ABSTRACT
Each year intelligent control and automation systems, i.e. the systems capable for adaptation and learning, gain much wider group of users. Distributed monitoring, control and automation systems, data transmission networks, electric energy storage and management systems are more widely used in present industrial practice. Especially due to the necessity of continuous improvement of work safety, as well as the need of increasing production effectiveness and operational reliability, the scope of smart systems, which are currently under implementation in the Polish hard coal mining industry, is also constantly growing. KOMAG Institute of Mining Technology develops state-of-the-art, intelligent mechatronic systems, which increase safety in the mining industry, reduce energy consumption of technological processes of coal production. Its innovative solutions, oriented onto an improvement of mining processes, are presented in the paper. Assumptions of an IoT (Internet of Things) and direct communication M2M (Machine to Machine) have a strong impact on the structure and functionality of machinery control systems, shaping the ideas of Industry 4.0. All control systems, in accordance with the IoT, use communication networks, often with a high degree of complexity, combining various components, modules, actuators and sensors. KOMAG researchers noticed and proposed a solution to the problem of self-organizing communication paths in a complex sensors network. In order to create and optimize the communication structure an algorithm of SA class (Swarm Algorithm) is proposed. Another innovative solution, presented in the paper, includes Shield Support Monitoring System (SSMS), which enables monitoring of roof condition in real time, by monitoring the parameters of shield support (such as shield support geometry, hydraulic pressure parameters and tip to face distance). SSMS provides data to Longwall Mining Conditions Prediction System (LMCPS) for a prediction of roof fall hazards and a generation of information about indispensable corrective measures. The developed projects include automation, monitoring and visualization, technologies of artificial intelligence and systems of recording, which perfectly fit the present development trends of mining mechanization systems described, among others, in the foresight project entitled “Scenarios of technological development of the hard coal mining industry”.
