Conceptual design of a wildfire emergency response system empowered by swarms of unmanned aerial vehicles

This study presents a conceptual framework for incorporating swarms of autonomous Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) into Wildfire Emergency Response (WER) systems. Recognizing the growing frequency and impact of wildfires globally, the authors argue for a proactive integration of UAV swarms from the design phase rather than as ad-hoc additions. Drawing from systems engineering principles, the paper outlines the potential of UAV swarms to support pre-fire preparedness, active-fire suppression, and post-fire recovery through tasks such as fire detection, environmental monitoring, real-time situational awareness, suppression activities, and delivery of emergency supplies. The study also highlights regulatory and technological challenges that hinder widespread adoption.

The paper finds that UAV swarms, empowered by AI and self-organizing capabilities, offer significant advantages over traditional and single-UAV systems. These include cost-effectiveness, operational safety, adaptability, and enhanced performance across all phases of wildfire response. It identifies the technical, environmental, and regulatory requirements for effective UAV swarm deployment, such as resilience to heat and wind, autonomy for Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) operations, and robust human-swarm interfaces. The study proposes a multi-swarm system structure tailored to various wildfire tasks and argues for developing supportive regulatory frameworks and digital twin systems to optimize deployment and impact.