By Ms Samara Kitchener<\/p>\n
Airborne search and rescue is an expensive and demanding task, but what if there was a better way?<\/p>\n
AI-Search, Defences Artificial Intelligence (AI) prototype to transform airborne search and rescue, is now in its second phase of development.<\/p>\n
The prototype is a collaboration between the Royal Australian Air ForcesPlan Jericho, Warfare Innovation Navy Branch andAir Mobility Groups 35 Squadron. The system, which combines a sensor and processor, is highly portable and has the potential to enable any aircraft, includingUnmanned Aerial Systems (UAS), vehicles or vessels to become an improvised search and rescue platform.<\/p>\n
A recentC-27J Spartansortie fromRAAF Base Amberleyoff the coast of Stradbroke Island, with the assistance of the Australian Volunteer Coast Guard, helped evaluate the AI-Search algorithm to recognise a life raft and other waterborne vessels. This sortie was the second of several phases to develop and evaluate this proof of concept.<\/p>\n
The AI-Search algorithms are being developed by budding machine learning expert, Lieutenant Harry Hubbert from the Warfare Innovation Navy Branch.<\/p>\n
During the sortie, we had a few GoPro sensors rigged up to detect a life raft and two algorithmic approaches working together to increase accuracy and the likelihood of a detection, Lieutenant Hubbert said.<\/p>\n
This sortie was pretty challenging as the life raft was upside down, making it harder to see for both the human eye and the AI-Search sensors.<\/p>\n
The sensors are trained to detect an orange top, rather than a black top, but the AI-Search still had a 70 per cent detection rate, compared to the human detection rate of around 50 per cent.<\/p>\n
The 30 per cent AI-Search non-detections happened when there was low contrast between dark water and the black underside of the life raft, and the good news is that we had no false positives.<\/p>\n
Flying Officer Katherine Mitchell, piloting the aircraft as part of a search and rescue training exercise said that it was hard to see the upside-down life raft.<\/p>\n
We barely saw it 50 per cent of the time, Flying Officer Mitchell said.<\/p>\n
AI-Search is already picking up more than what we are seeing, its incredible and it doesnt get fatigued.<\/p>\n
Wing Commander Michael Gan, Plan Jerichos AI lead said that they are now taking their learnings, finding the strengths and weaknesses, and iterating the next version.<\/p>\n
The next phase will involve testing different sensor and processor combinations in a range of environmental conditions, with the potential of testing on a range of aircraft, including UAS, Wing Commander Gan said.<\/p>\n
This article was published by the Royal Australian Navy on April 21, 2020.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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