Sensor Networks for Emergency Response - 05/31/2002

Rachanee Ungrangsi

Existing infrastructure for responding to an emergency situation, such as a building fire, is inadequate. When the first responders arrive the site, the get very limited information about the building and/or the location of the hazard. Also, when more emergency personnel and the incident commander join the first responders, there is no effective way to track these personnel and harmonize the operation effectively. Due to the lack of location information, many trapped firefighters have lost their lives in the past. In the project, we propose a system model that solves these problems effectively. We deploy a wireless sensor network in the building and provide pre-stored information about the building in this network. The first responders would download the information to fight the fire efficiently. Later, the same network would be used for location detection and sending temperature information to every personnel. This way, the incident commander would be able to see a 3D visualization of the site and can effectively organize the operation.