Semi Autonomous LHD operational philosophy for panel caving applications

In recent years, there has been an increase in the number of caving operations using or planning to use autonomous LHDs to extract ore from drawpoints. There are several reasons for adopting this type of technology including health, safety, and productivity improvements. Currently operating caving mines that have adopted autonomous LHD use the Block Caving method, where development has been completed prior to initiating production activities. Panel Caving is a method in which development and production activities have to be conducted simultaneously in a production drive. In this article, a Semi Autonomous LHD Operational Philosophy (SLOP) for the use of autonomous LHDs in a panel caving operation is proposed. The SLOP considers aspects such as the technology requirements, the material handling design, and the production plan to achieve successful implementation of this technology in panel caving operations. Finally, a case study on applying SLOP in the Andesita Mine at El Teniente is presented.