30 Mar UAE national develops new fire prevention system ‘The House Guardian’ using IoT
A new system to avert potential fires has been developed in the Emirates using Internet of Things (IoT) technology to identify circumstances likely to start a fire.
The early detection system called ‘The House Guardian’, collects data from the sensors distributed around the property and analyses it using Artificial Intelligence (AI) algorithms. It issues warning to the user through a mobile application and can also alert concerned authorities to intervene when a dangerous situation is detected.
Explaining the system’s idea, an alumnus from the Department of Computer Science and Engineering at the American University of Ras Al Khaimah (AURAK), Hamad Al Hebsi, said: “My ambition was to create my own invention related to my major. The House of Guardian is an artificial intelligence program based on tell-tale early warning and pinpointing the source of the calamity, and this is what distinguishes our system from others.”
Al Hebsi’s proposal went forward to win the Expo 2020 Funding Grant in 2019. He then collaborated with the AURAK’s Center of Information, Communication and Networking Education and Innovation (ICONET) team to execute the project idea and turn it into a reality.
Al Hebsi’s project was also presented at the Expo Live Future Innovators Summit held at the Good Place Hub in conjunction with Expo 2020.
The UAE is already heavily invested in assessing fire readiness in all buildings and facilities through different integrated digital systems. Last month, the Abu Dhabi Civil Defence Department launched a new integrated electronic field survey system that helps monitor and determined the level of adherence to fire prevention and safety requirements in all buildings and vital facilities across the Emirate. The digital system links all buildings and other facilities to spatial data maps and will help firefighters plan and implement their tasks.
The country continuously aims to support the achievement of the UAE National Agenda in becoming one of the safest countries in the world as well as sustaining the reduction of the rate of fires and fire-related deaths compared to other countries worldwide.