ABN 57 410 620 309

MINE SUBSIDENCE TECHNOLOGICAL SOCIETY

Reprint From
The Proceedings of the Seventh Triennial Conference
on

Mine Subsidence: A Community Issue

University of Wollongong
26 to 27 November 2007

This document is available to members of the society at

www.mstsociety.org

Responsibility for the content of these papers rests with the Authors, and not the
Mine Subsidence Technological Society. Data presented and conclusions developed
by the authors are for information only and are not intended for use without
independent substantiating investigation on the part of potential users.
Apart from any fair dealing for the purpose of private study, research, criticism or
review, no part of these proceedings may be reproduced by any process without the
written permission of the Mine Subsidence Technological Society.

ISBN

978-0-9585779-3-9

Copyright MSTS
Copyright MSTS 2007

Continuous Monitoring with Tiltmeters and the Internet

Phil Enright
Centennial Newstan Pty Ltd
Summary
Newstan Colliery has introduced a real-time system for subsidence monitoring to assist in
managing the effects of subsidence on high voltage transmission towers. This system
provides continuous, real-time subsidence monitoring that is immediately transmitted and
available to all stakeholders. The website provides the facility to simply view and access
current data as well as providing alarms and notifications set to trigger management plan
responses where subsidence exceeds predictions and tower design criteria. This system was
achieved at low cost compared to conventional monitoring techniques. After describing the
equipment and software required in this process, this paper will discuss the interpretation of
the results and potential applications.

1. Introduction
Newstan Colliery (Newstan) extracts coal
from longwall panels in the West Borehole
Seam at a depth between 100m to 180m
from the surface. Longwall 23 and 24
panels are also overlain with the shallow
Awaba Colliery Great Northern Seam
workings, ranging in cover between 15m to
70m. This area is also traversed by a
TransGrid Transmission Line and includes
Towers 93/13 TL to 93/17 TL. Evaluation
of subsidence predictions during the
planning and approvals stage realised that
the interaction of both seams during
extraction of the longwall panels could
potentially cause unforeseen subsidence
affecting the integrity of the transmission
towers. The evaluation of the geological
and mining environment identified a number
of factors whose detailed interaction could
not be fully predicted. These are:
The shallow depth of cover of the Great
Northern Seam workings (15m-70m);
The variation in panel layout and
generally small pillar size;
The types of extraction methods, ranging
from first workings, numerous partial
extraction layouts and total extraction;
The range in working heights (2.5m4.0m);

Newstan has successfully mined beneath

TransGrid transmission towers over the past
10 years by the proven method of installing
cruciform footings to protect the towers
from subsidence.
Cruciform footing
structures are designed to isolate the tower
from ground strains and overturning in the
event of extreme loading (Davis, 2001).
However, the uncertainties recognised in
early planning created doubt about the
performance of towers in conditions of
extreme ground tilt.
It was realised that conventional subsidence
and tower monitoring alone would not
promptly detect and notify management of
any movement that could exceed the
subsidence predictions or tower design
criteria.
Tiltmeters
monitoring

Proceedings of the 7th Triennial Conference on Mine Subsidence, 2007

Copyright MSTS 2007

The massive conglomerate strata

overlying the Great Northern Seam
workings;
A history of creep (pillar punching into
the low strength Awaba Tuff floor);
The possibility of initiating a major
pillar run in the Great Northern Seam
workings; and
The remobilisation of faults.

and
has

real-time continuous
been used in civil
81

engineering projects, such as tunnelling,

bridge construction and deformation
surveys. Tiltmeters have been used in
coalmining. OConner et al (2001)
incorporated an array of tiltmeters to
measure tilt and estimate curvature of a
highway affected by longwall subsidence.
The system used continuous monitoring and
alarming to warn the various agencies, who
managed the traffic flow on the highway.
In order to monitor any movement of the
towers during the longwall extraction,
Newstan installed tiltmeters on three
transmission towers whose measurements
are transmitted to and processed by webbased software that is accessed by the
internet.

2. Tiltmeters, Communications
and Web-Based Monitoring
An ACARP study conducted by Seedsman
Geotechnics Pty Ltd demonstrated the
advantages of the use of tiltmeters at
Beltana Mine and this was further extended
with an installation on Longwall 22 at
Newstan (Seedsman 2006). Tiltmeters were
shown to provide a reliable and cost
effective way of monitoring subsidence.
Seedman Geotechnics Pty Ltd suggested
that the use of tiltmeters could replace
conventional surveys on infrastructure that
is sensitive to tilt such as transmission
towers.

