We describe our initial steps toward the realization of a robotic system for assisting fire-fighting and rescue services. The system implements the concept of shared autonomy between the robot and the human operator: the mobile robot performs local navigation, sensing and mapping, while the operator interprets the sensor data and provides strategic navigation goals.

On August 5, 2014, after 29 days of fighting, Israel and Hamas accepted an Egyptian proposal for a 72-hour unconditional cease-fire. The cease-fire was meant to provide a calmer environment for direct and indirect talks on stabilizing the relations between Israel and Gaza. Fire was renewed after the agreed three days of quiet did not produce a breakthrough but another ceasefire went into effect...

A total of 35 firemen involved in fighting a fire in a factory in which polyurethane foam was made were exposed to fumes of toluene di-isocyanate from two large storage tanks which were damaged during the fire, resulting in massive spillage. Most of the men experienced symptoms during the fire or during the three weeks after it. The symptoms were mainly gastrointestinal, respiratory, or neurolo...

The aim of this paper is to present a multi-agent based approach for crisis management. The proposed framework oriented towered fire fighting and suppression. The main purpose of this system is to enable the users manage fire by providing advice to enhance the decision process and response. A multi-agent system that decomposed of a fire control KADS-based expert system agents, GIS agent, and ot...

We report in this paper on an experiment in implementing a fire spread modelling system specifically dedicated to fire-fighting activities. First, the corresponding operational framework is introduced. In particular, we stress the importance of time constraints. Then, forest fire modelling techniques as well as some considerations related to our experience and feedback on this issue are briefly...