck
operators via on-screen map display. System logs exceptions for
misroutes from best path and adjusts with revised operator
25 assignments. System verifies all location arrivals against precise
12
polygon boundaries at dumps, shops, and tiedowns. System verifies
shovel arrivals and automates the entire haulage cycle. On-board GPS
data analysis algorithms provide precise measurement of mining
activities including waiting, spotting, loading, hauling, queuing, backing,
5 and tipping. On-board algorithms match GPS coordinates to determine
each truck’s absolute road position and update ETA once per second.
On-board GPS algorithms measure, record, and store distances and
speeds for the entire haulage network.
[024] In accordance with another embodiment of the present invention,
10 wherein the optimizer module based on the linear programming is
configured to: compute optimal shovel to dump routing to maximize
production; implement blending to any dump based on assayed material
qualities at digging location; match material qualities with materials type
constraints at dumps; adjust shovel feed rates or stockpiles excess
15 production to match maximum dump capacities; adjust shovel feeds to
match available truck fleet; have specific shovels to be locked to or
restricted from feeding certain dumps; integrate shovel priorities and
material priorities to obey mine production priorities; provide an
adjustable shovel coverage percentage for each shovel to control the
20 desired coverage level for each shovel.
[025] While a truck is traveling or hauling, OITDS tracks the precise truck
location by road segment and position. Unlike beacon-based systems
that only track discrete locations, OITDS continuously updates the
precise truck position and updates the truck’s ETA at the shovel. OITDS
25 detects intermediate call point arrivals as the point at which a truck
13
moves from one road segment to another road segment. Thus,
intermediate call point arrivals are precisely determined when the truck
arrives at an intersection, instead of when the truck is detected within a
circular beacon.
5 [026] Each location in the database contains a reassignment flag, which
allows the mine to control the points at which the system reevaluates a
truck’s current shovel assignment. However, unlike DISPATCH, which
triggered the reassignment request when the truck was detected within a
radius of the location, OITDS triggers a reassignment request when the
10 truck enters the road segment, which ends at the given location. This
gives the system and the operator time to respond to the reassignment
request before the truck reaches the intersection.
[027] A configurable offroad distance parameter controls the maximum
distance from a truck’s current GPS location to the road’s trajectory in the
15 database for a truck to be considered traveling on a given road.
Whenever the truck’s position is within this distance, OITDS updates the
truck’s current position on the road segment as a fraction between 0.0
and 1.0. When a truck’s GPS position deviates by more than offroad
distance from the road’s trajectory, OITDS scans the database for the
20 next matching road segment. In this way, OITDS functions like modern
GPS navigation systems found in automobiles immediately detecting
when a truck has passed a given intersection. This architecture allows
OITDS to immediately detect misroutes when a truck travels down a road
not on the best path from its starting location to its destination. On
25 detecting a misroute, OITDS logs a misroute error and creates a
14
misroute warning visible on the OITDS GUI. Later on arriving at a
reassignment location, OITDS reevaluates the shovel assignment.
Optimiser Module/Unit
[028] The Jigsaw OITDS system contains state of the art optimization
5 algorithms, which utilize the processing power and network bandwidth of
modern computer systems to provide optimized truck allocation. By
utilizing the innovative distributed SQL database architecture of OITDS,
these algorithms achieve precise truck tracking, arrival time prediction,
and idle time prediction not possible with RPC message-based systems
10 of the past. The OITDS algorithms combine many techniques used and
proven in past systems with new algorithms made possible by the use of
modern PC based components in a distributed, high-speed wireless
LAN. By combining modern powerful PC hardware with distributed
database architecture, OITDS achieves a level of scalability and
15 optimization not possible with legacy architectures.
Optimiser functions are:
Optimal Solutions are published by the optimizer at central and
implemented by truck modules on the field.
ETA and queue information is used to generate assignments to shovels
20 Truck Modules can make assignment decisions in case the network or
the system are down.
Historical dig rates are maintained for each shovel to avoid under or over
feeding.
[029] The word “module,” as used herein, refers to logic embodied in
25 hardware or firmware, or to a collection of software instructions, written
15
in a programming language, such as, for example, Java, C, Python or
assembly. One or more software instructions in the modules may be
embedded in firmware, such as an EPROM. It will be appreciated that
modules may comprised connected logic units, such as gates and flip5 flops, and may comprise programmable units, such as programmable
gate arrays or processors. The modules described herein may be
implemented as either software and/or hardware modules and may be
stored in any type of computer-readable medium or other computer
storage device. Further, in various embodiments, the processor is one
10 of, but not limited to, a general-purpose processor, an application
specific integrated circuit (ASIC) and a field-programmable gate array
(FPGA) processor. Furthermore, the data repository may be a cloudbased storage or a hard disk drive (HDD), Solid state drive (SSD), flash
drive, ROM or any other data storage means.
15 [030] Further, the exemplary devices for implementing aforesaid
embodiments consistent with the present disclosure can be used with
various variations of computer technology that may be used for
implementing the web usage mining. The devices may comprise a
central processing unit (“CPU” or “processor”). Processor may comprise
20 at least one data processor for executing program components for
executing user or system-generated requests. A user may include a
person, a person using a device such as such as those included in this
disclosure, or such a device itself. The processor may include
specialized processing units such as Field Programmable Gate Arrays
25 FPGA, integrated system (bus) controllers, memory management
16
control units, floating point units, graphics processing units, digital
signal processing units, etc. The processor may include a
microprocessor, such as AMD Athlon, Duron or Opteron, ARM’s
application, embedded or secure processors, IBM PowerPC, Intel’s
5 Core, Itanium, Xeon, Celeron or other line of processors, etc. The
processor may be implemented using mainframe, distributed processor,
multi-core, parallel, grid, or other architectures. Some embodiments
may utilize embedded technologies like application-specific integrated
circuits (ASICs), digital signal processors (DSPs), Field Programmable
10 Gate Arrays (FPGAs), etc.
[031] Now referring to FIG. 1, which shows the hardware that can be,
but not limited to, resided in the each involved entity or client system or
computation server / Desktop Computer, which is comprised of the
processor may be disposed in communication with one or more
15 input/output (I/O) devices via I/O interface. The I/O interface may
employ communication protocols/methods such as, without limitation,
audio, analog, digital, monoaural, RCA, stereo,IEEE-1394, serial bus,
universal serial bus (USB), infrared, PS/2, BNC, coaxial, component,
composite, digital visual interface (DVI), high-definition multimedia
20 interface (HDMI), RF antennas, S-Video, VGA, IEEE 802.n /b/g/n/x,
Bluetooth, cellular (e.g., code-division multiple access (CDMA), highspeed packet access (HSPA+), global system for mobile
communications (GSM), long-term evolution (LTE), WiMax, or the like),
etc.
17
[032] In some embodiments, the processor may be disposed in
communication with one or more memory devices (e.g., RAM, ROM,
etc.) via a storage interface. The storage interface may connect to
memory devices including, without limitation, memory drives, removable
5 disc drives, etc., employing connection protocols such as serial
advanced technology attachment (SATA), integrated drive electronics
(IDE), IEEE-1394, universal serial bus (USB), fiber channel, small
computer systems interface (SCSI), etc. The memory drives may further
include a drum, magnetic disc drive, magneto-optical drive, optical
10 drive, redundant array of independent discs (RAID), solid-state memory
devices, solid-state drives, etc. The memory devices may store a
collection of program or database components, including, without
limitation, an operating system, user interface application, web browser,
mail server, mail client, user/application data(e.g., any data variables or
15 data records discussed in this disclosure), etc. The operating system
may facilitate resource management and operation of the computer
system. Examples of operating systems include, without limitation,
Apple Macintosh OS X, Unix, Unix-like system distributions (e.g.,
Berkeley Software Distribution (BSD), FreeBSD, NetBSD, OpenBSD,
20 etc.), Linux distributions (e.g., Red Hat, Ubuntu, Kubuntu, etc.), IBM
OS/2, Microsoft Windows (XP, Vista/7/8, etc.), Apple iOS, Google
Android, Blackberry OS, or the like.
[033] Although, the further various user interface, web browser can also
be used with the relevant modification, accordingly to provide the
18
aforesaid concluded results with the same modules, its principal and
protocols for the present invention.
[034] The above-mentioned invention is provided with the preciseness
in its real-world applications to provide performance analysis of mines
5 using OITDS (Operator Independent Truck Dispatch System).
Advantages of OITDS:
[035] Attendance and allocation is done within predefined time. If we
forget to do attendance in time office, there is provision in OITDS to do
attendance. Operator can login using the operator screen.
