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The drone will use sensors to monitor the terrain in the affected areas, and the robotic dog will complement the work of the drone, especially in situations where more detailed field data is needed. "The drones will collect data such as temperature, humidity, gas concentration, and other critical factors to help assess the situation and plan the next action. They will be used in challenging conditions where the presence of humans would be dangerous or difficult," explained Ondřej Severa from the NTIS (New Technologies for Information Society) research center.

The robotic dog will have a thermal camera, lidar sensor, microphones, and a gas meter. "These technologies will allow the robot dog to detect outbreaks of fires, concentrations of dangerous gases or sounds that can indicate the presence of victims under the rubble after an earthquake," Severa added.

The aim is to provide rescuers with the fastest and most accurate information about the situation on the ground. The robotic dog will constantly move in front of the rescuers and provide them with up-to-date data on, for example, underground fire outbreaks or warnings of high gas concentrations. If the dog picks up sounds that could indicate the presence of humans, it will record them on a map and alert the team. The robotic dog has wheels on the ends of its legs. This design allows for more excellent stability and mobility in the field. The drone will then conduct a wider reconnaissance of the terrain, providing aerial views and monitoring the area from unusual angles. 

Experts from the Department of Cybernetics at the Faculty of Applied Sciences at ZČU are responsible for developing, acquiring, and integrating the hardware for both the drone and the robotic dog. The drone is available, while the robotic dog should be completed this year.

"Although the platform operation will be essentially semi-automatic, meaning that the drone and robotic dog can perform their tasks autonomously, humans will still have control over their activities. Rescuers will be able to monitor and intervene in the process if the situation requires human intervention," added Ondřej Severa.

The three-year project, TRIFFID, aims to develop and test the technology during rescuers' field exercises and obtain the necessary data to train the artificial intelligence algorithms that will assist the rescuers.

The project has received funding from the European Union's Horizon Europe research and innovation program under grant agreement No. 101168042.