Real-Time Image Analysis for Intelligent Aircraft De-Icing Decision Support Systems

Aircraft icing and snow accumulation are significant threats to flight safety and operational efficiency, necessitating rapid and accurate detection methods. The aim of this study was to develop and comparatively evaluate artificial intelligence (AI) models for the real-time detection of ice and sno...

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Main Author: Sylwester Korga
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-07-01
Series:Applied Sciences
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Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/15/14/7752
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author Sylwester Korga
author_facet Sylwester Korga
author_sort Sylwester Korga
collection DOAJ
description Aircraft icing and snow accumulation are significant threats to flight safety and operational efficiency, necessitating rapid and accurate detection methods. The aim of this study was to develop and comparatively evaluate artificial intelligence (AI) models for the real-time detection of ice and snow on aircraft surfaces using vision systems. A custom dataset of annotated aircraft images under various winter conditions was prepared and augmented to enhance model robustness. Two training approaches were implemented: an automatic process using the YOLOv8 framework on the Roboflow platform and a manual process in the Google Colab environment. Both models were evaluated using standard object detection metrics, including mean Average Precision (mAP) and mAP@50:95. The results demonstrate that both methods achieved comparable detection performance, with final mAP50 values of 0.25–0.3 and mAP50-95 values around 0.15. The manual approach yielded lower training losses and more stable metric progression, suggesting better generalization and a reduced risk of overfitting. The findings highlight the potential of AI-driven vision systems to support intelligent de-icing decision-making in aviation. Future research should focus on refining localization, minimizing false alarms, and adapting detection models to specific aircraft components to further enhance operational safety and reliability.
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spelling doaj-art-74f01fddf98f4c6ab16b75edb53b16552025-08-20T03:58:26ZengMDPI AGApplied Sciences2076-34172025-07-011514775210.3390/app15147752Real-Time Image Analysis for Intelligent Aircraft De-Icing Decision Support SystemsSylwester Korga0Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Lublin University of Technology, Nadbystrzycka 38A, 20-618 Lublin, PolandAircraft icing and snow accumulation are significant threats to flight safety and operational efficiency, necessitating rapid and accurate detection methods. The aim of this study was to develop and comparatively evaluate artificial intelligence (AI) models for the real-time detection of ice and snow on aircraft surfaces using vision systems. A custom dataset of annotated aircraft images under various winter conditions was prepared and augmented to enhance model robustness. Two training approaches were implemented: an automatic process using the YOLOv8 framework on the Roboflow platform and a manual process in the Google Colab environment. Both models were evaluated using standard object detection metrics, including mean Average Precision (mAP) and mAP@50:95. The results demonstrate that both methods achieved comparable detection performance, with final mAP50 values of 0.25–0.3 and mAP50-95 values around 0.15. The manual approach yielded lower training losses and more stable metric progression, suggesting better generalization and a reduced risk of overfitting. The findings highlight the potential of AI-driven vision systems to support intelligent de-icing decision-making in aviation. Future research should focus on refining localization, minimizing false alarms, and adapting detection models to specific aircraft components to further enhance operational safety and reliability.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/15/14/7752AI modelmachine learningmachine vision systemsice detectionYOLO framework
spellingShingle Sylwester Korga
Real-Time Image Analysis for Intelligent Aircraft De-Icing Decision Support Systems
Applied Sciences
AI model
machine learning
machine vision systems
ice detection
YOLO framework
title Real-Time Image Analysis for Intelligent Aircraft De-Icing Decision Support Systems
title_full Real-Time Image Analysis for Intelligent Aircraft De-Icing Decision Support Systems
title_fullStr Real-Time Image Analysis for Intelligent Aircraft De-Icing Decision Support Systems
title_full_unstemmed Real-Time Image Analysis for Intelligent Aircraft De-Icing Decision Support Systems
title_short Real-Time Image Analysis for Intelligent Aircraft De-Icing Decision Support Systems
title_sort real time image analysis for intelligent aircraft de icing decision support systems
topic AI model
machine learning
machine vision systems
ice detection
YOLO framework
url https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/15/14/7752
work_keys_str_mv AT sylwesterkorga realtimeimageanalysisforintelligentaircraftdeicingdecisionsupportsystems