Source: INTELLISENSE SYSTEMS, INC. submitted to NRP
8.1(6). FIRE WEATHER OBSERVATION SENSOR
Sponsoring Institution
National Institute of Food and Agriculture
Project Status
COMPLETE
Funding Source
SMALL BUSINESS GRANT
Reporting Frequency
Annual
Accession No.
1019625
Grant No.
2019-33610-29804
Cumulative Award Amt.
$100,000.00
Proposal No.
2019-00380
Multistate No.
(N/A)
Project Start Date
Jul 1, 2019
Project End Date
Feb 29, 2020
Grant Year
2019
Program Code
[8.1]- Forests & Related Resources
Recipient Organization
INTELLISENSE SYSTEMS, INC.
20600 GRAMERCY PL
TORRANCE,CA 905011821
Performing Department
Electro-Optics Systems
Non Technical Summary
Fire weather sensors provide critical information to government and civil personnel regarding the likely hood of a fire starting and if started, how severe the fire will be. For example, during peak fire season, large amounts of sunlight, high winds, and lack of rain creates a recipe for severe fires which can cause significant destruction. These wildfires take the lives of people, cause devastating destruction of homes and businesses, and have lasting impact on local and regional economies. Providing data from sensors to fire personnel gives them actionable information that can help localize efforts and mitigate some of the lasting damage of fires. For example, constantly monitoring the winds, firefighters can determine which area the fire will spread to next. Current systems utilized by the fire community are large and difficult to setup during firefighting efforts and during times of constant monitoring between fire seasons. The proposed Fire Weather Observation Sensor (FWOS) system will be a small hand portable integrated sensor system with solar recharging and satellite communication capabilities. The overall system will be able to be left unattended for months or years and automatically transmit critical fire weather information to local and national authorities to monitor the probability of fire outbreak and a fire during firefighting activities. During the course of the project, novel sensors will be tested and integrated into a prototype for demonstration of the effectiveness of the miniature low power sensors to provide important fire weather information. The final product is expected to provide the fire community with a completely novel sensor system to help with detecting and managing wildfires.
Animal Health Component
50%
Research Effort Categories
Basic
25%
Applied
50%
Developmental
25%
Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)Subject of Investigation (SOI)Field of Science (FOS)Percent
12204202070100%
Knowledge Area
122 - Management and Control of Forest and Range Fires;

Subject Of Investigation
0420 - Weather;

Field Of Science
2070 - Meteorology and climatology;
Goals / Objectives
The over-arching goals of the Fire Weather Observing Sensor (FWOS) project is to provide a novel technology that facilitates detection and management of wildfires on forest lands. The technology is expected to also help maintain healthy and productive forest ecosystems. During the course of the project, the following objectives will be addressed to reach the project goals: (1) Development of detailed requirements and specifications for the FWOS system based on input from identified end-users. (2) Development of novel sensing components and capabilities of the FWOS system to meet the Fire Weather communities needs for actionable data. (3) Demonstrate the feasibility of the FWOS technology through assembly and testing of a prototype. (4) Definition of the different markets for the FWOS system and related derivative technologies.
Project Methods
The general methodology of the proposed development will rely on the verification of newly developed sensor hardware against laboratory sensors that are well calibrated and established methods of the proposed measurement methodology. For example, the output data provided by the custom fuel moisture sensor will be checked against known standards of measuring absorbed water content of large collections of dry woodland mass. These high accuracy calibration methods will allow for critical comparison to known standards and provide confidence to the end user that the new technology provides accurate information needed for well-established forecasting models or comparisons with historical data. For sensor work not currently widely used or historically well established, such as the use of compact thermal imaging cameras, the data output will be compared against local sensor data that will acquire high temperature measurements of controlled burning of dried materials. Correlations between different sensor outputs will be provided as a quantitative measure of the success of the development method.

