Urban Search And Rescue Research Articles

Dynamic Vapor Generator That Simulates Transient Odor Emissions of Victims Entrapped in the Voids of Collapsed Buildings

The design, development, and validation of a dynamic vapor generator are presented. The generator simulates human scent (odor) emissions from trapped victims in the voids of collapsed buildings. The validation of the device was carried out using a reference detector: a quadrupole mass spectrometer equipped with a pulsed sampling (PS-MS) system. A series of experiments were conducted for evaluating the simulator's performance, defining types and weights of different factors, and proposing further optimization of the device. The developed device enabled the production of stable and transient odor profiles in a controllable and reproducible way (relative standard deviation, RSD < 11%) at ppbv to low ppmv concentrations and allowed emission durations up to 30 min. Moreover, the factors affecting its optimum performance (i.e., evaporation chamber temperature, air flow rate through the mixing chamber, air flow rate through the evaporation chamber, and type of compound) were evaluated through an analysis of variance (ANOVA) tool revealing the next steps toward optimizing the generator. The developed simulator, potentially, can also serve the need for calibrating and evaluating the performance of analytical devices (e.g., gas chromatographers, ion mobility spectrometers, mass spectrometers, sensors, e-noses) in the field. Furthermore, it can contribute in better training of urban search and rescue (USaR) canines.

Decision‐making behaviour during urban search and rescue: a case study of Germany

The objective of assisting with tasks and decisions during incident response is to reduce the risks to victims and rescue personnel while increasing the efficiency of the rescue operation. Handling uncertain information during urban search and rescue (USAR) missions represents additional stress to the decision-maker. The aim of this study is to identify the decision-making behaviour of rescuers during USAR missions to pinpoint trapped or buried victims in debris in order to design assistance technologies and decision-support systems that meet their needs. In 2010, a survey was conducted among 10-15 per cent of all German rescue personnel specialised in search tasks. One of the major results of this survey is that a subjective assessment of the reliability of information available from heterogeneous sources influences the rescuers' actions and that there is no methodology for decision-making involving uncertain information. In addition, the study found that compliance with procedures does not require assistance.

Real-time exploration of a multi-robot rescue system in disaster areas

A system procedure is proposed for a multi-robot rescue system that performs real-time exploration over disaster areas. Real-time exploration means that every robot exploring the area always has a communication path to human operators standing by at a base station and that the communication path is configured by ad hoc wireless networking. Real-time exploration is essential in multi-robot systems for USAR (urban search and rescue) because operators must communicate with every robot to support the victim detection process and ad hoc networking is suitable to configure a communication path among obstacles. The proposed system procedure consists of the autonomous classification of robots into search and relay types and behavior algorithms for each class of robot. Search robots explore the areas and relay robots act as relay terminals between search robots and the base station. The rule of the classification and the behavior algorithm refer to the forwarding table of each robot constructed for ad hoc networking. The table construction is based on DSDV (destination-sequenced distance vector) routing that informs each robot of its topological position in the network and other essentials. Computer simulations are executed with a specific exploration strategy of search robots. The results show that a multi-robot rescue system can perform real-time exploration with the proposed system procedure and reduce exploration time in comparison with the case where the proposed scheme is not adopted.

A victim identification methodology for rescue robots operating in cluttered USAR environments

Our research focuses on developing an automated victim identification methodology for rescue robots in order to aid robot operators with the complex and stressful task of searching for victims in cluttered urban search and rescue (USAR) environments. In this paper, we present an approach that utilizes 2D and 3D sensory information from a real-time 3D sensory system for robust victim identification using both human geometric and skin region features. Our technique, uniquely, allows for the identification of partially occluded victims and single body parts that may be visible in cluttered USAR scenes using a Support Vector Machine-based classifier based on the aforementioned features. Unlike other approaches that focus on the recognition of one specific body part (such as the head) or the recognition of a small set of fixed body poses, we aim to identify multiple different body parts in a number of varying configurations to increase recognition rate. Experimental results illustrate the robustness of our methodology to find human victims in a variety of different poses in a rubble-filled USAR-like scene and its ability to potentially reduce operator workload.

Robotic Urban Search and Rescue: A Survey from the Control Perspective

Robotic urban search and rescue (USAR) is a challenging yet promising research area which has significant application potentials as has been seen during the rescue and recovery operations of recent disaster events. To date, the majority of rescue robots used in the field are teleoperated. In order to minimize a robot operator's workload in time-critical disaster scenes, recent efforts have been made to equip these robots with some level of autonomy. This paper provides a detailed overview of developments in the exciting and challenging area of robotic control for USAR environments. In particular, we discuss the efforts that have been made in the literature towards: 1) developing low-level controllers for rescue robot autonomy in traversing uneven terrain and stairs, and perception-based simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM) algorithms for developing 3D maps of USAR scenes, 2) task sharing of multiple tasks between operator and robot via semi-autonomous control, and 3) high-level control schemes that have been designed for multi-robot rescue teams.

