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Minescape projects
About projects
Within a project, related mining data is grouped in such a way that it can be
effectively managed, manipulated and analysed. Generally speaking, a project
corresponds to an operating mine site or exploration prospect.
All work within Minescape must be carried out within a valid Minescape project.
The project can be selected prior to starting Minescape or during Minescape
startup.
New projects can also be created during startup.
See: Setting up projects
Minescape permits only one project to be open at any one time. This project is
known as the current project. The current project name is displayed in the Title
Bar of the GTi window.
Data from another project can be viewed (i.e. read-only) from within Minescape
using the GDS Manager or it may be selected from other projects.
Each project has a separate directory known as the project directory. The
project directory contains a predefined directory structure for Minescape
information (i.e. a .mnscreate file, and data, designs, environ, logfiles, reports,
and specs directories etc). This structure is automatically created in the project
creation sequence.
The project location is automatically generated as a subdirectory under the site
project root directory as specified in the MIN_ROOT environment variable. The
project directory must have the same naming rules as the project name and
must be in lower case .
See: Example MIN_ROOT definition (UNIX)
Example MIN_ROOT definition (NT)
If the project location does not match these requirements, ask your System
Administrator to set up linkages or an alternate MIN_ROOT.
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Units of measure
All Minescape measurable numeric data requires an associated unit of measure.
Minescape must know whether that value is a length or area measurement, and,
if it is a length, whether it is to be stored in Metres or Feet. This is vital if these
values are to be numerically manipulated.
For example:
Length (Metres) * length (Feet) = area (acres)
or
Mass (Tonnes) * percent ash = Ash (grams)
Minescape allows the classification of all numeric data into a unit category,
current and associated decimal places for display as illustrated in the following
figure.
Units of measure hierarchy example
DATA
ITEM
e.g. Drill hole 1
UNIT
CATEGORY
e.g. Length
UNIT
NAME
e.g. Metres
DECIMAL
PLACES
e.g. 3
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Unit categories
Data items are categorised according to their unit category:
Category
Description
angle
area
area in plan
bearing
angle in plan
date
date display
density
depth
vertical distance
duration
measurement of time
energy
grade
vertical angles
length
horizontal distance
mass
weight of material
pct
percent of material
plotter
ppm
sizing
temp
temperature
time
time display
volume
volume of material
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Unit names
Each unit category has an associated unit name. The following standard unit
names are defined for the respective unit categories:
Unit names
Category
Unit Name
angle
area
Acres, Hectares, Sq. Centimetres, Sq. Feet, Sq. Inches, Sq. Kilometres, Sq. Metres, Sq.
Miles, Sq. Yards
bearing
date
%d/%h/%y
dday of month as a decimal number (01-31)
hlocales abbreviated month name
yyear as a decimal number (00-99)
density
Grams/cc, Kg/Cu. Metre, Kg/Litre, Tonnes/Cu. Metre, Tons/Cu. Yard, lbs/Cu. Foot, lbs/Cu.Yard
depth
duration
%H:%M:%S
grade
length
mass
1000 Short Tons, 1000 Tonnes, 1000 Tons, Grams, Kilograms, Ounces, Pounds, Short Tons,
Tonnes, Tons
pct
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ppm
%, Grams
sizing
%, MM, In
temp
%, DEGC, DEGF
time
%H:%M:%S
H24-hour clock as a decimal number (00-23)
Mminute as a decimal number (00-59)
Sseconds as a decimal number (00-61), allows for leap seconds
volume
1000 Cu. Metres, 1000 Cu. Yards, Cu. Centimetres, Cu. Feet, Cu. Inches, Cu. Kilometres, Cu.
Metres, Cu. Miles
You can create your own unit names to supplement the standard Minescape set.
A valid conversion factor is required when specifying a user-defined unit name.
Creating new unit names
New units can be created for a Unit Category via the following form. When new
units are created, the conversion factor from the internal base unit must be
entered so the units are displayed correctly in Minescape. For example, if the
internal base unit is Metres and you are creating a new unit of Kilometres, the
conversion factor is 1000.
To create a new unit name:
From within any page, open the Minescape Explorer (by selecting
PageCurrentMinescape Explorer from the Menu Bar or the Minescape
Explorer
button from the Tool Bar.)
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Select the unit Category for creating a new unit e.g. length from the pull-down
selection list
.
Select
from the
pull-down
selection
lists
Current unit names are displayed in the Available Units panel. Enter a new
unit by entering the name in the Units field and the conversion factor in the
Factor field.
