Researchers of Hunan University together with China Railway Construction Industry Co., Ltd., have developed an intelligent system for shield tunneling operations, risk prevention and control. Installed in the super-large diameter shield equipment, the system offers the shield machine a "smart brain" capable of precise control and risk prevention.

During underground excavation, it is difficult for humans to precisely control the operating parameters of the shield machine, which can easily lead to risks such as instability of the excavation surface, excessive surface subsidence, and imbalance of the shield machine's structure. With this intelligent system, the shield machine learns to autonomously identify the geological conditions and predict risks, ultimately achieving precise decision-making.

The system can also provide real-time warnings for potential hazards to the shield machine, offer intelligent decisions on excavation parameters, and make excavation operations in complex geological conditions more stable and efficient.

Currently, in the Shanghai metro construction project, the accuracy of parameter-assisted decision-making of this intelligent system exceeds 90 percent, and it can control the deviation of the shield machine's excavation position to within 30 millimeters.

In the Guangzhou intercity rail project, equipment fault diagnosis and intelligent operation and maintenance efficiency have increased by 20 percent because the system, compared to the traditional method of troubleshooting by referring to documents. This has helped to increase equipment utilization by 12 percent and boost the monthly progress of typical working conditions by five percent.