Method for uploading truck end operation data in open pit mine

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to the technical field of data transmission, and discloses a method for uploading truck-end operation data of an open-pit mine area, which comprises the following steps: a mobile base station and a memory are installed on a shovel, a truck-end communication module is installed on an unmanned transport vehicle, the mobile base station on the shovel in a group is matched with the communication module on the unmanned transport vehicle in the group; when the vehicle enters a loading area, the corresponding group communication signal is automatically searched and a connection is established; when the vehicle reaches a loading position and performs a loading task, the vehicle uploads its own operation log data to the memory on the shovel through the communication network formed by the truck-end communication module and the mobile base station and stores the operation log data in the memory; when the loading task is completed, the shovel sends a driving-off instruction to the vehicle, and the vehicle drives off the loading area after receiving the driving-off instruction; and the operation log data stored in the memory on the shovel in each group is transmitted to a data storage server. The uploading method greatly improves the data uploading efficiency through automatic intelligent means.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a method for uploading vehicle-side operation data in an open-pit mine. Background Art

[0002] Earthwork transportation in open-pit mines is an excellent scenario for the implementation of unmanned driving technology projects. This is because open-pit mine production sites are mostly located in remote areas with poor living conditions. The costs of recruiting workers and improving living infrastructure are becoming increasingly high. In addition, the production site is equipped with complex heavy machinery, and the on-site conditions are harsh and prone to personal safety accidents. Moreover, due to the relatively closed and strictly controlled nature of mining areas, there is an extreme lack of on-site data for unmanned driving technology research. It is difficult to find open source data as rich as that of urban traffic roads.

[0003] Dispatching personnel to record data on-site is also costly and can disrupt normal production operations, creating unnecessary safety risks. Therefore, it is crucial to record and upload the various perception, control, and communication data accumulated during the daily operations of on-site vehicles. Successfully extracting data from both manned and unmanned transport vehicles will not only provide basic material samples for research on autonomous driving technology in mining scenarios, but also provide corresponding data backtracking and verification for various risks, accidents, and other emergencies, thereby improving the efficiency of the entire operating system and reducing the probability of subsequent accident risks.

[0004] Data uploading is crucial, as the volume of data required for autonomous driving development and archiving in mines is enormous. Sensor data generated by multiple lidars, cameras, and positioning devices, as well as status logs circulating within the system, can reach tens of GB daily. Even with data compression, it's difficult to reduce this to a few GB. Therefore, aggregating and uploading data from each vehicle to a cloud server for archiving presents a complex challenge.

[0005] Directly and densely deploying communication base stations is the simplest and most direct approach. However, due to the complex terrain and large area of ​​mining areas, base stations alone cannot achieve the comprehensive requirements of complete signal coverage, high data transmission bandwidth, and manageable construction and maintenance costs. Furthermore, due to the nature of open-pit mines where soil and mineral stripping operations lead to the movement of the working face, transportation locations and roads also move frequently, making the relocation costs of fixed communication base stations along these routes high. Furthermore, operational production vehicles are constantly in operation, requiring them to maintain low-latency, real-time communication with the cloud platform and other vehicle-side nodes. Data upload functions could interfere with vehicle communication efficiency, posing a safety risk. Summary of the Invention

[0006] The purpose of the present disclosure is to solve at least one aspect of the above-mentioned problems and defects in the prior art.

[0007] According to one aspect of the present disclosure, a method for uploading vehicle-side operation data in an open-pit mine is provided, comprising:

[0008] S1: Install a mobile base station and storage on the excavator, and install a vehicle-side communication module on the unmanned transport vehicle. The mobile base station on the excavator in the group matches the communication module on the unmanned transport vehicle in the group.

[0009] S2: When the unmanned transport vehicle enters the loading area, it automatically searches for the communication signal of the corresponding group and establishes a connection;

[0010] S3: When the unmanned transport vehicle arrives at the loading location and performs the loading task, the unmanned transport vehicle uploads its own operation log data through the communication network composed of the vehicle-side communication module and the mobile base station and stores it in the memory on the excavator;

[0011] S4: When the loading task is completed, the excavator sends a departure instruction to the unmanned transport vehicle, and the unmanned transport vehicle leaves the loading area after receiving the departure instruction;

[0012] S5: The operation log data stored in the memory on the excavator in each group is transmitted to the data storage server.

[0013] According to some exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure, after the unmanned transport vehicle enters the loading position, the working mode of the unmanned transport vehicle is switched to a data upload mode. In the data upload mode, the operation log data recording function is suspended, and the recorded data is packaged, and then the data packets are uploaded and stored in the memory.

