Casualty Extraction Research Articles

ResQbot 2.0: An Improved Design of a Mobile Rescue Robot with an Inflatable Neck Securing Device for Safe Casualty Extraction

Despite the fact that a large number of research studies have been conducted in the field of search and rescue robotics, significantly little attention has been given to the development of rescue robots capable of performing physical rescue interventions, including loading and transporting victims to a safe zone—i.e., casualty extraction tasks. The aim of this study is to develop a mobile rescue robot that could assist first responders when saving casualties from a dangerous area by performing a casualty extraction procedure whilst ensuring that no additional injury is caused by the operation and no additional lives are put at risk. In this paper, we present a novel design of ResQbot 2.0—a mobile rescue robot designed for performing the casualty extraction task. This robot is a stretcher-type casualty extraction robot, which is a significantly improved version of the initial proof-of-concept prototype, ResQbot (retrospectively referred to as ResQbot 1.0), that has been developed in our previous work. The proposed designs and development of the mechanical system of ResQbot 2.0, as well as the method for safely loading a full-body casualty onto the robot’s ‘stretcher bed’, are described in detail based on the conducted literature review, evaluation of our previous work, and feedback provided by medical professionals. We perform simulation experiments in the Gazebo physics engine simulator to verify the proposed design and the casualty extraction procedure. The simulation results demonstrate the capability of ResQbot 2.0 to carry out safe casualty extractions successfully.

Hierarchical Decomposed-Objective Model Predictive Control for Autonomous Casualty Extraction

In recent years, several robots have been developed and deployed to perform casualty extraction tasks. However, the majority of these robots are overly complex, and require teleoperation via either a skilled operator or a specialised device, and often the operator must be present at the scene to navigate safely around the casualty. Instead, improving the autonomy of such robots can reduce the reliance on expert operators and potentially unstable communication systems, while still extracting the casualty in a safe manner. There are several stages in the casualty extraction procedure, from navigating to the location of the emergency, safely approaching and loading the casualty, to finally navigating back to the medical assistance location. In this paper, we propose a Hierarchical Decomposed-Objective based Model Predictive Control (HiDO-MPC) method for safely approaching and manoeuvring around the casualty. We implement this controller on ResQbot — a proof-of-concept mobile rescue robot we previously developed — capable of safely rescuing an injured person lying on the ground, i.e. performing the casualty extraction procedure. HiDO-MPC achieves the desired casualty extraction behaviour by decomposing the main objective into multiple sub-objectives with a hierarchical structure. At every time step, the controller evaluates this hierarchical decomposed objective and generates the optimal control decision. We have conducted a number of experiments both in simulation and using the real robot to evaluate the proposed method’s performance, and compare it with baseline approaches. The results demonstrate that the proposed control strategy gives significantly better results than baseline approaches in terms of accuracy, robustness, and execution time, when applied to casualty extraction scenarios.

The timeline of information exchange: a service evaluation of London Ambulance Service NHS Trust's front line communication and emergency response to Exercise Unified Response.

Introduction:Exercise Unified Response, Europe’s largest major incident training exercise to date, provided a rich environment for the emergency services to test their multi-agency crisis response capabilities. Supported by the London Ambulance Service NHS Trust, this service evaluation examined London Ambulance Service NHS Trust front line communication and decision-making via body-worn camera footage.Methods:Twenty London Ambulance Service NHS Trust front line responders and evaluators were each equipped with a body-worn camera during Exercise Unified Response. The service evaluation aimed to: (a) produce timelines of the London Ambulance Service NHS Trust’s response in order to identify key events and actions during the ‘golden hour’ (the crucial first hour in the care of trauma patients), the proceedings of command meetings and the multi-agency response; and (b) develop recommendations for future training and evaluations.Results:The service evaluation identified that, within the golden hour, London Ambulance Service NHS Trust first responders rightly and rapidly declared the event a major incident, requested resources and assigned roles. Triage crews were tasked quickly, though it was identified that their efficiency may be further enhanced through more detailed triage briefings prior to entering the scene. The command meetings (led by the Metropolitan Police) lacked efficiency, and all agencies could make more effective use of the multi-agency shared radio network to address ongoing matters. Finally, London Fire Brigade and London Ambulance Service NHS Trust teams demonstrated clear communication and co-ordination towards casualty extraction.Conclusion:Successful multi-agency working requires clear communication, information sharing and timely command meetings. It is recommended that Joint Emergency Services Interoperability Principles multi-agency talk groups should be utilised more frequently and used to complete a joint METHANE report. In addition, training in areas such as communication skills and detailed briefings will enhance the front line response. Finally, body-worn cameras are shown to be an effective service evaluation tool, as a basis for promoting best practice as well as highlighting areas for future training and evaluations.

