Drone-swarm fire suppression

Abstract

Systems and methods are presented for utilizing a drone swarm for firefighting purposes. Relevant information relating to a fire, priorities for fighting the fire, capabilities of the drones of the drone swarm, are evaluated. One or more deployment plans are developed for deploying the drone swarm for firefighting purposes. Each deployment plan includes a corridor for traversing drones of the drone swarm from launch zone to an attack zone, and a corridor for traversing the drones from attack zone to the landing zone. Each deployment plan also includes one or more objectives and corresponds to firefighting actions for each of the plurality of drones of the drone swarm. A pilot in charge (PIC) makes a section of and executes a first deployment plan. A DASA-configured computer or computer system, under the direction of the PIC, cooperatively directs the drones of the drone swarm to execute the deployment plan.

Description

DRONE-SWARM FIRE SUPPRESSIONBACKG ROUN D OF TH E INVENTION

[0001] Fire suppression, also commonly referred to as firefighting, has long been the purview of ground forces (firefighters) and manned aircraft, the latter of which dump water and / or fire-retardant from aerial positions. Recent times, however, have shown that the number, size, and locations of wildfires far outstrip these traditional fire suppression / firefighting methods and resources, creating a real need for additional firefighting tools and methods.

[0002] Fixed-wing aircraft work well enough in fire suppression when environmental circumstances are ideal, or at least suitable for flying such aircraft. Moreover, while fixed-wing aircraft, due to their forward momentum, can deliver large loads of water or fire retardant over a wide area, they have limitations to their applicability: they aren't particularly accurate, they cannot enter tight quarters, and do not lend themselves to in-the-moment changes.

[0003] As another limitation involving manned fixed-wing aircraft, with a few exceptions manned fixed-wing aircraft cannot be operated at night for firefighting, they cannot be operated in low visibility conditions (e.g., very smoky), nor can they be operated in high wind situations. As to the exceptions, both fixed and rotary wing manned aircraft can be operated at night when flown by a pilot using Night Vision Goggles (NVG) technology. This requires, however, that the pilot must also have a corresponding endorsement, an endorsement that is very difficult to obtain and maintain. Even so, flying at night under NVG technology for firefighting purposes is inherently an incredibly dangerous operation. Further, irrespective of whether a pilot has the appropriate qualifications to fly at night using NVG and is willing to do so, that pilot may not be able to see through the smoke in the area. Night vision technology typically is incapable of penetrating heavy smoke and fire conditions. Simply put, the use of NVG in fighting wildfires is only applicable where the topography and conditions support its use. Unfortunately, the operable conditions for NVG use are often the exception, rather than the typical.

[0004] Rotary wing aircraft, e.g., helicopters, are similarly restricted from flying at night, in high-wind conditions, and / or in low-visibility conditions due to smoke. While rotary wing aircraft can be fairly precise and accurate (conditions permitting) and make in-the-moment changes to drop locations / targets, these aircraft are typically stationary when deploying their load, e.g., water, thus affecting only a small area with a large amount of water or retardant.

[0005] More generally, aircraft firefighting requires at least one person (the pilot) to fly and there is a small, finite number of qualified pilots that can do the job. Moreover, these qualified pilots are almost always limited to the number of hours they can fly in any given day by government regulations. As the occurrence and magnitude of wildfires seem to be increasing each year, the availability of qualified pilots lags behind demand. Simply put, there aren't enough pilots to meet ever-increasing needs and likely never will be.SU MMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0006] In accordance with aspects of the disclosed subject matter, systems and methods are presented for utilizing a drone swarm for firefighting purposes. Relevant information relating to a fire, priorities for fighting the fire, capabilities of the drones of the drone swarm, are evaluated. One or more deployment plans are developed for deploying the drone swarm for firefighting purposes. Each deployment plan includes three (3) main components: a corridor for traversing drones of the drone swarm from the launch zone to a loading zone (e.g., a water source); a corridor from the loading zone to an attack zone where the fire suppression activities are to occur; and a corridor for traversing the drones from the attack zone to the landing zone (which may or may not be the launch zone). Additionally, and according to aspects of the disclosed subject matter, a deployment plan comprises repeated applications of the "attack", i.e., repeatedly executing the steps of a drone swarm deployment from launch to landing.

[0007] In accordance with further aspects of the disclosed subject matter, each deployment plan also includes one or more objectives and corresponds to firefighting actions for each of the plurality of drones of the drone swarm. A pilotin charge (PIC) makes a section of and executes a first deployment plan. A DASA- configured computer or computer system, under the direction of the PIC, cooperatively directs the drones of the drone swarm to execute the deployment plan

[0008] According to aspects of the disclosed subject matter, a computer- implemented drone swarm firefighting system is presented. In operation, the drone swarm system, with load carrying drones configured to carry water or fire retardant to a fire for firefighting actions, is operated under the direction of a pilot in command (PIC) in conjunction with a computing device configured to implement a drone-agnostic suppression algorithm (DASA). Indeed, under the control of the PIC, the computer-implemented DASA suggests one or more drone deployment plans for deploying a drone swarm for fire suppression purposes.The PIC selects and then executes a drone deployment plan for the swarm. While the selected drone deployment plan is conducted by a computer, in various embodiments of the disclosed subject matter, the execution / implementation of a swarm deployment is always under the direction of the PIC. Alternatively, in some embodiments and when permitted under governmental regulations regarding unmanned aircraft, the execution and / or implementation of a swarm deployment may be entirely under the control of a DASA-enabled computer system.BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0009] The detailed description is described with reference to the accompanying figures. In the figures, the same reference numbers in different figures indicate similar or identical items.

