The mines will soon be the people's history - thanks to new technologies. Towards better work in the mines is through industrial optics, a technique that can also be interesting for other industries. The same sort of technology found in video game.

Visibility is poor in the mines.  It is damp, cramped and badly lit.  There is one problem to the environment, and indeed even for the drivers.

It's stressful to worry about what's happening around the vehicle, says Kenth Johansson, CEO of Adopticum, a foundation that works to increase awareness of industrial optics.

In one project, funded by the Innovation Agency for Innovation Systems, looks at how the sensor monitoring can minimize the crash risk.

Mining Companies' vision is that no people should have to work underground.

Adopticum see the possibility that the road to a fully automated mining the safety of the drivers who still work underground.  The technique has advantages for those who work above ground.

We wanted to look at a how to combine different kinds of sensors mounted on the vehicle.  Those who govern should receive help and support to notice if there are people around, whether you're sitting in the cab or remote control, says Kenth Johansson.

The information the sensors collect may also be used as input to the machine control system in an automation solution.

It started as a pure mining projects with successful testing of optical sensors.  Adopticum sought funding from Vinnova, who wanted to see a broader project.

Maybe it has similar needs in different industries, perhaps there are clues to the solution all around.

It is often watertight bulkhead between industries, testifies Kenth Johansson, who has been on Ronnskarsverken, which also has an interest in industrial safety.  Interest is also found in heavy vehicular traffic above ground and the forest industry where stumps and berries can cause problems.

A fully automated process is not only the mining industry's vision, it is available in several branches of industry. Here are the big money to be made more efficient.

But you face all the time the same difficulty when you are picking out people who can identify problems and make decisions. You must replace her with something and we are not there yet, says Kenth Johansson.

Now Adopticum looking for a company that wants to help develop the system. Sensor technology has evolved rapidly in recent times, which allows for new types of solutions, according to Kenth Johansson.

Adopticum involves not only the mining companies, with Umea University and Lulea University of Technology.

Facts How the sensors

3D technologies include Microsoft's controller Kinect, which was developed to control the game console Xbox.  Instead of the controller can control the game by acting himself in front of a camera. The device uses light and a camera to measure the environment and quickly build up a 3D model of your computer.

Just read the sensors on mine vehicles distance to objects in the environment. On a display in the vehicle or control room, a three dimensional picture of what the sensors "see".

As it is shown in three dimensions, one can identify things that previously was not possible in 2D technology.