Final Report Summary - TALOS (Transportable Autonomous patrol for Land bOrder Surveillance)
Executive Summary:
TALOS is an international research project co-funded from EU 7th Framework Programme funds in Security priority. The main objective of TALOS project was to develop and field test the innovative concept of a mobile, autonomous system for protecting European land borders. The conventional border protection systems are based mainly on expensive ground facilities installed along the entire length of the border complemented by human patrols. The system demonstrator developed within the TALOS project shows capabilities of being more versatile, efficient and flexible.
The complete system applies both aerial and ground unmanned vehicles, supervised by command and control centre. The ground platforms are both the watching stations and the first reaction patrols, which will inform the Control and Command Centre and an illegal immigrant about her/his situation, and undertake the proper measures to stop the illegal action almost autonomously with supervision of Border Guard Officers. It shall be emphasised that no other action than observing and detecting illegal entry attempts have been taken by vehicles, thus there is no risk to human health and life.
The most important features of the system are scalability, autonomous operation, mobility, adaptability and modular construction. Through its flexibility it should be easy to adjust the system to the local requirements such as border length and topographic conditions. Important role in the project is given to Border Guards from countries with EU external land border and FRONTEX agency in order to tailor system to end user needs and requirements.
TALOS project consortium gathered adequate resources to face the challenge. The system has been developed by experts working for 14 institutions from 8 EU member states (Belgium, Estonia, Finland, France, Greece, Poland, Romania, Spain) as well as 1 EU candidate (Turkey) and 1 associated country (Israel). A wide range of the necessary competencies has been ensured by composing the consortium of industrial companies, research institutions, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and a technical university. Project budget summed up to nearly 20 million Euro, 13 million of which has been granted by the EC.
Main scientific and technological results were achieved in three basic TALOS subsystems - communication, Command & Control and UGV subsystem. Communication subsystem consisted of a new network architecture based on two types of building blocks (or types of network nodes): the TALOS Base Stations (TLS) and TALOS Remote Stations (TLR). It also included the study and simulation of robust and scalable algorithms for the construction of a heterogeneous topology network, for cooperative access and routing, cooperating data forwarding and signalling mechanisms. It has been confirmed that mobile WiMax technology in this application provides good performance in terms of coverage, capacity and latency and developed communication architecture allows proper planning, monitoring and control of the mission with a high degree of autonomy and very low intervention from the Commander/Operator. C&C subsystem consisted of Commander OCU, Operator OCU, UAV simulator, Static Sensor Tower simulator and 3D Maps/Terrain Model Generation Station installed in a single shelter. It has been proved that one operator can supervise two UGVs and cooperation between UGV and UAV systems can be performed through single C&C unit. In UGV subsystem main scientific work was done around following technological gaps - localization without GPS, traversability and path planning, UGV sensors data fusion, autonomous behaviour capability. During the TALOS system development, a significant progress has been made on most of the technological challenges. The system was successfully demonstrated, showing autonomous behaviour, path planning, low level control and sensors fusion. However, there are still challenges to deal with mainly in terms of further development of algorithms for navigation without GPS or SLAM.
TALOS project is influencing European research by contributing to the exploration of the field of robotic perception (sensors processing / fusion), multi robot command and control as well as mobile communication. It is also promoting research in other fields: mapping and localization, artificial intelligence, low level vehicle control and robotic navigation.
Project Context and Objectives:
The overall goal of the TALOS project was to prove the concept of a land border surveillance system based on unmanned vehicles by developing, testing and validating the technology demonstrator of the system.
Character of the eastern border of the European Union (EU) has changed diametrically in consequence of the EU extension in the recent years, when more than 10 countries, mainly from Central and Eastern Europe, have joined the Union. Nature of the new external EU border differs from the one before the accession. The frontier in its current shape extends between Finland in the North and Bulgaria in the South of Europe. It is diversified with regard to topographic characteristics, climatic conditions, as well as probability of occurrence and intensity of illegal activities. The borders of new member states, shared with the former Soviet Union countries, are particularly exposed to illicit trafficking. This part of the eastern EU frontier is a buffer between the relative prosperity of the West and the poverty of the former Soviet Republics. The average salaries on its West side are much higher than the ones on the East side. The border might be used as the Union’s backdoor for illegal immigration and as an area of illicit activities, such as human trafficking and smuggling. European Union is aware of the challenges created by the new frontier. Border security mission is one of the priority security missions recognized by the European Security Research Advisory Board (ESRAB) and European Commission. FRONTEX with its headquarters in the capital of Poland is one of the agencies that were established in order to co-ordinate EU activities related with border protection. EUROSUR (European Surveillance System for Borders) is another initiative aimed at preventing and counteracting the illegal immigration.
Transportable Adaptable Patrol for Land Border Surveillance (TALOS) is a robotic system that addresses the problems of surveillance of the large land border areas, which is one of the capabilities critical for the border security mission recognized by the European Commission. The aim of TALOS was to help in detecting, tracking and preventing persons from crossing the land border illegally between the border crossing points. Its goals were in line with the concept of European Surveillance System for Borders (EUROSUR) and conclusions of the European Security Research Advisory Board (ESRAB). A prototype of the TALOS system, serving as a proof-of-concept, was designed, developed, tested and validated in a research project under the 7th EU Framework Programme.
To meet the requirements connected with the diversified nature of the Eastern EU land border, the system should have been adaptable, transportable and scalable. Designed TALOS system has these features thanks to use of mobile unmanned vehicles instead of a fixed surveillance infrastructure (sensor stations and fences). The vehicles are equipped with detection and observation sensors, controlled from a transportable command centre and supported by own independent wireless communication subsystem. They follow patrol routes defined by the officers in command centre and use sensors to detect activity within the border area. The officers are notified about each detection and are provided with the capability to observe the detected activity. Having gained the situational awareness the officers decide if the observed activity has to be interrupted. If so, a border guards patrol are dispatched and a specialized vehicle supports the apprehension. Overall TALOS concept is presented on Figure 1.
The main benefits of this approach are:
• Transportability of the system – initiatives like CRATE (Centralized Record of Available Technical Equipment) and RABIT (Rapid Border Intervention Teams) have shown that EU member states are ready for sharing the equipment and personnel for border surveillance in case of emergency. TALOS system can be used in the same manner. The possibility of deployment in distant mission areas, unavailable in case of systems based on static infrastructure, give chance to effective utilization of the system.
• Adaptability of the system – the intended versatility of the system demanded a design, which allows the high degree of adaptability, with regard to topographic conditions, intensity and probability of illegal operations in the border section. TALOS system is easily configurable to meet the requirements of a particular mission area, by selecting an accordant set of unmanned vehicles to be deployed. Selection of number and configuration of the vehicles provide adaptability both to the length of the border section and the specific of illicit activity. Availability of different types of unmanned platforms enables the maximum adaptation to the terrain conditions. The system can also be scaled on a higher level of command, by adjusting the number of Unmanned Unit Command Centres, supervising and controlling the operation of unmanned units, and commanded by a transportable Theatre Command Centre;
• Semi-autonomous operation – autonomy of the vehicles patrolling the border is the key success factor of the concept behind the TALOS system. A system can be used for effective surveillance of large areas only when a minimum engagement of the operator is ensured. This is connected with the effectiveness of the system, both in terms of engagement of human resources and economy. Autonomy of the Unmanned Ground Vehicles (UGVs) in TALOS system was a particular challenge. The vehicles are going to operate in a complex and variable environment. To meet this challenge vehicles use precise terrain models, laser scanners and state of the art navigation modules.
While introducing advantages over systems based on static infrastructure (fences and static sensors) TALOS aimed to maintain their high effectiveness. The system should allow the Border Guards to react to trespassing within minutes. The vehicles can engage or trace illegal immigrant before the arrival of manned forces. This ensures the person not being left unattended since he/she has been detected by the sensors.
TALOS architecture
Demonstrator of the system is composed of the Unmanned Unit Command Centre (UUCC) and two Unmanned Ground Vehicles (UGVs). Unmanned Air Vehicle (UAV) and transportable Sensor Tower will be integrated into the system in future. In the first phase of the project communication with these elements has been simulated. Proposed architecture of the TALOS system is presented on Figure 2.
The Unmanned Units Command Centre (UUCC) is used to control and monitor the operation of the Unmanned Units. Mission commander and operators of the unmanned vehicles are seated at the Operator Control Units (OCUs). These allow Border Guard officers to plan the surveillance mission, control the vehicles and provide also an operational awareness in the mission area. The commander is presented with a visualization of the mission area, including position of the system elements, patrol routes and data from all the sensors, on different map layers. Personnel operating the UGV’s and UAV’s OCUs have the possibility of viewing the information from sensors carried by the vehicles, as well as planning vehicle routes and operating the vehicles manually.
Commands and data flow between the command centre and system’s end units are ensured by the communication network. Wireless network for TALOS system is implemented in MESH architecture. The main goal of its design is the network reliability, which is crucial to the whole system’s performance.
Unmanned Ground Vehicles (UGVs) were designed to constantly patrol the border section. Vehicles are equipped with long-range detectors of moving vehicles and people, as well as sensors allowing the operator to recognize the detected subjects. They are controlled from the UUCC: either ‘driven’ by the operator, using a steering wheel, pedals and joysticks or, in semi-autonomous mode of operation, being ordered to drive from one point in the mission area to another without ‘hands-on control’. The latter was made possible owing to state-of-the-art navigation systems and advanced mechanisms of obstacle detection and avoiding.
Two types of vehicles have been implemented: the Observer, used for patrolling the given section, and the Interceptor, used for engaging the illegal immigrant before arrival of the Border Patrol. The Interceptor enables communication of the operator with the trespasser by means of a microphone and loudspeaker.
Unmanned Air Vehicle (UAV) will be responsible for the aerial surveillance and can be used as communication node in particular situations. The TALOS demonstrator does not contain the UAV. In order to make TALOS system ready for future UAV integration, the interaction of UAV OCU (console for UAV management) with other subsystems has been simulated by the computer in UUCC.
Sensor Towers can be deployed in places requiring ceaseless surveillance 24/7, or in places not accessible to the vehicles. The towers can be used both for sensor placement and as communication nodes. They can be transportable together with the whole system. In the 1st phase of TALOS, data flow between the towers and other subsystems were simulated. The towers will be implemented in future project phases.
Innovation Aspects
The main innovation that the consortium introduced in TALOS multidisciplinary project are as follows:
• Scalability - its ability to easily change the system scale due to changes in the requirements and local conditions such as border size, topography, density of surveillance elements etc. Another system feature is its adaptability behaviour, changes in the security scenario of a specific border or area, due to new intelligence information or update in immigrant’s behaviour, threat assessment, designated means, etc.
