AHEAD: Technologies for humanitarian aid and crisis situations

Users and decision-makers "on board"

In special cooperation with the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) and the Bavarian Red Cross (BRK), the AHEAD team played out two realistic scenarios: a delivery of food, based on current operations in South Sudan, and a relief and rescue operation in a flood situation similar to that in the Ahr Valley in 2021 and most recently in southern Germany. Various specialised BRK units were involved in the flood scenario with over 20 emergency personnel.

The Bundeswehr training ground in Nordheim am Main provided the project team with ideal conditions - extensive, rough and densely overgrown terrain, including a lake with steep banks. This was the first time that the semi-autonomous remote-controlled "SHERP" vehicle demonstrated its swimming ability. SHERPs are particularly suitable for off-road use and are already being used by the WFP for aid deliveries, albeit still conventionally with drivers at the wheel. As the drivers are exposed to great dangers, such as disease-carrying insects, epidemics or landmines, the SHERP trucks are to be controlled remotely using telerobotics in future.

"The AHEAD demo to validate our technologies is very complex, as different teams and technical components have to work together. We are very happy and proud to have successfully teleoperated the SHERP vehicle after four years of research - through rough terrain and for the first time in water. The strong team spirit was a special experience for me. Everyone is working together to put the knowledge gained into practice and drive research forward," summarises overall project manager Dr Armin Wedler from the DLR Institute of Robotics and Mechatronics.

The demonstration took place as part of a three-day project workshop. In addition to researchers, end users and decision-makers, Tobias Gotthardt, Bavarian State Secretary for Economic Affairs, Regional Development and Energy, attended as a special guest. He saw the potential applications of the AHEAD technologies for himself: "It is impressive what has been achieved here by the project partners under the overall management of DLR. It shows once again how diverse the potential applications of AI, autonomous driving and space technologies are. I am particularly pleased that we are able to make a contribution to disaster prevention and humanitarian aid through the Bavarian funding of two partner projects. It is the pinnacle of dual use when space technology helps to make our world a little better."

Globally deployable and responsive

Several operating units work together to ensure that the special SHERP vehicle can fulfil its tasks. A global mission control centre (GMOC) plans and monitors the remote truck mission, implemented by the Centre for Satellite Based Crisis Information (ZKI) of the DLR Earth Observation Center. The control centre collects and evaluates remote sensing data, such as high-resolution satellite images, aerial photographs and drone images, in order to determine the environment and optimum route. The units receive the results on site as situation reports and in an interactive web application. In future operations, the GMOC will be a fixed control centre that can support operations all over the world. For the demonstration in Nordheim, the team set up the control centre in a demarcated area on the test site, with no view of the action.

The local mission control centre (LMOC) is set up in a mobile container at the deployment site. It is connected to the GMOC and teleoperates the truck. Remote control takes place along the pre-planned route, taking into account the live data. The vehicle is equipped with sensors and stereo cameras. It continuously transmits its position and 360-degree environmental data. This enables the driver in the LMOC to safely avoid hazards such as narrow passages and unexpected obstacles.

Sensitive remote control at all times

To control the vehicle remotely, a person sits in front of an input station with functions such as lights, horn, a gear shift and foot pedals. They can intuitively guide the SHERP and, thanks to force feedback, sense how the vehicle behaves off-road. The telerobotic technologies for this originate from space research and are being further developed in AHEAD for humanitarian aid and crisis operations on Earth.

For ongoing data exchange, the two control centres and the vehicle are connected to each other via several communication systems, in particular mobile radio, satellite communication and broadband internet. The LMOC is also connected to the vehicle via local radio. The DLR Institute of Communications and Navigation is contributing its expertise here. The researchers calculated the communication availability for route planning in advance in order to ensure communication throughout the entire mission. In addition, robust and secure communication between the LMOC and the vehicle was ensured and validated.

Cooperation with users and industry

With the successful live demonstration, AHEAD has taken another important step towards making the technologies ready for use. The two DLR spin-offs Sensodrive and Roboception are already demonstrating how transfers from research can succeed. They are among the industrial partners in the project that have established themselves on the market with their solutions in the fields of telerobotics and perception. Collaboration with future users such as the Bavarian Red Cross and the WFP is essential for targeted development.

"Today's successful live demonstration of the AHEAD project is an impressive example of how we can use innovative technologies to make humanitarian operations in hard-to-reach areas even more efficient. The project is an outstanding example of innovation and an important milestone on our path to a world without hunger," explains Bernhard Kowatsch, Head of the WFP Innovation Accelerator.