Final Report Summary - TASS (Total Airport Security System)
Executive Summary:
TASS is a multi-segment, multi-level intelligence and surveillance system, aimed at creating an entire airport security monitoring solution providing real-time accurate situational awareness to airport authorities.
The TASS concept is based on integrating different types of selected real time sensors & sub-systems for data collection in a variety of modes, including fixed and mobile, all suitable for operation under any environmental conditions. TASS divides the airport security into six security control segments (environmental, cargo, people, airplanes, vehicle-fleet & facilities) each of them being monitored by various technologies that are fused together, creating a multisource labyrinth fusion logic enabling situational and security awareness of the airport anytime and anywhere. These fused control segments are accessed through the TASS WEB-based portal by running a suite of applications making the airport security control centralized to all airport authorities. Information is shared and synchronized between all of them in order to generate a comprehensive, real time, security overview for the airport C2, providing all the necessary features to assure a “no breach” security environment. TASS can use in-place technologies reducing in a cost-effective solution.
The TASS project was based on of 3 main end users representing 16 airports and 16 technological partners bringing together European SME’s, industrial and academic partners, ranging from sensor design and electronic communications through to civil airport protection. The technologies were tested at 3 airports including the hub airport Heathrow (UK), Faro airport (Portugal) and Athens airport (Greece), in order to cover a wide range of needs at different levels of airports.
During the first year of the TASS project (April 1, 2010 – March 31, 2011), the TASS consortium endeavored to define and delineate the TASS concept, translate it into an implementable security system and start its deployment. A number of important objectives towards this aim have been achieved.
In the second period of TASS (April 1, 2011 – March 31, 2012), the project mapped and classified potential threats to airports and additional end-user (airport) requirements were identified. This allowed for a prioritization of the technologies to be deployed and developed. In addition, human, social and organizational aspects of current airport security systems and adjacent actors examined in order to ensure that all human and operational requirements- including privacy- were met during the design of the TASS system, the TASS system design and architecture has been fully defined The second year of the TASS project contributed mainly at the development of the different TASS elements. Front-end systems were developed and adapted to airport environments. Following the design definition phase, the DFMS system started to be developed and implemented.
Period 3 of the TASS project (April 1, 2012 – March 31, 2013) focused on the planning and execution of the Proof of Concept event in Heathrow airport on October 17, 2012. During the PoC, all Front-End systems and Back-End systems were tested as a whole, after deployment at Heathrow Terminal 5. Four different threat scenarios were successfully demonstrated. Each one of the threat scenarios involved fusion of different events and sensors feeds into intelligent actionable alert. The PoC proved that the concept of the TASS fusion and portal works well and addresses the security needs of the airport.
During the 4th period (April 1, 2013 – March 31, 2014), the TASS consortium performed three successful Field Tests at Faro Airport Portugal (ANA), Athens Airport (AIA) and Heathrow, presenting the capabilities of the entire system to deal with 7 different threat scenarios. Following the "Lessons learned" session of the PoC, the TASS consortium planned the three field tests in detail and developed the required scenarios as well as installation and integration of the Front End sensors.
The motivation for these three Field Tests was:
- To test the TASS system in 3 different environments and verify its ability to scale up and to scale down.
- Establish the potential benefits of TASS integrated solutions
- Establish lessons learned in the implementation of the solutions such as technical and human factors issues.
- Provide a showcase for other end users in Europe to see the solutions in use in a real live operational environment.
For each Field Test the consortium performed site surveys, discussed the specific threat scenarios to be tested at each field test, completed the related developments, installed Front End sensors, finalized the design and development and installation of a new compact HMI console, installed and integrated the equipment in the respective TASS center rooms and TASS servers rooms.
Project Context and Objectives:
The TASS system is a multi-segment and multi-level intelligence and surveillance system aimed at creating an entire airport security monitoring solution while increasing the reliability and efficiency of the security screening, respecting the airport passengers' privacy without disturbing them in their airport experience. TASS provides real-time accurate situational awareness of all airport facilities and its surroundings (perimeters, terminal, access-points, sensitive areas etc.), as well as of its people (passengers, employees etc.), vehicles, cargo and airplanes. TASS proposes a novel alternative Airport Security Infrastructure System design which will adopt an integrated approach to the problem, whilst satisfying the stakeholders’ value hierarchy. There are two types of errors in threat detection that may occur: (i) nuisance alarms and (ii) missed detections. Nuisance alarms are activated from non-threatening passengers and events. These cause unnecessary delays for passengers and other airport operations, and may result in missed flights and other issues. A much rarer occurrence is that of missed detections, which refers to threats which pass through the system undetected. These can have more significant effects such as considerable passenger injury or destruction in the airport. TASS provides a clear solution that aims to diminish nuisance alarm occurrences to ensure minimal effect on the flow of commerce and interruptions to passengers, whilst ensuring minimal missed detections to provide a high degree of security via a holistic approach that considers all potential threats to the operation of an airport.
Threats to Airports
An airport is a busy public place and therefore very attractive for terrorists. The threats, conventional and unconventional, against which an airport needs to be defended are diverse but mainly consist of acts of terrorism against airplanes, passengers, crew, aircraft and airport infrastructure:
• Improvised Explosives Devices, IEDs (remotely operated, timer operated and suicide bombers).
• Weapons (guns knives and other weapon types).
• CBRN (Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear) threats.
• Equipment sabotage (Including in airplanes operation and maintenance).
• Infrastructure and sensitive areas sabotage (e.g. passengers terminals, hangars, turf area, cargo terminals, fuel pipelines and containers, access areas and boarding areas, control tower, perimeter fence, surrounding infrastructure and more).
• Panic creation technologies (noise, smoke, fire crackers etc.).
• MANPAD-Shoulder Missiles, Mortars and Gun fire (e.g. DHL in Bagdad, El Al in Rome).
• Mass poisoning- Airline food and beverages mass poisoning and environmental contamination such as airport air–conditioning hostile poisoning and airport water hostile contamination.
• Information systems attacks (network intrusion, communication jamming, Denial of Service, etc.)
All of these threats translate into a maze of security challenges.
Fusion of all monitored data from the system of different sensors to the C2 central system created a comprehensive picture of the airport security status and enable effective and coordinated intervention to counter any threat.
In order to leverage the defense against these threats the airport-security control were divided into six major segments called “AS-CS” (Airport Security-Control Segment):
• All airport facilities control- Perimeter and Inbound Sensitive Areas Surveillance, both indoor and outdoor (terminals, hangars, turf, parking areas, fuel storage and pipelines, storage areas, peripheral and surrounding areas etc.)
• People control- Passengers and air-crew acting as terrorist operatives (both witting and unwitting involvement), airport personnel, visitors, suppliers etc. including people access and boarding control. The technologies in this segment won't be sensed by the passengers and won't interrupt the passengers' smooth flow.
• Fleet control- All airport fleet vehicles, automobiles and truck control.
• Cargo control- Carry-on baggage, checked, hold baggage, air-cargo and air-food/beverages control including their access and boarding control.
• Airplanes and airport-air-space access control- Including physical damage to aircraft.
• Environmental control- Air-quality and drinking water monitoring for chemical and biological agents.
Each of these segments was monitored in real time and the data generated by the different technologies was fused and analysed on two levels:
i) Intra AS-CS– fusion of data generated by sources and technologies within the same AS-CS.
ii) Inter AS-CS- fusion of data generated by sources and technologies from different AS-CS’s.
In order to make TASS time and cost-effective, and in order to improve existing airport security procedures, most of the technologies that were fused are already used by airports (in-place technologies), yet in a ‘stand-alone mode’. This mode is less effective in creating a comprehensive intelligence system compared to the “fused mode”. TASS open interfaces approach brings the capability to integrate these in-place technologies (mobile and fixed) and fuse their collected data into a central point where it was analysed together with data from other sources. This created a comprehensive airport security and intelligence awareness through a central portal where risk assessment and abnormal security alerts were analysed. Moreover, TASS used tracking technologies such as cellular location and RFID to extend airport security to incorporate new sources of information concerning personnel and their activities, whilst still respecting passenger privacy.
Based on past experience where terrorists have attacked in multiple places, simultaneously (September-11, London airlines raid plan, London underground attack, Spain rails attack and Mumbai Hotels and Nariman house attack), adjacent airports and local air traffic control should also be alerted in case of a terrorist attack. Accordingly, TASS proposed a generic, multi-level and multi-layered security approach, mitigating the various threats, enables information sharing and synchronization between different authorities (national and international) that are involved in civil aviation and airport security.
Emphasis was given to the sharing of data between security airport authorities. (This need was particularly stressed by the US September-11 commission which found that intelligence was available throughout the US intelligence community, however it was not shared between agencies. If it had been shared the event may have been avoided). The information sharing between agencies should be done in real-time. Another aspect was connecting with national fusion centres.
The TASS integrated solution was developed in compliance with the relevant regulations and standards for aviation/airport security (e.g. EU regulations for civil aviation security as The Annex to EU Regulation 2320/2002 and U.S. TSA CFR 1500-1699) in order to ensure a compliant security system including the required level of interoperability between airports and components.
Field test: In order to validate the TASS system, small-scale field tests were carried out during the project at Athens International Airport and at Faro Airport. The main field test was held at London, Heathrow.
Scientific/TECHNOLOGICAL OBJECTIVES
The overall mission of the TASS consortium was to research, develop and illustrate the capabilities of (1) the Front-End (FE) collection tools (which are mainly based on sensing real time technologies), (2) Data Fusion Mediation System and (3) portal and web based applications. TASS aimd to integrate them all into one consolidated system where all the collected information is analyzed, alert and viewed by the airport C3
Although the array of sensors consists of sensors based on both new and existing technologies, their integration and fusion formed a centralized system representing an innovative approach, which resulted in an efficient method for securing an airport without affecting the passengers and flow of commerce
This multidisciplinary Integrated Project supported by the EU through FP7 highly considered the insights of the end users, the airports.
This ensures that TASS provides the airports’ C3 with the actionable information that they seek, in order to allow an effective and timely response.
Research objectives
The envisaged TASS system architecture and the research performed in TASS, derives directly from the TASS concept and it consists of 3 main parts:
1. Front End (FE) data collection and sensing and alert technologies which covered the airport. Six major areas of operation have been considered reflecting the 6 AS-CS approach.
2. Data Fusion Mediation system which gathered the information generated by these sensors and fused it, at a fusion system, which created a comprehensive, real time, security overview of the airport.
