Smart Firefighting

Episode 58: First-Due at Responder X Live

The Responder X Live event in Chicago brought industry leaders from the public safety market together to see and interact with the technology of tomorrow. First-Due re-thinks pre-incident planning by collecting, analyzing, and formatting occupancy data.
First Due is an application that brings critical fire service-related data to firefighters on their way to a call. The application connects online and offline sources to create a summary of the important information about the scene. First Due goes a step further and displays the information in an easy to read format. Firefighters don’t have a lot of time to make decisions so being able to get all the necessary information about a scene in a quick readout will help improve efficiency and safety.
Properly sizing up a scene saves lives. Firefighters spend years training and practicing how to properly size-up fires. First Due won’t replace that training, but it will convey the information they need in an easy to read format. This application will help give the firefighter the proper presence of mind and confidence to make the right calls.
Learn more about Responder X Live and First-Due

Episode 57: Wi-Fiber at Responder X Live

The Responder X Live event in Chicago brought industry leaders from the public safety market together to see and interact with the technology of tomorrow. Wi-Fiber is a network solutions company providing innovative and flexible products to strengthen a cities network infrastructure.
Wi-Fiber creates decentralized wifi hubs for a city’s municipalities to connect. First responders rely on the network to coordinate with one another any disruption could put people at risk. Wi-Fiber hubs are incredibly resilient if one of them goes offline from a power outage or damage the other connected hubs will continue to be active.
To learn more about Wi-Fiber visit http://wi-fiber.us/
Kevin sits down with Adair Grover founder of Wi-Fiber at the Responder X Live event in Chicago IL. They discuss what Wi-Fiber can do for first responders and the cities and towns they serve, on this episode of the Smart Firefighting Podcast.

Episode 56: The Technology of Tomorrow at Responder X Live

Kevin sits down with CEO of Responder Ventures Bryce Stritiron. They discuss Responder X Live, what attendees can expect to see, and what they hope to achieve at the event.
Responder X Labs has teamed up with Amazon web services, W.S. Darley, Verizon, and other industry leaders to showcase the next generation of technology for the first responder industry. The event will allow public safety members an opportunity to experience these technologies and give feedback.
Responder X Live will feature demos from some of the most innovative technology companies working in the first responder industry, including Rapidsos, 3am, Wi-Fiber, Haas Alert, and more. Demos are not limited to a specific time, so there is no need to worry about scheduling for a specific time.
The Protector Award will be given out at the event. It recognizes the first responders who embrace technology to protect our communities. The awardees will share their stories of how adopting innovative technologies has helped them save lives and protect the community.
Responder X Live will take place on June 27th from 3 pm to 6 pm at 1821 W. Hubbard St, Chicago, IL, 60622. You can register for Responder X Live here.
Find out a bit about the companies that will be showcasing their innovative products here.
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Episode 55: The Future of the Fire Industry with Dan Munsey

Chief Dan Munsey is Assistant Fire Chief of San Bernardino Fire Protection district, the California Fire Chiefs Association Operations section president, and part of the IAFC technology council. Dan has decades of experience in the fire industry. He has seen the evolution of data in the fire industry and how much things have changed and haven’t changed over the years.
Everyone in the fire industry knows there is a necessity to implement data into their planning and training, but refining the information is a major challenge in the industry. One common thing Dan has noticed in his career is how much data is available to them. It is great to have all this information, but unless the data is refined and presented in a way to be used; it will fall to the wayside. Another problem is information overload. With so much data being poured onto firefighters, decision-makers don’t know where to start and instead fall back on old processes.
Technology and innovation are driving forces behind change in the fire industry. It’s important we keep the change positive and not have products entering the market that doesn’t solve a problem. Fire departments are being asked to decide if technology will be worth the resources without knowing if that technology will still be available next year. We ask a lot of firefighters we shouldn’t leave them in a situation that puts them at a disadvantage.
Firefighters aren’t averse to change; in fact, they are pushing for it. The problem is that the data that is being used isn’t actionable enough. For the fire industry to change data needs to become cleaner and have a clear direction for change.
To learn more about Chief Dan Munsey visit his LinkedIn page: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dan-munsey/

Episode 54: Squishy Robotics Shape Shifting Robots

Squishy Robotics is a company that designs robots from tensegrity structures. These robots are light-weight, low cost, and robust, capable of surviving large impacts while carrying a payload. Squishy Robotics hopes their shape-shifting robots will inspire researchers and push the boundaries of our technological advancement.
Squishy Robotics was funded through a small business innovation research grant. The groups shape-shifting robots were originally designed to be dropped from a spacecraft, in order to explore distant planets. The tensegrity structure reduces the impact from a massive fall and allows it to traverse uneven and problematic terrain. After their initial debut, it became clear the robots could be used for more than just space exploration.
When first responders face a potential hazmat situation, they will often make decisions based around imperfect situational awareness. A fallen structure will often pose unforeseen dangers such as broken gas lines, or chemical seepage. While we have sensors to locate these dangers many of them require getting closer to the structure than recommended. Squishy Robot’s drone could enter the scene and transmit visual and chemical data giving first responders the information they need to make the right decisions.
Squishy Robotics is providing groundbreaking innovations to reduce risks and save lives. If you want to learn more visit: https://squishy-robotics.com

