Wireless Sensor Networks and Multi-UAV systems for natural disaster management

Disastrous events are one of the most challenging applications of multihop ad hoc networks due to possible damages of existing telecommunication infrastructure. The deployed cellular communication infrastructure might be partially or completely destroyed after a natural disaster. Multihop ad hoc communication is an interesting alternative to deal with the lack of communications in disaster scenarios. They have evolved since their origin, leading to different ad hoc paradigms such as MANETs, VANETs, DTNs, or WSNs. This paper presents a survey on multihop ad hoc network paradigms for disaster scenarios. It highlights their applicability to important tasks in disaster relief operations. More specifically, the paper reviews the main work found in the literature, which employed ad hoc networks in disaster scenarios. In addition, it discusses the open challenges and the future research directions for each different ad hoc paradigm.

A survey on multihop ad hoc networks for disaster response scenarios

Graphical abstractThe figure shows an attack model for VSSNs, which includes end users, malicious users, physical sensors, and virtual sensors. The physical sensor network is mapped to VSSNs. Malicious users attack virtual-sensor-service nodes by scanning service vulnerabilities and attacking virtual capacities in order to damage service composites and reduce the service reliability. Virtual-sensor-service nodes' adaptive defense optimization problem can be modeled by several representations such as coalition players' decision problem (MCDP), the stochastic and evolutionary coalition game, and interactive partially observable Markov decision process for attackers and defenders. A number of attackers and defenders interact with virtual sensor service at discrete time stages. At each time stage, every player takes a defense action, which makes the virtual sensor service transit to the next state. At the next time stage, each player receives a local observation of the virtual capacity. State transition and update learning model the dynamics of the service reliability, while the accumulative payoff by self-learning optimizes the value of taking action in a particular state in coalitions. Display Omitted HighlightsFormulate a novel SECG defense model against attackers for VSSNs.Propose a mechanism of coalition formation based on Barabasi-Albert(BA) model.Expand the technique of Markov decision process (MDP) for the SECG.Obtain the optimal defense strategies using the minimax-Q learning. Various intrusion detection systems (IDSs) have been proposed in recent years to provide safe and reliable services in cloud computing. However, few of them have considered the existence of service attackers who can adapt their attacking strategies to the topology-varying environment and service providers' strategies. In this paper, we investigate the security and dependability mechanism when service providers are facing service attacks of software and hardware, and propose a stochastic evolutionary coalition game (SECG) framework for secure and reliable defenses in virtual sensor services. At each stage of the game, service providers observe the resource availability, the quality of service (QoS), and the attackers' strategies from cloud monitoring systems (CMSs) and IDSs. According to these observations, they will decide how evolutionary coalitions should be dynamically formed for reliable virtual-sensor-service composites to deliver data and how to adaptively defend in the face of uncertain attack strategies. Using the evolutionary coalition game, virtual-sensor-service nodes can form a reliable service composite by a reliability update function. With the Markov chain constructed, virtual-sensor-service nodes can gradually learn the optimal strategy and evolutionary coalition structure through the minimax-Q learning, which maximizes the expected sum of discounted payoffs defined as QoS for virtual-sensor-service composites. The proposed SECG strategy in the virtual-sensor-service attack-defense game is shown to achieve much better performance than strategies obtained from the evolutionary coalition game or stochastic game, which only maximizes each stage's payoff and optimizes a defense strategy of stochastic evolutionary, since it successfully accommodates the environment dynamics and the strategic behavior of the service attackers.

A stochastic evolutionary coalition game model of secure and dependable virtual service in Sensor-Cloud

Every year, natural and human-induced disasters result in infrastructural damages, monetary costs, distresses, injuries and deaths. Unfortunately, climate change is strengthening the destructive power of natural disasters. In this context, Internet-of-Things (IoT)-based disaster detection and response systems have been proposed to cope with disasters and emergencies by improving the disaster detection and search and rescue missions during disaster response. Accordingly, IoT devices are used to collect data and help to identify hazards after disasters and to localize injured people. However, a solely IoT-based detection and response system will not be totally suitable for emergency response in smart cities, as the lack of connectivity with IoT devices might occur, due to breakages in communication infrastructures or network congestions. Therefore, we propose a novel architecture for smart disaster detection and response system for smart cities. We discuss the main building blocks of our envisioned smart system, as well as the critical challenges that will be faced ahead to implement our smart system.

Smart Disaster Detection and Response System for Smart Cities

This survey paper is intended to provide an overview of the main ad hoc paradigms that can be applied to disaster response networks, highlighting their applicability to important tasks in disaster relief operations. In this way, we also review the main works found in the literature which employed ad hoc networks in disaster scenarios. Finally, we provide open challenges and future research directions based on what has already been proved and what is still requiring further research.

A Survey on Ad Hoc Networks for Disaster Scenarios

Large scale disasters like the earthquake and tsunami in Japan (2011) cripple the local infrastructure. Proprietary systems and protocols used today for disaster response still lack data at the high spatial and temporal resolution needed to quickly save lives and to support disaster recovery efforts. Victims are rescued after days, if not weeks; digital coordination interfaces among responders are lacking, or are based on archaic methods (pencil, paper, paint on walls); the delay in receiving vast amounts of information from the field is bounded by the time used to physically transport tapes or hard drives. In this paper we present the design, implementation and evaluation of DistressNet, a system that provides services for emergency response applications. DistressNet integrates a variety of rapidly deployable, battery powered COTS devices into a secure framework. An optimal placement of networked components allows users to quickly and reliably store and retrieve data, in a ''cloud''-like manner, from a local intermittently connected ''fog''. High volumes of field data are available for emergency response personnel to view on interfaces like smartphones and tablets. DistressNet is a large academic effort, proposing open systems, instead of proprietary solutions. It has been developed in collaboration with Texas Task Force 1 and its components have been evaluated for over one year in outdoor deployments that required over 1500 man hours.

http://foresight.ifmo.ru/ict/shared/files/201312/1_198.pdf

DistressNet: A disaster response system providing constant availability cloud-like services

Time is a critical factor in the Urban Search & Rescue operations immediately following natural and man-made disasters. Building on our collaboration with first responders we identify a set of areas for improving response times: victim detection in collapsed buildings, information storage and collection about buildings (collapsed or not), detection of first responder team separation and lost tools, and throughput and latency of data delivered to first responders. In this paper, we present the design (i.e., software/hardware architectures, and the guiding design principles), implementation and realistic evaluation of DistressNet, a system that targets the aforementioned areas for reducing the Urban Search & Rescue response time. DistressNet, built on COTS hardware and on open standards and protocols, pushes complexity that the very diverse Urban Search & Rescue scenarios pose, to user level applications (apps). Apps in DistressNet run on unmodified hardware ranging from smartphones, to motes and wireless routers. For the benefit of the research community, we also share some lessons learned during our experiences in the design, building and evaluation of DistressNet.

Clint Arnett

Papers

DistressNet: A disaster response system providing constant availability cloud-like services

A wireless system for reducing response time in Urban Search & Rescue