• Autonomous capability based on sets of rules (artificial intelligence) - programmed in the computers of the UGV's and the Command & Control system. This sets of rules are actually a translation of procedures used by the border guards in the daily routine and emergency operations. These rules should be modified from time to time, to adapt the system to the new tactics.
• Mobility/transportability - The whole system is easily transportable installed in standard containers (20 ft and 40 ft), transported on trailers for fast deployment in selected border zones (according to intelligence). The system can move in convoys to the designated location, where possible (ground access), can be airlifted by helicopters to locations not accessible and is transportable by air in C-130 aircraft (or alike) to provide air deployment, within the country and between countries, all over Europe. The Command Centres, the UGVs and UAVs are being installed in containers and mounted on trailers, the Sensor Towers (transmitters), are also mounted on trailers. Once reaching the designated deployment area, the trailers are disconnected from the towing Trucks, located, fixed in place, levelled etc., and system components are connected with all the necessary command cables, power supply cables, support equipment, etc.
• Tactical Learning/Adaptation behaviour - During development process, system was adapted to local operational requirements, operators were consulted, and their needs implemented in system mission planning module. The TALOS system is designed having Man-in-the-Loop. It enables voice engagement of the immigrant. System uses adaptive artificial intelligence to implement various tactical techniques, in the specific patrol scenario, area of operation, border topography, etc.
• No need for fixed infrastructure or fences - TALOS system owing to its mobility and transportability do not require any fixed infrastructure. Sensors and cameras can be installed on UGVs. All UGVs and UAVs, including their supply and maintenance equipment are or will be stored in their own containers, as well as all crew equipment, dormitories, kitchen, toilets, supplies etc. After deployment, the containers can be camouflaged, and from there platforms can be launched to perform surveillance tasks (automatically) and return for refuelling, servicing and maintenance.
• Enables response to an illegal entry attempt in minutes - system will respond to an illegal entry attempt in the matter of minutes, not hours.
• Usage of "green" energy - the energy in remote locations (where it is impossible to connect to standard power lines) could be coming from the natural sources e.g. solar panels (sunny area), wind towers (windy area), water wheels (near to rivers). At the demonstration the generators were used while none other sources of energy were available.
Project Results:
TALOS project scientific and technological goals has been set in three main technological work packages, that developed simultaneously three main subsystems of TALOS project. This are:
• Work package 4 – Communication Subsystem
• Work package 5 - C&C Subsystem
• Work package 6 - UGV Subsystem
Although the final project results were obtained by integration and demonstration of developed subsystems according to previously specified requirements and architectural design, the scientific and technologic achievements has been obtained within the core work packages itself. It is noteworthy that the innovative efforts in technological domain has been limited by the objectives and requirements resulting from both initial description of work and ongoing cooperation with end-users representatives.
Communication Subsystem
Objectives for the communications subsystem
The main objective proposed in the description of work for the communications subsystem work package was to design, implement, integrate and test the communications subsystem for the TALOS system. This objective included the proposal of a new network architecture based on two types of building blocks (or types of network nodes): the TALOS Base Stations (TLS) and TALOS Remote Stations (TLR). The objective also included the study and simulation of robust and scalable algorithms for the construction of a heterogeneous topology network, for cooperative access and routing, cooperating data forwarding and signalling mechanisms. It is important to clearly differentiate between the TALOS final system (Target System) and the part that has been implemented for the demonstration (Demo System). Since during the phase I of the TALOS project only three communications nodes have been implemented (the UUCC and two UGVs), they are directly connected and routing and mesh protocols development have a low impact on the performance of this communications network. The scope of the work done in the design and implementation of the TALOS Demo Communications Subsystem has followed a more practical approach, while the scope of the work regarding the TALOS Target System (mesh network and heterogeneous topology) has followed a more theoretical approach, studying in depth the available technologies and performing simulations.
High level architecture description
The infrastructure of the TALOS communications systems is based on several local area networks (LANs) connected through wireless links and forming an Heterogeneous Wireless Network (HWN), the TALOS network (TALOSNet). Each node of the TALOSNet contains a LAN: UGV, UAV, Static Sensor Tower, Unmanned Unit Command Centre, Theatre Command Centre and Headquarters. At the end of the demonstration phase of the project, only the following nodes have been implemented: patroller/interceptor UGV, observer UGV, Unmanned Unit Command Centre (UUCC) and escort vehicle. Each of them will have a local network (UUCCLAN and UGVLAN), and the communication among them is redundant, with three different subsystems (networks) wirelessly connecting the nodes: primary system, backup system and safety system. Each of them is based on a different technology and a communications control subsystem decides which subsystem to use depending on the scenario conditions: lost of coverage, emergency situation, etc. The proper configuration of the switches that control each LAN has been a key point in the success of the network switching scheme. For the hardware part of the communications subsystem, COTS components (transceivers, antennas, encoders, etc) have been used, reducing as much as possible the development of hardware equipment. On the other hand, the software part of the communications subsystem is mainly composed of modules specially designed and implemented for the TALOS project.
Primary Communications subsystem
The primary communications subsystem is based on the WiMAX technology. This technology, in its 802-16e specification (Mobile WiMAX) supports mobile communications in a Non-Line Of Sight environment, which is appropriate for the TALOS scenarios. It offers enough bandwidth for the data that needs to be transmitted: up to four video channels; two data channels with radar, UGV and commands/mission information; and two voice channels. A commercial Base Station from manufacturer Alvarion has been used, operating in the 3.5 GHz bandwidth. The main challenge with this subsystem was the proper configuration of the base station and UGV terminal equipment. The WiMAX Mobile architecture is initially intended to provide high capacity in the downlink, but we have managed to configure it in a way that allows greater capacity in the uplink, required for transmitting the video and payload data from the UGVs to the UUCC. Also proper configuration has been established for providing multicast support, allowing to see the video streaming on several computers in the shelter while minimizing the load of the datalink and maintaining the Quality of Service Parameters, specially the latency, which is critical for teleoperation of the vehicles.
Backup Communications subsystem
For the Backup Communications Subsystem the CDMA@450 cellular network infrastructure provided by TP (Orange Labs) has been used. The advantage of using this network is that it complements well the characteristics of the primary subsystem, allowing to have coverage on areas where the primary subsystem shall fail. Theoretically, the performance specifications of this network shall be enough fulfil the requirements of the TALOS backup subsystem.
But in fact the use of this network has been very challenging. The first challenge comes from the fact that the network provides access to the public internet network. In order to provide secure and seamless connection between several LANs using the public part of the network, a complex architecture based on IPTunelling has been implemented, including support for multicast traffic encapsulation and data streams control and filtering. The second challenge comes from the usage of the commercial network of TP, which is operating normally with their customers. Both in the integration area and demo area, the load of the network was very high, and the capacity we had available was far from the maximum specified, and not enough for transmitting video. We have performed tests only with monitor and control traffic, which proves the viability of the architecture if the bandwidth is enough, but not with video traffic. One of the main issues to solve in next stages of the TALOS system development is to substitute this CDMA450 network by an alternative radio technology. Several options have already been considered and studied.
Safety Communications subsystem
The safety communications system has been used in the demo phase of the project for safety (not operational) purposes only. It links the UGVs with an escort vehicle so if the UGV lost control, the vehicle will be in charge of regaining control over the UGV or stopping it. Since the escort vehicle is close to the UGV, a low range technology has been used: standard WiFi modems and antennas (integrated in the modems), working on the 2.4GHz band, offering up to 54Mbps and a range in the few hundreds of meters. Emergency FM transceivers have been used for the effective stopping of the vehicles.
Switching and networking
The complete networking architecture is based on IP protocol, and standard Layer 2 switches have been used for the interconnection of equipment in the LANs. Those switches have some Layer 3 capabilities that have been enough for the proper configuration of the traffic routing in the Demo scenario. But due to the complexity of the network and the required routing capabilities, it is recommended to substitute those switches by full layer 3 routers in the next stages of development of the TALOS system.
Communications Monitoring and Control Software
The other big task of the work performed in the communications subsystem has been the development and integration of the different modules that compose the Communications Software. This software can be divided, taking into account its main purpose, into three main blocks:
- Planning/Simulation: The NPT tool developed by VTT has been tailored to fit the TALOS needs, including the simulation of coverage areas for different radio technologies in a preoperational stage, providing coverage raster maps that can be included in the database and used in the mission planning. The tool also includes the capability to obtain real time measurements of the QoS parameters from the vehicles, which helps to improve the simulation models and predict in real time coverage changes.
- Monitoring: several modules have been developed, by VTT and TTI, for monitoring in real time the performance of the network in use. This info is distributed to other modules which use it for effective controlling the network.
- Control: the modules in this block have been in charge of the proper configuration and control of the network, making the handover and transition from primary to backup network according to the monitored parameters as well as the coverage predictions from the planning tool.
The main challenge has been the coordination for the development and integration of the different modules by different partners (mainly VTT and TTI) as well as the access to the performance data from several sources and hardware equipment. This has implied the development of an ad-hoc protocol for the exchanging of information of the different modules.
Conclusions
The main conclusions of the technological results obtained during the project in the communications area are the following:
• The Mobile WiMAX technology is suitable as primary communications subsystem of the proposed architecture, with good performance in terms of coverage, capacity and latency.
• The CDMA450 technology may be suitable as backup communications subsystem, but the use of a commercial cellular network is not acceptable as performance cannot be guaranteed in terms of capacity and latency.
• The networking, switching and routing configuration is critical in the proper operation of the communications subsystem, and layer 3 routers are preferred over layer 2 switches for this task.
• The developed software allows proper planning, monitoring and control of the mission from the communications point of view, with a high degree of autonomy and very low intervention from the Commander/Operator.
C&C Subsystem
Objectives for the Command and Control (C&C) subsystem
The objective stated in the description of work is to design, implement, integrate and test the Command and Control (C&C) subsystem for the TALOS system. In the 1st phase of the program, the aim is to develop Unmanned Unit Command Control which consists of Commander OCU, Operator OCU, UAV simulator, Static Sensor Tower simulator and 3D Maps/Terrain Model Generation Station installed in a single shelter. However, high level system design work is done for whole TALOS system.
C&C Subsystem Description
TALOS aims to use unmanned systems to support border guards’ operations with help following of functionalities provided by UCCC:
• Situational awareness of mission area
• Tactical map
• Surveillance
• Event notification / sensor track data
• Mission planning and execution
• Teleoperation of UGVs
• Remote control and status monitoring of unmanned systems and payloads/sensors
• Tasking of unmanned subsystems
• Logging and replay
• Transportable/mobile
The information gathered from unmanned systems is collected at UCCC, necessary actions are taken and the reports about the situation are transferred to higher levels in the hierarchy.
