China produces its first automated mining locomotive

According to a report in China’s state-run news agency Xinhua, the country’s first unmanned mining train has been produced at a factory in central China’s Hunan Province. The train’s transmission system features new intelligent control technology, according to Huang Guoxing, Chief Engineer with Hunan Xiangtan Hauling Machine Plant, where the locomotive was manufactured. Huang added that other advanced technologies including computer control, wireless communication and a control area network – a method for enabling robust serial communication in industrial automation and automotive applications – were also integrated in the train. (more…)