Image credit – Walden Kirsch/Intel Corporation
Poaching is illegal but yet many seem to do it anyway, and the problem is that once it’s done, there’s no way to “reverse” it. Now we have seen technology being used to help stop poaching, such as using 3D printed rhino horns to drive down prices, or using AI to help analyze sounds of animals.
Now it seems that a non-profit group called Revolve is working with Intel to develop a camera that uses AI to help prevent poaching. Dubbed the TrailGuard, what this AI-powered camera does is that it tries to spot poachers before they can get close to an animal. This is versus other systems in the past where sometimes a poacher might be spotted, but by then it could already be too late as they might already be in shooting range.
With this AI camera, it will leverage Intel’s computer vision processor, the Movidius Myriad 2, that has the ability to detect animals, vehicles, and people in real-time. Also because unlike other systems that might rely purely on motion detection to send an alert, the TrailGuard will use motion detection to wake the camera up, and only when a human has been detected/identified will it send an alert, thus reducing the number of false positives.
Also as you can see in the photo above, the camera is pretty tiny which means that it makes it harder for poachers to find it, and makes it easier to hide.
Filed in . Read more about AI (Artificial Intelligence) and Intel.