blast simulation evaluation and management

User Manual

JKSimBlast is a suite of powerful modular tools for the simulation and management of blasting data. 2DBench and StockView are stand-alone modules of JKSimBlast: 2DBench is used for the design of blasts in bench mining applications; and StockView is for the storage of the specifications of explosives and accessories. As the program developers do not control data creation, collection, analysis or interpretation, it is the sole responsibility of the user to verify that input data are accurate and appropriate, and that all conditions and outputs are reasonable and comply with any statutory requirements.

In no event will JKTech be liable for direct, indirect, special, incidental or consequential damages arising out of the use of or inability to use the software or documentation.

Copyright 1998 JKTech All rights reserved. Both the software and documentation of JKSimBlast, 2DBench and StockView are copyright.

JKTech Isles Road Indooroopilly Queensland Australia 4068

Telephone: (+61 7) 3365 5842 Facsimile: (+61 7) 3365 5900 Email: JKTech@jktech.com.au JKSimBlast@jktech.com.au Internet: http://www.jktech.com.au/ http://www.jktech.com.au/jktech/software/JKSimBlast/

Contents
Preface
Overview............................................................................. i

Chapter 1
1. General Functions ......................................................... 1 2. The Design Area ........................................................... 2 2.1. Screen Layout ................................................... 2 2.2 Design Option Layout ....................................... 3 3. Global Construction Tools............................................ 6 3.1 Selection Box ......................................................... 6 3.2 Selection Mask....................................................... 6 3.3 Goto Position dialog .............................................. 6 3.4 Anchor.................................................................... 7 3.5 Specify Zoom ......................................................... 7 3.6 Zoom in, Zoom out and Centre Design.................. 7 3.7 Selecting Closest Object ........................................ 7 3.8 Marking Holes........................................................ 7 3.9 Redraw ................................................................... 8 4. Query Options............................................................... 9 4.1 Object Query .......................................................... 9 4.2 Design Totals ....................................................... 10 4.3 Blast Parameters and Design Factors ................... 11 5. Loading , Saving & Exporting Designs ...................... 13 6. Reporting .................................................................... 15 6.1 Printing the design ............................................... 15 6.2 Reporting options via text files ............................ 16

Chapter 2
7. 2DBench - Design Input ............................................. 19 8. Area to be blasted........................................................ 20 8.1 String Creation to Define Blast Regions .............. 20 8.2 Importation of general string files ........................ 21 8.3 Editing Strings...................................................... 23 8.4 Setting options for lines and polygons. ................ 24 9. Blast Holes .................................................................. 25 9.1 Parameters ............................................................ 25 9.2 Drilling Holes and Patterns .................................. 25 9.3 Hole Editing ......................................................... 26 9.4 Labelling Holes .................................................... 27 9.5 Cut, Copy, Paste and Modify Holes ..................... 28 10. Loading Explosives and other decks......................... 29 10.1 Parameters .......................................................... 29 10.2 Loading Decks.................................................... 30 10.3 Editing Explosive Charges................................. 30 11. Downhole Delays...................................................... 31 11.1 Parameters .......................................................... 31 11.2 Inserting downhole delays.................................. 31 11.3 Editing Downhole Delays .................................. 32 12. Surface delays ........................................................... 33 12.1 Parameters .......................................................... 33 12.2 Tying holes......................................................... 33 12.3 Editing Surface Ties........................................... 34 13. Detonation Simulation .............................................. 35 13.1 Parameters .......................................................... 35 13.2 Run the simulation ............................................. 36

2DBench Preface

2DBench is a graphical software program for the design and editing of bench blast designs. It gives engineers and blasting personnel the ability to design and optimise the layout and initiation sequence of almost any type of bench blast, as most commonly used in open cut mining. It allows the designer to: layout a pattern of blastholes load explosive decks and other materials in the holes install downhole and surface delays, with primer and connection details simulate the detonation on screen import and export data and print the design Individual elements of the design are defined by the user, including hole dimensions, explosives, delays, connectors and boosters, and can be combined in a variety of design scenarios. 2DBench is a module of JKSimBlast, which is a framework for a suite of programs for data management in blasting, including design and simulation, analysis, data collection and referencing, performance evaluation, prediction and optimisation. Integration of the modules is achieved through data sharing via Microsoft Access databases. The open framework allows for other third party applications to be developed and incorporated into JKSimBlast, using the same databases for their own purposes. This approach provides the user with a mechanism to maximise the use of the data. More detail on JKSimBlast and its modules is contained in the various sections of this manual.

