UG_Design

UNDERGROUND

MINE DESIGN

Underground Design Course Notes

Training Program for Engineers

©2004 MAPTEK/KRJA Systems

This document is copyright. The information contained herein is the property of MAPTEK Pty Ltd, and shall not be reproduced in whole or in part without written permission of MAPTEK Pty Ltd. MAPTEK Pty Ltd reserves the right to make changes without notice in the specifications and materials contained herein and shall not be responsible for any damages (including consequential) caused by reliance on the materials presented, including but not limited to typographical, arithmetic, or listing errors.

Due to the nature of the material, many hardware and software products are mentioned by name. Many of these product names are claimed as trademarks by the companies that manufacture the products. It is not the intention of MAPTEK to claim these names or trademarks as their own.

PURPOSE OF THIS DOCUMENT

This document is intended to be used in conjunction with a training course given by MAPTEK personnel using prepared data. These notes are meant to be a general and practical overview, giving an introduction to underground mine design and some of the related topics that might be useful such as ore control methods. For detailed explanation of menu and panel items, please refer to the reference documentation.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

SECTION 1: DESIGN

1.1 Designing Entities... 1

1.1.1 Ramps... 1

1.1.2 Cross-cuts... 4

1.1.3 Ore pass, Raise, Shaft or Winze ... 5

1.1.4 Stope... 5

1.2 Mining Methods... 7

1.2.1 Drift and Fill... 7

1.2.2 Vertical Crater Retreat... 10

1.2.3 Block Caving... 12

1.2.4 Sublevel Caving ... 15

1.2.5 Room and Pillar ... 17

1.3 Annotation... 19 1.3.1 UG Development Menu... 19 1.3.2 Analyse Menu ... 21 1.4 Blast Design ... 22 1.4.1 Offset... 23 1.4.2 Radial ... 23 1.5 Services ... 24 1.6 Design Tools ... 24 1.6.1 Shelling ... 24 1.6.2 Primitives ... 25 1.6.3 Features ... 25 1.6.4 Costings... 25

SECTION 2: SURVEY, ORE CONTROL, RESERVES

2.1 Survey... 27

2.1.1 Data Collectors... 27

2.1.2 Download and Upload ... 27

2.1.3 String Editing ... 28

2.1.4 Cavity Monitoring System... 30

2.2 Ore Control... 31 2.2.1 Blast Design ... 31 2.2.2 Channel Samples... 32 2.2.3 Mini-Block Models... 33 2.3 Reserves ... 33 2.3.1 General ... 33 2.3.2 Stope Dilution ... 34

SECTION 3: GEOLOGY, PRESENTATION, MISCELLANEOUS

3.1 Shaft and Drift Mapping ... 37

3.1.1 Intersecting with Triangulations... 37

3.1.2 Unfolding a Circular Shaft... 37

3.2 Plotting and Presentation ... 37

3.2.3 Border Styles... 37

3.2.4 Symbols... 38

3.2.6 Animation... 38

3.3 GIS tools... 39

3.3.1 Analyse Menu: Attribute Data... 39

3.3.2 Analyse Menu: External Data... 41

3.4 Conversion of Old Data ... 44

3.4.1 Plans ... 44

3.4.2 Sections ... 45

3.5.1 Multiple Users and Data Sharing ... 46

3.5.2 Multiple Design Databases... 47

3.5.3 Other Tips on Data Organisation and Retrieval... 47

SECTION 4: APPENDICES

Appendix A: DBGL Script ... 49

Appendix B: DATUPD Script for UG blast holes ... 50

Appendix C: Optech Data File... 51

Appendix D: Survey.codes File... 52

Appendix E: DATUPD Script for Channel Samples ... 53

Appendix F: Dilution Script ... 54

SECTION 1: Design

1.1 Designing Entities

In this section, we will explore methods of creating design entities which when used together will create a mine design. It outlines some of the tools available to create the various entities required in a design. You may find other creation methods as you become more experienced in the use of VULCAN.

For all of the vector-based work, you want to get in the habit of naming each entity using Attribute Edit -

Name or Name by Coord. You should also apply a description to each entity, using Attribute Edit - Describe. If you practise this method, future reporting and query operations will be clear and concise.

1.1.1 Ramps

The term ramps is used as a description of both inclines and declines. One can digitise standard lines and arcs and grade them in the Design-Object Edit-Grade option. The optimal way to do this, however, is to use the Underground - UG Development-Centreline option. Begin by using the Setup option, which simply sets the defaults to be used elsewhere in the Development menu.

Before actually creating the ramp, consider details such as starting position and bearing as you will be asked for this information in an upcoming panel. Bearing can be ascertained using the Analyse toolbar to find the distance between points in a straight line.

Centrelines

Begin your design by selecting the Centreline option. If you don't have a layer currently open, you will be prompted for the layer name to store the centreline. You will be asked if you wish to Create or Append the centreline. When using the Append option, note two things: 1) always append to the end of an existing line (created by any option), and 2) if using the Automatic or guided option, the default azimuth in the panel will be the azimuth of the last line segment of the line you are appending to.

Make use of the true 3D system that you are working in by rotating into better views during the construction of the ramp. Bring up other entities that are important to an optimal design such as fault triangulations, existing development etc.

You will find it helpful at times to create in a 2D view, for example, when trying to place the ramp against the foot wall of a fault, operate in slice view, slicing up and down. Both your ramp and the fault triangulation appear on the screen. If you are trying to maintain a certain distance between the ramp and the fault, simply use Triangle Utility - Translate to make a copy of the fault triangulation at your specified distance. Use this copied triangulation as your guide. It is generally easier to quickly put "scenario 1" ramp in a simple ramp to validate your idea on the position, length, and grade of your ramp. You may find it useful to take that first ramp and break it into pieces using Object Edit - Split and

Drag, followed by Join. Re-grade your

ramp using Object Edit - Grade (grade between end points) and verify using

Analyse - Details - Full or UG Development - Information.

One of the most difficult parts of ramp design is connecting point A to point B. You can make quick depth and length calculations to use as a general guide, or put in a quick ramp. When you are getting close to your target, add the elevations of the ramp centreline being designed via Analyse - Label - Z Value. This will tell you where you are on elevation. Make use of the "Show projected extension to curve" option found at the bottom of the Ramp Specification panel to help line up the centreline with your target point. Use the "Specify Angle" option in the Ramp Specification panel, using increments of say 5 degrees. By continuously clicking OK, you will dynamically target the centreline.

After the main centreline has been designed, you may want to create shorter centrelines, coming off the main ramp. These might represent drilling stations, powder magazines, fueling areas, etc. These lines are

generally created using the Interactive (as opposed to Automatic) method of centreline creation.

