Low-Cost Stockpile Scanner and Volume Calculator using Light Detection and Ranging Device

Measuring stockpile volume is vital in the validation and valuation of mineral ores for shipment. The Department of Environment and Natural Resources - Mines and Geosciences Bureau (DENR-MGB) is responsible for the tasks. Currently regional Office - MIMAROPA have a shortage of surveying devices since they only have one total station to utilize. The surveying equipment is expensive which makes the procurement difficult for a regional office. Stockpile Scanner and Volume Calculator is designed and developed for surveyors and mining company to enhance the agencies capability in conducting rapid, but highly reliable, measurement of a stockpile. This can be advantageous since it can produce a 3D model of a stockpile and can automatically computes the area and its volume. This will help the surveyors increase the collection of stockpile data using LiDAR technology thus producing more output that will improve the validation between inventory and production at a lower cost. The research performed several tests to validate if the set objectives were met. The result showed that the developed device is economical with a total expenditure of less Php 10,000.00 and its time efficiency at 8.99 sec/m2. Thus, the device size is at 1.617 kilograms and its user-friendly rating is 4.57 using 1 to 5 Likert scale. With this, the research recommends using industrial done to capture the entire stockpile in just one flight and to upgrade the GPS module to acquire location with high precision.