[0014] According to some exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure, when the unmanned transport vehicle receives the departure instruction, the working mode of the unmanned transport vehicle is switched to the normal working mode. In the normal working mode, the unmanned transport vehicle enters normal working mode and starts the operation log data recording function with the current time as the mark.

[0015] According to some exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure, when the unmanned transport vehicle receives a departure instruction, if the data upload task is not successfully completed, the upload task is forcibly terminated, and the data packet is retained and waits for the next upload opportunity.

[0016] According to some exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure, after the data packet is uploaded to the memory, the locally uploaded operation log data of the unmanned transport vehicle is cleared.

[0017] According to some exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure, after the unmanned transport vehicle completes the unloading task and returns to the parking lot, the operation log data recording function is stopped, and the recorded data is packaged to wait for the next upload opportunity.

[0018] According to some exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure, when the excavator stops working, the operation log data stored in the memory on the excavator is transmitted to the data storage server. The script on the data storage server automatically searches for the log files in the hard disk and copies them to the local hard disk of the server. After the copying is completed, the operation log data stored in the memory is automatically deleted.

[0019] According to some exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure, the operation log data includes the operating status, sensor data and abnormal alarm information of the unmanned transport vehicle.

[0020] According to some exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure, the network transmission rate is above 10 MB / s.

[0021] According to some exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure, the mobile base station is a Wifi router.

[0022] According to some exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure, the memory is a mobile hard disk, and the capacity of a single mobile hard disk can save data of 48 hours of continuous operation of all unmanned transport vehicles in the corresponding group.

[0023] According to some exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure, the data storage server is set in the cloud.

[0024] According to the method for uploading vehicle-side operation data in open-pit mines according to the above-mentioned exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure, the efficiency of data uploading is greatly improved through automated intelligent means, and a large amount of vehicle operation data is fully and efficiently aggregated from the vehicle side to the data storage server, providing rich data support for the upgrade and maintenance of the unmanned driving system in smart mines.

[0025] It should be understood that the contents described in this section are not intended to identify the key or important features of the embodiments of the present disclosure, nor are they intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure. Other features of the present disclosure will become readily understood through the following description. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0026] The accompanying drawings are provided to facilitate a better understanding of the present invention and do not constitute a limitation of the present disclosure.

[0027] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of transportation operations in an open pit mine is shown;

[0028] Figure 2 A flow chart showing a method for uploading vehicle-side operation data of an open-pit mine according to an exemplary embodiment disclosed is shown;

[0029] Figure 3 A logic diagram showing a method for uploading vehicle-side operation data of an open-pit mine according to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure is shown;

[0030] Figure 4 A detailed flow chart of a method for uploading vehicle-side operation data of an open-pit mine according to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure is shown. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0031] To more clearly illustrate the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of the present disclosure, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. It should be understood that the following description of the embodiments is intended to explain and illustrate the overall concept of the present disclosure and should not be construed as limiting the present disclosure. In the specification and drawings, the same or similar reference numerals refer to the same or similar parts or components. For the sake of clarity, the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale, and some well-known parts and structures may be omitted in the drawings.

[0032] Unless otherwise defined, technical or scientific terms used in this disclosure should have the ordinary meaning understood by a person of ordinary skill in the art to which this disclosure belongs. The terms "first," "second," and similar expressions used in this disclosure do not denote any order, quantity, or importance, but are simply used to distinguish different components. The terms "a" or "an" do not exclude a plurality. "Include" or "comprising" and similar expressions mean that the element or object preceding the word includes the elements or objects listed after the word and their equivalents, but do not exclude other elements or objects. "Connected" or "connected" and similar expressions are not limited to physical or mechanical connections but may include electrical connections, whether direct or indirect. "Up," "down," "left," "right," "top," or "bottom" are used only to indicate relative positional relationships; if the absolute position of the described object changes, the relative positional relationship may also change accordingly. When an element, such as a layer, film, region, or substrate, is referred to as being "on" or "under" another element, the element may be "directly" "on" or "under" the other element, or intervening elements may be present.

[0033] Earthwork transportation in open-pit mining areas usually uses marshaling as the basic operating unit. Each marshaling consists of an excavator 1 and at least one unmanned transport vehicle 2 (or a manned assisted driving operating vehicle). The specific number of unmanned transport vehicles 2 can usually be adjusted according to the length of the transport road, the vehicle's driving speed, and the operating efficiency of the excavator 1. The idle time of the excavator 1 waiting for the arrival of the unmanned transport vehicle 2 and the idle time of the unmanned transport vehicles 2 waiting in line for the excavator 1 should be minimized.