UCCC is the key node where border guards are interacting with TALOS system. There are two places for operators in UCCC: Commander OCU and Operator OCU. The key functionalities and differences are summarized below:
Commander OCU
• Mission Planning and Execution
• Operational area situational awareness
• UAV, Sensor Tower remote control / status monitoring
• UGV remote control / status monitoring
• Intrusion management using radar and detection sensors
• Operational area surveillance using visual sensors
Operator OCU
• Mission Planning and Execution
• Operational area situational awareness
• UGV teleoperation
• UGV remote control / status monitoring
• Intrusion management using radar and detection sensors
• Operational area surveillance using visual sensors
In result of Command and Control development in TALOS project following components has been provided:
UCCC Mission HW
• Commander and UGV Operator Control Unit (OCU) Console
• Simulators Computers
• 3D Maps/Terrain Model Generation Station
• World Model Knowledge Store (WMKS)
• Network Video Recorder (NVR)
• Communication Subsystem
UCCC Supporting HW
• Emergency Stop
• Real-Time Kinematics (RTK) GPS Reference Station
• Printer
• Power Generator
• UPS
• Antenna Mast
• Shelter
• Air Conditioning Unit
• Other Auxiliary Equipments
C&CCommander /UGV Operator Control Unit (OCU) Software
• Multimedia Component Software
• Tactical Map Component Software
• World Model Knowledge Store (WMKS) Software
• Operator/Message Logging-Replay Software
• Time Synchronization Software
• 3D Visualization and Terrain Map Generation Software
• UAV System Simulator Software
• Sensor Tower Simulator Software
Detailed Description of UCCC Functionalities
• Teleoperation
UGVs are able to be controlled from a distance. Operator OCU is able to control one unmanned system at a time. Since the Operator OCU is responsible of multiple unmanned systems, the operator is able to switch teleoperation between these systems.
• Remote Control
Remote control is the activity of controlling an unmanned system and the payloads (i.e. radar, electro-optic sensors, acoustic sensors, etc.) from remote (C4I), other than teleoperation. Remote control includes the configuration of a payload, direction of a sensor, zooming in and out of an electro-optic sensor, control data mode, etc. Commander OCU and Operator OCU control the payloads on the UGV at a fixed location or on the move according to the operational requirements.
• Status Monitoring
Status monitoring is the activity of periodic information update from the unmanned units and payloads/sensors to the UCCC. Status monitoring is the¬ opposite of Remote Control in the context of data flow; e.g. Status information can be general information such as location of unmanned units or device specific information presented to both Commander OCU and Operator OCU.
• Observation
Both Commander OCU and Operator OCU in the UCCC are able to observe the border area using the sensors on Unmanned Units. Sensor data is supplied to the UCCC for intrusion detection by means of a communication infrastructure, which requires supporting high data rates communication such as video, audio, etc.
• Multi-Unit Operation
A border sector may contain more than one unmanned unit. Since Operator OCU is able to teleoperate only a single unmanned unit at a time, switching between unmanned units is possible. Switching between operators and unmanned units are smooth not to loose control of unmanned unit during switching. A single operator may monitor more than one unmanned unit.
• Logging / Replay
The sensors data is stored at C4I level. The previously received sensor data arrived from UGV/UAV and static sensor towers are stored in C4I to be used later.
• Transportability / Deployment
Transportability/Deployment is the concept of displacement and installation capability of a system. UUCC is designed to be transported with standard shelter.
• Interoperability
IP protocol is used as the network infrastructure. JAUS protocol is used at application level for interoperability between system nodes (i.e. UCCC, UGV etc). Components & ICD are defined in accordance with the JAUS standard where applicable.
Functional nodes of the TALOS project are defined in accordance with the JAUS standard as JAUS subsystems, nodes or components. The communication between these nodes complies with JUDP (JAUS UDP) standard.
• GIS
There are some GIS utilities used for spatial analysis. These utilities are shown below:
o Import/Export of GIS data in standard format
o Line of sight (LOS) analysis
o Distance measurement
o Cross section analysis
o Highest point analysis
o Filter mechanism (Layer management)
o Interactive graphic editing (Addition, deletion, moving and changing the geographic position of features)
o 3D Image visualization
Results of GIS analysis are shown on the tactical map. GIS is capable of handling high resolutions maps displayed on one or more screens.
• Tactical Map
Tactical map data includes static geographical properties such as elevation data, obstacle data, and vector data such as routes, waypoints and areas (forbidden zones, etc.). Data can be entered, updated or deleted manually or can be obtained from other external sources such as unmanned units.
Tactical map also includes dynamic data such as position, direction, speed of intruders and unmanned units. Information about the intruders is supplied by the UGV or is entered manually by the operator with the help of observation cameras. Position history of intruders and system components is logged and displayed on tactical map. In case of losing the intruders, the track history that is kept can be displayed on the operator screen and according to the last speed information of the intruder a circle is marked that shows the possible intruder location.
Triggers can be defined on the map for specific areas (e.g. forbidden zones, endangered area, etc.) on the tactical map. If the trigger is activated (e.g. UGV enters forbidden zone) the operator is alerted.
Data displayed on the tactical map can be filtered, i.e. friendly units only, intruders only, etc., by the operator for better evaluating the situation.
Paths used mostly by the intruders can be marked by the commander on the tactical map. Also system can log the track history of the intruder paths during operation and display the track history if required.
• Terrain Map
The terrain map is composed from existing map data which is updated and complemented from high resolution satellite imagery (0.5 meter resolution, vegetation layer also from 5 - 10 meter resolution satellite imagery). Recent aerial imagery and laser scanning data is used whenever available. The terrain map is updated also from UGV sensor information and ground measurements.
The terrain map consists of the following layers:
o Elevation model
o Road network
o Buildings
o Water areas, lakes and rivers
o Vegetation layer, including height of vegetation: lawns, agricultural areas
o Stand wise forest parameters for dense forest: mean density of forest , mean height of trees, mean tree type proportion (coniferous /deciduous)
o Single tree parameters for passable forest: tree type (coniferous/deciduous), height, diameter
o Soil type
o Environmental elements: natural monuments, animal's habitat, water sources, natural/wildlife reserve,
o Fences
o Endangered areas
The terrain map data is collected using standard GIS formats and stored in a standard GIS database (some well known spatial databases are ESRI ArcGIS, PostGIS, etc.)
In addition to the map layers, the visualisation database includes mobile real time data:
o Unmanned units locations
o Sensor locations
o Patrolling routes
o Planned routes
o UGV fuelling facilities, C4I trailers, other static BG posts
o Real time imagery and measurements from UGV/UAV and static towers
Part of the mobile data will be transferred also into the main GIS database.
• Mission Planning
Mission planning is performed by the Commander OCU. A mission consists of multiple tasks. A task consists of one or more actions performed by one unmanned unit. Commander OCU and Operator OCU are informed about the maximum time of continuous movement of the Observing Unit and Patrolling/Intercepting Unit by the help of planned path and average fuel consumption.
• Mission Execution
Mission execution is the activity of executing a planned mission. Missions consist of tasks which can be executed in sequence or in parallel. These tasks have to have a clear definition of its starting and ending conditions. Mission assignment, mission status update and mission reporting capabilities are supported by the messaging infrastructure.
• Mission Rehearsal
Mission rehearsal is the activity of validating the planned mission. Rehearsal gives feedback to the operator about the duration of the mission, sufficiency of the resources etc. to complete the mission.
• Reporting
Reporting is the activity of supplying mission specific information to a higher level of command. In TALOS system, reporting is identified between unmanned units to UUCC, UUCC to Theatre Command Center and Theatre Command Center to Headquarter.
Reporting is performed by the unmanned units during task execution (obstacles, intruders, events) and after each task completion (mission report). The difference between status monitoring and reporting is that status monitoring includes more device specific information where reporting includes mission specific information.
Conclusions
The main conclusions of the technological results obtained during the project in the command and control area are the following:
• The idea of two OCU configured to be operated by commander and operator has proven its possibility to follow the protocol and procedures whereas all functionalities and easy to use common interface is provided.
• Data sharing and gathering techniques are intensively helping with planning, commanding and operating complicated robotic system like TALOS.
• Developed system is possible to integrate into existing data sharing and commending techniques as well as into existing procedures of Borders Guards routine.
• The developed software allows proper planning, monitoring and control of the mission from the commander and operator point of view, with a high degree of autonomy letting he Commander and Operator to work in a comfortable way.
UGV Subsystem
Objectives for the UGV subsystem
The main objective proposed in the description of work for the Unmanned Ground Vehicle (UGV) subsystem work package was to design, implement, integrate and test the UGV subsystem for the TALOS system.
The second objective was to designed, implement, integrate and test different system modules, such as mapping, localization, path planning, low level control and payloads.
It is important to clearly differentiate between the TALOS final system (Target System) and the part that has been implemented for the demonstration (Demo System).
The scope of the work done in the design and implementation of the TALOS Demo UGV Subsystem has followed a more practical approach, while the scope of the work regarding the TALOS Target System has followed a more theoretical approach, studying in depth the available technologies and performing simulations.
The project was facing the following technical gaps :
• Localization without GPS
• Traversability and path planning
• UGV sensors data fusion
• Autonomous behaviour capability
UGV Subsystem Description
Two Unmanned Ground Vehicles were developed and used in the TALOS System Demonstrator to provide the reliable information on the application of autonomous platforms for border line protection.
The UGV subsystem is composed of a tracked platform of high mobility, integrated with a set of payloads, allowing it to perform autonomously the tasks assigned by the operator via the UUCC operator panels. The payloads for both vehicles include:
1. High and low level computers, responsible for steering the platform, controlling the sensors and executing autonomous mission;
2. Navigation devices, primarily based on precise Global Positioning System (DGPS, RTK) providing horizontal accuracy (RMS) of 0.01 m, that is aided by Inertial Navigation System (INS) providing in real time the attitude, azimuth and velocities of the vehicle, as well as acceleration and angular rates in three axes;
3. 3D laser scanner, with a 360 degrees horizontal field-of-view and a 26.8 degrees vertical field-of-view, providing environmental mapping used for obstacle avoidance;
4. Safety sensor, ie. laser scanner located on the front-side of the vehicle to prevent the UGV from colliding with dynamic obstacles;
5. Driving sensor, ie. day/night camera installed on a two axis pan/tilt platform, additionally allowing to detect and support recognition of the objects.
The vehicles were differed, according to the TALOS system design into two roles: Observer and Patroller/Interceptor. Both of the vehicles were based on the same platform: TAGS vehicle. The difference is in some of the payloads and capabilities resulting thereof.
