Lead by Dr. Konstantinos Katsaros and Dr. Lazaros Karagiannidis from the Research Institute of Communication and Computer Systems (ICCS), 6G-VERSUS is a very promising joint pilot project. This project greatly addresses the increasing risk of wildfires in West Yorkshire. The European Union’s Horizon 2020 Innovation Action programme supports this ambitious and highly exciting initiative. It will perform trials on cutting-edge 6G technology, with an emphasis on early detection of wildfires.
The 6G-VERSUS project has been brought into the limelight by the catastrophic increase in wildfires across the region of West Yorkshire over the past few years. During a recent conference in Birmingham, Dr. Kamran Mahroof highlighted the urgency of addressing this global phenomenon, stating, “Wildfires are a global phenomenon and have been increasing in frequency and intensity in recent years.”
To defend against these increasing threats, the collaborative project envisions creating a hybrid robotic dog-aerial drone team. Through improved situational awareness, this unique technology will give first responders the critical information they need to better perform during wildfire emergencies. The new system uses artificial intelligence to help understand live camera feeds, along with 6G communication channels, to send important information. This method allows teams to easily and immediately find who is at risk. It also enables them to focus resources in the most effective way possible while keeping responders safe.
Dr. Mahroof also elaborated on his pride for leading such cutting-edge research. He remarked, “We are immensely proud to be at the forefront of research addressing this pressing global challenge.” The project’s design was structured around the overall aim of fast tracking the identification of wildfires at the moment they start. “The whole idea for us is to identify wildfires as soon as possible,” he affirmed.
West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service (WYFRS) is actively preparing for wildfire incidents by employing advanced mapping tools and weather forecasting applications to predict fire behavior. In addition to improved fire gear during operations, the fire service has rolled out lighter-weight wildfire personal protective equipment or PPC to firefighters.
The team will make the trip to Greece next year. They’ll leverage that experience to more deeply develop and test the technology as the project continues. The WYFRS and the University of Bradford team have been working closely together. Through workshops and roundtables, they’re learning how to best leverage this technology to inform their response plans.
With 6G-VERSUS technology, authorities’ responses to wildfires will be completely transformed. We look forward to how this next step in innovation will save more lives and save more resources.
“In the Greek pilot of SNS-JU 6G-VERSUS, we’re developing a combined robotic dog and aerial drone system that boosts situational awareness for first responders during wildfires.” – Team
“By applying AI to interpret real-time camera feeds and using 6G links to relay the data, we can help teams quickly identify people at risk and deploy resources where they’re needed most, all while keeping responders safe.” – Team