MediCopter

A Drone Delivering Medical Supply in Emergency.

IntermediateFull instructions providedOver 10 days419

Things used in this project

Hardware components

Raspberry Pi 4 Model B

Pixhawk 2.4.8 Kit

F450 Frame

SunnySky Brushless Motor - 950kv

Raspberry Pi Camera Module

3DR Solo Propellers

Adafruit Humidity and Temperature Sensor

Software apps and online services

OpenCV – Open Source Computer Vision Library OpenCV

Hand tools and fabrication machines

Soldering iron (generic)

Story

Introduction

In recent years, the rapid advancement of technology has paved the way for innovative solutions to some of the world's most pressing challenges. One such innovation is the use of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) or Drones, which have transitioned from recreational gadgets to critical tools in various sectors, including healthcare. In Vietnam, a country characterized by its diverse and often challenging terrain, timely access to medical supplies during emergencies can be a significant hurdle. This report introduces a pioneering project: a drone designed specifically to deliver medical supplies to remote and hard-to-reach areas in Vietnam during emergencies, such as traffic accidents.

The primary objective of this project is to bridge the gap in emergency medical response times, ensuring that lifesaving supplies reach those in need swiftly and efficiently. By leveraging the mobility and speed of drones, this initiative aims to overcome the geographical and infrastructural barriers that often impede rapid medical response in rural and congested urban areas. This report will delve into the technical specifications of the drone, its operational protocols, and the potential impact on emergency medical services in Vietnam. Through this innovative approach, we hope to demonstrate how technology can be harnessed to save lives and enhance the overall healthcare delivery system in the country.

Reason

The rationale behind developing a drone for medical supply delivery in Vietnam is multifaceted, addressing several critical issues inherent to the country’s healthcare infrastructure and emergency response systems. Here are the primary reasons driving this project:

Geographical Challenges: Vietnam's diverse landscape, comprising dense urban areas, mountainous regions, and extensive rural zones, presents significant logistical challenges for timely medical supply delivery. In remote areas, accessing healthcare facilities can be arduous and time-consuming, often exacerbating medical emergencies.
Traffic Congestion: Urban areas in Vietnam, particularly major cities like Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, suffer from severe traffic congestion. In the event of a traffic accident or other emergencies, ambulances and other emergency vehicles can be delayed, potentially resulting in critical delays in medical intervention.
Emergency Response Times: Swift access to medical supplies such as blood, medications, and essential medical equipment can be the difference between life and death in emergencies. Current response times are often insufficient due to logistical constraints, impacting patient outcomes.

How the system works:

When an emergency such as a traffic accident occurs, the medical supply delivery drone system springs into action. The emergency response center triggers a supply request, and the required medical supplies are quickly loaded into the drone. The drone then calculates an optimal flight path and launches, navigating autonomously while being monitored in real-time. Upon reaching the destination, the drone uses precision landing technology to deliver the supplies directly to the designated drop-off point, ensuring rapid and reliable delivery to those in need.

Demo of drone fly to a target point

How the drone works:

Our drone equipped with a Raspberry Pi and Pixhawk for autonomous mission. The Pixhawk serves as the flight controller, responsible for stabilizing the drone, controlling its motors, and managing its navigation. It receives sensor data from various sources, such as accelerometers, gyroscopes, GPS, and barometers, to determine the drone's orientation, altitude, and position. The Raspberry Pi serves as an embedded computer, running the Python script to control the Drone and function computer vision features like object detection. The Raspberry Pi communicates with the Pixhawk through protocols like MAVLink, exchanging information such as waypoints and commands.

Pixhawk and Raspberry PI combination

First, we get access to the Raspberry Pi on the drone from the Laptop by using SSH protocol. Then, we run the Python script over the SSH protocol and the Raspberry Pi will execute it. Inside the script, we use DroneKit library - a very powerful library for controlling unmaned aerial vehicle - to communcate with the flight controller Pixhawk via MAVLink protol. When the script is executed, the Pixhawk control the motors and it flies to the target location. During the fly, using the real-time video from the cameras and detection model, the drone will analyze the forest and send data to the ground control.

