Optimising underground mine train scheduling: a mixed-integer linear programming approach

Abstract

Underground mines utilise a single-lane, bidirectional transportation network during ore extraction. Once the underground train has reached the elevator shaft, the ore is dumped into a skip and lifted to ground level for further handling. Congestion on the single-lane network is a significant problem for underground mines. Several studies have addressed the congestion problem on a double-lane network, but the proposed models do not apply to the single-lane, bidirectional network. First, a brief background is provided regarding the related studies. Second, a mathematical programming model is proposed to schedule trains on a single-lane, bidirectional transportation network. The model aims to improve the network's transportation throughput. The formulation of the mathematical programming model is verified and validated using historical data. The main contribution of this study is the formulation of a mathematical programming model for scheduling underground mine trains on a single-lane, bidirectional network.