Call & Nicholas Instruments has announced the release of a new version of software and added hardware features for its SlideMinder Slope Monitoring and Warning System. The new features will be demonstrated at the 2015 SME Annual Conference & Expo, being held from February 15-18, 2015, at the Colorado Convention Center in Denver, Colorado. The new software release “offers improved trend identification, additional warning options, and ease of use for operators. The hardware features enhance local area warnings in the field and provide precipitation measurements in the same location being monitoring for ground displacement.”
“We based the software upgrades on direct customer feedback to continue delivering the most practical and useful slope monitoring system to our customers. The improved visual displays and interfaces make SlideMinder easier to use,” said Josh Lamm, Operations Manager for Call & Nicholas Instruments. “Since SlideMinders are deployed at the crest, the warning beacon adds an important safety feature and helps to instill confidence in field personnel when they are working on benches, waste dumps, or below highwalls. Adding the rain gauge gives geotechnical personnel another tool to gather the data they need to better evaluate slope stability.”
The new Observation, Recording, Evaluation, and Administrative Database (OREAD) software now includes an inverse velocity display to aid in evaluating possible slope failure indicators. OREAD also has enhanced visual and audible alarms, trend line displays that toggle on and off, improved system status dashboard, and color assignments for each extensometer. The software is easily accessed using Internet Explorer, Firefox, and Google Chrome browsers from any computer on the network. A warning beacon and rain gauge are now standard features mounted on the SlideMinder hardware. The LED beacon provides visual warning to onsite personnel, operators and contractors in the area. Rainfall measurements provide geotechnical engineers and technicians additional data to cross-reference with observed displacement and velocity.
SlideMinder continuously measures ground displacement of slopes in open-pit mines and waste rock dumps. The remote system uses reliable wireline extensometer technology with a patented design and powerful software to create a graphical data presentation, calculate velocity, and issue warnings based on user-defined parameters. SlideMinder can be used as a single device, in a network, or integrated with radar or robotic total station systems.