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TARP
Digitised Triggered Action Response Infrastructure. Turning underground lighting into a real-time safety and production control network.
What is Nebula Mesh™ TARP?
Nebula Mesh™ TARP is a distributed underground signalling infrastructure built on open-standard Bluetooth® Mesh. It transforms ordinary haulage lighting into an intelligent, real-time communication network — without adding new cabling, gateways, or proprietary hardware.
Every luminaire becomes a mesh node capable of relaying colour-coded visual commands, sensor alerts, and blast status information across the entire underground operation. Full RGB colours with selectable flash frequency and run time make triggered actions instantly visible.
The system transforms haulage lighting into a colour-coded visual command system, a real-time blast status network, a ventilation verification interface, a vehicle–pedestrian alert system, and a sensor alert relay — all from infrastructure that already exists underground.
Nebula Mesh™ TARP
- Official Bluetooth SIG Mesh Mark Holder
- Fully specification compliant
- Intrinsically safe interface strategy
- Distributed — no single failure point
- Operates without cloud dependency
- Locally engineered & supported
Infrastructure for Production Continuity
The Cost of Communication Delay
When abnormal blast events occur, every step in the traditional response chain introduces delay — personnel walk from the blast face to the muster station, the rock engineer is notified, an inspection takes place, clearance is communicated, and personnel walk back. Each step is manual. Each step costs time.
A typical mine experiences 3–5 abnormal blast events per month, with 1–2 hours of avoidable communication delay per event. The annual production exposure from these delays alone can reach tens or hundreds of millions of rand.
Communication latency becomes production loss. Nebula Mesh™ TARP removes walking delay from the response chain so production resumes faster.
Traditional Response Chain
- 1Personnel walk from blast face to muster
- 2Rock engineer is notified
- 3Inspection occurs
- 4Clearance communicated
- 5Personnel walk back
Each step introduces delay. TARP digitises this chain.
Vehicle–Pedestrian Proximity Alert
Underground vehicles fitted with interface nodes continuously broadcast their presence to the mesh. As a vehicle approaches, luminaires ahead activate amber proximity alerts — giving pedestrians advance warning before the vehicle arrives.
The alert window travels with the vehicle: lights activate ahead and deactivate behind, creating a moving zone of visibility. No manual intervention is needed. The mesh handles detection, propagation, and clearance automatically.
Vehicle proximity can also trigger automatic zone restrictions, speed warnings, or access control events through open API integration with existing mine systems.
How It Works
- Automatic detection — no manual trigger required
- Moving alert zone travels with the vehicle
- Lights deactivate behind the vehicle once it passes
- Pedestrians receive advance visual warning
- Integrates with zone access control via open API
Vehicle Proximity Alert
MonitoringBlast Event Response
When a blast event occurs, intrinsically safe sensors at the blast face trigger an alert on the nearest mesh node. That alert cascades outward in both directions through the haulage — node by node — until every luminaire in the affected area is flashing red.
The entire haulage is notified within seconds, without anyone having to walk to a muster station. Rock engineers can see which node triggered the alert and where the event originated. Ventilation restarts can be verified remotely before clearance is given.
Sensors at the blast face include gas, temperature, and vibration detectors. The alert propagates through the self-healing mesh regardless of individual node failures, ensuring the signal always reaches the surface.
How It Works
- Alert cascades outward from the blast point in both directions
- Entire haulage notified in seconds — no walking required
- Visual location of the triggering node identifies the event source
- Ventilation verification before clearance
- Self-healing mesh ensures signal delivery despite node failures
- Supports gas, temperature, and vibration sensors
Blast Event Response
MonitoringTraditional vs Digitised Workflow
TARP replaces manual, walking-dependent communication with an instant digital response chain.
The Impact
- Walking delays are eliminated from the communication loop
- Ventilation restarts can be verified remotely
- Vehicle proximity can trigger zone alerts automatically
- The response chain becomes digital
Architecture Overview
- Mesh nodes embedded in haulage luminaires
- Interface nodes for vehicles and sensors
- Intrinsically safe sensor interfaces at blast face
- Gateway at muster station
- Optional 868 MHz bridge at blast zone
- Fibre integration to mine backbone
Engineering Characteristics
Lighting becomes the backbone. Infrastructure remains under the mine's control. Open standard for any other devices to be added.
Managed Flooding Topology
Messages propagate across the entire mesh using a managed flood. Every node relays every message, ensuring full coverage with no routing complexity.
128-bit AES Encryption
All mesh communication is encrypted with 128-bit AES. Authentication and key management follow the Bluetooth SIG specification.
Full SIG Node Capacity
Each node supports the full Bluetooth SIG mesh feature set — models, elements, subscriptions, and publications — with no feature reduction.
Self-Healing Network
If a node is damaged or removed, messages automatically reroute through alternative paths. No single point of failure can bring down the network.
Offline Operation
The system operates entirely underground without cloud dependency. No internet connection is required for full functionality.
Open API Integration
Open API allows integration with existing mine systems — SCADA, ventilation control, access management, and third-party sensors.
Powered by Open-Standard Bluetooth® Mesh
Built by a Bluetooth SIG Mesh Mark Holder
Interested in deploying Nebula Mesh™ TARP at your operation?