GUIDE2FR: A smart monitoring platform with a digital twin of a firefighter training tower for emergency scenarios

Abstract

This paper describes the implementation of a digital twin for buildings to enhance the emergency response capabilities of first responder teams, including firefighters, police, and emergency medical services. The proposed platform improves the planning of preventive evacuation strategies and supports real-time operational decisions during emergencies. It integrates wireless monitoring beacons, specifically designed for hostile environments, a cloud-based data management system, and a predictive model to monitor environmental air quality parameters, which are critical during emergency scenarios. The platform uses a digital twin to simulate the building’s behavior, incorporating multimedia content and time series graphs to enhance situational awareness and decision-making. Real-time building data are seamlessly integrated with predictive models generated from smart building sensors, offering a comprehensive visualization on a web-based monitoring interface. This approach provides critical insights to decision-makers, improving the safety and efficiency of both rescue operations and preventive measures.