Pinnacle - Mining Monitoring Systems

If the earth is moving, Pinnacle's 3D Tracker monitoring system can see it. Our ability to measure and characterize the full spectrum of motions, on a truly microscopic to macroscopic scale, has been the basis of Pinnacle's precision motion monitoring system for nearly two decades. If your operations demand that you:

• Keep an eye on ground subsidence due to ore withdrawal
• Identify and quantify motion at block caving locations
• Monitor pit wall stability and landslides
• Quantify strain accumulation along active fault zones
• Characterize sub-surface fracture growth and/or volumetric change
• Oversee and manage subsurface co2 sequestration activities

Pinnacle can provide you with the innovative, fully integrated solution to observe, characterize, and understand deformation at your mining site.

3D TRACKER MONITORING SYSTEM

The 3D Tracker system sits at the core of Pinnacle's mining monitoring program. This multi-faceted approach utilizes fully integrated measurements from Tiltmeters, high-precision GPS, space-based InSAR, and microseismic diagnostics and is focused on integration, accuracy, and reliability. Pinnacle's emphasis on integration permits the assembly of a “technological blend” that best meets the needs of the project at hand. Nobody else provides such a diverse stable of technologies under one roof.

DGPS MONITORING STATIONS

When monitoring motion and instability in real-time the 3D Tracker DGPS system is a must. 3D Tracker is an incredibly stable software package capable of processing motions at multiple locations in real-time and on location. It is the only real-time DGPS system on the market today with proven 1mm accuracy with long term stability.

3D Tracker will yield measurement accuracies of approximately 2mm - 4mm in real-time and 1mm - 3mm over a 24-hour period in any dimension including course rotation. Mining operators are able to run multiple independent processing tasks for each monitoring station while also overseeing and maintaining reference station integrity.

TILTMETERS

Monitoring of pit walls or unstable terrain is critical for any mining operation. Our Tiltmeters provide the highest precision data in an easy to use, field-ready package.

Pinnacle's Tiltmeters can resolve Tilt as little as one billionth of a radian (or 0.00000005 degrees). If something is moving, Pinnacle's Tilt-based diagnostics are going to see it!

An array of Tiltmeters also allows for the localization and characterization of fractures, dislocations, and volumetric changes frequently occurring within a mining environment.

INSAR (INTERFEROMETRIC SYNTHETIC APERTURE RADAR)

InSAR (Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar) is a remote sensing technique that utilizes space based radar imagery. Subtle ground changes and displacements occurring between subsequent satellite radar scene acquisitions can then be identified and quantified as full-color maps illustrating ground motions. Point targets within the region of interest can be monitored with millimeter level accuracy.

The paramount strength of InSAR lies in its tremendous aerial coverage capabilities. One InSAR scene can cover up to 100km², making it an surveillance ideal tool for the detection and examination of ground displacements such as; potentially catastrophic landslides around mining operations.

MICROSEISMIC

Microseismic technology is rooted in earthquake seismology and is readily applied to the geotechnical industry for real-time monitoring at mining operations. When mining activities such as ore withdrawal causes sub-surface fracturing or brittle deformation to occur, minute acoustic signals are released and detected with a nearby passive geophone array.

As fractures and dislocations continue to grow, the geophones measure the arrival times of the emitted acoustic signals. Based on the differences in signal arrival times, source locations are calculated in real-time with a high-degree of accuracy. Continuous microseismic monitoring will identify small scale events in the subsurface that can be mitigated before they evolve into more catastrophic problems for management and associated personnel.