[0010] Figure 1 is a pictorial diagram illustrating key components of a DASA- enabled fire suppression system, configured in accordance with aspects of the disclosed subject matter;

[0011] Figure 2 is a pictorial diagram illustrating various aspects and elements of a DASA-configured computer, formed in accordance with aspects of the disclosed subject matter;

[0012] Figure 3 is a pictorial diagram illustrating an exemplary presentation of information to a pilot in charge (PIC) with respect to a deployed drone swarm, in accordance with aspects of the disclosed subject matter;

[0013] Figure 4 is a pictorial diagram illustrating an exemplary environment in which a DASA configured system may be deployed for fighting a fire, all in accordance with aspects of the disclosed subject matter;

[0014] Figure 5 is a flow diagram illustrating an exemplary flow diagram for developing and executing a deployment plan for a drone swarm for firefighting purposes, according to aspects of the disclosed subject matter;

[0015] Figure 6 is a flow diagram illustrating a flow diagram of an exemplary routine for monitoring and managing the deployment of a drone swarm according to a deployment plan, and in accordance with aspects of the disclosed subject matter; and

[0016] Figure 7 is a pictorial diagram of an exemplary representation of computer-readable media bearing computer-executable instructions for carrying out various aspects of the disclosed subject matter.DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF TH E INVENTION

[0017] By way of definition and according to aspects of the disclosed subject matter, a drone swarm should be understood to comprise a plurality of drones, i.e., unmanned aircraft. The unmanned aircraft may include combinations of fixed-wing and / or rotary-wing aircraft. Typically, though not exclusively, a drone swarm will comprise suppression drones (i.e., those drones that carry out firefighting actions to achieve an objective, and an overwatch drone that monitors the suppression drones with respect to a deployment plan, monitor the progress or behavior of the fire at large, as well as monitor the conditions of the attack zone. Additionally, an overwatch drone may act as a communication relay between the drone swarm (particularly the suppression drones) and the DASA- configured system. In accordance with aspects of the disclosed subject matter, the drones of the drone swarm, both suppression drones and overwatch drones, can be remotely controlled, both individually and as a group, by a DASA-configured computer system under the direction of a pilot in charge (PIC). Additionally, communications between the drones and the DASA-configured computer system are wireless communications.

[0018] A drone swarm may be heterogeneous in that a drone swarm includes multiple types of drones, especially among the suppression drones. The computer system that cooperatively manages the drones of a drone swarm is configured to be being drone agnostic. This means that the management portion issues instructions for execution by the drones of the drone swarm according to an application programming interface (API) that is understood by the management portion, but those instructions are received according to an application programming interface native to the receiving drone. Translations between the management portion's API and a receiving drone's API is carried out through a translation layer of the DASA-configured computer system.

[0019] The term "firefighting" should be interpreted to mean actions for fire suppression or extinguishment, protection of an area against burning (e.g., dousing an area or structure with retardant or water, provisioning tools or supplies to areas for use by people in fighting a fire, and the like.

[0020] The term "operational constraints," or more simply 'constraints," refers to restrictions imposed (often by governmental authorities) on the times and locations that drones of drone swarm may be deployed. Both times of operation, as well as the corridors (also referred to as travel corridors) in which the drones may travel are often restricted, especially in and around a fire zone (location of a fire and the immediate areas around the fire.) Environmental conditions, such as strong winds (e.g., greater than 60kph), and / or smoky conditions that limit visibility may also pose constraints on the deployment of a drone swarm.

[0021] In accordance with various embodiments of the disclosed subject matter, a drone swarm may comprise drones of varying types and abilities. Typically, though not exclusively, a drone swarm will include an overwatch drone. An overwatch drone operates to monitor (both visually and telemetrically) the progress of other drones of the drone swarm. Additionally, the overwatch drone may be configured to monitor the conditions of an action target of an action deployment of the drone swarm, monitor the conditions of the path to / from theaction target, and may serve as a communication point between the DASA- configured computer system under the direction of a PIC and the drones of the drone swarm.

[0022] By way of clarity, while this document will generally describe the use of the drone swarm for firefighting purposes, including but not limited to dropping water and / or fire retardant, it should be appreciated that a drone swarm may be alternatively utilized to deploy resources, such as tools, supplies, food, shelters, and the like, as well as conduct condition assessment and / or reconnoitering under a variety of conditions that are not necessarily related to firefighting. Indeed, a DASA-controlled drone swarm may be deployed for non-fire related assistance including, by way of illustration and not limitation, widespread emergencies and / or natural disasters. Accordingly, while this document is generally focused on utilizing a DASA-controlled drone swarm for firefighting purposes, the disclosed subject matter is not so limited.

[0023] To better illustrate aspects of the disclosed subject matter, reference is now made to the figures. Turning to Figure 1, this figure illustrates exemplary components of a DASA-enabled fire suppression system 100, configured in accordance with aspects of the disclosed subject matter. As shown in Figure 1, an exemplary DASA-enabled fire suppression system 100 comprises three basic components: a DASA-configured computer system 102, communication infrastructure 104 (some of which may be incorporated with the DASA-configured computer system 102), and a drone swarm 106 comprising a plurality of drones. Indeed, it should be appreciated that while each component is identified as a discrete component, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the identified "basic" components will likely include multiple elements and / or subcomponents.

[0024] With reference to the DASA-configured computer system 102, reference is made to Figure 2. Figure 2 illustrates various aspects and elements of the DASA- configured computer system 102, formed in accordance with aspects of the disclosed subject matter. Preliminarily and regarding the term, "DASA," particularly the notion of being "drone agnostic," it should be appreciated that the notion of being drone agnostic refers its ability to interact with, manage and coordinate a plurality of drones of a drone swarm based on an established set ofprotocols or application programming interface (API), irrespective of the type, make, and / or capabilities of a given drone with the drone swarm. Indeed, the DASA-configured computer system relies upon a set of established protocols to identify, interact with, monitor, direct and manage each drone of a drone swarm with respect to a deployment plan. Advantageously, the use of drones of different capabilities may broaden the scope of a deployment plan by providing a wider scope of capabilities than those of a homogenous drone swarm.

[0025] In at least one embodiment of the disclosed subject matter, the DASA- configured computer system 102 includes a computer 200 that includes executable components that implement various DASA features and functionality. Suitable computers and / or computer systems may include, by way of illustration and not limitation, desktop computer, laptop computers, tablet computers, mini- and / or mainframe computers and the like.

[0026] According to aspects of the disclosed subject matter, the computer 200 includes, at least, a processor 202 and a memory 208. As those skilled in the art will appreciate, a processor may be a central processing unit, a repurposed graphical processing unit, and / or a dedicated controller such as a microcontroller. Additionally, the computer 200 may further include an input / output (I / O) module 206, and / or a network interface controller (NIC) 204. The I / O module 206 may be any controller card, such as a universal asynchronous receiver / transmitter (UART) used in conjunction with a standard I / O interface protocol such as RS-232 and / or Universal Serial Bus (USB). The I / O controller interfaces with computer- associated devices (such as a display device, a keyboard, a mouse, pen and / or touch input devices, and like) so that users, such as a PIC, can interact with and instruct executable components on the computer. The NIC 204 may potentially work in concert with the I / O interface 208 and may be a network interface card supporting Ethernet and / or Wi-Fi and / or any number of other physical and / or datalink protocols. NIC 204 typically interacts with communication module 232 (discussed below) to provide communications with external devices, e.g., communications between the DASA-configured computer system 200 and a drone swarm.

