The Location and Monitoring for Personal Safety (LAMPS) project was developed by CSIRO with ACARP support. A memorandum of understanding was established between CSIRO and MineCom so that discussions and planning can proceed toward formal commercialisation.

The system consists of intrinsically safe radio tags fitted into cap lamps. These tags automatically report to any ‘readers’ in the vicinity that in turn communicate location information to a control room.

The system provides information about the location of personnel, particularly important in the event of an emergency, and is designed to standalone without the need for mine power. This was to address a key deficiency with existing systems that were not very robust in the event of an explosion.

According to key researcher, Garry Einicke, LAMPS has four main differences to conventional tagging systems. The readers can support multiple redundant interconnections, overcoming the problem of failures in mine infrastructure. The tags report the status of a tilt sensor for man-down information. It is a bi-directional system meaning workers can receive hazard warnings.

Finally, LAMPS is believed to be the only system available that can provide information about underground personnel working on the face. In the past ‘readers’ could not be fitted to the face because of safety issues.

The tag recently received a certificate of conformity after IS assessment by the Safety in Mines Testing and Research Station (SIMTARS), clearing the way for commercialisation. However, in the time it has taken to bring the project to fruition new batteries have come onto the market and the new battery covers cannot accommodate the lamps tag. The cover that fits on the new Oldham T5 battery cannot accommodate the tag and MineCom are in the process of identifying cost effective alternatives.

The Oldham T5 battery introduced at the end of May, 2003 for use in coal mines has superseded its predecessor the T2 and will progressively replace existing cap lamp batteries as these age.

According to Ross Gregory of Gilbert Gray & Co which distributes Oldham cap lamps in Australia, the GT5 cap lamp fitted with the T5 battery is the first cap lamp to be issued with a certificate of conformity by Test Safe Australia to the international standard IEC 62013 parts 1 & 2 that has recently been adopted as the Australian standard for caplamps for use in mines susceptible to firedamp.

Einicke has just produced a comprehensive paper canvassing recent developments in proximity identification and tracking technologies for mining automation. The paper looks at tags and readers and the various technical barriers to their use underground. To read a full version of this paper in PDF format, Click PDF in the lefthand Multimedia column.

This story was published on International Longwall News on Friday November 14 as part of the Communication Feature. Some readers may have been given the impression the LAMPS project and tagging technology was associated with feature sponsor Ampcontrol. Ampcontrol is the communication feature sponsor and is not associated with the tagging technology. CSIRO and MineCom have developed this technology and will proceed toward formal commercialisation.