A Robotic Head Stabilization Device for Medical Transport

In this paper, the design and control of a robotic device intended to stabilize the head and neck of a trauma patient during transport are presented. When transporting a patient who has suffered a traumatic head injury, the first action performed by paramedics is typically to restrain and stabilize the head and cervical spine of a patient. The proposed device would drastically reduce the time required to perform this action while also freeing a first responder to perform other possibly lifesaving actions. The applications for robotic casualty extraction are additionally explored. The design and construction are described, followed by control simulations demonstrating the improved behavior of the chosen controller paradigm, linear active disturbance rejection control (LADRC). Finally, experimental validation is presented, followed by future work and directions for the research.

Development and control of a military rescue robot for casualty extraction task

AbstractThis paper presents the development and control methodology of a military rescue robot for a casualty extraction task. The new rescue robot (HURCULES) equipped with electric actuators for the casualty extraction task on the battle field is introduced. In this paper, mechanical designs of the HURCULES are described in detail. One of the noticeable features in the mechanical design is to use the worm gear in the joint to maintain the safety of the casualty even with power‐off and to reduce the energy through a selected operating mode. Moreover, unlike the upper body of a conventional humanoid robot, the chest plate is installed and used to properly distribute the casualty’s weight to the dual‐arm manipulator and the chest plate when carrying the wounded person. The HURCULES is valuable because the rescue robots for use on the battle field are very rare. And, the HURCULES is the first rescue robot for use on the battle field in South Korea. Primarily, a semiautonomous control strategy is applied to the HURCULES. The maneuvering stability of the HURCULES is needed when approaching and escaping a casualty while maneuvering on uneven terrain, and it maintains autonomously by the HURCULES. A variety of maneuvering experiments on various terrains were conducted, and satisfactory results for the casualty extraction task were obtained. In particular, the field experiments in this paper were performed at an accredited test site. Besides, additional experiments were conducted to enhance the field applicability.

A novel method for estimating pull forces during a casualty extraction task

A novel method for estimating pull forces during a casualty extraction task

A whole-body rescue motion control with task-priority strategy for a rescue robot

This paper introduces a new rescue robot consisting of dual-manipulator and variable configuration mobile platform for multi-purpose such as casualty extraction and hazardous goods transport. A specific rescue motion strategy using a whole-body is suggested to tackle characteristics of the robot configuration and balancing issue. In order to take into account safety and stability of the robot during the rescue motions, some restrictions are reflected into redundant domain of the robot with different priority. For stable motion control in various scenarios, a singularity-robust inverse kinematics is adopted and modified to induce smoother robot movement. The robustness of the control approach is checked numerically by comparing other method and experiments for the rescue motion strategy are carried out by using a small-scaled simulator in place of the rescue robot under development.

Control of a Heavy-Lift Robotic Manipulator with Pneumatic Artificial Muscles

Lightweight, compliant actuators are particularly desirable in robotic systems intended for interaction with humans. Pneumatic artificial muscles (PAMs) exhibit these characteristics and are capable of higher specific work than comparably-sized hydraulic actuators and electric motors. The objective of this work is to develop a control algorithm that can smoothly and accurately track the desired motions of a manipulator actuated by pneumatic artificial muscles. The manipulator is intended for lifting humans in nursing assistance or casualty extraction scenarios; hence, the control strategy must be capable of responding to large variations in payload over a large range of motion. The present work first investigates the feasibility of two output feedback controllers (proportional-integral-derivative and fuzzy logic), but due to the limitations of pure output feedback control, a model-based feedforward controller is developed and combined with output feedback to achieve improved closed-loop performance. The model upon which the controller is based incorporates the internal airflow dynamics, the physical parameters of the pneumatic muscles and the manipulator dynamics. Simulations were performed in order to validate the control algorithms, guide controller design and predict optimal gains. Using real-time interface software and hardware, the controllers were implemented and experimentally tested on the manipulator, demonstrating the improved capability.