Table 1 - Monitoring Components

Tiltmeters
Biaxial MonoPod Tiltmeter
Datalogger and Communications
CR800 Datalogger
Power Supply
Optically Isolated RS-232 Interface
LoggerNet 2 Data Logger Support Software
Custom Monitoring Program for CR800 Datalogger
Digital Cellular Phone Kit - includes RS-232
connection, modem, 3dB antennae & relevant
cabling for either GSM or CDMA
Argus Website Monitoring
ARGUS Monitoring Software Activation Fee ($300)
50 Sensor Monthly Fee ($150)

2.1. Tiltmeters
The monopod tiltmeter used is a biaxial
electrolytic tiltmeter housed in a waterproof
enclosure (Figure 1). The tiltmeter sensor
measures tilt over a range of 10 from
vertical, with the sensors mounted at 90 to
each other. The unit is typically grouted
into a hole drilled in the structure or in this
case bolted to the tower leg. The tiltmeter is
then fixed to the anchor and zeroed, using
the built-in bubble level and swivel clamp.
The initial reading is used as a baseline,
changes in the inclination of the structure
are found by comparing the current readings
to the initial.
Data is automatically
transferred to the data recorder.
Figure 1 - Monopod tiltmeter

Continuous real time monitoring by

tiltmeters and web-based processing was
subsequently endorsed by the Department of
Primary Industries Principal Subsidence
Engineer. The equipment and software
included four main components, the
tiltmeters,
datalogger,
communication
software and hardware and website
monitoring software. The equipment was
supplied by Slope Indicator Pty Ltd located
in Perth.
The main components are shown in Table 1.
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82

The quoted specifications for the monopod

tiltmeter are:
Resolution: 9 arc seconds, using a 13 bit
readout device such as the CR10
datalogger (0.04mm/m)
Repeatability:
22
arc
seconds.
(0.1mm/m)
Tecom Australia Pty Ltd was contracted to
install the tiltmeters and to establish the
communications. To protect the tiltmeters
from vandalism, steel containers were
constructed to house the tiltmeter,
datalogger and cellular phone kit. Mobile
phone communication was preferred as a
radio survey determined that a reliable radio
connection could not be guaranteed. Power
was suppled by two car batteries connected
in parallel, (allowing uninterrupted supply
during change-out). The batteries were also
housed in steel containers, connected to the
tiltmeter container via steel conduit.
Batteries were considered more appropriate
than solar panels due to the likelihood of
vandalism. Figure 2 shows the tiltmeter
attached to Tower 13.
Figure 2 Photograph of Tiltmeter Attached to
Tower 13.

The data is logged at intervals set by the

user, which is currently every 15 minutes
and downloaded via mobile phone to a
computer located at the mine site
approximately 7km away. The LoggerNet
software installed on the onsite computer
allows for the collection of data at scheduled
times as set by the user. The software was
scheduled to download the data every two
hours. Once downloaded, the data is
automatically uploaded by a FTP (file
transfer protocol) software to the ARGUS
Website
2.2. Argus Monitoring Software
ARGUS monitoring software is a web-based
data
management,
calculation
and
presentation tool. Data can be presented in
graphical and numerical format, with the
ability to generate alarm messages and
automated reports. The monitoring is server
based and allows the user to interact with
the software from any location via the
internet.
The ARGUS software is specially designed
to process and distribute data collected from
geotechnical sensors. ARGUS runs on a
web server and looks like a web site. It can
operate on the Internet, company intranet, or
stand-alone computer (Boart Longyear,
2006). In Newstans case the project was
setup to operate on the Internet. The
stakeholders, via their web browsers are
able to access, plan views, data, graphs and
reports. Administrators have the ability to
set up projects, add sensors, graphs, reports
and alarms. Uploaded data is scanned for
pre-determined alarm conditions and then
stores the readings in the project database.
Figure 3 shows the Newstan Web Page
setup on the Argus Monitoring Website.

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Figure 3 Newstan Tower Monitoring Web Page.

The website has a number of functions that

enables the data to be presented and
accessed by all users. The main functions
include:

current measurement values. The sensor

boxes are coloured green, yellow, or red to
indicate alarm status. Clicking on a
measurement value displays a trend plot,
allowing the user to quickly evaluate
whether the alarm condition is the result of a
trend or just a onetime event.

Plan Views;

Trend Plots;

Download Data;

2.2.2. Trend Plots

Alarms and Notifications; and

Pdf Reports

Three types of trend plots are available, time

plots, correlation plots, and profile plots.
Trend plots were setup and customised to
suit the predicted tilt values. The trend plots
are generated as graphic files, so they can be
saved and attached to emails or used in
documents. The trend plots can be zoomed
or sized for browsing, which results in a
new graphic being generated. All users are
able to download the data values shown in
the plots.

