Robotics Technology in Mine Disaster Reconnaissance, Rescue and Recovery

Details

• Personal Author:
  Luxbacher GW ; Patts, Larry D. ; Trevits, Michael A.
• Description:
  It is almost a given that post-disaster mine conditions will have compromised the mine ventilation system, resulting in a hazardous atmosphere in portions of the mine, and often complicated travel through debris fields and roof falls. Robotic technologies provide the opportunity to gather valuable information to assist decision making or lessen exposure to dangerous conditions. MSHA's Mine Emergency Operations Division (MEO) has utilized a fully permissible mine robot, the V2, for a number of years, constantly updating the unit as new technologies became available. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, as part of the MINER Act Extramural Contract Program, examined the need for additional robotic units and ultimately funded three different types of prototype technologies: two robots, the Snake Robot and the Gemini-Scout, and a mine rescue robotic assist vehicle known as the "Mule". The Snake Robot is designed to be lowered through a borehole and to conduct surveillance (gas monitoring, video and audio) in the immediate vicinity, while the Gemini-Scout, designed to be deployed in the mine opening, serves as a more mobile and agile exploratory tool as compared to the MSHA V2 robot. The Mule was developed in response to needs expressed by mine rescue teams for a versatile remotely operated support vehicle and it will move from prototype to MEO utilization in the near future. This paper describes the development of the robot prototypes and discusses their limitations in the prototype stage, possible enhancements and potential applications, as well as the utilization of the Mule. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Emergencies Mining Occupational Health Safety Ventilation
• Keywords:
  Disaster Recovery Emergency Response Mine Disasters Mine Rescue Rescue Measures Robotics
• Series:
  Mining Publications
• Publisher:
  Society for Mining, Metallurgy, and Exploration, Inc.
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Proceedings
• Place as Subject:
  Colorado ; Minnesota ; OSHA Region 3 ; OSHA Region 5 ; OSHA Region 8 ; Pennsylvania
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  PMRD - Pittsburgh Mining Research Division
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  1-6
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20052021
• Citation:
  2018 SME Annual Meeting, February 25-28, 2018, Minneapolis, Minnesota, preprint 18-103. Englewood, CO: Society for Mining, Metallurgy, and Exploration, Inc., 2018 Feb; :1-6
• Contact Point Address:
  M. A. Trevits, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Pittsburgh; PA
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2018
• NORA Priority Area:
  Mining
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Source Full Name:
  2018 SME Annual Meeting, February 25-28, 2018, Minneapolis, Minnesota, preprint 18-103
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:bee588e4639c08ab193859d9aacbdfdb80cec49bc160889ff34861ad154230ebce6e1db7d6746e48664f33e8aa6ac844e0a59d7f497c0daa20b0542056666548
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/227698/cdc_227698_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 701.39 KB ]