[0034] Each unmanned transport vehicle 2 is equipped with a vehicle-side domain controller (DC) that serves as the computing platform for the unmanned driving software system. This controller controls the vehicle's autonomous movement and records its own operational log data. Each excavator 1 is also equipped with an excavator domain controller (DC) that serves as the computing platform for automated excavation and loading, as well as loading process control. The DC and vehicle-side DC can be of the same or different models. A group consists of at least one unmanned transport vehicle 2 and one excavator 1.

[0035] In the open-pit mine, apart from the production support areas such as parking lots and maintenance areas, the basic working places of the operation group are divided into three parts: loading area, main road and unloading area. Figure 1 As shown, the loading and unloading areas are open areas tens of meters long and wide, connected by a main road several kilometers long. The basic steps of a single-cycle operation are as follows: Unmanned transport vehicle 2 drives to the vicinity of excavator 1 in the loading area; excavator 1 removes the earth and rocks and loads them into the bucket of unmanned transport vehicle 2; after the bucket is filled with earth, unmanned transport vehicle 2 leaves the loading area; unmanned transport vehicle 2 drives via the main road to the unloading area; unmanned transport vehicle 2 dumps the carried earth into the backfill pit in the unloading area; after unmanned transport vehicle 2 finishes dumping the earth, it leaves the unloading area and returns to the loading area via the main road to continue loading or be recycled. In this process, earth loading is a time-consuming process. Based on field observations of excavator 1 operations, a 90-ton wide-body unmanned transport vehicle 2 requires 7-9 buckets to fully load the earth, and each bucket of earth loading takes approximately 30 seconds. During this process, UTV 2 hands over control to excavator 1 and remains stationary, waiting for excavator 1 to load. Once fully loaded, excavator 1 issues a departure command to UTV 2, which then resumes normal operation. UTV 2 remains near excavator 1 in the loading area for approximately four minutes, allowing it to perform special tasks independent of loading.

[0036] like Figures 2 to 4 As shown, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, a method for uploading vehicle-side operation data of an open-pit mine is provided, the method comprising:

[0037] S1: Install a mobile base station and storage 3 on the excavator 1, and install a vehicle-side communication module on the unmanned transport vehicle 2, wherein the mobile base station on the excavator 1 in the group matches the communication module on the unmanned transport vehicle 2 in the group;

[0038] S2: When the unmanned transport vehicle 2 enters the loading area, it automatically searches for the communication signal of the corresponding group and establishes a connection;

[0039] S3: When the unmanned transport vehicle 2 arrives at the loading position and performs the loading task, the unmanned transport vehicle 2 uploads its own operation log data through the communication network formed by the vehicle-side communication module and the mobile base station and stores it in the memory 3 on the excavator 1;

[0040] S4: When the loading task is completed, the excavator 1 sends a departure instruction to the unmanned transport vehicle 2, and the unmanned transport vehicle 2 leaves the loading area after receiving the departure instruction;

[0041] S5 : The operation log data stored in the memory 3 on the excavator 1 in each group is transmitted to the data storage server 4 .

[0042] Specifically, when excavator 1 starts up, the mobile base station is simultaneously started and the data backup function is activated. Unmanned transport vehicle 2 is then started, and after initialization of the unmanned driving mode, it begins operating tasks, with the operation log data recording function simultaneously enabled. Unmanned transport vehicle 2 autonomously plans a route, drives along the main road to the waiting point in the loading area, and waits for excavator 1 to issue the entry command. Upon receiving the entry command from excavator 1, the vehicle enters the loading area and waits to load soil. During the entry process, the vehicle-side communication module automatically searches for the communication signal from the mobile base station on excavator 1 and connects. When unmanned transport vehicle 2 parks in the loading area next to excavator 1, the communication signal strength reaches its peak, and excavator 1 begins loading soil and rock onto the waiting vehicle. The excavator domain controller on the excavator simultaneously begins receiving data uploaded by unmanned transport vehicle 2 and storing it in memory 3. After excavator 1 completes the loading task, it issues a departure command to unmanned transport vehicle 2. Upon receiving the departure command, unmanned transport vehicle 2 activates the unmanned driving function and begins a new round of operations. Unmanned transport vehicle 2 then drives along the main road from the loading area to the waiting point in the unloading area. The unmanned transport vehicle 2 enters the unloading area in the queue order, stops at the soil discharge point and performs soil discharge operations. When the soil discharge operation is completed, the unmanned transport vehicle 2 leaves the unloading area and then drives to the loading area via the main road to carry out the next loading task and uploading task.