To submit the changes and exit the form, select OK. By selecting Apply, the
form remains for other unit definitions.
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Decimal places
Each Unit Name has an associated number of decimal places for display and
output purposes.
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Example 1
You need to input a Length data item containing a Feet value that has an
internal unit of Metres and a current unit of Metres:
Specify a Unit Category Length and Unit Name Feet for the data item.
Change the current units for Unit Category Length to Feet. Whenever that
particular Length data item is referred to, it is assumed to be in Feet; however
the data remains stored in Metres.
Note: Any files subsequently created with Unit Category Length have an internal unit of
Feet. To work in metres, reset the current units for Unit Category Length to
Metres.
Example 2
You need to output a Length data item in Yards value with an internal unit of
Feet and a current unit of Feet:
Change the current units for Unit Category Length to Yards. The output data
is converted to Yards, however the data remains stored as Feet.
Note: Any files subsequently created with Unit Category Length, have an internal unit of
Yards. To work in Feet, reset the current units for Unit Category Length to
Feet.
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Select the unit category to edit by selecting its label, e.g. length.
The form displays the current unit definition applying to the project in the
Current Definition panel. The available unit names are displayed in the
Available Units panel.
To select a new unit name, select an item from the pull-down selection list in
the Current Unit field.
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To submit the changes and exit the form, select OK. By selecting the Apply
button, the form remains for other changes.
See also:
Base unit
The Base unit is set to be the first unit listed in the Units pull-down selection list
in the Available Units panel. The Base unit field cannot be edited
modifications are made in the Units field. Select OK when you have made the
necessary changes.
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Project origin
Specifying a project origin consists of:
Specifying the global origin (see below)
Specifying the project quadrant
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The following figure shows that if the global origin is specified in the southwest
(or any) corner of the project, millimetre precision cannot be maintained over the
entire project.
Kilometres
Global
origin
10
8
6
4
2
0
Area of cm
precision
Project Area
Area of mm
precision
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18
Kilometres
Area of mm precision
Figure shows that if the global origin is specified in the centre of the project,
millimetre precision can be maintained over the entire project.
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Kilometres
10
8
6
4
2
0
Area of mm
precision
Project Area
Global
origin
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18
Kilometres
Figure provides a real-world example of where you should place the global
origin.
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7412000
centroid
7404000
SW
648000
651000
7396000
654000
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Y axis
NE
NW
SECOND
Quadrant
FIRST
Quadrant
X axis
THIRD
Quadrant
SW
FOURTH
Quadrant
SE
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Managing projects
How the current project is set
The current project is set when starting Minescape. The project displayed in the
Minescape initialisation form is, by default, the last project in use before
Minescape was last exited.
Simultaneous Projects
Minescape does not permit work on multiple projects in the same GTi window.
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Namename of file
Suffixfile suffix
Qualifieroptional addition to sub-directory
Directoryproject sub-directory
Projectproject name ([CAT]project%)
Pathfull path name (replaces all of the above)
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For NT
A Minescape file can consist of the follow components:
Namename of file
Suffixfile suffix
Qualifieroptional addition to sub-directory
Directoryproject sub-directory
Projectproject name ([CAT]project%)
Pathfull path name (replaces all of the above)
The individual components are designated by special characters:
.extensionsuffix supplied
[qualifier]qualifier (embedded directory)
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direct/override directory
[CAT]project%project provided
\path or .\pathfull path provided (replaces all of the above)
Examples of a design file where the default extension is .dgn and the defaults
directory is designs.
blocks
= designs\blocks.dgn
blocks.old
= designs\blocks.old
survey\blocks = survey\blocks.dgn
[survey]blocks = designs\survey\blocks.dgn or designs\blocks.dgn
.\blocks
= .\blocks.dgn
\usr\project/xx = \usr\project\xx.dgn
survey%blocks = MIN_ROOT\survey\designs\blocks.dgn
survey%latest[crest\toe]blocks.new
=MIN_ROOT\survey\latest\crest\toe\blocks.new or
MIN_ROOT\survey\latest\blocks.new
See also:
File conventions
Minescape uses standard file naming conventions. File names are limited to 256
characters. All file names created are saved in lower casethis ensures that
case-sensitive UNIX-based sort order problems do not occur.
File lists are always sorted alphabetically. If file names are a cross-product of two
or more components, only an underscore (_) should separate the components.
