A REPORT

ON

BOREHOLE EXTENSOMETER FOR STRATA

MOVEMENT DETECTION
IN UNDERGROUND MINES
By

SHIKHAR TIWARI 2016B4A80325G

AYUSHI ARYA 2016A3PS0284H

AT

CENTRAL INSTITUTE OF MINING AND FUEL RESEARCH, DHANBAD

A PRACTICE SCHOOL–I STATION OF

BIRLA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY AND SCIENCE, PILANI

(MAY-JULY, 2018)

1
 A REPORT
ON

BOREHOLE EXTENSOMETER FOR STRATA

MOVEMENT DETECTION
IN UNDERGROUND MINES
By
SHIKHAR TIWARI 2016B4A80325G MSc. (Hons.) Mathematics
B.E. (Hons.)Electronics and Instrumentation
AYUSHI ARYA 2016A3PS0284H B.E. (Hons.)Electrical and Electronics

Under the supervision of

Dr.P.K. Mishra, Principal Scientist

CSIR-CIMFR, Dhanbad

Prepared in partial fulfilment of the

Practice School-I Course

AT

CENTRAL INSTITUTE OF MINING AND FUEL RESEARCH, DHANBAD

A PRACTICE SCHOOL–I STATION OF

BIRLA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY AND SCIENCE, PILANI

(MAY-JULY, 2018)

2
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

We express my earnest sense of gratitude to Dr. Pradeep Kr. Singh, Director, CSIR - CIMFR
Dhanbad for granting us the permission to do this project.

We also thank Dr. Ishtiaque Ahmad, Head of HRD and members of HRD Department of the
institute for helping us do this project.

We are also grateful to our project guide Dr. P.K. Mishra, Scientist, Mine Mechanization and
Technology Development, CIMFR Dhanbad for assigning such a challenging and sophisticated
project and for his guidance, and consistent supervision which we had during the study and
implementation of this project. We acknowledge his valuable morale boosting and help without
which this project would not have been possible. His knowledge, experience and technical skills
have always provided me guidance in my work. We would also like to thank Ms. Aditi
Chatterjee and Mr. Abhishek Ghosh for helping us out in the project.

We would also like to thank Dr. Debasis Das, Assistant Professor, Dept. of Computer Science,
BITS Pilani, K.K. Birla Goa Campus for his constant guidance and support as well as mentoring
throughout the project work.

Lastly, we would like to thank all staff members of Mine Mechanization and Technology
Development Lab for helping us to complete the project on time.
We also appreciate the efforts made by TATA Steel group and especially Mr. Maitrey Desai
who helped us while visiting the Jharia Mine of TATA Steel.

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 BIRLA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY AND SCIENCE
PILANI(RAJASTHAN)
Practice School Divison
Station: CENTRAL INSTITUTE OF MINING AND FUEL RESEARCH (CIMFR)

Centre: Dhanbad

Duration: 2 Months

Date of Submission: 10th July, 2018

Title of the project: Wireless Borehole Extensometer for Strata Movement
Detection in Underground Mines

SIKHAR TIWARI 2016B4A80325H MSc. (Hons) Mathematics

+B.E. (Hons.)Electronics and
Instrumentation

AYUSHI ARYA 2016A3PS0284H B.E. (Hons.) In Electrical

And Electronics
Name of the Expert: Dr. P.K. Mishra, Principal Scientist, Mine Mechanization

Name of the PS Faculty: Dr. Debasis Das

Keywords: Arduino, XBee, Ultrasonic Sensors, Strata Movement Detection,

Project Areas: Communication Networks, Wireless Sensor Networks

Abstract: Roof fall is one of the major contributors towards serious and (or) fatal accidents
in underground mines. Analysis of Change of distance and Rate of change of
distance between roof and floor is an important parameter for predicting ‘Roof
Fall’ in underground mines. This paper is on the development of a device
“Wireless Borehole Extensometer” for the above problem statement. It is an
attempt to design a novel and cost effective device to wirelessly monitor strata
movement. An XBee P2P network has been created for the same. The present
paper provides a full description of the Wireless Borehole Extensometer with its
applicability.