2.2.1. Plan Views

Plan views show a background image with
an overlay of sensors (tiltmeters). An image
of the longwalls and surface features was
setup and regularly updated to show the
longwall and longwall face location relative
to the towers (Figure 4). Sensors are
represented by data boxes, which show

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84

Figure 4 - Project Plot Showing the Towers in Relation to Longwall 23

At the request of TransGrid, the graphs

were setup to show longitudinal tilt (green),
in the direction of the powerline, with
positive tilt towards increasing tower
number. Transverse tilt (blue) was at right
angles to the powerline, with positive tilt to
the right and negative tilt to the left, also
looking towards increasing tower number.
Temperature, displayed in cyan is also
graphed.
Temperature is used in the
calibration of the tiltmeters.
Minor
variations in tilt are correlated to
temperature variations throughout the day.

re-levels before resting at a final tilt of

+10/mm/m as the longwall face retreats.
The tower can also be seen to tilt to a final
transverse tilt of -22mm/m.

Figure 5 shows the longitudinal and

transverse tilt of Tower 13 over a six week
period.
Notice the tower tilts in the longitudinal
direction at -5mm/m towards the goaf then

Proceedings of the 7th Triennial Conference on Mine Subsidence, 2007

Copyright MSTS 2007

Figure 5 - Tilt of Tower 13 over a Six Week

Period

85

Figure 6 illustrates the ability to zoom in on

specific times or areas of interest on the
graph.

Any number of sensors can be downloaded

by any of the users or stakeholders over any
time period that the sensors have operated.
Figure 7 shows downloading the data from
the sensor on Tower 13 and saved as a CSV
file displayed in an Excel spreadsheet.
There is also the ability to upload data
manually, which could be used to update
face positions for the inclusion in the
generations of graphs and reporting.
2.2.4. Alarms and Notifications

Figure 6 - Trend Plot of Tower 13 Showing Tilt

Over Time

2.2.3. Downloads
The software stores raw or unprocessed
data in the project database. Each time data
is requested via the Internet, the data is
processed, which ensures any corrections to
calibration factors, processing methods, or
data values are always included in the
results presented. Each time the data is
accessed alarm conditions are scanned.
Processed data can also be downloaded in
ASCII format such as CSV files for use in
spreadsheets. Archiving is also available,
allowing backup of data and to allow for
reduced processing times when large
amounts of data is received.

The ARGUS software scans all incoming

data for alarm conditions.
Alarm
thresholds can be based on fixed values or
the results of a calculation and may be set
for any channel of the sensor. Two levels
of alarm were set for each tower, amber and
red, based on subsidence predictions.
Watchdog alarms were also set to warn if
there was no incoming data from the power
supply (batteries). The Alarm notifications
are automatically sent by emails to selected
users. Emails can also be forwarded by text
messaging, pagers, fax and voice mail. All
of the alarms and acknowledgements are
recorded and stored.
Figure 8 shows the set upper and lower
alarm values for Tower 13. Channel 1 is
transverse tilt, channel 2 is longitudinal tilt
and Channel 3 is temperature.
2.2.5. Reporting

Figure 7 Download Data Feature

PDF Reports are available via the

website. According the user manual the
body of the report can include up to four
sections, with each section containing up to
three pre-configured graphs as well as
tables of alarms, data, and sensor remarks.
The reports can be generated daily, weekly
or monthly and automatically emailed to a
group of users.

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86

The onsite computer, which transfers data

via FTP, had a number of interruptions.
Power supply was the major problem, with
the UPS (uninterrupted power supply) unit
failing during mine site electrical
maintenance and testing. To overcome the
problem of restarting the computer and
logging on, an auto logon script was used,
enabling the computer to restart in periods
such as weekends when personnel are not
readily available.
3.3. Website
The ARGUS website also proved to be
reliable over the 12 month period. Only a
few interruptions to website data were
recorded. The interruptions occurred when
data from the onsite computer was unable
to upload the data to the website. There
were no recorded problems accessing the
website throughout the project.

4. Results
Figure 8 - Setting Alarms

3. Reliability
3.1. Tiltmeters and Data Recorders
Three tiltmeters have been in operation for
more than 12 months without interruption.
In that period each tiltmeter has continued
to record at 15 minute intervals recording
more than 35000 measurements.
3.2. Communication
The reliability of the communication
equipment and scheduling software,
sending data back to the on-site computer
has also preformed to a high standard.
There was only one interruption to
communications when the telephone
service provider inadvertently diverted the
data to voice mail.