[0043] Through comprehensive analysis and practical calculations of the earthwork stripping and transportation process in open-pit mines, this paper designs a data upload method that utilizes vehicle loading time periods. This upload method uses groups as units. The vehicle-side operation log data of each unmanned transport vehicle 2 within a group is aggregated to a memory 3 via a mobile base station on an excavator 1. The vehicle-side operation data of multiple groups is then transferred and aggregated through their respective memories 3 to a unified data storage server 4 for archiving. This significantly improves data upload efficiency and enables the complete and efficient aggregation of large amounts of vehicle operation data from the vehicle side to the data storage server 4, providing rich data support for the upgrade and maintenance of unmanned driving systems in smart mines.

[0044] In this embodiment, memory 3 utilizes a removable hard drive. When the removable hard drive is plugged into the excavator's domain controller, the data backup function is automatically activated. In this embodiment, only the removable hard drive transfer operation during each shift change requires manual intervention throughout the entire operation process. Most other tasks are automatically performed using software scripts, significantly reducing manual labor and advancing the overall goal of unmanned, intelligent, and intelligent mining. It should be noted that in other embodiments of the present disclosure, memory 3 may be other types of computer-readable storage media, including any tangible medium containing or storing a program. The program code contained on the computer-readable storage medium may be transmitted using any suitable medium, including but not limited to wires, optical cables, RF (Radio Frequency), or any suitable combination thereof. It should be noted that a single memory 3 is preferably capable of storing at least 48 hours of continuous operating data for all unmanned transport vehicles within the corresponding group. In practical applications, multiple memories 3 may be provided, each paired with a single excavator 1 for rotational use. That is, while one memory 3 is storing data on the excavator 1, another memory 3 can, for example, transmit its stored data to the data storage server 4 at a dispatch center.

[0045] In this embodiment, the mobile base station is a Wi-Fi router, which is paired with a vehicle-based Wi-Fi communication module. The Wi-Fi router on the excavator 1 and the matching vehicle-based Wi-Fi communication module form a Wi-Fi network. Unmanned transport vehicles 2 upload their own operational log data via this Wi-Fi network and store it in memory 3 on the excavator 1. It should be noted that in other embodiments of the present disclosure, this Wi-Fi network can be replaced by other networks known to those skilled in the art. Furthermore, in this embodiment, the data storage server 4 is located in the cloud, but it should be noted that it does not need to be located in the cloud.

[0046] According to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, the upload method may further include: after the unmanned transport vehicle 2 enters the loading position, switching the operating mode of the unmanned transport vehicle 2 to a data upload mode, in which the operation log data recording function is suspended, and the recorded data is packaged, and then the data packets are uploaded and stored in the memory 3, wherein the name of the data packet should be marked with the vehicle code of the corresponding unmanned vehicle. By suspending the operation log data recording function of the unmanned transport vehicle 2 in the loading position, the computing power load of the vehicle-side domain controller can be reduced.

[0047] According to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may further include: when the unmanned transport vehicle 2 receives a departure instruction, switching the working mode of the unmanned transport vehicle 2 to a normal working mode, in which the unmanned transport vehicle 2 enters a normal working state and starts an operation log data recording function with the current time as a mark.

[0048] According to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may further include: when the unmanned transport vehicle 2 receives a departure instruction, if the data upload task is not successfully completed, the upload task is forcibly terminated, and the data packet is retained to wait for the next upload opportunity.

[0049] According to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may further include: after the data packet is uploaded and stored in the memory 3 on the excavator 1 , clearing the locally uploaded operation log data of the unmanned transport vehicle 2 .

[0050] According to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may further include: after the vehicle completes the unloading task and returns to the parking lot, stopping the operation log data recording function and packaging the recorded data to disk to wait for the next upload opportunity. At this time, the unmanned driving system can be turned off and the Wi-Fi is offline.

[0051] According to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may further include: when excavator 1 stops operating, uploading the data stored in memory 3 to data storage server 4. A script on the server automatically searches for log files in memory 3 and copies them to the server's local hard drive. After the copy is complete, the records in memory 3 are automatically deleted. This concludes the overall upload and backup process for today's operational data. If a single unit of engineering equipment operates in shifts, the number of memories 3 should be increased based on the number of shifts, with one memory 3 allocated to each unit per shift.

