What Are Autonomous Dumptrucks And Are They The Future?
The future is a moving target, and so it is not always easy to tell which highly ambitious visions of where a market sector is going will ultimately come to pass and which are simply clean room pipe dreams of various research and development departments.
One of the most interesting pushes forward in the field of dumptrucks specifically is a push towards equipment that is both primarily powered by electricity and is also autonomous to at least some degree.
This culminated in an announcement by Leibharr in July 2024 of a fleet of autonomous electric-powered giant haul trucks designed for the Australian mining sector.
Mining dumptrucks are typically good places to start with both autonomous technology and battery electric vehicles, as they are huge industrial vehicles that would use a lot of fuel otherwise, have fairly lengthy but predictable routes and are heavy enough machines that the weight of batteries is not a major concern.
Autonomous machinery is a core component of a collection of industrial revolutions often collectively known as Industry 4.0, a series of data-driven technologies that allow for more efficient operations in environments that can be largely controlled.
Where that can become an issue with many industrial sites where heavy industry is needed is that these sites are not always as controllable as an indoor manufacturing plant or factory would be, which means that autonomous sensors need to do more to maintain a safe working environment.
This requires the increased use of technologies such as LIDAR, and increased data collection and processing of sensors to ensure that an autonomous vehicle the size of a dumptruck can operate safely.
At first, this will likely mean that automation is used as an assistant or adjunct to a human driver, who remains at the wheel at all times ready to take over in case there is an issue.
However, given that battery electric technologies are only getting more capable and automation is becoming increasingly sophisticated, this futuristic viewpoint may not be too far from reality.