3. C2 portal and WEB based applications which analyzed and displayed the collected data of each operational area.
I. Front End (FE) Data Collection and Sensor technologies
The basic concept of TASS was to integrate a range of different types of real time sensors and sub-systems for data collection and sensing in a variety of configurations including fixed, mobile, manned and unmanned, all suitable for day and night operation under any environmental conditions. These sensors and sub-systems were monitor and sensed the security situation of each of the above FE segments (AS-CS’s).
The main research objectives were focused on the following technologies according to the AS-CS approach:
A. All Airport Facilities Control - For surveillance of perimeter and inbound-Sensitive-Areas, aimed to detect infiltrators, MANPAD and other illicit hazard or threatening means (all integrated means were camouflaged to harden their detection by terrorists). The following technologies & systems were integrated and fused:
• Intelligent Networked Video Surveillance
• Sensors Network
• Wide area scanning radar
• Smart-Fence
• UGV
• Camouflage
B. People who access the airport – The main AS-CS segment focusing on passengers, visitors, suppliers, security personnel, air-crew, maintenance technicians and all people who board the airplanes (air-crew, passengers) were detected based on the following technologies:
• RFID location tracking of airport personnel and first responders, boarding tickets (and carry-on luggage)
• People cellular location tracking
• Hostile country of origin identification
• Boarding/landing passengers list auto-verification
• Biometric identification and document verification
• Body scanners
• Receive/push real time alerts from/to first responders and/or passengers
C. Vehicles-Fleet Control - Airport in-duty vehicles, trucks and automobiles may access sensitive and restricted areas, and so tight control of these vehicles was required. Vehicle tracking inside the airport area were carried out on both regular and controlled access areas (for example, the apron). The means for controlling the vehicles were:
• GPS location tracking for outdoor
• RFID location tracking (for indoor)
• Authentication by WiMAX
• Registration plate recognized by CCTV
• Ground radar
D. Baggage, air-cargo and air-food & Beverages control - The following technologies & systems were integrated and fused:
• Smart Containers
• Baggage & Cargo Screening
• Baggage List Auto-Verification
• Air-food & Beverages Poisoning Detection
• RFID Location tracking of luggage
E. Airplanes Access Control – Airplanes approaching the airport or taking off from it were identified and monitored by the following technologies and systems:
• Airplanes Remote Imaging & Identification
• Positive Security Code System
• Airport Radar
• Departures and Arrivals Timeline
F. Environmental Control - Sensors to detect and alert when environmental hazards such as air condition poisoning (by chemical agents, aircraft exhaust and other hazards) and water poisoning exceed safe levels.
Additional to the 6 AS-CS, a broadband IP based communications infrastructure (based on Wi-Fi) was deployed. This infrastructure was an important enabler of integrated security, operational efficiency and cost effectiveness due to the fact that it is IP based.
II. TASS Data Fusion and Mediation system
The Data Fusion Mediation Server is the core component of TASS which mediates between all the data collection elements at the FE and between the TASS portal and applications at the backend. Here all the gathered data is collected from the FE, combined, analyzed and fed into the applications developed for efficient analysis as part of the C2 portal.
The research focused on taking data from multiple sources in a secure manner, and fusing and analysing this data in a way that provided a reliable security picture of the airport in real-time. In the data fusion system research emphasis was given to the use of open source, and to the set-up of a two way link (UL and DL) with first response, law-enforcement and airport personnel (PDA/mobile), and with the airport passengers (civilians play an important role in providing live intelligence in the case of security event). It is important to note that a Broadband Wireless communication infrastructure was used to securely transfer data and commands between the fusion system and the FE collection sources (both, UL and DL).
The Fusion in TASS was applied in 2 manners:
• Intra AS-CS– fusion of data and information sources that belong to the same AS-CS. E.g. People Access Control- Fusion between Boarding Passengers List, Biometrics Identification, Document Verification and Body Scanners.
• Inter AS-CS - fusion of data and information sources that belong to different AS-CS.
III. TASS Web portal & GIS Applications
A central portal for situational awareness and decision support was developed at the backend (the security control center), where all the collected information were analyzed, filtered and passed on to a C2 to be displayed to the security and transport authorities in a easy to interpret manner, suitable for quick decision making. Security alerts were generated by this portal and transferred to the C2 portal when necessary. The TASS portal in its mobile version can be used by airport security first responders who are located in the airport vicinity, enabling them to send and receive alerts and instructions.
The TASS system also enabled the remote control of some of the FE elements and technologies through the web portal (for example the control of PTZ video cameras) and also the capability to communicate with passengers and other people accessing the airport information service by SMS (send and receive alerts and security instructions to and from people who access the airport such as passengers, visitors, airport workers and air-crew).
The research included development of a suite of WEB based applications-alerts, location tracking, video surveillance, unmanned vehicle control, baggage/cargo scanners control, weather reports and message broadcast. The portal and applications man–machine interface, “look and feel” and functionality were focused on being easy to use and effective. These were defined by the portal end-users themselves (airport authority, transport authority, security first responders, etc.), members of the TASS consortium to ensure their effectiveness.
TASS developed an open system to enable applications to be added in an efficient manner. The applications that were focused on in the TASS Portal are:
• Video Surveillanc
• Upstream Real Time Alerts
• Downstream Messages Broadcast
• Location Tracking
• Weather Reporting
• GIS based Unmanned Vehicle Control
• CHAT Room
The portal was also developed in a mobile version for all first responders. More portal research included integration of regional maps and airport maps, export capabilities of unclassified alerts and portal platform security.
Project Results:
Human factors, Privacy aspects and Operational Scenarios
There were three main results in the work performed (presented broadly in D2.3):
• Development of clear guidelines for the management of emergencies based on realistic expectations of the passengers’ behavior;
• Development of clear guidelines for the development of agent based models;
• Development of a simulation tool for predicting, planning and training for the staff/public response to emergencies.
The human and organizational requirements for the TASS system were presented as a set of guidelines for the integration of the sociotechnical system in order to make the technological aspects of the project meaningful in operational context. These requirements represent a broad span of issues from the HMI all the way up to the management of airport operations. For the TASS sociotechnical system to work it has to demonstrate added value to the operational personnel on the ground and in the control center. It also has to integrate well with other control centers throughout the airport organization (testing of the TASS system occurs in context at a future date and for this reason performing using scenarios designed to test that sociotechnical integration).
Field research was carried out with operational staff which was interacted with functioning prototypes of the TASS portal and provided feedback from that experience.
The social scientific research into mass human behavior in emergency situations has allowed us to adopt a more authentic approach to the modeling of and planning for human crowd responses to emergencies such as terror threats in airports. We have seen that a number of myths and erroneous assumptions are still prevalent in terms of modeling and planning activities by researchers, designers and policy makers such as the myths of panic, antisocial behavior, looting and individual self-preservation. The reality is that we should expect and plan for more pro-social and constructive responses from people involved in crises.
Also, the assumption that people follow the same behavioral patterns as physical models such as water flow results in over-simplified models of crowd behavior. The reality is that people engage in much more complex cognitive, social and emotional process that are associated with risk assessment and problem solving and will be heavily influenced by their own personal social circumstances (presence or family, friends) and their own past experiences
Attempts at agent-based modeling of crowd behavior therefore needs to be guided less by the assumption that generalizable models of generic human agents can possibly be applied to a broad variety of situations accurately. Instead, ABMs should be based on the particularities of given scenarios that are likely to occur in a particular time and place, such as airports, with careful attention to population profiles and the nature of threats. The modeling of the human cognitive processes in particular, concrete situations will be more accurate when dealing with scenarios based on realistic risk assessment given that while human behavior in crowds is complex, it is not entirely unpredictable as long as we are aware of as much of the likely circumstances as possible.
System Architecture
The particular architecture adopted for the TASS system, allows managing the airport security environment in real time and makes it possible to provide all the necessary features to assure in principle a total “no breach” security environment in a relatively simple approach. Fusion of all monitored data from different means and operation fields (DFMS) and display of critical information to a central system creates a comprehensive picture of the airport security status and enables effective and coordinated intervention actions in case of threats. Moreover, TASS provides a solution that clearly aims at diminishing nuisance alarm occurrences to ensure minimal effect on the passenger flow while providing a high degree of security taking into consideration all potential threats. The TASS system can evolve and be upgraded easily, simply by adding new front-end technologies, without modifying the overall architecture.
It can therefore be concluded that the TASS architecture and the different components of the TASS system create an entire airport security monitoring solution that provides real-time accurate situational awareness of all airport facilities and its surroundings.
The system is composed of the (presented broadly in D3.1 and D3.2):
• Front End - Systems sensors
This is meant to encompass the description of all hardware devices installed with the aim of collecting data samples and detect abnormal situations.
This system division is in its majority, hardware equipment, e.g. cameras, UGV, RFID Receptors, GPS devices, scanners, CBRN sensors, etc. The equipment will be installed in the outdoors and indoors of HT5, as well as in
remote locations, provided by the project partners. Some equipment may have software associated to interface the reception and acquisition of data. This software or firmware will be part of the Front End suite of each sensor type.
The sensors development guidelines are described under the Sensors section of the current document while the interfaces between the sensors and the Transaction Platform are detailed in [D3.2]. The system and integration details will be specified in the related tasks at WP5.
The TASS infrastructure will provide the Gateway function in Transaction Platform, to set the connection between the Front End equipment and the DFMS.
Some identified sensors will be operated with their own control station which is connected to the Portal. Those situations are identified, e.g. the UGV and the SEROS and each of them is composed of a control mechanism connected to the Portal, where a dedicated user interface shall provide the possibility to directly interact with these systems in order to address a new mission assignment, or move the target position in real time.
• Transaction Platform
This platform will include the TASS gateway and the necessary infrastructure to provide the glue between the Front End systems, the Gateway function, and the Integration Platform.
The Gateway will be the entry point to reach the DFMS and will receive the data in a TCP or UDP transport approach. The Transaction Platform will also include the SIU components, which will forward the sensor data to the Gateway, upon the conversion of sensors specific protocols (e.g. RS232, USB, etc) to a simple TCP/IP (SSH) transport protocol.
The Transaction Platform goal is to have a middleware layer which will perform the transaction of the data into a single common interface, the GSN, Global Sensor Network [GSN].
There are specific Front-End sensors, which will require a hardware converter device in order to perform the sensor data output format into a TCP/IP interface. This hardware is called the Sensor Interface Unit and is part of the current platform. The related interfaces with Sensors are described in [D3.2].
