Boonray Technology: A new breakthrough in digital mine construction, Chinas first double unmanned operation leads the new development of super-large open-pit coal mines

Digital Mine Integration Development and Enhancement of Intrinsic Safety Exchange Meeting to Explore the New Journey of Intelligent Mining

In today's wave of development, the concept of new productivity is a beacon illuminating the path to high-quality development. Traditional industries are the cornerstones of new productivity, and mining, a key pillar of the national economy, is driving the emergence of new productivity through intelligent development and the integration of digital technologies. Transforming innovative achievements can safeguard resource and mine safety, thereby building new productivity. On January 15th, Boonray Technology, as a supporting organization, was invited to participate in the Digital Mining Integrated Development and Enhanced Intrinsic Safety Exchange Conference. The event brought together numerous domestic and international mining companies, experts, and scholars to discuss how to promote digital transformation and enhance intrinsic safety in the mining industry through technological innovation.

The event featured several distinguished speeches and addresses from prominent leaders. Urumqi Vice Mayor Li Bin addressed the event, emphasizing the importance of safe production and emergency management. Zhao Suqi, Vice President of the China Mine Safety Society and former Director of the Accident Investigation and Statistics Department of the State Administration of Mine Safety, and Zhang Hongchi, Deputy Director of the Xinjiang Branch of Xinhua News Agency, discussed the current state and future of mine safety and expressed the government and media's high regard and support for emergency management and safe production.

In the keynote address, Zou Delun, Deputy Director of the Policy, Regulations, and Science and Technology Equipment Department of the State Administration of Mine Safety, focused on the "Effects of Digitalization, Informatization, and Intelligentization in Mine Safety," detailing the new progress and achievements in mine safety supervision. Peng Xiaoli, Chief Engineer of the Xinjiang Bureau of the State Administration of Mine Safety, delivered a keynote speech titled "Digitalization and Intelligence Empower High-Quality Development of Mine Safety in Xinjiang," highlighting the region's innovative practices and significant achievements in mine safety. The conference brought together numerous leaders and experts in the field of production safety, whose speeches provided valuable insights and experiences for further improving mine safety management and promoting technological innovation in production safety.

Mu Weiwei, Vice President of Marketing at Boonray Technology, was invited to the conference to fully demonstrate Boonray's 5G zero-carbon smart solution for mines. This solution deeply integrates electric energy substitution, autonomous driving, and IoT technologies, aiming to promote the clean, unmanned, and digital transformation of mining production. By expanding the application of clean energy such as photovoltaics and wind power in mining production, a new integrated power energy system of "power generation-transmission-storage-charging and swapping-power management" has been established. Its core battery swap model not only meets the development needs of the new power system, but also effectively improves my country's energy consumption structure and provides strong support for the electrification of transportation vehicles in the traditional mining industry.

In the field of autonomous driving, Boonray Technology has independently developed full-stack autonomous driving technology, including core algorithms for positioning, perception, planning, and decision-making. Through a cloud-based global scheduling platform, 5G communications, and V2X technology, Boonray has achieved deep integration between mining vehicles and mining areas, enabling autonomous driving and intelligent scheduling of mining vehicles. Furthermore, through the application of the Internet of Things and AI algorithms, Boonray Technology has achieved remote monitoring and fault prediction of mining vehicles, significantly improving operational efficiency and safety. Through the demonstration of multiple successful cases, Boonray Technology has demonstrated its capabilities in improving mine safety management, reducing operating costs, and achieving low carbon emissions. It has also demonstrated its leading position in the field of autonomous driving and intelligent mine construction in mining areas, and is committed to working with partners to create a green, intelligent, efficient, and safe future for mining.

Double breakthroughs in safety and efficiency usher in a new era of low carbon and high efficiency

Unmanned driving has become the norm, and intelligent mining is making great strides forward.

At the beginning of the year, a large open-pit coal mine in Xinjiang with an annual production capacity of over 40 million tons reported the rapid completion of safety officer inspections and the official entry into regular unmanned operation during both day and night shifts. This marked a new milestone for Boonray Technology's technical strength and application capabilities in the field of unmanned mining.

