Illuminating mining vehicles on a dusty mine is no walk in the park. Luckily, HELLA is here to help.
Visibility is critical to the safety and operational success of a mine site. And although it seems simple in theory, effective illumination on mining vehicles is extremely challenging in a mining environment, where dust, round-the-clock operation, and tough conditions demand the best in quality.
The situation also demands a certain balance to be struck.
“Effective illumination doesn’t mean lighting up your mobile assets like Christmas lights. It’s about getting the most illumination for the minimum amount of wattage,” HELLA product manager Jigar Patel told Australian Mining.
Light colour, temperature, brightness and glare all also important factors that need to be considered.
Image: HELLA
With so much at stake, it’s best to leave it to the experts like those at HELLA, a supplier of lighting and electronics including premium-quality work lamps for the heavy industries. The company’s newest product on the market, the RokLUME 280N SMART, is ideal for mobile assets in surface and underground mining.
The RokLUME 280N SMART has no shortage of intelligent features, but its most impressive one is that it can change lighting colour based on its environment in order to maximise visibility.
“Mine sites operate in a range of weather conditions like dust, rain and fog. Depending on those weather conditions, visibility can be compromised,” Patel said.
“In some harsh conditions, white light can become problematic because it is reflected more. This can make it very difficult for the operator of a mobile asset to see what they are doing, and also creates glare, which can cause eye strain and fatigue.
“Amber and green light can penetrate those harsh conditions, significantly improving visibility for an operator.”
RokLUME 280N SMART comes in three lighting variants: white to green, white to amber, and white only.
Green and amber lighting are better suited to dust, snow and fog than standard white light.
In practice, green or amber lighting will kick in in low visibility environments such as a dusty underground mine or during a morning fog. Beyond environmental conditions, the RokLUME 280N SMART can also improve many aspects of a mining operation.
The product, Patel said, has been particularly popular on excavators and haul trucks, which generate a lot of dust during operation. The special lighting penetrates the dust as the excavator loads the haul truck, allowing operators to work more efficiently.
On the safety side, the RokLUME 280N SMART makes mobile assets more visible to workers and other vehicles, reducing the risk of a collision.
Image: HELLA
And by reducing glare with green or amber light, eye strain – a significant cause of fatigue – is reduced for workers.
The lamp, which pumps out up to 3500 lumens, can also change colour temperature between cold and warm lighting. And the dimming function means the brightness level can be adjusted to the current lighting conditions, which reduces power consumption and carbon emissions.
These features can be adjusted with ease inside the vehicle using either the HELLA control panel or the machine’s native dashboard, depending on how the RokLUME 280N SMART is installed. Settings can be saved using the system’s memory function.
Installation is incredibly low impact. The control unit sends signals to the lamps via existing cables, meaning the machine’s original wiring is preserved.
Thanks to its intelligent design, RokLUME 280N SMART also generates zero-glare. A horizontal cut-off directs the light onto the ground in front of an oncoming vehicle, ensuring light doesn’t blind oncoming drivers.
Beyond a range of premium design features, the RokLUME 280N SMART is built tough for demanding mine conditions. The lamp and gateway feature ingress protection (IP) ratings IP6K8 and IP6K9K, meaning dust and liquids cannot get in, which helps with both cleaning and longevity.
Though protected on the inside of the vehicle, the internal HELLA control panel also comes with a robust IP6K7 rating.
And the lamps have a work range of -40°C to 90°C, meaning they can tackle even the hottest days Australia can offer.
With its portfolio of premium quality lighting products like the RokLUME 280N SMART, HELLA is helping its mining customers shine no matter the conditions.
This feature appeared in the March 2024 issue of Australian Mining.
