Electronic Blast Detonation System

Omnia Group’s BME launched AXXIS Titanium, which it described as the world’s most advanced electronic blast detonation system. The system uses dual capacitors and dual voltage, which allows for low-voltage logging to avoid any chance of accidental detonation. Blasts are initiated by a robust, encrypted blast command, ensuring detonators all fi re as planned. Each detonator must receive the correct, encrypted fi ring sequence from the blasting equipment. This makes the detonators resistant to electromagnetic pulses caused by the blast.

The ASIC chip has more memory and processing speed, facilitating easier timing and centralized programming. It achieves lower power consumption so more detonators can be initiated per blast. The system can now manage 1,000 detonators per blasting box. Up to 20 blasting boxes can be linked and synchronized through hard wiring, for initiating up to 20,000 electronic detonators in a single blast.

Ease of use and on-bench logging are the key benefits of AXXIS Titanium, the company said. “Everything is built into the logger, which can now do the programming, scanning and testing,” said Hennie du Preez, manager, AXXIS support, BME. “After the detonators have been programmed, you can start up the controller from the view site and blast within two minutes.”

The system offers 0.02% error rate for fi ring accuracy, giving consistent, quality blasts for better fragmentation. The downstream benefits of improved fragmentation include a reduced carbon footprint, BME reported. Accurate blast design and initiation also allows mines to stay within regulatory limits on vibration control. The solution can be integrated with BLASTMAP blast-planning software and the XPLOLOG platform for cloud-based storage for post-blast analysis.

The system is certified in Australia, Asia Pacific and the United States. Training is offered. For operations that do not require large-blast capability, the truncated AXXIS Silver is offered. It has the same microchip, safety features and ease of use as AXXIS Titanium.

For more information: https://www.BME.co.za