Lancashire Fire and Rescue test Windracers’ drones for wildfire prevention

The Lancashire team worked in collaboration with Windracers, a Southampton-based manufacturer of self-flying cargo aircraft, and AI and robotics scientists based at the Universities of Bristol and Sheffield.

They developed technology for autonomously detecting and suppressing fires before they spread into uncontrollable wildfires, which have become more frequent, large, and severe in the UK.

“The earlier we reach fires, the less harm they pose to firefighters, communities, infrastructure and the environment,” Justin Johnston, Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service’s chief fire officer, said in a statement.

The Windracer ULTRA self-flying cargo aircraft, which have also been used to carry parcels to the Orkney Islands and collect scientific data in Antarctica, are able to carry 100kg of fire retardant.

According to the company, the drones can also fly autonomously in a search pattern to monitor danger areas over the summer months, with a swarm of drones potentially covering areas the size of Greece.

Using AI technology from Sheffield University – which incorporates thermal and optical imaging – the drones can automatically detect and investigate fires and relay the information to the fire team on the ground.

Under the supervision of fire and rescue teams and using swarm technology developed by Bristol researchers, the drones can then self-coordinate as first responders to deploy fire retardant onto the fire, monitor the situation and return to base.

The week-long trial based at Preddanack airport in Cornwall tested the autonomous fire detection and swarm capabilities using one ULTRA and three smaller drones.

ULTRA and the drones identified and approached a number of small, controlled fires. The partners said that this is a key milestone in the development of wildfire prevention technology which could be deployed by firefighters in the coming years, pending regulatory approval.

“The self-governing swarm of flying drones could help firefighters detect a wildfire earlier, while being able to locate the exact place of fire and summon other drones to control the fire before firefighters get to the scene. We are proud and delighted to be part of this trial, the first of its kind in the world, and have a say in technology that could greatly reduce the risk of wildfires,” said Johnston.

The project has been funded by The Future Flight challenge at UKRI, delivered by Innovate UK. ‘Protecting environments with unmanned aerial vehicle swarms’ was one of 17 projects that shared £73m in funding to develop and show integrated aviation systems and new vehicle technologies.