Overview

2DBench Preface

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2DBench - Open Cut Blast Design Editor

1. General Functions
2DBench incorporates several major functions: Design Functions which include grid size and grid orientation settings, definition of areas with strings functions, drilling mode functions, charging mode functions, tie up functions and detonation simulation. Editing Functions include the selection of objects (eg. marking functions), deleting objects (eg. holes, charge etc.), deleting strings, changing the attributes of objects (eg. visibility, colour etc.). Viewing functions include zoom in and out, specify zoom, go to position, centre design, redraw, query functions. The reporting functions include printer set up, print the design window and turning object text on/off for printing more information. Data organisation functions include Microsoft Access1 database storage plus exportation and importation of data via 3x3o-Pro2 files.

Chapter

1 2

Microsoft Access is a registered trademark of the Microsoft Corporation

3x3o-Pro is an open pit blast design, Analysis and Optimisation Program, superseded by 2DBench. Copyright JKTech.

2. The Design Area 2.1. Screen Layout

Figure 1 shows the screen layout (ie. working area) of 2DBench. The main window consists of a drawing area, title bar (which has some status information), menu bar, tool bar, status bar and scroll bar. This main window or drawing area is a plan view of a 3D world defined by grid coordinates (ie. Easting and Northing in metres). This coordinate system is symbolised by the grid lines shown. The menu bar contains all the functions available in 2DBench and it is divided into six items (ie. File, Edit, Mode, Parameters, View and Help) (see Appendix A for a description of these items). The tool bar consists of four items, the major design mode buttons which are associated with mode functions in the main menu bar; the parameters setting button which allow the user to set the properties of a design mode (ie. drilling, loading etc); the construction mode buttons which give the user some construction options available for design and the information mode buttons which allow the user to query a design. The status bar gives the user an indication of the current design mode and construction option as well as design properties such as current location, current construction line properties, current anchor line properties and design scale.
Title Bar Menu Bar Tool Bar Parameters Button Construction Mode Buttons Information Mode Buttons Selection Box 2D Cursor Scroll Bar Construction Line Parameter Information Bar

Major Mode Buttons

Anchor Line

Drawing Area Grid Lines

Grid Coordinates

Status Bar Major Mode Text Current Action Text Current Construction Line Bearing and Distance

Current Easting and Northing

Achor Bearing and Distance

Scale

Figure 1 Layout of the Main Window 2

The cursor is used to set the position for design actions or to select objects. The mouse is used to control movement of the cursor, and the left and right buttons are then used to determine the actions. Normally, the pointer is visible, and acts similar to a pointer in any other program. To access the cursor, press the spacebar, or move the pointer over the design area and click the left mouse button or press Enter. Moving the cursor now will show a change in the coordinates at the bottom right corner of the status bar. To exit the design area (change the cursor to the pointer) press the spacebar or click the right mouse button. Also, the cursor will temporarily change to the pointer if the mouse is moved outside the design area, so that toolbars, menus and dialog boxes can still be accessed. For example, this allows changes to be made in dialog boxes, perform an action and make further changes without actually leaving the design area. Unless otherwise specified, to perform an action while the cursor is active, press Enter or click the left mouse button.

2.2 Design Area Appearance

The appearance of the design area can be modified to the users preferences (i.e. setting mine coordinates, global coordinates, grid size, grid orientation etc.). A number of tools are available in 2DBench for this purpose and these are accessed via the View+Optionsmenu item (see Figure 2 )

Figure 2 Change options dialog

The Change options dialog allows the user to set up and modify the drawing area in which a design is to be created. This dialog contains nine options describing different aspects of the design layout as outlined in Table 1 .

Option Grid Size Text Position Object Colour Object Visibility Selection Box Grid Appearance Grid Origin Grid North Adjust Text Size

Description Activates the Grid and defines the size of grid intervals; East/West and North/South. Selects where object text is positioned in the design layout Selects the colour of the object type Selects object type to make visible or invisible Activates selection box or selection mask Selects the appearance of the grid lines Selects the new centre position of the grid Selects where North is pointing Adjusts some text sizes by a percentage

Table 1 Change options dialog description

The Text position option contains dialog boxes which allow the user to interactively select and position text around an object as shown in Figure 3. Note that the text will not appear until the relevant object visibility is turned on.

Figure 3 Text position dialog and options

The Object colour option allows the user to change the colour of all objects in the design layout. The standard colour palette dialog is shown in Figure 4.

Figure 4 Colour palette dialog

3. Global Construction Tools 3.1 Selection Box

Selection Box On/off The selection box allows the user to quickly select a square or rectangular region within the design area. It is toggled (ie. turned on/off) by clicking on the selection box icon in the tool bar or alternatively by accessing the options dialog via the View menu item.

