The land of the Ionian arc in Apulia is now protected 24/7 by an advanced early fire detection system thanks to Teledyne FLIR's high-sensitivity thermal imaging cameras. This represents a synergy between innovation and environmental protection to prevent disasters from happening.

The Ionian arc of Puglia is an area rich in history, evocative coastal landscapes and millenary cultural traditions that tell of the encounter between nature and civilisation.

However, this area is also particularly exposed to fire risk, especially during the summer season when it's more vulnerable due to high temperatures, dry vegetation, and increased tourist population density. Fire risk prevention and management is therefore a key priority to protect the environment, biodiversity, the safety of local communities and of the many visitors who choose this fascinating area for their holidays.

In order to mitigate fire risks, the Apulia Region has decided to equip its territory with an Automatic Fire Outbreak Detection and Alerting System capable of managing the entire phase of fire outbreak detection, both in the preventive phase and during the management of declared emergencies, through state-of-the-art and highly reliable technologies. The system is active 24/7 and in all environmental conditions.

After a successful first implementation which allowed the natural heritage of the Alta Murgia National Park to be kept under control , a new early woodland fire detection system has been set up to protect the most valuable areas of the Ionian arc of Puglia, exploiting the same basic technologies, in particular Teledyne FLIR's high-sensitivity thermal imaging cameras.

The electro-optical infrared sensor's pivotal role
The cornerstone of CAE's early fire detection system is the advanced dual-sensor thermal imaging cameras of the FLIR PT-Series family. It combines a thermal sensor and a visible light sensor on a high-speed, high-precision pan/tilt structure which is able to continuously scan the area for even the slightest signal that could indicate abnormal and potentially dangerous overheating.

The thermal imaging cameras are mounted on special elevated monitoring stations, each of which covers a sighting radius of 12 km and beyond with the ability to monitor the surrounding area at 360°. Thus, the territory is protected on an ongoing basis and in all conditions, from total darkness to full sunlight.

As Pierpaolo Piracci, Regional Sales Manager for Italy, Greece, South and South-East Europe at Teledyne FLIR (FLIR Security/AIS) explains: "Timely intervention is fundamental to protect the territory from fire risk. We need to be able to identify the smallest outbreak well before flames develop, even before smoke is generated. Our thermal imaging cameras, which are based on the world's most advanced sensors exclusively developed and manufactured by Teledyne FLIR offer the best thermal sensitivity technically achievable today. This enables the early fire detection system to pick up minimal and potentially dangerous thermal signals, and to warn of abnormal overheating with unparalleled speed. The images captured by the cameras are processed in real time by a sophisticated video-analysis system, developed and supplied by a specialised third-party company, which contributes greatly to the effectiveness of the entire warning system. In this type of application, we know how even a few minutes can make the difference between a thwarted event and the triggering of a catastrophic fire."

An integrated detection system that guarantees reactivity and reliability
The entire early fire detection system in the Ionian arc area of Apulia consists of six sighting stations equipped with Teledyne FLIR thermal imaging cameras, which cover an area of monitored woodland of approximately 2000 km2.

The six monitoring stations are connected to a central station, by means of a dedicated fibre optic communication network and microwave radio links, for the automatic collection and analysis of the images acquired by the thermal cameras in real time. The central station in turn communicates any fire alert status to the Apulia Region Civil Protection Operations Room.

The communication network and the real-time automatic image collection and analysis system were implemented by CAE, which acted as system integrator for the entire early fire detection project.

"We had already collaborated successfully with Teledyne FLIR in the previous early fire detection project in the Alta Murgia National Park," says Luca Papandrea, Technical Director at CAE. "In this project as well, we provided a turnkey system. The challenge was to take care of all stages from design to implementation and, finally, maintenance. Decisions are made in order to maximise the quality, efficiency and reliability of the systems and the choice of suppliers is also guided by the same principles. Throughout all these years, the FLIR Teledyne cameras have worked perfectly as expected, testifying to their great reliability. Therefore, for the new protection project in the Ionian arc area of Apulia we once again chose Teledyne FLIR thermal imaging cameras, whose innovative technical features allowed us to provide the best possible solution."

Comprehensive technological solutions for the protection of critical areas
The integration of the infrared thermal sensor and the electro-optical sensor in the visible range with a robust pan/tilt handling structure is one of the strengths of the PT Series family of thermal imaging cameras, which brings together decades of experience gained by Teledyne FLIR in the development of optimised and extremely reliable solutions for the protection of critical areas in a variety of contexts.

In addition to the thermal imaging cameras, the early fire detection system also includes other security technologies provided by Teledyne FLIR, to protect the sighting stations from unwanted intrusion and thus ensure all-round security.

"The ability to provide products, complete solutions and technical application consulting spanning the entire field of critical infrastructure protection and security is one of Teledyne FLIR's strengths," Mr. Piracci points out. "Our offer starts with products with market-leading performance. This is the result of massive R&D investments in basic sensor technologies though embracing the entire "safety and security" system, which enables the integration of different types of products to facilitate technology incorporation into a single holistic system, ranging from perimeter security to detection of risk factors, such as in the case of early fire detection."

Preserved land for the benefit of the community and the environment
Reliability and ability to minimise false alarms and to increase efficiency even in the intervention phase are the main assets of the automatic early detection of fire outbreaks system in the Ionian arc of Puglia. The extreme thermal sensitivity offered by Teledyne FLIR's PT-Series thermal imaging cameras allows for prompt detection of even the smallest outbreak in any environmental condition, while the automatic image processing software makes it possible to send real-time alarms to the centre, to zoom in to verify the situation on-site, and to save video recordings showing the outbreak onset and the surrounding area. Thanks to video and data, the Apulia administration has useful information to direct the intervention of the teams on-site.

The use of technologically advanced components, combined with specialised design and construction experience in the protection and prevention sector, ensures peace of mind for an area of great value and undoubted economic and environmental worth for the entire local community.

FLIR PT Series AI SR thermal camera
FLIR PT Series AI SR is the latest multi-sensor PTZ thermal imaging camera model in the PT-Series family, designed by Teledyne FLIR to meet all the most sophisticated requirements of surveillance and fire prevention systems. Based on a high-sensitivity uncooled thermal sensor (< 25 mK NETD, 640 × 512 resolution) combined with a 4K optical camera with up to 25× optical zoom, this unit ensures sharp and detailed images even in the most extreme conditions: total darkness, bright light, smoke, or haze.

With its simplified integration into existing video surveillance systems (ONVIF, VMS), 360° pan/tilt/zoom functionality, resistance to outdoor conditions (IP66, de-icing) and continuous tracking via the FLIR Nexus® sensor, this thermal imaging camera is the ideal solution for monitoring large areas and identifying outbreaks or hot spots before they become fires.