Sample code to fly to the target point

You may wondering how the drone and dodge obstacles like birds. We intend to solve that by using the ultrasonic sensors place around the drone or using the LiDar 360 degreesRange sensor.

Code

FlyToTargetPoint.py

from dronekit import connect, VehicleMode , LocationGlobal , LocationGlobalRelative
import time  
import dronekit_sitl    
import cv2 
import pyrebase
from geopy.distance import geodesic 

#INITIALIZE 
connecting_string = "/dev/ttyACM0" 
baud = 57600 
vehicle = connect(connecting_string,baud,wait_ready=True)  

#FIREBASE
config = {
  "apiKey": "AIzaSyBi24u8OlLlesdg_g_w4XfZuwttWCwHnSw",
  "authDomain": "droneai-c394f.firebaseapp.com",
  "databaseURL": "https://droneai-c394f-default-rtdb.asia-southeast1.firebasedatabase.app",
  "projectId" : "droneai-c394f",
  "storageBucket" : "droneai-c394f.appspot.com",
  "messagingSenderId" : "1043958961590",
  "appId" : "1:1043958961590:web:318bf9d30904beeee3dd17",
  "measurementId" : "G-JFZ5YSZSVE"
} 
firebase = pyrebase.initialize_app(config)
db = firebase.database()

def firebase_data():
    Lat = vehicle.location.global_frame.lat 
    Lon = vehicle.location.global_frame.lon
    data = {"LAT": Lat, "LNG": Lon}
    db.update(data)

def camera(): 
    global video_capture , output_file
    ret, frame = video_capture.read()
    if ret:
        frame = cv2.flip(frame, 0)
        output_file.write(frame)

def arm_and_takeoff(h):

    while not vehicle.is_armable:
        print(" Waiting for vehicle to initialise...")
        time.sleep(1)
    print("Arming motors")

    vehicle.mode = VehicleMode("GUIDED")
    vehicle.armed = True

    while not vehicle.armed:
        print(" Waiting for arming...")
        time.sleep(1)

    print("Takeoff")
    vehicle.simple_takeoff(h)  

    while True:
        print(" Altitude: ", vehicle.location.global_relative_frame.alt)
        camera() 
        firebase_data()
        if vehicle.location.global_relative_frame.alt >= h * 0.95:
            print("Reached target altitude")
            break

    return None 

def Fly_to_target_point(Latitude, Longtitude):         
    vehicle.airspeed = 10 #set the speed during the flight
    altitude = 30 #set the desired altitude during the flight
    tartgetPoint = LocationGlobalRelative(Latitude,Longtitude, altitude) 
    vehicle.simple_goto(tartgetPoint) 
    while True:
        # get the current location
        current_location = vehicle.location.global_relative_frame
        current_latitude = current_location.lat
        current_longtitude = current_location.lon
        current_point = (current_latitude, current_longtitude)

        # Calculate the remain distance to the tartget point
        remain_distance = geodesic(current_point, current_point).meters

        if remain_distance < 0.25 :
            print("Drone Reached Target Location")
            break


def Land(): 
    vehicle.mode = VehicleMode("LAND")
    while True : 
        camera()
        firebase_data()
        attitude = vehicle.location.global_frame.alt
        if attitude < 0.2:
            print("Drone On the Ground")
            break 
def back() :
    vehicle.mode = VehicleMode('RTL') 
    while True : 
        camera()
        firebase_data() 
        attitude = vehicle.location.global_frame.alt
        if attitude < 0.2:
            print("Drone Land Safely")
            break 


def get_parameter():      
    print("DRONE STATUS:")
    print("1. Firmware Version:", vehicle.version )
    print("2. Global location:", vehicle.location.global_frame) 
    print("3. Battery:", vehicle.battery)  
    print("4. Mode:", vehicle.mode.name) 
    print("5. Armed Status:", vehicle.armed)



if __name__ == "__main__":
    array_point = [] #store target points
    point1 = (10.80477, 106.71871) #example coordinate
    desired_altitude = 30
    array_point.append(point1)
    get_parameter() 
    arm_and_takeoff(desired_altitude)
    Fly_to_target_point(array_point) 
    back()