The first demonstration pilots of the H2020 Search & Rescue

On April 28, the MeDSP Lab participated in the first demonstration pilot of the European Project H2020 Search & Rescue, which took place at the Ruins of Poggioreale (Italy). The organization of the exercise involved at the forefront the National Research Council (CNR), the Regional Department of Civil Protection – Sicily and the Regional Fire Department of Sicily, with the logistical support of the Municipality of Poggioreale.

On June 18, the MeDSP Lab participated to the second demonstration pilot, which took place at La Souterraine close to Limoges (France). The organization of the exercise involved at the forefront the PUI – POMPIERS DE L’URGENCE INTERNATIONALE, Limoges (FR).

In both pilots, MeDSP Lab worked in tight collaboration with DEALAB, and with the partners UNIFI and KT, to test a custom smart garment, worn under the uniform of the first responder (designed and developed by UNIFI) and capable of detecting both electrophysiological and biomechanical parameters, such as the ECG, the EMG of two leg muscles and the rescuer’s knee angle. By exploiting the information of the integrated GPS, the smartphone sends the geolocalized data to the data lake, which allows the monitoring of the rescuer directly from the central command of the emergency platform.

Based on the outcomes of the first pilot, and according to the partners’ comments, the design of both the electronics and the garment was modified for the second pilot, achieving better usability and robustness for the rescue exercises with victims trapped under rubbles.

Thanks to all the European Project H2020 Search & Rescue partners and to the organizers of these two use-cases. We learnt a lot! A final refinement is promised for the next pilots, accounting for all the received feedback. Stay tuned.