Technical risk assessment for the safe design of a man-rider chair lift system

Abstract

Underground mining is a difficult area for miners to work. Miners must go to the working faces by walking, which is not only time consuming but also physically demanding. In mines, a man-rider chair lift system (MRCL) has been developed to alleviate the strain stresses caused by walking lengthy and uneven distances up to the working faces. All parameters, including horizontal and vertical distances, variation and inclination of underground mines, slope forces considering the weight of persons and chair, forces acting towards return and drive unit, curves angles, power to operate, and rope safety factor, are calculated mathematically while modelling a man-rider chair lift system for both the installation and extension phases. We analyzed the analytical approach in conjunction with practical installation of the man-rider chair lift system to establish if the installation and extension of MRCL is genuinely feasible in the current scenario. We also created a simulation model of steel wire rope in Creo 8.0 for analyzing the various stresses on it with the Ansys R 16.2 software. In both phase I and phase II, the factor of safety is above that recommended, and the system is a hundred percent reliable, risk-free, and safe for operation.