Video-based Cargo Fire Verification
System with Fuzzy Inference Engine for
Commercial Aircraft
Dr. Mokhtar Sadok
Goodrich Corporation
(Fuel and Utility Systems)
Date:
Time:
Location: 367 Votey
Abstract
Conventional smoke detection systems currently installed onboard aircraft often suffer from high rates of false alarms. Under current procedures, whenever the system issues an alarm the pilot is required to release fire extinguishers and divert to the nearest airport. Aircraft diversions are costly and dangerous in some situations. Recent data collected by the FAA and NTSB show that only 10% or less of alarms are genuine. A reliable detection system that minimizes false-alarms and allows the crew to inspect the state of cargo compartments prior and after fire suppression is needed.
Goodrich Corporation recently
developed a video-based verification system to address the problem. The Cargo
Fire Verification System (CFVS) is a multi
camera system providing live stream digital video to the cockpit and performing
hotspot, fire, and smoke detection in aircraft cargo bays. CFVS
uses video information and other sensor information to discriminate between
genuine events (e.g. fire, smoke, or hotspot) and nuisance alarms (e.g. fog,
dust). A Mamdani-type fuzzy inference engine built
around a set of if-then rules is used to provide approximate reasoning for
decision making. Gaussian membership functions for frame intensity, relative
humidity, and temperature are constructed using experimental data to form the
system inference engine.
More than 150 scenarios of fire tests that meet industry standards under various bay configurations and illumination conditions have been collected to form a digital library for algorithm development. Among various technical challenges that the system has to deal with is the limited outlook in aircraft cargo bays. Typically, bays are fully loaded with cargo, leaving only about 2-inch gap between cargo containers and aircraft ceiling. Other challenges include the apparent behavior of smoke, fog, and dust.
CFVS performed much better than conventional aircraft smoke detectors in all standardized tests. Currently, CFVS is designed to function as a secondary verification system, either confirming or unconfirming smoke alarms issued by the primary smoke detection system. After successful in-service evaluation and FAA certification, the CFVS will possibly replace conventional smoke detection systems in commercial aircraft.
Speaker bio:
Dr. Sadok is a senior research
scientist at Goodrich Corporation (Fuel and Utility Systems) of