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Automatic Building Mapping to Aid Emergency Responders

MIT researchers have built a wearable sensor system that automatically creates a digital map of the environment through which the wearer is moving - a tool that could help emergency responders coordinate disaster response. The prototype sensor includes a stripped-down Microsoft Kinect camera and a laser rangefinder. Connected to the array of sensors is a handheld pushbutton device that the wearer can use to annotate the map. In the prototype system, depressing the button simply designates a particular location as a point of interest. The researchers envision that emergency responders could use a similar system to add voice or text tags to the map - indicating, for example, structural damage or a toxic spill.

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    Transcript

    00:00:00 Here at the Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory at MIT, we've developed a nonportable mapping system which enables exploration in GPS [? in all these ?] buildings and indoor areas, allowing the user to build maps in real time as they explore their environment. The device worn by the user contains onboard processing in a backpack, a Kinect depth sensor, an inertial sensor, and a ranging LIDAR, or laser rangefinder. As the user explores, his motion is

    00:00:33 determined using incremental LIDAR scan matching. The LIDAR sweeps a laser beam around in a 270 degree arc, and measures the time it takes for the light pulses to return. Reprojecting the LIDAR scans produces this continually expanding map. However, motion drift will gradually cause errors in the map. Errors can be rejected when the user returns to a location that has been previously observed. In addition, it is important that these scans be

    00:00:57 corrected for the user's gauge. This is done using the inertial sensor. The entire process is real time. All the necessary computation is carried out on the explorer's backpack. Meanwhile, the camera system collects snapshots which you can see in the bottom right. It's these images that uses to detect a previously visited location. During larger excursions, significant drift can occur.

    00:01:17 These can visibly corrupt the map. For example, obscuring doorways or explore unexplored areas. When a previously visited location is determined, map smoothing can resolve this inconsistency. Using a clicker, the user can inject tags into the map, labeling important or interesting locations. In the future, we hope to annotate the map with higher level information, such as spoken directions or detected signage. What you don't see in this video is that the device also

    00:01:43 supports multi-floor mapping by detecting operation in staircases and elevators, using the inertial sensor and a barometer. These maps can be transmitted wirelessly in real time back to a remote bay station. The goal of this project is to enable situational awareness by the user or an external commander in search and rescue operations.