GeoFireBot: GPS-Guided Autonomous Fire-Fighting Robot

Inspiration

Wildfires, electrical fires, and industrial fire accidents are not only dangerous but can also cause irreversible damage. In remote or high-risk areas, human intervention is often delayed or hazardous. We were inspired to create a robot that could autonomously navigate to the fire zone using GPS coordinates, detect the presence of fire, and attempt suppression — minimizing human risk and accelerating emergency response.

What it does

GeoFireBot is a GPS-guided autonomous robot designed to: Receive fire location coordinates Navigate automatically to the location Detect fire using flame sensors Extinguish fire using a water pump or extinguisher system Avoid obstacles using ultrasonic sensors It operates without human intervention once deployed, making it suitable for inaccessible or risky environments.

How we built it

We used the following hardware and software components:

ESP32/STM32 microcontroller for control logic

GPS Module (e.g., NEO-6M) for location tracking

Flame Sensor to detect fire proximity

L298N Motor Driver to control motors

DC Motors + Chassis for robot movement

Ultrasonic Sensors for obstacle detection

Water Pump + Relay Module for fire suppression

Battery Pack as power source

Software stack:

Programmed in Embedded C/C++ using Keil or Arduino IDE

Used Google Maps to get destination coordinates

Implemented basic autonomous navigation logic based on GPS lat/long and heading calculations

Challenges we ran into

GPS Accuracy: Getting precise location data indoors was difficult due to satellite signal loss.

Navigation: Building a smooth, real-time navigation algorithm using GPS without advanced mapping libraries was challenging.

Fire detection sensitivity: The flame sensor needed proper calibration to avoid false positives from ambient light.

Pump Control: Integrating a high-power water pump without overloading the control circuit required extra design effort using relays.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

Successfully integrated GPS-based navigation with real-time robotic movement.

Achieved autonomous fire detection and suppression in a test environment.

Designed a low-cost, scalable prototype that can be enhanced for real-world deployment.

What we learned

Basics of GPS triangulation and heading-based navigation.

How to combine multiple sensors and modules (GPS, flame, ultrasonic) in a real-time embedded system.

Power management and motor control in mobile robots.

Importance of modular design and testing individual components before integration.

What's next for GeoFireBot: GPS-Guided Autonomous Fire-Fighting Robot

Upgrade to LoRa or GSM for long-range remote communication and location updates.

Add thermal imaging using an IR camera for better fire localization.

Implement path planning algorithms using AI/ML for smarter obstacle avoidance and faster routing.

Scale to a swarm of bots for coordinated fire suppression in larger zones.