China Mobile Henan and Huawei Successfully Build China's First Underground Mining Benchmark Based on Quick, Low-Investment 5G Deployments

China Mobile Henan and Huawei have brought low-band intrinsically safe 5.5G coverage to well #2 at the Liangbei Site of China's Pingmei Shenma Group. This signals the first-ever deployment of 5.5G for underground mines under complex geological conditions in China to enable low-investment 5G applications within a short period of time, and has reaped excellent results so far. By enabling the deployment of Henan's first 5G+ industrial Internet platform for coal mining, the 5.5G deployment has pushed Henan's intelligent coal mining into a new phase.

On August 26, 2024, at the work conference on promoting intelligent, intrinsically safe coal mining development in Henan, the special working group on the information infrastructure for the intelligent development of coal mining in Henan introduced the guide to the quick, investment-effective 5G coverage for high-performing coal mining applications. At the conference, the attendees from the related government agencies were joined by industry experts to identify the objectives and directions of the next steps towards a bright future of coal mining development in Henan.

Quick, low-investment 5G coverage promoting intelligent coal mining development in Henan

In April 2024, Henan proposed a three-year program (2024–2026) to promote the high-quality development of digital and intelligent coal mining. Seeing the potential opportunities of this program, China Mobile Henan and Huawei set up a special team to work together with experts of well #2 at the Liangbei Site of China's Pingmei Shenma Group. The team aimed to develop leading 5G applications that could be quickly deployed with minimal investment, particularly for medium- and small-sized coal mines, which make up a quite considerable proportion of Henan's total coal mines. It came up with a solution that used a 5G deep mobile network (DMN) as the base and pooled together other technologies, including AI, Internet of Things (IoT), big data, and cloud computing to support intelligent coal mining.

This solution enabled unattended operations in given areas and allowed manual procedures to be replaced with robotic approaches for key mining activities. As a result, digital and refined mining management and visualized operations were possible at the Liangbei Site to enhance safety and increase efficiency at reduced labor costs. This solution extended coverage by 65% and required 30% lower costs for deployment than other 5G solutions for underground mines, while allowing applications to go online 20% faster. Over a short span of just three months, a diverse set of intelligent coal mining applications had been implemented. These included 5G video-assisted remote roadheading control, 5G AI-based robotic underground inspection, 5G AI-based belt monitoring, and 5G smart wearables, as well as 5G drone-based inspection for above-ground areas. The site now only needs fewer than 900 persons, and fewer than 200 and 280 persons are needed per work shift of production and maintenance, respectively.

China Mobile Henan and Huawei helping coal miners in Henan break new ground in intelligent coal mining development

During the conference, China Mobile Henan and Huawei showcased their low-investment intelligent 5G applications for coal mining and their DMN network solution that powers them. The exhibition provided visitors with a good opportunity to understand the advantages of the DMN solution in terms of the setup, coverage, and use cases of its intrinsically safe base stations, and its leading performance in huge uplink, extended coverage, and low latency. More than 500 visitors were received, including senior managers from mining enterprises like Henan Sunho Group, Hemei Group, Jiaozuo Coal Industry Group, and Jinling Coal Mine.

The senior managers spoke highly of the progress made in intelligent coal mining development and offered their thoughts and expectations regarding its future development. They believe that greater investment and stronger collaboration among all players from within and outside this sector are necessary to achieve sustainable coal mining development in Henan.

The success of the conference on promoting intelligent coal mining in Henan signifies 5G has broken new ground with low-investment coal mining applications in Henan. Looking ahead, China Mobile Henan and Huawei will continue to jointly explore a wide range of new use cases to support safe, efficient, and green coal mining in this province by maximizing the capabilities of intelligent technology.