[0027] Memory 208 is any computer-readable media which may store software components including an operating system 210, software libraries (not shown), and / or software applications. In general, a software component is a set of computer executable instructions stored together as a discrete whole. Examples of software components include binary executables such as static libraries, dynamically linked libraries, and executable programs. Other examples of software components include interpreted executables that are executed on a run time such as servlets, applets, p-Code binaries, and Java binaries. Software components may run in kernel mode and / or user mode. In accordance with aspects of the disclosed subject matter, the software components include DASA components 220 that, in execution on the computer 200, configure the computer to operate as described with respect to controlling a drone swarm, identifying deployment plans, modifying deployment plans, and the like.

[0028] In various alternative embodiments, a DASA-configured computer may be implemented on one or more servers and / or a cloud-based infrastructure and communicating with a PIC through local (local to the PIC) computer or terminal that interacts with the remote servers and / or services. A server is any computing device that may participate in a network. Typically, though not exclusively, a DASA-configured server would be remotely located to a PIC's terminal. The network may be, without limitation, a local area network ("LAN"), a virtual private network ("VPN"), a cellular network, or the Internet. Generally speaking, a server is similar to and operates the DASA components 220 in a similar manner to the description above with respect to computer 200.

[0029] As those skilled in the art will appreciate, cloud infrastructure refers to remote processes and / or services available on one or more networks, such as the Internet, that may provide the services of a server (as described above). In general, servers of the cloud infrastructure may comprise a physical dedicated server or may be embodied in a virtual machine. In the instance of one or more virtual machines, the cloud infrastructure may represent a plurality of disaggregated servers which provide virtual server functionality.

[0030] As suggested in Figure 2, a DASA system is carried out by the execution of one or more executable components of the DASA components 200. The DASAsystem's executable components may include, by way of illustration and not limitation, a deployment plan generator 222, a deployment analysis module 224, a deployment plan executor 226, a user interface module 228, a swarm monitor module 230, a communication module 232, and a translation layer 234. Additionally, while these modules and / or components are illustrated as discrete executable components, the assignation of features to any given component, and / or the existence of a particular component, is for description purposes. In actual implementations these executable modules and components may be comprised of multiple executable modules and / or aggregations of the same. Accordingly, any of these described modules and / or components may be viewed as logical rather than actual components.

[0031] Regarding the deployment plan generator 222, and according to aspects of the disclosed subject matter, the deployment plan generator is configured to generate (for presentation to a PIC) one or more drone swarm deployment plans to achieve one or more firefighting objectives. According to aspects of the disclosed subject matter, a drone swarm deployment plan comprises information suitable for implementing one or more objectives, i.e., the deployment objectives. More particularly, a deployment plan includes, by way of illustration and not limitation, information such as: when the deployment plan is to or should be implemented / executed, routing information for the drone swarm, from lift off, loading, traversal to deployment objective(s), and return from objective(s) to landing zone; communication channels and / or protocols; alternative objectives; and the like.

[0032] In generating a drone swarm deployment plan, numerous sources of information may be considered. These sources of information may include, by way of illustration and not limitation, current firefighting priorities (including structure and area protection zones), current meteorological conditions, current and projected fire lines, topological and hydrographical information of a deployment area (which can affect where and how to address a current fire, where to obtain water, where to launch and / or where to land), constraints for operating a drone swarm (e.g., when, where and to what extent a drone swarmmay be deployed at any given time), operational capacities and limitations of the drones in the to-be-deployed drone swarm, and the like.

[0033] In various embodiments, deployment plan generator 222 may utilize one or more executable machine learning (ML) models and / or artificial intelligence (Al) systems that consume information regarding the drone swarm, the operational constraints to using a drone swarm, information of current fire's behavior and likely behavior, critical infrastructure and features that may be affected by the fire, the topography and hydrography of potential attack zones (an area for the drone swarm deployment), predicted and / or anticipated impact of a particular deployment plan, and the like. Typically, though not exclusively, these ML models and Al systems will be located on remote servers or on cloud infrastructure. Human input to as to where, when and how a drone swarm should be deployed may also be considered in generating one or more deployment plans. Based on at least some of the above-identified information, deployment plan generator 222 identifies one or more deployment plans for presentation to a PIC for selection and execution.

[0034] While a PIC may or may not be required to select a generated deployment plan, in most instances a PIC is required to initiate and have full operational authority over the execution of a drone swarm deployment plan. Accordingly, the deployment plan generator 222 typically generates deployment plans and presents them, via user interface module 228 via a display 214, to the PIC for selection and execution.

[0035] Recognizing the conditions and circumstances relating to a wildfire are quite dynamic, a deployment analysis module 224 executes contemporaneously with the execution of a deployment plan. According to aspects of the disclosed subject matter, during a deployment plan's execution, the deployment analysis module determines whether the deployment objective(s) of the executing deployment plan remains viable, whether a priority of the currently executing deployment plan is superseded by other objectives, and the like. The deployment analysis module may further suggest one or more updates to a currently executing deployment plan to the PIC. In most instances, deployment analysis module 224 utilizes the same information sources available to the deploymentplan generator 222 and consumes up-to-date information from those sources. These sources provide information regarding the target (i.e., fire line), the behavior of the target (e.g., additional or less progression or movement of a fire line), conditions at the target (e.g., smoke and / or wind, the latter of which may mandate a modification to the deployment plan), and the like.

[0036] Updates to a deployment plan may be based on one or more alternative objective(s) of a deployment plan, alterations in routing and timing information, and the like, all the way up to aborting the deployment plan and routing the drone swarm to a landing zone. The updates are presented to the PIC as proposals and may provide rationale for any given proposal via the user interface module on a display / presentation device, such as display 214. As already indicated, however, in most instances the PIC has the authority to choose to implement or ignore any proposed update to a deployment plan, including actions that may not be in an update or the executing deployment plan. In various embodiments, the deployment analysis module may further consider alternative deployment plans and objectives to determine whether it is beneficial to propose a modification to the current deployment plan. Some of these considerations may include whether there is sufficient fuel, whether an alternative landing zone must be adopted, the urgency of the modification, risks associated with a modification, and the like.

