Robot to send live footage from site to firefighters

The Mumbai Fire Brigade (MFB) will soon be able to get live video footage and exact location of fire inside a building as the procurement of a radio-controlled remote-operated robot is under process. The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has floated the tender to buy one robot for its fire department. It will look like a small tanker.

The unmanned radio-controlled remote-operated robot can reach the nearest location of a fire and apart from dousing, it can also provide the exact location and status of fire that will make the fireman's job easy to confine it without wasting time.

According to senior official from the MFB, firemen find difficulties while moving inside basement of building at a fire site, and even smoke make their job difficult. Prabhat Rahangdale, chief fire officer of MFB said, "In such place, the robot will be helpful that will douse the fire and will also update the status of fire with live video of fire location even there is smoke." He added that we would be able to save lives at a major fire site.

The robot is fitted with thermic Camera of 640x512 that can capture video and photo during day and night as well.

The four companies from United States, Germany, China and Israel had already demonstrated their machine at MFB's Byculla office in the last four to five months. "Since we are procuring first time such a machine, we are taking too much precaution," said Rahagndale. He added that they are buying one robot at the moment, and if it is successful, they will buy more for the city.

After procurement of the robot, the BMC will become the first civic body in the country to have such equipment. "There is no other civic body or state in the country to have such a machine to control fire," claimed Rahangdale.

Among major feature, the robot can also release 3800 litres water in one minute. "The two engines with 4000-watt capacity can move at 3.5 km inside a fire site and while dousing the fire, it will continue to send live photographs and videos outside that can be seen in a tablet. The video and photo output can be received even around 300 metre away from fire site. Around 500 kg robot can enter in narrow lanes where fire engines find difficult and it is likely to be brought in after monsoon.

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• The unmanned radio-controlled remote-operated robot can reach the nearest location of a fire and can provide its location and status to the firemen.
   
• The robot is fitted with a thermic Camera of 640x512 that can capture video and photo during day and night as well.