The key is that humans and machines need to complement each other. We now have a de facto standard for collision avoidance created by the Earth Moving Equipment Safety Round Table (EMERST), which defines where technology will intervene with human action. The standards are structured according to levels, with level 9 being machine intervention.

Levels 1 through 6 are what we call administrative controls. Those are the directives you put in place for your operators. An example is that when you're fully loaded, you're not allowed to travel over a speed of 40 kilometres. Or defining who gets the right of way at a T-intersection. These rules account for 99% of your safety situations in the mine.

Levels 7 – 9 are where the technology targets the exceptional 1% of cases that humans don't catch. The proximity detection system kicks in at level 7, and at level 8, there would be an advisory alarm of a potential hazard. It can also tell the operator if an intersection is clear or occupied. One of the most dangerous things we try to avoid is haul truck-to-light vehicle interaction. If you're in a smaller vehicle, you might not be able to see over berms, for example, so these warnings can be lifesaving.

Level 9 is where the system takes over the controls. It doesn't provide complete autonomy, but it could slow the vehicle down, say, in a 20 kilometres speed zone or stop the vehicle if the operator became incapacitated.