Analysis of Articulated Mobile Robots for the Urban Search and Rescue

Articulated structure of mobile robot presents high flexibility on the environment adaptation. It has been widely used on the mobile robot to get through rough terrain. This class of robots named as articulated mobile robots can move in hard condition with high stability and environment adaptability. In order to satisfy the requirement of Urban Search and Rescue (USAR), a series of articulated mobile robots are analyzed. The performance of articulated mobile robots is analyzed for get an appropriate robot for USAR. Two snake-like robots named Perambulator I and II are analyzed. Based on the structure of Perambulator II, the articulated mobile robot Ameba II are presented based on track drive mechanism. Ameba II has high performance on mobility and adaptability in complex environment. The comparisons among of some typical articulated robots are given based on mobility and environment adaptation. The experimental results of both Perambulator II and Ameba II show that the Ameba II mobile robot is a better than the snake-like robot Perambulator II on the urban search and rescue applications.

My Thoughts on International Urban Search and Rescue (USAR)

My Thoughts on International Urban Search and Rescue (USAR)

Entrapment in an unstable structure

Building collapses may constitute a major incident when there are significant numbers of occupants. Even when there is a single occupant special resources may be required and risks to rescuers...

Real time 3D localization and mapping for USAR robotic application

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to demonstrate a real time 3D localization and mapping approach for the USAR (Urban Search and Rescue) robotic application, focusing on the performance and the accuracy of the General‐purpose computing on graphics processing units (GPGPU)‐based iterative closest point (ICP) 3D data registration implemented using modern GPGPU with FERMI architecture.Design/methodology/approachThe authors put all the ICP computation into GPU, and performed the experiments with registration up to 106 data points. The main goal of the research was to provide a method for real‐time data registration performed by a mobile robot equipped with commercially available laser measurement system 3D. The main contribution of the paper is a new GPGPU based ICP implementation with regular grid decomposition. It guarantees high accuracy as equivalent CPU based ICP implementation with better performance.FindingsThe authors have shown an empirical analysis of the tuning of GPUICP parameters for obtaining much better performance (acceptable level of the variance of the computing time) with minimal lost of accuracy. Loop closing method is added and demonstrates satisfactory results of 3D localization and mapping in urban environments. This work can help in building the USAR mobile robotic applications that process 3D cloud of points in real time.Practical implicationsThis work can help in developing real time mapping for USAR robotic applications.Originality/valueThe paper proposes a new method for nearest neighbor search that guarantees better performance with minimal loss of accuracy. The variance of computational time is much less than SoA.

Optimal team deployment in urban search and rescue

The problem of optimally deploying urban search and rescue (USAR) teams to disaster sites in post-disaster circumstances is formulated as a multistage stochastic program (MSP). A portion of sites requiring assistance arrive dynamically over the decision horizon and key problem characteristics are known only with uncertainty a priori. The problem seeks to identify a set of tours for USAR teams so as to maximize the total expected number of people that can be saved by attending to all or a subset of disaster sites within the disaster region. Decisions are taken dynamically over the decision horizon as situational awareness improves and survival likelihood diminishes with the aim of increasing the expected number of saved lives. To overcome the expensive computational effort associated with solving a MSP, a column generation-based strategy that consists of solving a series of interrelated two-stage stochastic programs with recourse within a shrinking time horizon is developed.

New technologies for the search of trapped victims

This paper presents the results of a German research project aiming at improving Urban Search And Rescue (USAR). It comprises two wireless search technologies for the detection and localization of trapped or buried unconscious victims and auxiliary assisting technologies. Victims can be localized through their cellular phone (GSM) if it is active, but it might be out of order. Results detecting inactive phones are presented. However, with this technology a victim without cellular phone cannot be detected. In this case, a ground-penetrating, continuous wave radar can be used that is as well presented. A channel model for estimating signal disturbances in debris between victim and receiving antenna is proposed that aims at improving the accuracy of these technologies. Furthermore, the I-LOV system assists decision-makers by a mobile IT-system called FRIEDAA that allows gathering, processing, and representation of relevant information such as search results and personnel locations in real time. Therefore, infrastructure and inertial sensor based personal localization systems are presented.

