Rock Bolt Sensing Device with Resilient Spacer
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional rock bolt sensors are costly, prone to damage, and inefficient for continuous monitoring due to their complex installation and susceptibility to environmental factors, often failing to detect critical failures such as loss of preload or overload in rock formations.
Innovation Solution
A sensing device comprising a spacer with load sensors and a resilient compressible element that compresses at specific thresholds, providing binary output for preload and overload conditions, and a wireless transmission system for real-time monitoring, allowing for continuous and cost-effective monitoring of anchor bolts.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional sensors are permanently installed within the hollow chamber of a custom-prepared rock bolt, then continuous monitoring capability is achieved, but the cost increases significantly and the system becomes more fragile and prone to damage
Solution Approach 1:
The sensing device is separated from the rock bolt itself. The sensor unit is installed in a separate hollow chamber that is not integrated into the rock bolt structure, allowing the rock bolt to remain simple and robust while the sensor can be monitored independently. This segmentation resolves the contradiction by enabling continuous monitoring without requiring complex custom-prepared rock bolts.
Solution Approach 2:
A separate hollow chamber acts as an intermediary structure between the rock bolt and the sensor. This intermediary allows the sensor to be protected and accessible for monitoring without being embedded in the rock bolt, thereby reducing fragility and complexity while maintaining continuous monitoring capability.
2Reliability
If a large array of rock bolts is monitored using conventional sensor systems, then structural integrity can be continuously assessed, but the cost and time for installation and maintenance become prohibitively expensive
Solution Approach 1:
The sensing device uses a simple, standardized design that can be replicated across large arrays of rock bolts. The sensor unit in the separate hollow chamber follows a uniform configuration that simplifies manufacturing, installation, and maintenance, thereby improving productivity while maintaining reliable structural integrity monitoring.
Solution Approach 2:
The sensing device is designed with universal applicability to multiple rock bolts. The standardized sensor unit and hollow chamber configuration can be used across entire arrays of rock bolts, reducing the need for custom solutions and significantly improving installation efficiency and cost-effectiveness for large-scale monitoring.
3Reliability
If rock bolts are monitored using wired sensor systems, then real-time data can be transmitted, but the system becomes vulnerable to damage from physical movements and environmental factors
Solution Approach 1:
The separate hollow chamber acts as a protective intermediary that shields the sensor and wiring from direct exposure to harsh environmental conditions and physical damage. This isolation reduces vulnerability to harmful factors while maintaining real-time data transmission capability through the protected chamber structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The hollow chamber provides pre-established protection for the sensor and wiring against environmental factors and physical damage. This beforehand cushioning approach prepares the sensor system in advance against potential harm from vibrations, moisture, and other tunnel environment factors, thereby improving reliability without compromising real-time monitoring.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution enables reliable, continuous, and cost-effective monitoring of rock bolts, reducing the risk of structural failures by providing real-time alerts for preload loss or overload, thus enhancing the safety and efficiency of rock formations.
Implementation Method 1
each said at least one load sensor comprising a respective resilient compressible element positioned at a respective one of the first and second ends of the spacer, each said resilient compressible element compressing responsive to a respective load threshold
Data Source
AI summary
Rock bolts are typically used to provide support for rock formations and to hold the formation together. Rock bolts may fail due to a number of reasons. Failures in rock bolts may cause overload or loss of preload in the rock bolt. Aspects of the disclosure provide a sensing device for a rock bolt. The sensing device includes a spacer and at least one load sensor. Each said at least one load sensor includes a respective resilient compressible element that is adjacent a respective end of the spacer. The resilient compressible element compresses responsive to a respective load threshold. Each load sensor provides respective sensor output as a function of whether or not the respective resilient compressible element is compressed. The sensing device generates device output indicating a status of the rock bolt.