First Responder Sensor Network

Goal:

Sensor networks are receiving growing attention as a means of providing critical information in disaster environments. First responders at a disaster site or must transmit and receive critical information related to:

Building design and floor plan
Building structural integrity
Stability and safety of building pathways
Location of emergency personnel

A sensor network is a possible solution for this need to quickly establish tactical communications and relay critical information to ensure the effectiveness and safety of disaster relief efforts. This proposal will investigate the employment of sensor networks to perform the tasks critical to the success of 1st responders at a disaster site. The proposal will study:

Sensor Type & Deployment
Sensors that provide the aforementioned critical information must collect temperature, smoke, position and motion information. These sensors must either be pre-positioned in the building or be deployed by 1st responders as they make their way through a disaster area.
Communications Routing
The sensor network must convey critical information to mobile ad hoc network (MANET) devices carried by 1st responders. If these sensors cannot directly transmit their information to the 1st responders, then they must be able to act as routing devices to convey information to the final destination.
Data Fusion & Reporting
Each sensor sees only a small portion of the total picture. Much of its information may be redundant. To transmit raw sensor information to a 1st responder may result in information overload. Sensor information processing or fusion techniques must be employed to present a coherent image to the 1st responders.

Tasks:

See the list of tasks to be performed.

Sponser:

This project is supported by a grant from NISSC Fall 2003.

Team:

Dr.C. Edward Chow, PI
Ganesh Godavari, Ph.D. student, Graduate Research Assistant

Current status: