A factory in north China is set to start producing coal mine rescue robots designed to enter hazardous environments to collect data during mining accidents, company sources said Monday.

The robot, equipped with blast-proof amour and chained wheels, was designed by Kaicheng Electronic Co. Ltd in Tangshan, north China's Hebei Province. It has received the authorities' permit to begin industrial production.

Company officials said when the factory runs at full capacity by 2012 it will be able to produce 1,800 units per year.

China's coal mines are among the deadliest in the world. More than 2,600 miners were killed in mining accidents last year. However, the death toll was already significantly less than those recorded in previous years.

A number of research institutes and firms have begun to develop coal mine rescue robots, though few of them have started industrial production.

(Xinhua News Agency November 2, 2010)