Smart Buildings
Do you ever wish you had more information about a structure fire before your resources are committed? Here is an idea called "smart buildings" that would make a huge impact on firefighting (from M&C Science and Nature).
WASHINGTON, DC, United States (UPI) -- 'Intelligent' building systems may someday allow U.S. firefighters and other first responders to better respond to emergencies....
The systems would send information such as building floor plans and data from motion, heat, biochemical and other sensors as well as video cameras directly to fire and police dispatchers who then could communicate detailed information about the scene to first responders.
This is definitely a step in the right direction. Why should the dispatchers be included in the loop? Why not just set things up so the firefighters themselves get the information directly from the building systems? That way, an extra communication step is removed. The fewer communication steps that are required, the fewer communication mistakes will be made.