• UGV Observer
UGV Observer role is to monitor the area under observation (near border line), to detect objects (people or vehicles) trying to illegally cross the border, track them and provide the accurate data to the Border Guards system operators, sufficient to early recognize the threat.
The Observer has the following specific payloads:
• Surveillance Camera – MiniPOP – day and night camera with high zooming capability, visual tracking and precise control. Provides sufficient data to recognize a person/vehicle from a long distance (over 1 km).
• Radar– A Doppler radar, to detect moving objects in the scanning area. It can easily detect people or vehicles.
• UGV Interceptor
Role of the UGV Interceptor is to track and interrogate people trying to illegally cross the border. That mission is enabling UGV Observer to continue scanning of the area under observation. Owing to that capability the TALOS system is not vulnerable for multiple threats at the same time.
The Interceptor has the following specific payloads:
• Interrogation System – composed of a microphone and a loud speaker, allowing the communication with the individual recognized as suspicious by the operators, until the manned patrol arrives.
High level architecture description
The UGV subsystem was built according to the following guidelines:
• JAUS Compliance
The system architecture design is based on JAUS reference architecture framework and follows its rules.
• UGV interchangeability
UGVs designed to be convertible from one type to another (observer to patroller/interceptor and vice versa).
• Open Architecture
The UGV system architecture provides an open and flexible design in order to support future growth and changes. Examples of that may be changing/adding external sensors without the need in changing internal interfaces, changing in algorithms without affecting software design etc.
• Three Layer Architecture
The UGV architecture is based on 3-level architecture concept.
Each layer involves a sensory/data interpretation component, a world model, and a planning/control component.
In addition to the population of world models by sensor and external data, world model information flows upward in the model hierarchy and it is abstracted and/or reduced in precision as a result.
Command information flows downward and is elaborated and increased in precision as a result. Each layer has its own dedicated source of information, which is unknown below it. Each layer influences the behaviour of a single contended resource—the vehicle—through such mechanisms as:
• Hierarchical control: lower levels elaborate and follow higher level commands;
• Arbitration: deliberative elements must resolve disagreements arising from conflicting simultaneous goals such as obstacle avoidance and waypoint seeking;
• Exception handling: faster elements deal with exceptions quickly and propagate them upward.
When higher layers are present, they provide commands, which are elaborated and executed by lower layers. However, each layer has the capacity to control the vehicle independent of the layers above it to generate respectively the behaviours of (dense) waypoint following, obstacle avoidance, and global path planning. Each layer has the authority to ignore the commands passed to it in order to respond quickly to an exception or emergency.
Vehicle autonomous control
In order to perform autonomous control, the Sub-System Commander component has been developed. It performs the following tasks:
• UGV Control
• Emergency control
• Mission Management
The Subsystem Commander is able to receive high-level missions from C2 and perform them autonomously, according to the applicable rules/constrains. It builds the mission plan that parses the missions to UGV components. It activates all needed subsystems according to the mission objectives at any given time.
The SSC detailed functions are:
• Preparing the UGV components for the mission to be executed
• Running the system processes that realize the mission
• Handling exceptions during the mission execution
• Mission advance control
• Mission constrains management - for example, lowering the maximum velocity due to certain pre-programmed conditions, such as GPS blackouts or critical system failures
• Reports Handling - preparing and sending reports to C2.
Localization
For the UGV localization, the "Method and system for automatically guiding an unmanned vehicle", European patent EP 1 899 778 B1 is used.
The method is based on determining vehicle position by navigation sensors fusion – inertial navigation system, DGPS and odometers.
During TALOS UGV development, numerous changes and improvements were made to the original algorithm.
Mapping
During TALOS UGV development, a real time data fusion module was developed. The module receives and processes mapping sensors raw data to create a "Logical Sensor Maps" and then combines them to a one unified map. Two laser mapping sensors were used - 3D Velodyne HDL-64E laser range finder and IBEO LUX laser range finder.
Road detection algorithms were developed, since road detection is a pre-requisite for UGV. Before abiding traffic rules, even road recognition and obstacles avoidance is challenging, as there are many possible features defining roads, such as pavement (asphalt ) or road borders such as sidewalks, ditches, fences, vegetation or walls.
In addition, a lot of work has been done on SLAM algorithms, but they are still immature. IAI is continuing working on this issue in other projects and has achieved a significant progress.
Low Level Control
The Vehicle Control System (VCS) was developed by 'VTT Technical Research Center of Finland'. The VCS goal is to implement vehicle control.
The VCS consists of two components:
• Waypoint Driver
The Waypoint Driver is responsible for determining the actual trajectory and speed of the UGV during the movement. The optimization algorithm is used to minimize the curvature of the path while staying as close as possible to the waypoints in the local path.
• Primitive Driver
The Primitive Driver is responsible for interface with the UGV mechanical systems.
Path Planning
UGV has two planning systems – global and local.
The global path planning is based on expert system, which has the ability to analyze the following parameters in order to create a global path:
• Area topography
• Mobility limitations (vehicle kinematics and dynamics)
• Vehicle traversability (mobility due to ground conditions)
• Environmental conditions (weather, visibility...)
The local planning system is able to plan and update in real time the actual vehicle path. The global path plan have to be adapted to changes that occur in the environment (e.g. detection of obstacles not previously stored in the World Model), errors in the position and orientation of the vehicle (off-plan drift), the presence of smooth areas not explicitly represented in the road network, and the like. For reasons such as these, the a priori plan must be under constant scrutiny to determine whether and how it must be updated.
The goal of the local path planner is to enable the UGV to drive at maximal possible speed while avoiding obstacles and staying inside the global path plan corridor.
The concept of its operation is as following:
o Combining the global path waypoints that are in close proximity of the vehicle, the Environmental Map and the actual road center and boundaries
o Combining close obstacles (that UGV can not pass between them) to one obstacle
o Looking for areas, which indicate the collision of a path segment to be driven by the vehicle with newly found obstacles
o Once a potential collision course is detected, executing a dynamic (re)planning process that attempts to rapidly replace an appropriate number of pre-planned path waypoints with a new set of path waypoints that:
o Avoids the obstacle (takes into account clearance issues with potential obstacles)
o Traversable by the vehicle
o Is legally drivable by the vehicle (subject to several kinematics and dynamic constraints including maximum lateral acceleration, maximum steering angle, maximum steering rate and maximum deceleration
o Reconnects with the pre-planned route as soon as practical
o Never takes the vehicle outside of the current boundary constraints
o Takes advantage of relevant a priori data (e.g. road network)
o Minimizes the performance cost of the new path segments
Conclusions
During the TALOS system development, a significant progress has been made on most of the technological challenges. The system has been developed from scratch and was successfully demonstrated, showing autonomous behaviour, path planning, low level control and sensors fusion. However, there are still challenges to deal with, such as SLAM. As stated above, IAI is working continuously to overcome said challenges and has made serious progress.
Potential Impact:
The project will make its main socio-economic impact through blazing a trial in application of the advanced robotic technologies not only in the security sector, but also in other branches of European industry. The approach adopted in the project provides a clear illustration of how robotic technology will allow the core and associated EU members to enhance both the skill set of their workforce, and improve overall productivity. In the proposed application it is possible to envisage the transition of assistance vehicle drivers into operators and high-level controllers of fleets of unmanned vehicles, thus facilitating an advance in their underlying competencies.
In the field of border security TALOS is paving the path to surveillance equipment of new generation. Systems based on the TALOS concept will not only be efficient, fast and reliable - TALOS is also another step on the way to cost effective security solutions. Cost effectiveness can be achieved by providing the capability of moving the system from one area of operation to another, and adapting it to the operational conditions existing there. Moreover, initiatives like CRATE (Centralized Record of Available Technical Equipment) and RABIT (Rapid Border Intervention Teams) have already shown that the EU member states are ready for sharing the equipment and personnel for border surveillance in case of emergency. TALOS is a solution to be used in the same manner. Although the project is research in its nature, the demonstration of its result, planned for the end of the project is expected to work as a catalytic agent for further development and implementation of systems based on the concept.
TALOS is influencing European research by contributing to the exploration of the field of robotic perception (sensors processing / fusion), multi robot command and control as well as mobile communication. It is also promoting research in other fields: mapping and localization, artificial intelligence, low level vehicle control and robotic navigation. The research will trigger spin-offs in the academic and industrial community. The prototype of the system will serve as a platform for introducing and evaluating new ideas. The demonstration will unveil technology gaps, thus it will enable to provide guidance for future research.
Main dissemination activities and exploitation results
TALOS webpage has been developed at the project beginning (2008) and updated regularly. In 2011 - after the recommendation from the EC - its layout and some parts of the content were modified, in order to stress the non-military character of the project.
Furthermore, project logo, diagrams or photographs illustrating and promoting the work of the project (including videos, etc…), as well as the list of all beneficiaries with the corresponding contact names can be submitted without any restriction.
A) TALOS logo - has been developed at the beginning of the project (2008)
B) TALOS leaflet - has been developed in two colour/content versions. 1st version was printed at the beginning of the project (2008). In 2011 - after the recommendation from EC the layout and some parts of the content were modified, in order to stress the non-military character of the project.
C) TALOS poster (roll-up) has also been developed in two colour/content versions. 1st version was printed at the beginning of the project (2008), for the purpose of the 1st Project Workshop with End-Users, and illustrated various project-related events (workshops, review meetings, conference stands etc.). In 2011 - after the recommendation from EC the layout and some parts of the content were modified, in order to stress the non-military character of the project.
D) TALOS dissemination movie
The dissemination movie has been developed in three basic versions and an additional one - in a form of a documentary.
First version of the dissemination movie was released in 2009, on the request of EC/REA representatives present at the first Project Review Meeting, to be shortly shown at the project stand during the SRC’09.
Second version was produced in 2011, according to recommendations from the Project Officer, in order to stress the non-military character of the project, and included the footage from the EUAB 8/3rd Workshop meeting, which covered the Demo in field presentation.
Third version has been produced as the final one at the end of the project.
Along with the third version a documentary version has also been produced, in order to show the project history and project works in a more detail.
E) List of all beneficiaries with the corresponding contact names
Use and dissemination of foreground
According to Description of Work the Exploitation and Dissemination Plan was prepared at M30. TALOS is an integrated project, so at this stage of the project execution the Partners had already the clear view of prospective project results exploitation and dissemination.
During the whole project duration the public awareness of project status and prospects was achieved by updated web page and project presentations at various conferences, meetings and other fora. Two movies of project concepts and results were prepared and distributed among interested entities and placed on the project web site.