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 TABLE OF CONTENTS

1 ACKNOWLEDGEMNENT 3
2 ABSTRACT SHEET 4
3 TABLE OF CONTENTS 5-6
4 INTRODUCTION 7-8
5 MODULES USED
5.1 ARDUINO AND ATMEGA328

5.1.1 Pin Configuration 9

5.1.2 Type of Boards used 10

5.2 ULTRASONIC SENSOR

5.2.1 Working Principle 11

5.2.2 Pin Diagram and connections 12

5.3 Xbee
5.3.1 Pin Diagram 13

5.3.2 Communication Protocol Used 14

5.3.3 Xctu Software 15

6 METHOD AND METHODOLOGY 16-18

7 ARDUINO CODES
7.1 RECEIVER SIDE 19-20

7.2 TRANSMITTER SIDE 21

8 LABORATORY TRIAL
8.1 TEST BENCH 22-23

8.2 RESULTS 24

5
9 CONCLUSION 25
10 FUTURE SCOPE 26
11 REFERENCES 27

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 INTRODUCTION
Various instruments are used in mines to measure stress, strain load and deformation. These
measurements have 2 purposes. First, they are useful in tuning and checking numerical models.
Second, they provide qualitative and quantitative information which can be helpful in aiding
engineering decisions and finding the mechanics of stability.
Since the start of Industrial mining in 19th century Roof fall has been a major concern for the
safety of miners. Accurate prediction of strata behaviour is still a challenge to the researchers and
engineers involved in it. When the ores are excavated from mines there is a change in the stress
around the rock mass that causes strata movement which then results in damage and collapse of
the mass consequently. As per the data of Directorate General of Mine Safety (DGMS) roof fall
is one of the major causes of serious and fatal accidents inside mines. Even though there has
been a decrease in accidents over the years there is still a room for improvement in this regard.

Fatalities due to serious

and/or fatal incidents as per
data by the DGMS

There are multiple reasons for strata deformation in mines like high in-situ stresses, heavy water
seepage, presence of clay bands or shale, inappropriate method of mining, cleavage planes,
cracks, joints, inadequate natural and applied support.
It’s in fact very hard to determine or precisely predict the behaviour due to its inherent complex
with multiple layers of different rock formations. Still a lot of attempts have been made to
monitor the strata movement using various geotechnical sensors instruments.
The instrument which we have developed is a Wireless Borehole Extensometer.
A borehole extensometer is device which is used to measure changes in strata movement and rate
of change of strata movement by measuring the distance between the mine roof and the mine
floor.
Though most of the borehole extensometer is mechanical in nature, only a few developments of
electrical extensometers are seen in the past few years.
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Mechanical extensometers mechanically measure the displacement inside the borehole while the
electrical extensometers use sensors to measure the displacement. The main advantage of
electrical sensors over the mechanical ones is that electrical sensors are very precise and these
electrical sensors can transmit the data through Electromagnetic wave communication. Various
proximity sensors (ultrasonic, infrared etc) are available in the market and they are used
according to their various advantages they give us while using them.
Here in our extensometer we have used ultrasonic sensors because of their minimal cost and
ability to capture distances up to 5-7m with a precision of around 1mm. This range and precision
both are compatible with the boreholes in which we are using them. The ultrasonic sounds can
travel distances up to 10m without much interference which is then reflected by the obstacle and
detected by the receiver. The difference in the transmission and receiving time is then sent to the
Arduino for the calculation of distance between the obstacle and sensor.
For the transmission of the data to another device we used a radio communication device called
Xbee. Various Xbee are available in the marked for different range and purposes (One to one
communication, mesh communication etc). Xbee is a transceiver i.e. it can transfer as well as
receive the data from another Xbee. The distance which is calculated is sent from Transmitter
Xbee to the Receiver XBee which, afterwards is displayed on the screen (LCD/Computer
Monitor). [1]
Data is then stored in an EXCEL sheet, from where the determination of roof fall based on the
previous data can be done based on the concept of Machine Learning.

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 MODULES USED:
ARDUINO
Pin diagrams
 ARDUINO UNO

 ARDUINO MEGA

9
TYPES OF BOARD USED:

Arduino board PCB design structure uses a wide variety of micro-processors and micro-
controllers. [2]

The Arduino board is equipped with sets of analog and digital input/output (Input/Output) pins
that may be interfaced to PCB boards, various expansion boards or Breadboards (shields) and
other circuits.

The boards feature serial communications and transfer data by ( which is measured quantifiably
as baud rate ) interfaces, including Universal Serial Bus(USB) on some models, which are also
used for loading programs from personal computers. [2]
The microcontrollers are typically programmed using a programming language called Arduino
which is primarily based on the languages C and C++.

The Arduino project provides a free open source Integrated Development Environment (IDE) to
everyone. It is available for free download on its site. In this project, two boards have been used
namely, Arduino UNO and Arduino Mega.