• Integration Platform
This platform will encompass all the functionalities of the DFMS which is devoted to data processing. The video data will be managed by a dedicated encoder in the Front End side, which will interface with the NEXTIVA dedicated server located in this platform, as well.
Mediation is the part of the system which will gather the data and permits the routing of messages from Front End, as well as, control messages to Front End sensors.
The Data Fusion is divided into Low Level Fusion and High Level Fusion, which are respectively responsible for the first level of fusion and for the semantic representation of the world environment and situation awareness.
For POC, the Integration Platform will be located in the integration room and will be composed by several desktop/laptop machines, as well as workstations.
The system and installation details of this platform will be specified in WP6.
• Human Machine Interface
The TASS HMI will include the online portal to be used by regular PCs and the corresponding version of this portal to be operated through mobile equipment. Within the HMI platform are encompassed both the 3D software and the 3D hardware. These components shall constitute the TASS system’s user command and control interface.
The 3D workstation will consist of: desktop and laptop machines, screens, keyboards, mice and projectors, installed in the TASS Control Room.
For POC, all this equipment will be installed in the control room. A rack mount server will be installed in the integration room.
The system and the installation details of this platform will be specified in WP7.
• Infrastructure
This is the communication network which will be transversal to the above four mentioned platforms and it’s the key player of the system, due to both the heterogeneity of the system and due to the high load of data which shall be transferred.
The interconnection of systems will be set up by wireless and Ethernet networks.
Gateway
The measurable objective of the Gateway (described broadly in D5.8) is the interfacing between the data collection and control elements and between the fusion & mediation system at Heathrow. This required the design, development and integration of a middleware platform (referred to as The Gateway within the TASS project) that provides a standard and consistent real-time interface between the TASS data providers and consumers.
The need for a Gateway system was identified early in the TASS project, when it was recognized that the relatively short timescales and collaborative nature of the project would require some system design and development activities in parallel with the development of the system architecture. Thus the Gateway served to decouple the physical data model between the front end and back end systems of TASS by providing a common data interface to both. This had the further advantage of allowing the co-development of systems and a collaborative design process that overlapped with the deployment and integration stages of TASS.
Baggage and Cargo Control Systems
The following is described broadly in D5.6. Baggage scanners are an essential element to airport security. Airports use different types of scanners to detect the presence of potential illegal or dangerous objects within cargo, designated to enter the terminal restricted and critical areas.
The scanners are designated to scan containers, suitcases, carry-on luggage and any kind of luggage intended to board airplanes.
The tracking of carry-on luggage, utilizing RF-ID technology, was found to be a very practical and cost effective technology, compared with the other existing technologies. For this reason, the integration of such a capability within the TASS system is recommended. It upgrades the overall security level of the terminal, by providing automatic alerts to the security forces on ground. These alerts may lead to the detection of abandoned luggage, lost luggage and luggage that may have been deliberately left behind, while the owner proceeds to other parts of the terminal.
The RF-ID technology is suitable for this mission and it can achieve higher granularity and detection accuracy levels by simply adding additional RF-ID readers.
In the event of a threat, the automatic alert may lead to early detection of a threat and increase the probability of neutralizing the threat and thus save lives.
Another important conclusion is that the integration of this kind of system into TASS, together with the TASS CCTV sensors and video analytic capabilities, greatly increases probability of threat detection while providing efficient tools and relevant information to the TASS operator, enabling swift management of these events.
All technologies described within this document have been integrated into the TASS system and been validated. Some were tested independently and some were tested as part of complicated scenarios which incorporate a number of technologies simultaneously in order to detect security threats in airports and alert the relevant authorities.
Data Fusion Mediation System
The following is described broadly in D6.2. The Data Fusion Mediation Server was the core component of TASS which mediated between all the data collection elements at the FE and between the TASS portal and applications at the backend. Here all the gathered data is collected from the FE, combined, analyzed and fed into the applications developed for efficient analysis as part of the C2 portal.
The research focused on taking data from multiple sources in a secure manner, and fusing and analysing it in a way that provides a reliable security picture of the airport in real-time. In the fusion system research emphasis was given to the use of open source, and to the set-up of a two way link (UL and DL) with first response, law-enforcement and airport personnel (PDA/mobile), and with the airport passengers (civilians play an important role in providing live intelligence in the case of security event). It is important to note that a Broadband Wireless communication infrastructure based on WiMAX (or other) was used to securely transfer data and commands between the fusion system and the FE collection sources (both, UL and DL).
The Fusion in TASS was applied in 2 manners:
• Intra AS-CS– fusion of data and information sources that belong to the same AS-CS. E.g. People Access Control- Fusion between Boarding Passengers List, Biometrics Identification, Document Verification and Body Scanners.
• Inter AS-CS - fusion of data and information sources that belong to different AS-CS.
Fusion between Intelligent Network Video Surveillance (All Airport Facilities Control AS-CS), and between RFID Location Tracking (People Access Control AS-CS or Baggage Control AC-CS
TASS Web portal & GIS Applications
The following is described broadly in D7.3. A central portal for situational awareness and decision support was developed at the backend (the security control center), where all the collected information were analyzed, filtered and passed on to a C2 to be displayed to the security and transport authorities in a easy to interpret manner, suitable for quick decision making. Security alerts were generated by this portal and transferred to the C2 portal when necessary. The TASS portal in its PDA version can be used by airport security first responders who are located in the airport vicinity, and therefore send and receive alerts and instructions.
The TASS system enabled the remote control of some of the FE elements and technologies through the web portal (for example the control of PTZ video cameras) and also the capability to communicate with passengers and other people accessing the airport information service by SMS (send and receive alerts and security instructions to and from people who access the airport such as passengers, visitors, airport workers and air-crew).
The research included development of a suite of WEB based applications-alerts, location tracking, video surveillance, unmanned vehicle control, baggage/cargo scanners control, weather reports and message broadcast. The portal and applications man–machine interface, “look and feel” and functionality will be focused on being easy to use and effective. These were defined by the portal end-users themselves (airport authority, transport authority, security first responders, etc.), members of the TASS consortium to ensure their effectiveness.
TASS developed an open system to enable applications to be added in an efficient manner. The applications that were focused on in the TASS Portal are:
• Video Surveillanc
• Upstream Real Time Alerts
• Downstream Messages Broadcast
• Location Tracking
• Weather Reporting
• GIS based Unmanned Vehicle Control
• CHAT Room
The portal was also developed in a mobile PDA version for all first responders. More portal research included integration of regional maps and airport maps, export capabilities of unclassified alerts and portal platform security.
System Integration
The main challenge to be addressed when performing the TASS IVV (Integration, Validation and Verification) is related to the huge amount of information, interfaces and functionalities to be checked involving many partners and modules (GUI, 3D, Multi-touch, Mobile, and DFMS and more). The strategy implemented for test and integration has been based on independent module testing by each partner and final integration and testing during the PoC event and the field tests nonce the final prototype features were completed.
The integration work performed was split into four main activities:
1. Software Integration - The Software Integration covered the integration of all the SW components in the TASS system including the Portal, Security functions, Prediction model, Data-Rich decision support application, Alerts and pop-ups, Visualization-reports and real-time monitoring of sensory data, 3D representation of airport vehicles tracking information over a GIS infrastructure and Learning model and data search.
2. Hardware Integration - The integration of hardware activity included integration of field hardware components including sensors, portable means, field survey, sensors networking and connection to the airport backbone network for the exchange of real-time information that will complement the TASS-generated datasets and will yield a holistic picture of the airport status.
3. System Integration - System Integration refers to all partner activities required to achieve the proper design, installation, integration and testing of the various systems (i.e. the System and all Interfaces) to become the Integrated TASS platform. The systems integration process can be divided into two broad areas: Site Installation and Integration, and Inter-system Integration.
4. Validation - In this phase the system integrator together with all relevant partners validated system integrity. The validation is divided into two phases: Preliminary Interface Tests (PIT) and Installation, Checkout, Integration and Testing (ICIT(
5. Verification (OSAT) - Final approval of the successful integration is the system verification or the acceptance test – OSAT. During the On-Site Acceptance Test (OSAT) the system was tested for performance and functionality as reflected in the system specifications.
Field Tests
On October 17, 2012 the TASS consortium executed a successful Proof of Concept event in Heathrow airport. During the PoC, all Front-End systems and Back-End systems were tested as a whole, after deployment at Heathrow Terminal 5. Four different threat scenarios were successfully demonstrated. Each one of the threat scenarios involved fusion of different events and sensors feeds into intelligent actionable alert. The PoC proved that the concept of the TASS fusion and portal works well and addresses the security needs of the airport.
During the 4th period of the project, the TASS consortium performed three successful Field Tests at Faro Airport Portugal (ANA), Athens Airport (AIA) and Heathrow, presenting the capabilities of the entire system to deal with 7 different threat scenarios. Following the "Lessons learned" session of the PoC, the consortium planned the 3 field tests in details and developed the required scenarios as well as installation and integration of the Front End sensors.
The motivation for these three Field Tests was:
- To test the TASS system in 3 different environments and verify it's scaling up and scaling down.
- Establish the potential benefits of TASS integrated solutions
- Establish lessons learned in the implementation of the solutions such as technical and human factors issues.
- Provide a showcase for other end users to see the solutions in use in a real live operational environment.
For each Field Test the consortium performed site surveys, the consortium held several discussions to define the threat scenarios to be tested at each field test, completed the related developments, installed Front End sensors, finalized the design and development and installation of a new compact HMI console, installed and integrated the equipment in the respective TASS center rooms and TASS servers rooms.
Potential Impact:
Strategic impact
TASS provides an integrated approach to airport security, unifying available state-of-the-art biometric and non-biometric ID verification technologies with cameras and intelligent behavioural models over an API compliant platform. This allows dynamically reconfigurable access control and check point corridors, suspicious behavior detection, and context aware information exchange between security infrastructure, personnel and passengers in case of a suspected security compromise. The TASS project workflow was designed in a way to ensure that human, social and organizational factors will inform technology development and at later stages support its validation. Therefore TASS delivered solutions that are performance tested at the technological as well as the human and operational level. This ensured that they meet user expectations when implemented.
Standardized technologies and solutions were adopted for the sensor and telecommunication components in the FE system. TASS solutions designed in a user / operator-centered way, and therefore work reliably to eliminate effects of adverse attitudes to new products and procedures. In a long term perspective TASS increases reliability of airport security systems and procedures for the same reasons: they have been designed with the operator in mind and therefore support human perception and behaviour and do not operate against them.
Optimal usage of time-efficient non-intrusive technologies eliminated delays at passenger, staff, crew and baggage checkpoints.