[0037] In some embodiments of the disclosed subject matter, the objective (or objectives) of a currently executing deployment plan may be scored and measured against alternative and / or modified deployment objectives (considering the various internal and external costs and benefits associated with modifying a current deployment plan) to determine if any modifications to the deployment plan should be proposed to the PIC, as well as prioritize the various modifications for the PIC. In such embodiments, modifications are presented only when a measured score of a currently executing deployment plan is than a similarly measured score of a modification to the deployment plan, and only when that difference exceeds a predetermined (even possibly pre-configured) threshold. These scores may be presented to the PIC to assist in the PIC's ongoingmonitoring and evaluation of the currently executing deployment plan and any modifications presented by a deployment analysis module 224.

[0038] According to aspects of the disclosed subject matter, a deployment plan executor 226 may be suitably configured to orchestrate a drone swarm in carrying out the actions of a deployment plan. Typically, though not exclusively, this will include orchestrating the execution of each step of the PIC-selected deployment plan including, illustratively but without limitation, launching the drones of the drone swarm from their launch zone, positioning the drones from their launch zone to a loading position (e.g., where the drones can be loaded / filled with water / retardant), orchestrating the loading of the drones (which may require sequential loading - e.g., taking on water or retardant - for all drones), advancing the drone swarm along way-points toward an attack location, attacking (i.e., directing the drones to carry out their objective(s), e.g., dropping their load on a fire or key infrastructure) which may be cooperatively carried out serially, either individually or in various combinations of one or more suppression drones, or en masse, post-attack regrouping, managing the spacing (including required spacing) of the drones relative to other drones of the drone swarm, managing the timing of the drone swarm relative to projected and / or required times, advancing the drone swarm along exit way-points towards landing position, landing and shutdown of the drones of the drone swarm, and the like.

[0039] According to aspects of the disclosed subject matter, a user interface module 228 in execution, as already suggested, provides an interface between the DASA system (as implemented by the execution of one or more DASA components 220) and the pilot in charge (PIC). Indeed, through the user interface module the PIC may select and initiate execution of a deployment plan, review proposed modifications and implement any as deemed reasonable to the PIC, and / or modify an executing deployment plan, up to and including aborting the entire deployment plan. User interface module 208 may also be configured to provide the PIC with ongoing status information of a drone swarm deployment, as well as specific information regarding individual drones within a deployed drone swarm. Moreover, utilizing the user interface module, the PIC may modify the behavior of individual drones within a deployed drone swarm such as,illustratively and without limitation, terminating a drone's participation in a drone swarm deployment plan, possibly due to a malfunction of a drone as detected and reported to the PIC.

[0040] According to aspects of the disclosed subject matter, a swarm monitor module 230 will monitor the deployment progress of a drone swarm through the various steps and conditions associated with an ongoing, executing deployment plan. This monitoring may include the coordination of the current progress of the drone swarm and / or with specific drones within the drone swarm with respect to established timelines of a deployment plan and can generate and provide progress reports to the PIC via user interface model 228 on display 214. The swarm monitor module may assess the progress of a drone swarm with respect to an executing deployment plan and feed such information to the deployment analysis module 204. Information such as remaining fuel, mechanical operational status of a drone, progress with respect to established / projected timelines, and the like may be key information for the PIC in managing a drone swarm deployment.

[0041] According to aspects of the disclosed subject matter, communication module 232 comprises both the hardware and software necessary for the computer 200 (or computing device) to communicate with a network interface component (NIC) 204. Typically, though not exclusively, the hardware and software of the communication module provide a communication channel, via one or more additional communication components for communicating with the drones in a drone swarm. These additional communication components may or may not be incorporated within the computer 200.

[0042] According to aspects of the disclosed subject matter, translation layer 234 provides the abstractions and translations needed for the DASA system to communicate with a variety of drones. Indeed, as already stated, the DASA system is "drone agnostic," meaning that communications and instructions sent to individual drones of a drone swarm (including an overwatch drone) are formed in a manner that can be understood and / or processed by the intended drones. Indeed, translation layer 214 may be viewed as an application programming interface (API) translation layer: translating instructions and requests understoodby DASA components 220 into instructions or requests suitable for receipt and processing by an intended drone of a drone swarm. Additionally, the translation layer translates the communications received from a given drone and translates them into the API instructions / communication of the DASA components. According to aspects of the disclosed subject matter, the translation layer 234 maintains a data store of information regarding each drone in a drone swarm in order and uses that information to carry out the translations between drones and the DASA system.

[0043] According to one or more embodiments of the disclosed subject matter, a feature of the combination of communication module 232 and translation layer 234 is that communication between the DASA-configured computer system and the drones in the drone swarm may be carried out in a mesh network-like fashion. In other words, the drones in the drone swarm may be configured to operate as nodes in a mesh network, i.e., a drone swarm network. This mesh networking is advantageous in conditions where communications between a base station antenna (or an overwatch drone) may be blocked due to topography, interfering structures, distance, and the like would otherwise prevent communication with one or more drones of the drone swarm. As an additional advantage, implementing a mesh work also increases the effective range of communication between the drone swarm and the DASA-configured computer system and, by extension, the PIC.

[0044] Turning to Figure 3, this illustrates an exemplary presentation 300 of information provided by user interface module 228 on a display, such as display 214, for presentation to a PIC with respect to a deployed drone swarm. In this illustrative presentation 300, the displayed information may be used to provide deployment recommendations, modifications and alerts from the DASA system. For example, an alert may indicate that the fire line has changed and that a modification to attack zone of a current deployment should be made.

[0045] Illustratively, presentation 300 shows recommendations view 302 and deployment monitoring view 304. The recommendations view 302 includes a first message 306 to update the attack zone of the current deployment plan, along with a validity score suggesting the strength of the recommendation, alldetermined (by way of illustration) because the fire line has advanced. The deployment monitoring 304 view illustrates segments of the current deployment plan that have been achieved (in a darkened area), as well as those segments / actions that are yet to be completed, along with a projected time for completion.

