Connectivity is key in today’s world and thanks to the introduction of 5G in the market, boasting peak data speeds, ultra-low latency and massive network capacity, Huawei Technologies is now laying the groundwork for smarter operations in several industries with its 5G-enabled solutions.
Speaking at Huawei Connect 2022, Ken Hu, rotating chairman of Huawei, emphasised the company’s dedication to working with partners to help industry customers choose the right technology for their needs and make the most of it.
“To provide our customers with scenario-based solutions that truly meet their needs, we have to work side-by-side to truly understand the challenges in their industry,” says Hu.
With that, Huawei on Nov 9 announced that it has revolutionised the mining industry by introducing its ready-to-use 5G solutions for smart mining. While its 5G+AI (5G combined with artificial intelligence) powered mining solution has been deployed and globally commercialised a year ago, it is on Nov 9 that Huawei’s solutions have entered the stage of large-scale commercial use.
MineHarmony, Huawei’s in-house developed operating system (OS) dedicated to the industry, has made “solid progress” a year after its debut. MineHarmony OS is a joint innovation by Huawei and China Energy Investment Corporation. The system has already been deployed on 3,300 sets of equipment in 13 mines and one coal washery.
Mines around the world often face the issue of soiled production and information systems that are often manufactured by a wide range of vendors. Such variations make implementing service collaboration and data convergence difficult, essentially rendering intelligent mine development difficult if not impossible.
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The way Huawei sees it, the core of intelligent mining lies in establishing unified industry Internet architecture, along with a unified Internet of Things (IoT) OS. Such an OS provides unified access standards and specifications for a wide range of mining equipment and sensors. It also replaces several competing OS of multiple vendors while implementing the interconnection of mining equipment through unified interfaces and unified data formats.
This is Huawei’s MineHarmony and Mining IoT Solution, which includes MineHarmony OS. Through soft-bus technology, MineHarmony helps mining enterprises collect data in real time, thanks to 5G, synchronising the data with equipment and systems across scenarios. This builds a solid foundation for the development of an intelligent mine, truly ushering in the era of the Internet of Everything (IoE).
For example, the system has been deployed throughout the entire Wulanmulun (also known as Ulan Moran) Mine in Inner Mongolia, where significant progress has been made in connectivity, interface and data access. The operating system covers a multitude of innovative scenarios, including smart control of equipment, auto patrol of fixed sites, and online upgrade of equipment, the time for which has been shortened from one day to just four minutes.
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With MineHarmony, Huawei aims to support the mining industry and help digitalise certain processes within the mining business, which not only improves worker safety but also increases work efficiency and reduces carbon emissions.
As a cutting-edge industrial IoT OS, MineHarmony not only provides unified protocols for different equipment but also simplifies operations with unattended inspections. The system covers equipment of all sizes, and uses unified protocols, to enable data sharing between equipment and interconnectivity between users and devices.
Furthermore, 5G+AI video stitching technologies have enabled remote and precise control of mining machines, which in turn allows people working in offices to remotely control underground operations, thereby improving their work environment and safety.
With 5G transmitting real-time video of the main belts and AI algorithms accurately identifying anomalies, the system turns time-phased manual inspections into 24/7 intelligent monitoring, in addition to cutting the number of underground inspection personnel by 20%.
This mining solution is just one of Huawei’s many industry solutions that leverages on the power of 5G. Recently, Huawei has also launched its smart port solutions for the logistics industry.
5G smart port in Tianjin
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Tianjin port, Northern China’s largest port, is a vital hub for the nation’s Belt Road Initiative. It is working with Huawei to incorporate automation, AI and 5G into its operations to achieve better efficiency. Tianjin port and Huawei have jointly built an intelligent horizontal transport system that leverages cloud technology to enable a fleet of 76 unmanned vehicles to collaborate with each other.
Under the guidance of the BeiDou navigation satellite system, container trucks go to the automatic locking/ unlocking stations, according to the optimal driving route calculated in real-time, to unlock the containers, and then drive to the container yard.
This is all enabled through Huawei’s in-house developed A-based intelligent horizontal transportation system, which boasts the achievement of a series of “world’s first”, such as the large-scale commercial use of ultra-L4 driverless, the world’s first “5G+BeiDou” integration of ubiquitous intelligence, the world’s first self-sufficiency in green electricity and zero carbon emission and more.
Huawei believes that by revolutionising the industry and providing these digital solutions, its achievements provide a blueprint for other parts of the world to build intelligent and low-carbon ports.
Photos: Huawei
