VR/AR technologies and staff training for mining industry

Personnel working at mining enterprises must be prepared to overcome professional difficulties and to possess the professional competencies required not only for the implementation of processes, but above all their safety. Modern digital modeling technologies used in mining activities expand the boundaries of practical training not only for future mining engineers, but also for working specialists. As part of the training process, it is important that the simulation of the mining environment be of a high quality almost indistinguishable from the actual environment. In this context, the development of process solutions based on virtual and augmented reality (VR/AR technologies) is most relevant. Process automation in the conditions of large-scale digital transformation laid the foundations for the development of VR/AR in mining industry. Data analysis shows that VR/AR technologies are the major consumer of IT solutions. They are in fact the integrator, or the highest “IT-transformation”, which in practical terms create digital parallel production objects and processes. Further developments in this area may also change some of the existing traditional entities or create new ones, in the training system as well. An example of such an entity, on which the digital future will depend, is the emerging “digital culture”. As such it will be applicable not only in the corporate, industry, but also nationally. Despite the diversity of areas in the development of VR/AR technologies, the maximum effect of their implementation is manifested in the development of special skills of personnel in equipment operation. This clearly relates to the need to ensure the efficiency and reliability of technological operations and processes. The interaction between the consumer and producer of VR/AR solutions together with universities allows a number of problems related to the formation of competencies in the future generation of specialists to be resolved. These include: training of university graduates; creation of specialized courses in educational programs; individual higher educational programs; professional development and retraining courses for specialists in the field of VR/AR technologies in mining; involvement of the academic community representatives in the development of practical tasks based on VR/AR solutions, including researchers of different specializations (geology, geophysics, geotechnics, geoinformatics, aerology, geotechnology, mining machinery and equipment, automation, etc.). Other key areas include the dissemination of the best practices of VR/AR usage in the interests of future customers; creation of a common method to assess the effectiveness of VR/AR projects to determine their investment attractiveness; as well as prediction and creation of future technologies.