Fire Stalker: a Fire Alert and Extinguisher Robot

Fire Stalker: A Fire Alert and Extinguisher Robot

TCM: Tien Nguyen Charandeep Tatlah \ Minhtri Pham

Abstract

Fire Stalker is a robot design to response and fight fire in residential homes. For most homes, the only fire response system consists of fire alarms and fire extinguishers. The problem with the current system is that it requires someone to be home and that it is incapable of pinpointing the exact location of the fire. The Fire Stalker Robot will be equipped with the ability to detect, locate, alert, and extinguish fire as quickly as possible.

Description of Domain

In 2000, there were 368,000 home fires in the United States, resulting in 3,420 deaths, 16,975 injuries and $5.5 billion in direct property damage1. Home fires can be very destructive and there is a need for a good fire protection system for the home. The fire detector is a good tool but not a complete tool to fight fires in the home. A system is required that can locate a fire in the house and put the fire out before the flames consume the whole house. The system we propose is a fire-fighting robot for the home. A robot that will be able to locate which room the fire is in and then quickly move into the room to combat that fire. The robot system would be called Fire Stalker. Fire Stalker would be able to do a multiple functions such as: locate a fire, navigate to the fire, fight the fire, and calling the authorities. A sprinkler system can be installed in the house but the sprinklers will spray a wide area with water. While the robot will be able to attack the specific point where the fire is located without damaging the surrounding area. Fire Stalker would especially be effective if the occupants were away from the house at work or school. The system would also be handy if the occupants were out for the weekend or an extended vacation. 368,000 homes could have been saved if there was good system like Fire Stalker.

Description of the Program that is wanted

A program is required to control the necessary functions of the robot so the robot can search and locate fires, navigate to fires, fight fires, alert authorities and occupants.

The first task Fire Stalker will need to do is identify a fire and its location. The program will need to know if there is a fire. Once a fire has been detected the program will then need to locate the fire. The program will figure out if the fire is located in bedroom #2 or living room or kitchen.

The second task Fire Stalker will need to complete is navigating to the fire. Fire Stalker will need to deduce the best path to take from its current position to the position of the fire. The program will need an algorithm that can calculate the quickest path to the fire. Also Fire Stalker will need to navigate past obstacles such as chairs, tables, and stairs (if the home has two or more stories).

The Third task for Fire Stalker is to fight the fire. Fire Stalker will need to recognize how a fire looks like and then attack it. The robot must know where in the room the fire is and how large the fire is. Once the robot has located the flames it will then move forward and put out the fire. If the flames are too big for Fire Stalker to combat by itself, it will need to recognize this situation. If the flames are small Fire Stalker will fight the fire, else it will call for help.

This brings us to the next task for Fire Stalker, calling authorities. Fire Stalker will need to call 911 if the fire is too big to fight. Fire Stalker needs a link to the outside world so it can send a message to the 911 operator about the particular problem and the location of the home. Also Fire stalker will need to alert the occupants of the home about the fire. Fire Stalker will sound an audio alarm so the occupants of the house will realize there is a fire and where to find Fire Stalker, who will be at the location of the fire. These are the necessary tasks and functions for the program that will control Fire Stalker.

Detailed Requirements

In this section we will discuss some of the requirements and performance criteria of the functions stated above.

For the first function of locating the fire, Fire Stalker will be hooked to an array of fire detectors setup in each room with a unique id (i.e. bedroom #1, living room, kitchen). Once the fire detector senses a fire it will send a wireless signal to Fire Stalker saying there is a fire and which room the detector is located in. At this point Fire Stalker should know there is a fire and which room the fire is in. This function should not take a long time to execute. Preferably the function should finish its task in less than one second.

The second task is navigation. The program will have a map of the home showing the location of the rooms and the stairs. It will also have information such as the size of the rooms and the length of the hallways. This function will be fed in the current location of the robot and the location of the fire. The output of the function will be the best and quickest path to the fire. The time constraints on this part of the function should be between three to six seconds. Next Fire Stalker will now need to follow the path calculated to the fire. Navigating through the house and avoiding obstacles should not take between 30 seconds to two minutes.

The third function is locating the fire in the room and then extinguishing the flames. Fire Stalker will need a heat sensitive sensor to locate the fire in the room. The sensor will pick up the signature of the flames. Fire Stalker will come into a room stand at the entrance and start scanning the room for flames starting from the left side to the right. The locating part of the function should take between three to six seconds. Once Fire Stalker has located the flames it will move up to a certain distance from the flames and begin to spray the flames with the CO2 mixture used in fire extinguishers. Fire stalker will have a plentiful tank of CO2. The program will seek the hottest part of the flame and attack that portion of the fire first then moving to extinguish the rest of the fire. The fire should be extinguished within five minutes. If the fire is not extinguished with in five minutes Fire Stalker will move on to the next function (call 911). Also if the flames Fire Stalker finds are to big taking up an area more than six feet by six feet then it will move on to the next function (call 911).

The next function is calling the authorities. Fire Stalker will have a wireless connection to the bay station of the cordless telephone. This will allow Fire Stalker to be another cordless telephone. When this function is called Fire Stalker will dial 911 to say the following message, “There is a fire at 12345 Blaze Street, San Jose, California. The home of Mr. John Doe.” This message will repeat 3 times to make sure the 911 operator receives the information. Dialing 911 should take between one to three seconds.

Used Cases

Use Case 1: Detecting and locating fire The fire alarms will act as eyes for Fire Stalker. As soon, as the fire is detected, Fire Stalker will identify the location of the fire through the fire alarm’s location. Once the location is identified, Fire Stalker will rush to it.

Use Case 2: Extinguishing fire Once Fire Stalker has located the flames it will move up to a certain distance from the flames and begin to spray the flames with the CO2 mixture used in fire extinguishers. Fire stalker will have a plentiful tank of CO2. The program will seek the hottest part of the flame and attack that portion of the fire first then moving to extinguish the rest of the fire.

Use Case 3: If fire cannot be extinguish, alert residents and fire department If the fire is not extinguished with in five minutes Fire Stalker will move on to the next function (call 911). Also if the flames Fire Stalker finds are to big taking up an area more than six feet by six feet then it will move on to the next function (call 911).

Interface

Fire Stalker: A robot with CO2 tank, a microprocessor, the ability to move with ease through out the house, and able to contact the fire department wirelessly.

Fire Alarm: Has sensors to detect fire, and send signal to Fire Stalker of the location.

References 1. NFPA Online, http://www.nfpa.org/Research/NFPAFactSheets/NFPAHomeFireStats/NFPAHomeFireSt ats.asp, 11/01.