Horizon monitoring for longwall system

A monitoring device for a longwall mining system including a shearer having a first cutter drum, a second cutter drum, and a first sensor to determine a position of at least one of the shearer, the first cutter drum, and the second cutter drum over a shear cycle, the monitoring device comprising:

• a memory;
• and
• an electronic processor coupled to the memory and in communication with the shearer to receive shearer position data including information regarding at least one of a group consisting of the position of the shearer, the position of the first cutter drum, and the position of the second cutter drum, the electronic processor configured to
• identify, from the shearer position data, profile data obtained over a shear cycle including a plurality of pan lengths;
• for each pan length of the plurality of pan lengths in the shear cycle, analyze the profile data to determine whether a parameter is outside of a normal operating range for the each pan length;
• and
• generate an alert in response to determining, via the analyzing of the profile data, that the parameter is outside of the normal operating range for one of the plurality of pan lengths.