Innovative indoor navigation and route guidance solutions for first responders

Abstract

During emergencies, first responders must quickly and efficiently navigate to precise incident locations. Indoor navigation can be seriously challenging in large, complex, and often unfamiliar structures. This challenge is exacerbated by issues like distractions, lack of accessible or up-to-date maps, poor signage, lack of signage, and hampered visibility. Situations which could benefit from precise indoor navigational guidance may include active attackers, fires, HAZMAT, and various medical emergencies.In this work, we describe multiple projects that designed and prototyped innovative indoor navigation and route guidance solutions specifically for first responders. The projects were sponsored and mentored by US Air Force Research Lab (AFRL) and National Security Innovation Network (NSIN) personnel; and the technical work was conducted by undergraduate senior engineering students in a Design Innovation (DI) capstone course at the University of Colorado Denver. The first semester of each project was focused on conducting background research with first responders, end-users, customers, and subject matter experts, and performing DI ideation methods to generate and explore novel solution concepts. The second semester of the projects involved developing, testing, and showcasing proof-of-concept prototypes of their systems and/or subsystems.One team developed a computer-vision landmarking solution that allowed navigators to use small portable electronic devices (phone, tablet, bodycam) to determine self-location while moving through the space, and to receive turn-by-turn and distance-per-segment route guidance instructions when a destination was entered into the interface. Two other teams iterated on a pathway guidance solution concept that did not require carrying or handling any extra gear, and simply indicated desired pathways to a destination via the use of pre-installed electronic directional indicators. Both solution sets figured out innovative ways to route first-responders to emergency locations with little or no extra gear to be carried, and with robustness to changes in paths during transit.

Keywords: safety, security, incident response, first responder safety, indoor navigation, indoor positioning, route guidance, path guidance, indoor PNT

DOI: 10.54941/ahfe1004242