Ohio Street Beach Report With Emily Beach, Community Programs Manager at Chicago Parks Foundation

Map and Key:

Key:

Purple markers: Metal pieces

Red markers: Plastic pieces and plastic bags

Overview:

Main areas of trash consist of areas near the side of the beach and close to the water. Most of the trash consists of small plastic pieces, such as forks, and bags filled with other plastic pieces and metal pieces . 

Data, Charts, and Statistics

Trash

Types of Trash Collected: These are the types of trash that was detected through the video footage. Some of the trash may be labeled in a different category due to their shape and frequency. The most common types of trash were plastic pieces. There were some metal pieces lying around as well.

Total objects detected: 4 objects detected

1.) Plastics: 3 trash pieces

2.) Metal: 1 trash piece

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Flight

Flight Statistics:

• Distance flown: 0.52 km

• Time flown: 22 minutes

• Number of Flights: 1 flight

Due to the smaller size of the park, as well as the absence of trees and obstacles, the drone system was able to survey the park relatively quickly. Larger parks and parks with a large number of trees may take longer because the drone has to avoid all of the obstacles. 

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Project Details

Project Overview: 

• Project Name: Ohio Street Beach Survey Project

• Location: 600 N Lake Shore Dr, Chicago, IL 60611

• Date: November 6th, 2024

• Objective: Provide data on the amount of trash around the Lake Shore Park

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Encountered Issues and Solutions

Software

1. Pairing the flight log from the drone system to the video footage to find out the exact coordinates and position of the trashes and deciphering flight logs, as they are normally given in a .DAT format after export

   1. Currently, the .DAT files are unreadable and we are working on that issue. 

   2. For a temporary situation, we screen record the video footage and overlay that footage on the map. Then we compare the overlaid map and video recording side by side to determine the trashes, and when the drone flies over a trash, we pin that location on the map. This is currently being done manually, but we are working with our developers to overcome that issue and make this entire system automatic.

2. Training the software to be able to detect trashes at different angles and incorporate a wide variety of trashes. To train the software, we needed to highlight the trash at every frame in a video and show the software what to look for when combing for trash in the parks.

   1. Currently, we are still in the development and testing phase in the drone. We are working on training the software by using the trashes found in park footage to help the software know what to look for. We need to continue monitoring parks with the Chicago Park Foundation to continue training and improving the trash detection software.

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General Overview: The drone monitoring system has proven effective in maintaining the safety and cleanliness of Ohio Street Beach. The real-time data collection and analysis have significantly improved the drone trash detection software and waypoint flight system. Continued collaboration and innovation are key to sustaining these advancements and exploring new opportunities for maintaining our parks.

Sincerely,

Volunteers of EccoDrone