Progress 07/01/19 to 02/29/20

Outputs
Target Audience:ISI has reached out to and had discussions with both the National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC) and United States Forest Service (USFS). They mentioned the possibility of using their Missoula, Montana, research lab to compare our sensor performance with other existing sensor technologies. ISI will continue to stay engaged with the USFS throughout development and take advantage of any testing opportunities they can offer. ISI also conversed with an Air Resource Specialist at the U.S. Forest Service. He has expressed significant interest in both fuel moisture and soil moisture sensors in addition to other air monitoring sensors. He also mentioned that when the surface and sub-surface fuels burn and consume, the net emissions are significant, resulting in very high PM concentrations and resulting population exposures in the range of 3000 micrograms/cubic meter within a few miles of the fire. NFDRS doesn't address these critical fuels as they don't drive fire behavior models; however, the potential for this level of emissions poses a huge risk to the public and firefighters. He emphasized that early warning tracking is needed and ultimately inclusion into NFDRS and risk models are needed. He provided the example of the fires in the Western United States in 2017 and 2018 where a dense underlayer led to significant smoke issues. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? Nothing Reported How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Yes, ISI has been actively engaged with multiple potential end users including Cal Fire, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the United States Forest Service. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?During the next reporting period, ISI will work on characterizing the particle monitor and thermal camera sensors along with development and integration of the Phase I prototype.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? During the first months of the FWOS project, ISI's development team established key design and functional requirements. A novel compact fuel moisture sensor was developed and tested, along with a solar radiation sensor. Different commercially available particle monitor sensors were acquired for testing and feasibility demonstration. In addition, a compact infrared camera made for portable battery-powered applications has been acquired. The compact sensors have all been designed and chosen to operate within a small hand-portable device. Mechanical design concepts and prototype design is currently in progress as shown in the project schedule. Test planning and integration discussions have begun in preparation for the initiation of the Phase II prototype design.

Publications


    Progress 07/01/19 to 02/29/20

    Outputs
    Target Audience:Intellisense has reached out to and had discussions with both the National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC) and United States Forest Service (USFS). They mentioned the possibility of using their Missoula, Montana, research lab to compare our sensor performance with other existing sensor technologies. Intellisense will continue to stay engaged with the USFS throughout development and take advantage of any testing opportunities they can offer. Intellisense also conversed with an Air Resource Specialist at the U.S. Forest Service. He has expressed significant interest in both fuel moisture and soil moisture sensors in addition to other air monitoring sensors. He also mentioned that when the surface and sub-surface fuels burn and consume, the net emissions are significant, resulting in very high PM concentrations and resulting population exposures in the range of 3000 micrograms/cubic meter within a few miles of the fire. NFDRS doesn't address these critical fuels as they don't drive fire behavior models; however, the potential for this level of emissions poses a huge risk to the public and firefighters. He emphasized that early warning tracking is needed and ultimately inclusion into NFDRS and risk models are needed. He provided the example of the fires in the Western United States in 2017 and 2018 where a dense underlayer led to significant smoke issues. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? Nothing Reported How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Yes, Intellisense has been actively engaged with multiple potential end users including Cal Fire, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the United States Forest Service. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?All goals for this Phase I development effort have been achieved.

    Impacts
    What was accomplished under these goals? During this Phase I project, all scheduled tasks and milestones were successfully completed through the following accomplishments: Performed detailed design and functional requirements to define system architecture of the FWOS. Developed novel custom miniature fuel moisture sensor, particle monitor, and solar radiation and thermal imaging system by combining commercially available sensing elements and custom data acquisition management. Developed mechanical design concepts and prototypes for each of the FWOS modules. Designed, built, and successfully tested the particulate sensor in which the particulate measurement was successfully compared to the performance of a calibrated commercial particulate monitor. Fabricated and tested the miniature fuel moisture sensor and successfully compared the performance to legacy commercial fuel moisture sensors. Verified the feasibility of using micro thermal infrared cameras for fire detection and verified the effectiveness of the solar radiation sensor to measure solar energy as it relates to potential for wildfire ignition. Designed a preliminary Phase II FWOS that encompasses each sensor module into a single self-powered, compact, and ruggedized remote sensor platform. Preliminary power calculations have been performed, and a FWOS software platform to establish two-way communication has been identified. Conducted a study of the commercialization potential of the FWOS technology through market analysis. Multiple potential stakeholders and end users were engaged throughout development and feedback solicited in preparation for the fully integrated Phase II prototype design. Significant Phase I technical achievements include development of the following capabilities: (1) demonstrated the ability to detect a change in percentage of water content of a representative 10-hour fuel substrate at a fraction of the size and cost of current legacy fuel moisture sensors; (2) directly measured the PM concentration of replicated smoke conditions using a custom-designed particle monitor sensor and validated values against a calibrated commercial particle monitor; (3) demonstrated the feasibility of using thermal IR cameras to detect an outbreak of fire at a distance of ~1 mile; and (4) developed a custom solar radiation sensor capable of measuring sunlight intensity in a small 0.25 in. × 0.25 in. form factor.

    Publications