The through-the-earth system was tested at the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health test mine in Bruceton, just south of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, a popular industry research outlet.
MagneLink MCS is a wireless technology developed for post-accident emergency use, and pairs voice and texting capabilities for fail-safe communications.
It works by transmitting magnetic waves through the earth, negating the need for transmission wires or in-ground infrastructure often associated with traditional radio transmission. Lockheed Martin officials said the portable two-way system can operate at sufficient ranges to allow communications between workers deep underground and surface personnel.
"During the test, MagneLink MCS performed superbly," MagneLink MCS program manager Warren Gross said.
"The system interfaced with hand-held radios similar to the miner emergency radios (MERs) and functioned as a multi-band receiver, establishing communications with multiple MagneLink MCS units without the requirement for the MCS units to be on the same channel to receive transmissions."
The company said the MagneLink MCS technology will have a significant impact on communications capabilities for the mining industry.
"Lockheed Martin has leveraged its advanced communications and signal processing expertise to successfully develop this unique system in coordination with NIOSH to help save miners' lives following a mine accident," Gross said.
Two previous in-mine tests of the system have already been conducted, the first at a commercial mine in Dilliner, Pennsylvania, last December to examine voice and text functionality.
This March, MagneLink MCS was tested at the Contrary Portal of Consol Energy’s Buchanan mine in Virginia. During that evaluation, the system demonstrated successful two-way voice communications to a depth of 1550 feet and two-way texting in excess of 1550ft.
Lockheed Martin is currently working with the US Mine Safety and Health Administration to obtain federal approval for underground use. Once that is received, the MagneLink technology will be available for sale.
