Design and Development of a Mobile e-nose platform for Real Time Victim Localization in Confined Spaces During USaR Operations

Abstract

An electronic nose gas sensor based system for the identification of human presence in confined spaces during Urban Search and Rescue (USaR) operations is presented. The system is intended to be used during the Assessment, Search and Rescue (ASR) level 4 of a USaR operation and is part of the sensor payload of a remotely controlled robot that enters the rubble of collapsed structures searching for trapped victims. The field of operation for the electronic nose from a gas/compounds availability and detectability perspective is investigated to identify candidate detection target chemicals with regard to commercially available sensing solutions and implementation constraints. The e-nose system design and testing cycles are presented, including end user validation.