The Minsk Tractor Plant has created the BELARUS MT-902 mine vehicle with a fundamentally new chassis for the project – instead of modernizing the previous design, engineers used a hydrostatic transmission and all-wheel drive. The prototype is designed for transporting people in underground mines, and its tests will soon begin at "Belaruskali".
The key difference of the MT-902 was not the adaptation of existing equipment, but a significant redesign of the structure. The machine uses a hydrostatic transmission with all-wheel drive, axles with disc brakes operating in an oil bath, and a spring-lever suspension.
According to MTZ, modernizing previous mine vehicles would not have yielded the desired result, so the plant developed a new prototype.
The design was created taking into account real operating conditions. MTZ specialists traveled to Soligorsk and descended into the Berezovsky mine to a depth of 425 m, where they studied existing equipment and the specifics of its operation underground.
The first stage for the MT-902 will be tests directly at "Belaruskali". The enterprise is considering the development of a whole line of mine equipment, including cargo-passenger, medical, fire, and watering vehicles, as well as transport for operational personnel.
If the tests are successful, the MTZ development may be in demand by other enterprises in the mining industry.