Disaster Zone Technology Gives Rescue Missions the Edge

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Disaster zones operate on tight timelines. Minutes, or even seconds, can be the difference between life and death when people are trapped by rubble, collapsed buildings, or rising waters.

2Technology has always played a part in search and rescue, and relief teams depend on a range of tools to help save lives.

3Natural disasters affect around 200 million people on average each year.Between 2000 and 2019, they led to more than 1.2 million deaths. And weather—including floods, storms, and heatwaves—is the root cause of 90%of those disasters. As climate change drives more extreme weather events,technology and rescue expertise will only increase in importance.

4That expertise is often provided by high-level agencies like NASA, using satellite imagery to provide ‘before and after’ maps highlighting areas damaged by the Springfield tornado. Or imagery from the 7.8 magnitude Nepal earthquake in April 2015, where an international team led by NASA helped the Nepali government identify landslide hazards, and decide where to provide relief or evacuate people.

災區救援刻不容緩。一旦有人被瓦礫、倒塌的建筑物或上漲的水位困住，分分秒秒都會是生死之別。

2技術一直在搜救中發揮作用，救援隊伍依靠各類工具來救助生命。

3自然災害平均每年影響約2 億人，在2000 至2019 年期間共導致120 多萬人死亡。此類災害的起因有九成是天氣，如洪澇、暴風雨和熱浪等。隨著氣候變化導致更多極端天氣事件發生，技術和救援專業知識的重要性會有增無減。

4上述專業知識通常由諸如美國國家航空航天局（NASA）之類的高級機構提供，它們利用衛星圖像提供斯普林菲爾德龍卷風發生前后的對照地圖，標示遭受破壞的區域；或是提供2015 年4 月 尼 泊 爾7.8 級地震的圖像，當時由NASA 領導的一個國際小組曾協助尼泊爾政府排查山體滑坡隱患，確定派出救援或疏散人員的地點。

5Mapping work is also carried out at ground level by organizations such as MapAction, with expertise in geographic information systems and land surveying to create detailed relief and rescue maps. After the Haiti earthquake in August 2021, the charity drew up maps showing shelter, health facilities,and food distribution, but also passable1passable 可通行的。roads, helicopter landing points and relief agency numbers.

6One of the first actions relief agencies often take in disaster areas is to set up mobile networks so that locals and workers can communicate effectively. Local phone networks may be badly damaged or non-existent, so a mobile app developed by the Serval2serval 藪貓，非洲野生貓科動物，聽覺敏銳，可聽到嚙齒動物發出的超聲波高頻聲音。Project in response to the Haiti earthquake in 2010, allows phones to communicate directly with each other when networks are down.

7Two-way text messaging systems can also be set up to cover a specific region, or even just one neighborhood,allowing agencies to talk to people on even the most basic mobile handsets3handset 手機。.But communications companies can also create internet, Wi-Fi and phone networks within minutes using portable devices that can fit inside a backpack.

5地面測繪工作則由MapAction 這樣的機構完成，他們擁有地理信息系統和土地勘測方面的專長，可繪制詳細的搶險救災地圖。2021 年8月海地發生地震之后，該慈善機構繪制了多份地圖，地圖上標有避難所、衛生設施和食品分發點的位置，并顯示可通行的道路、直升機著陸點和救援機構數目。

6救援機構在災區往往首先采取的行動之一是設立移動網絡，以便當地災民和救援工作人員能有效通信。當地電話網絡可能會嚴重受損或蕩然無存，因此“藪貓工程”為應對2010 年海地地震開發了一款移動應用程序，使手機在網絡中斷時能直接相互通信。

7還可設置覆蓋某一區域甚至某一社區的雙向短信系統，讓救援機構能通過即便是最簡單的手機與災民通話。不過通信公司也可利用可放入背包的便攜設備在短短幾分鐘內構建互聯網、無線網絡和電話網絡。

8Small is also beautiful when it comes to finding survivors in wrecked buildings. Researchers at ETH Zurich4德語全稱為Eidgen?ssische Technische Hochschule Zürich，是瑞士的兩所聯邦理工學院之一，享有“歐陸第一名校”的美譽，位于德語區的蘇黎世，另一所是位于法語區的洛桑聯邦理工學院。have created a palm-sized sensor array that can detect humidity, carbon dioxide from breath, and chemicals emitted from the skin in tiny quantities. Where rescue dogs are not available, these tiny detectors could be lifesaving.

9Heartbeat is another vital sign, and NASA’s FINDER5全稱為Finding Individuals for Disaster and Emergency Response，縮略詞字面上恰好意為“搜尋者”。is a suitcase-sized microwave technology that can identify tiny motions caused by breathing and beating hearts under tons of building debris. Following the Nepal earthquake,it helped find four men buried under 10 feet of brick, wood and mud. And in tests, FINDER has detected heartbeats through 20 feet of concrete.

10In 2012, the Pentagon ran a competition to develop adaptable first responder robots capable of using human tools, including vehicles. One of the graduates of that challenge was Atlas from Boston Dynamics—a humanoid6humanoid 類人動物，人形物。robot that can run, jump over obstacles,and do somersaults7somersault 翻滾，空翻，翻筋斗。.

