Arduino-Based Remote-Controlled Fire Fighting Bot: Regional Science High School Iii
Arduino-Based Remote-Controlled Fire Fighting Bot: Regional Science High School Iii
Proponents:
MAS, JOSHUA D.
Table of Contents
Introduction…………………………………………………………………….…………….3
Hypothesis……………………………………………………………………………7
Methodology………………………………………………………………………………….9
Engineering Goals...……………………………………………………………..……9
General Procedure……....…………………………………………………….…..…10
Detailed Procedure……….…………………………………………………….……10
References List………………………………………………………………………………20
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Introduction
One of mankind’s most important tools is fire, it has been used since ancient times.
People use it in their day-to-day lives, they use it to cook food, heating, and others, however,
regardless of the benefits that people get from the use of it, there still are dangers or
consequences when improperly used. It can cause a variety of accidents such as house fires,
House fires are a very common accident that happens worldwide. In the US alone,
27% of all reported fire accidents that occurred in the time span of 2014 to 2018 happened in
homes (NFPA, 2020). They can be caused by different things such as appliances, dangerous
substances, and sometimes improper use of instruments like cooking equipment. There have
been a total of 72,318 incidents from 2012 to 2016 (BFP, 2018). A single house fire can
cause collateral damage such as property damage, and even injuries and casualties. Out of all
these incidents recorded, there are 1,203 deaths and 4,091 injuries recorded (BFP, 2018).
Additionally, aside from house fires, another disaster that has been appearing in the
news frequently these past few years is forest fires. In the Province of Benguet, a forest fire
occured. The fire burned 900 hectares of land and burned forests and reforested areas.
Philippine Information Agency (2020) reported that the area that has been burned costs a total
of 2 million Philippine pesos. The municipality of Kayaban was most affected by the forest
fire, which burned 640 hectares of their land. Although somewhat decreasing in numbers,
their sizes and damages had been growing exponentially from the past years. According to
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the National Interagency Coordination Center (2021), since the year 2000, an annual average
of 70,600 forest fires have burned an annual average of 7.0 million acres.
According to Nolan (2019), historical evidence shows that fire extinguishers are the
most common method of extinguishing an incipient fire. Humans that are able to respond
quickly and effectively extinguish incipient fire prevented possible disasters from happening.
Nolan stated that the numerical rating of fire extinguishers has a relative rating number. Fire
extinguishers are assigned by recognized testing laboratories for the amount of fire area that a
fire extinguisher can extinguish using the method established by the National Fire Protection
Association (NFPA).
According to the Department of Trade and Industry (2017), every fire extinguisher
has its own type and its own color bands attached to them. All fire extinguisher types have a
red body except for the Halon substitute that has a light green body and white band. Dry
chemical (ABC) has a white band, carbon dioxide has a black band, while foam has a blue
band. All fire extinguisher types have their own uses. Dry chemical type of fire extinguisher
is used for fire incorporated with solid materials, liquid or liquefiable solids, gases, and
electrical equipment. Carbon dioxide type is for fires involved with flammable liquids and
electrical equipment. Foam is used for fires concerned with solid materials and flammable
liquids. Lastly, halon substitute is used for fires involving solid materials, liquid or liquefiable
There actually are different classifications of fires based on their fuel source. There
are a total of six (6) classes of fire namely; class A, class B, class C, class D, electrical fires,
and class F. The fuel source of class A fires are combustible solids like paper and wood,
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while class B fires involve flammable liquids such as cleaning liquids, class C fires have a
fuel source of gases like LPGs, and class D fires are involved with metals. Electrical fires
aren’t necessarily fuel sources for the fire, they are more of a starter than a fuel. And lastly,
class F fires, class F fires have oils such as cooking oil as their fuel (HASpod, 2019).
Just like fires, fire extinguishers also differ from each other. They vary depending on
their contents. There are five (5) main types; water, foam, dry chemical, carbon dioxide
(CO2), and wet chemical. Fire extinguishers are limited as to what class of fire they can put
out. Water fire extinguishers are good with class A fires. Foam extinguishers are limited to
class A and B fires. Dry chemical fire extinguishers, sometimes called ABC fire
extinguishers, are as the name suggests, able to put out A, B, and C classes of fire. Sometimes
they can also be used for electrical fires. CO2 fire extinguishers are used when it comes to
class B and electrical fires. Finally, wet chemical fire extinguishers are sort of special for they
can put out a class F fire. It can also be used for class A fires (Park, 2017).