[0052] According to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, the operation log data may include the operating status, sensor data, and abnormal alarm information of the unmanned transport vehicle 2 .

[0053] According to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, the method may further include: the mobile base station places the vehicle code marked on the data packet name into a folder with a corresponding number name, and the data storage physical address is the memory 3 connected to the domain controller of the excavator 1.

[0054] According to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, the method further includes: a network transmission rate of 10MB / s or greater. In an application, the log data packet generated by a single process and written to disk ranges from approximately 400MB to 800MB, depending on the task execution duration. At an intranet transmission rate of 10MB / s or greater, the data upload task can be completed within 90 seconds. In other words, the data packets generated by a single process can be uploaded to memory 3 during the loading period of the unmanned transport vehicle.

[0055] It should be understood that the various forms of the processes shown above can be used to reorder, add, or delete steps. For example, the steps described in this disclosure can be performed in parallel, sequentially, or in a different order, as long as the desired results of the technical solutions disclosed in this disclosure can be achieved. This is not a limitation herein.

[0056] It should be understood that the various forms of the processes shown above can be used to reorder, add, or delete steps. For example, the steps described in this disclosure can be performed in parallel, sequentially, or in a different order, as long as the desired results of the technical solutions disclosed in this disclosure can be achieved. This is not a limitation herein.

[0057] The above specific embodiments do not constitute a limitation on the scope of protection of this disclosure. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that various modifications, combinations, sub-combinations, and substitutions may be made based on design requirements and other factors. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions, and improvements made within the spirit and principles of this disclosure shall be included within the scope of protection of this disclosure.

Claims

1. A method for uploading vehicle-side operation data in an open-pit mine, comprising: S1: Install a mobile base station and storage on the excavator, and install a vehicle-side communication module on the unmanned transport vehicle. The mobile base station on the excavator in the group matches the communication module on the unmanned transport vehicle in the group. S2: When the unmanned transport vehicle enters the loading area, it automatically searches for the communication signal of the corresponding group and establishes a connection; S3: When the unmanned transport vehicle arrives at the loading location and performs the loading task, the unmanned transport vehicle uploads its own operation log data through the communication network formed by the vehicle-side communication module and the mobile base station and stores it in the memory on the excavator. The operation log data includes the operating status of the unmanned transport vehicle, sensor data, and abnormal alarm information; S4: When the loading task is completed, the excavator sends a departure instruction to the unmanned transport vehicle, and the unmanned transport vehicle leaves the loading area after receiving the departure instruction; S5: The operation log data stored in the memory on the excavator in each group is transmitted to the data storage server.

2. The uploading method according to claim 1, wherein: After the unmanned transport vehicle enters the loading position, the working mode of the unmanned transport vehicle is switched to the data upload mode. In the data upload mode, the operation log data recording function is suspended, and the recorded data is packaged, and then the data packets are uploaded and stored in the memory.

3. The uploading method according to claim 1, wherein: When the unmanned transport vehicle receives the departure instruction, the working mode of the unmanned transport vehicle is switched to the normal working mode. In the normal working mode, the unmanned transport vehicle enters normal working mode and starts the operation log data recording function with the current time as the mark.

4. The uploading method according to claim 1, wherein: When the unmanned transport vehicle receives the departure instruction, if the data upload task is not successfully completed, the upload task is forcibly terminated, and the data packet is retained and waits for the next upload opportunity.

5. The uploading method according to claim 1, wherein: After the data packet is uploaded to the memory, the locally uploaded operation log data of the unmanned transport vehicle is cleared.

6. The uploading method according to claim 1, wherein: When the unmanned transport vehicle completes the unloading task and returns to the parking lot, the operation log data recording function is stopped, and the recorded data is packaged to wait for the next upload opportunity.

7. The uploading method according to claim 1, wherein: When the excavator stops working, the operation log data stored in the memory on the excavator is transmitted to the data storage server. The script on the data storage server automatically searches for the log files in the hard disk and copies them to the local hard disk of the server. After the copy is completed, the operation log data stored in the memory is automatically deleted.

8. The uploading method according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein: The network transmission rate is above 10MB / s.

9. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein: The mobile base station is a Wifi router.

10. The uploading method according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein: The memory is a mobile hard disk, and the capacity of a single mobile hard disk can save the data of all unmanned transport vehicles in the corresponding group running continuously for 48 hours.

11. The uploading method according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein: The data storage server is set in the cloud.

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