The project scientific results were presented at three important conferences: NavSup 2010, EuroGNC 2011 and EuroNav 2012. There was one paper published in referenced journal, and at least two are planned to be published based on the latest conference presentations. The Consortium presented system capabilities at two filed demonstrations for End User Advisory Board and other interested audience. The demonstrations proved the system existing capabilities and gave opportunities for discussing further developments and extension of applications. Many Partners declared further dissemination activities of project results after its completion.
The TALOS project offers a novel, innovative concept for border protection, based on autonomous ground and air vehicles, which will pave the way for further research and implementation of the system. The main features of the TALOS system are adaptability, scalability, transportability, semi-autonomous operation and autonomy from logistic point of view. The system may be deployed in any type of land border with and without ground infrastructure. The scalability allows to tailor the system to the type of terrain and the size of the protected area.
The trans European dimension of the project is reflected by the Consortium composition, which groups the research teams from countries from the “old EU”, like Belgium, Finland, France, Greece and Spain, “new EU”, like Estonia Poland and Romania and the “associated countries” like Israel and Turkey. Awareness of the TALOS project results in such a variety of countries makes good prospect for prospective commercialisation of the system.
TALOS system exploitation plan was based on the consortium expertise supported by End User Advisory Board (EUAB) and also by the opinions of other prospective users of the system met at various places, where TALOS system was presented. The respective Partners declared further use of project results in terms of commercially exploitable knowledge, improving scientific and technological quality, prospective product development. Also application of project results in education and in personnel skills development were envisioned.
Consortium is aware that complete TALOS system may be too complex solution for some of Border Guards across Europe. But the whole system and many technologies (subsystems or even specific solutions) developed in the TALOS project may be exploited by respective individually or in collaboration with other consortium members.
TALOS system is based on three main subsystems:
• Command, Control, Communication and Computer Centre (C4 ISR)
• Unmanned Platforms
• Communication.
The key challenges for C4 ISR subsystem in TALOS were coordination and control of different unmanned platforms. These required controlling and coordinating of data flow, effective planning based on open system architecture and well defined interfaces as well as use of 3D terrain models and maps.
In C4 ISR the examples of commercially exploitable knowledge are:
• Clock Synchronization Software (EBIC)
• 3D immersive visualization for complete situational awareness of unmanned systems (STM),
• Developing of add-ons and plug-ins for open-source GIS software to achieve new functionality and better integration (STM),
• Tree mapping from remote sensing imagery to realistic terrain visualisation and visibility calculations (VTT).
In terms of improving scientific and technological quality for C4 ISR Partners declared achieving
• Electro-optical and infrared (EO/IR) performance modelling and simulation (ONERA)
• Climatological / environmental impact studies on EO/IR sensors performances (ONERA)
• Optimization of advanced EO / IR sensors to meet customer requirements (ONERA)
• Tight integration with sensor data coming from unmanned systems (STM)
• Interface to JAUS middleware (STM)
• Improvements on easy of use characteristics of GIS tactical map module especially by giving a great situational awareness to the operator who also has a teleoperation responsibility (STM)
• Knowledge on patterns for more efficient data exchange between two distinct open source software namely WorldWind and uDIG (STM)
• Integration of Open Scene Graph (OSG), Open Dynamics Engine (ODE), Joint Architecture for Unmanned Systems (JAUS) and PostGIS/PostgreSQL database in virtual TALOS model (VTT, Defendec)
Prospective product development for C4 ISR
• Clock Synchronization Software (EBIC)
• Command post (shelter) integrated to an existing C2 system (HAI)
• 3D simulator for optics systems (ONERA)
• GIS supported command control systems including mission planning and execution (STM)
• Various security systems (STM)
• Situational awareness and resource management supported by desktop GIS software focusing on disaster management concept (STM)
• Strategy Computer Games (STM)
• Surveillance Systems (STM)
• A reusable GIS library with 2D and 3D capabilities (STM)
Specific for C4 ISR personnel skills and qualifications are
• Improving knowledge on climatological / environmental database and software (ONERA)
• Improving knowledge on advanced EO / IR technologies (ONERA)
• Experience on developing EO /IR sensors modelling (ONERA)
• Experience on working on an European project (ONERA)
• Experience on developing simulators (ONERA)
• Experience on developing software with different partners (ONERA)
• Experience on developing Software based on Eclipse RCP (Rich Client Platform) (ONERA).
• Discover of JAUS architecture (ONERA)
• Experience on using JAUS protocol to implements interoperability between subsystems (ONERA)
• Discover of OpenSceneGraph Library (ONERA)
• Experience in developing a user library base on OSG to generate 2D and 3D Images for simulators (ONERA)
• Knowledge on JAUS Architecture (STM).
• Experience on applying JAUS Reference Architecture in Command & Control of unmanned systems. (STM)
• Experience on development of 3D GIS Applications (STM)
• Effective Eclipse RCP development ability (STM).
• Experience on using uDIG as underlying desktop GIS infrastructure (STM).
• Experience on using GeoTools and JTS libraries and GDAL Tools (STM).
• Experience on setting up and using GeoServer. WMS concepts and advanced knowledge on performance improvements by tiling and caching (STM).
• Experience on setting up PostGIS/PostgreSQL database, interface description and testing (VTT)
The key challenges for Unmanned Ground Vehicles (UGV) subsystems in TALOS were localisation (especially without GPS, development of SLAM algorithms), path planning, data fusion and autonomous behaviour.
In Unmanned Ground Vehicles (UGV) subsystems the examples of commercially exploitable knowledge are:
• Virtual model for autonomous ground vehicle operation: training for UGV control, telecommunications network planning, mission/route planning and rehearsal, area recognition (VTT)
• New methods and algorithms for navigation sensors integrations (WUT)
In terms of improving scientific and technological quality for Unmanned Ground Vehicles (UGV) subsystems Partners declared:
• Improvement of laboratory equipment, software and procedures for mobile platforms navigation (WUT)
• Improve Engineering design abilities for robotics & autonomous surveillance systems (WUT)
• Vehicle control software (VTT)
Prospective product development for Unmanned Ground Vehicles (UGV) subsystems
• Support of new multisensors systems (WUT)
• Path planning (VTT)
Specific for Unmanned Ground Vehicles (UGV) subsystems application of project results in education and improvement of personnel skills and qualifications are
• Cooperation in development of Mobile Robots Excellence Centre in order to organize place for students for conducting experiments and writing thesis, based on the equipment developed in project as well as the test site created for project needs (PIAP)
• Experience transferred to university syllabuses (WUT).
• Theoretical knowledge, programming and hardware operation skills (WUT)
• Promoting the personnel's technological skills in the following disciplines: Project management, System Engineering, Software, Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering (IAI)
The key challenge for Communication subsystem in TALOS was ensuring reliability, security, quality of service, performance, scalability, network management, compatibility of the radio end-systems and integration with external applications..
In communication subsystems the examples of commercially exploitable knowledge are:
• Software for probing QoS parameters in the transmission channel (ITTI)
• Software for switching among data streams in order to ensure reliable video streaming based on QoS measures of radio connections (ITTI)
• CDMA EV-DO standard based services with increased performance of (TP)
• Architecture design, deployment, management and exploitation of WiMAX networks for providing wideband communications (TTI)
• Handover algorithms for different radio access networks (TTI)
In terms of improving scientific and technological quality for communication Partners declared achieving
• Deeper knowledge about Qt programming (ITTI)
• Capability of handling of MPEG streams for programming purposes (ITTI)
• Better understanding of CDMA related issues (TP)
• Development of simpler handover algorithms for using them in scenarios where full Mobile IP protocol support is not required (TTI)
• Optimization of WiMAX Mobile Networks for rural NLOS scenarios (forests) (TTI).
• Enhancements to network planning of WiMAX and CDMA450 networks (VTT)
• Enhancements to real-time monitoring of WiMAX and CDMA 450 systems and use of application level QoS information (VTT, TTI)
Prospective communication product development may be
• Proxy server for nearly seamless switching of video streams transmitted through several and different radio interfaces (ITTI)
• Client-server software for nearly seamless switching of video streams transmitted through few different radio interfaces (ITTI)
• Intelligent & seamless handover tool (TTI)
Specific for communication area personnel skills and qualifications are
• Improving understanding of modern mobile systems (ITTI).
• Programming in Qt (ITTI).
• Handling video streams for programming (ITTI).
• Programming tools for QoS measurement (ITTI).
• Deeper knowledge about Qt programming (ITTI)
Participation in TALOS project led to increased productivity of Partners in the field specific for their expertise and activity (see Table below).
List of Websites:
TALOS Project public website is available at: www.talos-border.eu
Responsible for site’s content: PIAP (aspronska@piap.pl)
Webpage administrator: WUT (mzasuwa@meil.pw.edu.pl)
TALOS is an international research project co-funded from EU 7th Framework Programme funds in Security priority. The main objective of TALOS project was to develop and field test the innovative concept of a mobile, autonomous system for protecting European land borders. The conventional border protection systems are based mainly on expensive ground facilities installed along the entire length of the border complemented by human patrols. The system demonstrator developed within the TALOS project shows capabilities of being more versatile, efficient and flexible.
The complete system applies both aerial and ground unmanned vehicles, supervised by command and control centre. The ground platforms are both the watching stations and the first reaction patrols, which will inform the Control and Command Centre and an illegal immigrant about her/his situation, and undertake the proper measures to stop the illegal action almost autonomously with supervision of Border Guard Officers. It shall be emphasised that no other action than observing and detecting illegal entry attempts have been taken by vehicles, thus there is no risk to human health and life.
The most important features of the system are scalability, autonomous operation, mobility, adaptability and modular construction. Through its flexibility it should be easy to adjust the system to the local requirements such as border length and topographic conditions. Important role in the project is given to Border Guards from countries with EU external land border and FRONTEX agency in order to tailor system to end user needs and requirements.
TALOS project consortium gathered adequate resources to face the challenge. The system has been developed by experts working for 14 institutions from 8 EU member states (Belgium, Estonia, Finland, France, Greece, Poland, Romania, Spain) as well as 1 EU candidate (Turkey) and 1 associated country (Israel). A wide range of the necessary competencies has been ensured by composing the consortium of industrial companies, research institutions, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and a technical university. Project budget summed up to nearly 20 million Euro, 13 million of which has been granted by the EC.