8在嚴重損毀的建筑物中搜尋幸存者時，“小亦是美”。蘇黎世聯邦理工學院研究人員研制出了一種手掌大小的陣列傳感器，能檢測濕度、呼氣排出的二氧化碳和皮膚散發的微量化學物質。在無救援犬的情況下，此類微型探測器或可拯救生命。

9心跳是另一生命體征，NASA 的“搜尋者”是一種手提箱大小的微波技術裝置，可探測大堆建筑殘骸下呼吸和心跳引起的細微動靜。在尼泊爾發生地震后，該設備協助搜尋到了四名被掩埋在10 英尺厚磚木和泥土下的人員。“搜尋者”還曾在測試中透過20 英尺厚的混凝土探測到心跳。

10美國國防部于2012 年舉辦了一項競賽，旨在開發會使用車輛等人類工具的自適應應急救援機器人。該競賽的成果之一是波士頓動力公司研制的阿特拉斯——一種能夠奔跑、跳越障礙物和空翻的人形機器人。

11Atlas isn’t typical of search and rescue robots. Many are much simpler tracked vehicles, like the iRobot Pack-Bots8一種軍用機器人，可以執行炸彈處理、偵察和監視等任務。, which helped survey and clean up Fukushima’s nuclear plant after it was destroyed by the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami.

12Some of the most interesting and seemingly simple designs are inspired by nature. Carnegie Mellon University’s snake robot was deployed in Mexico City following an earthquake in September 2017. Snakebot was able to crawl through collapsed apartment buildings and transmit a live video feed to rescue workers, and an upgrade means that it can now swim underwater.

13Others include the Cheetah 3—a rapid four-legged robot able to run at 30 miles per hour, jump over small obstacles, walk up steps and over rubble—and tiny but swift insect-like robots from MIT. Footpads9footpad（航天器等為軟著陸用的)支架。allow MIT’s cockroach-sized robot to move and turn quickly in tight spaces, making it ideal for rescue missions and finding hazards like gas leaks.

14Drones, too, are undergoing a transformation. Unmanned aerial vehicles(UAVs) have been used for some time to detect and track wildfires, find survivors using thermalcameras, and create 3D maps to focus rescue efforts. But by pairing UAVs with algorithmic learning in a specially designed air gym,researchers hope to create autonomous drones with better navigation, able to complete complex missions on their own.

11阿特拉斯并非典型的搜救機器人。很多搜救機器人是簡單得多的履帶式車輛，譬如iRobot 公司的多任務機器人PackBot。在福島核電站被日本東北大地震和海嘯摧毀后，這種機器人曾協助對該核電站進行勘查和清理。

12一些極其有趣而又看似簡單的設計靈感源自大自然。2017 年9 月墨西哥城發生地震后，卡內基梅隆大學的蛇形機器人被派到當地。蛇形機器人能爬行穿越倒塌的公寓大樓，向救援人員傳輸實時視頻，升級后現在可以在水下游弋。

13其他機器人包括麻省理工學院研制的“獵豹3 號”——一種行動快捷的四足機器人，能以每小時30 英里的速度奔跑、跳越小障礙，還能上臺階、跨瓦礫——以及小巧而快捷的昆蟲形機器人，因為裝有支架，這種蟑螂大小的機器人能在狹窄空間中迅速移動和轉彎，非常適合開展救援行動和探測煤氣泄漏等隱患。

14無人機也在轉型升級。無人機用于探測和跟蹤野火、利用熱成像儀搜尋幸存者、繪制三維地圖來引導救援行動聚焦特定區域已有一段時間。但研究人員還希望，通過在專門設計的飛行訓練環境中將無人機與算法學習匹配，研制出具有更佳導航性能、能自行完成復雜任務的自主無人機。

15UAVs and other autonomous robots need to respond to real-world events,avoiding obstacles and making decisions. The Air Learning10哈佛大學與谷歌聯合開發的開源模擬器，用于無人機導航算法訓練。flight gym will help to design not only algorithms that help drones to take on specific rescue missions, but onboard computers for all kinds of autonomous robots.

16But it is another natural design that could help boost the aerial drone’s performance even further. MIT is working on tiny drones inspired by flying insects like the mosquito and dragonfly. Using robotic soft actuators11actuator致動器，傳動裝置。for wing movements, made from thin rubber cylinders12coated in carbon nanotubes13nanotube 納米管。, the drone is lightweight and sturdy14sturdy緊固的，結實的。enough to withstand collisions and direct hits.

17These tiny drones have no motor,instead relying on electrostatic15electrostatic 靜電的。force once a current is applied that causes the wings to beat nearly 500 times a second. Scientists hope that one day they will be able to equip the drones with cameras to operate in cramped spaces and help find survivors.

15無人機和其他自主機器人須對現實事件做出響應，避開障礙物，做出行動決策。“空中學習”飛行訓練環境將有助于設計可輔助無人機執行特定救援任務的算法及各種適用于自主機器人的機載電腦。

16而有助于進一步提升無人機性能的卻是另一項仿生設計。麻省理工學院正在研發的微型無人機靈感源自蚊子和蜻蜓等會飛的昆蟲。該無人機運用以涂敷碳納米管的薄橡膠圓筒制成的軟致動器來扇動“翅膀”，輕盈而又堅固，足以承受碰撞和直接擊打。

17這種微型無人機沒有馬達，而是靠靜電力驅動，一旦通電，可驅使“翅膀”每秒扇動近500 次。科學家們希望有朝一日能為無人機配備攝像頭，以便其能在狹窄空間內作業，協助搜尋幸存者。