Rib Outlines

For plotting and future design work, you may want to create the rib outlines on each side of the centrelines you have just created. Use the UG Development - Wall Outline option, generally selecting the "Width" option in the Wall Defaults panel. If you want the wall 1.5 metres on the left of the centreline and 3.5 metres on the right, then use the "Offsets" option in the Wall Defaults panel. Left and right is solely dependent on direction of digitising. For some examples of applying wall outlines, see the drift and fill and

VCR mining method examples.

Connecting Rib Outlines

You may want to clean up the intersections of wall outlines. The two options to do this are both found under

UG Development.

1. Merge Walls: Advantage: Used for centrelines which cross themselves, e.g. a figure 8 ramp. Disadvantages: Does not allow you to store the new polygon in a new layer; must have sufficient points in the polygons for a successful merge (may get message stating "Selected objects do not intersect"); allows only two polygons at a time to be merged. Method involves picking the main drive polygon followed by the drive polygon to merge (usually a crosscut): then you simply click on to delete one or other of the points inside the main drive. This will then relimit both polygons as in the example below

2.

polygon merging. Good for room and pillar designs. Disadvantage: does not work on centrelines which cross themselves. If possible, use Union Walls as it is efficient and preservesyour original work.

Wall outline strings before Union

When picking the strings to use Union Walls, select by GROUP as all wall strings have a group code of WALL_OUTLI. Save the union walls in a new layer name and deselect the original layer to view the result.

Wall outline after Union Triangulations and Primitives

From the vector-based design we now want to be able use triangulation-based design. These triangulations are used for volumetrics, design, and visualisation. Triangulations for ramps are created in three ways. 1. Using the wall outlines as the polygon, use UG Development - Project Backs/Floors (under the

Triangulations sub-menu). This extrudes the polygon up and/or down and creates a triangulation.

NEVER use this option on wall outlines that cross themselves, such as in a figure 8. If you do, you may have to kill Envisage or wait a long time for it to create a

corrupted triangulation. The Project Backs/Floors option handles pillars, either in a room and pillar design or pillars at an intersection of three drifts. This option projects vertically. If you need a projection from the plane of the polygon, use Triangle Solid - Polygons. (The Survey-UG

Survey-Build 3D Drive allows for a shoulder bevel to be

2. Apply a primitive to the centrelines. There are two advantages to this method: firstly, you don't have to worry about crossing centerlines and secondly, a primitive can be a more realistic shape for the tunnel profiles. A primitive is simply a shape that you draw to scale in PLAN view, e.g. a profile of a ramp. Next, use Design - Create - Primitive to convert your polygon or line to a primitive. You will be asked for an alignment point. This is simply the "handle" of the primitive. If you pick the lower centre of a rectangle as the alignment point, the primitive will be applied to a centreline at that point. It is highly recommended that you store your primitives on a layer in your DGD. It is difficult to modify the primitive as it is stored in the <proj>.pgd file. Apply the primitive using either UG Development -

Apply Primitive or Design - Attribute Edit - ApplyPrimitive. In the former, you have the option to store

ONE primitive as ONE triangulation: see tick box in panel opposite. In practice, if you have multiple

primitives you want to store as ONE triangulation, for example,

sublevel caving, apply the primitive using either option, but then use Design -

Attribute Edit - Triangulate Primitive.

3. Always check for triangulation closure once the primitive has been converted to a triangulation. If open, you can close using Model - Triangle Solid - Close. 4. Apply an existing primitive or create a

temporary primitive shape on the fly using Triangle Solid - Primitives. This option simply creates a triangulation, by-passing primitive application. You are given the choice of using an existing primitive or specifying a rectangular or circular shape. Note on the panel that you can close the triangulation as it is being built.

1.1.2 Cross-cuts

Cross-cut centrelines are created in various ways. You can simply digitise a line or lines and then copy them, see the block cave example. They can be quickly created using Pit Layout - Roadway as in the

sublevel caving example. In some applications, e.g. layout of a tracked mine or creating muck bays as in the

VCR example, the UG Development -

Cross Cuts option will help. Two points

to note on the Cross Cut Development panel shown in the VCR example: 1) extending cross-cuts to the left or right is dependent on point order of the

centreline from which the cross-cuts are drawn; 2) you can use a triangulation to determine the length of the cross-cut. If the triangulation picked off the screen is a “solid” then the relimiting will be done to the back wall of the model. If a distance of 0 is specified, then the crosscut will stop at the back wall. If a negative distance is specified, then the xcut will extend beyond the back wall, e.g. specifying “-6” will result in the

1.1.3 Ore pass, Raise, Shaft or Winze

An ore pass is simply a steeply inclined line, containing one or more line segments. It is created by snapping a line between two points on two mine levels. If necessary, you can insert other points using

Design - Point Insert - Measure and/or use Object Edit - Grade to insert inflection points as you tie into

other levels. See the VCR design section for an example.

A raise is created the same way. After creating an ore pass or raise, review the entity in 3D if you haven't already, to verify that its angle is feasible. Use Analyse - Details - Full to get the actual grade.

For an ore pass or a raise, you may want to properly start and end the line at the back or sill of the entity it is being tied into. For example, you may want to collar the raise at the back elevation of a stub-drift and end the raise at the sill elevation of the stub-drift above. This will ensure proper length calculations.

A shaft is generally created using Create - Line. You can bring it up from the sump elevation a short distance, then use Design - Relimit - Triangle Along Grade (under the Triangulation sub-menu for a triangulation surface) to extend it to the topography. If you know what your level spacing is, add a point at each of those elevations. You can insert these points in various ways: Point Insert - Measure is probably the best method. To verify your work, label the elevations using Analyse - Label - Z Value.

A winze is created using the same tools as you would use creating an ore pass, raise, or shaft. As in the ore pass and raise scenarios, consider the starting and ending elevations with respect to what the winze is being tied into, e.g. the sill or the back.

You will probably want to apply a circular primitive to all of these entities described, see Section 1.6.2 for more information.

1.1.4 Stope

Nearly every stope you create in Envisage is eventually represented by a triangulation. Every stope that you create reflects the mining method being used. Generally, stope design is accomplished by first creating stope polygons and then triangulating them. A stope design option under UG Development - UG Stope Design works well in conjunction with a section slice of a dynamic block model. Existing strings may be wireframed (“Complete”) or polygons created on the fly (“Polygon”).

As you digitise each stope shape on a given section (there is an option that automatically slices forward), you can pause and request a block model-based reserve on the last two stope outlines drawn.

The by-product of using this option is a stope triangulation.

You cannot do “partials” and therefore cannot create a bifurcating stope shape. Apart from this, the option is similar to the Model - Triangle Solid - Create option.

Refer to the mining methods described in the next section to get some stope design ideas. See the examples on

drift and fill, vertical crater retreat, block caving,

sublevel caving, and room and pillar.

Another method is the Triangle Solid - Polygons option. If you have several stope polygons, you can use this option to extrude them into triangulations. Note in the Polygonal Solids panel that you can name the resulting triangulations by classifications such as their group names.

