A review of remote-sensing unmanned aerial vehicles in the mining industry

Abstract

The increased adoption of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) may improve the productivity and cost-effectiveness of remote sensing in the mining industry. This review's objective is to enable stakeholders to identify possible application adoption, improvement, and innovation opportunities. The review merges a building block strategy and practical screening criteria to identify possible avenues of research to answer the review questions. After the screening process, 72 documents were included in the review. Papers were classified into four categories: exploration, development, exploitation, and reclamation. Fifteen applications were identified, the majority of which were in the exploration phase. The most often researched applications were topographic surveys, reclamation monitoring, and slope management. From the two UAV types identified, multi-rotor vehicles were the most favoured for all applications. From the eight remote sensing techniques identified, photogrammetry was the one most often used. Other techniques were limited because of complexity, cost, or the incompatibility of sensors and UAVs. The review was limited to published papers in academic journals. Future studies could aim to include empirical data on the latest UAV applications used in the mining industry.

Unmanned aerial vehicle: a review and future directions

“…When an unexpected natural disaster strikes, they are utilized for search and rescue, for the delivery of drugs, first aid supplies, and lab samples, as well as for remote telemedicine and teleradiology services [39]. Figure 1(e) shown UAV use in environment and climate: UAV applications in the mining industry [40], animal conservation [41], forest fire detection [42], and many more uses are all ways that UAVs can be utilized to benefit the environment.…”

The Use of Drones in Mining Operations

“…Any UAV is a drone, but not every drone is a UAV. Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) have become favored instruments for remote sensing applications [9], are capable of sustaining flight without onboard human involvement and are remotely controlled either manually or by a computerized piloting program [2].…”

“…Although sensor-equipped UAVs are relatively new to the mining industry, their use has grown and diversified, covering geological modeling, surface and underground mining mapping, mining exploration, exploitation and rehabilitation, etc. [2].…”

“…The increasing use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) may improve the productivity and profitability of remote sensing operations in the mining industry. The objective of this paper is to enable stakeholders to identify possible opportunities for adoption, improvement and innovation of drone applications in mining [2].…”

“…This paper tries to answer the question: how can drones be used in the 3 main phases (exploration, exploitation and reclamation) of a mining operation [2], what are the benefits and how can it be promoted and encouraged the use of drones in mining.…”