German startup installing electric ‘noses’ in forests to help early detection of wildfires

Electric ‘noses’ are being installed in Germany to help sniff out forest fires at the earliest stage of smouldering and prevent major disasters. These devices come fitted with ultra-sensitive sensors and powered with AI learning, which can differentiate between smoke of various types and alert authorities accordingly.

For instance, the device, powered by solar electricity,can differentiate between smoke emanating from a diesel truck passing nearby or a legit forest fire.

Trials ongoing in Germany

A trial is currently underway in the heart of Eberswalde forest northeast of Berlin, a hotspot for wildfires in the country. More than 400 sensors have been installed in the area, or one device per hectare (2.5 acres).

These devices were created two years ago by Berlin-based startup Dryad Networks. Its co-founder Juergen Mueller says the ‘electric nose’ can detect and help put out the fire within 10-15 minutes of initial smouldering.

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"In 10, 15 minutes we can detect an incipient fire before it becomes an open fire," he said, adding that it was way faster than traditional systems involving monitoring through cameras.

He says that as soon as a wildfire is detected, the data is immediately relayed to a cloud-based monitoring system and local authorities are alerted.

10 nations experimenting with the device

As more and more nations experience a surge in deadly wildfire incidents owing to climate change, the makers of the device believe their sales would shoot up. Dryad Networks said 10 countries including the United States, Greece and Spain were already experimenting with the device.

The startup sold 10,000 devices last year and is hoping to get at least 120 million devices installed by 2030 end.

‘Helpful in preventing disaster’

Raimund Engel, Brandenburg's forest fire protection officer, has hailed the devices as a useful addition to the visual detection method currently in practice.

"Because of climate change" the weather conditions in the forest-rich area are "very similar to some Mediterranean regions", Engel said, "with periods of drought and temperatures that sometimes reach up to 40 degreeCelsius”

"The faster we detect the fire, the quicker firefighters can be on the scene,” he added, acknowledging that early intervention can greatly help authorities to prevent disasters before they rage out of control.

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