Arduino MEGA has been used for the transmitter side circuit, circuit diagram for which is
shown in the subsequent subsections.

Arduino UNO has been used for the receiver side circuit, circuit diagram for which is shown
again in the subsequent sections.

Pin Diagram and configuration for both the boards are shown in the next section.

Serial communication transfer rate or baud rate is kept at 9600 bits of information per second for
both the boards.

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ULTRASONIC SENSORS:
 ULTRASONIC SENSOR WORKING PRINCIPLE
Ultrasonic sensors contain 2 units one sends out the high frequency sound and other receives the
reflected sound wave and then using the speed of sound and the time duration of the wave we are
able to calculate the distance between the obstacle and sensor.

Speed of sound in air is approximately 340m/s using this and the duration it took the wave to
travel the distance we calculate the distance by using the formula.

Distance = Duration * 0.034/2

The above formula gives the distance in cm which is displayed on the Serial Monitor of Arduino
IDE.

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  ULTRASONIC SENSORS PIN DIAGRAM

The connection of the ultrasonic sensors with the XBee is shown in the subsequent sections.

12
 XBEE
 PIN DIAGRAM

13
  COMMUNICATION PROTOCOL USED
There are two types of Communication Protocol used by the XBEE Modules

 API MODE

 AT MODE

AT MODE:

When the XBee are operating in transparent mode [3], XBee modules act as a serial line
replacement of the physical connection.
All data received through the serial input is immediately transmitted over the air. When the
wireless data is received by the Xbee [1], it is sent out through serial interface the same way it is
received. [1] Communication in transparent mode yields the same result as if the two radio
modules modules are connected by a wire, but wireless communication makes that physical wire
unnecessary.

API MODE:
API MODE has the following advantages over AT MODE:
1. There are different frames for different purposes (configuration, communication, etc.).

2. This mode enables transmission to multiple modules since the data destination is
included as part of the API frame's organized frame structure.

3. Since the API frame includes the source of the message, API mode makes it easy to
identify the source radio module.

Since in this device we had to make a point to point communication between the two
XBees, AT MODE is used.

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  XCTU SOFTWARE

XCTU is a free multi-platform application By Digi International designed to enable users to

interact with RF modules through a graphical interface. It includes new tools that make it easy to
set-up, configure and test the modules. XCTU includes all of the tools needed to quickly get up
and running with XBee.

Unique features like graphical network view, which graphically represents the XBee network
along with the signal strength of each connection, and the XBee API frame builder, which
intuitively helps to build and interpret API frames for XBees being used in API mode, combine
to make development on the XBee platform easier than ever.[5]

15
 METHOD AND METHODOLOGY
Materials used:
ULTRASONIC SENSOR:

The Ultrasonic Sensor sends out a sound pulse (using Trigger PIN) and then times how long it
takes for the echo of the sound (using Echo PIN) to reflect back.

The sensor has 4 openings on its front (VCC, TRIG, ECHO and GND).

One opening transmits ultrasonic sound signal, (like a speaker) and the other receives them
(like a microphone).

Distance between the object and the sensor was calculated using this formula, which is based on
Simple physics equation, distance= speed x time.

Here, Speed=Speed of sound in Air=340 m/s.

LCD SCREEN:

LCD screen works on the principle of blocking light rather than emitting light. LCD's requires
Backlight as they do not emit light themselves. [6]

The LCD is a 16*2 Dot matrix, hence it will have (16*2=32) i.e. 32 characters and also, each
character will be made of 5*8 Pixel Dots. So Now, we know that each character has (5*8=40) 40
Pixels and for 32 Characters we will have (32*40) 1280 Pixels. Further, the LCD should also be
instructed about the Position of the Pixels. [7]

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XBEE:

Digi XBee is the brand name of a family of form factor compatible radio modules from Digi
International, having default serial communication rate of 9600 baud. [8]
XBee devices talk to each other over the air, sending and receiving numerous wireless messages.
These devices only transfer those wireless messages; they cannot manage the sent or received
data. However, they can communicate with intelligent devices (Like microcontrollers) via the
serial interfacing.
XBee devices transmit data coming from the serial input over air, and they send anything they
receive wirelessly to the serial output. Whether for the communication purpose or simply for
configuring, a combination of both processes makes XBee communication possible. In this way,
intelligent devices such as microcontrollers or PCs can control what the XBee device sends and
manage incoming wireless messages. [9]
Software from Digi International, named XCTU has to be used to configure the XBee for the
serial or wireless communication.

