Matrix Design Group’s IECEx-certified IntelliZone proximity detection system enriches the safety of miners without compromising productivity levels.
The mining industry continues to evolve in response to a variety of changes in technology, and workplace safety should always be at the forefront of that growth.
With headquarters in the US, as well as Australian offices in Queensland and New South Wales, Matrix Design Group provides its underground mining customers with sophisticated safety solutions that include the award-winning IntelliZone proximity-detection systemxdc.
The IntelliZone PDS, which features Matrix Design Group’s patented SharpZone technology, is designed for use on various types of underground mobile equipment, allowing users to create multiple customisable zones, such as caution, shutdown and operator zones.
IntelliZone technology detects workers in low-visibility or obscured line-of-sight locations with zones automatically extending or contracting based on mobile equipment speed.
It has been fully IECEx-certified (International Electrotechnical Commission explosive atmospheres) for underground coal in Australia since 2018.
The system has been a genuine success, with Matrix winning the 2021 US National Institute for Occupational Health and Safety’s Mine Safety and Health Technology Innovation Award for its enhanced IntelliZone system, which is now standard on the PDS.
According to Matrix Design Group Australia and New Zealand general manager Pieter De Klerk, IntelliZone is among the most unique digital safety solution on the market due to the different dynamic zones it can create.
IntelliZone can create sharp zones that are highly customisable and radial zones that are for high-interference environments.
“We can create a safe zone or an operator zone within a no-go zone, all done through software, requiring no additional hardware. IntelliZone can even create zones off of the machine, should an application arise,” De Klerk told Australian Mining.
“IntelliZone also has the ability to change the shape or the size of the zones dynamically with inputs from the machine. We can extend or reduce the zone for the machine’s direction of travel with a speed input, for example, or enable custom zones for various modes of operation, such as tramming, cutting and bolting.
“The more machine inputs we have, the more customisation we can do.”
Matrix vice president of international operations Wes Chitwood told Australian Mining that the IntelliZone is the most implemented PDS solution in the US, with a market share of approximately 90 per cent, which he believes demonstrates IntelliZone’s adaptability and is evidence of its reliability and repeatability.
“With our ability to shape the zones, there are less inadvertent stops to the machine, which allows for continuous production,” Chitwood said. “This allows a site to stay operating longer without people having to get in the way.”
IntelliZone integrates especially well with various types of underground mobile equipment, Chitwood said, and its installation techniques are accessible and easy to understand.
“Unlike competitors, IntelliZone’s design and compensation process allow IntelliZone equipment to be installed inside the body of the machine.” he said. “This process reduces exposure to system-critical components, making for a more seamless integration.”
De Klerk said the limited downtime associated with the IntelliZone is due to the way the equipment is designed – it is commissioned through software rather than hardware.
“The mechanical protection we implement is only part of the low downtimes widely associated with IntelliZone,” he said. “The software configurations are stored on the machine so that if critical components are changed, no additional configurations are required … it’s plug and play, so to speak.
“We don’t have to recalibrate the magnetic output from a replaced electromagnetic field driver or reset zones, for example. This isn’t the case with competitive systems, which require physical recalibration of zones, costing downtime and zone inconsistencies.”
Another appealing feature of the IntelliZone is its rich data log, which can provide detailed insights into a mining operation’s downtime and uptime.
“We create and collect hundreds, sometimes thousands, of data points from the system,” Chitwood said. “Then we can give detail reports back to the customer, providing unmatched insights into events.
“We can even give customers a graphical animation of where personal wearable devices were around the machine at the time an event happened.
“Every time that locator moves, we’re collecting hundreds of data points per minute. We can tell where it moved in relation to the machine.”
The recorded data can be used to train personnel on best practices in an effort to prevent future accidents from happening and to learn from any accidents that have already taken place.
“Mine operators will have a look at the data from the previous days and weeks and see where personnel have breached zones, providing insights into what was previously operationally unknown,” De Klerk said.
“They use that data to update their site-specific procedures for safety, and operative procedures as well.”
On top of lower costs, less maintenance and limited downtime, IntelliZone from Matrix Design Group is easy to configure, while the solution’s relatively simple componentry is designed to enable repairs to be easily made by a mine’s on-site personnel.
“IntelliZone has less downtime and failures but also best in-class service and support,” Chitwood said. “Because of this, the total cost of ownership is lower and the impact to production is at an absolute minimum.”
This feature appeared in the July 2023 issue of Australian Mining.
