3D Simulation to Validate Autonomous Intervention Systems Architecture for Disaster Management

The use of autonomous robots either on the ground (i.e., Rover) or flying (i.e., Drone) constitutes a major progress in the support of a crisis. To work properly and to reach the desired level of autonomy, they have to be correctly configured though. Indeed, errors on robot configuration can lead to imprecise or erroneous data and, consequently, erroneous decisions can result from them. Before the beginning of the mission, it is important also to achieve a strong level of confidence about the usage of the sensors (for example, LIDARs) with respect to the context of the mission. Many aspects of these validations cannot be performed during the mission, for example verifying the behaviour of a rover following a strong collision with an external actor (such as debris) that can potentially damage or break some components. Moreover, during a real mission it is not always possible making huge modifications in the system configuration. In this respect, simulating the behaviour of the system in a virtual environment, similar to the real physical world, can constitute a good validation approach before the mission. These simulations allow to validate the behaviour and the configuration of the system as well as the most appropriate equipment of it.