Bushfire Hotspot Detection Through Uninhabited Aerial Vehicles and Reconfigurable Computing

Hotspots or smouldering embers left in the wake of a bushfire can, if not extinguished, reignite causing further destruction and loss of life as was the case on Eyre Peninsular in Australia in January 2005. The current method of detecting hotspots is very labour intensive, time consuming and inexact. To overcome these limitations, we propose a system that employs small uninhabited aerial vehicles (UAV) and reconfigurable computing (RC) technologies to enable fire fighting personnel to quickly and effectively locate hotspots. This paper explores the technologies proposed for the hotspot detection system including the algorithms for detecting and tracking of hotspots. It investigates the characterisation of these hotspots for autonomous detection, including data collection and testing techniques. It also describes the system´s requirements as well as its components and architecture.