Note also, that you can specify the extrusion distance by the object value. This emphasises an earlier point that you should always organise your digitising by classes such as name and group.

Finally, you may find that the Triangle Solid -

Shells option is a useful tool. It takes an

existing triangulation and breaks it up into new triangulations of specific width. See the

1.2 Mining Methods 1.2.1 Drift and Fill

The example shown in this section is based on the SME Mining Engineering Handbook, 2nd edition, volume 2, 1992.

Exercise

Begin with the ore outline on the 5700 and 5710 levels. This can be obtained in several ways, most easily by profiling the ore triangulation using Triangle Utility - Section.

Drifts

Next, draw the access drift into the orebody. In practice, this might be an incline or decline depending on the elevation of the first cut. In our example, this access is on the 5700 level. Then, normal to this access drift, we digitise the gate drift on the 5700 level, running the length of the ore body.

Cross-cuts

Draw at an angle a line which will be a cross-cut from the gate drift, first on the left, then on the right. Group the left and right cross-cuts differently, e.g. "5700xcut1" for the left and "5700xcut2" for the right. The "1" and the "2" might reflect panels "1" and "2" respectively.

In our example, we want the cross-cuts to be 4.5 metres wide. To give the proper spacing, simply use Transformation - Translate in conjunction with the angle construction icon selecting the previously drawn cross-cut as the line to move perpendicular from:

If the copy is opposite the direction you planned, simply enter the distance as a negative value. Do this for both the left and right sides of the gate drift.

Now use the Relimit/Line option to extend the copied line to the gate drift centreline, for both the left and right sides.

Create an array of cross-cut lines using Translate to copy first one, then another cross-cut line, again, for both the left and right sides of the gate drift. Use the Relimit/Line option once again to extend or trim the cross-cut centrelines to the ore outline as you see fit. If you have many lines to relimit, the Object Edit -

Clip by Poly option is a much quicker method. If you choose this method, you must ensure that all of the

cross-cuts fully extend beyond the ore outline. If you have grouped the cross-cuts, you can simply choose "by group" when using the Clip by Poly option. If you wish to create two portions of the cross-cut, one inside the ore outline and one outside, then use Design - Line Split - Intersection Split on the cross-cuts. Next, create the gate drift for the 5710 level. You may want to simply copy the drift from the 5700 level. You may also want to create the access drift into the 5710 level, inclining from the previous access drift coming in from the main ramp.

Then, create the cross-cuts on the 5710 level by following the above steps or by copying the cross-cuts from the 5700 level, then renaming the groups. If you copy the cross-cut centrelines, you may want to translate them along strike to create an overlap with the cross-cuts below.

Rib Outlines

From these centrelines create the rib outlines which will be used for future design, plotting, and reserve work. Use UG Development - Wall Outline, selecting the cross-cut centrelines by group. Do panel one first, using a wall width of 12 feet. After the outlines are displayed, re-group them (selecting by group) from the default "WALL_OUTLI" to something more fitting like "5700walls1" meaning 5700 level, panel 1 walls. Do panel two next, re-group these walls. Repeat for the 5710 level. Apply the walls to the gate drifts on the 5700 and 5710 levels, using a width of 4.5 metres.

At this point, level 5700 will look similar to the following:

Preparation for reserving

For reserving, you can elect to reserve the individual cross-cuts or calculate the reserves for an entire panel. You can either sum up the tons and grade for all cross-cuts in a given panel or you can create one new polygon containing all of the cross-cuts in a panel. For the latter, it is suggested that you follow these steps for a given panel, such as panel 1 on the 5700 level:

1. Use Triangle Utility - Poly Boolean, selecting by group, not saving the resulting triangulation.

2. Remove the volume previously mined from the gate drift using Polygon Edit - Build, selecting the polygon created from the previous step and the rib outline of the gate drift.

3. Delete the resulting polygons that are not part of the panel, e.g. the gate drift, portion of the panel within the gate drift, and the original panel outline created in step 1.

4. Replace steps 2 and 3 by using the Object Edit - Clip by Poly option if you do not wish to create new polygons.

These tools might be applicable if you elect to reserve from the individual cross-cuts. For the potential problem of the cross-cut centreline extending into the gate drift, you can use Relimit/Line on each centreline, use Line Split - Intersection Split followed by deleting the portions of the centreline within the gate drift, or use Object Edit - Clip by Poly.

Triangulations

If you are using Attribute Edit - Triangulate

Primitive to convert the cross-cut primitives to

triangulations, you may find the naming to be cumbersome. It is suggested that you instead create the cross-cut triangulations from the panel triangulations using Triangle Solid -

Shells described in Section 1.6.1. This is

advantageous because you are given different options for naming the triangulations. The Model-Triangle Solid-Polygons option allows for the automatic naming of

triangulations. For example, if the base polygon strings are named beforehand using

Design-Attribute Edit-Name, simply follow the options

in the following panel to transfer the object names to the solids:

Another option is Open Pit - Increment Design - Block then Create. The Block option will extrude the polygons. The Create option takes the extruded blocks and creates triangles from them. The advantage of this option is that the triangulation naming is done automatically, assuming you have named your polygons. If you haven't named them, then use Increment Design - Numbers to apply a simple naming convention to the polygons. Naming can also be done via the Open Pit - Pit Layout - Naming (sub-menu) options. Your final design may look like the following:

1.2.2 Vertical Crater Retreat

The example shown here is partly based on a case study found in the SME Mining Engineering Handbook, 2nd edition, volume 2, 1992.

Exercise

Start by creating the ore outlines on the 6000 and 6300 levels using Triangle Utility - Section. Around these outlines, digitise the shapes of the top sill on the 6300 level and the bottom sill on the 6000 level.

Development drifts

On the 6300 level, create a drift centreline running parallel to the foot wall, in waste. From this drift, create cross-cuts into the top sill using UG Development - Cross Cuts. You can fill out the panel as follows:

Generally, it is easier to create more cross-cuts than you need, deleting the unnecessary ones.

On the 6000 level, create a drift centreline in waste on the foot wall side. Create multiple cross-cuts into the bottom sill, about 135 metres apart in this example.

On the 5850 haulage level, create a drift centreline with attached cross-cut passing under the 6000 level. Now create an ore pass between the 5850 and 6000 levels. First, create two stub-drifts, about 10 metres long, one on the 5850 level and one on the 6000 level, both near the south end of these two levels.

Rib Outlines

Once the centrelines are in place, apply the designed rib lines. Use UG Development - Wall Outline, using a width of 4 metres. Apply walls to all of the centrelines except for the two stub-drifts. To these, apply wall outlines 10 metres wide. Now, use UG Development - Union Walls to merge the rib lines of the

development. Delete the previous polygons, resulting in a continuous polygon around the centrelines. After the ore pass is in place, you may have to edit the wall outline polygon slightly in terms of rounding a corner or making room for the ends of the ore pass.

