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Equipping autonomous aircraft to rapidly tackle wildfires
CategoriesSustainable News

Equipping autonomous aircraft to rapidly tackle wildfires

By Zarkon Group,

Spotted: As the world continues to break global temperature records and conditions get drier, wildfires are increasing in frequency, severity, and duration. In 2023 alone, there have been almost 50,000 fires, burning 2.57 million acres of vegetation. Wildfires wreak havoc on communities, environments, and the economy, and one company is working to suppress catastrophic fires through automation.

Rain is the only autonomous technology developed to rapidly suppress wildfires during the first ten minutes of ignition, helping fire agencies more quickly, safely, and effectively contain them before they grow out of control. Its founders, Max and Ephraim, have personal experience with wildfires, having lived in the interior of British Columbia when the Okanagan Mountain Park Firestorm in 2003 caused the largest mass evacuations since WWII.

The company adapts existing military and civil autonomous aircraft with the intelligence to perceive, understand, and suppress wildfires. This technology then enables these aircraft to be prepositioned in remote locations where the risk of fire is high, resulting in increased response times.

The Rain Wildfire Mission Autonomy System uses software that integrates with aircraft autonomy systems and includes components for wildfire mission management, fire perception, path planning, suppression strategy, and suppressant targeting. The system also has infrared and visual spectrum cameras, inertial navigation, GPS and other sensors, and automated suppressant deployment equipment.

Rain plans to collaborate with Sikorsky, a Lockheed Martin Company, to demonstrate how an uncrewed BLACK HAWK helicopter with Rain’s Wildfire Mission Autonomy System could respond rapidly to suppress incipient wildfires.

As we witness more wildfires by the year, Springwise has spotted many ways to manage and mitigate its devastation. A Berlin-based startup created a sensor that uses AI to detect ultra-early wildfires, while Mitiga is using physics and AI to assess risk in real-time up to 100 years into the future.

Written By: Anam Alam

Reference

Autonomous robots help with nuclear decommissioning
CategoriesSustainable News

Autonomous robots help with nuclear decommissioning

By Zarkon Group,

Spotted: One of the main downsides of nuclear power is the challenge of decommissioning old facilities, a process that requires adequate technologies, sufficient funding, solutions for the management of nuclear waste, and a skilled workforce.

Smart robots can play an important role in decommissioning legacy power stations quickly, safely, and cheaply, and a new project in Cumbria, known as the ‘Robotics and AI Collaboration’ (RAICo), is developing robots that are designed to think and act for themselves, carrying out work that is too dangerous for humans.

The project is a collaboration between The University of Manchester, the UK Atomic Energy Agency (UKAEA), Sellafield Ltd, the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority, and the National Nuclear Laboratory.

“We’re helping Sellafield and other nuclear end-users to develop the next generation of remote surveying and handling equipment so they can improve their operations,” explains Professor Barry Lennox, a leading member of the RAICo team.

The project’s ultimate goal is to transfer the technology it develops to sites across the UK. RAICo will also provide a pilot for the development of robotic systems in other sectors, such as the offshore energy sector, agriculture, nuclear fusion, and even outer space.

The technology is described as ‘hot’ robotics, a prefix that was coined to reflect the use of robots in radioactive environments inside nuclear reactors. Professor Lennox, however, believes that the meaning of ‘hot’ will now need to be broadened as the technology is applied to more general applications.

Other robotics innovations recently spotted by Springwise include the SeaClear system, which uses a combination of robotics and machine learning to efficiently locate and remove marine debris, and a dam in China that is being built by robots.

Written By: Katrina Lane

26th July 2022

Website: hotrobotics.co.uk

Reference

Autonomous robots collect seafloor litter
CategoriesSustainable News

Autonomous robots collect seafloor litter

By Zarkon Group,

Spotted:  There is an estimated 75 to 119 million tonnes of plastic waste in our oceans today. And while most endeavours to tackle ocean waste have focused on addressing litter floating on the surface, the majority of it is found on the ocean floor.

The underwater environment poses a unique challenge. Traditional methods of cleaning up the ocean floor are both dangerous and expensive, involving human divers who are put at risk every time they descend into the depths. In response, researchers from the EU-funded SeaClear project are developing an AI-based solution for cleaning up the ocean floor without putting human life in danger.

The SeaClear system uses a combination of robotics and machine learning to efficiently locate and remove marine debris. A boat, a drone, two underwater robots, and a collection basket make up the system. The boat functions like a sort of mothership, acting as a communication hub and power source for the robots.

How does it work? The boat marks any large debris encountered on the ocean floor using a type of sonar called a multibeam echosounder. The drones also use sonar to identify large pockets of debris from the air. The underwater robots are then deployed to collect the debris and deposit it in the basket. The whole process is automated, making it much more efficient and effective than traditional methods of marine litter collection.

SeaClear project partner Subsea Tech in France developed the innovative system, which is now being tested in real-world conditions. This new solution has the potential to revolutionise the way we deal with ocean pollution and help to keep our seas clean for future generations.

Other innovations spotted by Springwise that clean up marine litter include okra used to clean up microplastics, a fleet of giant floating barriers tackling the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, and a beer company hosting a tournament to fish plastic out of the ocean.

Written By: Katrina Lane

7th July 2022

Website: seaclear-project.eu

Contact: seaclear-project.eu/contact

Reference