Responding to the demand for large-tonnage and new energy vehicles in domestic mines, and leveraging its own unmanned driving algorithm advantages, Boonray Technology launched the first 800kWh, 100-ton, rigid, all-electric unmanned mining truck. This truck is fully capable of handling the heavy-duty and extremely cold operating conditions in northern regions like Xinjiang and Inner Mongolia, providing a foundation for the large-scale, intelligent, and efficient development of mining equipment and ensuring mine safety.

The first "double unmanned" new energy mining truck in China to operate in full process

The Shengli East No. 2 Open-Pit Coal Mine of Inner Mongolia Datang International Xilinhot Mining Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Datang East No. 2 Mine") is located 12 kilometers west of Xilinhot City, Inner Mongolia, in the central part of the Shengli Coalfield, covering an area of 49.63 square kilometers. The mine boasts over 7 billion tons of coal reserves, including over 5.3 billion tons of open-pit reserves and approximately 4 billion tons of recoverable reserves. It is one of the ten 10 million-ton open-pit coal mines designated in the National Coal Industry's 11th Five-Year Plan.

Boonray Technology has invested in 30 BLEB145 pure electric unmanned mining trucks equipped with 800kWh batteries and a load capacity of 100 tons. It has now achieved normal operation with safety officers removed, and achieved perfect interaction between unmanned mining trucks and unmanned battery swap stations, realizing the country's first "double-unmanned" full-process operation of new energy mining trucks.

After rigorous testing and verification, Boonray Technology's unmanned driving system has demonstrated its performance and stability at the Datang East Second Mine. In the complex and ever-changing mining environment, the unmanned mining trucks are able to accurately locate themselves, perceive their surroundings, and make intelligent decisions, safely and efficiently completing various production tasks. The drive system, equipped with dual electric motors and a four-speed automatic manual transmission, meets the vehicle's power requirements for heavy-load uphill maneuvers, completely resolving the issues of insufficient power and climbing performance of wide-body mining trucks. The significant improvement in production efficiency is due to the unmanned mining truck formations, which can operate continuously according to pre-set efficient routes and operating procedures.

Equipped with China's advanced CTB 800kWh high-capacity battery, the vehicles effectively address the issues of short range and high battery replacement frequency associated with pure electric vehicles in cold northern regions. When the vehicle detects power loss, it can autonomously enter the battery replacement area and precisely reach the replacement point. The unmanned battery replacement station identifies the vehicle's information, and the battery replacement robot completes the process, requiring no human intervention. The fully automatic battery replacement can be achieved in just 5 minutes.

As a pure electric mining truck, the BLEB145's zero-emission characteristics perfectly align with the national strategic goals of "carbon peak and carbon neutrality." In regular operation at Datang East Second Mine, a single pure electric mining truck saves approximately 550,000 yuan in energy costs annually, reduces diesel consumption by approximately 150 tons, and reduces CO2 emissions by approximately 340 tons. This sets a new benchmark for green development in the mining industry.

The unmanned operation of these two coal mines relies on a series of advanced technological systems. In terms of hardware, the vehicles are equipped with Boonray Technology's independently developed wire-control system, ensuring stable operation of all functions, including driving, braking, steering, and lifting, to meet production requirements. In terms of software and algorithms, the unmanned driving system enables remote control, single-vehicle autonomous driving, centimeter-level precision positioning, obstacle avoidance, meeting vehicles, precise planning and decision-making, and safety assurance. Through the integrated application of these technologies, unmanned mining car fleets are able to overcome harsh working conditions, such as bumpy roads, heavy dust, and extremely cold weather (over -40°C at night) in northern open-pit mines like those in Inner Mongolia and Xinjiang, ensuring safe operation at all times.

Notably, in both projects, Boonray Technology successfully completed safety officer acceptance and officially entered regular unmanned operation during both day and night shifts. This milestone achievement not only demonstrates the maturity and reliability of Boonray Technology's unmanned driving technology, but also sets a new benchmark for intelligent mining in my country.

Boonray Technology, with its solid technical expertise, once again demonstrates the promising application prospects of unmanned driving technology in the mining sector. The company will continue to innovate and improve unmanned driving technology in the future, injecting new impetus into the sustainable development of my country's mining industry.