THEME 2
SureFire: Smart Urban Resilience and Firefighting
T22-505/19-N
Project Coordinator
Professor Asif Sohail USMANI
The Hong Kong Polytechnic University
Coordinating Institution
- The Hong Kong Polytechnic University
Participating Institution(s)
- The University of Hong Kong
- University College London
- Tsinghua University
- University of Edinburgh
Abstract
SureFire integrates smart building technology, state-of-the-art fire simulation, event library forecasting database (big-data) to develop an Artificial Intelligence (AI) based tool providing timely forecasts of critical events to assist firefighters in making informed decisions. A high-level framework divides the project into three work packages. Through Digital Twin, SureFire coordinates BIM and IoT technologies to dynamically project the physical world into the digital world. The system continuously monitors a building or other infrastructure facility, and the event of a fire engages the AI subsystem to begin generating forecasts and relays decision support information to fire crews and alerting them to probable critical events and the time and place they may occur.
Research Impact
The primary goal of the project is to develop tools for data-assisted critical event forecasting in a fire emergency. The tools can be used to support emergency response in real time. SureFire has the potential to revolutionise the practices of urban fire services to the benefit of the general public, improve the efficiency and effectiveness of firefighting, enhance the safety of fire fighters, and improve the day-to-day fire safety management of buildings and urban infrastructure. Faculty of Construction and Environment, PolyU made an Impact Case Study video to showcase the SureFire project. It is one of the seven most impactful Sustainable Urban Development and Smart City researches.
The project team is collaborating with a local start-up company, RaSpect Intelligence Inspection Limited, to apply for the Innovation and Technology Fund (ITF) project together and commercialize the device and systems proposed in the project. The project has led to two start-up companies, one focuses on the smart dynamic exit signage system powered by SureFire forecast engine, and the other focuses on the autonomous robotic firefighting driven by SureFire system. The research has resulted in 7 patents to date.
The Hong Kong Polytechnic University
Professor Asif USMANI is Chair Professor and head of Department of Building Environment and Energy Engineering (BEEE). Professor USMANI is Project Coordinator (PC) for SureFire. His research focuses on understanding the thermo-mechanical behaviour of civil infrastructure in real fires using analytical and computational approaches validated with experimental data. The aim is to enable current practice to move on from prescriptive design of structural fire resistance by developing new and rational design methods in which realistic representations of demand (fire hazard) are set against scientifically robust estimates of structural capacity in order to ensure reliable performance. His research output includes over 200 peer-reviewed publications, authored and edited books, and many technical reports. He has obtained research grants in excess of HK$100 million, including the Research Grants Council (RGC) funding for SureFire.