What traits does a wi-fi community want to attach shifting property? Answer: it will depend on the stakes. Occasional lapses in connectivity and a bit latency could be okay in the event you’re catching up on e mail whereas driving a bus, however not in the event you’re remotely controlling a 100,000-pound bulldozer on a steep dam slope. That’s why Aterpa, a Brazilian engineering firm employed to decommission Brazil’s tailings dams, makes use of Cisco Ultra-Reliable Wireless Backhaul (URWB) to remotely management heavy tools like bulldozers and excavators.
Remote management of unmanned techniques can’t tolerate community latency
Following dam collapses in 2015 and 2019, massive mining firms dedicated to stopping future catastrophes by launching packages to decommission tailings dams (tailings are mud-like byproducts of ore mining) constructed utilizing the identical building strategies because the failed ones. It’s harmful work as a result of heavy equipment wants to maneuver throughout unstable floor, and missteps can result in accidents. “Dam decharacterization, or decommissioning, is a relatively new field,” explains Rodrigo Campos, contract supervisor at Aterpa. “You need to remove the tailings in the dam, but you can’t allow people to enter because of the safety issues.”
To safely decommission dams within the Brazilian state of Minas Garais, Aterpa determined to make use of unmanned techniques. The plan: operators working in a central command heart would view real-time digital camera feeds and sensor information from heavy tools like excavators to remotely management these techniques over the community. The difficult half was establishing a wi-fi outside community with the required reliability, low latency, and seamless handoffs. Existing mesh options and even the newest Wi-Fi variations aren’t designed for these calls for as minimal jitter and latency can affect operations. If a video feed is delayed by even half a second, for instance, an operator won’t see an impediment in time to maneuver round it or brake, probably sending the tools toppling down the dam slope.
Ultra-reliable wi-fi for shifting tools
Aterpa discovered its reply in Cisco URWB, which gives the ultra-low latency (<10ms), seamless handoffs, and uninterrupted connectivity wanted to remotely management shifting property in high-stakes environments. “In our operations center we’ve recreated the experience of a conventional vehicle cab, complete with a steering wheel and controls,” says Campos. Operators see what they’d see in the event that they have been sitting within the bodily cab on the slope, permitting them to securely steer tools and take away tailings. “With Cisco URWB, when the remote operator issues a command, the equipment responds instantly,” Campos provides.
Between September 2022 and April 2025, Aterpa eliminated roughly 1.7 million cubic meters (2.22 million cubic toes) of waste with teleremote operations over Cisco URWB. The communities close to the dams are now not threatened. Operators are safer and the surroundings is cleaner. “After almost three years of unmanned operation over Cisco URWB, we’ve seen that when the network is reliable, the operation is reliable,” says Campos. “Our operating model has become a benchmark for the industry.”
Three methods Cisco URWB stands aside
What set Cisco URWB aside from different wi-fi applied sciences for high-stakes operations like this one? First, URWB delivers near-zero (<10ms) latency. Second, when a related system—say, an excavator, robotic, or prepare—roams between entry factors, the connection doesn’t break till the subsequent connection is established. We name that “make-before-break” connectivity. Finally, URWB sends duplicate copies of packets (like sensor information from shifting property and instructions from operators) over as much as eight redundant paths.
Learn extra
Find us within the World of Solutions at Cisco Live to see URWB in motion and register to the PSOIOT-1020 session.
Read about Cisco Ultra-Reliable Wireless Backhaul.
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