Open Cut » Health and Safety
The aim of this project was to continue the work commenced in ACARP Project C7012 Collision Avoidance System 1. In particular, the extension from RF tagging on individuals and vehicles to the demonstration of radar and ultrasonic based object detection systems to forewarn of potential collision events.
The main goal of the project was to determine the appropriate use of each of the commercially available technologies and, if possible, produce a low cost variant suitable for use in proximity detection on large mine haul trucks. Any such variant produced was to be subjected to a field demonstration and, if successful, link seamlessly to the previously developed Collision Avoidance System 1.
A collision avoidance system for use in heavy vehicles in the mining industry is detailed. The novelty of the system is in the original design of 3 separate interconnected, modules. The modules are a radar antennae module, a smart micro-controlled front-end, and a software information system to interface with the drivers of the trucks. Modularisation was used to enable the components to be independently tested and evaluated.
The results of the testing of the final prototype unit is reviewed. The field-testing was a major success. The report concludes with a brief summary of the result of the project.