An Immersive Decision Support System for Disaster Response

Abstract

This project introduces GeospatialVR, an open-source collaborative virtual reality framework to dynamically create 3D real-world environments that can be accessed via desktop and mobile devices as well as virtual and augmented reality headsets. The framework can generate realistic simulations of desired locations entailing the terrain, elevation model, infrastructures (e.g. buildings, roads, bridges), dynamic visualizations (e.g. water and fire simulation), and information layers (e.g. disaster damages and extent, sensor readings, surveillance data, occupancy, traffic, weather). The framework incorporates multiuser support to allow stakeholders to remotely work on the same VR environment, and thus, presenting the potential to be utilized as a virtual incident command platform or meeting room. To demonstrate the framework's usability and benefits, several case studies have been developed for flooding, wildfire, transportation, and active shooter response.