FireFly Autonomous Drone Project

Abstract: As a fire erupts, the first few minutes can be critical, and first respondents must race to the scene to analyze the situation and act fast before it gets out of hand. Factors such as road traffic condition and distance may not allow quick rescue operation using traditional means and methods, leading to unmanageable spreading of fire, injuries or even deaths that can be avoided. FireFly drone-based rescue consists of a squad of highly equipped drones that will be the first responders to the fire site. Their intervention will make the task of the fire rescue team much more effective and will contribute to reduce the overall damage. As soon as the fire is detected by in-building implanted sensors, the fire department would deploy a set of FireFly drones that would fly to the site, scan the building, and send live fire status information to the Fire fighter team. The drones would have the ability to identify trapped humans using AI based pattern recognition tools (using sensors and thermal cameras) and then drop them rescue kits as appropriate. The drones will also be equipped with fire detection and recognition capabilities and be able to drop fire extinguishing balls as first attempts to put off seeds of fires before they evolve. The integration of drones with firefighting will allow for ease of access and control of fire outbreaks. Drones will also result in increased response time, prevention of further damage, and allow relaying of vital information to out of reach places regarding the characteristics of the fire scene.