🦅 Smart camera system saves endangered birds from wind turbines deaths

Renewable energy is growing fast and is expanding across the globe. Wind turbines are one of the best options for renewable energy. There is a backside though. Wind farms have been proven to kill birds with their blades. But now there is a solution that will help protect birds.

A new camera system, designed by IndentiFlight, uses AI and high-precision optical technology to stop wind turbines from spinning when the system detects eagles or other endangered bird species close by. The system has already shown significant results in lowering the fatalities. The system also uses AI and machine learning to continuously improve and thereby save more endangered bird species from dying.

How does the IdentiFlights system work then?

The new camera system discovers the presence of birds and then, thanks to AI and high-precision optical technology, it figures if the bird is endangered or not. If it is, the turbines stop spinning before the birds can hit them. The cameras can notice a bird from 1 kilometre (0.6 miles) away. Interesting Engineering writes “The images are processed, determine velocity, trajectory, and position within seconds of detection. These optical towers operate autonomously, detailing, classifying, and curtailing potentially harmful wind turbines.“

The study on IdentiFlights new system explained that the “curtailment system” resulted in an 82% drop in eagle deaths linked to wind farms. The study that provided this data was carried out at a wind farm site in Wyoming, U.S. Dr. Chris McClure, lead author of the study said:

"As this technology continues to develop and improve, it has the potential to greatly impact raptor conservation around the globe,"

The smart system keeps on learning from the data it gathers using machine learning and AI systems. The system is also able to identify more protected bird species, leading to more birds saved.