10 [036] Real time monitoring the location and status (full or empty,
heading, and velocity) of each vehicle in the fleet. Trip is recorded in
OITDS and which is used for key performance. Trip count is done
automatically and accurately by computer. With help of voice
communication idle time can be minimized and can be utilize this time
15 in productivity. Automatic management of key performance indicators
and alerts: With the help of OITDS report, it can be measured with best
operator performance. Road condition can be communicated with in
charge, and blasting can be also analyzed. Two-way communication
between Operator and supervisors/managers. Communication can be
20 spread very fast. They can find best path /optimal path to reach
shovel/dump. They can control over speed limit. Further, it provides
safety from: Major Accidents due to Dumper Collision during Night Shift;
Need of Continuous Monitoring of Speed; Delay in Communication
causing delay in attending precautionary measures after identification of
25 danger on site; They can minimize the risk of collision.
19
[037] In addition, OITDS using the GPS and wireless technology is an
important tool for increase productivity by reducing the idle time of
equipment. OITDS has crucial role in optimization and automation of
future of Indian mining industries.
5 [038] It is to be understood that the above description is intended to be
illustrative, and not restrictive. For example, the above-discussed
embodiments may be used in combination with each other. Many other
embodiments will be apparent to those of skill in the art upon reviewing
the above description.
10 [039] The benefits and advantages which may be provided by the
present invention have been described above with regard to specific
embodiments. These benefits and advantages, and any elements or
limitations that may cause them to occur or to become more
pronounced are not to be construed as critical, required, or essential
15 features of any or all of the embodiments.
[040] While the present invention has been described with reference to
particular embodiments, it should be understood that the embodiments
are illustrative and that the scope of the invention is not limited to these
embodiments. Many variations, modifications, additions and
20 improvements to the embodiments described above are possible. It is
contemplated that these variations, modifications, additions and
improvements fall within the scope of the invention.

We Claim:
1. A system for performance analysis of mines using OITDS (Operator
Independent Truck Dispatch System), comprising:
a memory unit to store input-output data values on a computation server
5 and/or at client side;
a processing unit provided with the embedded with computation server with
an online database unit and at client side computer or any digital device,
having a web user interface and a plurality of modules, wherein the memory
unit is disposed in communication with the processor and storing processor
10 executable instructions, comprising:
an optimizer module at computation server and further, implemented by
truck modules on the field;
ETA and queue information is used to generate assignments to shovels;
truck modules are optionally to make assignment decisions in case the
15 network or the system are down;
historical dig rates/parameters are maintained for each shovel to avoid
under or over feeding; and
wherein optimizer module is based on the linear programming to compute
optimal shovel to dump routing to maximize production.
20 2. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein on traveling or hauling of a truck,
the OITDS system tracks the precise truck location by road segment and
position.
3. The system as claimed in claim 1, each location in the online database unit
contains a reassignment flag, which allows the mine to control the points at
25 which the system reevaluates a truck’s current shovel assignment.
21
4. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the OITDS system triggers a
reassignment request when the truck enters the road segment, which ends at
the given location. This gives the system and the operator time to respond to
the reassignment request before the truck reaches the intersection.
5 5. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein a configurable offroad distance
parameter controls the maximum distance from current GPS location of the
truck to a trajectory of the road in the online database unit for a truck to be
considered traveling on a given road.
6. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein on detecting GPS position of the
10 truck deviates by more than offroad distance from the trajectory, OITDS scans
the online database unit for the next matching road segment, and enabling
detection when a truck has passed a given intersection.
7. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein on immediate detection of
misroutes when a truck travels down a road not on the best path from its
15 starting location to its destination, and on detecting a misroute, OITDS logs a
misroute error and creates a misroute warning visible on an OITDS graphic
user interface (GUI).
8. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the optimizer module based on the
linear programming is configured to:
20 implement blending to any dump based on assayed material qualities at
digging location;
match material qualities with materials type constraints at dumps;
adjust shovel feed rates or stockpiles excess production to match maximum
dump capacities;
25 adjust shovel feeds to match available truck fleet;
22
have specific shovels to be locked to or restricted from feeding certain dumps;
integrate shovel priorities and material priorities to obey mine production
priorities;
provide an adjustable shovel coverage percentage for each shovel to control
5 the desired coverage level for each shovel.
9. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the processing unit is configured to
evaluate and achieve precise truck tracking, arrival time prediction, and idle
time prediction.