With the help of firefighters and their equipment today, these accidents can be
stopped. But with the current fire extinguisher, it needs a person for it to be used, therefore, a
person needs to get close to the fire for at least 5 to 20 feet to use the fire extinguisher in full
The purpose of this study is to create a robot that eliminates that restraint while
having better or the same effectiveness as regular fire extinguishers. To be able to remotely
control the robot from a safe distance means, the danger of being in close proximity with the
fire for a long time does not exist anymore. It is also made to stop or at the very least, weaken
fire accidents. It aims to help firefighters when encountering widespread flames that can be
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hard to put out with just the use of a fire extinguisher. This could effectively save many lives
This study would be beneficial to many people as, if there were to be a fire-related
accident, this robot would be of help saving us from many casualties and deaths. This robot
aims to be able to be used easily so that any firefighter in need would be able to do so. It
helps firefighters to combat fires that are very broad and large in area that will be very hard to
put out with just the use of a conventional fire extinguisher as this robot is to be used in
This research aims to design, develop, test, and evaluate a remote-controlled robot
that assists in the extinguishment of widespread fire situations as well as searching for
victims that have been trapped in burning houses or under debris in disasters whilst working
with the use of a remote. This study aims to answer the following questions:
Hypothesis:
Ha:
Ho:
This study intends to assist in fire fighting with the use of robotics. The goal is for the
robots to help extinguish fires and see if there still are survivors that have been trapped and
cannot escape. The variables that will be encountered would be the following: Dependent -
the performance of the robot; Independent - the type of fire to be extinguished and whether or
not there are rubbles on the way; Controlled - the design of the robot and the codes and
programs that will be used. The testing will be held in a secured place so as to not hurt any
civilians. During the testing, the researchers will only use class A and electrical fires as they
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are two of the most prominent fire accidents. We will not be using class C fires (gases such as
methane) for they are hard to control. The assembly of the robot will be held in Regional
Science High School III and testing will take place in the school year 2022-2023 at a fire
Community. This study would be beneficial to many people as, if there were to be a
fire-related accident, this robot would be of help, saving us from many casualties and deaths
since many lives and personal belongings are lost in times of a fire-related accident
Fire Response Workers. It helps firefighters to combat fires that are very broad and
large in area that will be very hard to put out with just the use of a conventional fire
extinguisher as this robot increases the efficacy of a regular fire extinguisher to be used in
Future Researchers. With the completion of this study, it will give way for future
researchers to create more and more efficient robot in order to hopefully save more lives or
Methodology
Engineering Goals
The objective of this study is to design, build, test, and evaluate a remote-controlled
robot that aids in the extinguishment of fires as well as the search for victims trapped in
burning houses, rubble, and other areas, all while using a remote control.
It is to lessen the burden for the firefighters and to decrease the casualties that are
Our research is a car-like robot that has a water hose connected to it that shoots out a
stream of water with the push of a button in order to extinguish the fire. It can be controlled
remotely via transmitter and receiver. It has a camera so that the user can control it even when
The researchers will gather the following materials: Arduino UNO, HC-05 Bluetooth
Module, SparkFun Dual H-Bridge motor drivers L298, Pimoroni Maker Essentials -
Micro-motors & Grippy Wheels (20x), Jumper wires, Li-Ion Battery 1000mAh, LED light,
Remote Control, Radio Control Circuit Board, and a Two-way Radio Transceiver.
robot; Independent - the type of fire to be extinguished and whether or not there are rubbles
on the way; Controlled - the robot’s design as well as the codes and programs that will be
employed.
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General Procedure
Figure 1. Flowchart
Detailed Procedure
The researchers will gather the following materials: Arduino UNO, HC-05 Bluetooth
Module, Camera OV7670, Arduino TFT Shield, SparkFun Dual H-Bridge motor drivers
L298, Pimoroni Maker Essentials - Micro-motors & Grippy Wheels, Jumper wires, Li-Ion
Battery 1000mAh, LED light, Remote Control, Radio Control Circuit Board, and a Two-way
Radio Transceiver. The materials will be bought from online shops or nearby electrical shops.
Once the materials are all set, the researchers will then begin the construction of the
robot. To do so, they will need the help of a mechanical engineer to fabricate the body of the
robot.