Main scientific and technological results were achieved in three basic TALOS subsystems - communication, Command & Control and UGV subsystem. Communication subsystem consisted of a new network architecture based on two types of building blocks (or types of network nodes): the TALOS Base Stations (TLS) and TALOS Remote Stations (TLR). It also included the study and simulation of robust and scalable algorithms for the construction of a heterogeneous topology network, for cooperative access and routing, cooperating data forwarding and signalling mechanisms. It has been confirmed that mobile WiMax technology in this application provides good performance in terms of coverage, capacity and latency and developed communication architecture allows proper planning, monitoring and control of the mission with a high degree of autonomy and very low intervention from the Commander/Operator. C&C subsystem consisted of Commander OCU, Operator OCU, UAV simulator, Static Sensor Tower simulator and 3D Maps/Terrain Model Generation Station installed in a single shelter. It has been proved that one operator can supervise two UGVs and cooperation between UGV and UAV systems can be performed through single C&C unit. In UGV subsystem main scientific work was done around following technological gaps - localization without GPS, traversability and path planning, UGV sensors data fusion, autonomous behaviour capability. During the TALOS system development, a significant progress has been made on most of the technological challenges. The system was successfully demonstrated, showing autonomous behaviour, path planning, low level control and sensors fusion. However, there are still challenges to deal with mainly in terms of further development of algorithms for navigation without GPS or SLAM.
TALOS project is influencing European research by contributing to the exploration of the field of robotic perception (sensors processing / fusion), multi robot command and control as well as mobile communication. It is also promoting research in other fields: mapping and localization, artificial intelligence, low level vehicle control and robotic navigation.
Project Context and Objectives:
The overall goal of the TALOS project was to prove the concept of a land border surveillance system based on unmanned vehicles by developing, testing and validating the technology demonstrator of the system.
Character of the eastern border of the European Union (EU) has changed diametrically in consequence of the EU extension in the recent years, when more than 10 countries, mainly from Central and Eastern Europe, have joined the Union. Nature of the new external EU border differs from the one before the accession. The frontier in its current shape extends between Finland in the North and Bulgaria in the South of Europe. It is diversified with regard to topographic characteristics, climatic conditions, as well as probability of occurrence and intensity of illegal activities. The borders of new member states, shared with the former Soviet Union countries, are particularly exposed to illicit trafficking. This part of the eastern EU frontier is a buffer between the relative prosperity of the West and the poverty of the former Soviet Republics. The average salaries on its West side are much higher than the ones on the East side. The border might be used as the Union’s backdoor for illegal immigration and as an area of illicit activities, such as human trafficking and smuggling. European Union is aware of the challenges created by the new frontier. Border security mission is one of the priority security missions recognized by the European Security Research Advisory Board (ESRAB) and European Commission. FRONTEX with its headquarters in the capital of Poland is one of the agencies that were established in order to co-ordinate EU activities related with border protection. EUROSUR (European Surveillance System for Borders) is another initiative aimed at preventing and counteracting the illegal immigration.
Transportable Adaptable Patrol for Land Border Surveillance (TALOS) is a robotic system that addresses the problems of surveillance of the large land border areas, which is one of the capabilities critical for the border security mission recognized by the European Commission. The aim of TALOS was to help in detecting, tracking and preventing persons from crossing the land border illegally between the border crossing points. Its goals were in line with the concept of European Surveillance System for Borders (EUROSUR) and conclusions of the European Security Research Advisory Board (ESRAB). A prototype of the TALOS system, serving as a proof-of-concept, was designed, developed, tested and validated in a research project under the 7th EU Framework Programme.
To meet the requirements connected with the diversified nature of the Eastern EU land border, the system should have been adaptable, transportable and scalable. Designed TALOS system has these features thanks to use of mobile unmanned vehicles instead of a fixed surveillance infrastructure (sensor stations and fences). The vehicles are equipped with detection and observation sensors, controlled from a transportable command centre and supported by own independent wireless communication subsystem. They follow patrol routes defined by the officers in command centre and use sensors to detect activity within the border area. The officers are notified about each detection and are provided with the capability to observe the detected activity. Having gained the situational awareness the officers decide if the observed activity has to be interrupted. If so, a border guards patrol are dispatched and a specialized vehicle supports the apprehension. Overall TALOS concept is presented on Figure 1.
The main benefits of this approach are:
• Transportability of the system – initiatives like CRATE (Centralized Record of Available Technical Equipment) and RABIT (Rapid Border Intervention Teams) have shown that EU member states are ready for sharing the equipment and personnel for border surveillance in case of emergency. TALOS system can be used in the same manner. The possibility of deployment in distant mission areas, unavailable in case of systems based on static infrastructure, give chance to effective utilization of the system.
• Adaptability of the system – the intended versatility of the system demanded a design, which allows the high degree of adaptability, with regard to topographic conditions, intensity and probability of illegal operations in the border section. TALOS system is easily configurable to meet the requirements of a particular mission area, by selecting an accordant set of unmanned vehicles to be deployed. Selection of number and configuration of the vehicles provide adaptability both to the length of the border section and the specific of illicit activity. Availability of different types of unmanned platforms enables the maximum adaptation to the terrain conditions. The system can also be scaled on a higher level of command, by adjusting the number of Unmanned Unit Command Centres, supervising and controlling the operation of unmanned units, and commanded by a transportable Theatre Command Centre;
• Semi-autonomous operation – autonomy of the vehicles patrolling the border is the key success factor of the concept behind the TALOS system. A system can be used for effective surveillance of large areas only when a minimum engagement of the operator is ensured. This is connected with the effectiveness of the system, both in terms of engagement of human resources and economy. Autonomy of the Unmanned Ground Vehicles (UGVs) in TALOS system was a particular challenge. The vehicles are going to operate in a complex and variable environment. To meet this challenge vehicles use precise terrain models, laser scanners and state of the art navigation modules.
While introducing advantages over systems based on static infrastructure (fences and static sensors) TALOS aimed to maintain their high effectiveness. The system should allow the Border Guards to react to trespassing within minutes. The vehicles can engage or trace illegal immigrant before the arrival of manned forces. This ensures the person not being left unattended since he/she has been detected by the sensors.
TALOS architecture
Demonstrator of the system is composed of the Unmanned Unit Command Centre (UUCC) and two Unmanned Ground Vehicles (UGVs). Unmanned Air Vehicle (UAV) and transportable Sensor Tower will be integrated into the system in future. In the first phase of the project communication with these elements has been simulated. Proposed architecture of the TALOS system is presented on Figure 2.
The Unmanned Units Command Centre (UUCC) is used to control and monitor the operation of the Unmanned Units. Mission commander and operators of the unmanned vehicles are seated at the Operator Control Units (OCUs). These allow Border Guard officers to plan the surveillance mission, control the vehicles and provide also an operational awareness in the mission area. The commander is presented with a visualization of the mission area, including position of the system elements, patrol routes and data from all the sensors, on different map layers. Personnel operating the UGV’s and UAV’s OCUs have the possibility of viewing the information from sensors carried by the vehicles, as well as planning vehicle routes and operating the vehicles manually.
Commands and data flow between the command centre and system’s end units are ensured by the communication network. Wireless network for TALOS system is implemented in MESH architecture. The main goal of its design is the network reliability, which is crucial to the whole system’s performance.
Unmanned Ground Vehicles (UGVs) were designed to constantly patrol the border section. Vehicles are equipped with long-range detectors of moving vehicles and people, as well as sensors allowing the operator to recognize the detected subjects. They are controlled from the UUCC: either ‘driven’ by the operator, using a steering wheel, pedals and joysticks or, in semi-autonomous mode of operation, being ordered to drive from one point in the mission area to another without ‘hands-on control’. The latter was made possible owing to state-of-the-art navigation systems and advanced mechanisms of obstacle detection and avoiding.
Two types of vehicles have been implemented: the Observer, used for patrolling the given section, and the Interceptor, used for engaging the illegal immigrant before arrival of the Border Patrol. The Interceptor enables communication of the operator with the trespasser by means of a microphone and loudspeaker.
Unmanned Air Vehicle (UAV) will be responsible for the aerial surveillance and can be used as communication node in particular situations. The TALOS demonstrator does not contain the UAV. In order to make TALOS system ready for future UAV integration, the interaction of UAV OCU (console for UAV management) with other subsystems has been simulated by the computer in UUCC.
Sensor Towers can be deployed in places requiring ceaseless surveillance 24/7, or in places not accessible to the vehicles. The towers can be used both for sensor placement and as communication nodes. They can be transportable together with the whole system. In the 1st phase of TALOS, data flow between the towers and other subsystems were simulated. The towers will be implemented in future project phases.
Innovation Aspects
The main innovation that the consortium introduced in TALOS multidisciplinary project are as follows:
• Scalability - its ability to easily change the system scale due to changes in the requirements and local conditions such as border size, topography, density of surveillance elements etc. Another system feature is its adaptability behaviour, changes in the security scenario of a specific border or area, due to new intelligence information or update in immigrant’s behaviour, threat assessment, designated means, etc.
• Autonomous capability based on sets of rules (artificial intelligence) - programmed in the computers of the UGV's and the Command & Control system. This sets of rules are actually a translation of procedures used by the border guards in the daily routine and emergency operations. These rules should be modified from time to time, to adapt the system to the new tactics.
• Mobility/transportability - The whole system is easily transportable installed in standard containers (20 ft and 40 ft), transported on trailers for fast deployment in selected border zones (according to intelligence). The system can move in convoys to the designated location, where possible (ground access), can be airlifted by helicopters to locations not accessible and is transportable by air in C-130 aircraft (or alike) to provide air deployment, within the country and between countries, all over Europe. The Command Centres, the UGVs and UAVs are being installed in containers and mounted on trailers, the Sensor Towers (transmitters), are also mounted on trailers. Once reaching the designated deployment area, the trailers are disconnected from the towing Trucks, located, fixed in place, levelled etc., and system components are connected with all the necessary command cables, power supply cables, support equipment, etc.
• Tactical Learning/Adaptation behaviour - During development process, system was adapted to local operational requirements, operators were consulted, and their needs implemented in system mission planning module. The TALOS system is designed having Man-in-the-Loop. It enables voice engagement of the immigrant. System uses adaptive artificial intelligence to implement various tactical techniques, in the specific patrol scenario, area of operation, border topography, etc.
• No need for fixed infrastructure or fences - TALOS system owing to its mobility and transportability do not require any fixed infrastructure. Sensors and cameras can be installed on UGVs. All UGVs and UAVs, including their supply and maintenance equipment are or will be stored in their own containers, as well as all crew equipment, dormitories, kitchen, toilets, supplies etc. After deployment, the containers can be camouflaged, and from there platforms can be launched to perform surveillance tasks (automatically) and return for refuelling, servicing and maintenance.
• Enables response to an illegal entry attempt in minutes - system will respond to an illegal entry attempt in the matter of minutes, not hours.
