AU professor gets patent for flood rescue tools

Visakhapatnam: The government has granted a patent for a smart pole that helps with early flood detection and rescue operations. The multi-functional, cost-effective project by Dr Rajesh Duvvuru was a part of his research in the department of geo-engineering under the guidance of Prof P. Jagadeeswara Rao.

The request for the patent was submitted through Andhra University for consideration in April 2022. It was granted on June 5 this year, according to a release by the Andhra University.

The multi-disciplinary research helped identify people hit by floods in the Krishna-Godavari basin of Andhra Pradesh. Internet of Things (IoT) enabled tools were used to identify the objects during the flood period. The device is equipped with an ‘Airveda’ pollution sensor and fitted with a visible and infrared sensor that can capture images of an area during day and night.

The IoT device is fabricated with local materials, making it more cost-effective when compared to similar technologies employed by government agencies. The pole can be carried to vulnerable areas to acquire information, and the sensors can transmit real-time data. The main objective of this research is to reduce the loss of human lives during floods. The tool can capture, in real-time, data regarding objects floating in flood waters, which will then be displayed on Google Maps to locate the corresponding coordinates and landmarks. This data will be fed to the NDRF and SDRF teams for rescue efforts.

As part of the research, Dr Duvvuru and his team visited the area of the Kachuluru boat mishap in Devipatnam mandal of East Godavari district and took readings to support his thesis work.

This innovative design is unique as this type of algorithm, IoT and geospatial tools have not been designed or developed anywhere in the world to date.