Analysis of Excavation Methods for a Small-scale Mining Robot

The following paper is discussing the potential excavation systems and development of the production tool system of a small-scale mining robot. The limitations of power and weight increase the complexity of the design of the production tools immensely. Each excavation method's efficiency is depending on the material to be excavated, the available power and the machine's capability of handling the reaction forces. In this paper, different, individual excavationmethods will be compared and analysed for their applicability. This includes conventional, alternative and combined excavation tools. The individual technologies are assessed in terms of their efficiency and feasibility by surveying existing technologies and analytical studies. The contribution of this paper is a summary of viable excavation methods for small-scale robotic miners.