MICROMINE is looking to improve the accuracy and precision of drill and blast operations with its soon to be launched Micromine 2020 software.
The latest edition of the leading exploration and 3D mine design software solution will include a series of truly innovative Ring Design tools, the company said.
Micromine 2020 Ring Design, which will be released in November, offers highly accurate, intuitive and sophisticated ring design planning tools which enable engineers to realise unprecedented levels of control and precision during their design, according to MICROMINE.
It is fully integrated into the Micromine software solution, which is used by more than 1,500 customers worldwide.
Andrew Esmaili, Micromine’s Product Analyst, said: “We all know that ring drilling typically occurs in confined spaces, so it’s vital for design engineers to have an awareness of geometry, mining conditions and drilling equipment. However, the reality is that modern engineers spend more time behind computers and less time in underground workings. This is where our new tools come in.
“If I was trying to describe these tools to someone in a few words I’d say: you’ve probably seen the benefit of proximity sensors on cars. Now think proximity sensors but for underground planners preparing drill plans in confined tunnels. Now, let me elaborate: Micromine’s ring design tool allows planners to define the size and shape of rig(s) being used at a mine. Once that is done, planners can utilise a new utility to apply constraints that ensure that the boom’s range and coverage limits are not inadvertently exceeded during the design process.”
He said users can ensure drill plans are safe and practical by specifying distance constraints that prevent the boom from being positioned too close to the sidewalls of a tunnel. A similar utility can be used to maintain a distance to the floor of a drive – a feature that is particularly important when drilling in rugged surfaces, according to Esmaili.
He conclude: “These new utilities provide interactive feedback to the designer, eliminate guess work, eliminate manual intervention, minimise the probability of downtime and, of course, lead to more precise designs.’’
Micromine 2020’s enhanced ring design allows engineers to easily create, view, edit, mirror, copy or replicate rings, according to the company. Dedicated tools are also available to simplify updating designs as new survey data becomes available.
Users can also generate detailed plots of ring designs with customisation options such as adding annotations, summary tables, legends and graphs.
The Micromine 2020 ring design feature also accepts centrelines and wireframe for underground production drives, while ring boundaries can be defined by hand, using templates, or auto-generated using wireframes.
Better ring design is just one of the new and improved features that engineers and miners can access through Micromine 2020.
The release offers integrated tools for modelling, estimation, design, optimisation and scheduling, with data sets all saved and easily accessible within the Micromine product, the company said.
It also boasts new charting tools, a new Stope Optimiser, an improved scheduler and advances in the Implicit Modelling and Pit Optimiser modules, according to the company.