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Figure 3. Design
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The researchers will be using the Arduino Software (IDE) written in programmable
language of Javascript, C, and C++ to control and pilot the robot while being assisted by a
After the robot has been completed and is ready to be tested, the researchers will
gather data on how well the robot performs. The researchers will carry out tests once all the
necessities are met and the testing environment is secured. The robot will be graded based on
how well and how fast it extinguishes middle sized class A and Electrical fires. To guarantee
the safety of the researchers, they will be equipped with necessary personal protective
equipment such as laboratory gowns and goggles. Fire protective coats and pants must also
be worn by the researchers. All personnel must keep a safe distance away from the fire and
the researchers must be monitored at all times by proper authorities. The testing will be held
in a secured place so as to not hurt any civilians. After each test, the researchers will make
sure that the robot has not been damaged. The testing will take place in the school year
2022-2023 at a fire rescue station in National Rd, Baraca Camachile, Subic, Zambales.
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Foreign
Abul Hassan Laiq et al (2021) states that several fire incidents happen everywhere
possible that result in great losses in establishments. Most of the time, fires are uncontrollable
due to fewer resources and the challenges that firefighters face to gain access to internal areas
in buildings due to high temperature and also due to explosive materials that may cause more
complications. Fires are generally classified into four types: Ordinary solid combustibles such
as paper, wood, fabric, and some polymers are classified as Class A. Class B: Flammable
liquids such as alcohol, ether, oil, gasoline, and grease that should be smothered. Class C:
extinguishing chemical prevents electrical shock harm. Use no water. Certain flammable
metallic compounds, such as sodium and potassium, are classified as Class D. These items
are not generally found in the Medical Center (UCLA Health, 2021).
Portable fire extinguishers are generally our first line of defense against minor fires,
and you're probably not too far away from one right now. As with other lifesaving equipment,
you must ensure that it is always operational so that it can be used when you need it the most.
Fire extinguishers may be long-lasting, dependable solutions for tackling a minor fire early
2013[2021?]). Portable fire extinguishers and their corresponding types take part in
preventing fire to cause more damage in nearby materials (Benfer et al., 2016[2018?]).
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For different scenarios, there are five different colors of fire extinguishers: blue (dry
powder), black (carbon dioxide or CO2), cream (foam), red (water), and yellow (liquid) (Wet
Chemical). There are five different color designations for fire extinguishers. As a result,
selecting the appropriate fire extinguisher for the situation is critical. This is not just because
they are required by law under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, but also
because they save lives. (Fire Risk Assessmennt Network, 2015). You should not use any fire
extinguisher on any form of fire. If you use the improper type of fire extinguisher, you might
endanger yourself and others. Some fire extinguishers, for example, can kill you if used in a
Regular portable fire extinguishers are good but robotic technology is steadily
growing at the present as more and more technological advancements occur. Robots can
assist people in performing some occupations, particularly those that need a high degree of
precision, are high-risk, or require a significant deal of power (Fahmi et al., 2017). A robot is
an automated device that performs activities normally assigned to humans or machines and is
charged with a series of repeated or flexible behaviors. Numerous studies have proven that
robots can be useful in medical rehabilitation, rescue operations, and industry (Aliff et al.,
improve robot's capabilities. A robot must be created for a specific function in order to
The fast advancement in technology today, directly makes the tools and equipment to
be better in fire fighting, minimizing the damages done by a fire incident. A fire fighting
robot is an example, it may be a solution that may decrease the threat of fire hazards on a
firefighter (Alkahari et al., 2013). Robots are used in several fields or businesses and for
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future. These robots can be used in close areas where humans don't have easy access.
According to Gao et al. (2018) in their study, “Vision and Infra-Red Sensor Based Fire
organized course, detecting the fire autonomously, locate it and eventually extinguishing the
flame. In order to locate and extinguish the flame effectively, it uses a far-infrared flame
Additionally, Fahmi et al. (2017) also stated in their study "Fire Extinguisher Robot
Using Ultrasonic Camera and Wi-Fi Network Controlled with Android Smartphone" that one
man's task that robots can accomplish well is fire extinguishment. This sort of activity
necessitates immediate response to prevent the fire from spreading too far. When the threat
area expands, firefighter jobs will become more difficult and dangerous.
