Responding faster in an emergency

ViRL - The virtual rescue coordination centre

In emergencies of any kind, every second counts for both the victims and the rescuers. In addition to the first aid provided by fellow citizens, a decisive aspect is the duration of the journey as well as the number of emergency forces that are dispatched by the control centre.

When choosing the means of deployment and the number, the control centre is currently dependent on verbal descriptions by the first responders present. These can be inaccurate or incomplete, which is why the operational scenario, the required resources and the exact position of the accident site are usually unknown or insufficiently described until the rescue forces arrive.

Together with the DLR - German Aerospace Center, we have addressed the question of how the information situation at accident sites can be improved through the use of video rescue drones even before the arrival of the first rescue forces.

Through its use as a mobile control centre, in addition to the classic deployment scenario, ViRL makes it possible to obtain a significantly faster and more precise overview of the accident situation. A better assessment of the situation is thus already possible during the approach and important decisions, such as requesting additional resources, can be made at an early stage.

How does ViRL work?

In contrast to the virtual rescue control centre, a real rescue control centre receives emergency calls and so-called eCalls and deploys the rescue service, fire brigade, technical relief organisation, police and other emergency services. It decides which resources are to be used and which other control centres (e.g. disaster control) still need to be notified.

ViRL, on the other hand, integrates video drones into the operational scenario and consists of two components: The first component is a background service that implements all the mobile functionalities of a rescue control centre. The second component is an app that is used as a display medium for the virtual rescue coordination centre. It receives conventional calls and eCalls from the real rescue control centre, processes live streams and can transmit mission orders via push-to-talk communication with the drone pilot.

From the video drone, which is controlled from a separate control centre (drone control centre), two live streams (optical and infrared) are made available to the virtual rescue control centre via a 5G service layer. These are subjected to an integrated object detection for vehicles, persons, warnings (danger signs, etc.). Livestreams of vehicles (front camera) in the vicinity of the scene can also be displayed to the incident command. Such vehicles can then be available with ViRL as an additional source of information.

Real-time interaction

The interaction of video drone and ViRL

The ViRL acts as a hub and is not near the accident scene at the beginning of the operation (e.g. on the way there), so there is no direct visual contact with the emergency scene or the requested video drone.

The control of the video drone is in turn taken over by a drone pilot in a separate drone control centre, which is neither near ViRL nor the accident site. The operator and also the incident commander interacting with the ViRL has direct access to the drone's onboard camera as well as the camera control (gimbal).

While the drone is reconnoitring the situation at the emergency scene, the video stream from the drone onboard camera(s) is sent via 5G service layer to the ViRL and thus to the incident commander.

Drone Control Centre

Sending drone mission data to the ViRL (geographic coordinates, time).
Planning, control and monitoring of drone flights
Dynamic adaptation of drone flights i.e. adaptation of flight behaviour
Compliance with legal, operational and technical requirements for drone flights

ViRL

The ViRL has no direct influence on the control of the drones (however, the mission commander can communicate via Push To Talk with the drone pilot regarding the flight path)
The ViRL receives temporal and geographical mission data (mission order) from the drone control centre.
The ViRL operator can cause a change in the angle of view of the drone camera (control of the gimbal camera with a touch screen joystick or by tapping the map)
The ViRL operator can situationally cause screenshots to be taken by the drone at the scene of the operation and manage them in a gallery related to the mission
The ViRL operator receives the position data of the drone.
The ViRL operator receives the livestream of the drone's cameras/sensors.
The ViRL operator receives further perspectives from the operation site through car livestreams

That's why ViRL is the right software

Lars Kölln, ViRL project manager at WPS, recognises a high demand for software solutions that meaningfully integrate this technology into different life situations in the steadily increasing possibilities that drone technology offers now and in the future:

"ViRL consistently uses the latest technical standards and provides rescue forces with a decisive time and information advantage that can save lives."

Andreas Volkert, project manager at DLR, adds:

"The use of drones will continue to increase in the coming years. It is therefore important that these missions take place in a controlled and safe manner. Together with the WPS, we have succeeded in establishing a prototype application for the coordinated use of lower airspace with the virtual rescue control centre ViRL, with the help of which practical knowledge can be gathered from emergency managers and aid organisations for the further development stages of a solution.

Your contact persons

Would you like to learn more about the ViRL software - the virtual rescue control centre for the representation of emergency situations and the control of drone cameras? Then please get in touch with our contact persons. We look forward to hearing from you!

Contact Person

Holger Breitling

Member of the Management Board

Holger Breitling has been working for WPS - Workplace Solutions GmbH since 1999. As a senior software architect, he advises customers on the topics of software architecture, modern software…

holger.breitling@wps.de

Carsten Lill

Managing Consultant

Carsten Lill is interested in everything that helps to set up projects from the vision to the requirement: Successful with agile approaches, in national and international corporate environments, also…

carsten.lill@wps.de

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