In the context of the dissemination activities of the project TASS identified security gaps and optimization areas in the context of airport monitoring and control. Therefore TASS didn't only deliver innovative solutions for airport security but also highlighted areas for future research that is related to TASS but goes beyond its scope.
The TASS consortium included important end users and industries committed in the design and development of emergency scenario applications. Research activities were conducted within a detailed process of requirement collection, design and development, and validation through proof of concept and field trials. Additionally, TASS’ integrated method of working was a major feature of the TASS solutions.
The TASS human factors partners did not only focus on HMI issues, but looked at wider social, operational and organizational factors, their research provided guidelines for implementation as well. TASS introduced this work into a new domain. Relevant EC regulation on user privacy was analyzed and guided the consequent design and development activities.
Technological Impact
TASS' technological impact was felt in a number of technological fields, and came about as a result of the realization of the project objectives:
Data collection and fusion - First and foremost, TASS aids in the integration of various real time data collection technologies that consolidate the 6 “AS-CS” segments for the purpose of multi-source data fusion labyrinth. TASS’ improvement on the current stand-alone mode of sensor operation to a fused mode can be applied to the technology needed in other security areas such as shopping centers, and home or office environments. The “know-how” was taken from the work involved in collecting data from multiple sensors working in parallel and was applied to the home security and to entertainment industry as well. In addition, TASS changes the way data is gathered and handled during security crises.
TASS C2 portal and WEB based applications - The TASS portal analyzes, alerts and displays the collected data of each operational area based on the AS-CS concept. One of the major advances that were introduced by TASS was the use of web-portals as hubs for real-time, actionable information. Currently, C2 systems are usually reliant on desktop applications with pre-defined functionalities. The TASS portal provides an interoperable service support environment that will allow the integration of new data access or data processing services at run time, i.e. the portal can be adopted at run time to the current situation. This provides a so far unknown flexibility to security management system. Additionally, and in contrast to existing applications, the TASS portal supports “thin client” use, implying users need little more than a web browser and no especially installed software to operate the portal. Supporting thin clients represents a revolution for C2 systems. While there are many implementations of portal solutions for a variety of applications, their use in the field of real-time security data management represents a major advancement of the technology. The impact on security management was certain to be palpable: by requiring only thin clients, the TASS portal allows all the requisite decision makers (ranging from representatives of local, regional, national and European governments to units in the field and endangered civilians) to be privy to the security C2 information as it became available, regardless of their software/hardware situation. Such real-time information dissemination is not currently possible. By dispersing the “fog” surrounding crisis situations, the TASS portal provides a critical tool for defusing such events. Considered together, the impacts listed above help move alert and C2 technologies onto the next level.
Additional Technological Benefits- Additionally, work done on TASS contributes to specific technological fields, for example, the fusion of cellular location with video surveillance, including handovers between adjacent cameras for continuous tracking. The development of wireless sensors and their integration into the TASS system enhance expertise in the technical areas covered by the ‘wireless sensor network’ developed within TASS project. TASS also have significant industrial impact in several different product sectors such as wireless sensor fabrication, novel system solutions, sensor electronics interfaces towards network nodes, end-user applications, and services based on wireless sensors. TASS contributes to technologies that reduce human cognitive efforts and increase operators’ situation awareness.
Socio-economic benefits of TASS
Reviewing the history of terror at airports, one can only conclude that much of the damage caused by these events was made possible by the lack of effective security control and actionable intelligence, stemming from incomplete information and a lack of adequate fusion between different sources of information. In this context, it is enough to remember the horrific consequences of September 11 where effective fusion of separate information sources wasn't available. Using September-11 as a case study, it is possible to show the benefits that were derived from the implementation of the TASS system:
Improved detection and awareness of C2 centers- C2 operations stand to gain the most from the TASS system. At current individual European airports C2 are some of the best in the world, and enjoy the use of the latest technological means and operational protocols to conduct their tasks with the utmost effectiveness. The drawback of existing systems is the lack of effective fusion of separate data sources to turn them into an effective, multi-faceted detection and awareness. TASS brings an innovative approach for efficiently fusing the data sources, by proposing the inter AS-CS fusion and intra AS-CS fusion ideas which enable security detection and alert applications which control each of the AS-CS domains both separately and together, thus creating a very effective C2 mechanism.
Better information sharing and coordination between different airport security authorities in real-time - Today, airport police, airport authority, air-traffic control, national transport authority and other authorities that are involved in the airport security, use in the best case outmoded mechanisms to interface with each other. TASS works to solve authorities' coordination problems in an effective fashion. The system promotes the sharing of information—force locations, reconnaissance results, risk assessments, etc. during times of crisis. Correspondingly, the benefits are realized in real-time: TASS disperses the most up-to-date information it has immediately, and so give more actionable information to decision makers to make a situational assessment and determine the best ways to neutralize the crisis. In turn, this helps saving lives, cost and time. TASS WEB based C2 portal turns all involved authorities into one coherent force, eliminating the duplicate application of force, sharing intelligence and information as it becomes available. TASS’ decision support features help decision makers at C3 not only exert more centralized control over their forces, but to use this control in better ways in order to make more educated decisions.
Improved C2 center and security authorities readiness - It should be kept in mind that security authorities cannot just react to situations as they arise; rather training is a major aspect of the readiness of any airport scheme. In order to answer this need, TASS created new possibilities for preparation towards security and crisis events during normal times. TASS achieved this by defining rules and serving technologies for security alert crisis response and recovery, as well as providing historic data after the event for assessment and possible redefinition of security events plans. TASS did not focus solely on the reaction during the crisis or emergency event; on the contrary, it covered the whole life cycle of the event. This increases emergency services’ readiness, by defining rules for security events management.
Effective public alert system- TASS allows the rapid dissemination of the alert messages to emergency authorities and to citizens. At times of security event or crisis, this may prove to be a critical benefit. When considering the spectrum of possible events versus the “herd mentality” that may develop during these events, it becomes clear that the effective and concise transmission of alert messages to the population in the airport is critical. Situations in which mass evacuations are required (e.g. toxic gas leaks) may become compounded by citizens’ panic and instinct to escape as soon as possible, blocking exit routes, and virtually ensuring more lives are lost. TASS allows the controlled evacuation—one quarter at a time, or at growing circles around an event—that can make the difference between a controlled crisis and a mass tragedy. Another example includes the dissemination of instructions to people in the airport on how to cope with the event. All in all, TASS helps solving C2 managers’ biggest problem—people control (i.e. passengers, visitors, air-crew, airport personnel etc.).
Better Recovery- Finally, after the event has passed, the data gathered through TASS aids in targeting support of afflicted areas, their people and airport facilities recovery. TASS decreases the time period required for the renewal of service in afflicted areas. Moreover, recovery efforts using TASS generated data are conducted with the prevention of the next security event in mind.
Impacts on Small, mid and big airports - The TASS consortium include a broad spectrum of airports in order to enable TASS to respond well to all airport sizes and types, both domestic (national) and international. It is quite clear that the security needs of big airports differ from small ones. ANA brought to TASS its experience in securing all airports in Portugal, most of them very small domestic airports (e.g. Faro) but also a mid size airport, Lisbon Airport. Heathrow brought to TASS its experience in securing 7 airports in UK, Heathrow, Gatwick, Stansted, Southampton, Aberdeen, Glasgow, and Edinburgh. Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted are financially regulated by the Civil Aviation Authority in conjunction with the Competition Commission. The other 4 airports are not subject to this direct price regulation. Heathrow (TASS' airport for the main field test) is the world’s busiest international passenger airport, Gatwick is the world’s busiest single-runway airport, and Stansted is the UK’s third busiest airport. Together, they are responsible for 92% of London’s air passenger market. Every year one in seven of all international passenger journeys globally involve one of TASS’ three London airports. To reflect the broad spectrum of airports in TASS, the proof of concept and trials were carried out at Faro, Athens and Heathrow Airports.
Economic Benefits
Terror attacks at airports and airlines are, almost by definition expensive occurrences. They invariable result in loss of life and material, the destruction of planes and infrastructure, and the waste of thousands of man-hours. Thus, societies literally cannot afford to ignore the possibilities of terror attack at airports and airlines, and must do their utmost to limit their economic impact. TASS does much to ameliorate the high costs of terror against airports, since it can be said almost without fail that an effective C2, detection and alert also translates to substantial monetary savings. These savings may be achieved in a myriad of ways, reducing both direct and indirect costs.
Direct costs may be reduced through the limitation of terror impact by effective readiness and C2. Open interfaces between all the TASS elements assured interoperability between the different components, and therefore enables the airports to select different vendors for the different TASS components, thus increasing its cost effectiveness. The TASS system reduces the operational costs of the airport by maximizing the flow of passengers and baggage. TASS allows security agents to execute more targeted actions to counter threats. Such actions are often be less disruptive to airport operations and therefore reduce disruptions of business activities at airports, avoid loss of revenue and increase the public perceptions of airports as safe environments. A reduction in medical costs due to effective eviction of the citizens from danger zones in or near the airport will provide economic savings. By avoiding disaster the cost of re-building destroyed parts of the airports and aircrafts do not have to be met. Sharing data between security airport authorities in real-time is cost- effective as well as it will enable the potential aversion of multiple disasters across Europe, and all the associated costs.
Often, however, the true costs are indirect and can only be measured sometime after the event. Terrorist attacks may result in a loss of tourist confidence leading to a decline in economic activity and to a decline in investor confidence in the municipality/nation’s ability to protect investments. By creating a Euro-centric knowledge base focused on airport security, TASS promises to move European industry to the forefront of this ever growing market. In the current global climate, industry leaders who will be able to offer effective integrated airport security solutions stand to gain a significant market advantage. By bringing together European based companies, TASS helps ensuring that many of the revenues from this market will flow into the European economy.
The main dissemination activities and exploitation of results
Six workshops were carried out:
• Lisbon April 2012
• London October 2012 (as part of the PoC event)
• Rio March 2013
• Faro, 29 May, 2013 (as part of the 1st field test)
• Athens, 18 December, 2013 (as part of the 2nd filed test)
• London 19 March, 2014 (as part of the 3rd field test)
Important information was gathered from stakeholders, external potential end-users and consortium members during the workshops in order to create a comprehensive analysis that will serve the TASS consortium in the future when developing or implementing the TASS system and producing further events.
Several articles and publications have been published and the project has been submitted to an extensive coverage in airport portals and local media. A breakdown of all these activities is enclosed in D8.3.
