INTRODUCTION
The United Nations on Mine Action (UNMAS) assesses that more than 100 million mines pose significant hazards in more than 68 countries around the world. They are lethal remnants from often forgotten armed conflicts during the last century. Landmines kill about 26,000 persons every year and maim even more, leaving behind dismembered victims requiring extensive healthcare and rehabilitation.
The detection of all forms of dangerous battlefield debris such as landmines are vital prerequisites for any region to recover from their impact. Thermal cameras in combination with UAVs are becoming a powerful solution for speeding up this task.
AIM OF THE PROJECT
The Humanitarian Engineering Research Group collaborates with Shield Association, 
a civil society organization founded on the Lebanese territories committed to working in the various humanitarian sectors. We aim to validate and create an open-source solution for detecting landmines using low-cost thermal cameras and UAVs, automating the identification of problematic spots (Figures below).
The project is part of the BSc thesis in Mechanical Engineering of Robin Beavers and Jelte de Vries. It runs with the support of the ITC Faculty (Prof.Dr.Francesco Nex). The plastic (PLA) landmines are produced by Fraunhofer Innovation Platform.
For more information: Dr. Alberto Martinetti (a.martinetti@utwente.nl)