AUTONOMOUS MINING
Caterpillar's Command for hauling system controls the entire truck cycle from load to dump and back.
how to interact with the other heavy earthmoving equipment, such as hydraulic excavators, bulldozers, motor graders and water
trucks, while operating in the normal production cycle. If they can respond flexibly
to different situations, which will eliminate
accidents and other risks, they should be
able to offer performance very close to that
of their operator-driven counterparts. It's a
challenging task, but I feel very confident
that we can make it," he said.
34 E&MJ; • JANUARY 2014
...and Caterpillar's
According to Caterpillar, the first public display of its autonomous truck technology
took place at MINExpo 1996, where a video
screen on the company's stand showed two
autonomous off-highway trucks working at a
quarry in Texas. The quarry trial was intended to demonstrate the concept, and at the
same time, visitors to Caterpillar's Tinaja
Hills demonstration center in Arizona saw a
777C autonomous truck demonstrate its
capabilities. The company also used the
show to announce its intention to develop
further autonomous machines.
The next major stage came in 2010,
when Caterpillar had four 793 autonomous
trucks working as a fleet at its Arizona proving grounds. The following year, three of
these trucks were sent for a full-scale trial
at BHP Billiton's Navajo coal mine.
Last March, Caterpillar reported that it
had completed a 21-month trial of its
Command for hauling autonomous truck
system there, during which time the three
trucks had moved nearly 2.3 million m3 of
material. In addition, the company said, it
had been able to refine its processes and
procedures to build toward the commercial
installation of larger fleets, with its team
having gathered information that led to significant improvements in cycle times and
truck utilization over the course of the trial.
During the trial, two 227-mt-capacity
793F trucks, and one 218 mt-capacity
793D, operated autonomously as they
worked with a Cat 994F super high-lift
wheel loader, staffed by a trained operator,
moving overburden in a reclamation project.
"The extended trial in New Mexico
enabled us to work within an operating mine
to conduct training and implement safe
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