Swarm Drone Fire Simulation for Faster Wildfire Suppression

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Solution Overview

Problem

Current firefighting technologies, including aircraft and ground teams, struggle to effectively combat rapidly spreading forest fires exacerbated by climate change, necessitating a complementary tool that can provide real-time data and strategic support for firefighting efforts.

Innovation Solution

An artificial intelligence and swarm intelligence method and system using simulated environments for autonomous drones and robots, integrating virtual and augmented reality with satellite/aerial images, IoT, and quadruped robotics to analyze fire data and simulate fire dispersion, predicting atmospheric effects and optimizing firefighting strategies.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Speed

If autonomous drones and robots are deployed for firefighting, then response speed and accessibility to dangerous areas improve, but system complexity and cost increase

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveresponse speedVSAvoidsystem complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
SpeedVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The system divides the firefighting operation into multiple autonomous agents (drones and ground robots) that operate independently but coordinate through swarm intelligence. Each unit has specialized sensors and capabilities, allowing the system to cover large areas quickly while distributing the computational and operational complexity across multiple simple units rather than one complex centralized system.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The autonomous drones and robots are equipped with onboard AI and swarm intelligence algorithms that enable them to make real-time decisions independently. They self-navigate to fire zones, self-coordinate with other units, and self-adjust their suppression strategies based on real-time sensor data, eliminating the need for complex external control systems while maintaining fast response times.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #25Self-service

2Measurement precision

If real-time data analysis and simulation are performed, then firefighting strategy precision improves, but computational time and processing requirements increase

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvestrategy precisionVSAvoidcomputational time
Core Design Contradiction:
Measurement precisionVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The system pre-loads historical fire data, terrain information, and atmospheric models into the simulation environment before incidents occur. When a fire is detected, the AI system immediately queries pre-computed lookup tables and uses pre-trained machine learning models to generate suppression strategies within seconds, rather than performing full simulations from scratch.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The system creates a virtual replica (digital twin) of the fire scene using real-time sensor data from drones and ground units. This virtual model allows the AI to test multiple suppression strategies in the simulation environment and select the optimal one, providing high-precision strategies without requiring extensive real-time computational resources since the heavy lifting occurs in the virtual copy.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #26Copying

3Adaptability or versatility

If swarm intelligence models are simulated in virtual environments, then strategic planning capability improves, but computational resources and processing power increase

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvestrategic planning capabilityVSAvoidcomputational resources
Core Design Contradiction:
Adaptability or versatilityVSUse of energy by moving object

Solution Approach 1:

The swarm intelligence simulation implements a hierarchical approach where only the most critical strategic decisions are simulated in full detail, while routine operational decisions use simplified models. The system performs partial simulations focusing on key uncertainty factors (such as wind patterns or fuel load) while assuming standard conditions for other parameters, reducing computational resources while maintaining strategic planning capability.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #16Partial or excessive action

Data Source

PatentUS20230064973A1Artificial intelligence and swarm intelligence method and system in simulated environments for autonomous drones and robots for suppression of forest fires
Publication Date: 2023.03.02 MELO ANDRE AUGUSTO CEBALLOS

AI summary

A new artificial intelligence and swarm intelligence method and system in simulated environments for autonomous drones and robots for suppression of forest fires, which foresees the simulation of swarm intelligence models in simulated environment for autonomous drones and robots for suppression of forest fires, performing the analysis of forest fires based on data and information on real time conditions or historical data, of a burning area, transforming same into a simulation environment to obtain a better strategy for firefighting, based on virtual reality environments for digital land, with a mixture of real and virtual images, using satellite/aerial images and combined maps of virtual reality, augmented and mixed. Thus, providing improvements and higher efficacy in combatting forest fires.