- SHOTPlus™ Variant:
- Surface
- Version:
- 6.6.1 and above
- KBA Summary:
- This Knowledge Base Article details the process of creating graphical charging rules
Summary
Graphical Charging Rules enable SHOTPlus™ users to create and edit simple, or complex, charging rules using a graphical user interface.
Users can select to use either standard tabulated rules, or Graphical Charging Rules. To activate Graphical Charging Rules for a SHOTPlus™ file or template:
- Select Edit > Blast properties from the main toolbar.
- Select Loading rules from the list on the left hand side of the the Edit blast properties dialog box.
- Active Graphical Charging Rules by checking the Use graphical charging rules checkbox.
- Select OK.
Information
The following Settings, related to Graphical Charging Rules, can be adjusted from within Edit blast properties:
- Minimum Deck Length for Wet Side Loading
- Set the minimum deck length for wet sides loading, where a wet side alternative product is specified in a dry loading rule. See Dry Loading Rules in the Terminology section of this Knowledge Base Article for more information.
- Minimum Deck length for all Rules
- Set the minimum deck length for all loading rules, where conditions may cause alternative explosive decks.
Max hole depth defines the maximum hole depth for which a rule will be applied.
For example, if the Max hole depth for a rule is set to 50 m, it will not be applied to holes with a design length, or actual length, >50 m.
Information
Once a rule has been applied to a hole, the loading design will be adjusted to suit the depth of that hole. Unless another rule is applied to that hole based on measurements.
Graphical charging rules use Ranges to describe how the deck structure for a rule should change with hole depth.
Each Range is made up of a number of decks, and a minimum and maximum hole length. The minimum and maximum hole lengths are represented on the graphical interface by red labels.
The length of each deck is specified for both the minimum and maximum lengths within the range and this defines how the deck lengths change with hole lengths within that Range. For example, if a deck is set to 2.5 m at a hole length of 10 m, and 22.5 m at a hole length of 50 m this deck will incrementally increase as the hole depth increases.
Each Range has a unique deck structure and additional Ranges can be added to each rule at the depth(s) where the deck structure for the rule needs to change e.g. when deck(s) will be added and/or removed.
Ranges are represented by tabs in the Edit charging rule dialog box.
Sub Length
Sub lengths are used to define the point within a Range where the defined deck lengths are changed, but the overall deck structure remains the same. i.e. no deck(s) is added or removed.
For example, for a range with two decks (Stemming and ANFO), between 10.0 m and 20.0 m and a user wants the length of the stemming deck to increase between 10.0 m and 15.0 m and then stay consistent between 15.0 and 20.m a sub length would be added at 15.0 m.
Sub lengths are represented on the graphical interface by a blue diamond and a dashed line.
Graphical Charging Rules are applied to blastholes based on user-defined conditions, set when creating each rule.
The following conditions can be set for each discrete rule:
- Hole type - Select a single Hole type that a rule will apply to.
- Material type - Select a single Material type that a rule will apply to.
- Blasthole diameter - Select a range of blasthole diameters that a rule will apply to.
- Temperature - Select a range of temperatures that each rule will apply to.
- Water - Select the hole state that each rule will apply to (i.e. wet or dry).
Conditions for each rule do not need to be specified. If conditions for a rule are not specified, the rule will be applied based on the other, specified, conditions.
There cannot be two charging rules, in a single file, with identical conditions.
The order of rule application for Graphical Charging Rules is organised automatically by SHOTPlus™ based on the conditions in the following conditional order.
- Hole type.
- Material type.
- Diameter.
- Temperature.
- Hole state.
When viewing a list of rules, rules with like conditions are listed together. For example, in the below example both the 'Front Row - Wet Blastholes' and 'Front Row - Dry Blastholes' rules are applied to Hole type 1, all Material types, all diameters, and all temperatures. However, the 'Front Row - Wet Blastholes' rules only applies to Wet holes and the 'Front Row - Dry Blastholes' applies to Dry holes.
There are four main steps to creating a Graphical Charging Rule:
To create a new Graphical charging rule:
- Select the Edit loading rules button from the main toolbar.
- From the Edit loading rules dialog box, select New rule.
- From the Edit charging rule dialog box, define the name and required conditions for the rule, as required:
- Enter a Rule name;
- Specify a Hole type;
- Specify a Material type;
- Specify a Diameter range;
- Specify a Water state;
- Specify a Temperature range.
- Select Edit diameter.
- Enter the appropriate blasthole diameter.
- Select OK.
Maximum Hole Depth
Each charging rule must have a specified maximum hole depth. Holes that are deeper than the maximum specified hole depth will not have a loading rule applied. If not specified, the maximum hole depth will default to 50 m.
To set the maximum blasthole depth for a rule:
- Select the rule to edit from the Edit loading rules dialog box.
