Fuzzy-based forest fire prevention and detection by wireless sensor networks

Forest fires may cause considerable damages both in ecosystems and lives. This proposal describes the application of Internet of Things and wireless sensor networks jointly with multi-hop routing through a real time and dynamic monitoring system for forest fire prevention. It is based on gathering and analyzing information related to meteorological conditions, concentrations of polluting gases and oxygen level around particular interesting forest areas. Unusual measurements of these environmental variables may help to prevent wildfire incidents and make their detection more efficient. A forest fire risk controller based on fuzzy logic has been implemented in order to activate environmental risk alerts through a Web service and a mobile application. For this purpose, security mechanisms have been proposed for ensuring integrity and confidentiality in the transmission of measured environmental information. Lamport's signature and a block cipher algorithm are used to achieve this objective

Unmanned Aerial Systems for Wildland and Forest Fires

Wildfires represent an important natural risk causing economic losses, human death and important environmental damage. In recent years, we witness an increase in fire intensity and frequency. Research has been conducted towards the development of dedicated solutions for wildland and forest fire assistance and fighting. Systems were proposed for the remote detection and tracking of fires. These systems have shown improvements in the area of efficient data collection and fire characterization within small scale environments. However, wildfires cover large areas making some of the proposed ground-based systems unsuitable for optimal coverage. To tackle this limitation, Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) were proposed. UAS have proven to be useful due to their maneuverability, allowing for the implementation of remote sensing, allocation strategies and task planning. They can provide a low-cost alternative for the prevention, detection and real-time support of firefighting. In this paper we review previous work related to the use of UAS in wildfires. Onboard sensor instruments, fire perception algorithms and coordination strategies are considered. In addition, we present some of the recent frameworks proposing the use of both aerial vehicles and Unmanned Ground Vehicles (UV) for a more efficient wildland firefighting strategy at a larger scale.Comment: A recent published version of this paper is available at: https://doi.org/10.3390/drones501001

From Pillars to AI Technology-Based Forest Fire Protection Systems

The importance of forest environment in the perspective of the biodiversity as well as from the economic resources which forests enclose, is more than evident. Any threat posed to this critical component of the environment should be identified and attacked through the use of the most efficient available technological means. Early warning and immediate response to a fire event are critical in avoiding great environmental damages. Fire risk assessment, reliable detection and localization of fire as well as motion planning, constitute the most vital ingredients of a fire protection system. In this chapter, we review the evolution of the forest fire protection systems and emphasize on open issues and the improvements that can be achieved using artificial intelligence technology. We start our tour from the pillars which were for a long time period, the only possible method to oversee the forest fires. Then, we will proceed to the exploration of early AI systems and will end-up with nowadays systems that might receive multimodal data from satellites, optical and thermal sensors, smart phones and UAVs and use techniques that cover the spectrum from early signal processing algorithms to latest deep learning-based ones to achieving the ultimate goal

GIS-Based Forest Fire Susceptibility Zonation with IoT Sensor Network Support, Case Study—Nature Park Golija, Serbia

The territory of the Republic of Serbia is vulnerable to various natural disasters, among which forest fires stand out. In relation with climate changes, the number of forest fires in Serbia has been increasing from year to year. Protected natural areas are especially endangered by wildfires. For Nature Park Golija, as the second largest in Serbia, with an area of 75,183 ha, and with MaB Reserve Golija-Studenica on part of its territory (53,804 ha), more attention should be paid in terms of forest fire mitigation. GIS and multi-criteria decision analysis are indispensable when it comes to spatial analysis for the purpose of natural disaster risk management. Index-based and fuzzy AHP methods were used, together with TOPSIS method for forest fire susceptibility zonation. Very high and high forest fire susceptibility zone were recorded on 26.85% (Forest Fire Susceptibility Index) and 25.75% (fuzzy AHP). The additional support for forest fire prevention is realized through an additional Internet of Thing (IoT)-based sensor network that enables the continuous collection of local meteorological and environmental data, which enables low-cost and reliable real-time fire risk assessment and detection and the improved long-term and short-term forest fire susceptibility assessment. Obtained results can be applied for adequate forest fire risk management, improvement of the monitoring, and early warning systems in the Republic of Serbia, but are also important for relevant authorities at national, regional, and local level, which will be able to coordinate and intervene in a case of emergency events

