Title: Towards application of positioning systems in the mining industry

Authors: Moshood Onifade; Tawanda Zvarivadza; John Adetunji Adebisi

Addresses: Institute of Innovation, Science and Sustainability, Federation University Australia, Ballarat, Victoria, Australia ' Department of Civil, Environmental and Natural Resources Engineering, Luleå University of Technology, Luleå, Sweden ' Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Namibia, Namibia

Abstract: Positioning and communication systems hold intriguing potentials in the context of the mining industry. The need for safety and environmental precautions in mining has grown clearer for governments and scientists across the world. This is in light of complex and hazardous mining situations which can be tackled by the advancement of science and technology. This paper discusses how positioning systems have enhanced mining operations' safety, productivity and environmental sustainability. The drawbacks of positioning systems in the mining industry are established and analysed by examining the influence this technology has had on the different operations in the mineral industry. The possibility of their utility for precise localisation in situations when no other techniques exist has been carefully evaluated for recent uses of these technologies in the mineral industry. Future study must address a few significant issues and gaps that have been identified.

Keywords: automated-tracking; communication technologies; localisation; positioning systems; real-time navigation; radio-frequency identification; RFID.

DOI: 10.1504/IJMME.2024.138723

International Journal of Mining and Mineral Engineering, 2024 Vol.15 No.1, pp.15 - 48

Received: 06 Dec 2023
Accepted: 28 Feb 2024
Published online: 29 May 2024 *

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