The Scottish Air Search and Rescue Association (SARAA) is utilizing Autel Robotics' latest drone, the EVO Max 4T, to tackle search and rescue operations in Scotland's challenging terrain. The EVO Max 4T is a powerful commercial drone with clear advantages in search and rescue, offering innovative options for assisting those on the ground to save lives.
Unmanned aerial systems (UAS) have become an indispensable tool in search and rescue operations. EVO Max 4T has a multi-sensor camera gimbal, strong flight performance, IP43 protection level, and strong anti-interference. The first A-Mesh networking technology connects multiple drones to cooperate and provide guarantee for search and rescue work.
EVO Max 4T conducts search and rescue operations in Scotland
1. Overcome Scotland's harsh terrain
Scotland has a large area of wilderness forests with lush vegetation, ravines and mountains full of dangers. The challenges of finding missing persons are huge, requiring a lot of expertise, planning and resources.
The EVO Max 4T's entry into the SARAA Operations Program has made a difference! Using the EVO Max 4T, the team divided the search into linear or area tasks. EVO Max 4T offers a practical solution for both situations, offering a search mode that allows for seamless coordination between teams, maximizing efficiency and minimizing time.
Whether conducting river and ravine searches or exploring wooded areas, drones can support search teams in observing different edges or points of interest and adjusting camera angles to identify undercuts and hidden areas. Additionally, its top-down search approach provides visibility in forestry, with the help of thermal imaging capabilities to detect heat sources in foliage. In addition, the EVO Max 4T can also adapt to challenging terrain by flying in "terrain following" mode, which enables the aircraft to follow the contours of sloping ground.
2. Zoom and Thermal Imaging for Search
The EVO Max 4T drone excels in search and rescue scenarios, mainly due to its superior zoom and thermal imaging capabilities. The drone is equipped with an 8K 10x optical zoom camera that allows operators to zoom digitally up to 160x, providing advanced recognition capabilities even at long distances. This level of zoom capability allows search and rescue teams to efficiently survey large areas and closely examine missing persons for signs.
In addition to the impressive zoom camera, the EVO Max 4T also features a thermal imaging camera capable of 16x zoom. Thermal imaging is especially valuable in search and rescue, as operators can detect heat signatures and identify people even in challenging "busy" environments such as dense forestry or low-light conditions. Ultimately, the flexibility and ability to easily switch and switch between different sensors and modes of the aircraft provides the operator with a useful tool selection to cover an area quickly and in detail.
3. Artificial Intelligence Recognition for Next Generation Target Recognition
Autel EVO Max 4T also deploys a unique artificial intelligence (AI) recognition feature that can efficiently identify and track objects or key details faster than any other drone. Combining intelligent algorithms and high-resolution imaging, operators can intelligently identify and track targets, including people and vehicles, and even be able to quickly collect critical information such as location and vehicle details. SARAA President Tom Nash said of this revolutionary AI technology that "long before we can visually recognize humans, we have been recognizing through AI".
With the help of AI recognition, the EVO Max 4T drone can quickly analyze the visual data captured by the onboard sensors and intelligently identify potential people and places of interest. The Autel enterprise app displays live video feeds and, when enabled, uses artificial intelligence to highlight and identify objects directly in the drone feed. This visual aid greatly simplifies the search process, allowing operators to focus on areas of interest and potential rescue targets.
4. Laser rangefinder - fast target location
The EVO Max 4T’s built-in laser rangefinder is another key feature that can help coordinate rescues of identified personnel or better coordinate those on the ground. Laser rangefinders can better help teams track and move to specific locations, with a range of up to 3,737 feet (0.7 miles or 1.14 kilometers), providing precise distance, altitude and coordinates.
This feature can be applied by search and rescue teams as soon as a person, trace or sign of life is detected. Its reliable and precise readings allow teams to confidently and quickly assess target locations and plan how to funnel rescuers to the scene.
5. Collaborative operations for enhanced visibility
Using the EVO Max 4T, SARAA follows a standardized, structured approach for different flight types, search methods and modes. The sensor operator focuses on the search, while the pilot ensures safe flight and adheres to appropriate search patterns. Large search areas are broken down into smaller sections taking into account line of sight constraints and battery duration. Overlapping search areas minimize the risk of losing critical information and duplicating work, wasting time. Additionally, the ability of a drone to intermittently maintain a stationary position during motion improves the chances of detecting target motion.
Split-screen functionality has also proven invaluable in search and rescue operations, as it turns out. By displaying multiple views on one screen, rescue teams can view real-time maps, real-time drone feeds and critical data simultaneously in one location. This makes coordination between team members easier, enhancing their situational awareness and facilitating faster decision-making. With the split-screen feature, search and rescue operations become more efficient, optimizing resource allocation and ultimately increasing the chances of success in critical situations.
Capabilities of the search and rescue drone EVO Max 4T
The EVO Max 4T is reshaping the way search and rescue operations are done. Weighing just 3.6 lbs (1.6 kg), the EVO Max 4T is highly portable with cutting-edge features to carry on any mission, boots up quickly, and is easily managed through the Autel enterprise app, bringing innovative new options to mission planning.
The drone's multi-sensor camera gimbal is also a highlight, with a 48MP, 160x (maximum hybrid) zoom camera, 50MP wide-angle camera, and thermal camera all used to identify tracks, evidence, or targets for search.
The control device of Max 4T is Autel Smart Controller V3, a 7.9-inch high-brightness device with a brightness of up to 2000 nits and a maximum image transmission distance of 20km. It does not require expensive planning software or professional equipment, and can create intelligence in mission planning. Task.
The rapid deployment of EVO Max 4T has won time and efficiency for search and rescue work. SARAA has obtained a cost-effective and ready-made search and rescue solution in search operations. The full use of Autel EVO MAX 4T and its all-round functions will bring immeasurable results to the search field the value of.