3.2 Selection Mask

Selection Mask On/off The selection mask allows the user to select irregular regions (ie. polygons of up to 10 vertices) within the design area. It is toggled (ie. turned on/off) by clicking on the selection mask icon in the tool bar or alternatively by accessing the options dialog via the View menu item.

3.3 Goto Position dialog

The Move 2D cursor to location dialog (Figure 5) is activated via the View menu item. The position dialog allows the user to move the 2D cursor to a specific grid position. The user may move the 2D cursor to an absolute coordinate or to a position relative to the 2D cursor's current position. The relative move can be in Cartesian coordinates (eg. Easting, Northing and RL) or in spherical coordinates (eg. Bearing and length). To move to a location, click on the Move 2D cursor button. Note that this dialog also allows the user to carry out a design action at a specific location by clicking on the do Action button.

Figure 5 Cursor Location Dialog

3.4 Anchor
The Anchor is a measuring tool that allows the user to obtain bearings and distances from a start point to an end point. It is toggled by clicking on the Anchor icon in the tool bar. Anchor

3.5 Specify Zoom

This option is accessed via the View menu item. The new scale dialog is activated and it is shown in Figure 6. The user may change the scale and click on the apply button for the change to take place.

Figure 6 New scale option dialog

The user may also change the current scale by double clicking the scale shown in the status bar (see Figure 1).

3.6 Zoom in, Zoom out and Centre Design

These options are also accessed via the View menu item (e.g. View+Zoom in... ). The default value for both zooming in and out is twice of the current scale. (e.g. for a scale 1:750 ; 1:(750/2) for zooming in and 1:(750x2) for zooming out). If the selection or masking box is on, then the zoom in option will automatically zoom into the selected region. The user may also quickly zoom in and out of a region by using the shortcut keys [Z] and [Alt+Z] respectively. The centre design option is used to automatically centre on the screen all the objects of a design.

3.7 Selecting Closest Object

Pressing the [Home] key will move the cursor to the nearest object, depending on the current mode: either the closest point on a string, the centre of a hole, or the closest point on a surface tie.

3.8 Marking Holes

Applying changes to holes can be easily done with 2DBench editing functions. For changes to occur, holes should be selected, or marked. To mark holes, the following options are available in the Edit menu item:

 Marked all holes in the selection box or selection mask Unmarked all holes in the selection box or selection mask Swap marked state of holes Marked holes are shown with an M in the centre (see Figure 7 below)

Unmarked holes

Marked holes
Figure 7 View of marked and unmarked holes
Note

The hole nearest to the 2D cursor can be individually marked or unmarked by pressing the M and U keystroke buttons respectively.

3.9 Redraw
Redraw is used to update the current screen. This option is accessed via the View menu item.

4. Query Options
2DBench incorporates information functions that allow the user to check the properties and components of a design (e.g. hole lengths, hole diameters, explosive charges, in-hole delays, etc). These functions are divided into the individual object query function and the design totals function.

4.1 Object Query

The individual object query function is activated by clicking on the Information mode icon in the tool bar. This option allows the user to obtain information about the design for the different design modes available (e.g. area, holes, decks, in-hole delays, surface delays etc.). Move the cursor in the design area to show information on different objects; also, the mode can be changed while the information box is active. The information box is shown in Figure 8 below. In this case the user is inquiring about the deck information of particular holes.
The information mode icon is active

Information mode

Figure 8 Design Information dialog

Note

For multiple decks or in-hole delays in a hole, clicking the left mouse button will cycle through the individual items in the hole.
2DBench also displays a view of the hole section when querying decks and inhole delay information. Figure 9 shows a typical example.

Figure 9 Deck material information

4.2 Design Totals

The design totals information is activated via the View menu item (i.e. View+Object totals). This option allows the user to obtain a quick information summary of a complete design (See Figure 10). Click the tabs for summary information about the relevant objects for each mode. The Details button will give further information on selected objects on each tab.

Figure 10 Object totals dialog

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4.3 Blast Parameters and Design Factors

The user is also able to quickly view a summary of the current design blast parameters (Figure 11) and to calculate design factors, such as powder factor (Figure 12). These two options can be accessed via the View+Current blast parameters & View+Design Factors menu item.

Figure 11 Blast Design Parameters

Figure 12 Design Factors

The Design Factors are calculated for the design based on the current Blast Parameters, marked holes and the nearest polygon to the cursor. The parameters must first be accepted or saved via the Save button on the Hole

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Drilling Parameters dialog. To calculate powder or energy factors, the program uses the bench height and the polygon area to calculate the blast volume, then the rock density to calculate the tonnage, and finally the mass and energy of explosives in the marked holes to calculate the factors. Thus, new factors can be calculated by changing the hole marking or placing the cursor close to a different polygon.