List of Websites:
http://www.tass-project.eu/
TASS is a multi-segment, multi-level intelligence and surveillance system, aimed at creating an entire airport security monitoring solution providing real-time accurate situational awareness to airport authorities.
The TASS concept is based on integrating different types of selected real time sensors & sub-systems for data collection in a variety of modes, including fixed and mobile, all suitable for operation under any environmental conditions. TASS divides the airport security into six security control segments (environmental, cargo, people, airplanes, vehicle-fleet & facilities) each of them being monitored by various technologies that are fused together, creating a multisource labyrinth fusion logic enabling situational and security awareness of the airport anytime and anywhere. These fused control segments are accessed through the TASS WEB-based portal by running a suite of applications making the airport security control centralized to all airport authorities. Information is shared and synchronized between all of them in order to generate a comprehensive, real time, security overview for the airport C2, providing all the necessary features to assure a “no breach” security environment. TASS can use in-place technologies reducing in a cost-effective solution.
The TASS project was based on of 3 main end users representing 16 airports and 16 technological partners bringing together European SME’s, industrial and academic partners, ranging from sensor design and electronic communications through to civil airport protection. The technologies were tested at 3 airports including the hub airport Heathrow (UK), Faro airport (Portugal) and Athens airport (Greece), in order to cover a wide range of needs at different levels of airports.
During the first year of the TASS project (April 1, 2010 – March 31, 2011), the TASS consortium endeavored to define and delineate the TASS concept, translate it into an implementable security system and start its deployment. A number of important objectives towards this aim have been achieved.
In the second period of TASS (April 1, 2011 – March 31, 2012), the project mapped and classified potential threats to airports and additional end-user (airport) requirements were identified. This allowed for a prioritization of the technologies to be deployed and developed. In addition, human, social and organizational aspects of current airport security systems and adjacent actors examined in order to ensure that all human and operational requirements- including privacy- were met during the design of the TASS system, the TASS system design and architecture has been fully defined The second year of the TASS project contributed mainly at the development of the different TASS elements. Front-end systems were developed and adapted to airport environments. Following the design definition phase, the DFMS system started to be developed and implemented.
Period 3 of the TASS project (April 1, 2012 – March 31, 2013) focused on the planning and execution of the Proof of Concept event in Heathrow airport on October 17, 2012. During the PoC, all Front-End systems and Back-End systems were tested as a whole, after deployment at Heathrow Terminal 5. Four different threat scenarios were successfully demonstrated. Each one of the threat scenarios involved fusion of different events and sensors feeds into intelligent actionable alert. The PoC proved that the concept of the TASS fusion and portal works well and addresses the security needs of the airport.
During the 4th period (April 1, 2013 – March 31, 2014), the TASS consortium performed three successful Field Tests at Faro Airport Portugal (ANA), Athens Airport (AIA) and Heathrow, presenting the capabilities of the entire system to deal with 7 different threat scenarios. Following the "Lessons learned" session of the PoC, the TASS consortium planned the three field tests in detail and developed the required scenarios as well as installation and integration of the Front End sensors.
The motivation for these three Field Tests was:
- To test the TASS system in 3 different environments and verify its ability to scale up and to scale down.
- Establish the potential benefits of TASS integrated solutions
- Establish lessons learned in the implementation of the solutions such as technical and human factors issues.
- Provide a showcase for other end users in Europe to see the solutions in use in a real live operational environment.
For each Field Test the consortium performed site surveys, discussed the specific threat scenarios to be tested at each field test, completed the related developments, installed Front End sensors, finalized the design and development and installation of a new compact HMI console, installed and integrated the equipment in the respective TASS center rooms and TASS servers rooms.
Project Context and Objectives:
The TASS system is a multi-segment and multi-level intelligence and surveillance system aimed at creating an entire airport security monitoring solution while increasing the reliability and efficiency of the security screening, respecting the airport passengers' privacy without disturbing them in their airport experience. TASS provides real-time accurate situational awareness of all airport facilities and its surroundings (perimeters, terminal, access-points, sensitive areas etc.), as well as of its people (passengers, employees etc.), vehicles, cargo and airplanes. TASS proposes a novel alternative Airport Security Infrastructure System design which will adopt an integrated approach to the problem, whilst satisfying the stakeholders’ value hierarchy. There are two types of errors in threat detection that may occur: (i) nuisance alarms and (ii) missed detections. Nuisance alarms are activated from non-threatening passengers and events. These cause unnecessary delays for passengers and other airport operations, and may result in missed flights and other issues. A much rarer occurrence is that of missed detections, which refers to threats which pass through the system undetected. These can have more significant effects such as considerable passenger injury or destruction in the airport. TASS provides a clear solution that aims to diminish nuisance alarm occurrences to ensure minimal effect on the flow of commerce and interruptions to passengers, whilst ensuring minimal missed detections to provide a high degree of security via a holistic approach that considers all potential threats to the operation of an airport.
Threats to Airports
An airport is a busy public place and therefore very attractive for terrorists. The threats, conventional and unconventional, against which an airport needs to be defended are diverse but mainly consist of acts of terrorism against airplanes, passengers, crew, aircraft and airport infrastructure:
• Improvised Explosives Devices, IEDs (remotely operated, timer operated and suicide bombers).
• Weapons (guns knives and other weapon types).
• CBRN (Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear) threats.
• Equipment sabotage (Including in airplanes operation and maintenance).
• Infrastructure and sensitive areas sabotage (e.g. passengers terminals, hangars, turf area, cargo terminals, fuel pipelines and containers, access areas and boarding areas, control tower, perimeter fence, surrounding infrastructure and more).
• Panic creation technologies (noise, smoke, fire crackers etc.).
• MANPAD-Shoulder Missiles, Mortars and Gun fire (e.g. DHL in Bagdad, El Al in Rome).
• Mass poisoning- Airline food and beverages mass poisoning and environmental contamination such as airport air–conditioning hostile poisoning and airport water hostile contamination.
• Information systems attacks (network intrusion, communication jamming, Denial of Service, etc.)
All of these threats translate into a maze of security challenges.
Fusion of all monitored data from the system of different sensors to the C2 central system created a comprehensive picture of the airport security status and enable effective and coordinated intervention to counter any threat.
In order to leverage the defense against these threats the airport-security control were divided into six major segments called “AS-CS” (Airport Security-Control Segment):
• All airport facilities control- Perimeter and Inbound Sensitive Areas Surveillance, both indoor and outdoor (terminals, hangars, turf, parking areas, fuel storage and pipelines, storage areas, peripheral and surrounding areas etc.)
• People control- Passengers and air-crew acting as terrorist operatives (both witting and unwitting involvement), airport personnel, visitors, suppliers etc. including people access and boarding control. The technologies in this segment won't be sensed by the passengers and won't interrupt the passengers' smooth flow.
• Fleet control- All airport fleet vehicles, automobiles and truck control.
• Cargo control- Carry-on baggage, checked, hold baggage, air-cargo and air-food/beverages control including their access and boarding control.
• Airplanes and airport-air-space access control- Including physical damage to aircraft.
• Environmental control- Air-quality and drinking water monitoring for chemical and biological agents.
Each of these segments was monitored in real time and the data generated by the different technologies was fused and analysed on two levels:
i) Intra AS-CS– fusion of data generated by sources and technologies within the same AS-CS.
ii) Inter AS-CS- fusion of data generated by sources and technologies from different AS-CS’s.
In order to make TASS time and cost-effective, and in order to improve existing airport security procedures, most of the technologies that were fused are already used by airports (in-place technologies), yet in a ‘stand-alone mode’. This mode is less effective in creating a comprehensive intelligence system compared to the “fused mode”. TASS open interfaces approach brings the capability to integrate these in-place technologies (mobile and fixed) and fuse their collected data into a central point where it was analysed together with data from other sources. This created a comprehensive airport security and intelligence awareness through a central portal where risk assessment and abnormal security alerts were analysed. Moreover, TASS used tracking technologies such as cellular location and RFID to extend airport security to incorporate new sources of information concerning personnel and their activities, whilst still respecting passenger privacy.
Based on past experience where terrorists have attacked in multiple places, simultaneously (September-11, London airlines raid plan, London underground attack, Spain rails attack and Mumbai Hotels and Nariman house attack), adjacent airports and local air traffic control should also be alerted in case of a terrorist attack. Accordingly, TASS proposed a generic, multi-level and multi-layered security approach, mitigating the various threats, enables information sharing and synchronization between different authorities (national and international) that are involved in civil aviation and airport security.
Emphasis was given to the sharing of data between security airport authorities. (This need was particularly stressed by the US September-11 commission which found that intelligence was available throughout the US intelligence community, however it was not shared between agencies. If it had been shared the event may have been avoided). The information sharing between agencies should be done in real-time. Another aspect was connecting with national fusion centres.
The TASS integrated solution was developed in compliance with the relevant regulations and standards for aviation/airport security (e.g. EU regulations for civil aviation security as The Annex to EU Regulation 2320/2002 and U.S. TSA CFR 1500-1699) in order to ensure a compliant security system including the required level of interoperability between airports and components.
Field test: In order to validate the TASS system, small-scale field tests were carried out during the project at Athens International Airport and at Faro Airport. The main field test was held at London, Heathrow.
Scientific/TECHNOLOGICAL OBJECTIVES
The overall mission of the TASS consortium was to research, develop and illustrate the capabilities of (1) the Front-End (FE) collection tools (which are mainly based on sensing real time technologies), (2) Data Fusion Mediation System and (3) portal and web based applications. TASS aimd to integrate them all into one consolidated system where all the collected information is analyzed, alert and viewed by the airport C3
Although the array of sensors consists of sensors based on both new and existing technologies, their integration and fusion formed a centralized system representing an innovative approach, which resulted in an efficient method for securing an airport without affecting the passengers and flow of commerce
This multidisciplinary Integrated Project supported by the EU through FP7 highly considered the insights of the end users, the airports.
This ensures that TASS provides the airports’ C3 with the actionable information that they seek, in order to allow an effective and timely response.
Research objectives
The envisaged TASS system architecture and the research performed in TASS, derives directly from the TASS concept and it consists of 3 main parts:
1. Front End (FE) data collection and sensing and alert technologies which covered the airport. Six major areas of operation have been considered reflecting the 6 AS-CS approach.
2. Data Fusion Mediation system which gathered the information generated by these sensors and fused it, at a fusion system, which created a comprehensive, real time, security overview of the airport.