[0046] Illustratively, instruction view 312 provides an area where the PIC may enter commands, alterations, and the like with respect to a swarm deployment. Similarly, recall control 310 is a control by which the PIC may abort and recall the drone swarm. Additional features of this illustrative view 312 include control 308 that enables the PIC to choose which of a plurality of views is to be displayed in view 330. In the current example, view 330 includes an indication of location 332 of the overwatch drone of the deployed drone swarm, location 334 corresponding to a current location of the deployed drone swarm, location 336 of a current fire line, and location 338 of an attack zone for the deployed drone swarm.

[0047] Of course, while various views have been illustratively displayed in presentation 300 of Figure 3, it should be appreciated that additional, fewer, and / or alternative windows or views may be displayed. Importantly, views and data displayed in presentation 300 are to enable the PIC to remain informed of his / her deployed drone swarm, make decisions regarding updates or modifications to a deployed drone swarm, select a deployment plan, monitor conditions of a fire, and the like.

[0048] As the purpose of presentation 300 is to provide information and enable instructions by the PIC, it should be appreciated that, in various embodiments of the disclosed subject matter, an alternative presentation may be configured, without departing from the bounds of the disclosed subject matter. For example, and by way of illustration and without limitation, a view from one of the deployed drones, a status monitor of a specific drone, a view of an alternative target location, and the like. In various embodiments, one or more views / windows may implement a type of augmented reality such that only restricted, specific information of a view is presented, or that a view is augmented with additional information that is relevant to but not part of the actual view. Accordingly,presentation 300 should be viewed as illustrative and not limiting on the disclosed subject matter.

[0049] Returning to Figure 1 and as mentioned above, a key component of the DASA- configured system 100 is the communication infrastructure 104. As indicated above, a DASA-configured computer system 102 will comprise communication infrastructure, including communication module 232 and NIC 204, both of which should be viewed as at least a part of the communication infrastructure. Additionally, however, the communication infrastructure 104 will typically include, by way of illustration and not limitation, RF communication hardware and software, such as VHF and / or UHF radio infrastructure, cellular infrastructure, microwave infrastructure, satellite / broadband hardware such as a satellite dish, and the like, all wireless communication channels. This infrastructure permits wireless communication between the DASA-configured computer 200 and the drones in a drone swarm.

[0050] In various embodiments of the disclosed subject matter, the communication infrastructure 104 may include a channel between the DASA- configured computer system 102 and an overwatch drone, and an alternative communication channel (yet still wireless) between an overwatch drone 118 and other drones, such as drones 116 of a drone swarm 106. Often, though not exclusively, the various communication channels are satellite-based communication channels.

[0051] Of course, a key component of the DASA-enabled fire suppression system 100 is the drone swarm 106. As illustrated in Figure 1, the drone swarm comprises a plurality of drones that are controlled (typically under the direction of a PIC) by a DASA-configured computer system 102. As can be seen, the plurality of drones of the drone swarm typically, though not exclusively, include at least one overwatch drone 118.

[0052] According to aspects of the disclosed subject matter, overwatch drone may not necessarily be deployed with other drones of the drone swarm in close proximity of a fire. Instead, an overwatch drone monitors and provides information regarding the drone swarm, fire conditions, and conditions of the drone swarm, and to facilitate (when necessary) communications between theDASA-configured computer system 102 and the drones 116 of the drone swarm 106. Additionally, an overwatch drone will typically operate have a longer flying time and can stay over a fire or an attack zone for an extended period of time.

[0053] In various embodiments of the disclosed subject matter, an overwatch drone may be a fixed wing drone that is more readily adapted to longer flight times and operating at higher altitudes than rotary wing drones. Of course, in alternative embodiments, an overwatch drone (irrespective of whether it is a fixed wing or rotary wing drone) may be deployed with other drones 116 in accordance with a deployment plan. Additionally, in some embodiments, while the overwatch drone is a fixed wing drone, it may be a vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) drone, enabling its launch with rotary wing drones, such as drones 116 of a drone swarm 106. By way of illustration and not limitation, the DragonFly 2S drone by ACC Innovation may be advantageously deployed as an overwatch drone.

[0054] Regarding the non-overwatch drones of a drone swarm, referred to as drones 116 of the drone swarm 106, it should be appreciated that while these drones are often rotary wing drones that are vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) drones, this is a non-limiting aspect of some drone swarms. In various implementations, a drone swarm may include one or more fixed wing drones that are not overwatch drones and intended for fighting fires. Launching (if not VTOL drones) and loading may differ from rotary wing drones but accounted for in a deployment plan. An example of a suitably configured drone of a drone swarm includes the Thunder Wasp™ GT drone from ACC Innovation, a heavy-lift drone having a load capacity of over 400 Kg.

[0055] Turning now to Figure 4, this figure is a pictorial diagram illustrating an exemplary environment in which a DASA configured system may be deployed, in accordance with aspects of the disclosed subject matter. As shown in Figure 4, the exemplary environment 400 includes, by way of illustration, a mountainous area 412 in which a forest fire is currently burning in zone 414 of the mountainous area.

[0056] In accordance with aspects of the disclosed subject matter, a DASA configured system, such as DASA-configured computer 200 of Figure 2, istypically, though not exclusively, deployed in near proximity to a fire, and particularly with respect to a target area of the fire (i.e., the area / structure / feature that the DASA configured system which includes a drone swarm 106 is to apply designated firefighting functionality). While not shown in Figure 4, the DASA-configured computer (or system) is contained in and / or operates within base station 416.

[0057] The DASA configured system includes communication infrastructure 104, as shown in Figure 4, that communicates with a drone swarm, such as drone swarm 106, to direct the drone swarm to an attack zone, such as attack zone 338 of Figure 3. Indeed, as shown in Figure 4, the communication infrastructure 104 includes a satellite 402 to facilitate communication between the drones in the drone swarm 106 and the DASA-configured computer system in base station 416. In this illustration, the communication from the satellite 402 to the drone swarm 106 passes through overwatch drone 118 and is relayed to specific drones 116 from the overwatch drone. In this embodiment, the overwatch drone 118, in addition to monitoring the drones of the drone swarm 116, as well as monitoring conditions of a target area of a deployment plan, is also configured communication routing features, such as data packet forwarding and switching between the drones of drone swarm 106 and the DASA-configured computer 200. It should be appreciated, however, that this figure illustrates a non-limiting embodiment of a communication between elements of a DASA system.

