Project description
Reducing risks for firefighters by using UAV swarms
Firefighters provide an important emergency service in a dangerous job that comes with many risks. One of the biggest of these uncertainties is the state of buildings and locations that firefighters need to enter and operate in. Another is the position of the victims. This uncertainty has led to globally increasing fatality rates among firefighters. The principal investigator has previously patented a system for indoor tracking using radio frequency systems, fixed nodes (anchors) and wearable nodes for locating victims after disasters. The EU-funded IDEAL DRONE project aims to use this patent, alongside unmanned aerial vehicle swarms equipped with sensors and anchors for indoor localisation.
Objective
Firefighters fatalities are increasing worldwide because they are the first entering in damaged buildings or in fire, without knowing the location of victims and the source of danger. The Principal Investigator has invented a system for indoor tracking that is able to detect victims inside buildings after a disaster (earthquake, fire, etc.) using a radio frequency system (UWB) based on fixed nodes (anchors) in the building to detect the location of wearable nodes (tags). The application has been patented (PCT application: n. 102016000109493).
The idea of the project IDEAL DRONE is to install the anchors on an unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) swarm that is flying around the building. The UAVs will be equipped with a customized sensor network so the system will provide indoor localization for managing emergencies without the need to install a structural health monitoring system (SHM) inside the building. Then the health condition and the location of the victims can be plotted in a map, so that rescue operations can be optimized. The goal of the project is to develop the first prototype of the system using a developing board for rapid prototyping and perform an initial market analysis of the system to analyze the impact of this product in the market. After the first prototype the next step will be to redesign all the electrical parts to find the optimal solution between quality and price for each submodule and component of the system.
Fields of science
- engineering and technologyelectrical engineering, electronic engineering, information engineeringinformation engineeringtelecommunicationsradio technologyradio frequency
- engineering and technologycivil engineeringstructural engineeringstructural health monitoring
- engineering and technologyelectrical engineering, electronic engineering, information engineeringelectronic engineeringsensorssmart sensors
- natural sciencesearth and related environmental sciencesgeologyseismology
- engineering and technologyelectrical engineering, electronic engineering, information engineeringelectronic engineeringroboticsautonomous robotsdrones
Programme(s)
Funding Scheme
ERC-POC-LS - ERC Proof of Concept Lump Sum PilotHost institution
10129 Torino
Italy