Operating normally at -50°C!
Handan Robot advances into the Arctic!
“Arm extension and retraction normal, driving and turning normal, hydraulic system normal…” On September 15, in the assembly workshop of Hebei Hongyuan Hydraulic Machinery Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as “Hongyuan Company”), as technicians lightly touched the control screen to adjust parameters, an orange intelligent tunneling drill precisely executed turns, moved forward and backward, and extended its drilling arm.
Technicians are debugging the intelligent tunneling drill before delivery.
This is the third “Handan-made” intelligent tunneling drill purchased by a Russian mining company, also known as a remote-controlled hydraulic tunneling robot.In January of this year, two units were already delivered to the company’s mine located within the Arctic Circle, and after six months of operational testing, they are currently functioning normally.
Located in the Handan Economic Development Zone, Hongyuan Company is a national high-tech enterprise focused on the research and manufacturing of hydraulic equipment, holding 14 national invention patents and utility model patents. The hydraulic rock drills produced by the company are 30% lighter and 15% shorter compared to similar products in the international market under the same power conditions. Currently, the company’s products have been exported to more than ten countries and regions, including Russia and South Korea.
Last April, at the 28th Russian Mining and Mining Machinery Exhibition held in Moscow, the intelligent tunneling drill produced by Hongyuan Company attracted attention as soon as it was unveiled. This intelligent tunneling drill can easily penetrate simulated rock layers, with the drill bit advancing steadily at a speed of 1.7 meters per minute, and the drilling error controlled within 1 millimeter. However, whether it could withstand the extreme cold test of -50 degrees Celsius at the Arctic Circle mine was questioned by Russian clients on-site.
“In extreme cold environments, mechanical equipment often faces issues such as difficulty in low-temperature startup, hydraulic system freezing, and electronic control failure,” said Yuan Xin, General Manager of Hongyuan Company. After returning from the overseas exhibition, the R&D team immediately began tackling technical challenges, with engineers bundled in thick cotton clothing repeatedly debugging in a laboratory simulating extreme cold conditions. To address issues such as hydraulic oil becoming viscous at low temperatures, frequent alarms from electronic components, and delays in the control system, the R&D personnel innovated by replacing hydraulic oil with low-temperature specific oil, installing a heating antifreeze intelligent temperature control system, and improving high-pressure air cleaning components, successfully overcoming the operational challenges of the equipment in extreme cold environments.
“In the underground Arctic Circle mine, these intelligent tunneling drills demonstrated stable and efficient operational capabilities.”Yuan Xin introduced that when facing hard rock layers, the drill automatically increases power and thrust to ensure drilling speed; when encountering soft or broken zones, it quickly reduces strength and slows down thrust, effectively avoiding risks of jamming and collapse. After completing a single hole drilling, the drill autonomously performs retraction, arm folding, and repositioning operations, achieving a closed-loop operation throughout.
“Entering and exiting, drilling, and discharging, all operations are unmanned, just like playing a game remotely.” Yuan Donghai, Chief Designer of the Hydraulic Machinery Industrial Design Center at Hongyuan Company, explained that behind the ease of “playing the game” lies complex technology integration and adaptive control logic.
“Among the 16 key components of the entire drill, 9 are core self-developed components.” Yuan Donghai explained that the company’s independently developed “HYG series hydraulic rock drill” has an impact power of 24 kilowatts, paired with a double-layer telescopic thrust beam, allowing flexible adjustment of posture in narrow tunnels, and can sense rock hardness and fractures in real-time, autonomously adjusting impact frequency and thrust. The “DI4 intelligent control system” developed in collaboration with Hebei University of Engineering features environmental perception, rock identification, intelligent analysis and feedback of operational data, achieving a leap from “human control” to “intelligent control” in mining operations, significantly enhancing production safety and operational efficiency.
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Source: Hebei Daily
Editor: Zhang Xiao
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