Using unsupervised learning for feature detection in a coal mine roof

Abstract The use of an unsupervised learning technique for classifying geological features in the roof overlying an underground coal mine is described. The technique uses torque, thrust, drill speed, penetration rate, and drill position data from a roof bolter as inputs for the classification. Data were obtained from an underground coal mine in the western United States and initially classified using clustering. Some of the available approaches for clustering are reviewed and the rationale used in selecting the chosen approach is discussed. The cluster centers, or exemplars, obtained from this approach can be used to train two supervised neural networks involving the back-propagation of error learning algorithm.