• Usage of "green" energy - the energy in remote locations (where it is impossible to connect to standard power lines) could be coming from the natural sources e.g. solar panels (sunny area), wind towers (windy area), water wheels (near to rivers). At the demonstration the generators were used while none other sources of energy were available.
Project Results:
TALOS project scientific and technological goals has been set in three main technological work packages, that developed simultaneously three main subsystems of TALOS project. This are:
• Work package 4 – Communication Subsystem
• Work package 5 - C&C Subsystem
• Work package 6 - UGV Subsystem
Although the final project results were obtained by integration and demonstration of developed subsystems according to previously specified requirements and architectural design, the scientific and technologic achievements has been obtained within the core work packages itself. It is noteworthy that the innovative efforts in technological domain has been limited by the objectives and requirements resulting from both initial description of work and ongoing cooperation with end-users representatives.
Communication Subsystem
Objectives for the communications subsystem
The main objective proposed in the description of work for the communications subsystem work package was to design, implement, integrate and test the communications subsystem for the TALOS system. This objective included the proposal of a new network architecture based on two types of building blocks (or types of network nodes): the TALOS Base Stations (TLS) and TALOS Remote Stations (TLR). The objective also included the study and simulation of robust and scalable algorithms for the construction of a heterogeneous topology network, for cooperative access and routing, cooperating data forwarding and signalling mechanisms. It is important to clearly differentiate between the TALOS final system (Target System) and the part that has been implemented for the demonstration (Demo System). Since during the phase I of the TALOS project only three communications nodes have been implemented (the UUCC and two UGVs), they are directly connected and routing and mesh protocols development have a low impact on the performance of this communications network. The scope of the work done in the design and implementation of the TALOS Demo Communications Subsystem has followed a more practical approach, while the scope of the work regarding the TALOS Target System (mesh network and heterogeneous topology) has followed a more theoretical approach, studying in depth the available technologies and performing simulations.
High level architecture description
The infrastructure of the TALOS communications systems is based on several local area networks (LANs) connected through wireless links and forming an Heterogeneous Wireless Network (HWN), the TALOS network (TALOSNet). Each node of the TALOSNet contains a LAN: UGV, UAV, Static Sensor Tower, Unmanned Unit Command Centre, Theatre Command Centre and Headquarters. At the end of the demonstration phase of the project, only the following nodes have been implemented: patroller/interceptor UGV, observer UGV, Unmanned Unit Command Centre (UUCC) and escort vehicle. Each of them will have a local network (UUCCLAN and UGVLAN), and the communication among them is redundant, with three different subsystems (networks) wirelessly connecting the nodes: primary system, backup system and safety system. Each of them is based on a different technology and a communications control subsystem decides which subsystem to use depending on the scenario conditions: lost of coverage, emergency situation, etc. The proper configuration of the switches that control each LAN has been a key point in the success of the network switching scheme. For the hardware part of the communications subsystem, COTS components (transceivers, antennas, encoders, etc) have been used, reducing as much as possible the development of hardware equipment. On the other hand, the software part of the communications subsystem is mainly composed of modules specially designed and implemented for the TALOS project.
Primary Communications subsystem
The primary communications subsystem is based on the WiMAX technology. This technology, in its 802-16e specification (Mobile WiMAX) supports mobile communications in a Non-Line Of Sight environment, which is appropriate for the TALOS scenarios. It offers enough bandwidth for the data that needs to be transmitted: up to four video channels; two data channels with radar, UGV and commands/mission information; and two voice channels. A commercial Base Station from manufacturer Alvarion has been used, operating in the 3.5 GHz bandwidth. The main challenge with this subsystem was the proper configuration of the base station and UGV terminal equipment. The WiMAX Mobile architecture is initially intended to provide high capacity in the downlink, but we have managed to configure it in a way that allows greater capacity in the uplink, required for transmitting the video and payload data from the UGVs to the UUCC. Also proper configuration has been established for providing multicast support, allowing to see the video streaming on several computers in the shelter while minimizing the load of the datalink and maintaining the Quality of Service Parameters, specially the latency, which is critical for teleoperation of the vehicles.
Backup Communications subsystem
For the Backup Communications Subsystem the CDMA@450 cellular network infrastructure provided by TP (Orange Labs) has been used. The advantage of using this network is that it complements well the characteristics of the primary subsystem, allowing to have coverage on areas where the primary subsystem shall fail. Theoretically, the performance specifications of this network shall be enough fulfil the requirements of the TALOS backup subsystem.
But in fact the use of this network has been very challenging. The first challenge comes from the fact that the network provides access to the public internet network. In order to provide secure and seamless connection between several LANs using the public part of the network, a complex architecture based on IPTunelling has been implemented, including support for multicast traffic encapsulation and data streams control and filtering. The second challenge comes from the usage of the commercial network of TP, which is operating normally with their customers. Both in the integration area and demo area, the load of the network was very high, and the capacity we had available was far from the maximum specified, and not enough for transmitting video. We have performed tests only with monitor and control traffic, which proves the viability of the architecture if the bandwidth is enough, but not with video traffic. One of the main issues to solve in next stages of the TALOS system development is to substitute this CDMA450 network by an alternative radio technology. Several options have already been considered and studied.
Safety Communications subsystem
The safety communications system has been used in the demo phase of the project for safety (not operational) purposes only. It links the UGVs with an escort vehicle so if the UGV lost control, the vehicle will be in charge of regaining control over the UGV or stopping it. Since the escort vehicle is close to the UGV, a low range technology has been used: standard WiFi modems and antennas (integrated in the modems), working on the 2.4GHz band, offering up to 54Mbps and a range in the few hundreds of meters. Emergency FM transceivers have been used for the effective stopping of the vehicles.
Switching and networking
The complete networking architecture is based on IP protocol, and standard Layer 2 switches have been used for the interconnection of equipment in the LANs. Those switches have some Layer 3 capabilities that have been enough for the proper configuration of the traffic routing in the Demo scenario. But due to the complexity of the network and the required routing capabilities, it is recommended to substitute those switches by full layer 3 routers in the next stages of development of the TALOS system.
Communications Monitoring and Control Software
The other big task of the work performed in the communications subsystem has been the development and integration of the different modules that compose the Communications Software. This software can be divided, taking into account its main purpose, into three main blocks:
- Planning/Simulation: The NPT tool developed by VTT has been tailored to fit the TALOS needs, including the simulation of coverage areas for different radio technologies in a preoperational stage, providing coverage raster maps that can be included in the database and used in the mission planning. The tool also includes the capability to obtain real time measurements of the QoS parameters from the vehicles, which helps to improve the simulation models and predict in real time coverage changes.
- Monitoring: several modules have been developed, by VTT and TTI, for monitoring in real time the performance of the network in use. This info is distributed to other modules which use it for effective controlling the network.
- Control: the modules in this block have been in charge of the proper configuration and control of the network, making the handover and transition from primary to backup network according to the monitored parameters as well as the coverage predictions from the planning tool.
The main challenge has been the coordination for the development and integration of the different modules by different partners (mainly VTT and TTI) as well as the access to the performance data from several sources and hardware equipment. This has implied the development of an ad-hoc protocol for the exchanging of information of the different modules.
Conclusions
The main conclusions of the technological results obtained during the project in the communications area are the following:
• The Mobile WiMAX technology is suitable as primary communications subsystem of the proposed architecture, with good performance in terms of coverage, capacity and latency.
• The CDMA450 technology may be suitable as backup communications subsystem, but the use of a commercial cellular network is not acceptable as performance cannot be guaranteed in terms of capacity and latency.
• The networking, switching and routing configuration is critical in the proper operation of the communications subsystem, and layer 3 routers are preferred over layer 2 switches for this task.
• The developed software allows proper planning, monitoring and control of the mission from the communications point of view, with a high degree of autonomy and very low intervention from the Commander/Operator.
C&C Subsystem
Objectives for the Command and Control (C&C) subsystem
The objective stated in the description of work is to design, implement, integrate and test the Command and Control (C&C) subsystem for the TALOS system. In the 1st phase of the program, the aim is to develop Unmanned Unit Command Control which consists of Commander OCU, Operator OCU, UAV simulator, Static Sensor Tower simulator and 3D Maps/Terrain Model Generation Station installed in a single shelter. However, high level system design work is done for whole TALOS system.
C&C Subsystem Description
TALOS aims to use unmanned systems to support border guards’ operations with help following of functionalities provided by UCCC:
• Situational awareness of mission area
• Tactical map
• Surveillance
• Event notification / sensor track data
• Mission planning and execution
• Teleoperation of UGVs
• Remote control and status monitoring of unmanned systems and payloads/sensors
• Tasking of unmanned subsystems
• Logging and replay
• Transportable/mobile
The information gathered from unmanned systems is collected at UCCC, necessary actions are taken and the reports about the situation are transferred to higher levels in the hierarchy.
UCCC is the key node where border guards are interacting with TALOS system. There are two places for operators in UCCC: Commander OCU and Operator OCU. The key functionalities and differences are summarized below:
Commander OCU
• Mission Planning and Execution
• Operational area situational awareness
• UAV, Sensor Tower remote control / status monitoring
• UGV remote control / status monitoring
• Intrusion management using radar and detection sensors
• Operational area surveillance using visual sensors
Operator OCU
• Mission Planning and Execution
• Operational area situational awareness
• UGV teleoperation
• UGV remote control / status monitoring
• Intrusion management using radar and detection sensors
• Operational area surveillance using visual sensors
In result of Command and Control development in TALOS project following components has been provided:
UCCC Mission HW
• Commander and UGV Operator Control Unit (OCU) Console
• Simulators Computers
• 3D Maps/Terrain Model Generation Station
• World Model Knowledge Store (WMKS)
• Network Video Recorder (NVR)
• Communication Subsystem
UCCC Supporting HW
• Emergency Stop
• Real-Time Kinematics (RTK) GPS Reference Station
• Printer
• Power Generator
• UPS
• Antenna Mast
• Shelter
• Air Conditioning Unit
• Other Auxiliary Equipments
C&CCommander /UGV Operator Control Unit (OCU) Software
• Multimedia Component Software
• Tactical Map Component Software
• World Model Knowledge Store (WMKS) Software
• Operator/Message Logging-Replay Software
• Time Synchronization Software
• 3D Visualization and Terrain Map Generation Software
• UAV System Simulator Software
• Sensor Tower Simulator Software
Detailed Description of UCCC Functionalities
• Teleoperation
UGVs are able to be controlled from a distance. Operator OCU is able to control one unmanned system at a time. Since the Operator OCU is responsible of multiple unmanned systems, the operator is able to switch teleoperation between these systems.