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5. Loading, Saving & Exporting Designs

Designs can be loaded and saved via the File menu item.. The corresponding dialog boxes are shown in Figures 13 and 14.

Figure 13 Open Design Dialog

Figure 14 Save Design and more information dialog

When saving or opening a project, first select the database for the blast design. Click the Browse button, and then search for the folder and select the database file. To save a design to a new database. Select the folder and enter the name of the new database file in the file name.

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The overall blast design name and the names of the relevant design components should be specified to save the design. (Note: by pressing Enter after entering the overall design name, the relevant design option names are automatically added). The blast name can be any title for the blast, such as Bench A Shot B. The option names for Area, Holes, etc, can be the same as the blast name, or different to describe various options, particularly when used in combination in different scenarios. It is important to note that if no names are specified to the relevant design information combo boxes (ie. Area design name, Hole design name etc.), then that information will not be saved. A scenario is a combination of design options under a blast name. It is possible to have several scenarios for a single blast, which may have small or large differences between options used in the blast design. For example, a first blast scenario may contain a design for a V1 timing layout; a second scenario may contain the same area, holes and decks design options, but have a timing layout for row by row firing with different downhole and surface delays options. The user may also specify a new blasting scenario for the same overall design by choosing the item labelled new before saving. Selecting an existing scenario number will replace all design options associated with that scenario. Alternatively, a design can be opened as a combination of design options from other designs and databases. The more information button (Figure 14) allows the user to insert extra information about the overall design and individual blasting scenarios. For previous users of 3x3o-PRO, 2DBench allows designs to be exported to 3x3o-PRO for analysis. This is done via the File+Export menu item which activates the File Export dialog shown in Figure 15. Note that 3x3o-Pro project (*.gen) file extension is the default export file type for analysis in 3x3o-PRO.

Figure 15 Export data dialog

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6. Reporting 6.1 Printing the design

The blast design can be printed as shown on the screen, at the set scale, including any visible view options such as hole numbering or surface delays. Before printing a design, set the required options and position the design on the screen.

Figure 16 Print Design dialog.

Select Print Design Window from the File menu (Figure 16), and then select the printer from the list of available printers. If required, set the margins for the design on the page (these are in addition to the unprintable area around the edges of the paper). A logo and a comment box can be printed in any of the corners of the page. The logo is a bitmap file in the Auxfiles folder called Printlogo.bmp. This file can be replaced with any bitmap, such as the users company logo. The bitmap is printed at full size. The comment box can contain any text information to accompany the printed design, such as the blast name or the designers name, scale, etc. The configuration for a printer can be saved for further use at a later time. Click the save button, and then enter a descriptive name for the configuration

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(see Figure 17). Click OK to save the configuration. An existing setup can be recalled from the list of available configurations on the Print Design dialog. All printer configurations are saved in the file 2DBPrnConfigs.ini in the 2DBench folder. Different sets of options can be created for the same printer or different printers and stored in the file for later use.

Figure 17 Save printer configuration dialog.

6.2 Reporting options via text files

This option allows the user to export text files with particular information about the current design , namely: Drilling report Loading report Downhole summary Surface summary This option is available by accessing the Export Data dialog (Figure 18) via the File+Export menu item. Only data attached to marked holes will be exported. This allows the user to select which holes will be included in the reports. To report on the entire design, mark all holes via the Edit+Mark all holes menu item.

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Figure 18 Export data dialog.

The report files contain some information about the relevant blast design option, and then a table of data values for that option. The values are tab separated, and the files are suitable for uploading to a word processor or spreadsheet program for further processing, formatting and printing.

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7. 2DBench - Design Input

Within 2DBench, the creation of a design follows a systematic engineering approach, which can be divided into the following steps: Definition of the region to be blasted. Location of blast holes. Selection and loading of explosives. Selection and loading of downhole delays, connectors and boosters Selection and placement of surface delays and connectors. Simulation of the detonation sequence.

Chapter

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8. Area to be blasted
2DBench allows the user to define the blast design region with a number of CAD (computer aided design) functions. The procedure for defining the geometry of a blast design in 2DBench includes creating strings and polygons, and placing text labels on the design area.

