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Mining industry

Researchers Develop New Algorithm for Optimizing Wireless Communication in Coal-Mine Tunnels

Strategic Insights

— 1 min read

Researchers at Xi'an University of Science and Technology in Xi'an, People's Republic of China, have developed a new algorithm for optimizing wireless communication in coal-mine tunnels. The study focuses on Reconfigurable Intelligent Surfaces (RIS), a technology that can efficiently optimize communication performance in complex and spatially constrained environments like coal mines. The research aims to improve the sum rate of the coal-mine wireless communication system by jointly optimizing the base-station beamforming matrix and the RIS phase-shift matrix.

Key Takeaways:

  • The researchers developed a Twin Delayed Deep Deterministic Policy Gradient (TD3)-based algorithm with a Noise Fading (TD3-NF) propagation optimization scheme to improve the sum rate of the coal-mine wireless communication system.
  • The average link rate of the system reached 11.1 bps/Hz, representing a 29.07% improvement compared to Deep Deterministic Policy Gradient (DDPG).
  • The researchers found that the average sum rate of the 8 x 8 structure RIS was 3.3 bps/Hz higher than that of the 4 x 4 structure.
  • The study provides new solutions for optimizing mine communication quality and applying artificial intelligence technology in complex environments.
  • The researchers used funding from the National Natural Science Foundation of China and the Uwb Radar Life Information Feature Extraction And Quantitative Identification For Mine Drill Hole Rescue Project.
  • Additional authors of the research include Fengjiao Wang.

Statistics:

  • 11.1 bps/Hz: the average link rate of the system
  • 29.07%: the improvement in sum rate compared to DDPG
  • 3.3 bps/Hz: the difference in average sum rate between the 8 x 8 structure RIS and the 4 x 4 structure
  • The research was funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China and the Uwb Radar Life Information Feature Extraction And Quantitative Identification For Mine Drill Hole Rescue Project.

Sources:

  • RIS Wireless Network Optimization Based on TD3 Algorithm in Coal-Mine Tunnels. Sensors, 2025,25(19):6058. (Sensors - http://www.mdpi.com/journal/sensors). The publisher for Sensors is MDPI AG. A free version of this journal article is available at https://doi-org.sdpl.idm.oclc.org/10.3390/s25196058.
  • NewsRx. Researchers from Xi'an University of Science and Technology Discuss Findings in Sensor Research (RIS Wireless Network Optimization Based on TD3 Algorithm in Coal-Mine Tunnels). Network Weekly News. October 27, 2025; p 110.

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