Granted Patent B2

US 11,429,928 · App. 16/682,331 · Granted Aug 30, 2022

Inventors: John Francis Megannon (Pretoria, ZA); Andries George Hendrik Loubser (Randburg, ZA); Michael Woodhall (Blairgowrie, ZA); Edmund Johan Strydom (Pretoria, ZA); Alastair Stuart MacFarlane (Linden, ZA)

Assignee: MINERP IP INCORPORATED

G06Q10/087G06F16/22G06Q50/02

Abstract

Claims (39)

1. A method for computer-implemented natural resource and reserve management suitable for use with disparate expert technical systems and applications that are unable to integrate the geometries and attributes at any specific spatial location in such natural resource or reserve, to reasonably describe a collective, multi-disciplinary technical perspective of the resource or reserve in relation to a specific spatial location or to allow tracking over time of changes in the logical status or physical state of the resource or reserve at that location, the computer-implemented natural resource and reserve management method including the steps of:

providing:

a non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing computer-executable instructions;

at least one common, integrated, spatially-referenced database, configured to retain spatially indexed, technical geometries and attributes of a specific spatial locations therein; and

a common spatial index, with a specific level of granulation and spatial location, configured to enable integration of the geometries and attributes of the resource or reserve in relation to a specific spatial location, and reasonable description of the collective technical perspective of the resource or reserve in relation to that location;

extracting disparate, technical data, defining technical discipline spatial geometries and attributes of a specific spatial location in a natural resource or reserve, from disparate expert technical databases of such technical systems and applications without a common, spatial reference;

amalgamating and integrating the technical data, including computer developed or generated data, into the spatially-referenced database to track the changes in the logical status or physical state of the resource or reserve over time at such granular, spatially indexed level in relation to that location; and

translating the amalgamated, integrated and spatially-referenced, technical data, synthesizing technical and financial controls, regulatory codes and generally accepted best practices by means of a set of business rules to ensure optimal exploitation of an asset, into attributes of inventory or stock within a resource inventory or stock within a resource inventory;

wherein

the spatially-referenced database is usable by a commercially available inventory management system or application and the translated technical data constitutes inventory and stock items and transactions manageable within the inventory management system or application, that track over time the change in the logical status or physical state of the resource or reserve at such granular, spatially indexed level in relation to that location, and

the spatially-referenced database and the translated technical data retain the spatially indexed, technical geometries and attributes at such spatial location, enabling:

the integration and amalgamation of such data into a single spatially-indexed data structure encapsulating all the spatial, design, descriptive and quantification attributes related to the source data, providing a multi-collective, multi-disciplinary technical perspective of a given spatial location in the resource or reserve, and

interoperability between the technical systems and applications, by allowing extraction and reconstitution of such integrated amalgamated spatial and attribute data from the spatially-referenced database into the file format and structure required by the technical systems and applications and the inventory management system.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1 characterized in that the natural resources and reserves are depletable mineral resources and reserves, the extraction, amalgamation, integration, and translation are conducted continually by means of the computer-executable instructions, and the disparate, technical data is from disparate expert mining technical systems and applications, thereby providing for integrated mineral asset management in a mineral resource inventory.

3. The method as claimed in claim 2 wherein the non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing computer-executable instructions is configured to define the common spatial index with a specific level of granulation and spatial location and the common, integrated, spatially-referenced database is provided with an inter-operable framework that enables extraction of the amalgamated, integrated and spatially-referenced, data by the disparate expert technical systems and applications;

thereby making the resultant amalgamated, integrated and spatially-referenced, continually updated database available for the disparate expert technical systems and applications, for the inventory management application and for multi-disciplinary visualization and analysis, accounting for the impact of mining technical activity resulting in change in the logical status or physical state of the related resources and reserves, at a granular, spatially indexed level and in relation to a specific spatial location.

4. The method as claimed in claim 3 wherein the transactions are selected from a group of inventory-orientated transactions comprising:

accrual, mimicking procure or acquire transactions;

depletion, mimicking inventory or stock issue transactions;

shrinkage, mimicking theft or removal processing;

ullage, mimicking write-off of stock due to damage; and

movement, mimicking relocation of stock.

5. The method as claimed in claim 2 including the step of analyzing at least some of the technical descriptions, annotations, features and properties data being configured within the mineral resource inventory system for analytical and descriptive purposes, based on the requirements of the customer organization.

6. The method as claimed in claim 2 , characterized in:

receiving, amalgamating and integrating disparate technical dimension and fact data defining spatial, design, descriptive or quantification geometries and attributes of a geospatial element in a natural resource or reserve,

wherein the received technical data is disparate without a common spatial index for enabling integration of the geometries and attributes to reasonably describe the collective technical perspective of the resource or reserve in relation to a specific spatial location to allow at least semi-continual tracking over time of changes in the logical status or physical state of the resource or reserve at that location;

defining a common spatial index with a specific level of granulation and geospatial orientation for the received, amalgamated and integrated data to enable such description of the resource or reserve and to allow such tracking in relation to that location;

maintaining the received, amalgamated and integrated data in an integrated database with reference to the common spatial index at least semi-continually to track the changes in the logical status or physical state of the resource or reserve over time at such granular, spatially indexed level; and

translating the maintained data, based on predetermined criteria for the synthesis of the technical and financial controls and the regulatory codes and generally accepted best practices, to form data for an inventory related to the natural resource or reserve,

wherein the translated data is compatible with a predetermined inventory management application and constitutes inventory and stock items and transactions manageable within the inventory management application that track over time the change in the logical status or physical state of the resource or reserve at such granular, spatially indexed level; and

wherein the translated data retains the spatially indexed, technical geometries and attributes of the geospatial element.

7. The method as claimed in claim 1 , characterized in:

receiving, amalgamating and integrating disparate technical dimension and fact data defining spatial, design, descriptive or quantification geometries and attributes of a geospatial element in a natural resource or reserve,

wherein the received technical data is disparate without a common spatial index for enabling integration of the geometries and attributes to reasonably describe the collective technical perspective of the resource or reserve in relation to a specific spatial location to allow at least semi-continual tracking over time of changes in the logical status or physical state of the resource or reserve at that location;

defining a common spatial index with a specific level of granulation and geospatial orientation for the received, amalgamated and integrated data to enable such description of the resource or reserve and to allow such tracking in relation to that location;

maintaining the received, amalgamated and integrated data in an integrated database with reference to the common spatial index at least semi-continually to track the changes in the logical status or physical state of the resource or reserve over time at such granular, spatially indexed level; and

translating the maintained data, based on predetermined criteria for the synthesis of the technical and financial controls and the regulatory codes and generally accepted best practices, to form data for an inventory related to the natural resource or reserve,

wherein the translated data is compatible with a predetermined inventory management application and constitutes inventory and stock items and transactions manageable within the inventory management application that track over time the change in the logical status or physical state of the resource or reserve at such granular, spatially indexed level; and

wherein the translated data retains the spatially indexed, technical geometries and attributes of the geospatial element.

Assignments (8)

Continuity (3)