[0058] In accordance with alternative embodiments of the disclosed subject matter, the communication "channel" between drones of a drone swarm and the PIC, via the DASA-configured computer 200, may comprise microwave and / or RF transmissions directly between the base station 416 directly and drones of the drone swarm 106, without the overwatch drone operating as an intermediary / routing service. In this embodiment, intermediate communication infrastructure, such as satellites and / or repeaters (not shown) may be used to facilitate the bi-directional communications among elements in the DASA system.

[0059] Of course, due to blocking issues from terrain and / or structures, it is often advantageous for all drones of a drone swarm to operate as nodes of a mesh network. As those skilled in the art will appreciate, mesh network is a type oflocal area network (LAN) where multiple nodes work together to broadcast a WiFi signal based on IEEE802.il protocols, over a large area. These nodes, called mesh routers or satellites, form a single network with a single login. They efficiently route data to and from connected devices. In the context of the communication infrastructure 104, drones 116 of a drone swarm 106 are each configured with the networking features to operate as a node in a mesh network. Operating as a mesh network has an advantage of sustaining communications and providing numerous alternative paths, to any given drone 116 that may be incapable of directly communicating with an overwatch drone, or a satellite, or the base station 416, depending on a currently implemented communication configuration. For example, in a mountainous terrain, a drone's ability to communicate with an overwatch drone, satellite, or the base station may be impeded as it enters a canyon. Yet that drone, as a node of a mesh network, can communicate through the other drones in the drone swarm to always remain connected to the PIC (via the DASA-configured computer 200).

[0060] As indicated above, it is often important to locate the drones of a drone swarm in proximity to a target zone of a deployment plan. Indeed, according to aspects of the disclosed subject matter, the drones of a to-be-deployed drone swarm are transported to a suitable location for launching in near proximity to a target zone, such as target zone 414. In non-limiting embodiments of the disclosed subject matter, the near proximity to the target zone is 5 kilometers. Near proximity may be defined with lower or higher distances, typically dependent on the ability of individual drones in a drone swarm, particularly their range, under load, without refueling. Other considerations may include the locations of the launch and landing zones, weather conditions (particularly including wind conditions), and permissible corridor (travel path) restrictions that often create longer travel paths than radius measures. Typically, though not exclusively, the drones are transported to a near proximity of a target zone by one or more flatbed trucks, such as flatbed trucks 402. The drones of the drone swarm are offloaded in an area that can serve as a suitable landing zone, such as landing zone 404.

[0061] Additionally, it is advantageous though not necessary that the drones of a drone swarm system are deployed in an area having sufficient water, such as water source 406, that enable the drones to load their cargo area with water for use at the attack zone 414. In various circumstances, the loading zone (e.g., the water source) for a drone swarm may be a significant distance from the launch zone, e.g., % to / z mile away from the launch zone, or more. Clearly, the location of the water zone with respect to the launch zone and the attack zone will need to be considered in developing a deployment plan in order to ensure, as best as possible, the successful deployment of the drone swarm. In such circumstances, it would be advantageous to identify, to the extent possible, a launch zone in which the loading zone is in line with the attack zone.

[0062] Of course, in various implementations of the disclosed subject matter, alternative water sources may be used. For example, and without limitation, due to the VTOL nature of many heavy-life suppression drones, man-made structures including pools and / or water tanks (e.g., pumpkin or onion tanks) may be used as a water source or water sources. Indeed, water may be ported to a water zone for loading, or drawn from a source (e.g., a fast moving river) that might not support loading by a suppression drone but still provide a reliable source of water. Still further, water trucks may be used to port water to the water zone for loading from a tank or poo, and / or equipped with features to enable loading from the water trucks to the drones. Indeed, a first drone swarm may be deployed according to a deployment plan with the objective to fill the water tanks for a second drone swarm, thereby greatly increasing the effective reach of a drone swarm combination.

[0063] As the name suggests, the drones of the drone swarm do not need to be of the same type, size, or ability. The DASA is drone agnostic and communicates with the drones of the swarm via an API that directly or indirectly (through a translation layer) provides instructions to and receives information from a given drone. As to being drone agnostic, it is anticipated that any given drone swarm may include drones of different abilities: speed, agility, load capacity, current load level, tolerance to conditions (heat / smoke), and the like. The DASA system, whendeploying a swarm, may utilize each of the swarm drones' abilities to effectively conduct the purpose of the swarm deployment.

[0064] Often, though not exclusively, a deployment plan's route from the attack zone to landing will take the deployed drone swarm back to the launch zone. However, while it may be desirable for the drones to return to the launch zone for landing, it is not a requirement of the disclosed subject matter. In various embodiments, the landing zone of a deployment plan may correspond to an area that is not the launch zone. Indeed, a landing zone other than the launch zone may be advantageous due to proximity to extraction routes, while the launch zone may have been selected to its proximity to water.

[0065] According to aspects of the disclosed subject matter, in various embodiments the drones 118 of the drone swarm (including the overwatch drone) will typically, though not exclusively, include hardware and software required to allow the drones to fly into low and / or zero visibility situations, as well as one or more application programming interfaces (APIs) for ready integration with the DASA-enabled computer system. While topography data is important, and such information will be reflected in deployment plans by way of topography information (including elevation information) for the travel corridor and dimensions (3D) of the drones, of particular concern is object avoidance. To that end, drones of a drone swarm will typically be configured with hardware and / or software for object avoidance, including by way of illustration and not limitation, radar, lidar, 3D cameras and thermal / infrared cameras, GPS systems, and the like. Using these systems, the non-overwatch drones may capture greater detail regarding current and ongoing conditions of the deployment corridor and the attack zone, and relay that information back to the DASA- configured computer (and particularly the swarm monitor module 230 and / or the deployment analysis module 224) for evaluation and consideration during the execution of a deployment plan.

[0066] Turning now to Figure 5, this figure includes a flow diagram for identifying and deploying a drone swarm, such as drone swarm 106, for firefighting purposes. The routine 500 begins at block 502 where information regarding the to-be-deployed drone swarm, current conditions of fire to be fought, one or moreobjectives to be achieved, predicted conditions of the fire during available times of deployment, topographical and hydrological data of the area, constraints on travel paths (corridors) and travel times for the drone swarm, launching and landing zones, and the like, are gathered. As indicated above, all or some of the information may be obtained from third party sources, including data centers, cloud services, and the like.