Underscores always precede alphanumeric characters in sorting.
WARNING
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Default
Directory
Default
Suffix
Description
adobe ps font
app_defaults
DPSfonts
app_defaults
.ad
as2482
as2482
.dat
datfile
dbsfile
bmodfile
dgnfile
dmpfile
grdfile
logfile
data
.dat
database
.dbs.dat
Database files
tables
.tab
designs
.dgn
Design files
dumps
.dmp
Dump files
grids
.grd
Grid files
logfiles
.log
mdsfile
mxlfile
pltfile
mdserver
.batch
mxl
.mxl
MXL files
plots
.plt
Plot files
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WARNING
Default
Directory
Default
Suffix
Description
reports
.rpt
Report files
tables
.rsv
tables
.tab
Table files
triangle
.tfl
Triangulation files
tables
.tab
specs
.qualdef
Quality Defaults
specs
.{cat}
tables
.tab
textures
tables
.tab
tables
.wsh
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Directories used for site and project customisations (UNIX and NT)
For NT Platforms
IMPORTANT
Default
Directory
Default
Suffix
Description
acsfile
actions
.acs
bitmap
envlist
bitmaps
.xbm
environ/specs
.enumerated
form
forms
.uid
disdef
gdsfile
helpfile
environ/specs
.displaydef
gdsdata
.gds
help
.html, .pdf
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Default
Directory
Default
Suffix
Description
helpfile (contd)
help
.html, .pdf
menufile
messfile
mmsfile
menus
.mmu
messages
.msg
source/menus
.mms
module
moldfile
.mod
object
page
environ/specs
.object
pages
.page
pixmap
render
pixmaps
.xpm
render
.map
repdeffile
sccfile
repdef
.rdb
source/forms
.scc
server
server
.module
smffile
menus
.smf
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File Type
Default
Suffix
Description
sqlfile
ucsfile
sql
.sql
usercoms
.ucs
units
verb
pathname
environ/specs
.units
server
.verb
Menus
environ/specs
.pathname
Pathname overrides
For NT Platforms
IMPORTANT
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Description
data
database
designs
dumps
environ/specs
formspec
gdsdata
grids
Grid files
logfiles
mdserver
mxl
plots
Generated plots
reports
Generated reports
specs
tables
triangle
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Minescape4
Equivalent
Description
1. MINENV
MIN_ENV
2. SITE_DIR
MIN_SITE
MIN_APPS
3. MINTABLESSL
or
MINTABLES
See also:
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Naming conventions
Minescape does not impose any naming conventions. However, it is
recommended to establish a naming system for the project entities. It is
important that the naming conventions are suited to:
the mine site where Minescape is used
the project where Minescape is used.
Sound naming conventions are critical for organisation, searching and
referencing information.
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Example 1
An airborne mine survey is performed monthly. The contractor supplies an
AutoCAD DXF file depicting the current crest and toe positions. The DXF file is
imported into Minescape and the digital terrain model updated and a series of
volumes run against the previous months terrain model.
What should the file where the DXF data is imported be called?
As the file contains topographical data, it could be called topo.dat. However, as a
topographic data file is supplied monthly, a file with this name could easily be overwritten.
As the file is time related (i.e. monthly), add a date component e.g. topo_nov_94,
topo_dec_94 etcthis ensures files are not overwritten. Other users can also easily identify
the file names and housekeeping of old data is easier.
Note: If a file has a cross-product name and there may be multiple related files, it is better
to use a common first component (i.e. TOPO_NOV_94 is better than
NOV_TOPO_94) as the files are always grouped, both in Minescape and in the
directories.
Example 2
Five coal seams named A, B, C, D and E. The top and bottom of each seam
requires contouring. The contours will be in the same design file. In order to
individually view and manipulate each seam, they should be assigned a unique
design file layer.
What are good design file layer names?
A simple cross-product naming convention could be used to assign the layer names as
A_ROOF, A_FLOOR, B_ROOF, B_FLOOR etc. However, as each layer represents a
contour, a contour component could be included as part of the name, for example
A_ROOF_CONT, A_FLOOR_CONT etc.
If this convention is followed and surface meshes of the coal seams are also required, the
convention adapts easily to allow the design file layers A_ROOF_MESH, A_FLOOR_MESH
etc. in the same design file,
Another alternative is to send the output to two different design files, CONTOURS and
MESHES, both containing layers A_ROOF, A_FLOOR etc.