Mobius for Drills is an innovative new digital hub that empowers leadership and operators to plan and optimise drilling in the mine but also ties the entire value chain together including drilling, blasting, haulage and dozing, with a single tool. It was developed jointly by ASI Mining and Epiroc and represents the first major collaborative technology offering from the partner companies – Epiroc is a strategic investor in ASI with a 34% stake it acquired in 2018 and the two companies have been deepening their cooperation, including working together at the ongoing and world class Roy Hill iron ore operation fleet autonomy project which is entering its final phase of rollout.

“We think of it as a tool to directly support making quick and effective interrelated decisions. Mines can get greater productivity and economies of scale as a single operator controls multiple remote and autonomous vehicles. Mobius for Drills is designed to tie the whole value chain together,” says Tyler Berens, Automation Director, Surface Mining, Epiroc Surface division.

“Mobius for Drills is an ideal management tool because of all the support it provides in decision making, but Mobius for Drills also helps with driller training, so it is useful for the whole workforce,” adds Christopher Blignaut, Product Owner – Data Solutions, Epiroc Surface division.

“Mobius for Drills enhances engagement of all stakeholders with the drilling process. It provides valuable insight at each stage of the drilling process through a drill plan builder for planning, situational awareness for drill controllers and reporting for supervisors. It is a scalable product, which accommodates evolving needs of a mine,” explains Mahmood Hassan, Engineering Project Manager – Automation, Epiroc Surface division.

“This expansion of the Mobius platform brings drilling into the Mobius eco-system of autonomous mining solutions, and will allow increased integration of both data solutions and various autonomous mining operations,” notes Drew Larsen, Director of Business Development for ASI Mining. “We are excited about this logical extension of the Mobius platform to open up additional value propositions for our customers.”

Using embedded artificial intelligence and progressive robotics, the user-friendly Mobius for Drills system enables mines to remotely command, control, and monitor their drill fleet to maximise productivity and safety. Epiroc states: “Mobius for Drills gives you true situational awareness through the ability to monitor the location and status of all drills and track production progress in real time. An intuitive interface displays data in easy-to-understand dashboards and reports that provide the right information at the right time.” Mobius for Drills can also map drill usage, evaluate productivity, track consumables and compare planned outcomes against actual results. This data enables optimisation of the drilling fleet within the mining value chain.

It provides a single platform for all stakeholders in a drilling operation, where both the leadership and operators can quickly navigate information, filter it to their needs and streamline day-to-day and long-term strategic decisions. Mobius for Drills is also designed to be flexible and scalable, ready to work on small or large operations with expert support from Epiroc. “The system has the ability to work across Epiroc surface drills with various levels of technology. It’s also future-ready with a strong platform for development. Every Mobius application enabled connects more of the value chain. With Mobius for Drills, every situation can be planned and every outcome optimised.”

Connected through Scalable architecture allows the system to match the roadmap and interface points allow for other drill OEMs to easily integrate. An intuitive and smart design reduces the learning curve with a flexible and natural interface for effective use and navigation while a value chain perspective allows for refined decision making. It is “focused to be your primary drill fleet tool for all stakeholders. Detailed views capture valuable drilling insight in a digital environment or reduced wear on boom and feed components.”

Epiroc adds: “We believe in creating a harmonised mine where the value chain is connected and every level is optimised. Mobius for Drills’ holistic approach ties the layers together, building from a detailed drill layer to ultimately create a safer and harmonised mine. Mobius for Drills was designed from the ground up to harness the full benefits of robotics and digitalisation growth in our industry, interacting with manned operations…our mines are manufacturing environments full of complex and interrelated decisions made each day. We recognise these decisions are not easy to make with tools that only focus on individual layers of the value chain.”