Ore Pass

Simply digitise a line from the stub-drift on the 5850 level to the stub-drift on the 6000 level. You may need to insert some points into the stub-drifts to accommodate a good start and end. Be sure to snap to an existing point on the drifts.

Triangulations

Now that the digitising work is mostly done, we will create triangulations which will be used for blast design and reserve work. Use UG Development - Project Backs/Floors (under Triangulations sub-menu), using a back height of 4 metres on the drift polygons and 4.5 metres on the top and bottom sills.

Temporarily copy the stope outline polygon up 4.5 metres (or leave it 4.5 metres above sill, remembering to project down instead of up when creating the bottom sill triangulation). Use Triangle Solid - Create to create the stope triangulation. Your total design will now look like the following:

1.2.3 Block Caving

The example shown here is partly based on case studies found in the SME Mining Engineering Handbook, 2nd edition, volume 2, 1992. It is based on an LHD method of extraction.

Firstly, we outline suggestions on design technique followed by suggestions on how to calculate the diluted tons and grade in the block.

Exercise:

Part I - Design

Production Drifts

Start by drawing one line parallel to the strike of the ore on the 2100 level, the production level. Assign a group name of "haulage" to this line. Next, copy this line three times at 20 metre intervals. These four lines are the centrelines of the production drifts. Copy by group the four production drifts up to the 2115 level. Group these four new centrelines as the "undercut" group then make them invisible. These will serve as the undercut level drifts from which the blasting will be conducted.

Cross-cuts

Next, draw at 60 degrees to the first line you drew, another line that will serve as a cross-cut into and through the draw-points. Assign a group name of "xcut" to this line. Copy this line about 17 times to the north along strike at 10 metre intervals.

Rib Outlines

At this point you have established the framework of the drilling and production levels. Future plotting and design might benefit from having the designed rib outlines around the centrelines. This can be done using either UG Development - Wall Outline then Union Walls or Open Pit - Pit Layout - Pillar to create wall outlines around the centrelines we have drawn. With either method, the walls should be 2metres on either sides of the centreline, for a total rib-to-rib width of 4 metres.

Draw-points

Create the polygons which will represent the top and bottom of the draw-points. One method is to draw one polygon, 9 metres long and 6.5 metres wide in plan, then rotate to make parallel with the cross-cut line. Once in correct position, use Polygon Edit - Expand to create an inner polygon, about 6 metres long by 3.6 metres wide (narrower than the width of the cross-cut to ensure easy triangulation boolean operation). Group these polygons as "drawpt". Set the elevation of the inner polygon to 2103 (again, to aid in the boolean operation). Set the elevation of the upper polygon to 2106. Copy these two polygons about the production level, centring over the cross-cuts between the production drifts. At this point, your design might look like the following.

Triangulations

After finishing the vector-based design work, next create the triangulations which will be used for the final design work which will serve as the basis of the reserve evaluation and blast design. Begin by creating two primitives, one 4 m x 4 m with an arched back, and one 4 m wide by 3.3 m high without an arched back. Apply the arched primitive to the production drift centrelines and the rectangular primitive to the cross-cut centrelines. Convert these to triangulations and deselect the centreline and wall outline layers.

Create triangulations of the draw points by using Triangle Solid - Create. Do this by either using the split command during the creation or by making one triangle, copying it to another, and another, then appending them.

Create the plan view outline of the block cave mining block. Draw the rectangle at an elevation that might serve as the bottom of a crown pillar, e.g. at the 2083 level. The outline of the mining block might be about 150 metres along strike and 117 metres normal to strike. Use the Triangle Solid - Polygons option to project a triangulation to the 2200 level.

This mining block could be reserved as is. If so, then in the reserving you must deduct the rock mined from the a) production drifts, b) undercut level drifts, c) cross-cuts, and d) draw points. This is easily done using

Block - Advanced Reserves and utilising a “mined” variable.

You might also consider using Triangle Utility - Merge to physically cut out the openings made by the drifts, cross-cuts, and draw-points, creating a triangulation that is ready for reserving. Pick the mining block first, then the drifts triangulation (for example), then select Difference as the operator. (The order in which you pick the two models is important for the Difference).

Part II - Grade and Tonnage

Using the mining block triangulation that we created, break it into parts using the Triangle Solid - Shells option. Our block is 100 metres (300 feet) above the 2100 level (6300 level in imperial). Break this into one triangulation starting at 6300 and ending at 6450. From 6450 on up, shell the block up in 20-foot increments, which is two blocks high. At this point, a typical section might look like this:

In the block model, add two new variables, e.g. den_blockcave and au_blockcave.

Next, set up a block model script (.BCF) for each 20-foot level. In this script, with increased elevation, we want to increase density and decrease gold grade. This change with elevation simulates the lower grade and higher tons that will come during the block caving.

Here is an example of the script:

*demobc6450.bcf: this is for assigning diluted gold grade and increasing density for *block caving *DEFINE BLOCK DENSITY

den_blockcave = (density * .10) + density

*DEFINE BLOCK GRADE if (au_ivd lt 0.0) then au_blockcave = -9.0 elseif (au_ivd ge 0.0) then

au_blockcave = au_ivd * (1.0/(1+0.10)) endif

end

The above script is for the 6450 level. The script for the 6470 level would be the same, except that instead of 0.1 (10% dilution), we would use 0.2. The script for the triangulation spanning levels 6300-6450 would look the same except there is no dilution applied. In practice, you will run all scripts for all of the shelled triangulations. Note that you could put these various block model scripts into a C-shell script. Or, you could perform the same work all within the block model. In this case, you would need a new variable for storing the name of the level or a method for determining what dilution percentage should be applied to grade and tons.

After running these scripts, you should do a quick reserve on the 20-foot high triangulations from 6450 on up. The total tons of these triangulations should be at least 30% greater than tonnage you would find for the same volumes using a constant density. The 30% difference is an attempt to simulate the extra rock that will cave in around the sides and top of the mining block (other algorithms, such as the Laubscher method, will also calculate the dilution). In the final reserve report, for each level, you should see a drop in average grade and increase in tons. In our example, the number of block model blocks decreases with elevation. In practice, the results would be improved if you have a regular block model rather than the sub-blocked model in this example. Note that if you have a sub-blocked model, you can create from it a regular block model by re-blocking the original model with the Block - Transfer - Regularise (sub-menu) option.

Level Au Opt Tonnage

bc6590 0.026 160223 bc6570 0.021 474443 bc6550 0.021 569070 bc6530 0.024 576167 bc6510 0.041 392016 bc6490 0.145 123921 bc6470 0.111 171961 bc6450 0.024 836037 bc6300 0.104 1669129

1.2.4 Sublevel Caving

The example shown here is partly based on case studies found in the SME Mining Engineering Handbook, 2nd edition, volume 2, 1992. It deals mainly with the design of a sublevel caving system.