METHOD:

Arduino Uno was given power supply using USB cable and was loaded with the source code
which gave the logic to measure the time taken by the ultrasonic beam to come back to the echo
pin of the ultrasonic sensor and convert it to distance using certain scaling factor. The set up
should incorporate an LCD screen to display the information retrieved by the ultrasonic
Sensor, serially.

17
Now using the data obtained on the LCD screen we tested the range and accuracy of the
ultrasonic sensor we are using.

Now we had to use the XBee for creating wireless network.

We configured our XBee using the XCTU software.
XBees were configured to work in the AT mode, as stated in earlier sections.

We successfully created a Wireless Network and now we had to transfer data obtained via serial
communication from Ultrasonic Sensors.

For that, we connected our XBee to the Arduino Board using the Circuit Diagram shown in the
subsequent sections and configure XBee as Sender and Receiver XBees.

Now we connected one of the XBee to the Arduino the above mentioned way, this is the
Receiver configuration of the Transceiver and the other one in the way shown in the subsequent
sections.

Now, with the help of EXCEL extension software, we have stored the data received by the XBee
for further analysis. This will measure the rate and change of rate of mine roof movement and
thus the data will be useful in detecting Roof Instability. (Plotting displacement versus time
enables Geotechnical engineers to determine if wall failures are possible using the concept of
Machine Learning).

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 ARDUINO CODE

 TRANSMITTER SIDE

19
20
  RECEIVER SIDE

Code for sending data from serial monitor to excel sheet has been omitted from this section as
we are working on it.

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LABORATORY TRIAL
An experimental setup was made by us as a test bench for the laboratory trial of the wireless
borehole extensometer.
Design was made by us and then the test bench was made using a 10ft long PVC pipe.

Both the sides of the test bench have obstacle creator to stimulate bed separation based on the
schematic shown here:

22
TRANSMITTER CIRCUIT:

RECEIVER CIRCUIT:

This circuit is connected to a laptop which displays the data on the serial monitor and also stores
the same in an excel sheet.

23
RESULTS OF LABORATORY TRAIL

The result was obtained on the serial monitor of a distant located laptop screen by the help of an
XBee created wireless network.

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CONCLUSION
The product developed can be used in underground mines for the measurement of the strata
which can be useful for the safety of the mining workers.
The wireless system allows it to be monitored from a safe place.
The current device is electronic which is much more precise than the previous mechanical
models.

As far as the applications in mines are considered it can be easily customised to follow the
regulations under the “coal mines regulation, 1957".

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FUTURE SCOPE
Borehole Extensometers are widely used proximity device in mines.
The data transferred can be stored in a datalogger which can then be useful for making good
prediction algorithms of roof falling in mines.
The data can also be stored in clod which then can be seen from anywhere around the world
using an app or website or any similar interface.
The Ultrasonic sensor can also be replaced with a Laser sensor for better accuracy of distances.

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REFERENCES

[1] Wikipedia Liquid Crystal Display https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liquid-crystal_display

(accessed 10.07.18).
[2] Wikipedia - Arduino. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arduino 2008 (accessed 10.07.18).
[3] Xbee Transparent Mode
http://docs.digi.com/display/RFKitsCommon/XBee+transparent+mode (accessed 10.07.18)
[4] Research Article given by our Scientist, P.K. Mishra ( Available on CIMFR LAN )
[5] XCTU - https://www.digi.com/products/xbee-rf-solutions/xctu-software/xctu (accessed
10.07.18)
[6] Elprocus – How LED Works http://www.elprocus.com/elprocus-staging/ever-wondered-lcd-
works/ (accessed 10.07.18)
[7] Circuit Digest 16x2 LCD Display Module - https://circuitdigest.com/article/16x2-lcd-display-
module-pinout-datasheet (accessed 10.07.18).
[8] Xbee S series Documentation
https://www.digi.com/resources/documentation/digidocs/pdfs/90001500.pdf (accessed 10.07.18).
[9] Digi Documentation – How Xbee Communicate
https://www.digi.com/resources/documentation/Digidocs/9000145613/concepts/c_how_xbees_c
ommunicate.htm (accessed 10.07.18).
[10] Building Wireless Sensor Network by Robert Falaudi, 3rd Edition.
[11]Development of Wireless Borehole Extensometer
https://scholar.google.co.in/scholar?q=development+of+wireless+borehole+extensometer&hl=en
&as_sdt=0&as_vis=1&oi=scholart (accessed 10.07.18).
[12]Geo Kon Borehole Extensometer
http://www.geokon.com/content/datasheets/A3_A4_A5_Borehole_Extensometer

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