3. C2 portal and WEB based applications which analyzed and displayed the collected data of each operational area.
I. Front End (FE) Data Collection and Sensor technologies
The basic concept of TASS was to integrate a range of different types of real time sensors and sub-systems for data collection and sensing in a variety of configurations including fixed, mobile, manned and unmanned, all suitable for day and night operation under any environmental conditions. These sensors and sub-systems were monitor and sensed the security situation of each of the above FE segments (AS-CS’s).
The main research objectives were focused on the following technologies according to the AS-CS approach:
A. All Airport Facilities Control - For surveillance of perimeter and inbound-Sensitive-Areas, aimed to detect infiltrators, MANPAD and other illicit hazard or threatening means (all integrated means were camouflaged to harden their detection by terrorists). The following technologies & systems were integrated and fused:
• Intelligent Networked Video Surveillance
• Sensors Network
• Wide area scanning radar
• Smart-Fence
• UGV
• Camouflage
B. People who access the airport – The main AS-CS segment focusing on passengers, visitors, suppliers, security personnel, air-crew, maintenance technicians and all people who board the airplanes (air-crew, passengers) were detected based on the following technologies:
• RFID location tracking of airport personnel and first responders, boarding tickets (and carry-on luggage)
• People cellular location tracking
• Hostile country of origin identification
• Boarding/landing passengers list auto-verification
• Biometric identification and document verification
• Body scanners
• Receive/push real time alerts from/to first responders and/or passengers
C. Vehicles-Fleet Control - Airport in-duty vehicles, trucks and automobiles may access sensitive and restricted areas, and so tight control of these vehicles was required. Vehicle tracking inside the airport area were carried out on both regular and controlled access areas (for example, the apron). The means for controlling the vehicles were:
• GPS location tracking for outdoor
• RFID location tracking (for indoor)
• Authentication by WiMAX
• Registration plate recognized by CCTV
• Ground radar
D. Baggage, air-cargo and air-food & Beverages control - The following technologies & systems were integrated and fused:
• Smart Containers
• Baggage & Cargo Screening
• Baggage List Auto-Verification
• Air-food & Beverages Poisoning Detection
• RFID Location tracking of luggage
E. Airplanes Access Control – Airplanes approaching the airport or taking off from it were identified and monitored by the following technologies and systems:
• Airplanes Remote Imaging & Identification
• Positive Security Code System
• Airport Radar
• Departures and Arrivals Timeline
F. Environmental Control - Sensors to detect and alert when environmental hazards such as air condition poisoning (by chemical agents, aircraft exhaust and other hazards) and water poisoning exceed safe levels.
Additional to the 6 AS-CS, a broadband IP based communications infrastructure (based on Wi-Fi) was deployed. This infrastructure was an important enabler of integrated security, operational efficiency and cost effectiveness due to the fact that it is IP based.
II. TASS Data Fusion and Mediation system
The Data Fusion Mediation Server is the core component of TASS which mediates between all the data collection elements at the FE and between the TASS portal and applications at the backend. Here all the gathered data is collected from the FE, combined, analyzed and fed into the applications developed for efficient analysis as part of the C2 portal.
The research focused on taking data from multiple sources in a secure manner, and fusing and analysing this data in a way that provided a reliable security picture of the airport in real-time. In the data fusion system research emphasis was given to the use of open source, and to the set-up of a two way link (UL and DL) with first response, law-enforcement and airport personnel (PDA/mobile), and with the airport passengers (civilians play an important role in providing live intelligence in the case of security event). It is important to note that a Broadband Wireless communication infrastructure was used to securely transfer data and commands between the fusion system and the FE collection sources (both, UL and DL).
The Fusion in TASS was applied in 2 manners:
• Intra AS-CS– fusion of data and information sources that belong to the same AS-CS. E.g. People Access Control- Fusion between Boarding Passengers List, Biometrics Identification, Document Verification and Body Scanners.
• Inter AS-CS - fusion of data and information sources that belong to different AS-CS.
III. TASS Web portal & GIS Applications
A central portal for situational awareness and decision support was developed at the backend (the security control center), where all the collected information were analyzed, filtered and passed on to a C2 to be displayed to the security and transport authorities in a easy to interpret manner, suitable for quick decision making. Security alerts were generated by this portal and transferred to the C2 portal when necessary. The TASS portal in its mobile version can be used by airport security first responders who are located in the airport vicinity, enabling them to send and receive alerts and instructions.
The TASS system also enabled the remote control of some of the FE elements and technologies through the web portal (for example the control of PTZ video cameras) and also the capability to communicate with passengers and other people accessing the airport information service by SMS (send and receive alerts and security instructions to and from people who access the airport such as passengers, visitors, airport workers and air-crew).
The research included development of a suite of WEB based applications-alerts, location tracking, video surveillance, unmanned vehicle control, baggage/cargo scanners control, weather reports and message broadcast. The portal and applications man–machine interface, “look and feel” and functionality were focused on being easy to use and effective. These were defined by the portal end-users themselves (airport authority, transport authority, security first responders, etc.), members of the TASS consortium to ensure their effectiveness.
TASS developed an open system to enable applications to be added in an efficient manner. The applications that were focused on in the TASS Portal are:
• Video Surveillanc
• Upstream Real Time Alerts
• Downstream Messages Broadcast
• Location Tracking
• Weather Reporting
• GIS based Unmanned Vehicle Control
• CHAT Room
The portal was also developed in a mobile version for all first responders. More portal research included integration of regional maps and airport maps, export capabilities of unclassified alerts and portal platform security.
Project Results:
Human factors, Privacy aspects and Operational Scenarios
There were three main results in the work performed (presented broadly in D2.3):
• Development of clear guidelines for the management of emergencies based on realistic expectations of the passengers’ behavior;
• Development of clear guidelines for the development of agent based models;
• Development of a simulation tool for predicting, planning and training for the staff/public response to emergencies.
The human and organizational requirements for the TASS system were presented as a set of guidelines for the integration of the sociotechnical system in order to make the technological aspects of the project meaningful in operational context. These requirements represent a broad span of issues from the HMI all the way up to the management of airport operations. For the TASS sociotechnical system to work it has to demonstrate added value to the operational personnel on the ground and in the control center. It also has to integrate well with other control centers throughout the airport organization (testing of the TASS system occurs in context at a future date and for this reason performing using scenarios designed to test that sociotechnical integration).
Field research was carried out with operational staff which was interacted with functioning prototypes of the TASS portal and provided feedback from that experience.
The social scientific research into mass human behavior in emergency situations has allowed us to adopt a more authentic approach to the modeling of and planning for human crowd responses to emergencies such as terror threats in airports. We have seen that a number of myths and erroneous assumptions are still prevalent in terms of modeling and planning activities by researchers, designers and policy makers such as the myths of panic, antisocial behavior, looting and individual self-preservation. The reality is that we should expect and plan for more pro-social and constructive responses from people involved in crises.
Also, the assumption that people follow the same behavioral patterns as physical models such as water flow results in over-simplified models of crowd behavior. The reality is that people engage in much more complex cognitive, social and emotional process that are associated with risk assessment and problem solving and will be heavily influenced by their own personal social circumstances (presence or family, friends) and their own past experiences
Attempts at agent-based modeling of crowd behavior therefore needs to be guided less by the assumption that generalizable models of generic human agents can possibly be applied to a broad variety of situations accurately. Instead, ABMs should be based on the particularities of given scenarios that are likely to occur in a particular time and place, such as airports, with careful attention to population profiles and the nature of threats. The modeling of the human cognitive processes in particular, concrete situations will be more accurate when dealing with scenarios based on realistic risk assessment given that while human behavior in crowds is complex, it is not entirely unpredictable as long as we are aware of as much of the likely circumstances as possible.
System Architecture
The particular architecture adopted for the TASS system, allows managing the airport security environment in real time and makes it possible to provide all the necessary features to assure in principle a total “no breach” security environment in a relatively simple approach. Fusion of all monitored data from different means and operation fields (DFMS) and display of critical information to a central system creates a comprehensive picture of the airport security status and enables effective and coordinated intervention actions in case of threats. Moreover, TASS provides a solution that clearly aims at diminishing nuisance alarm occurrences to ensure minimal effect on the passenger flow while providing a high degree of security taking into consideration all potential threats. The TASS system can evolve and be upgraded easily, simply by adding new front-end technologies, without modifying the overall architecture.
It can therefore be concluded that the TASS architecture and the different components of the TASS system create an entire airport security monitoring solution that provides real-time accurate situational awareness of all airport facilities and its surroundings.
The system is composed of the (presented broadly in D3.1 and D3.2):
• Front End - Systems sensors
This is meant to encompass the description of all hardware devices installed with the aim of collecting data samples and detect abnormal situations.
This system division is in its majority, hardware equipment, e.g. cameras, UGV, RFID Receptors, GPS devices, scanners, CBRN sensors, etc. The equipment will be installed in the outdoors and indoors of HT5, as well as in
remote locations, provided by the project partners. Some equipment may have software associated to interface the reception and acquisition of data. This software or firmware will be part of the Front End suite of each sensor type.
The sensors development guidelines are described under the Sensors section of the current document while the interfaces between the sensors and the Transaction Platform are detailed in [D3.2]. The system and integration details will be specified in the related tasks at WP5.
The TASS infrastructure will provide the Gateway function in Transaction Platform, to set the connection between the Front End equipment and the DFMS.
Some identified sensors will be operated with their own control station which is connected to the Portal. Those situations are identified, e.g. the UGV and the SEROS and each of them is composed of a control mechanism connected to the Portal, where a dedicated user interface shall provide the possibility to directly interact with these systems in order to address a new mission assignment, or move the target position in real time.
• Transaction Platform
This platform will include the TASS gateway and the necessary infrastructure to provide the glue between the Front End systems, the Gateway function, and the Integration Platform.
The Gateway will be the entry point to reach the DFMS and will receive the data in a TCP or UDP transport approach. The Transaction Platform will also include the SIU components, which will forward the sensor data to the Gateway, upon the conversion of sensors specific protocols (e.g. RS232, USB, etc) to a simple TCP/IP (SSH) transport protocol.
The Transaction Platform goal is to have a middleware layer which will perform the transaction of the data into a single common interface, the GSN, Global Sensor Network [GSN].
There are specific Front-End sensors, which will require a hardware converter device in order to perform the sensor data output format into a TCP/IP interface. This hardware is called the Sensor Interface Unit and is part of the current platform. The related interfaces with Sensors are described in [D3.2].
• Integration Platform
This platform will encompass all the functionalities of the DFMS which is devoted to data processing. The video data will be managed by a dedicated encoder in the Front End side, which will interface with the NEXTIVA dedicated server located in this platform, as well.