[0067] At block 504, one or more deployment plans are generated with respect to the to-be-deployed drone swarm. As mentioned above, these deployment plans may be generated by one or more machine learning (ML) models and / or generative Al models (GenAI) based on the information that has been gathered in step 502, as well as additional resources available to the ML and GenAI models. According to aspects of the disclosed subject matter, a deployment plan will include a significant amount of information for carrying out a concurrent deployment of a plurality of drones of a drone swarm, which drone swarm may or may not be comprised of the same drone and / or drone capabilities, constraints on travel routes and deployment times, alternative objectives, and the like.

[0068] According to aspects of the disclosed subject matter, each generated deployment plan will include loading elements, i.e., loading the drones with their payload for achieving the objective(s) of the deployment plan. Each of these drones will typically be equipped with a sensing component (or series of components) that enable each drone to determine when it has filled its reservoir to a predetermined level. The sensing component may be comprised of, by way of illustration and not limitation, optical sensors, electro-mechanical sensors, audio sensors, strain gauges, piezoelectric sensors, and the like.

[0069] The deployment plan includes instructions for executing the loading of these drones, either in turn for each drone, or in multiples of drones depending on the water source. Typically, though not exclusively, the deployment plan will keep all of the non-overwatch drones in the loading area until all of these drones are loaded. This includes maintaining sufficient operational space between drones as they wait for the loading to be completed. This operational space may be predefined but may also be based on wind conditions or other environmental factors.

[0070] After one or more deployment plans have been generated, at block 506 these plans are typical ly, though not exclusively, presented on a display for selection by the pilot in charge (PIC). At block 508, a selection from the PIC is received regarding a deployment plan. According to various alternatives of the disclosed subject matter, selection of a deployment plan may automatically trigger the execution of the selected deployment plan (even if the initiation / execution time for the deployment plan is not yet) or await further input by the PIC to begin the execution.

[0071] At block 510, and irrespective of whether the execution of the selected deployment plan is automatic from its selection or manually indicated by the PIC, the deployment plan is executed.

[0072] At block 512, once the deployment plan is executing, at block 512 the DASA-configured system manages and monitors the coordinated deployment of the drone swarm from engines on, including launch, filling, traversal to the target, coordinated attach on the remotely located objective, return to landing zone, landing and engines off, all the way to completion of the deployment plan. This monitoring, as may be performed by the deployment analysis module 224 and / or the swarm monitor module 230, as described above with respect to Figure 2. Thereafter, routine 500, which is designed to identify deployment plans, receive a selection and launch the selected plan, terminates.

[0073] Turning to Figure 6, this figure is a flow diagram of an exemplary routine 600 for monitoring and managing a deployment of a drone swarm according to a deployment plan. Beginning at block 604 and with respect to a currently deployed deployment plan, the DASA-configured system determines the current status of the deployed drone swarm. According to aspects of the disclosed subject matter, the current status will include information such as location of the drone swarm, progress of the drone swarm relative projected timing, and the mechanical status of individual drones in the drone swarm.

[0074] At block 606, as part of keeping the PIC informed as the PIC is ultimately responsible for the deployment of the drone swarm, the current status of the swarm deployment is reported to the PIC. As indicated above, information regarding the ongoing execution of a deployment plan is developed by a swarmmonitor module 230, and presented to the PIC on a presentation device 214 via the user interface module 228. In addition to any status, recommended modifications to the currently-implemented deployment plan may also be generated and presented to the PIC for consideration and, potentially, implementation.

[0075] At block 608, a determination is made as to whether the PIC has provided any updated instructions with respect to the ongoing deployment of the drone swarm. In other words, based on the information that is provided to the PIC, including the current status of the drone swarm and its drones, where the PIC feels an updated command or alteration to the deployment plan is in order. If there is a command, the routine jumps (via Circle A) to block 616.

[0076] If, at block 608, there is no PIC instruction to process, routine 600 proceeds to block 610. At block 610, information regarding current conditions and context, including environmental information, updated fire behavior, and / or priority information is obtained (if anything has changed). At block 612, a determination is made (typically by deployment analysis module 224 in lieu of swarm status) as to whether the current deployment plan should be updated. If an update is (or updates are) warranted, routine 600 proceeds to block 616 (via Circle A). In the alternative, routine 600 proceeds to decision block 614.

[0077] At decision block 614, a determination is made as to whether the current deployment plan is completed, i.e., the drones are landed and turned off. If the current deployment plan is not completed, routine 600 returns to block 604 described above. Alternatively, if the current deployment plan is completed, routine 600 terminates.

[0078] Turning to block 616 (Circle A), based on the fact that the updated conditions and context may result in a modification to the current deployment plan, one or more modifications are generated by deployment analysis module 224 (which may also rely on information from swarm monitor module 230.) In addition to generating modification proposals for the PIC, each recommended modification may be associated with a score that suggests to the PIC a strength of the recommendation. This score may be based on predicted likelihood of successfully completing the current deployment plan without modifications(including the safe return of the drones of the drone swarm), the predicted likelihood of achieving the deployment plan objectives, urgency of emerging alternative objectives, environmental conditions at the attack zone, and the like.

[0079] At block 618, the one or more modifications are presented to the PIC on display 214 vis user interface 228. At decision block 620, a determination is made as to whether the PIC accepts an updated to the current deployment plan. If no modification is selected for implementation within the current deployment plan, routine 600 returns to block 604 for continued execution. Alternatively, if the PIC selects a modification, at block 622 the modification is implemented within the current deployment plan and the updated deployment plan is followed (in execution.) Thereafter, routine 600 returns to block 604.

[0080] Turning now to Figure 7, Figure 7 is a pictorial diagram of a representation 700 of computer-readable media bearing computer-executable instructions for carrying out various aspects of the disclosed subject matter.

[0081] As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, computer-readable media such as (by way of illustration and not limitation) a CD-R disc, a DVD-R disc, a platter of a hard disk drive, and / or an SSD device, on which is encoded computer-readable data 706. Non-limiting examples of a computer-readable medium (or media) include optical media (e.g., compact discs, "CDs", in various writable and / or non-writable forms, digital versatile discs, "DVDs" in their various writeable and / or non-writable forms, etc.), solid-state devices (e.g., USB "thumb" drives, flash memory cards or devices, etc.), magnetic discs and tapes, read-only cartridge devices, hard drives, and the like.

