Drones capable of spotting wildfires from high in the sky and flying robot taxis carrying fire-extinguishing robo-dogs to quench the flames with sound waves may sound like sci-fi – but one Bath firm is hoping to make them a reality.
Fire detection firm 
Optect is helping develop the futuristic system to tackle the ever-increasing threat of wildfires across the globe brought on by the climate emergency.
The firm has already developed the world's first optically-enhanced long-range flame detector.
Now it has teamed up with US business Sonic Fire Tech to work on the groundbreaking system, which combines advanced robot systems with entirely new detection and infrasound suppression technologies.
The combination of climate change, dry conditions and human activity has led to more frequent and intense fire seasons, with huge wildfires spreading across Southern Europe, the US and South America in recent years.
As wildfires contribute to up to 20% of global carbon emissions and their severity increases, deploying the most innovative technology to combat the issue is crucial.
Optect’s Optical Detection system has reached the finals of a major international firefighting technology competition, with the firm hoping the publicity will lead to it being deployed across the globe in the constant battle against wildfires.
The team, pictured, will now battle it out against 30 other projects in the Autonomous Wildfire Response category of the prestigious, four-year $11m XPRIZE WILDFIRE competition.
The contest challenges teams to autonomously detect high-risk fires in a 1,000 sq km environmentally challenging area and suppress them within 10 minutes, leaving decoy fires untouched.
Optect’s submission for the competition says: “Infrared, single pixel detection means they can be positioned in close proximity to humans without people feeling as though they live in George Orwell's 1984.”
Optect, which was a member of world-leading tech incubator SETsquared in Bristol, expects to appoint more partners to the team as it gears up for the competition.
The firm recently launched a new flame detection product that boasts five to 10 times the range of current devices,
Optect chief technical officer Matthias Jaeger said: “The challenge, as with many XPRIZE competitions, is set close to the limit of possible, and in response, we’re pushing technology to the limits too.
“To pull off a live demo within the project's timeline will be an extraordinary achievement, but the team is making substantial headway.
“Technology milestones are being conquered on a regular basis. We’re honoured to advance to the next round of XPRIZE and look forward to demonstrating our solution in a real-world environment in 2025.”
Ohio-headquartered Sonic Fire Tech, which has the tagline ‘Using space tech to solve Earth’s problems’, was founded by Geoff Bruder, an ex-NASA engineer and developer of the sonic fire suppression method.
He said: “Our technology can continuously suppress fires for as long as battery power is available without any refuelling or resupply, a potential game-changer for remote area fire suppression.”