4.1. Comparison of Tiltmeters and

Conventional Monitoring
To confirm the suitability and accuracy of
the tiltmeters for subsidence monitoring,
conventional survey monitoring techniques
were also undertaken.
Conventional
crossline and tower monitoring was
incorporated in the monitoring program.
Surveys were conducted pre-mining, during
extraction and post mining, with the towers
surveyed a total of 19 times.
Table 2 and Figure 9 compare the results of
the three survey methods used on Tower 13
during the extraction and post mining
periods. The comparison indicates that the
tiltmeters provide results consistent with
the conventional monitoring surveys.

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Table 2 - Comparison of Tiltmeter and

Conventional Monitoring Results

appears to be some longitudinal tilting of

the tower prior to the commencement of
tiltmeter monitoring.
To compare the
tiltmeter to the conventional surveys, the
change in tilt between surveys was
calculated.
Figure 10 show the
comparison.

Crossline Stn
10-11
(mm/m)

Crossline Stn
11-12
(mm/m)

-1.9

-2.2

-23.8

-21.4

-24.0

-24.0

-22.1

-24.4

Tiltmeter
(mm/m)

-3.8

Survey No.

Cruciform
Survey
(mm/m)

Tower 13 Transverse Tilt Comparison

-2.3

-15.2

-14.1

-20.2

-21.9

-21.3

-21.9

The results from the surveys indicate that

the difference between the tiltmeter surveys
and conventional survey monitoring is
acceptable, with results generally within 1
to 2 mm/m. The tiltmeters on Tower 15
and Tower 16 measured tilts of less than
1mm/m.
These measurements were
confirmed by the conventional surveys with
the difference between results also less than
1mm/m.

The tiltmeter on Tower 13 was not

operational until Longwall 23 faceline was
approximately 50m from the tower. There

Tilt (mm/m)

Tower 13
Tiltmeter vs Conventional Survey
0
-1
-2
-3
-4
-5
-6
-7
-8
-9
-10
-11
-12
-13
-14
-15
-16
-17
-18
-19
-20
-21
-22
-23
-24
-25
-26

Titlmeter
Cruciform
Crossline Stn 10-11
Crossline Stn 11-12

Survey No.

Figure 9 - Comparison of Tiltmeter and Convention Monitoring Results

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Tilt (mm/m)

Tower 13
Change in Tilt
15
14
13
12
11
10
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
0
-1
-2
-3
-4
-5
-6
-7
-8
-9
-10
-11
-12
-13
-14
-15

Titlmeter Transverse
Cruciform Transverse
Titlmeter Longitudinal
Cruciform Longitudinal
Longitudinal Tilt

Transverse Tilt

Survey No.

Figure 10 - Change in Tilt between Tiltmeter and Cruciform Surveys

4.2. Continuous Monitoring

The use of continuous monitoring, such as
with tiltmeters, allows more scope to
analyse subsidence and its effects.
Continuous monitoring provides the data
that allows the mapping of subsidence and
its effects on structures such as transmission
towers. For example, in Figure 11 the
measurements recorded at 15 minute
intervals over several months show the
relationship between longwall face position
and its effect on longitudinal and transverse
tilt on the tower. The graph shows the tower
tilting towards the goaf, before returning to
level then tilting outbye and remaining tilted
at 10mm/m when the longwall has retreated
250m past the tower. The monitoring also
shows that the tower continued to tilt
towards the centre of the panel until the
longwall face was 120m past the tower.

first working pillars, indicates only small

movements. Although the movements were
less than 1mm/m, a result similar to Tower
13 is seen in Figure 12, but with the
transverse tilts being reversed due to its
location on the opposite side of the longwall
block. As with Tower 13, transverse tilt was
finalised after the longwall had retreated
120m past the tower. The longitudinal tilt
appears to continue over 1000m, but the
movements are only 0.2mm/m or less,
which may also be attributable to other
environmental factors.

