Geotechnical News • June 2015
23
GEOTECHNICAL INSTRUMENTATION NEWS
Response/ Closure
Simon Maddison
It is very positive to hear of Adam
and Matt’s practical experiences with
using wireless mesh for monitoring in
the extremely demanding and special-
ised domain of mining. This is pre-
cisely the sort of circumstance where
mesh shows its strengths in terms of
ease of deployment, robustness and
flexibility – but properties that are also
indispensible in many if not most geo-
technical monitoring applications.
They make some very valuable points
relating to wireless frequency and
power. There are limitations on certain
frequencies in many countries, as well
as specific radiated power limits, both
factors which are generally treated
much more liberally in North America
in comparison to Europe for example!
This is a challenge for suppliers
operating in international markets in
terms of what equipment operating
frequency and power is supplied to
reach the largest possible range of
customers. For this reason 2.4GHz is
probably the most favoured frequency.
For data backhaul, it is correct in our
experience that it is necessary to work
with whatever options are available
when underground. However with a
flexible gateway solution, it should
be possible to hook up to whatever
transmission media is available, using
industrial grade communications inter-
face equipment. We have provided
a multiplicity of such solutions for a
range of installations in metro railway
tunnels, including the use of solid state
industrial PC’s for storage and even
rendering of data for local access.
My final point is that there are a
number of emerging wireless monitor-
ing companies, often with claims that
cannot be backed up or where perfor-
mance is not as stated. I fully endorse
the conclusion regarding wireless
geotechnical monitoring solutions, but
go further. Wireless should be a prime
choice but only one that has been
shown to really work; then and only
then can one say there are now avail-
able leading-edge solutions support-
ing 100+ node networks and running
for up to 15 years on a single battery
reporting every 20 minutes and with
stable precise data in a tough and busy
mining or geotechnical environment.
Simon Maddison, Senceive Ltd.
Hurlingham Studios, Ranelagh
Gardens, London SW6 3PA,
England
Tel: +44 7679 5720 email:
Le MCIF est désor-
mais disponible en
français. Pour rester
au fait de l’état ac-
tuel de la pratique et
fournir des renvois
cohérents et à jour
au Code national du
bâtiment du Canada
(CNBC 2005) et au
Code canadien sur
le calcul des ponts
routiers (à CCCPR
2000 et 2005), une
équipe de 17 experts
a préparé le MCIF
2013.
ISBN 978-0-920505-55-7
488 pages.
Prix de catalogue:
280,00 $CDN
Prix pour les membres
de la SCG : 200,00 $CDN
Prix pour les étudiants :
135,00 $CDN
Available from/Disponible chez
BiTech Publishers Ltd.
CANADA
The CFEM (2006) was
prepared by a team
of 17 contributors to
keep abreast of current
state-of-practice and
to provide a consistent
and up-to-date cross-
reference to the Na-
tional Building Code of
Canada (NBCC2005)
and the Canadian
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Code (CHBDC 2000
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intent and performance
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CANADA
MANUEL
CANADIEN
D’INGÉNIERIE
DES FONDATIONS
4eÉDITION
SOCIÉTÉCANADIENNEDEGÉOTECHNIQUE 2013
CANADA
4thEDITION
CANADIANGEOTECHNICALSOCIETY 2006
CANADIAN
FOUNDATION
ENGINEERING
MANUAL
canadian FOUndaTiOn
EnGinEERinG ManUaL
4TH EdiTiOn, 2006
Publications of the Canadian Geotechnical Society
ISBN 978-0-920505-28-7
504 pages.
Catalogue price:
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CGS Members
$200.00 CAD
Student price :
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ManUEL canadiEn
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