Coal Mining Face Measuring Robot With Prism-Based Total Station Orientation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current methods for measuring and establishing a unified 3D coordinate system in fully mechanized coal mining faces are inadequate due to harsh environmental conditions, restricted space, and the limitations of GPS and Beidou Positioning Systems, leading to time-consuming and costly north seeking with gyroscope total stations, which fail in severe environments and result in errors and inability to calculate coordinates.
Innovation Solution
A measuring-robot device comprising a suspension cage, a total station, a prism, and an industrial computer, where the suspension cage automatically levels the total station, and prisms are used for orientation, allowing ordinary total stations to replace gyroscope total stations, enabling faster and more cost-effective measurement of geodetic coordinates by using visible control points for orientation and distance measurement.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If gyroscope total stations are used for measuring and establishing spatial relationship in unified coordinate system, then measurement precision is improved, but measurement time is excessively long and cost is extremely high
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and removes the gyroscope component from the total station system. By using ordinary total stations without gyroscopes and combining them with prism-based orientation methods, the system eliminates the time-consuming north-seeking process while maintaining measurement precision through alternative geometric orientation approaches.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces expensive gyroscope total stations with ordinary total stations that are more cost-effective. The system uses disposable or temporary prism setups at control points rather than relying on expensive, complex gyroscope equipment, achieving similar measurement goals at lower cost and time investment.
2Measurement precision
If gyroscope total stations are used for north seeking, then orientation precision is improved, but device cost is extremely high and adaptability to severe environments deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces expensive, environment-sensitive gyroscope total stations with ordinary total stations combined with robust prism-based orientation methods. This substitution uses simpler, more durable equipment that can withstand harsh underground mining conditions including high temperature, humidity, and vibration without the fragility of gyroscope systems.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces prisms as intermediary objects between the total station and control points. These prisms serve as stable, passive optical targets that enable accurate orientation without requiring active north-seeking mechanisms, making the system more adaptable to severe environments where gyroscopes fail.
3Productivity
If distance intersection method is used for measurement, then real-time positioning is enabled, but calculation fails when control points are approximately collinear
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the measurement parameters and geometric configuration by using prism-based orientation with ordinary total stations. This approach transforms the measurement geometry to avoid collinear configurations, ensuring that the angles formed during measurement are sufficient for reliable coordinate calculation while maintaining real-time positioning capability.
Data Source
AI summary
A measuring-robot device for fully mechanized coal mining faces and an automatic measuring system are provided. The measuring robot includes a suspension cage, a total station, a prism and an industrial computer. Firstly, the suspension cage with automatic leveling function is fixed on the top beam of a hydraulic support, then the total station and the industrial computer are fixed in the suspension cage, and finally the prism with a plug connector is installed under the base of the total station, forming a measuring-robot device. According to the fluctuations of the fully mechanized coal mining face, several measuring robots will be deployed along the fully mechanized coal mining face, and the adjacent measuring robots are line of sight to each other, forming the automatic measuring system covering the fully mechanized coal mining.