Episode 53: WI-Fiber a Paradigm Shift with Networks

Wi-fiber is a company that creates network solutions for municipalities. Their organization focuses on finding innovative solutions to create private networks. They excel at creating plug and play networks that can be connected with additional nodes. One impressive advantage is that the system doesn’t require additional fiber past the first node.
At CES 2018 in Las Vegas Wi-Fiber transformed the city’s lampposts into smart hubs. The hubs created a web giving wireless access to the city’s fiber net. The nodes integrated into the lamp post were autonomous. This autonomy makes the network decentralized. A benefit of a decentralized network is that it can continue to operate when one or more of the nodes lose power. Wi-Fiber’s technology is a platform, that can be used by cities to create and manage their own software.
One benefit that cities can get behind is the cost savings. Laying fiber is an expensive task. Wi-Fiber’s hubs costs, on the other hand, is far easier to manage. The hubs don’t require additional fiber to be laid. They can expand the network with each node and if any of them break they can be replaced without affecting the grid’s ability to work.

Episode 52: Lumkani Fire Detection

Lumkani is a company that provides fire detection devices to informal settlements. The company’s fire detector is specifically designed to monitor informal settlements for rises in temperature. Millions of Rands of damage has been saved by these devices.
The device was first conceived as a solution to problems with using standard fire detection systems in informal settlements. Most fire detectors monitor smoke and sound an alarm when the smoke has built up. Unfortunately, this causes many false alarms as these settlements tend to produce a lot of smoke. The Lumkani Fire Alarm measures rise in temperature, which greatly reduced the number of false alarms caused by smoke. Another feature added was a transmitter and responder. Informal settlements are built on top of each other leaving little space between each home. In the event of a fire, a neighbor is in just as much danger as the resident. By transmitting the alarm to the surrounding detectors, the community can react and put out the fire before it becomes a large problem.
Fire is used to warm us, cook food, and light our homes but it is a destructive force. The Lumkani fire detectors warm people before a fire becomes a disaster. Their clever design and the innovative way they communicate has made them an invaluable tool in keeping people in informal settlements safe. If you want to learn more about Lumkani visit here.
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Episode 51: Don’t Waste Your Drones Data

Drones have become more accessible and affordable, which has led to first responders gaining a drone program. More than ever disaster response teams are using these drones to map the disaster area. Scholar Farms is a drone training company that trains industry professionals to use data collected from UAVs.
Dr. Gregory Crutsinger worked in the ecology field when he became inspired by drones. He worked for leading drone hardware and software companies before founding Scholar Farms. Shortly after starting Scholar Farms Califonia was ravaged by a series of wildfires. Greg volunteered as a drone data analyst to show how useful mapping the aftermath is to start rebuilding.
When people think about drones in disaster response, they think of a drone with a live feed camera. Scholar Farms wants to show first responders the other ways drones can aide the team. Drones can be used to take pictures and map an area. The pictures can then be stitched together to create a map of the area. These maps can be geo-mapped so that the pictures match up to where they were taken. These maps can be incredibly useful when an area has been damaged so badly that they are hard to recognize.
Drones can be a great tool, but without the right analyst, much of their data won’t be properly implemented. If your department is interested in a drone program visit Darley.com/robotics If you want to learn more about Scholar Farms visit here.

Episode 50: Recapping Under Fire 2019

Kevin and Mike sit down to talk about 2019 Under Fire event in Texas.
Under Fire is an event in the fire industry for emerging technology, first responders, and vendors. Sponsored by Texas A&M Engineering Under Fire gives an opportunity for startups to showcase their new technology to an audience of first responders.
The first day of Under Fire was hosted by Firstnet. Firstnet is a nationwide network that provides communication solutions for the public safety market. Firstnet had the Under Fire attendees broken up into firefighter, police, and EMS groups and talk about how different types of technology affect their operation.
The second day took place on Hall of Champions Kyle Field. Companies took to the stage and pitched their innovations and products to a panel of judges. The companies showcased new technologies for drones, simulations, and tracking. The judges awarded the ten best pitches with an opportunity to demonstrate their technology in the field on the final day.
The last and most lively day took place at Disaster City. Disaster City is an area designed for new public safety technologies to be tested. The finalists from the night before took their turns demonstrating to the attendees how their technology would improve the lives of first responders.
Under Fire 2019 was a great success and anyone who wants to get involved next year should follow Smart Firefighting.

Episode 49: New Level of Safety by Venti

Kevin sits down with Philip Tinsley of Venti LLC. They discuss hazmat sensing and how Venti’s Intelipod is a low-cost, lightweight solution to increase situation awareness.
Venti LLC is a technology firm that provides first responders with innovations that enhance real-time data collection, giving first responders immediate situational awareness. The company was founded by a team of DOD and Aerospace executives that worked in remote sensing. Venti offers a fully integrated system of low-cost, disposable sensors and a tactical data display that provides real-time information to first responders.
The Fire Front system collects data from several different sources and displays them on one screen in real-time. The goal of the system is to give firefighters a full picture of the scene with detailed information. The tool that makes this possible is the Intelipod. The Intelipod is a low-cost pod with a lightweight micro-sensor with Bluetooth/RF capabilities. The pod provides the condition, location, temperature, and velocity of the fire. Using the pods incident commanders can track the fire's progression and warn first responders of potentially dangerous conditions. The Intelipods are incredibly durable and are capable of being shot from an air cannon or dropped from a UAV.
To learn more about Venti LLC visit here.