A radio that can go underground
A mine — coal, metal, or non-metal — uses explosion-proof vehicle terminals, worker location, equipment monitoring, and environmental sensors to keep production safe and dispatch tight. Underground and open-pit sites are hard on equipment, so the link needs explosion-proof certification and an industrial module. SimtoLink modules for this work cover 4G, NB-IoT, and LTE Cat.1, with an industrial design and UART, SPI, and I2C. The company supports 500+ enterprise customers and has connected more than 10 million mining devices.
Where the mine module sits
A worker's tag, a haul truck, a crusher, and a methane sensor do not want the same link. The notes below are the usual jobs, and the radio that tends to fit.
Where people are, and how a rescue starts
Miners carry a location card that reports over 4G or NB-IoT. A geofence, an emergency rescue, and safety-supervision compliance all start from that point.
Haul trucks and fuel
A haul truck or a loader carries a terminal that reports position and load over 4G, so dispatch, fuel, and the haul itself can be tightened.
Machines, before they fail
Vibration and temperature on a crusher or a belt conveyor go up through the module, which is the feed for predictive maintenance and a fault warning before an unplanned stop.
Methane, carbon monoxide, and dust
Sensors for methane, carbon monoxide, and dust report through the module, which is what underground work and safety supervision need to see.
Underground video and a remote walk
Cameras underground come back over 4G, so a remote inspection, an incident trace, and safety supervision share one picture.
Explosion-proof and intrinsically safe
Underground gear needs Ex explosion-proof certification or an intrinsically safe design. The module plan has to meet mine safety standards and the mine safety mark.
What a mine asks of the radio
- Coverage underground: Underground coverage is thin. Several operators and several bands are what keep a handoff when the signal is already weak.
- Explosion-proof certification: Underground equipment needs Ex explosion-proof certification or an intrinsically safe design.
- Temperature, dust, and shock: −40°C to 85°C, plus dust and water protection, covers underground and an open pit.
- A live point for people, a steady point for machines: Worker location and rescue have to report as they happen. Equipment monitoring has to hold.
- Interfaces the site already uses: Location, sensors, and cameras, over TCP, UDP, or MQTT.
Which radio fits a mine job
Explosion-proof level, bandwidth, and how live the report must be do not line up the same way underground and in an open pit. Where it sits, the device, and coverage should decide the module. The rows below are where mine projects usually start.
| Job | Radio | Why that radio |
|---|---|---|
| Worker location | 4G NB-IoT | A live point, a geofence, rescue, explosion-proof certification |
| Haul-truck dispatch | 4G | Position, load, dispatch, the industrial temperature range |
| Methane and dust | NB-IoT | Infrequent reports, low power, explosion-proof, intrinsically safe |
| Underground video, equipment monitoring | 4G | Bandwidth, video back, predictive maintenance, explosion-proof certification |
How SimtoLink fits a mine program
For mines, the modules are industrial designs that hold temperature and shock, with technical support around the clock. 4G is the recommendation for worker location, haul trucks, and underground video. NB-IoT fits methane and dust sensors that report infrequently.
A device maker gets the AT command set, the SDK, and sample code with the radio, and one account stays from the requirements note through a prototype and a production lot. As mines ask for safer, more automated sites, that demand keeps growing, and supply is meant to continue after the first mine batch.
How a mine program usually moves
Mine projects usually move in this order:
The choice turns on underground or open pit (underground needs explosion-proof certification), coverage (underground coverage is thin), and device type (people need a live point, the environment can report less often). Start with one point and check signal quality and explosion-proof compliance in the target mine. Underground devices need a certified module. An open pit can use a standard industrial module.
A connected mine makes the work safer, makes machines easier to keep, and cuts the chance of an incident. SimtoLink has supplied modules to coal and metal mines.