Students Develop Firefighting Drone

Istanbul Bilgi University mechatronics engineering students Abdulwadoud Alikhwan, Ahmet Nezar Albani and Mhd Fouad Al Khani designed a fire-suppression drone as part of their graduation projects. The six-propeller drone, capable of carrying a 4-kilogram payload, detects fires in hard-to-reach forested areas, notifies authorities and can intervene with fire-suppression balls. The drone, designed by Abdulwadoud Alikhwan, Ahmet Nezar Albani and Mhd Fouad Al Khani under the supervision of Assistant Professor Yeşim Öniz, uses image processing techniques to identify locations where fires break out in forested areas and can intervene in fire suppression. When the drone takes off, the fire detection system activates online. Once the drone is positioned to hover in the area, it begins scanning to determine whether there is a fire. The moment fire or smoke is detected in the area, authorities are alerted through live video notifications from the drone. The drone can also be remotely controlled to release suppression balls to the fire-detected area, allowing the fire to be brought under control. The students, quoted in the statement, noted that forest fires, which have increased in recent years, produce extremely dangerous and destructive consequences for natural habitats and human safety, stating: "Drones used in firefighting offer a technological innovation in extinguishing fires in hard-to-reach areas. Our work aims to improve the performance and efficiency of fire-suppression drones." Source