Mediation is the part of the system which will gather the data and permits the routing of messages from Front End, as well as, control messages to Front End sensors.
The Data Fusion is divided into Low Level Fusion and High Level Fusion, which are respectively responsible for the first level of fusion and for the semantic representation of the world environment and situation awareness.
For POC, the Integration Platform will be located in the integration room and will be composed by several desktop/laptop machines, as well as workstations.
The system and installation details of this platform will be specified in WP6.
• Human Machine Interface
The TASS HMI will include the online portal to be used by regular PCs and the corresponding version of this portal to be operated through mobile equipment. Within the HMI platform are encompassed both the 3D software and the 3D hardware. These components shall constitute the TASS system’s user command and control interface.
The 3D workstation will consist of: desktop and laptop machines, screens, keyboards, mice and projectors, installed in the TASS Control Room.
For POC, all this equipment will be installed in the control room. A rack mount server will be installed in the integration room.
The system and the installation details of this platform will be specified in WP7.
• Infrastructure
This is the communication network which will be transversal to the above four mentioned platforms and it’s the key player of the system, due to both the heterogeneity of the system and due to the high load of data which shall be transferred.
The interconnection of systems will be set up by wireless and Ethernet networks.
Gateway
The measurable objective of the Gateway (described broadly in D5.8) is the interfacing between the data collection and control elements and between the fusion & mediation system at Heathrow. This required the design, development and integration of a middleware platform (referred to as The Gateway within the TASS project) that provides a standard and consistent real-time interface between the TASS data providers and consumers.
The need for a Gateway system was identified early in the TASS project, when it was recognized that the relatively short timescales and collaborative nature of the project would require some system design and development activities in parallel with the development of the system architecture. Thus the Gateway served to decouple the physical data model between the front end and back end systems of TASS by providing a common data interface to both. This had the further advantage of allowing the co-development of systems and a collaborative design process that overlapped with the deployment and integration stages of TASS.
Baggage and Cargo Control Systems
The following is described broadly in D5.6. Baggage scanners are an essential element to airport security. Airports use different types of scanners to detect the presence of potential illegal or dangerous objects within cargo, designated to enter the terminal restricted and critical areas.
The scanners are designated to scan containers, suitcases, carry-on luggage and any kind of luggage intended to board airplanes.
The tracking of carry-on luggage, utilizing RF-ID technology, was found to be a very practical and cost effective technology, compared with the other existing technologies. For this reason, the integration of such a capability within the TASS system is recommended. It upgrades the overall security level of the terminal, by providing automatic alerts to the security forces on ground. These alerts may lead to the detection of abandoned luggage, lost luggage and luggage that may have been deliberately left behind, while the owner proceeds to other parts of the terminal.
The RF-ID technology is suitable for this mission and it can achieve higher granularity and detection accuracy levels by simply adding additional RF-ID readers.
In the event of a threat, the automatic alert may lead to early detection of a threat and increase the probability of neutralizing the threat and thus save lives.
Another important conclusion is that the integration of this kind of system into TASS, together with the TASS CCTV sensors and video analytic capabilities, greatly increases probability of threat detection while providing efficient tools and relevant information to the TASS operator, enabling swift management of these events.
All technologies described within this document have been integrated into the TASS system and been validated. Some were tested independently and some were tested as part of complicated scenarios which incorporate a number of technologies simultaneously in order to detect security threats in airports and alert the relevant authorities.
Data Fusion Mediation System
The following is described broadly in D6.2. The Data Fusion Mediation Server was the core component of TASS which mediated between all the data collection elements at the FE and between the TASS portal and applications at the backend. Here all the gathered data is collected from the FE, combined, analyzed and fed into the applications developed for efficient analysis as part of the C2 portal.
The research focused on taking data from multiple sources in a secure manner, and fusing and analysing it in a way that provides a reliable security picture of the airport in real-time. In the fusion system research emphasis was given to the use of open source, and to the set-up of a two way link (UL and DL) with first response, law-enforcement and airport personnel (PDA/mobile), and with the airport passengers (civilians play an important role in providing live intelligence in the case of security event). It is important to note that a Broadband Wireless communication infrastructure based on WiMAX (or other) was used to securely transfer data and commands between the fusion system and the FE collection sources (both, UL and DL).
The Fusion in TASS was applied in 2 manners:
• Intra AS-CS– fusion of data and information sources that belong to the same AS-CS. E.g. People Access Control- Fusion between Boarding Passengers List, Biometrics Identification, Document Verification and Body Scanners.
• Inter AS-CS - fusion of data and information sources that belong to different AS-CS.
Fusion between Intelligent Network Video Surveillance (All Airport Facilities Control AS-CS), and between RFID Location Tracking (People Access Control AS-CS or Baggage Control AC-CS
TASS Web portal & GIS Applications
The following is described broadly in D7.3. A central portal for situational awareness and decision support was developed at the backend (the security control center), where all the collected information were analyzed, filtered and passed on to a C2 to be displayed to the security and transport authorities in a easy to interpret manner, suitable for quick decision making. Security alerts were generated by this portal and transferred to the C2 portal when necessary. The TASS portal in its PDA version can be used by airport security first responders who are located in the airport vicinity, and therefore send and receive alerts and instructions.
The TASS system enabled the remote control of some of the FE elements and technologies through the web portal (for example the control of PTZ video cameras) and also the capability to communicate with passengers and other people accessing the airport information service by SMS (send and receive alerts and security instructions to and from people who access the airport such as passengers, visitors, airport workers and air-crew).
The research included development of a suite of WEB based applications-alerts, location tracking, video surveillance, unmanned vehicle control, baggage/cargo scanners control, weather reports and message broadcast. The portal and applications man–machine interface, “look and feel” and functionality will be focused on being easy to use and effective. These were defined by the portal end-users themselves (airport authority, transport authority, security first responders, etc.), members of the TASS consortium to ensure their effectiveness.
TASS developed an open system to enable applications to be added in an efficient manner. The applications that were focused on in the TASS Portal are:
• Video Surveillanc
• Upstream Real Time Alerts
• Downstream Messages Broadcast
• Location Tracking
• Weather Reporting
• GIS based Unmanned Vehicle Control
• CHAT Room
The portal was also developed in a mobile PDA version for all first responders. More portal research included integration of regional maps and airport maps, export capabilities of unclassified alerts and portal platform security.
System Integration
The main challenge to be addressed when performing the TASS IVV (Integration, Validation and Verification) is related to the huge amount of information, interfaces and functionalities to be checked involving many partners and modules (GUI, 3D, Multi-touch, Mobile, and DFMS and more). The strategy implemented for test and integration has been based on independent module testing by each partner and final integration and testing during the PoC event and the field tests nonce the final prototype features were completed.
The integration work performed was split into four main activities:
1. Software Integration - The Software Integration covered the integration of all the SW components in the TASS system including the Portal, Security functions, Prediction model, Data-Rich decision support application, Alerts and pop-ups, Visualization-reports and real-time monitoring of sensory data, 3D representation of airport vehicles tracking information over a GIS infrastructure and Learning model and data search.
2. Hardware Integration - The integration of hardware activity included integration of field hardware components including sensors, portable means, field survey, sensors networking and connection to the airport backbone network for the exchange of real-time information that will complement the TASS-generated datasets and will yield a holistic picture of the airport status.
3. System Integration - System Integration refers to all partner activities required to achieve the proper design, installation, integration and testing of the various systems (i.e. the System and all Interfaces) to become the Integrated TASS platform. The systems integration process can be divided into two broad areas: Site Installation and Integration, and Inter-system Integration.
4. Validation - In this phase the system integrator together with all relevant partners validated system integrity. The validation is divided into two phases: Preliminary Interface Tests (PIT) and Installation, Checkout, Integration and Testing (ICIT(
5. Verification (OSAT) - Final approval of the successful integration is the system verification or the acceptance test – OSAT. During the On-Site Acceptance Test (OSAT) the system was tested for performance and functionality as reflected in the system specifications.
Field Tests
On October 17, 2012 the TASS consortium executed a successful Proof of Concept event in Heathrow airport. During the PoC, all Front-End systems and Back-End systems were tested as a whole, after deployment at Heathrow Terminal 5. Four different threat scenarios were successfully demonstrated. Each one of the threat scenarios involved fusion of different events and sensors feeds into intelligent actionable alert. The PoC proved that the concept of the TASS fusion and portal works well and addresses the security needs of the airport.
During the 4th period of the project, the TASS consortium performed three successful Field Tests at Faro Airport Portugal (ANA), Athens Airport (AIA) and Heathrow, presenting the capabilities of the entire system to deal with 7 different threat scenarios. Following the "Lessons learned" session of the PoC, the consortium planned the 3 field tests in details and developed the required scenarios as well as installation and integration of the Front End sensors.
The motivation for these three Field Tests was:
- To test the TASS system in 3 different environments and verify it's scaling up and scaling down.
- Establish the potential benefits of TASS integrated solutions
- Establish lessons learned in the implementation of the solutions such as technical and human factors issues.
- Provide a showcase for other end users to see the solutions in use in a real live operational environment.
For each Field Test the consortium performed site surveys, the consortium held several discussions to define the threat scenarios to be tested at each field test, completed the related developments, installed Front End sensors, finalized the design and development and installation of a new compact HMI console, installed and integrated the equipment in the respective TASS center rooms and TASS servers rooms.
Potential Impact:
Strategic impact
TASS provides an integrated approach to airport security, unifying available state-of-the-art biometric and non-biometric ID verification technologies with cameras and intelligent behavioural models over an API compliant platform. This allows dynamically reconfigurable access control and check point corridors, suspicious behavior detection, and context aware information exchange between security infrastructure, personnel and passengers in case of a suspected security compromise. The TASS project workflow was designed in a way to ensure that human, social and organizational factors will inform technology development and at later stages support its validation. Therefore TASS delivered solutions that are performance tested at the technological as well as the human and operational level. This ensured that they meet user expectations when implemented.
Standardized technologies and solutions were adopted for the sensor and telecommunication components in the FE system. TASS solutions designed in a user / operator-centered way, and therefore work reliably to eliminate effects of adverse attitudes to new products and procedures. In a long term perspective TASS increases reliability of airport security systems and procedures for the same reasons: they have been designed with the operator in mind and therefore support human perception and behaviour and do not operate against them.
Optimal usage of time-efficient non-intrusive technologies eliminated delays at passenger, staff, crew and baggage checkpoints.
