Development of 'Charging Amount Planning System' to Streamline Blasting Excavation in Mountain Tunnel Construction

Okumura Corporation (Headquarters: Abeno-ku, Osaka, President: Takanori Okumura), in collaboration with JMA Systems Corporation (Headquarters: Minato-ku, Tokyo, President: Takeshi Sakakura) and Acroquest Technology Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Kohoku-ku, Yokohama, President: Ryu Shinmen), has developed the 'Charging Amount Planning System', which uses AI to plan the appropriate charging amount for blasting excavation in mountain tunnel construction. This will lead to the stabilization of finished shape quality in blasting excavation without relying on skilled workers.

[Background]

In blasting excavation for mountain tunnel construction, skilled workers check the condition of the bedrock on the excavation face and plan the blasting pattern (drilling arrangement of charging holes and charging amount) based on their experience. The finished shape of the blasting excavation tends to depend heavily on the skill of the workers. On the other hand, addressing productivity improvement and the decline in the number of skilled workers has become an important issue in mountain tunnel construction. To tackle these issues, ICT construction technologies, such as computer jumbos, are being actively introduced to construction sites. We decided to develop a technology that can plan an appropriate blasting pattern according to the bedrock condition without relying on the skill of experienced workers by utilizing various data acquired through these ICT construction technologies.

[Overview and Features]

Based on drilling data acquired from a computer jumbo, this system uses an AI model trained on past construction data to plan the appropriate charging amount for each charging hole through three steps: '1. Drilling data acquisition and editing', '2. Charging amount inference execution', and '3. Inference result display and output'. It can plan the charging amount for the entire cross-section in a short time of about 5 to 10 minutes, from acquiring drilling data to displaying the inference results.

Overview of Charging Amount Planning System

1. Drilling data acquisition and editing

Transfer drilling data recorded in the computer jumbo to a dedicated PC, edit it as input data for the AI model, and then upload it to the cloud.

2. Charging amount inference execution

Calculate the planned charging amount for each charging hole using the AI model on the cloud, considering the number of detonator stages (initiation timing).

3. Display and output of inference results

Display the calculated planned charging amount graphically.

Display example of planned charging amount

[Field Verification]

We verified the inference results of the charging amount by this system in the 'FY2023-2025 Kubokawa Saga Road Mitsuke Tunnel Construction' ordered by the Shikoku Regional Development Bureau.

Targeting the outer peripheral charging holes, we compared the planned charging amount per charging hole by this system with the actual value determined by a skilled worker. In the cross-section of the blasting excavation where the excavation volume was close to the designed cross-section, the planned value was 340-390g compared to the actual value of 400g per charging hole. From this result, we confirmed that the charging amount calculated by this system is generally consistent with the actual value and that appropriate charging amounts can be planned.

Charging hole drilling situation by computer jumbo

[Future Development]

In the future, we will actively deploy this system to tunnel sites using computer jumbos, and strive to advance this system by working on accuracy verification and improvement of the AI model. At the same time, we will also work on developing a system to plan the drilling arrangement of charging holes, aiming to develop it into an advanced blasting pattern planning system integrated with the charging amount planning system.

[Inquiries Regarding This Matter] Okumura Corporation Technology Division, Technology Research Institute, Planning and Management Group TEL: 029-865-1521 FAX: 029-865-1522 E-mail: [email protected]

[Developer in Charge] Okumura Corporation Technology Division, Technology Research Institute, Civil Engineering Research Group Hajime Hamada