Design and Control of a Hyper-Redundant Manipulator for Mobile Manipulating Unmanned Aerial Vehicles

Manipulating objects using arms mounted to unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) is attractive because UAVs may access many locations that are otherwise inaccessible to other mobile manipulation platforms such as ground vehicles. Despite recent work, several major challenges remain to be overcome before it will be practical to manipulate objects from UAVs. Among these challenges are: (a) The constantly moving UAV platform and compliance of manipulator arms make it difficult to position the UAV and end-effector relative to an object of interest precisely enough for manipulation, and (b) The motions of the manipulator impact the stability of the host UAV, further complicating positioning. Solving these challenges will bring UAVs one step closer to being able to perform meaningful tasks such as infrastructure repair, disaster response, casualty extraction, and cargo resupply. Toward solutions to these challenges, this paper describes a hyper-redundant manipulator, manipulator control approaches and system design considerations to position the manipulator relative to objects of interest in such a way that impacts on platform stability are minimized.

High Specific Power Actuators for Robotic Manipulators

Recent advancements in actuator technology suggest that the implementation of reliable, high power-to-weight ratio pneumatic actuation systems is now possible for robotic platforms. Existing robotic manipulator arms for casualty extraction and patient placement use hydraulic actuation, whereas related robotic prosthetic devices typically use heavy actuator motors. We have developed an alternative solution that employs pneumatic artificial muscles (PAMs). The goal of this study is to identify requirements for a lightweight, high-force robotic manipulator, design the system for heavy lifting capability, and assemble a prototype arm. Following characterization and comparison of different-sized PAM actuators, a proof-of-concept manipulator was constructed. A quasi-static model for the PAM actuators was applied to the system, which includes the Gaylord force, as well as non-linear elastic energy storage. Experimental testing was performed to measure the joint torque and dynamic response of the manipulator, and to validate the model.

Safety at Scene—A Manual for Paramedics and Immediate Care Doctors

I wish this excellent little book had been in print when I was working on the Helicopter Emergency Medical Service some six years ago. It might have spared me the minor embarrassment of nearly being electrocuted by the live rail while attending an incident where a woman had thrown herself under a tube train. Vic Calland's book contains a wealth of background information about the technical aspects of accident scenes of a kind that is difficult to acquire except through personal experience. He is to be congratulated for distilling his expertise into a readable and informative text. Most doctors practise within the safe environment of the surgery or hospital. Within this setting we are accustomed to being ‘team leaders’, to making the critical decisions on priority and management, and to being in control. Outside hospital the position is very different. Accidents by their very nature present dangers to emergency service personnel, as re-emphasized by the deaths of many New York firefighters and policemen when the World Trade Center towers collapsed. In the early stages of a major incident or even a medium-size road traffic accident, chaos reigns. In such circumstances, ‘first responders’ must be constantly aware of the risks to their own safety and avoid becoming casualties themselves. The rapid re-establishment of control is the key to a successful outcome. Within this framework, doctors are not team leaders but team members who come under the control of other emergency services, usually the police or fire services. An understanding of this principle and an acceptance of an initially subordinate role of the medical services is crucial to the smooth and safe management of an accident scene. In keeping with the frequency of road traffic accidents in the UK, about half the book is devoted to incident management, vehicle safety, casualty extraction and risks of hazardous substances at the accident scene. The remainder of the text contains much valuable technical information on specific scenarios, such as chemical and radiation hazards, the basics of aircraft, rail and underground safety and even hostage situations. Having been written before autumn 2001, the section on biological agents does not cover the now feared microbes such as anthrax, plague and smallpox, but we can hardly expect the author to be clairvoyant. That said, the section on chemical decontamination procedures is comprehensive and applies equally to biological threats. My only criticism concerns the lack of a chapter on the effects of bomb blasts—familiar to many in Northern Ireland and, to a lesser extent, to the emergency services of London and other major cities in the UK. In view of recent events, this is an area of practice we may all need to revise. This concise and easy-to-read text is sensibly fitted with a laminated cover to protect against stains from coffee, blood and oil, all familiar to the immediate care practitioner. I recommend it to anybody with an interest in prehospital medicine.