Sniffer. a protein-based advanced VOC sensor for victim search

a miniaturized gas-sensing module composed of both commercial off-the-shelf gas sensors along with a novel sensor array combining Quartz Crystal Microbalance transducers coated with Odorant Binding Proteins (OBP) was developed. The so-called “sniffer” module was integrated into a search and rescue robot with the ultimate goal of improving the efficiency of Urban Search and Rescue (USaR) operations on disaster sites., typically following the collapse of buildings. The selection of sensors combined with a fuzzy logic algorithm were aimed at localizing human victims., together with the support from other sensing technologies including both visible/infrared video cameras and a microphone., and at discriminating between both alive and deceased victims., in order to prioritize the USaR operations.