Exercise

Begin by setting up the ore outline on the 5550 and 5625 levels. This can be obtained in several ways, most easily by profiling the ore triangulation using Triangle Utility - Section.

Production Drifts

Next, draw the foot wall drifts on the 5550 level and the 5625 sublevel, outside of the ore body outline. Follow that by drawing the slot drifts on the hanging wall of the ore body outlines on the 5550 and 5625 levels. Group these drifts as "5550dft" and "5625dft".

Cross-cuts

Once the ore outlines and drifts are on the screen, create the cross-cuts, either using the Design menu, then copying the lines along the drift, or, using Open Pit - Pit Layout - Roadway. If you choose the latter option, when asked to select the "pit outline", choose the ore outline. When asked to "select line parallel to main road", select a segment of the foot wall drift. In the panel labeled, "Underground roadway" fill it out as follows:

This option will create a set of cross-cuts, stored as one object. We need to break each of these centrelines into its own object using Object Edit - Split or Object Edit - Explode. You can also export this one object to DXF and then re-import to break the one object into multiple objects. Use Design - Relimit- Line to extend/trim these lines against the foot wall and hanging wall drifts. Do this step for both the 5550 level and the 5625 sublevel. For the 5625 sublevel, the cross-cuts need to be mid-way between the cross-cuts of the 5550 level for proper alignment of the stopes. Group these cross-cuts by level, for example, "5550xcut". An alternative method of creating the cross-cuts is to simply create a polygon from the foot wall and hanging wall drifts, and temporarily use this polygon as "pit outline" rather than the ore outline. This will save you from doing a lot of relimits.

Rib Outlines

At this point you have a framework of both the drifts and cross-cuts. Future plotting and design might benefit from having the designed rib outlines around the centrelines. This can be done using either UG

Development - Wall Outline then Union Walls or with Open Pit - Pit Layout - Pillar to create wall outlines

around the centrelines we have drawn. We want the walls to be 2.5 metres on both sides of the centreline, for a total rib-to-rib width of 5 metres.

Triangulations

After finishing the vector-based design work, next create the triangulations to be used for the final design work which will serve as the basis of reserve evaluation and blast design. Begin by creating a primitive which is a profile of the stope. Note that its alignment is 3.3 metres below the lowest point of the stope profile because we are accounting for the drift below the stope. This primitive might look something like:

Your completed design should look similar to the following:

1.2.5 Room and Pillar

The example shown in this section is a generalised method of designing a single level, room and pillar mine. We are using a coal mine design tool. A more advanced underground coal mine design tool found in

Underground - Underground Coal is worth looking at.

Exercise:

On the 6700 level, create an ore outline. This will serve as the limit of our design. Also, bring up the pre-existing mine level on the 6700 level.

Centreline Generation

Select the Pit Layout - Roadway option. As prompted, select the ore outline polygon, then a wall outline of the existing development. This last pick serves as the basic of orientation of your design. For centrelines at a spacing of 35metres, fill out the panel as follows:

Based on a temporary display of the centrelines, you will be asked to confirm if they look OK. Don't worry if it appears some centerlines are missing; during this temporary display, not all of the lines are always displayed. If you indicate that they are OK, the lines are left on the screen. Note that all of the centrelines are stored as one object. Generally this is OK but if you see other uses for this design method up to this point, there are various methods for saving these lines as multiple objects as described in the sublevel caving section.

Generally, you will want to modify the lengths of the centrelines as they are naturally limited to the ore outline. If you wish to extend these lines, try the Design - Relimit options.

Pillar Generation

Next, add the pillar outlines using Pit Layout - Pillar. When asked for the default width, enter in 20 for 20 metres between pillars. Select the centrelines by object. There is only one object, but if there are more, you could continue picking. Cancel once to see a confirm box asking if the walls appear to be OK. At times, not all walls are temporarily displayed, so do not worry if you do not see all wall outlines. Confirm that the walls are OK. You will then be prompted to confirm that the pillar outlines look OK. Again, generally ignore missing pillars at this point. Confirm that the pillars are correct. At this point, you should have a nice pillar layout:

Note that each pillar is named by an object name. This might be useful for future reserving, scheduling, and design needs.

To help optimise the position and number of pillars within the ore outline, first draw a polygon around the ore outline. Use this polygon to limit the extents of the centrelines rather than the ore outline. Next, create the pillars. Now use Object Edit - Clip by Poly on both the pillars and centrelines. Or, use Transformation -

Translate or Object Edit - Drag to optimally position the pillar and centreline array within the ore outline,

If the answer to question 1 is "yes", then you will need to devise a system for naming each pillar. This might be as simple as the x-y-z coordinates of the pillar using Attribute Edit - Name and then using Triangle Solid -

Polygons (with an intervening DBGL script that copies the object name to the group name in the DGD, see

Appendix A) to create the triangles. Another method uses Open Pit - Pit Layout - Naming (sub-menu) followed by the Open Pit - Increment Design - Block then Create options.

If a general naming is OK, e.g. level and sequential number, you could use the default names assigned during the pillar creation process and once again, via a script and the Polygons option, create the triangles. Another method for automated naming techniques uses Open Pit - Increment Design - Block then Create options.

If the answer to question 2 is "yes", simply use UG Development - Project Backs/Floors, selecting by feature which has been automatically assigned during the pillar creation process.

Your triangulated design may look like:

1.3 Annotation

Annotation of your design is obviously very important for presentation. We suggest that you store all of your annotation on a separate layer or layers so that it does not interfere when you wish to view only the design. Alternatively, store the annotation with the design layer(s), grouping all of the annotation into a group such as "text" so that you can make it visible and invisible as needed.

It is assumed you are familiar with the differences between fonts and when to use either a hardware or software font (i.e., WYSIWYG vs. non-WYSIWYG). It is also assumed that you are familiar with setting text defaults.

1.3.1 UG Development Menu

In the UG Development menu, there are four options below the Annotations sub-menu. These are actually two styles of annotation, one for point annotation, one for line segment annotation. Before using either, you must go through a set up process. The information is stored in your <proj>envis.defaults file. Select Lines Setup and you will see the following panel:

To place bearing and length parallel to a line segment, fill out the panel as above. Note that you can create a leader line from the text to the object being annotated if you select "Rubber band to line segment". "NDP" means number of decimal points. Note also the usage of the prefix and suffix. The "Space" option simply means place a space between the text and the prefix or suffix.

When you are ready to apply the label, select Lines. You will be asked for the layer to store the annotation on. Next, select the object, then the line segment to annotate. You will be queried to indicate the posting position. This is approximately the left, centre part of the text line. You may have to use Text Edit - Drag to position the string to your satisfaction:

Note that the text created in this manner is

automatically stored in group "ANNOT" which may be useful for selection.

