ABSTRACT
Recently, the methodology of intelligent rock mechanics (IRM) has been becoming an important aspect in rock engineering design, as one of the most popular non 1:1 mapping techniques. It has been 20 years since the proposal of IRM in 1993, aiming to provide an alternative research scheme for complicated rock mechanical problems. With extensive successful applications in different rock engineering fields, the past 20 years have seen enormous progress in the new direction, both in rock mechanics modeling and rock engineering design. This work reviews the 20 years of development of IRM. It covers some of the most important intelligent modeling methods and integrated intelligent design concepts that have been developed, with a focus on the evolution of the integrated intelligent design concepts with applications to some of the most complicated rock engineering constructed in China during the last decade.