- Select Edit rule.
- From the Edit charging rule dialog box, select Max hole depth.
- Enter the appropriate maximum blasthole depth, in meters.
- Select OK.
- This will update the maximum range and will be reflected in the graphical interface.
Define Ranges
To define the ranges and deck structures for a rule:
- Select the inert product that should be loaded into shallow holes where no explosives will be loaded.
- Select Add range.
- Input the length below which no explosives should be loaded.
- Select OK.
- The rule will have been split the rule into two ranges. Select the second range, by clicking on the appropriate tab.
- Ensure the correct stemming, or inert, deck is selected for the top of the hole.
- Select Add after to add a deck below the existing stemming, or inert, deck.
- Select the product that should be loaded below the stemming, or inert, deck.
- Select the minimum length in the range.
- From the Edit sub range item dialog box edit the length distribution for the decks by entering the desired length for each deck.
- Ensure that the length distribution entered, matches the (minimum) length for the range, by noting the remaining length (this should be 0.0 m).
- Select OK.
- Select the maximum length in the range.
- From the Edit sub range item dialog box edit the length distribution for the decks by entering the desired length for each deck.
- Add subsequent ranges as required.
Sub lengths
to add a Sub length to a range:
- Select the desired range, by selecting the appropriate tab.
- Select Add sub length.
- From the Edit sub range item dialog box, enter the desired Sub length.
- Enter the desired length for all decks, equal to the desired Sub length.
- To finish, select:
- OK - To accept the Sub length and return to the rule graphical interface; or
- Add and new - To accept the Sub length and add another Sub length via the Edit sub range item dialog box.
The Test rules functionality in SHOTPlus™ enables users to ensure the correct rules are being applied to blastholes based on the condition for each hole, and the conditions specified for each rule.
To test rules:
- Select Test rules from the Edit loading rules dialog box.
- Edit the hole properties by adjusting the input boxes as required.
- Check that the correct rule, and expected loading is being applied to the hole based on the conditions specified.
- To finish, select OK.
Graphical charging rules enable users to view how the charging design for a rule changes with hole depth.
By default, the charging diagram shown when editing a charging rule, displays the loading design for the Maximum hole depth specified. However, users can view how this design changes with depth through the graphical interface using the view loading tool. To use the view loading tool:
- Select the Edit loading rules button from the main toolbar.
- Select the desired rule from the Edit loading rules dialog box.
- Select Edit rules.
- Select the view loading tool.
- Using the cursor, navigate along the length of the graphical interface, to change what is shown in the charging diagram.
- Using the cursor navigate to the desired length on the graphical interface and click to "freeze" the charging diagram at a certain length. To "unfreeze" click the graphical interface again.
Graphical charging rules enable users to edit ranges and sub lengths via the graphical interface.
To edit ranges and sub lengths via the graphical interface:
- Select the Edit loading rules button from the main toolbar.
- Select the desired rule from the Edit loading rules dialog box.
- Select Edit rule.
- Ensure the cursor tool is select.
- Hover over the range (red label) or sub length (blue diamond) until the cursor changes.
- Click on the range or sub length and drag to the new desired depth.
Using graphical charging rules the top stemming deck for each length can be set using a target Scaled Depth of Burial (SDOB).
- Select the Edit loading rules button from the main toolbar.
- Select the desired rule from the Edit loading rules dialog box.
- Select Edit rule.
- Select the length (minimum, maximum, or sub length) to be edited.
- From the Edit sub range item dialog box, input the Target SDOB.
- Select Solve. This will adjust the top two deck lengths to achieve the desired SDOB.
- To finish, select OK to accept the deck lengths and close the Edit sub range item dialog box.
Graphical charging rules enable users to apply a Dry loading buffer to charging rules for dry holes.
Where applied, the Dry loading buffer will load a user-selected alternative, wet-hole suitable, explosive product into a blasthole where wet sides have been recorded.
For example, the below loading diagram shows a blasthole with a dry hole rule applied and wet sides measured to 2.0 m. Based on a 1.0 m buffer, the hole has been loaded with 3.0 m (2.0 m wet sides + 1.0 m buffer) of, wet-hole suitable, Fortis™ Advantage. Beyond the wet sides, the hole has been loaded with the original bulk explosive selected, ANFO.
To enable the Dry loading buffer:
- Select the Edit loading rules button from the main toolbar.
- Select the desired rule from the Edit loading rules dialog box.
- Select Edit rule.
- Ensure the rule is set to Dry holes (dry loading buffer is only applicable for dry hole loading rules).
- Select the Enable wet sides loading checkbox.
- Specify the Dry buffer, i.e. the height above recorded wet sides that the selected wet hole product should be loaded to.
- Select the alternative Wet product.
Information
Only wet-hole suitable products can be selected as Dry loading buffer wet product alternatives.