Lancashire Fire and Rescue tests autonomous firefighting drone swarm

Trial of drone swarm technology in Cornwall

Lancashire Fire and Rescue, in collaboration with Windracers and AI researchers from the University of Bristol and the University of Sheffield, has tested a swarm of autonomous firefighting drones to detect and suppress wildfires.

The project aims to provide cost-effective, early fire mitigation strategies.

Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service’s Chief Fire Officer, Justin Johnston, emphasised the importance of early fire response: “The earlier we reach fires, the less harm they pose to firefighters, communities, infrastructure and the environment.”

The trial took place at Preddanack airport in Cornwall, where the drones successfully identified and approached controlled fires under close monitoring by fire services.

This trial is seen as a significant milestone towards the deployment of autonomous wildfire prevention technology in the near future.

Collaboration with AI and robotics experts

Windracers, a British manufacturer of self-flying cargo aircraft, partnered with leading AI and robotics experts from the University of Bristol and the University of Sheffield to develop this technology.

The drone swarm uses artificial intelligence, thermal, and optical imaging to detect fires autonomously and coordinate responses in real-time.

Professor Sabine Hauert from the University of Bristol explained the importance of this technology: “Finding and tackling wildfires before they become a problem requires many robots to work together as a swarm.

“We’ve spoken to firefighters around the world to design a swarm that is useful and easy for them to operate.”

The drones, equipped with fire retardant and capable of monitoring large areas, could provide critical support to fire and rescue services across the UK in the future.

Autonomous technology set for future deployment

This drone swarm technology has been under development for four years and has the potential to significantly aid in the early detection and suppression of wildfires.

Windracers’ ULTRA aircraft, which have previously been used for various tasks, including parcel delivery and scientific data collection, played a central role in the trial.

Stephen Wright, Founder and Executive Chairman at Windracers, commented on the progress: “This successful trial was the culmination of four years of research and development which brought together some of the country’s greatest minds in autonomous aviation, AI, and robotics to help tackle one of society’s greatest challenges.”

Pending regulatory approval, these autonomous systems could be deployed by fire services in the coming years.

UK Research and Innovation funding

The development of this technology has been supported by The Future Flight challenge at UK Research and Innovation, which provided funding through Innovate UK.

The project, titled ‘Protecting environments with unmanned aerial vehicle swarms,’ was one of 17 initiatives to share £73 million in funding aimed at advancing aviation systems and vehicle technologies.

This project represents a concerted effort to address the increasing frequency and severity of wildfires in the UK.

In 2022, the UK experienced over 44,000 wildfires, a 72% rise from the previous year, due to factors such as climate change and drought conditions.

Lancashire Fire and Rescue tests autonomous firefighting drone swarm: Summary

Lancashire Fire and Rescue, in partnership with Windracers and researchers from the University of Bristol and the University of Sheffield, tested an autonomous drone swarm for firefighting.

The drones, developed over four years, can detect and suppress fires using AI and thermal imaging.

During trials in Cornwall, the swarm successfully identified and approached controlled fires.

This project, funded by UK Research and Innovation’s Future Flight challenge, aims to reduce wildfire risk across the UK.

Pending regulatory approval, the technology could soon be deployed by fire services to tackle the increasing threat of wildfires.