Drones for early forest fire detection
With the system developed by Evolonic, forest fires can be recognised at an early stage of development, thus preventing economic and ecological damage.
Forest fires cause up to 20% of global CO2 emissions. Favoured by climate change, the number of fires is increasing sharply worldwide. Germany is also affected by this. In 2022, 4293 hectares of forest were completely burnt across Germany, causing enormous damage to the economy and the environment. In order to detect such devastating forest fires at an early stage and thus minimise economic and ecological damage, the Evolonic team has developed a software solution that provides emergency services on the ground with real-time information about the fire.
The interdisciplinary team of researchers from Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg and the Fraunhofer IISB has been developing long-range drones and sensor systems since 2018.
Drones in action
Due to its high efficiency, the ‘Light Fury’ long-range drone, which takes off vertically, covers extensive forest areas and is a platform for a camera and sensor system. The drone is equipped with both an RGB camera for detecting smoke sources over large areas and a thermal camera for identifying embers and sources of fire. The drone is equipped with a large number of sensors to ensure operational safety on the one hand and to identify sources of fire in high resolution on the other. Thanks to the all-electric drive system, the aircraft is very quiet and produces no CO2 emissions during operation. It is also designed in such a way that animals are not disturbed in their natural habitat.
If required, the drone can operate in the area of operation and support the emergency services on site with real-time data on the fire. With a user interface that is perfectly tailored to the requirements of the respective emergency services, it enables clear and intelligent use. The artificial intelligence of the image recognition software is trained through frequent use and enables even more accurate smoke detection, far beyond the capabilities of the human eye. Fire and weather data is processed and statistically analysed by the system. This will help to detect fires even faster and more precisely in future.
More information about the project and opportunities to participate: Evolonic