Area Mode

8.1 String Creation to Define Blast Design Regions

The boundaries of a drilling region or the outline of a particular bench can be defined using the Area Mode function. This option is accessed via the Mode+Area menu item or alternatively by clicking on the Area Mode Icon (see left margin). The area mode function allows the user to create a string outline. A string is a collection of two or more points joined together by lines. Strings may either be opened or closed. A closed string is defined as starting and ending at a common point. An open string can consist of one or multiple line segments. There are two ways of creating a string outline to define the geometry of the area to be blasted, namely: Single line segment drawing: This method allows the user to draw single line segments to define a single line or a polygon. It is activated by clicking on the single line mode icon To draw a line, place the cursor at the position of the start of the line, click the mouse or press [Enter], move the cursor to the position of the end of the line and click again or press [Enter]. Multiple line segment drawing: This method allows the user to draw polygons by joining multiple lines. It is activated by clicking on the multiple line mode icon. To draw a polygon, place the cursor at the position of the start of the first side (the first point), click the mouse or press [Enter], move the cursor to the position of the end of the side (next point) and click again or press [Enter]. Repeat this for each succeeding point, and close the polygon by crossing any side.
Note

Single Line Mode

Multiple Line Mode

To stop the line creation, press the Esc Key or if a closed polygon needs to be created, then cross any of the earlier line segments with the current segment.

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Before and while a line or polygon is drawn, the user may specify a default level (i.e. Z value) via the Edit+Modify Default Level menu item. Figure 19 shows the corresponding dialog box.

Figure 19 Assign default level for area mode

All strings are assigned a label or number as they are created. To set the label, open the Line Properties dialog, Figure 20, from the Parameters menu or the current mode parameter button. Either select or enter a label to be assigned to the next string to be created, or select autonumber to use the sequence number (note: all strings are assigned a sequence number). Labels can be added to a list that can be saved in a parameters file, or a list can be retrieved from any parameters file and used in the current session.

Current mode parameter

Figure 20 Assign string labels

8.2 Importation of general string files

The program can also read general string files. A sample format is shown in Figure 21. The file consists of a number of comment lines and followed by four columns of information namely : Line ID, X, Y and Z coordinate. This format has been found to be the most general, and a number of mine design software packages are able to export string files (ASCII files) very similar to this or requiring very little modification.

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Figure 21 General string file format

A general string file can be imported by accessing the Import other data formats dialog via the File+Import menu item.

Figure 22 Import data dialog

Once a file has been selected, 2DBench invokes the general string file format dialog to specify the correct location of data (i.e. Column 1 is the Line ID, remaining columns are the Easting etc..) Figure 23.

Figure 23 General string file format dialog. 22

The last dialog shows the strings that have been found in the file, and allows the user to select the strings to be imported and to change the line labels and colours to suit particular requirements (Figure 24).

Figure 24 General string import dialog

8.3 Editing Strings

2DBench allows the user to cut, copy, paste, delete and modify lines and polygons. These functions are available in the Edit menu item. To cut/copy, and paste a line or polygon , move the cursor near the object and go to the Edit+cut/copy nearest line menu item; to paste the object, select either Paste Absolute to place it in its original position, or Paste Relative to place it with respect to the cursor. When copying a line or a label, the offset between the cursor and the object is taken into account. Therefore, before copying objects for Paste Relative, place the cursor at an identifiable point on one of the objects, such as the end of a line. Use the [Home] key to accurately place the cursor. Then, before pasting, place the cursor at the new position of that point. The objects can also be copied to an external application , such as a spreadsheet. First, copy the object in 2DBench. Then start the application and paste the data, which will appear as a text and numeric description of the object. This data can then be modified or replaced, and copied back to 2DBench. The reference point in the data should be taken into account when positioning the cursor before pasting. Lines and polygons may be deleted by using the Backspace key nearer the object, or alternatively by choosing the Edit+delete all lines menu item. To modify a line and/or a polygon, move the cursor nearer the object in question, then activate the change nearest line dialog box via the Edit+modify nearest line menu item (Figure 25). This dialog allows the user to make specific changes about line segments or polygons; for example the user can select a point near the cursor and delete it or change its coordinates. Click Change Line to enter any new changes, Prev or Next to select the next available point or line, and NEW Point to select a new point or line close to the cursor. Delete Point will remove the current point from the line.

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Figure 25 Change nearest line dialog

8.4 Setting options for lines and polygons.

This option allows the user the specify the colour of a line or polygon to be drawn. Colour changes before drawing are carried out in the Change options dialog shown in Figure 26, and can be accessed via the View+Options menu item.

Figure 26 Change options dialog

String labels can also be made visible from the Options dialog and names changed via the Edit+Modify nearest line menu item.

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9. Blast Holes
The creation and positioning of blast holes is carried out by accessing the drilling mode function available in the Mode+drill menu item or alternatively by clicking on the drilling mode icon.

Drilling Mode

9.1 Parameters
Before holes are created, it is essential to establish the geometry of the pattern and properties of holes by accessing the hole drilling option dialog (Figure 27) via the Parameters+drilling menu item or alternatively by clicking on the current mode parameter icon. Current mode parameter

Figure 27 Hole drilling dialog

9.2 Drilling Holes and Patterns

The drilling mode allows the user to position individual holes or insert groups of holes from pre-defined drilling patterns (e.g. staggered or square).