A Brief Review of Machine Learning Algorithms in Forest Fires Science

Due to the harm forest fires cause to the environment and the economy as they occur more frequently around the world, early fire prediction and detection are necessary. To anticipate and discover forest fires, several technologies and techniques were put forth. To forecast the likelihood of forest fires and evaluate the risk of forest fire-induced damage, artificial intelligence techniques are a crucial enabling technology. In current times, there has been a lot of interest in machine learning techniques. The machine learning methods that are used to identify and forecast forest fires are reviewed in this article. Selecting the best forecasting model is a constant gamble because each ML algorithm has advantages and disadvantages. Our main goal is to discover the research gaps and recent studies that use machine learning techniques to study forest fires. By choosing the best ML techniques based on particular forest characteristics, the current research results boost prediction power

Advancements in Forest Fire Prevention: A Comprehensive Survey

Nowadays, the challenges related to technological and environmental development are becoming increasingly complex. Among the environmentally significant issues, wildfires pose a serious threat to the global ecosystem. The damages inflicted upon forests are manifold, leading not only to the destruction of terrestrial ecosystems but also to climate changes. Consequently, reducing their impact on both people and nature requires the adoption of effective approaches for prevention, early warning, and well-coordinated interventions. This document presents an analysis of the evolution of various technologies used in the detection, monitoring, and prevention of forest fires from past years to the present. It highlights the strengths, limitations, and future developments in this field. Forest fires have emerged as a critical environmental concern due to their devastating effects on ecosystems and the potential repercussions on the climate. Understanding the evolution of technology in addressing this issue is essential to formulate more effective strategies for mitigating and preventing wildfires

Training of Crisis Mappers and Map Production from Multi-sensor Data: Vernazza Case Study (Cinque Terre National Park, Italy)

This aim of paper is to presents the development of a multidisciplinary project carried out by the cooperation between Politecnico di Torino and ITHACA (Information Technology for Humanitarian Assistance, Cooperation and Action). The goal of the project was the training in geospatial data acquiring and processing for students attending Architecture and Engineering Courses, in order to start up a team of "volunteer mappers". Indeed, the project is aimed to document the environmental and built heritage subject to disaster; the purpose is to improve the capabilities of the actors involved in the activities connected in geospatial data collection, integration and sharing. The proposed area for testing the training activities is the Cinque Terre National Park, registered in the World Heritage List since 1997. The area was affected by flood on the 25th of October 2011. According to other international experiences, the group is expected to be active after emergencies in order to upgrade maps, using data acquired by typical geomatic methods and techniques such as terrestrial and aerial Lidar, close-range and aerial photogrammetry, topographic and GNSS instruments etc.; or by non conventional systems and instruments such us UAV, mobile mapping etc. The ultimate goal is to implement a WebGIS platform to share all the data collected with local authorities and the Civil Protectio

Architecture and Applications of IoT Devices in Socially Relevant Fields

Number of IoT enabled devices are being tried and introduced every year and there is a healthy competition among researched and businesses to capitalize the space created by IoT, as these devices have a great market potential. Depending on the type of task involved and sensitive nature of data that the device handles, various IoT architectures, communication protocols and components are chosen and their performance is evaluated. This paper reviews such IoT enabled devices based on their architecture, communication protocols and functions in few key socially relevant fields like health care, farming, firefighting, women/individual safety/call for help/harm alert, home surveillance and mapping as these fields involve majority of the general public. It can be seen, to one's amazement, that already significant number of devices are being reported on these fields and their performance is promising. This paper also outlines the challenges involved in each of these fields that require solutions to make these devices reliableComment: 1

Application of New Techniques and Information Technology for Early Fire Detection on Ships

Damages and losses caused by fire on ships, in the last decade, have accelerated the development of new techniques, technologies and innovation, in order to increase the safety and reliability of the fire detection system. At the same time, by increasing the demand for enhanced technology for early fire detection and its prevention, advanced detection systems are being developed, whose control algorithms have the task of intelligently processing and distinguishing the real smoke or flames signals from the false ones, or real alert from the false one. By using the service that new technology provides, ship owner aims to better protect the crew, ship’s inventory, and to reduce the potential costs, that may occur due to accidents caused by fire. With an overview of the latest techniques and technologies for early fire detection on ships, this paper presents improvement of characteristics of the new systems and components of detection systems, and their abilities, benefits, and applications are being analysed