The monitoring on Tower 15, which is

located 72m outside the longwall void,
being at the extent of the 26.5 angle of
draw and also above Great Northern Seam

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89

LW23 - Tower 13
Tilt vs Face Position
15
LW Face under
Tower 13

250m past

10
90m past
5

25/12/06

18/12/06

11/12/06

04/12/06

27/11/06

20/11/06

13/11/06

06/11/06

30/10/06

23/10/06

16/10/06

09/10/06

02/10/06

25/09/06

18/09/06

-5

11/09/06

Tilt (mm/m)

0
Transverse
Tilt
Longitudinal
Tilt

-10
120m past
-15

-20

-25
Time

Figure 11 Tilt changes at Tower 13

Longwall 23 - Tower 15
Tilt vs Face Position
2
Face adjacent
tower

1.8

300m past

1.6
1.4

700m past

1000m past

120m past

1.2
1
0.8
0.6

0.2
31/08/07

17/08/07

03/08/07

20/07/07

06/07/07

22/06/07

08/06/07

25/05/07

11/05/07

27/04/07

13/04/07

30/03/07

16/03/07

02/03/07

16/02/07

02/02/07

19/01/07

05/01/07

22/12/06

08/12/06

24/11/06

10/11/06

-0.4

27/10/06

0
-0.2

13/10/06

Tilt mm/m

0.4

-0.6
-0.8
-1
-1.2

Transverse
Tilt

-1.4
-1.6

Longitudinal
Tilt

-1.8
-2

Time

Figure 12 Tilt changes at Tower 15

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90

5. Cost Benefits
There are significant cost benefits using
tiltmeters and web-based monitoring in
situations where structures are sensitive to
tilt. The cost of the system which included
four tiltmeters, associated communications,
website monitoring and the installation was
in the order of $20000. The ongoing
maintenance cost for hosting the website is
approximately
$150
per
month.
Additionally there is the cost of labour to
exchange the batteries that supply the
tiltmeters and communications.
The monitoring requirements for the
previous Longwall 22, with only two
towers conventionally monitored was
approximately double this amount,
consisting of 30 tower surveys and
associated subsidence line surveys. The
use of the tiltmeters on Longwall 23
resulted in a reduced number of tower and
crossline surveys, although a number of
surveys were done to validate the results
and reliability of the tiltmeters and webbased monitoring.
Even with the
confirmation surveys only half the number
of surveys were conducted.
With each
survey in the order of $1000, the cost of the
tiltmeters was recouped. The cost benefit
will be realised with Longwall 24 where
four towers require monitoring. To put the
monitoring frequency available with
tiltmeters into perspective, each tower has
been surveyed more than 35000 times over
the past 12 months.

website provided the facilities to simply

view current data in a number of formats to
suit the various criteria of each of the
stakeholders, including plan views, graphs
and data. Alarms can be set to trigger
management plan responses where
subsidence exceeds predictions and tower
design criteria. The accurate information
indicates any subsidence movements
outside the predicted parameters enabling
subsidence management action plans to be
implemented to protect expensive and
strategic assets.
Tiltmeters offer the potential to efficiently
examine aspects of subsidence. They can
be used to compare the magnitude of
transient and final tilts, and to better
investigate deformations outside the angle
of draw. An array of closely spaced tilt
meters could be used to characterise ground
curvatures. Likewise an array of tiltmeters
over a longwall panel could be used to give
effectively real time monitoring of
subsidence deformations over a broad area.

7. Acknowledgements
The author acknowledges the work,
assistance and advice provided by
Seedsman Geotechnics Pty Ltd throughout
the project.
The author also acknowledges the time and
effort provided by Peter Davidson
(Newstan Colliery Electrical Engineer) and
Tecom Australia Pty Ltd for the installation
of the tiltmeters and communications.

6. Conclusion
The use of tiltmeters and web-based
monitoring on Longwall 23 has proven to
be a cost effective, accurate and reliable
method of monitoring subsidence on
transmission towers.
The tiltmeters
combined with the web-based monitoring
has provided a management tool that has
provided continuous real-time monitoring
that is available to all stakeholders. The

8. References
Boart Longyear, 2006, Instruction Manual
Administrator Argus Monitoring Software,
Boart Longyear, Venlo. Retrieved from
http://www.slopeindicator.com/argus/argus
-downloads.html

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91

Davis, P, 2001, Successfully Managing the

Undermining
of
Major
Structures,
Proceedings of the Mine Subsidence
Technological Society 5th Triennial
Conference on Current Practice and Issues,
Maitland. ISBN 0-9585779-1-9, pp. 163170.
OConner, KM, Clark, RJ, Whitlatch, DJ,
Dowding, CH, 2001, Real-Time Monitoring
of Subsidence Along I-70 in Washington,
Pennsylvania, Transportation Research
Record, Issue 1772 pp. 32-39, Transport
Research Board, Washington.
Seedsman Geotechnics Pty Ltd, 2006,
Demonstration of Tiltmeters as a
Subsidence Monitoring Device, Report to
Centennial Newstan Pty Ltd.

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