Published in the March 2008 Coal USA Magazine

In 1998, ADDCAR began using an inertial three-ring laser gyroscope product developed by Honeywell as part of a guidance system for highwall mining. Two other vendors, Applied Mining Technologies of Australia and Forced Potato of Kentucky, have also been involved in gathering and transmitting this guidance data and then converting this data into a user-friendly format in the operator’s cab.

The information presented on the various screens includes heading azimuth, pitch, dip, methane levels, mining height, entry depth, motor amps and voltages, hydraulic pressures as well as various fault detection systems.

"This information helps the operator to maximize productivity and mine according to the recommended mine plan," ADDCAR sales and marketing director Brad Lewis said, adding that the data-screens are also used for troubleshooting the system.

To date, all the above data has been manually downloaded in the cab on a regular basis and then uploaded to an internet database. Customers are provided a pass code to this database and can readily review the system’s performance at their mine.

‘Live to the Cab’ is a new product feature that will allow worldwide real-time internet access to this information. Lewis said that great strides in wireless technologies have made the ‘Live to the Cab’ advancement possible, as the significant historic obstacle to real-time data was an inability to reach the cab with a communication device.

The development of ‘Live to the Cab’ has successfully completed Phase 1: establishing communication between the operator’s cab and an outside recipient. The recipient can load software onto a computer and then access the cab at their convenience and view the same information the operator is seeing in the cab, without interfering with the ADDCAR system’s operation.

The second phase, Lewis said, will be to add diagnostic capabilities that will allow an off-site electrician or electronics engineer to query the issues in real time and work with their colleagues to rectify problems. Completion of Phase 2 is scheduled for June 1 this year.

"In today’s world, the electrical, mechanical and hydraulic systems on mining machinery are mature and reliable," Lewis noted. "The electronic-software interfaces with those systems are the source of most equipment problems today."

Real-time access, he added, is a huge step forward in addressing this challenge, particularly in light of the shortage of electronics-skilled workers in the mining industry.

"We're currently getting the information harnessed," Lewis said of ADDCAR's work to add the diagnostic dimension to ‘Live to the Cab’. The company is working hand-in-hand with a primary vendor, Forced Potato, on software that will provide a user-friendly interface to the device.

"We are pleased with Forced Potato’s ingenuity and hard work," he noted, adding that both sides of development are right on track with expectations.

Once all elements have been compiled and the unit is ready, Lewis said the company plans to make the feature standard on all future ADDCAR-manufactured highwall mining machines. ADDCAR also intends to make the feature available for installation on all of its systems worldwide.

Even though ‘Live to the Cab’ is still under development and being polished, the company had the opportunity to formally introduce the device to the mining industry in September 2007 at the Bluefield Coal Show in West Virginia and in January 2008 at the International Mining Exhibition in Kolkuta, India.

Visitors saw a live demonstration of the device in communication with an ADDCAR system that conducts contract mining operations for James River Coal's Bear Branch surface mine near Hazard, Kentucky.

The potential of ‘Live to the Cab’ was also recently demonstrated when an $18,000 motor failed. The problem was quickly identified, Lewis noted, as the vendor was connected live to review the historic performance of the motor. A decision was made on the spot that it was a warranty claim, the motor was replaced and the bits were soon back in the coal.

Lewis says the company is excited about the potential of ‘Live to the Cab’ to significantly impact the highwall mining sector.

"Every manager in the industry will have real-time data assimilated in a fashion that can aid them in better decision-making, the ability to readily access electronic and software engineers to assist in problem-solving and the ability even to talk personally with a real live coal miner in the cab," said Lewis. "ADDCAR is excited about this technology and is chomping at the bit to make the ‘Live to the Cab’ feature available to its customers."