Improved haul road conditions can positively impact mine operations resulting in increased safety, productivity gains, increased tire life, and lower maintenance costs. For these reasons, a monitoring program is required to ensure the operational efficiency of the haul roads. Currently, at Bald Mountain mine, monthly site severity studies, ad hoc inspections by front-line supervisors, or operator feedback reporting is used to assess road conditions. These methods are subjective and provide low temporal resolution data. This case study presents novel unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) technologies, applied on a critical section of haul road at Bald Mountain, to showcase the potential for monitoring haul roads. The results show that orthophotos and digital elevation models can be used to assess the road smoothness condition and to check the road design compliance. Moreover, the aerial mapping allows detection of surface water, rock spillage, and potholes on the road that can be quickly repaired/removed by the dedicated road maintenance team.

中文翻译：

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使用无人驾驶飞行器在露天矿中进行运输道路监测：以秃头山矿场为例

改善运输道路条件可以对矿山运营产生积极影响，从而提高安全性、生产力、延长轮胎寿命并降低维护成本。由于这些原因，需要一个监控程序来确保运输道路的运营效率。目前，在 Bald Mountain 矿山，每月进行现场严重性研究、一线主管的临时检查或操作员反馈报告用于评估道路状况。这些方法是主观的并且提供低时间分辨率数据。本案例研究展示了应用于 Bald Mountain 运输道路关键路段的新型无人机 (UAV) 技术，以展示监测运输道路的潜力。结果表明，正射影像和数字高程模型可用于评估道路平滑状况和检查道路设计合规性。此外，航空测绘可以检测道路上的地表水、岩石溢出和坑洼，可由专门的道路维护团队快速修复/清除。