Single Hole

Pattern Drilling

Polygon Fill

Line Drilling

Individual holes can be positioned using the single hole mode which is activated by clicking on the single hole icon in the tool bar.

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Predefined patterns are inserted by either using the pattern drilling mode, the polygon fill mode or the line drilling mode. These options are activated by clicking on the respective icons. To drill a single hole, place the cursor at the hole position and click or press [Enter]. To drill a pattern, place the cursor at the position of the first hole in the first row and click (or press [Enter]). Then, move the cursor in the direction of the row (the bearing is shown on the status bar) and click again. Finally, move the cursor to the side of the line for the burden direction and click to create the pattern. To drill a pattern in a polygon, place the cursor near a side and click. The holes will be drilled at the burden and spacing within the polygon, with a row of holes on that side and with a hole at the end of that side closest to the cursor. To drill a pattern along a line, place the cursor near the end of the line for the first hole and click. Then select the direction along the line and click again. Finally, indicate the burden direction and click to create the pattern.

9.3 Hole Editing

Applying changes to holes can be easily done with 2DBench editing functions. For changes to occur, holes should be marked (see Section 3.8). Once the user has identified holes to which changes are to be applied, then the user may recall the drilling parameters dialog (Figure 27) and make appropriate changes with the changed marked button. Holes can also be deleted by the functions available under the Edit menu item : Delete all holes Delete marked holes Delete unmarked holes Alternatively holes can be deleted by using the backspace key on the nearest hole to the 2D cursor; an individual hole can be added at any time using the single hole mode option. Modifying individual holes or nodes can be carried out by accessing the Change nearest hole dialog via the Edit+Modify nearest hole/node menu item. (Figure 28).

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Figure 28 Change nearest hole/node dialog

This dialog allows the user to change the properties of a hole nearest to the 2D cursor. Changes to properties such as hole label, diameter, length, dip, bearing, location etc. can be quickly carried out with this option. Click Change Hole to make any changes, Prev or Next to select the next hole in the design, and New to select the nearest hole to the cursor.

9.4 Labeling Holes

2DBench allows the user to change the numbering label of holes to comply with any mine specific requirement. This feature is accessed by clicking on the renumbering hole icon in the drill design mode. The holes to be renumbered must be marked. When selecting the hole renumber icon the cursor is activated for the selection of a particular row of marked holes. The holes must be selected by clicking the left mouse button on the first and last hole along the line of holes. Once the holes are selected, the hole renumbering and labeling dialog is activated (Figure 29). The View+Tolerances menu option can be used to set the width of the search path along the line of holes.

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Figure 29 Hole Renumbering and Labeling Dialog

The user can manipulate the new row information section and the hole in row information to suit the labeling and numbering requirements. Note that the example box allows the user to preview the changes.

9.5 Cut, Copy, Paste and Modify Holes

2DBench allows the user to cut, copy and paste marked holes and all associated data, such as decks, delays and ties. To Copy/Cut marked holes choose the menu item Edit+Cut/Copy marked holes. To paste the selected holes, either use Edit+Paste Absolute to place them at the original defined coordinate positions, or move the cursor to the desire position and choose the Edit+Paste Relative menu item. For Paste Relative, the offset between the cursor and the holes when copying is taken into account when pasting. Therefore, before copying the holes, place the cursor at an identifiable point in relation to the holes, such as the first hole of the first row. Use the [Home] key to accurately place the cursor. Then, before pasting, place the cursor at the new position of that hole. The holes can also be copied to an external application , such as a spreadsheet. First, mark and copy the holes in 2DBench. Then start the application and paste the data, which will appear as tables of text and numeric descriptions of the objects. This data can then be modified or replaced, and copied back to 2DBench. The reference point in the data should be taken into account when positioning the cursor before pasting.

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10. Loading Explosives and other decks

The loading of blast holes explosives, stemming, air decks, or any other material - is carried out with the loading mode function. This function is activated via the Mode+load menu item or alternatively by clicking on the loading mode icon.

Loading Mode

10.1 Parameters
Before holes are charged, the user must select the type of explosive or nonexplosive material to be used. This is done by accessing the loading decks Current Mode Parameter dialog (Figure 30) via the Parameters+Loading menu item or alternatively by clicking on the current mode parameter icon. This dialog also allows the user to edit some of the explosive properties as well as charging characteristics.