When using Points, you may find yourself commonly using the "Rubber band to data point". Select Points Setup and you will see the following panel:

When applying this specification to a selected point, you will be prompted to select a “position to post”; usually you would change to “Indicate” digitising mode to click this point. Then the posting will appear as follows:

Note that by default, the text annotation is in the SCALED font: this can be made to look more presentable by changing the text to a “True Type Font” such as the ‘Tahoma Bold’ font pictured above. The relative scale of text is set beforehand by the Design - Text Edit - Text Defaults option. Try a size of 0.2cm @ a drafting scale of 1:1250.

1.3.2 Analyse Menu

The Analyse - Label menu contains several useful options. Note that text is stored in a layer only for options that are named "…To Text" or options that lie within the Point Label to Text sub-menu. The remainder of the options are display only.

Coordinate 2D and Coordinate 3D post the coordinates of all points in the selected object, at the point

locations.

Name to Text displays the name of the selected object, posting the name at the centroid, starting, or ending

point of the object. This is useful for displaying names of section lines used in underground blast design or cross-cuts, for example, drift and fill.

Centroid to Text displays the x-y-z coordinates of the centroid of the selected object, posting the coordinates

at the centroid of the object. This is beneficial for room and pillar design.

Description to Text displays up to 40 characters and is particularly useful for annotating polygons produced

by profiling orebody or stope triangulations, as the Model - Triangle Utility - Section Profiles option automatically stores the source triangulation name in the Object Description field of the polygons.

1.3.3 Control Points

The Design - Control Points lets you select points (existing or new locations) on the screen whose coordinates are then posted in a table that you position on the screen.

Begin by indicating the placement of the upper, left-hand corner of the table, then indicate or snap the points you wish to have posted in the table.

1.4 Blast Design

The Underground - Ring Design menu is used for creating and editing blast holes which are concurrently stored in a blast hole database. The online reference manual describes all of the options. This document provides pointers on creating and editing holes followed by simple examples of offset and radial patterns.

Pre-design steps

Generally, before you begin your design, you should already have a datasheet for storing the blast holes; we recommend using UGB as the name. This datasheet is created using UG Blast Design - Datasheet. Next, you should have as a layer, section lines which will be used to reference a given layout. These are created using Ring Design - Section. In the Section Line generation panel, it is recommended that you use a "Section line prefix" of "ring".

Depending on your design, you should have, as a layer, outlines of the stope, drift(s) you are drilling from, optional line(s) that are used for additional limiting lengths of blast holes, and a reference line that penetrates the section you are on, and from which the collars of the hole can be measured.

The stope and drift outlines are easily constructed using Triangle Utility - Section Profile, selecting "Irregular sections" from the 3D Section Profiles panel. Select the method to “Use cross section lines”. Then, simply select by “feature”, the section lines* you have just created, then the stope and drift triangulations.

*Section lines will have the common feature name UGLAYOUT.

Overview of Design Steps

These basic steps are applicable for creating a blast design. Assuming the section and reference lines, and stope and drift outlines are on the screen, first post the names of the section lines on the screen. The datasheet should also have been constructed. Finally, you should be in the section view (generally vertical) in which you wish to design.

1. Defaults - sets sample interval, explosive envelope range, and stemming length.

2. Open - open the desired UGB database. If it doesn't exist, you will be asked if you wish to create it. 3. Set Layout - assigns a name to the current blast layout; it is suggested that you select "Set current

layout using a section line" in the Current Layout panel, then select the section line. Setting the layout sets the Group code for the ring (it is this code that is accessed when reporting the ring). 4. Set Plane - describes the plane you are designing in, to the system. If you end up with holes whose

toe positions do not make sense, you probably forgot this step.

5. Settings - applies color and naming etc to the holes to be designed or to be displayed. At first, use only "Display trace of blast hole," "Mark collar location with a cross," and "Label collar with hole names”. See the reference manual for a picture of this panel.

6. Create Hole - creates one hole at a time or multiple holes. Generally, you create one hole, called a reference hole, from which the entire layout is based.

Methods of Creating Holes

There are four ways to create blast holes:

1. Create Hole - create one hole at a time, using the Digitise Hole option in the confirm box. 2. Create Hole - create multiple holes, using the Layout Hole option in the confirm box. Select the

reference hole, and automatically create subsequent holes.

3. Layout Pattern - select the reference hole, then indicate position of last hole or number of holes in layout.

Overview of Editing Steps

Once a design is in place, you may have to edit your work. We have outlined here the more important options (see the reference manual for detailed information).

1. Move Hole - allows the toe or collar to be moved. This is also used to copy entire layouts. For example, if your design calls for the same five holes in the same position, length etc, on all row lines, use this option. Ensure you enter the correct layout name.

2. Delete hole - deletes individual holes, selected groups of holes, or all holes in a layout. If deleting groups of holes, select from the confirm box "Pick holes using digitised line". This line is not created in the Design menu, it is a temporary line or lines, containing inflection points if you wish, that are used to delete all touching holes.

3. Change Sequence - changes the names of selected holes. (Sometimes the displayed hole names will not be what you want.)

Overview of Reporting and Plotting Steps

For reporting, begin by selecting the Report Style option. These settings are stored in your <proj>envis.defaults file.

Next, select Report Layout, which selects the layout to report on. The report can be saved to disk but the defaults to display in your Envisage report window.

To plot one or more* sections of the designed holes, along with digitised data, use the Section Plots option. This assumes that you have already set up a border style as described in Section 3.2.3. The reference manual outlines how to create a rectangle on the border style, giving it an object name of "UGB_REPORT" and a group name of "NO_PLOT." The report information is posted into this rectangle.. * Note that you can select section line by “feature” if you want ALL the rings plotted as each layout has the common feature code “UGLAYOUT”. Otherwise, for specific layouts, select section lines ‘By object’.

A common mistake of users when asked to select section lines (the layout lines used during the creation of the holes), they select instead something that is not THE section line. If you select what you think is a section line and you revert to the menus without anything happening, you have not selected the correct section line or a section line that has lost its attributes such as object, group, and feature.

Do not use any of the main Design menu editing options when performing a Ring Design; use only the tools in the Underground - Ring Design menu. Ring designs are not stored as DGDs but are stored in a quite separate underground blast-hole database. This database will have a name that follows the format:

<project code><optional database identifier>.<datasheet name>.isis

Using the ‘Undo’ icon has no effect when doing a Ring Design; although there may be a visual change, the change is only to the temporary display layer (“DIG$UGB”) and the changes are not reflected in the blasthole database. It is not necessary to use the File - Save option with Ring Design as blastholes are saved as they are created/edited.

1.4.1 Offset

Creating an offset pattern of drilling can be done with the VCR data. Load all related triangulations, create the section lines, and then profile the triangulations on the screen. Use the Section Index option to create a scale from which to measure from and possibly snap blast hole collars.