[0082] This computer-readable data 706 in turn comprises a set of computerexecutable instructions 804 as well as data. The computer-executable instructions, when executed by a processor of a computer such as DASA- configured computer 200, servers, virtual machines and / or services, operate according to DASA-configured system, as set forth herein. In one such embodiment, the computer-executable instructions 704 may be configured to perform one or more methods and / or routines, such as exemplary methods 500 and / or 600, for example and without limitation. The computer-executableinstructions are executable implements of the logical elements 702 (computer code).

[0083] While much of the above description is set forth in regard to firefighting, it should be appreciated that the DASA-configured system could be readily applied to a variety of conditions. Examples of suitable application of the DASA- configured system, which includes a drone swarm, include disaster relief (e.g., supplying or provisioning areas that are not readily reachable by land), emergency management in a given area, and the like.

Claims

AMENDED CLAIMS received by the International Bureau on July 17, 2025 (17.07.2025)What is claimed is:

1. A computer-implemented method of conducting firefighting using a drone swarm, the method comprising, at least: receiving first information relating to firefighting of a first fire; generating one or more deployment plans for the drone swarm for firefighting the first fire based on at least some the first information, wherein each deployment plan comprises one or more objectives for fighting the first fire using the drone swarm, and wherein the drone swarm comprises a plurality of suppression drones suitably configured to carry out one or more actions to achieve one or more objectives of fighting a fire; presenting the one or more deployment plans to a pilot in command (PIC) for selection; receiving a selection of a first deployment plan of the one or more swarm deployment plans from the PIC; and executing the first deployment plan to address the one or more objectives of the first deployment plan, comprising at least the following, as conducted in a coordinated manner with respect to the plurality of suppression drones and over a wireless communication channel: launching the plurality of suppression drones from a launch zone; navigating the plurality of suppression drones to an attack zone; initiating execution the one or more actions of the suppression drones from the attack zone to achieve the one or more objectives of the deployment plan; navigating the plurality suppression drones to a landing zone; and landing the suppression drones at the landing zone; wherein the suppression drones of the drone swarm are each configured to operate as a node of a mesh network formed by the plurality of suppression drones for wirelessly communicating with a drone agnostic suppression algorithm (DASA) -configured computer system utilized by the PIC in executing and monitoring the execution of the first deployment plan.. The computer-implemented method of Claim 1, wherein the first information relating to firefighting the first fire comprises at least one or more of a set of one or more priority objectives to be achieved with respect to the first fire, a current state of the first fire, predicted behaviors of the first fire, environmental conditions of the first fire, topography of the fire zone of the first fire, operating constraints to operating the drone swarm within the fire zone, and operational information with respect to the suppression drones.

3. The computer-implemented method of Claim 2, wherein the one or more deployment plans are generated by a trained machine learning model based on at least some of the first information.

4. The computer-implemented method of Claim 1, further comprising, during execution of the first deployment plan, monitoring a status of execution of the first deployment plan and generating presenting deployment plan status information regarding the status of execution of the first deployment plan for viewing by the PIC.

5. The computer-implemented method of Claim 1, further comprising, during execution of the first deployment plan, monitoring the operating status of each working drone of the plurality of working drones and generating suppression drone status information regarding the status of each suppression drone of the plurality of suppression drones for viewing by the PIC.

6. The computer-implemented method of Claim 1, further comprising, during execution of the first deployment plan, monitoring one or more of the fire zone, the behavior of the fire, and environmental conditions within the fire zone, and generating fire status information of the fire zone, the behavior of the fire and the environmental conditions within the fire zone for viewing by the PIC.

7. The computer-implemented method of Claim 1, during execution of the first deployment plan: monitoring the status of execution of the first deployment plan; monitoring the operating status of each working drone of the plurality of working drones; monitoring one or more of the fire zone, the behavior of the fire, and environmental conditions within the fire zone; generating one or more modification recommendations with respect to the first deployment plan; and presenting the one or more modifications recommendations to the PIC for potential implementation.

8. The computer-implemented method of Claim 7, during execution of the first deployment plan: receiving a selection from the PIC of a first modification recommendation; updating the first deployment plan according to the first modification recommendation; and continue executing the first deployment plan as modified according to the first modification recommendation.

9. The computer-implemented method of Claim 1, wherein navigating the plurality of suppression drones to the attack zone comprises, at least, navigating the plurality of suppression drones to the attack zone according to a first travel corridor defined within the first deployment plan for traveling to the attack zone.

10. The computer-implemented method of Claim 1, wherein navigating the plurality of suppression drones to the landing zone comprises, at least, navigating the plurality of suppression drones from the attack zone to the landing zone according to a second travel corridor defined within the first deployment plan for traveling to the landing zone.

11. The computer-implemented method of Claim 1, wherein each suppression drone of the drone swarm is a heavy lift drone and capable of vertical take-off and landing (VTOL).

12. The computer-implemented method of Claim 1, wherein the drone swarm further comprises, at least, an overwatch drone configured to operate in a position above the suppression drones of the drone swarm to monitor the execution of the first deployment plan by the suppression drones, and to monitor the conditions of the fire zone.

13. A computer-readable media bearing computer-executable instructions which, when executed on a computer system comprising a processor and a memory, configure the computer system to implement a method of conducting firefighting using a drone swarm, the method comprising, at least: receiving first information relating to firefighting of a first fire; generating one or more deployment plans for a drone swarm for firefighting the first fire based on at least some the first information, wherein each deployment plan comprises one or more objectives for fighting the first fire using the drone swarm, and wherein the drone swarm comprises a plurality of suppression drones suitably configured to carry out one or more actions to achieve one or more objectives of fighting a fire, and wherein each drone of the drone swarm is configured to operate as a node in a wireless mesh network; presenting the one or more deployment plans to a pilot in command (PIC) for selection; receiving a selection of a first deployment plan of the one or more swarm deployment plans from the PIC; and executing the first deployment plan to address the one or more objectives of the first deployment plan, comprising at least the following, as conducted in a coordinated manner with respect to the plurality of suppression drones and over a wireless communication channel: launching the plurality of suppression drones from a launch zone; navigating the plurality of suppression drones to an attack zone;initiating execution the one or more actions of the suppression drones from the attack zone to achieve the one or more objectives of the deployment plan; navigating the plurality suppression drones to a landing zone; and landing the suppression drones at the landing zone.

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