Synergy Automatics · Industrial IoT
Underground Equipment Tracking
Locate mobile machines, tools and critical spares underground and record their movement between operating zones.
What this connected-mine application does
Locate mobile machines, tools and critical spares underground and record their movement between operating zones.
The practical objective is not simply to collect more data. It is to establish a trustworthy measurement chain, detect abnormal conditions, preserve the relevant operating context and route information to the team that can act on it.
- Asset identity and location
- Zone entry, exit and dwell time
- Operating, idle and parked state
- Tag battery and attachment status
- Geofence violations
- Last maintenance or inspection state
| Primary field devices | Rugged BLE, RFID or UWB asset tags; Readers or anchors; Machine-state input or telematics gateway; Edge location engine; Asset map and search dashboard |
|---|---|
| Data update pattern | Event-driven alarms with periodic telemetry. Critical events should be timestamped and transmitted immediately where the communications design permits. |
| Connectivity options | Industrial Ethernet, fibre, Wi-Fi, leaky-feeder, LoRaWAN or private LTE/5G as site conditions permit. |
| Alarm and analytics | Alert on unauthorised movement, entry to restricted zones, missing asset, low tag battery or lost reader coverage. |
| Common integration | Common interfaces include dry contacts, 4–20 mA, Modbus RTU/TCP, OPC UA, EtherNet/IP, CAN/J1939, MQTT, SNMP or REST APIs where supported by the source equipment. |
| Data continuity | Timestamp at the edge, monitor signal quality and device health, and use store-and-forward buffering so short network outages do not create silent data gaps. |
| Environmental design | Use mine-suitable enclosures, protected cabling and glands, appropriate ingress/impact resistance, and certified equipment wherever the hazardous-area classification requires it. |
A five-layer implementation pattern
Measure
Approved sensors and machine interfaces capture the required physical or operating state.
Control locally
Existing PLCs, protection and safety systems retain their required local authority.
Acquire at edge
A rugged gateway timestamps, buffers, normalises and validates incoming data.
Transmit securely
Mine communications carry telemetry and alarms with health and quality monitoring.
Visualise and integrate
Dashboards, historians and APIs support response, maintenance and reporting.
Where the solution can be applied
- Production districts
- Workshops and stores
- Parking and charging bays
- Shaft stations and transfer areas
Potential benefits
- Less time spent locating assets
- Improved utilisation and dispatch
- Reduced loss of tools and spares
- Location-linked inspection history
- Better emergency awareness of machine locations
Design details that determine success
- Match tag type to required accuracy and battery life
- Protect tags from impact, water and cleaning
- Define ownership of asset master data
- Plan coverage in changing mine layouts
Alert on unauthorised movement, entry to restricted zones, missing asset, low tag battery or lost reader coverage. Dashboard alerts, remote notifications and analytics should complement—not replace—certified protection, local interlocks, emergency procedures, statutory inspections and competent decision-making.
Continue exploring the connected mine
Implementation questions
Can Underground Equipment Tracking connect to existing PLC, SCADA or mine systems?
Usually, yes. The preferred approach is to reuse approved source data and add isolated field instrumentation only where required. The final interface depends on available protocols, network segregation, data ownership and the source equipment vendor.
Does the IoT layer replace local protection or safety controls?
No. Protection relays, safety PLCs, emergency stops, gas trips, fire systems and other approved local functions remain the primary safety and control layer. IoT adds visibility, history, notifications and decision support.
What happens when underground communications are interrupted?
Critical local functions continue independently. A suitable edge gateway buffers timestamped data, raises a communications-health alarm and forwards retained records after the connection returns.
How are sensors and alarm levels selected?
Selection starts with the mine risk assessment, required decision, environmental classification, measuring range, response time, maintainability and applicable rules. Alarm and trip levels must be approved for the specific site and jurisdiction.
Discuss Underground Equipment Tracking
Discuss field instrumentation, edge connectivity, dashboards and integration with the Synergy Automatics team.
Engineering note: Instrument selection, hazardous-area certification, alarm limits, interlocks and network architecture must be validated against the mine risk assessment, applicable legislation, equipment approvals and site operating procedures.