Fundamentals for cave back and in-ground monitoring using wireless technology

The mining industry is pushing the boundaries in the application of cave mining with challenging ore bodies and ground conditions, production ramp-up, and higher throughput. With this, monitoring technologies need to progress to enable management of the associated geotechnical risks. Alongside recent advancements, wireless in-ground monitoring systems have emerged as a solution for monitoring ground stability and cave propagation in underground mining. Wireless in-ground monitoring can be used in a variety of monitoring scenarios where in-ground data collection is critical, such as cave back monitoring, mineral flow, cavinginduced subsidence and cave interaction with open pits and tailing dams. This paper provides an introduction for the design, installation, and application of a wireless in-ground system, Geo4Sight, and discusses this system’s operation, components, output data, interpretation, the determination of rock mass damage, and application thereof. This publication aims to provide an insight into the Geo4Sight system, and its relationship with ore flow monitoring (Cave Tracker System), highlighting the key aspects to consider for its correct application within the wider scheme of underground monitoring.