Imperial College and Empa showcase heat-resistant firefighting drone
The prototype uncrewed aerial vehicle (UAV) can be flown inside burning buildings and is resistant to temperatures of up to 200°C
Imperial College London (ICL), in partnership with the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology (Empa), have developed a heat-resistant drone capable of entering burning buildings.
The prototype drone, known as the FireDrone, could be used to scope and map out burning buildings or woodland to assess hazards, and provide first-hand data from danger zones. The data could subsequently be used to help first responders prepare themselves accordingly and deliver an informed emergency response.
The team is currently in the process of validating the technology with key industrial stakeholders and partners.
A protective aerogel and aluminum shell
In a statement, ICL explained that the drone is capable of withstanding temperatures of up to 200°C for a maximum of 10 minutes, incorporates a ‘protective structural shell’ made from polyimide aerogel and glass fibers, which were subsequently coated in super-reflecting aluminum to reflect heat.
Within the ‘exoskeleton’, the drone contains a number of temperature-sensitive components, such as infrared and standard optic cameras, CO2 sensors, video transmitters, flight controllers, batteries, and radio receivers, alongside a cooling system powered by ‘the release and evaporation of gas from the CO2 sensors’ to keep internal temperatures down.
The drone has been tested in a number of environments, including in temperature-controlled chambers at a firefighter training center where it was flown close to flames, as well as in a Swiss glacier tunnel – to test how the aircraft operated in very cold temperatures, where it performed successfully.
In future, ICL and Empa hope to further miniaturize the technology and add more sensors to the drone that it might need in real-life firefighting missions.
“Until they enter the danger zone, firefighters can’t be certain of what or who they’ll find, and what challenges they’ll encounter,” said Principal Investigator Professor Mirko Kovac, Director of the Aerial Robotics Lab at ICL and Head of the Laboratory of Sustainability Robotics at Empa. “FireDrone could be sent in ahead to gather crucial information – noting trapped people, building layouts, unexpected hazards – so that responders can prepare accordingly … and potentially save more lives.”
Drones are already used for firefighting purposes – primarily to take aerial footage monitoring incidents. Fire and Rescue New South Wales announced that it would be rolling out a fleet of drones for this purpose in August 2022.