By David Edwards

June 10, 2020 - Autonomous Solutions Inc has signed a subcontract with mining equipment manufacturer Epiroc to supply its autonomous haul truck solution to Roy Hill in Western Australia.

This signing follows the recent award by Roy Hill to Epiroc, a global leader in mining equipment and drill automation, as the prime contractor for the project.

ASI Epiroc Autonomous Mining Truck

For its part, ASI Mining will supply the technology and systems to convert Roy Hill’s mixed fleet of 77 haul trucks from manned to autonomous operation. The project also includes integration with Fleet and other Mining Management Systems.

For vehicle conversions to Drive-by-Wire capability, ASI utilizes its partner Danfoss, a major supplier of hydraulics and electronically controlled components for haul trucks, and recognized market-leading supplier of mobile systems to many mining equipment original equipment manufacturers.

Patrick Hald, general manager of ASI Mining, says: “Being chosen as the technology provider to Roy Hill is a testament that the market is eager to establish a more open and interoperable supplier in the AHS (autonomous haulage systems) space, especially on retrofits, which will provide more flexibility than the traditional OEM (original equipment manufacturer) offerings.”

The project will focus on safe and highly productive operations and will leverage ASI’s Mobius to achieve an integration platform that can continue to scale for future applications.

The project will consist of a phased implementation, with testing and production verification of up to eight trucks undertaken in the initial phase prior to the second phase of full fleet expansion from mid-2021.