Figure 30 Loading decks dialog

Explosive types and properties are stored in a standard Microsoft database file with a default name of Stock.mdb. This file can be accessed and modified with the use of Microsoft Access3 Database Software or the StockView4 data base viewer module (StockView is a program for editing explosives and non-

3 4

Microsoft Access is a registered trademark of the Microsoft Corporation StockView is copyright JKMRC (Julius Kruttschnitt Mineral Research Centre).

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explosives, delays, primers and connectors that will soon be available with 2DBench).

10.2 Loading Decks

The loading mode allows the user to load one hole at a time, all holes at once, a group of marked holes or a group of unmarked holes. These options can be accessed via the loading mode icon selection in the tool bar and shown below:

Single Hole

All holes

Marked holes

Unmarked holes

To load a single hole, place the cursor over the hole and click. For other modes, just click or press [Enter] anywhere in the design area. Any number of decks can be loaded in a hole until the hole is filled to the collar.

10.3 Editing Explosive Charges

Changes to explosive charges can be performed on marked and unmarked holes. Once the user has identified charged holes to which changes are to be applied, then the user may recall the loading decks dialog (Figure 30) and make the appropriate changes. Decks may also be unloaded (deleted) by the functions available under the Edit menu item. The top deck in the nearest hole to the cursor can be removed by pressing the Backspace key. Alternatively, decks can be selectively deleted by pressing the Del key . A dialog is activated (Figure 31) allowing the user a choice of decks to delete. (i.e. 1st deck in hole, 2nd deck in hole, etc.) in marked or unmarked holes.

Figure 31 Delete decks dialog 30

11. Downhole Delays

The placement of downhole delays is carried out by activating the downhole delay mode function via the Mode+downhole delay menu item or alternatively by clicking on the downhole delay mode icon.

Down-Hole delay mode

11.1 Parameters
Before holes are primed and down-hole delays inserted, it is essential to select the type of delay element, connector and primer to be used. This is done by accessing the downhole delays dialog (Figure 32) via the Parameters+downhole delays menu item or alternatively by clicking on the current mode parameter icon. Current mode parameter

Figure 32 Downhole delays dialog

The downhole delays dialog also allows the user to later edit some of the delay connector and primer properties.

11.2 Inserting downhole delays

The downhole delay mode allows the user to insert downhole delays one hole at a time, all holes at once, a group of marked holes or a group of unmarked holes. These options can be accessed via the downhole delay mode icon selection in the tool bar and shown below:

Single Hole

All holes

Marked holes

Unmarked holes

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To load a single hole, place the cursor over the hole and click. For other modes, just click or press [Enter] anywhere in the design area. Any number of downhole delays can be inserted in a hole.

11.3 Editing Downhole Delays

Changes to downhole delays can be performed with the same functions used in hole editing. As mentioned earlier, for changes to take place, holes should be marked. Once the user has identified the holes to which changes are to be applied, then the user may recall the downhole delay parameters dialog (Figure 32) and make the appropriate changes by selecting the appropriate checkbox and clicking on the Change Existing button. Downhole delays may be deleted by the functions available under the Edit menu item. The top downhole delay (closest to the collar) in the nearest hole to the cursor can be removed by pressing the Backspace key. Alternatively, the delays can be selectively deleted by pressing the Del key. A dialog is activated (Figure 33) allowing the user a choice of the delay type to delete.

Figure 33 Delete down-hole dialog

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12. Surface delays

Once holes are primed and downhole delays inserted, the next step is to place surface ties between hole collars. The placement of surface ties is carried out by activating the surface delay mode function via the Mode+surface delay menu item or alternatively by clicking on the surface delay mode icon.

Surface delay mode

12.1 Parameters
Before tying begins, the user must select the type of surface delay element and the type of connection to be used. This is done by accessing the surface delay dialog via the Parameters+surface delays menu item or alternatively by clicking on the current mode parameter icon (Figure 34). Depending on the application of the design, surface delays are referred to as inter-row ties or inter-hole ties, in addition the connection of each surface delay can be specified to be bi-directional or uni-directional (Figure 34). Also, the connector must be of sufficient length (or undefined) for the distance between hole collars. Current mode parameter

Figure 34 Surface delays dialog

12.2 Tying holes

The surface delay mode allows the user to tie up the design hole to hole or by multiple holes. These options can be accessed via the surface delay mode icon selection in the tool bar and shown below:

Hole by hole tie

Multiple Tie up

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In hole by hole tie mode, a delay and connector is placed between any two selected holes. Place the cursor over the first hole, and click the left mouse button (or press Enter) to tie to that hole. Move the cursor, and a straight line will appear between the cursor and the hole, while the closest hole for connection will be selected and the position of the surface tie will be indicated. Click the left mouse button to place the cursor and move the tie position to the new hole. Continuing clicking holes to place ties. To stop the process, press Esc or click the mouse with the cursor over the last hole (no tie indicated). For multiple tie mode, first mark the holes to be connected. Then place the cursor over the first hole in the line, and click the hole will be selected. Move the cursor to the last hole in the line, and all of the marked holes found between the first hole and the cursor position within the search path (shown by the straight line) will be selected and the new ties indicated. Click again to place the ties. Repeat the process as desired from the current hole, or click again over the hole (or press Esc) to end the process. Change the width of the search path in the menu option View+Tolerances. It is important to note that surface ties can also be connected to nodes, which can be used as ignition points or to help on the positioning of ties. Nodes can be added to a pattern in two ways: by activating the single hole drilling mode and selecting create node in the dialog box, then position the node where required; or, while placing a tie between two holes, place the cursor at the position of the node and click while pressing the [Ctrl] key.

12.3 Editing Surface Ties

Changes to surface ties can be performed with the same functions used in hole editing. For changes to occur, holes should be marked. To apply changes, the user may recall the surface delay dialog (Figure 34) and make the appropriate changes by selecting the appropriate checkbox and clicking on the Change Existing button. Surface delays may be deleted by the functions available under the Edit menu item. The closest surface delay to the cursor can be removed by pressing the backspace key. Alternatively by pressing the Del key , a dialog is activated allowing the user a choice of surface delay types to delete.

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13. Detonation Simulation

Simulation of the blast detonation sequence can be carried out in 2Dbench and allows the user to visualise the detonation sequence. This function is activated via the Mode+detonate menu option or by clicking on the detonation mode Icon.

Detonation mode

13.1 Parameters
The characteristics of the simulation can be established in the detonation simulation dialog (Figure 35), which is activated via the Parameters+detonation simulation menu item or alternatively by clicking on the current mode parameter icon. Current mode parameter

show all events as they occur: displayed as it occurs

each event in the simulation is

show all events in a time frame: events are grouped in successive time intervals, specified in the frame time step Monte Carlo: repeat the simulation for the number of runs, with new random timing values (calculated within scatter parameters) only the first simulation is displayed pausing at each event: step through the events apply delay scatter factors: multiply the defined scatter values for each detonator by these amounts for the simulation (zero = no scatter) pausing between events: slow the simulation display by this amount between events

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Figure 35 Detonation simulation dialog

13.2 Run the simulation

Start Detonation from Nearest hole/node Once the detonation mode is activated, the detonation simulation is performed by clicking the cursor in the design area. The position of the ignition point can be chosen and changed by activating the start detonation from nearest hole icon. This option will be automatically selected for the first simulation. Place the cursor at the ignition point (generally one of the holes in the design) and click. The detonation simulation will run, showing the elapsed time in the left corner of the status bar. The surface and downhole delays will be initiated, shown as gray as each initiation occurs, and then the detonation of the explosives in each hole will be indicated. Any holes that do not successfully detonate will not be indicated. After the simulation is complete, the initiation and firing times can be queried via the information mode. Information mode Start Detonation from current ignition point can be used to run a new simulation, without having to place the cursor over the ignition point. This is useful if the design has been zoomed and the ignition point is not visible.

Start Detonation from Current Ignition Point

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2DBench New Features DXF and 2DBench

2DBench can import a DXF file consisting of blast holes and strings, where the blast hole symbol has been designated as either a + or a o.

Appendix

Import
from the File menu, select Import DXF on the Read DXF form, click the [Browse] button, then find and select the .dxf file to import each layer in the file is scanned for strings (POLYLINE), designed holes (LINE = +) and drilled holes (CIRCLE = o) the data is separated onto each of the tabs in the form on each tab, a tick in the box means that the data will be imported

select the layer (as shown above) to modify the string properties click the [Change Display] button to change the colour, style and thickness of all strings in the layer

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for holes, select the layer and enter the values to be used for each hole otherwise, the default values from the current hole parameters will be used click [OK] to import the selected data the data will be added to any existing data in the design area

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strings are labelled according to their source layer - select View / Options / Visibility / Area labels to display

holes have a comment attached according to their source layers, shown by a + inside the hole - click the [Comment Information] button on the toolbar to see the text designed holes (+) are automatically marked (an M inside the hole) - drilled holes are unmarked

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all data can now be edited as for any other data in 2DBench

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DXF and 2DBench Export

from the File menu, select Export DFX use the form to determine which data is to be exported

click the [] button select the folder and then either enter a new file name or select an existing file note: existing files will be overwritten ! for strings, you can either export the nearest string to the cursor, or all strings these will be created in a single layer holes can be exported as either designed (+) or drilled (o), as determined by the marking enter a name for the layer and a size for the symbol click [OK] to create the file

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