Affordable Real-Time CV for Disaster Relief and Beyond

Abstract

Search and rescue operations following natural disasters are critical for saving the lives of individuals trapped and in need of aid. However, many of the technologies used in search and rescue (helicopters, planes, boats, etc.) can be prohibitively expensive for nations with low GDP. This issue is only exacerbated by the higher number of deaths due to natural disasters in such nations due to less resilient infrastructure. Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) have the potential to replace more expensive technologies in the search for endangered individuals and analysis of at-risk hardware without endangering rescue personnel. While advancements in low-cost UAVs for commercial and hobby use in addition to the development of lightweight computer vision (CV) software and dedicated processors have set the stage for low-cost search and rescue UAVs, stand-alone UAV costs and part scarcity still pose challenges. Team ANDRR developed a real-time CV module for UAVs to aid in natural disaster relief using a wide range of compatible commercially available parts wherever possible. By conglomerating existing systems into a single effective and easy-to-use unit, we were able to identify individuals in real-time at low cost. The development guide and software for the module are provided to provide increased access to real-time CV processing for search and rescue and other operations.