- Thu 10 September 2020
- capstone
- #sound, #audio, #wildfire, #protection
I'm very pleased to say that I'm helping to support some really exciting research at the University of Idaho this year.
A few years ago, a couple of my classmates worked on a truly exciting project that utilized some relatively new sensory technology in conjunction with some wireless network technology (Zigbee radios) to communicate infrasound (below the audible range for humans) signatures back for scientists to analyze. These signatures will inform scientists and firefighters, alike, when (and where) a wildfire has started!
Now, this was all well and good, but the project lost funding. Yep. Just like that.
That's why I'm so excited to be getting involved. We've already got a team of four fantastic engineers. A mechanical engineer, two electrical engineers, and a computer scientist. With luck the group will be able to start some fantastic research that could eventually lead to a truly exciting product that may help wildland firefighters around the country (and around the world) find fires faster and with greater accuracy.
The group is just getting started, but I'm very excited to see where things go.
The Techy Side
So how is this supposed to work anyway?
Well, we've all heard stories about how animals can sense an impending natural disaster, and in fact, that's quite true with wildfire. Most wild game (and many domesticated species too) have much more astute hearing sense. In fact, they can hear the low-frequency sounds that we're unable to hear.
The sensors we're hoping to utilize will allow our digital system to detect the low-frequency rumble of wild fire, then with digital signal processing, we'll aim to identify audio signatures unique to wildfire. With this, we'll be able to detect fire!
Further, the goal will be to create a mesh-network of devices covering the forest floor in areas such that devices will be able to communicate amongst themselves to precisely locate the fire, and to report it to the authorities quickly!