Exposure to fire may pose a threat to our health as well as extinguishing it. By using
robots to detect fire and extinguish it, the risks can be avoided. Nowadays, technology
advances quickly and many studies are proceeding to achieve efficient ways that can be
applied to firefighting for the purpose of reducing the risks and damages caused by it. (Rashid
et al., 2016). There has been a focus on the use of robots to assist firefighters to reduce
firefighter deaths and increase their work efficiency. The robot was tasked to locate a fire that
wasn’t in its direct field of view and discover a way that would lead the robot into the fire
using the presence of smoke and flames in order to suppress it. Their study uses a method that
identifies fire and smoke by using thermal images in an accurate manner (Lattimer &
Jong-Hwan, 2015).
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As stated by Tan et al. (2012), their robot is designed as a mobile fire fighting
machine controlled wirelessly as well as a mobile computer. It has a nozzle and water is
projected from it forming a ‘jet’ or fire fighting stream, the nozzle is expected to recoil in the
blench in the opposite direction, therefore, an analysis is made in order to maintain the
In accordance with Rambabu et al. (2018), it shows in their study a robot that can be
used either manually or automatically. The robot uses a temperature sensor to detect the
flame then it would spray water into the fire once a certain temperature value is reached, if
the robot is switched to manual mode, the user would be aware of its surroundings through
the camera.
Fire incidents increasing numbers can be caused by the human population’s increasing
People who live in places like California are familiar with wildfires. However, a
firefighting troops and increasing the risk of not being able to reach victims in time. Dropping
chemicals on wildfires to intentionally spark small fires that burn vegetation and restrict
wildfires from spreading is one method of mitigating the impact caused by wildfires
(Matthews, 2019).
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Robotic firefighting systems are designed with certain tasks in mind. These include
analyzing and locating fires, conducting search and rescue, monitoring hazardous variables,
and the primary task of fire control and suppression. Fixed fire fighting robotic systems, like
automatic fire sprinklers and alarms, are used in heavily populated and hazardous areas for
rapidly extinguishing any threat. These are usually simpler systems relying mostly on UV or
Local
Since its inception in the mid-nineteenth century, robot innovation has progressed
steadily, beginning with mechanical manipulation and sensor-based controls, and now include
autonomous robots and artificial intelligence (AI). Robots are expected to become a part of
people's daily life, with humanity's synergy with robots maximizing the usage of human
intelligence for higher tasks in the framework of creativity, with robots doing the
They also stated that other than industrial robots, service robots are mobile semi- and
fully autonomous robots capable of doing human-like activities. They can be used for
security robots (defense, military, search and rescue), and space robots are some of the
fast, it is applied in work environments or several fields. Fire fighting robots were developed
Numerous authorities, such as the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) and the Disaster and Risk
Reduction Management Office (DRRMO), are worried and are looking for measures to avoid
or stop this from happening (Tan & Vicente, 2019). The National Capital Region (NCR)
contains some of the most densely inhabited cities on the planet. According to the
Commission on Audit's (COA) Performance Audit Report in 2018, the metropolitan cities
have had an average of 4500 fire incidents per year since 2013, a staggering rate of 12
occurrences per day. Property damage from fire occurrences across the country cost a total of
PHP31 billion from 2011 to 2017, with the NCR contributing PHP17 billion to the total cost.
Firefighting services have grown more tough to cope with a smart-city idea as
technology has advanced and huge city expansion has occurred. Firefighters play a key role
in providing safety to both commercial and residential buildings. Due to the Philippines' lack
of resources and small advancements of technology in the bureau of fire protection, resulting
in an underperforming result causing fire incidents to be more destructive and harder to save
Fire accidents can happen anytime and anywhere. That's why it’s hard to stop them
because of their unpredictability. According to Arabiran et al. (2015), in order to prevent this,
we must develop technology that will detect, identify, and extinguish the fire at the first
indication of smoke and instantly warn the owner and nearby fire control agencies about the
occurrence and its specific position. In their study, they made a robot that can locate and
Accordingly, Gerona & Narciso (2014) made a study to create a mobile robot able to
carry a fire extinguisher and activate it. The robot consists of thermopile sensors detecting
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obstacles and calculating the distance between them, it can also read temperatures. The
device uses a mechanism called “Pull-Type Solenoid Actuator” inactivating the fire
extinguisher.
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