Automation & robotics
up from less than $1bn today, success clearly requires more than unleashing a gaggle of devices and hoping for the best. For one thing, getting the machines just to function as individuals involves a fiendish mix of algorithms and training regimens, even as collective action requires even more complicated technology. There are other difficulties here too, from adapting to breakdowns to understanding the ideal number of robots on a single site. And hovering over it all is an appreciation, even among automation fanatics, that actual people can’t be removed from the mining landscape completely – even if machines can bring it pretty close.
A new swarm
Automation is everywhere in contemporary mining. Quite aside from the headline figures, with the sector predicted to enjoy CAGR of over 6% through 2027, this transformation can be glimpsed up and down the supply chain. Yet, if teleoperated bulldozers in Chile compete for attention with robotic clean-up machines in Utah, Dr Jekan Thanga sees these practical achievements as anchored in technology. From the constant miniaturisation of electronics to exponential performance bumps epitomised by Moore’s law, the associate professor of aerospace and mechanical engineering at the University of Arizona argues that scientific advances are “fundamental” to understanding this burgeoning field. With this in mind, it makes sense that operators are increasingly excited about advances in fully automated vehicles – machines that can exploit the latest AI advances to drill or haul totally independently. And if single devices are impressive enough here – especially since sending humans down a mineshaft can be dangerous and expensive – swarm robotic mining is even more striking. Plausibly encompassing dozens of robots, trained to function both independently and as a team, they’re already being trialled by experts across the planet. One prominent example here is Anglo-American, which has been investigating swarm robots since around 2018. Another is OffWorld. Headquartered in a Los Angeles suburb, Jim Keravala, the firm’s co-founder and CEO, says his company were the “originators” of the whole concept. And like the spread of automation more broadly, Keravala argues technology is the driving force. As he phrases it: “The unique value proposition of swarm intelligence and heterogeneous swarm intelligence – with fully autonomous, rugged, robust robots – is a paradigm shift for mining opportunities here on earth.” Such enthusiasm isn’t hard to understand when you consider how these machines might one day be employed. Both Keravala and Thanga compare them with ant colonies, with individuals going about their business, but in support of a greater mission. To that end, OffWorld has already developed a range of
World Mining Frontiers /
www.nsenergybusiness.com Robot swarms to mine resources on the moon
The potential offered by swarm robotic mining extends far beyond the reaches of our planet, right into the vast depths of space. As the technology develops and the idea of space mining continues to grow in popularity, plans are already being made to harvest resources from the moon using autonomous swarms and new excavation techniques, and teams of aerospace and mining engineers are hard at work to make this happen. Back in 2021, for instance, NASA awarded $500,000 to two University of Arizona engineering faculty members to fund a new project to advance space mining methods that make use of swarms of autonomous robots. If NASA and other organisations seek to build structures on the moon, doing so will be far easier if they can extract the materials they need locally, rather than having to transport them from the Earth. Similarly, potential fuel sources like helium-3, which is extremely rare on earth but is abundant on the moon, offer massive benefits for space exploration. OffWorld also has plans for its swarm robots to aid astronauts on the moon, using its experience in mining and construction on Earth to prepare for the lunar transition. The company’s smart robots could potentially do the heavy work to prepare settlements for human colonists, extracting water ice for applications ranging from producing drinking water to making rocket fuel. In April 2023, OffWorld Europe and the Luxembourg Space Agency (LSA) signed an agreement to develop a processing system focused on prospecting, mining, processing and storing ice resources on the moon, using the company’s cutting-edge robotic modules. The programme is already underway, and the first demonstration mission on the lunar surface is slated for 2027. “This collaboration is a thrilling new venture for OffWorld Europe and an example of how our swarm robotic mining platform applications can be customised and adapted to a variety of customers, use-cases and environments,” said Jim Keravela, OffWorld co-founder and CEO, in a press release at the time. “I look forward to seeing what our robotic platforms will accomplish in the unchartered territories that were once
thought impossible to operate in.” Source: University of Arizona, OffWorld
specialised machines, each fulfilling a specific industry role. Looking like a cross between a robotic vacuum and a First World War tank, OffWorld’s excavators are equipped with a saw and a drill. Collectors, moreover, have the appearance of snowploughs, whereas haulers have a deep cavity for ore or rubble. The point, at any rate, is that each model can seamlessly interact, without any human guidance, with excavators passing material to collectors, which can then scoop it into haulers.
Mining intelligence
How is this automated ant farm achieved in practice? As so often, technology is key. In the first place, each of OffWorld’s machines is what Keravala calls an ‘edge’ server. Dispensing with the need for remote servers, and the necessity to shuttle data to and fro, this system allows machines to make decisions much faster. That’s obviously helpful in a crowded mining environment, particularly when you factor in the other robots zipping about the place. In a similar vein, Thanga says that a decentralised approach allows machines to not only communicate intelligently with their environment, but also with each other. Trained on a specific set of rules, like the need to avoid collisions with other robots, the professor explains that swarm robots are otherwise given free rein to come up with “creative behaviours” to problems. Machine learning is now becoming so powerful, in fact, that Thanga and his colleagues have actually witnessed robots mimic
$3bn MarketsandMarkets 13
The potential value of the swarm robotic mining sector by 2028.
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