Swedish measurement and design group Hexagon has acquired the German UAS manufacturer Aibotix. The acquisition was made in order to complement the Life of Mine solution put out by Leica Geosystems. The jewel in the Aibotix crown is the Aibot X6, a six-blade rotor system or ‘hexacopter’, representing a new generation of vertical take-off and landing UAS that will be used to implement aerial mine mapping through the Life of Mine software.
Headquartered in Kassel, Germany, Aibotix is the maker of Aibot X6, a new generation of vertical takeoff and landing unmanned aircraft systems (UAS). Intelligent, autonomous and safe, the multi-rotor platform is designed to suit the needs of customers in the industrial inspection, aerial mapping, surveying, utility and security markets.
UAS-based solutions are ideal for delivering up-to-date geospatial information and aiding in hard to reach areas – such as difficult infrastructure inspections of power lines, bridges and dams to locally focused mapping tasks of buildings or any vertical structure. They are quickly becoming a viable tool for key market segments that require application-specific solutions; where the UAS becomes an integral part of the workflow process, delivering essential pieces of information that drive actionable intelligence.
Hexagon president and CEO Ola Rollen said the growing number of applications for UAS-based solutions offers huge growth potential. “The Aibotix acquisition is an important addition to Hexagon’s photogrammetric and mapping technologies portfolio,” he said.
Within the mining industry, UAS can typically be used for surveying and mapping on site, however new uses for them such as aerial real time truck fleet management, site and remote infrastructure monitoring, and machinery tracking are all being developed.
The recent investments this week show that more than a few companies have been watching the progress of UAS tech sector, and one such company is consulting and technology firm Accenture.
Accenture’s mining programme and project manager Nigel Court is a strong proponent for the use of UAS technology in the mining industry.
Using UAS is “a more efficient process, and can produce more real time information in a much safer manner than getting surveyors out on the site,” Court stated.
Court predicts a spike in the use of UAS for minesite applications in Australia, linking this to the increase of remote operation centres currently seen, as both BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto develop their own remote control centres thousands of kilometres from their operations throughout the Pilbara.
Outlining the mine of future, circa 2020, he stated that UAS are likely to be playing an integral role right across the value chain, both on and offsite, delivering value in the areas of exploration and development, safety and security and operational productivity.
He went on to provide a unique example of time savings when using automated machines over workers.
“Imagine there was an issue on the rail line in the Pilbara, from the time the problem is identified to getting the worker out there to see the cause of the issue through to getting someone out there to solve it, it could be three hours or more, whereas if a drone is flown over it can reach the site in less than half an hour, take high resolution photos that can be used to identify the problem, after which someone can be sent out to fix out the problem,” he said.
“It also has the ability to take high resolution, time lapse pictures of a site to see if fractures have appeared in the rock faces over time for early detection so that it removes much of the risk and increases safety on site.”
With UAS already seeing some use in surveying, the likelihood of this avenue of their use is only set to expand.
“The possibilities for the application of UAS in mining are seemingly endless with new uses coming to light every week and more widespread utilisation being reported across the industry,” Court said.
“We see potential benefits across the value chain, from safety and security (search & rescue, monitoring / providing information from dangerous and difficult locations) to exploration and development (such as aerial photography and remote sensing) and productivity (stockpile mapping, mine mapping & reconciliation and time lapse photography) just to name a few.
“Leading mining businesses are rapidly making these kinds of capabilities available through their use and customisation of drones. Turning these ideas into results of course requires coordinated planning across the value chain and focused execution. While we are likely on the front side of the hype cycle, we believe these capabilities will continue to mature and will transform the industry.”
Sources: Press Release, Ferret.com