aau/MüllerHow can we control swarms of drones so that they can be used to reforest woodlands in the most efficient way? Merna Tohfa, a university assistant at the Department of Networked and Embedded Systems, is developing mathematical models and technologies that enable swarms of drones to scatter tree seeds in areas that may be difficult to access.
“I hope to use drone technology to help reforest woodlands more efficiently. This means there will be more healthy trees to help reduce CO2 emissions,” says Merna Tohfa, who works as a university assistant in Bernhard Rinner’s research group at the Institute for Networked and Embedded Systems.
To explain how this works, she continues: “Drones could support traditional forestry methods. They could scatter tree seeds in the form of seed balls at precisely those locations we have marked on maps beforehand. This would enable efficient reforestation in hard-to-reach areas – for example, after forest harvesting, but also following fires or storm damage.” Merna Tohfa is primarily concerned with the scalability of drone swarms: “We may already be able to send ten drones on such a mission. But what happens when there are 20 or 30? Can we get them to work simultaneously and efficiently?” The drones should not only be capable of locating the correct places to scatter seeds, but also of managing their own energy levels, as she explains: “Drone battery capacity is limited. We need to figure out how to scatter as many seeds as possible at the required locations within the available time.”
Merna Tohfa is in the second year of her doctoral studies. She is currently preparing her first mathematical model, which aims to map all constraints, such as limited battery capacity, seed capacity, limited time, and prescribed distances. This will also form the basis of her first research paper. Once the model is complete, Merna Tohfa also wants to conduct experiments with real drones. She is particularly looking forward to this stage because: “My research is all about discovering new things. If I manage to translate these new findings into real-world applications, I will be really happy. I will be delighted to see my drones flying through the forests.”
Merna Tohfa has been fascinated by drones and robots since completing her Bachelor’s degree in Engineering and Materials Science: Mechatronics Engineering at the German University in Cairo, Egypt. It was there that she became aware of the Master’s programmes offered by the University of Klagenfurt. In 2020, she started to study at Klagenfurt University for a Master’s degree in Information and Communications Engineering: Autonomous Systems and Robotics. She completed her studies in 2024 and then began her doctorate as a pre-doctoral scientist at the Institute for Networked and Embedded Systems. “My favourite subjects throughout my school years were mathematics, physics. I have always benefited from this. When I started looking for a topic for my doctoral studies, I knew I wanted to work on drones. People often think of drones as being used in the entertainment industry or in warfare, but I believe that, similar to the industrial revolution, they hold ground-breaking and beneficial opportunities for humanity. I therefore looked for areas of application that could be useful to the world. I found what I was looking for in agriculture and forestry.”
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A few words with … Merna Tohfa
When was the last time you discussed your research with someone outside the scientific community?
Last month, I was talking to one of my colleagues in our department who is from the administrative staff. She liked the idea of drones planting the forests.
What is the first thing you do in the office each morning?
I prepare a To-Do list of the tasks I aim to finish in my day.
Who do you regard as the greatest scientist in history, and why?
Marie Curie, because of her life journey as a scientist until she won the Nobel Prize twice, her achievements, and her strong will. I find her biography really inspiring.
What makes you furious?
When I work on solving something in my code for long hours, I run out of ideas, and still, I can not solve it.
And what calms you down?
I call my parents, talk about funny stuff to switch off my mind, then the next day I wake up with a fresh mind, and most of the time I find new ideas to try again on my code, and can manage to solve the bug in it.
Do you take proper holidays? Without thinking about your work?
Yes, I take holidays to visit my home country, Egypt. I spend it properly with family and friends, and I manage to stop thinking about my work for most of my vacation.
What are you afraid of?
I fear wasting time or not managing my time efficiently on some days. I dislike having my time wasted. I always strive to make the most of my time, both at work and in my personal life.
What are you looking forward to?
I aim for the solutions I develop in my PhD research to be successful and implemented in real-world projects for reforestation in the future.
Der Beitrag More trees, less CO2: swarms of drones to reforest woodlands erschien zuerst auf University of Klagenfurt.