1.4.2 Radial

Creating a radial pattern of drilling can be done with the data used in the block caving example. Load all related triangulations, create the section lines, and then profile the triangulations on the screen. Before starting your design, first digitise the location of the pivot point in the centre of the undercut level drift.

1.5 Services

Services such as electrical and compressed air can be represented by lines. Transformers and other such point data can be represented as symbols, points, lines, or polygons. Use the Analyse – Attribute Data tools, discussed in Section 3.3, in conjunction with the digitised data.

In some cases, creating the line down the length of the ramp can be done easily using Object Edit/Drag-copy on the ramp centreline. These lines can be grouped by "electric," "discharge," "comp_air," etc. They should also have distinguishing color and line type.

If applying symbols, for example a transformer symbol, it is easiest to insert a point on the stub-drift containing the transformer station, then use Design - Line Style Edit - Symbol at Point to select the point to insert the symbol onto.

Another useful tool is found in Open Pit - Network. While initially designed for determining haulage distance and grade, a network can be set up in an underground mine in which nodes can be set up at junctions and other points of interest.

1.6 Design Tools

What follows are some of the general tools that you might find useful. Refer to the reference manual for a complete description of these. These tools are listed here just to give you some ideas for your work.

1.6.1 Shelling

The Model - Triangle Solid - Shells option slices an existing “solid” triangulation into many solids of a given thickness. The shelling can be done in any orientation and is extremely useful when calculating reserves level by level. It is also useful as the basis for future stope design. For example, given the one large mineable block, you could shell this block by level. Next, you could slice these shells vertically, creating stope and pillar blocks.

Ensure that your triangulations, both the original triangulation and the resulting triangulations, are legitimate via the Check option found in Triangle

Utility or Triangle Solid.

In a drift and fill example, the Shells option is invaluable for creating triangulations representing each advance along a drift. In this scenario, select the cross-cut centreline as the "Section Line" in the Shelling Parameters panel as shown:

1.6.2 Primitives

Primitives were discussed briefly in Section 1.1.1. You MUST NOT apply primitives to lines that have duplicate points, bow-ties (forward, then reverse digitising), or points standing by themselves. The result will be very strange-looking primitives, primitives that look OK but on hard copy will be corrupted, or will corrupt the coordinates of the plot file, resulting in little or nothing being plotted.

The best way to check for duplicate points is to label the points using Analyse - Label - Sequence.

1.6.3 Features

Exploring the Features option might prove useful for some design functions. Using a feature to digitize by will ensure that the entities are properly stored in the correct layer, organised by group, name, and feature, and contain the proper line style.

A feature is set up using the Design - Feature Edit - Create option (details are provided in the online reference manual). If you intend to create a polygon, ensure that you check the "Create closed polygon" option in the Object attributes for Name panel. If digitising a line, ensure you check the "Create new object on cancel" option in the same panel. If you wish the points to be connected, be sure to check the "Connect points as string" on the Digitising for Name panel.

An advantage of using Features is that an entity created with a feature will contain that feature name as an attribute, which beceomes a handy selection criteria tool.

When converting old level maps, you could set up a feature that prompts for both the back and floor elevations. You might elect to store the sill elevation as the Z value and the back elevation as the W value. You can then key off these two values when creating the back and floor elevation surfaces.

1.6.4 Costings

As the design progresses or is completed, you might want to investigate initial figures on cost and time. This is done via UG Development - Costing. If you select this option, you will see the panel:

Note that the "X" and "Y" are simply the width and height of the entity. The terms "Section 1", "Section 2", and so on can simply be read as "scenario 1", "scenario 2". You are then prompted to select the object(s). In our drift and fill example, we selected by group the cross-cuts on the 5700 level, panel 1.

In the report window, you will see the two scenarios with associated data:

This report shows why you objects should be named and described. This information, if saved to a file, can then be imported into a spreadsheet.

The Costing option reports on the lines you give it. So if you have cross-cuts passing through a wall outline of a main drift to connect to the main drift centreline, you are adding to the reported numbers.

SECTION 2: Survey, Ore Control, Reserves

2.1 Survey

Like stope design, UG survey is relatively mine-specific.

2.1.1 Data Collectors

The names and attributes of various styles of data collectors are stored in your perif.setup file, found in the resources area (generally $ENVIS_RESO). When you selcelt Survey - Surveying - Setup, the list of instruments is derived from this perif.setup file. Data collectors are connected directly to the workstation, allowing direct transfer of data between the collector and the workstation.

2.1.2 Download and Upload

If you want to transfer data FROM the data collector to the workstation, select the Surveying - Download option. If you want to transfer data FROM the workstation to the data collector, select Surveying - Upload. Prior to using the Upload option, you must select Surveying – Create, which creates the file that will then be transferred to the data collector. If you use the Create option, it is recommended that you first name the points in the object(s) by name and/or w-tag. This can be done using Point Edit - Name and Point Edit - W

Tag. Also see the Attribute Edit - W Tag (sub-menu) options. The names and tags are attached to the data

exported to the data collector.

After using the Download option, you must select Surveying – Coordinates, which reads the file that has been transferred from the data collector and displays the data on the Envisage screen (as objects in a layer). If you are using a Geodimeter, after using Download, select the Surveying - Reduction option which reduces the raw data. After reducing the data, then select Coordinates to display the data. The Reduction option requires that you have a survey station library, which is created, accessed, or edited using options under the

Stations and Library sub-menus in the Survey - Surveying menu.

The Coordinates option can now be used to import standard ASCII files if the ASCII type is chosen as the “instrument type” in the initial Survey - Surveying - Setup. You will be prompted to select the relevant ASCII file (from your current working directory) and then you will need to specify the order of the fields as per the following table:

A very important file used by the Coordinates option is called survey.codes, as shown in Appendix D. This file is used to set attributes of the survey points and lines based on the comments in the data collector.

2.1.3 String Editing

String editing, or editing of lines and polygons that have been downloaded from a data collector, is done via options found in the Design menu. Two useful options found in the Point Insert menu - Insert and Replace

String allow you to update an as-built with the latest survey information. This guarantees that the lines and

polygons that you create in the survey context are valid in terms of creating a triangulation (e.g. no duplicate points, no bow-ties, no unconnected line segments etc.).

For example, if we wish to extend an as-built with some new surveys, the original as-built and the survey points may look like this (as-built shows point sequence):

Insert replaces ONE line segment with one or more line segments. Begin by selecting the object containing

the line segment to be modified. Next, select the segment to be replaced. You will see an "S" and an "E" which refer to start and end, respectively. When digitising multiple points, you must always digitise from the start to the end. After selecting the as-built, then the face segment, you will see:

Replace String replaces MULTIPLE line segments with one or more line segments. Begin by selecting the

object, then the start and ending points. It is critical that you pick the start and end points in the same direction as the point sequence (use Analyse - Label - Sequence to check). If you do not, the resulting polygon will include your newly digitised points and only a fraction of the original object. Check the highlighted preview string before you click on Retain in the confirm box. After selecting the object, then the start and end points:

If the points you are inserting into the existing object have been loaded into Envisage via the Coordinates option, they are probably all one object. If this is the case, and there are many points you do not wish to re-digitise, use the “Track Section of Existing Line” icon found in the ‘Digitise’ toolbar:

Note that sometimes it is necessary to track in the reverse direction to the string sequence: to do this, simply hit the [Spacebar] of the keyboard once.

