Minelert TrackEYE – Missing Persons Locator

The Problem

Not having underground miner movement visibility creates several problems for Mine Management as miner movement have to be monitored so that proper information can be provided to the Proto Team when a rescue mission is required or when shaft clearances are confirmed and reported on.

Underground mines allocate and validate carry-on equipment (lamps, gas detectors, equipment remote controls etc.) to mine workers in the Lamproom. The problem is once they leave the Lamproom their location is not known to the Operator until they return to the Lamproom post shift.

This is posing a threat for Act 29 compliance in terms of locating miners in case of mine evacuation, last seen location or to find the miners in case of fall-of-ground (FOG) or other emergency events.

Shaft clearance reports are based on whether the miner returned to the Lamproom. If a Miner does not return then it is not clear where he/she was last seen underground, making shaft clearances extremely difficult.

In case of FOG or other events, the Proto teams are dispatched to the work area without knowing who was in the area before the event hence they do not know or how many people to search for.

In general, not having movement and location visibility of a workforce may hinder and delay production as people must be located manually, which can prove to be time-consuming in a time of emergency.

The Solution

The Minelert TrackEYE System enables the client to monitor miner locations and movements after they left the Lamproom. The Minelert TrackEYE is a zoning system and makes use of active tracking technology, which is installed on the Miner Lamp, in the battery compartment or on the lamp cable. Tag readers are installed on all levels and in work areas. This data then is recorded and displayed to business owners and operators.

The Benefits

The benefits of deployed systems, at several deep level gold mines include:

Ease of installation and implementation.
Integration with current Lamproom systems.
Internal Lamproom functionality is available for a turnkey solution.
Reliable tracking information for shaft clearance and mine evacuations.
Accurate shaft clearance reports.
People proximity detection (contact tracing) to identify Miners exposed to Covid19 positive Miners.
Visible evacuation status during seismic events.
Locate and rescue missing people using smart handheld locator.
Identify movements outside demarcated areas.
Identification of illegal miners inside the mine with Minelert Smart Tag.