Firefighter Location and Rescue Equipment (FLARE)

描述（由申请人提供）：2010年，Q-Track开展了一个内部研发项目，开始开发一个消防员定位和救援设备（FLARE）系统，并得到了亨茨维尔消防局的建议和投入。8月3日，我们参加了2010年WPI PPL研讨会的消防员救援演习。该演习要求指导救援人员在多层建筑中找到一名“失踪”的消防员-这一演习极具挑战性，只有三名参赛者部署了系统，参加讲习班的市场上有“商业”消防员定位系统的两个供应商都没有提交系统供评估。Q-Track的FLARE原型系统进行了7分钟的救援-比在WPI进行测试的两个最先进的惯性系统的9分钟和12分钟的时间更快。我们的成功被波士顿地球仪和消防安全行业媒体报道。由于缺乏继续开发的资金，Q-Track不得不暂停该项目。Q-Track寻求资金来实施一个新的概念验证系统，以克服我们最初努力中发现的弱点。目前的机会挑战了集中式指挥和控制架构中的惯性跟踪和高频、短波长无线定位的当前范例。我们建议将Q-Track的创新、低频、长波长NFER RTLS应用于消防员位置感知的挑战性问题，该系统具有分散式系统，即使没有通信也能实现个人自救和指导。Q-Track建议的FLARE工作从设置规格开始。然后，我们将使用我们现有的NFER RTLS硬件来实现一个原型FLARE系统。我们将收集穿越建筑物的NFER（“FLARE”）概念验证的RF响应数据，并使用这些数据集开发“RF面包屑”算法。RF面包屑算法收集并比较来自FLARE标签的连续RF响应数据，以确定一个标签何时遵循另一个标签的路径。这种创新的方法使救援人员能够沿着遇险消防员最初采取的相同路径被引导到残疾消防员的精确位置，从而避免了从墙的错误一侧瞄准消防员的传统问题。Q-Track还旨在开发概念验证音频用户界面，以提供消防员指导和位置感知。最后，Q-Track将完成一个概念验证演示，并制作一个演示系统性能的短视频，与我们的最终报告一起提交。我们的目标是证明能够可靠地引导被蒙上眼睛的救援人员沿着与第一个人相同的路径到达沿着FLARE标签的人的位置，或者使被蒙上眼睛和迷失方向的人能够从设施中返回他们的进入路径。 公共卫生相关性：Q-Track提出通过将突破性的近场低频无线定位方法与创新的RF面包屑算法相结合，显着提高消防员的态势感知和安全性。拟议的系统将使救援人员能够沿着遇险消防船的原始路径引导到残疾消防员的精确位置，从而避免试图通过墙壁引导救援人员的问题。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): In 2010, Q-Track undertook an internal R&D project to begin developing a Firefighter Location And Rescue Equipment (FLARE) system with advice and input from the Huntsville Fire Department. On August 3, we participated in a firefighter rescue exercise at the 2010 WPI PPL Workshop. The exercise required guiding rescuers to a "lost" firefighter in a multi-story building - an exercise so challenging that only three entrants fielded systems and neither of the two vendors with "commercial" firefighter location systems on the market who attended the workshop submitted systems for evaluation. Q-Track's FLARE prototype system yielded a seven minute rescue - faster than the nine and twelve minute times from the two state-of-the-art inertial systems entered for testing at WPI. Our success was featured in the Boston Globe and fire safety trade press. Lacking funds to continue development, Q-Track had to place the project on hold. Q-Track seeks funds to implement a new proof-of-concept system to overcome the weaknesses identified in our initial effort. The present opportunity defies the current paradigms of inertial tracking and high-frequency, short-wavelength wireless location in a centralized command and control architecture. We propose to apply Q-Track's innovative, low-frequency, long-wavelength NFER RTLS to the challenging problem of firefighter location awareness with a decentralized system enabling individual self-rescue and guidance even without communications. Q-Track's proposed FLARE effort begins with setting specifications. Then, we will use our existing NFER RTLS hardware to implement a prototype FLARE system. We will collect RF response data for an NFER ("FLARE") proof-of-concept traversing a building and employ the data sets to develop an "RF breadcrumb" algorithm. The RF breadcrumb algorithm collects and compares sequential RF response data from the FLARE tag to identify when one tag is following the path of another. This innovative approach enables a rescuer to be vectored to the precise location of a disabled firefighter along the same path originally taken by the firefighter in distress, thus avoiding the conventional problem of homing in on a firefighter from the wrong side of a wall. Q-Track further aims to develop a proof-of-concept audio user interface to provide firefighter guidance and location awareness. Finally, Q-Track will complete a proof-of-concept demonstration and produce a short video demonstrating system performance for submission with our final report. Our objective is to demonstrate the ability to reliably vector a blind-folded rescuer to the location of a FLARE tagged individual along the same path taken by the first individual, or to enable a blindfolded and disoriented individual to retrace their entry path out of a facility. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: Q-Track proposes to significantly enhance firefighter situational awareness and safety by merging a breakthrough, near-field, low frequency approach to wireless location with an innovative RF breadcrumb algorithm. The proposed system will enable a rescuer to be vectored to the precise location of a disabled firefighter along the original path of the fireighter in distress, thus avoiding the problem of attempting to route rescuers through walls.