2.1.4 Cavity Monitoring System

Data from a cavity monitoring system, such as Optech, can be imported into an Envisage layer and triangulated in a simple process.

Data can be imported as a DXF (3D faces) or an x-y-z file. The latter is generally more efficient and easier to use, and will be described here.

1. The x-y-z file will have been partly processed using the Optech software, and will contain header and footer information that is not needed, so this is removed via an editor or script. See Appendix C for an example of the x-y-z file containing header and footer information.

2. This x-y-z file, minus the header and footer, also contains a line of information between each shot, beginning with "ELEV" followed by two other fields. This line must be replaced by a blank. This step can be combined with step 1.

3. The x-y-z file, devoid of header and footer comments and with blank lines between each shot, is now loaded into an Envisage layer via File - Import Export - Import ASCII. Fill out the tabbed panel as follows (allowing for the format of your data):

4. Once the data is on the screen, it can be filtered using Object

Edit - Filter. Be sure to select

"3D Filter" from the Filter panel. Try a filter value of 0.01 as the minimum, and 0.1 as the maximum, depending on the density of the points. Generally the 0.1 setting works best with no substantial loss of accuracy. (Filtering the data is highly

recommended as a single Optech setup can generate 20-40,000 points.)

5. The imported polygons will be open and should be closed via Attribute Edit - Close before triangulating. 6. Create a solid triangulation from the Optech lines. Watch for points close to the instrument location. 7. If you have several setups to model and then connect, try modelling each separately, defining the

2.2 Ore Control

Ore control methods used in underground mines around the world vary. This section outlines three methods that might be applicable to your site.

2.2.1 Blast Design

Some mines might assay the cuttings from the blast holes. In the following example, we will briefly look at how lab assays can be merged with the blast hole information stored in a database.

Merging Assays

We begin with the VCR example in which we have designed both the stope and the blast layouts. If you look at the database containing the blast holes, you will see the SAMPLE record storing DEPTH, CU, and AU fields. The name of the blast plus the depth of the sample interval together create a unique ID for each sample. Therefore, the lab must report hole name and sample depth alongside each record of assay information. The file from the lab might look like the following:

1 ROW0183 40.0 0.010 1 ROW0183 50.0 0.522 1 ROW0183 60.0 0.126

where the "1" is a record flag (optional if only one record is being processed), "ROW0183" is the name of the blast hole, "40.0" is the depth, and "0.010" is the gold grade. A fifth column might contain the copper grade and so on.

Various methods allow for merging this assay data with the location data stored in the database. A script-based tool called "DATUPD," (database update) is used in this example. The DATUPD system is designed to search and read assay data stored in a holding or "tank" area that was placed there by the assay lab. When executed either manually or automatically, the DATUPD program attempts to find matches between the assay data stored in the tank file and the location data stored in the database. In the instance of a successful match, the database assay field(s) are updated and the assay data stored in the tank area can be deleted. If no match is made, a file is created containing non-matched data (to be looked in during the next run of

DATUPD). An example of a DATUPD script file can be found in Appendix B.

Displaying Blast Holes with Assays

To display the blast holes, with the traces color-coded by assay values, or for using the blast holes in grade estimation, you must resort to a bit of trickery. A standard underground blast hole database, with datasheet UGB in our example is very much like that of a standard exploration drilling database in appearance. The UGB database does not contain synonyms nor is it associated with a DSR database (system-defined, user-created database containing down-hole survey information).

To display the blast holes via the Geology - Drilling menus, you must assign synonyms to the UGB datasheet and create a DSR database for the blast holes using ISIS (the database editing utility). In ISIS, select File - Open Design to bring up the UGB datasheet.

Assign the standard synonyms of Holeid, Easting, Northing, Elevation for the Header tab, Survey Depth, Bearing and Inclination for the Survey tab, and Bottom Depth for the Assay tab. Then select File - Save

Design As to save the synonym information.

Create the DSR database by selecting Utilities - Create

Desurvey Database. In the panel, select the UGB

datasheet (the design name) and the database name, e.g. VCR, and select, "Tangent with Given Intervals" using a "step" of 4 and "tolerance" of 1:

The color-coded traces of the blast holes can be used as a visual guide for loading the holes. This data can also be composited for use in resource estimation, either polygonal or via block modeling.

2.2.2 Channel Samples

Channel samples are created, displayed, and edited in the Geology - Channel Sampling menu. Channel samples, like underground blast holes, are concurrently stored in a channel sample database which means that as you add, edit, and delete channel samples, you are also updating a database.

Before creating a channel sample, you must already have a datasheet for storing the channel samples; we recommend using CHA as the name. The datasheet is created using Channel Sampling - Datasheet. Channel samples consist of a channel containing one or more samples within it. Channel samples can have one orientation, or multiple inflections, based on each sample within the channel. Channel samples can be linear or planar. A planar channel sample consists of both length and height. Long holes drilled out of the rib or the face are an example of a linear channel sample containing multiple samples, but having only one bearing and inclination. Chip samples taken along the rib are an example of a linear channel sample containing multiple samples, and having varying bearing and inclination along the length of the channel sample. A panel sample consisting of multiple (then composited to one value) pick samples at a face is an example of a planar channel sample.

The fundamental steps of creating and working with a channel sample are: • Open a database. If one does not exist, you will be queried for it. • The Location option is used to actually digitise the channel on the screen. • You generally click on CANCEL on the Survey Library Name panel. • In the Channel to Edit panel, enter

the name of the channel, e.g,, 5700_1_X07. It is recommended that you check "Verify channel graphically" so that you will see what you are creating on the screen: • If you are digitising a channel

sample which will have varying

down-channel bearing and inclination, select "Use individual Sample Orientations" on the Channel Station panel, otherwise, use the default "Use global Channel orientation" option.

• On the Channel Station panel, click on the DIGITISE button, and begin digitising the channel sample. Cancel when finished, and on the Channel Station panel, you will see the results of your digitising:

• Select Attributes to enter the grades into the channel samples. This works well for a few samples spread across multiple days. For many entries, it is better to use a DATUPD script and the assay file from the lab which are shown in Appendix E.

• Use the Select option to load all or selected channels to the screen.

• If you use the Label On option, it is recommended that for just one value to post, you select Field #3 on the Channel Labeling panel; this puts the sample value approximately at the mid-point of the sample. • Use the Composite option in conjunction with an