Injuries and illnesses among urban search-and-rescue dogs deployed to Haiti following the January 12, 2010, earthquake

To establish types and rates of injuries and illnesses among urban search-and-rescue (USAR) dogs deployed to Haiti following the January 12, 2010, earthquake. Cross-sectional survey. 23 Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) USAR dogs deployed to Haiti. An online survey was distributed to the handlers of all FEMA USAR dogs deployed to Haiti in response to the January 12, 2010, earthquake. Of 33 handlers with 37 dogs that deployed, 19 (58%) handlers completed the survey, providing information on 23 (62%) dogs. Injuries and illnesses were reported in 10 of the 23 (43%) dogs, 8 of which had multiple issues. Dogs worked a total of 250 days and 1,785 hours. Dehydration and wounding were the most common disorders, with incidences of 3.9 and 3.4 events/1,000 h worked, respectively. Other disorders included ocular discharge and appetite decrease (incidence of each, 1.1 events/1,000 h worked) and weight loss, urination changes, skin infection, ear infection, oral abscess, and nonspecific illness (incidence of each, 0.56 events/1,000 h worked). Overall, there were 12.6 events/1,000 h worked. All health issues were minor and resolved during the deployment or within 2 weeks after demobilization. Results suggested that many of the USAR dogs deployed to Haiti developed acute injuries and illnesses. However, despite the high heat index, long hours worked, and dusty conditions, most injuries and illnesses were minor and all had resolved within 14 days. When logistic supplies for USAR teams are limited, minimal basic medical needs to treat common injuries should be a priority.

Study of efficiency of USAR operations with assistive technologies

This paper presents a study on efficiency of Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) missions that has been carried out within the framework of the German research project I-LOV. After three years of development, first field tests have been carried out in 2011 by professionals such as the Rapid Deployment Unit for Salvage Operations Abroad (SEEBA). We present results from evaluating search teams in simulated USAR scenarios equipped with newly developed technical search means and digital data input terminals developed in the I-LOV project. In particular, USAR missions assisted by the ‘bioradar’, a radar system for the detection of humanoid movements, a semi-active video probe of more than 10m length for rubble pile exploration, a snake-like rescue robot, and the decision support system FRIEDAA were evaluated and compared with conventional USAR missions. Results of this evaluation indicate that the developed technologies represent an advantage for USAR missions, which are discussed in this paper.

Preliminary Investigation of Permeation Profiles of Selected Head-Space Urine Volatiles (2-Heptanone, n-Octanal) Using IMS

The late location of entrapped victims in collapsed buildings is the main reason of high mortality during urban search and rescue (USaR) operations after natural or man-made disasters. Consequently, an effort is currently being made to develop proper rescue searching tools that could improve the early location of trapped casualties. In this context, the knowledge of human scent profile and its behavior in the disaster environment is crucial. The main goal of this study was to investigate the suitability of the ion mobility spectrometry (IMS) for the quantitative monitoring of specific urine-borne volatile members of human scent interacting with the materials of collapsed dwellings. For this purpose, an ion mobility spectrometer with β-radiation source (63Ni) and an in-house made filling chamber mimicking the entrapment scene were employed. In preliminary experiments, quartz sand was used as imitating debris material. The experimental setup was used to investigate the permeation properties of two very promising urine-borne species, 2-heptanone and n-octanal, under the influence of two crucial operational factors; the size of quartz grain and the quartz layer thickness. 2-heptanone was found to penetrate through quartz layer by approximately a factor 4 faster than n-octanal. The twofold and threefold increase of quartz sand thickness lengthened the permeation times on average three and seven times for n-octanal, and three and five times for 2-heptanone. The presented experimental setup can be considered as a useful tool suitable for investigating the interactions of urine markers with the debris materials in the entrapment scene. However, further investigations involving different debris materials (e.g. concrete, brick, cement, wood, plastic, glass) and other urine-borne species are necessary, prior selecting a set of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that will support the early location method of entrapped victims.

Interactive On-Site and Remote Damage Assessment for Urban Search and Rescue

Extraction of victims entrapped in collapsed structures is the objective of urban search and rescue (USAR) operations. Assessing the potential for live victims and the stability of partially or totally collapsed structures are critical aspects of such operations. This paper outlines relevant activities of the first USAR team arriving in Haiti after the January 2010 earthquake and the supporting actions of their home-base team. The purpose of this paper is to illustrate the different aspects of damage assessment and discuss how those aspects relate to overall USAR field operations. Guidelines developed for USAR teams are used to shed additional light on the concept of USAR-related damage assessment. Three broad types of considerations are found to constitute damage assessment, requiring varying levels of detail in damage descriptions: area reconnaissance, exterior structural evaluation, and interior structural-member evaluation. Using available information and communication technology, a home-base team can become an active player in area reconnaissance by providing pre- and post-impact information about the affected area to the USAR team.

Effects of Spatial Ability on Multi-robot Control Tasks

Working with large teams of robots is a very complex and demanding task for any operator and individual differences in spatial ability could significantly affect that performance. In the present study, we examine data from two earlier experiments to investigate the effects of ability for perspective-taking on performance at an urban search and rescue (USAR) task using a realistic simulation and alternate displays. We evaluated the participants’ spatial ability using a standard measure of spatial orientation and examined the divergence of performance in accuracy and speed in locating victims, and perceived workload. Our findings show operators with higher spatial ability experienced less workload and marked victims more precisely. An interaction was found for the experimental image queue display for which participants with low spatial ability improved significantly in their accuracy in marking victims over the traditional streaming video display.

A mannequin study comparing suitability of the i-gelTM with a laryngeal mask airway device

Objectives: To compare the suitability of the i-gelTM (Intersurgical Ltd, UK) supraglottic airway device with a single-use laryngeal mask airway (LMA) in the hazardous area response team (HART) environment and the urban search and rescue (USAR) environment. Method: five chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear trained urban search and rescue paramedics attempted five insertions of each supraglottic airway device into a Laerdal® ALS mannequin (Laerdal, Norway) in three separate environments: normal (supine, waist high), HART (wearing gas-tight suits and respirators) and USAR (in a simulated confined space). As a control group, five anaesthetists also attempted five insertions of each supraglottic airway device into a Laerdal® Airway Trainer (Laerdal, Norway) under normal conditions. Time from first touching the device to successful inflation of the mannequin's lungs’ using a self-inflating bag-valve device was recorded and operator opinion was captured using a four-point Likert scale. Results: insertion of the i-gel airway was significantly faster than insertion of the LMA in simulated USAR conditions (P&lt;0.001), there was no significant difference in control conditions or when wearing gas-tight personal protective equipment. There was no difference in the number of attempts required to achieve correct placement of either supraglottic airway device in any situation. Conclusions: this study has demonstrated that, in simulated USAR conditions, the i-gel supraglottic airway device performs at least as well as the LMA and is significantly quicker to insert. The authors therefore recommend that the i-gel is introduced into the USAR HART environment with further clinical evaluation in this and other prehospital settings.

Process and Performance in Human-Robot Teams

The authors are developing a theory for human control of robot teams based on considering how control difficulty grows with team size. Current work focuses on domains, such as foraging, in which robots perform largely independent tasks. Such tasks are particularly amenable to analysis because effects on performance and cognitive resources are predicted to be additive, and tasks can safely be allocated across operators because of their independence. The present study addresses the interaction between automation and organization of human teams in controlling large robot teams performing an urban search-and-rescue (USAR) task. Two possible ways to organize operators were identified: as individual assignments of robots to operators, assigned robots, or as a shared pool in which operators service robots from the population as needed. The experiment compares two-person teams of operators controlling teams of 12 robots each in the assigned-robots condition or sharing control of 24 robots in the shared-pool condition using either waypoint control in the manual condition or autonomous path planning in the autonomy condition. Automating path planning improved system performance, but process measures suggest it may weaken situation awareness.

Multiple-Robot Systems for USAR: Key Design Attributes and Deployment Issues

The interaction between humans and robots is undergoing an evolution. Progress in this evolution means that humans are close to robustly deploying multiple robots. Urban search and rescue (USAR) can benefit greatly from such capability. The review shows that with state of the art artificial intelligence, robots can work autonomously but still require human supervision. It also shows that multiple robot deployment (MRD) is more economical, shortens mission durations, adds reliability as well as addresses missions impossible with one robot and payload constraints. By combining robot autonomy and human supervision, the benefits of MRD can be applied to USAR while at the same time minimizing human exposure to danger. This is achieved with a single-human multiple-robot system (SHMRS). However, designers of the SHMRS must consider key attributes such as the size, composition and organizational structure of the robot collective. Variations in these attributes also induce fluctuations in issues within SHMRS deployment such as robot communication and computational load as well as human cognitive workload and situation awareness (SA). Research is essential to determine how the attributes can be manipulated to mitigate these issues while meeting the requirements of the USAR mission.

Teleoperation Through Apertures

Urban search and rescue (USAR) robots get stuck. Furthermore, USAR workers complained that it is difficult to judge whether a teleoperated robot can go through certain apertures. Two experiments tested teleoperators’ abilities to (a) judge whether a robot could fit through apertures (passability), (b) judge whether they could drive a robot through apertures (driveability), and (c) drive the robot through apertures. Experiment 1 examined teleoperators’ passability judgments and whether those same operators hit apertures that were wider than the robot. Experiment 2 replicated Experiment 1 and examined driveability judgments. Experiment 1 indicated that teleoperators made accurate passability judgments and routinely hit apertures that were wider than the robot. Experiment 2 successfully replicated Experiment 1 and demonstrated that teleoperators did not make accurate driveability judgments. Experiment 1 indicated that teleoperating a robot through an aperture is constrained by the robots’ physical dimensions plus a safety margin associated with how well the operators drive the robot. Thus, teleoperators should base decisions to enter an aperture on their ability to drive the robot. However, Experiment 2 indicated that teleoperators do not make accurate driveability judgments. These results have implications for teleoperator training and the design of robots for specific applications.