In the context of the dissemination activities of the project TASS identified security gaps and optimization areas in the context of airport monitoring and control. Therefore TASS didn't only deliver innovative solutions for airport security but also highlighted areas for future research that is related to TASS but goes beyond its scope.
The TASS consortium included important end users and industries committed in the design and development of emergency scenario applications. Research activities were conducted within a detailed process of requirement collection, design and development, and validation through proof of concept and field trials. Additionally, TASS’ integrated method of working was a major feature of the TASS solutions.
The TASS human factors partners did not only focus on HMI issues, but looked at wider social, operational and organizational factors, their research provided guidelines for implementation as well. TASS introduced this work into a new domain. Relevant EC regulation on user privacy was analyzed and guided the consequent design and development activities.
Technological Impact
TASS' technological impact was felt in a number of technological fields, and came about as a result of the realization of the project objectives:
Data collection and fusion - First and foremost, TASS aids in the integration of various real time data collection technologies that consolidate the 6 “AS-CS” segments for the purpose of multi-source data fusion labyrinth. TASS’ improvement on the current stand-alone mode of sensor operation to a fused mode can be applied to the technology needed in other security areas such as shopping centers, and home or office environments. The “know-how” was taken from the work involved in collecting data from multiple sensors working in parallel and was applied to the home security and to entertainment industry as well. In addition, TASS changes the way data is gathered and handled during security crises.
TASS C2 portal and WEB based applications - The TASS portal analyzes, alerts and displays the collected data of each operational area based on the AS-CS concept. One of the major advances that were introduced by TASS was the use of web-portals as hubs for real-time, actionable information. Currently, C2 systems are usually reliant on desktop applications with pre-defined functionalities. The TASS portal provides an interoperable service support environment that will allow the integration of new data access or data processing services at run time, i.e. the portal can be adopted at run time to the current situation. This provides a so far unknown flexibility to security management system. Additionally, and in contrast to existing applications, the TASS portal supports “thin client” use, implying users need little more than a web browser and no especially installed software to operate the portal. Supporting thin clients represents a revolution for C2 systems. While there are many implementations of portal solutions for a variety of applications, their use in the field of real-time security data management represents a major advancement of the technology. The impact on security management was certain to be palpable: by requiring only thin clients, the TASS portal allows all the requisite decision makers (ranging from representatives of local, regional, national and European governments to units in the field and endangered civilians) to be privy to the security C2 information as it became available, regardless of their software/hardware situation. Such real-time information dissemination is not currently possible. By dispersing the “fog” surrounding crisis situations, the TASS portal provides a critical tool for defusing such events. Considered together, the impacts listed above help move alert and C2 technologies onto the next level.
Additional Technological Benefits- Additionally, work done on TASS contributes to specific technological fields, for example, the fusion of cellular location with video surveillance, including handovers between adjacent cameras for continuous tracking. The development of wireless sensors and their integration into the TASS system enhance expertise in the technical areas covered by the ‘wireless sensor network’ developed within TASS project. TASS also have significant industrial impact in several different product sectors such as wireless sensor fabrication, novel system solutions, sensor electronics interfaces towards network nodes, end-user applications, and services based on wireless sensors. TASS contributes to technologies that reduce human cognitive efforts and increase operators’ situation awareness.
Socio-economic benefits of TASS
Reviewing the history of terror at airports, one can only conclude that much of the damage caused by these events was made possible by the lack of effective security control and actionable intelligence, stemming from incomplete information and a lack of adequate fusion between different sources of information. In this context, it is enough to remember the horrific consequences of September 11 where effective fusion of separate information sources wasn't available. Using September-11 as a case study, it is possible to show the benefits that were derived from the implementation of the TASS system:
Improved detection and awareness of C2 centers- C2 operations stand to gain the most from the TASS system. At current individual European airports C2 are some of the best in the world, and enjoy the use of the latest technological means and operational protocols to conduct their tasks with the utmost effectiveness. The drawback of existing systems is the lack of effective fusion of separate data sources to turn them into an effective, multi-faceted detection and awareness. TASS brings an innovative approach for efficiently fusing the data sources, by proposing the inter AS-CS fusion and intra AS-CS fusion ideas which enable security detection and alert applications which control each of the AS-CS domains both separately and together, thus creating a very effective C2 mechanism.
Better information sharing and coordination between different airport security authorities in real-time - Today, airport police, airport authority, air-traffic control, national transport authority and other authorities that are involved in the airport security, use in the best case outmoded mechanisms to interface with each other. TASS works to solve authorities' coordination problems in an effective fashion. The system promotes the sharing of information—force locations, reconnaissance results, risk assessments, etc. during times of crisis. Correspondingly, the benefits are realized in real-time: TASS disperses the most up-to-date information it has immediately, and so give more actionable information to decision makers to make a situational assessment and determine the best ways to neutralize the crisis. In turn, this helps saving lives, cost and time. TASS WEB based C2 portal turns all involved authorities into one coherent force, eliminating the duplicate application of force, sharing intelligence and information as it becomes available. TASS’ decision support features help decision makers at C3 not only exert more centralized control over their forces, but to use this control in better ways in order to make more educated decisions.
Improved C2 center and security authorities readiness - It should be kept in mind that security authorities cannot just react to situations as they arise; rather training is a major aspect of the readiness of any airport scheme. In order to answer this need, TASS created new possibilities for preparation towards security and crisis events during normal times. TASS achieved this by defining rules and serving technologies for security alert crisis response and recovery, as well as providing historic data after the event for assessment and possible redefinition of security events plans. TASS did not focus solely on the reaction during the crisis or emergency event; on the contrary, it covered the whole life cycle of the event. This increases emergency services’ readiness, by defining rules for security events management.
Effective public alert system- TASS allows the rapid dissemination of the alert messages to emergency authorities and to citizens. At times of security event or crisis, this may prove to be a critical benefit. When considering the spectrum of possible events versus the “herd mentality” that may develop during these events, it becomes clear that the effective and concise transmission of alert messages to the population in the airport is critical. Situations in which mass evacuations are required (e.g. toxic gas leaks) may become compounded by citizens’ panic and instinct to escape as soon as possible, blocking exit routes, and virtually ensuring more lives are lost. TASS allows the controlled evacuation—one quarter at a time, or at growing circles around an event—that can make the difference between a controlled crisis and a mass tragedy. Another example includes the dissemination of instructions to people in the airport on how to cope with the event. All in all, TASS helps solving C2 managers’ biggest problem—people control (i.e. passengers, visitors, air-crew, airport personnel etc.).
Better Recovery- Finally, after the event has passed, the data gathered through TASS aids in targeting support of afflicted areas, their people and airport facilities recovery. TASS decreases the time period required for the renewal of service in afflicted areas. Moreover, recovery efforts using TASS generated data are conducted with the prevention of the next security event in mind.
Impacts on Small, mid and big airports - The TASS consortium include a broad spectrum of airports in order to enable TASS to respond well to all airport sizes and types, both domestic (national) and international. It is quite clear that the security needs of big airports differ from small ones. ANA brought to TASS its experience in securing all airports in Portugal, most of them very small domestic airports (e.g. Faro) but also a mid size airport, Lisbon Airport. Heathrow brought to TASS its experience in securing 7 airports in UK, Heathrow, Gatwick, Stansted, Southampton, Aberdeen, Glasgow, and Edinburgh. Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted are financially regulated by the Civil Aviation Authority in conjunction with the Competition Commission. The other 4 airports are not subject to this direct price regulation. Heathrow (TASS' airport for the main field test) is the world’s busiest international passenger airport, Gatwick is the world’s busiest single-runway airport, and Stansted is the UK’s third busiest airport. Together, they are responsible for 92% of London’s air passenger market. Every year one in seven of all international passenger journeys globally involve one of TASS’ three London airports. To reflect the broad spectrum of airports in TASS, the proof of concept and trials were carried out at Faro, Athens and Heathrow Airports.
Economic Benefits
Terror attacks at airports and airlines are, almost by definition expensive occurrences. They invariable result in loss of life and material, the destruction of planes and infrastructure, and the waste of thousands of man-hours. Thus, societies literally cannot afford to ignore the possibilities of terror attack at airports and airlines, and must do their utmost to limit their economic impact. TASS does much to ameliorate the high costs of terror against airports, since it can be said almost without fail that an effective C2, detection and alert also translates to substantial monetary savings. These savings may be achieved in a myriad of ways, reducing both direct and indirect costs.
Direct costs may be reduced through the limitation of terror impact by effective readiness and C2. Open interfaces between all the TASS elements assured interoperability between the different components, and therefore enables the airports to select different vendors for the different TASS components, thus increasing its cost effectiveness. The TASS system reduces the operational costs of the airport by maximizing the flow of passengers and baggage. TASS allows security agents to execute more targeted actions to counter threats. Such actions are often be less disruptive to airport operations and therefore reduce disruptions of business activities at airports, avoid loss of revenue and increase the public perceptions of airports as safe environments. A reduction in medical costs due to effective eviction of the citizens from danger zones in or near the airport will provide economic savings. By avoiding disaster the cost of re-building destroyed parts of the airports and aircrafts do not have to be met. Sharing data between security airport authorities in real-time is cost- effective as well as it will enable the potential aversion of multiple disasters across Europe, and all the associated costs.
Often, however, the true costs are indirect and can only be measured sometime after the event. Terrorist attacks may result in a loss of tourist confidence leading to a decline in economic activity and to a decline in investor confidence in the municipality/nation’s ability to protect investments. By creating a Euro-centric knowledge base focused on airport security, TASS promises to move European industry to the forefront of this ever growing market. In the current global climate, industry leaders who will be able to offer effective integrated airport security solutions stand to gain a significant market advantage. By bringing together European based companies, TASS helps ensuring that many of the revenues from this market will flow into the European economy.
The main dissemination activities and exploitation of results
Six workshops were carried out:
• Lisbon April 2012
• London October 2012 (as part of the PoC event)
• Rio March 2013
• Faro, 29 May, 2013 (as part of the 1st field test)
• Athens, 18 December, 2013 (as part of the 2nd filed test)
• London 19 March, 2014 (as part of the 3rd field test)
Important information was gathered from stakeholders, external potential end-users and consortium members during the workshops in order to create a comprehensive analysis that will serve the TASS consortium in the future when developing or implementing the TASS system and producing further events.
Several articles and publications have been published and the project has been submitted to an extensive coverage in airport portals and local media. A breakdown of all these activities is enclosed in D8.3.
List of Websites:
http://www.tass-project.eu/