Revolutionizing Humanitarian Demining: The Next-Gen Drone Radar Technology
Current drone and AI solutions aid only initial mine surveys, but ground-penetrating radar on drones offers a breakthrough in accurately detecting buried mines, making demining safer and more efficient.
Shifting Focus in Humanitarian Demining
Since the outbreak of war in Ukraine, my work with drones has evolved towards automating humanitarian demining. While drones equipped with AI assist in non-technical surveys by scanning large areas and identifying potential mine regions, the critical technical survey phase remains reliant on manual methods such as metal detectors and trained dogs.
Limitations of Current Drone Technology
Drones with optical or thermal cameras detect surface anomalies but fail to locate mines buried under soil or vegetation. For instance, Safe Pro AI reports only a 5% detection rate in forested areas. Non-metallic and corroded metal mines pose significant detection challenges, often evading traditional detectors and drone imaging alike.
Environmental Challenges
Daylight-dependent cameras and thermal sensors require specific lighting and weather conditions to function effectively. Rain, snow, and dense foliage further limit detection capabilities, slowing down the demining process.
High Costs and Slow Progress
Despite technological advances, clearing mine-contaminated areas remains costly and time-consuming. The average cost to remove one landmine far exceeds its production cost, and false alarms inflate operational expenses. Most mine-affected regions are in developing countries reliant on international aid.
A Promising Solution: Ground-Penetrating Radar on UAVs
Research from the University of Oviedo introduces an array-based ground-penetrating synthetic aperture radar (GPR-SAR) system mounted on drones. This technology can precisely locate mines, including small, non-metallic, and shallowly buried targets, working effectively day or night and through moderate vegetation.
How GPR-SAR Works
- Emits radar pulses into the ground
- Detects reflections from subsurface anomalies such as plastic, metal, or voids
- Constructs 3D images of the subsurface with centimeter accuracy by combining data from multiple transmitter-receiver pairs and flight positions
This approach significantly enhances data collection, enabling AI to improve recognition accuracy, ultimately making surveys faster, safer, and more cost-effective.
The integration of GPR-SAR technology with drones marks a critical step forward in addressing the challenges of humanitarian demining worldwide.
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