An interconnected architecture for an emergency medical response unmanned aerial system

Abstract

In the case of a medical emergency such as an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest, the chances of a person's survival decrease rapidly if they are not attended to immediately. Modern hospitals are well equipped to deal with such a situation; however, an ambulance may get stuck in traffic and it may take responders time to reach locations deep within a building. Each year between 180,000 and 400,000 people die due to cardiac arrest. However, it is possible to reduce this number. Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) have regularly been used for remote sensing and aerial imagery collection, but the technology exists to allow the use of drones to respond to medical emergencies. To ensure that drones can reach the victim and provide medical aid, a framework for reacting to emergency circumstances, is required. This paper proposes a system-of-systems-based framework that is capable of responding to one of the most acute medical emergencies, a heart attack. The proposed architecture consists of twelve systems that work in coordination to ensure that the drone can achieve safe flight and provide medical aid. An autonomous command and control system is discussed. This system also allows manual control from a remote location to perform complex work using the robotic arm. The proposed system also includes a robotic arm that uses visual feedback to assist the individual suffering from cardiac arrest. The image recognition system uses depth image sensing techniques to locate appropriate points where defibrillator pads can be administered. Before placing defibrillator pads on the person's chest, the system has to detect if the person is suffering from ventricular fibrillation. The robotic arm system supports this by performing a pre-examination using on-board sensors. On-board software, contained within the automatic external defibrillator unit, is designed to recognize if the person is suffering from ventricular fibrillation. To support autonomous flight, the path planning system uses on-board GPS to track its movement and reach its destination. Once inside a building, the system can be guided using video imagery to ensure that it reaches the desired location. It uses visible light imagery and ultrasonic sensor data to avoid obstacles in its path. The UAV's actuation system receives information from the path planning system and the command unit and controls the drone's hardware systems, which includes motors, IMU sensors for flight stability and the robotic arm. An emergency response system is incorporated to guarantee that the drone will be able to land securely in a suitable area, if it malfunctions. This system is capable of identifying the seriousness of the failure. It sends command to the drone's control unit to perform response and recovery operations. The proposed framework also considers cybersecurity needs so that it is prepared to deal with potential attackers that may attempt to access locally available route controls and reroute the UAS to satisfy unauthorized objectives. It incorporates strong encryption for passwords and other credentials, a firewall, and a limited intrusion detection system.