• Remote Control
Remote control is the activity of controlling an unmanned system and the payloads (i.e. radar, electro-optic sensors, acoustic sensors, etc.) from remote (C4I), other than teleoperation. Remote control includes the configuration of a payload, direction of a sensor, zooming in and out of an electro-optic sensor, control data mode, etc. Commander OCU and Operator OCU control the payloads on the UGV at a fixed location or on the move according to the operational requirements.
• Status Monitoring
Status monitoring is the activity of periodic information update from the unmanned units and payloads/sensors to the UCCC. Status monitoring is the¬ opposite of Remote Control in the context of data flow; e.g. Status information can be general information such as location of unmanned units or device specific information presented to both Commander OCU and Operator OCU.
• Observation
Both Commander OCU and Operator OCU in the UCCC are able to observe the border area using the sensors on Unmanned Units. Sensor data is supplied to the UCCC for intrusion detection by means of a communication infrastructure, which requires supporting high data rates communication such as video, audio, etc.
• Multi-Unit Operation
A border sector may contain more than one unmanned unit. Since Operator OCU is able to teleoperate only a single unmanned unit at a time, switching between unmanned units is possible. Switching between operators and unmanned units are smooth not to loose control of unmanned unit during switching. A single operator may monitor more than one unmanned unit.
• Logging / Replay
The sensors data is stored at C4I level. The previously received sensor data arrived from UGV/UAV and static sensor towers are stored in C4I to be used later.
• Transportability / Deployment
Transportability/Deployment is the concept of displacement and installation capability of a system. UUCC is designed to be transported with standard shelter.
• Interoperability
IP protocol is used as the network infrastructure. JAUS protocol is used at application level for interoperability between system nodes (i.e. UCCC, UGV etc). Components & ICD are defined in accordance with the JAUS standard where applicable.
Functional nodes of the TALOS project are defined in accordance with the JAUS standard as JAUS subsystems, nodes or components. The communication between these nodes complies with JUDP (JAUS UDP) standard.
• GIS
There are some GIS utilities used for spatial analysis. These utilities are shown below:
o Import/Export of GIS data in standard format
o Line of sight (LOS) analysis
o Distance measurement
o Cross section analysis
o Highest point analysis
o Filter mechanism (Layer management)
o Interactive graphic editing (Addition, deletion, moving and changing the geographic position of features)
o 3D Image visualization
Results of GIS analysis are shown on the tactical map. GIS is capable of handling high resolutions maps displayed on one or more screens.
• Tactical Map
Tactical map data includes static geographical properties such as elevation data, obstacle data, and vector data such as routes, waypoints and areas (forbidden zones, etc.). Data can be entered, updated or deleted manually or can be obtained from other external sources such as unmanned units.
Tactical map also includes dynamic data such as position, direction, speed of intruders and unmanned units. Information about the intruders is supplied by the UGV or is entered manually by the operator with the help of observation cameras. Position history of intruders and system components is logged and displayed on tactical map. In case of losing the intruders, the track history that is kept can be displayed on the operator screen and according to the last speed information of the intruder a circle is marked that shows the possible intruder location.
Triggers can be defined on the map for specific areas (e.g. forbidden zones, endangered area, etc.) on the tactical map. If the trigger is activated (e.g. UGV enters forbidden zone) the operator is alerted.
Data displayed on the tactical map can be filtered, i.e. friendly units only, intruders only, etc., by the operator for better evaluating the situation.
Paths used mostly by the intruders can be marked by the commander on the tactical map. Also system can log the track history of the intruder paths during operation and display the track history if required.
• Terrain Map
The terrain map is composed from existing map data which is updated and complemented from high resolution satellite imagery (0.5 meter resolution, vegetation layer also from 5 - 10 meter resolution satellite imagery). Recent aerial imagery and laser scanning data is used whenever available. The terrain map is updated also from UGV sensor information and ground measurements.
The terrain map consists of the following layers:
o Elevation model
o Road network
o Buildings
o Water areas, lakes and rivers
o Vegetation layer, including height of vegetation: lawns, agricultural areas
o Stand wise forest parameters for dense forest: mean density of forest , mean height of trees, mean tree type proportion (coniferous /deciduous)
o Single tree parameters for passable forest: tree type (coniferous/deciduous), height, diameter
o Soil type
o Environmental elements: natural monuments, animal's habitat, water sources, natural/wildlife reserve,
o Fences
o Endangered areas
The terrain map data is collected using standard GIS formats and stored in a standard GIS database (some well known spatial databases are ESRI ArcGIS, PostGIS, etc.)
In addition to the map layers, the visualisation database includes mobile real time data:
o Unmanned units locations
o Sensor locations
o Patrolling routes
o Planned routes
o UGV fuelling facilities, C4I trailers, other static BG posts
o Real time imagery and measurements from UGV/UAV and static towers
Part of the mobile data will be transferred also into the main GIS database.
• Mission Planning
Mission planning is performed by the Commander OCU. A mission consists of multiple tasks. A task consists of one or more actions performed by one unmanned unit. Commander OCU and Operator OCU are informed about the maximum time of continuous movement of the Observing Unit and Patrolling/Intercepting Unit by the help of planned path and average fuel consumption.
• Mission Execution
Mission execution is the activity of executing a planned mission. Missions consist of tasks which can be executed in sequence or in parallel. These tasks have to have a clear definition of its starting and ending conditions. Mission assignment, mission status update and mission reporting capabilities are supported by the messaging infrastructure.
• Mission Rehearsal
Mission rehearsal is the activity of validating the planned mission. Rehearsal gives feedback to the operator about the duration of the mission, sufficiency of the resources etc. to complete the mission.
• Reporting
Reporting is the activity of supplying mission specific information to a higher level of command. In TALOS system, reporting is identified between unmanned units to UUCC, UUCC to Theatre Command Center and Theatre Command Center to Headquarter.
Reporting is performed by the unmanned units during task execution (obstacles, intruders, events) and after each task completion (mission report). The difference between status monitoring and reporting is that status monitoring includes more device specific information where reporting includes mission specific information.
Conclusions
The main conclusions of the technological results obtained during the project in the command and control area are the following:
• The idea of two OCU configured to be operated by commander and operator has proven its possibility to follow the protocol and procedures whereas all functionalities and easy to use common interface is provided.
• Data sharing and gathering techniques are intensively helping with planning, commanding and operating complicated robotic system like TALOS.
• Developed system is possible to integrate into existing data sharing and commending techniques as well as into existing procedures of Borders Guards routine.
• The developed software allows proper planning, monitoring and control of the mission from the commander and operator point of view, with a high degree of autonomy letting he Commander and Operator to work in a comfortable way.
UGV Subsystem
Objectives for the UGV subsystem
The main objective proposed in the description of work for the Unmanned Ground Vehicle (UGV) subsystem work package was to design, implement, integrate and test the UGV subsystem for the TALOS system.
The second objective was to designed, implement, integrate and test different system modules, such as mapping, localization, path planning, low level control and payloads.
It is important to clearly differentiate between the TALOS final system (Target System) and the part that has been implemented for the demonstration (Demo System).
The scope of the work done in the design and implementation of the TALOS Demo UGV Subsystem has followed a more practical approach, while the scope of the work regarding the TALOS Target System has followed a more theoretical approach, studying in depth the available technologies and performing simulations.
The project was facing the following technical gaps :
• Localization without GPS
• Traversability and path planning
• UGV sensors data fusion
• Autonomous behaviour capability
UGV Subsystem Description
Two Unmanned Ground Vehicles were developed and used in the TALOS System Demonstrator to provide the reliable information on the application of autonomous platforms for border line protection.
The UGV subsystem is composed of a tracked platform of high mobility, integrated with a set of payloads, allowing it to perform autonomously the tasks assigned by the operator via the UUCC operator panels. The payloads for both vehicles include:
1. High and low level computers, responsible for steering the platform, controlling the sensors and executing autonomous mission;
2. Navigation devices, primarily based on precise Global Positioning System (DGPS, RTK) providing horizontal accuracy (RMS) of 0.01 m, that is aided by Inertial Navigation System (INS) providing in real time the attitude, azimuth and velocities of the vehicle, as well as acceleration and angular rates in three axes;
3. 3D laser scanner, with a 360 degrees horizontal field-of-view and a 26.8 degrees vertical field-of-view, providing environmental mapping used for obstacle avoidance;
4. Safety sensor, ie. laser scanner located on the front-side of the vehicle to prevent the UGV from colliding with dynamic obstacles;
5. Driving sensor, ie. day/night camera installed on a two axis pan/tilt platform, additionally allowing to detect and support recognition of the objects.
The vehicles were differed, according to the TALOS system design into two roles: Observer and Patroller/Interceptor. Both of the vehicles were based on the same platform: TAGS vehicle. The difference is in some of the payloads and capabilities resulting thereof.
• UGV Observer
UGV Observer role is to monitor the area under observation (near border line), to detect objects (people or vehicles) trying to illegally cross the border, track them and provide the accurate data to the Border Guards system operators, sufficient to early recognize the threat.
The Observer has the following specific payloads:
• Surveillance Camera – MiniPOP – day and night camera with high zooming capability, visual tracking and precise control. Provides sufficient data to recognize a person/vehicle from a long distance (over 1 km).
• Radar– A Doppler radar, to detect moving objects in the scanning area. It can easily detect people or vehicles.
• UGV Interceptor
Role of the UGV Interceptor is to track and interrogate people trying to illegally cross the border. That mission is enabling UGV Observer to continue scanning of the area under observation. Owing to that capability the TALOS system is not vulnerable for multiple threats at the same time.
The Interceptor has the following specific payloads:
• Interrogation System – composed of a microphone and a loud speaker, allowing the communication with the individual recognized as suspicious by the operators, until the manned patrol arrives.
High level architecture description
The UGV subsystem was built according to the following guidelines:
• JAUS Compliance
The system architecture design is based on JAUS reference architecture framework and follows its rules.
• UGV interchangeability
UGVs designed to be convertible from one type to another (observer to patroller/interceptor and vice versa).
• Open Architecture
The UGV system architecture provides an open and flexible design in order to support future growth and changes. Examples of that may be changing/adding external sensors without the need in changing internal interfaces, changing in algorithms without affecting software design etc.
• Three Layer Architecture
The UGV architecture is based on 3-level architecture concept.
Each layer involves a sensory/data interpretation component, a world model, and a planning/control component.
In addition to the population of world models by sensor and external data, world model information flows upward in the model hierarchy and it is abstracted and/or reduced in precision as a result.
Command information flows downward and is elaborated and increased in precision as a result. Each layer has its own dedicated source of information, which is unknown below it. Each layer influences the behaviour of a single contended resource—the vehicle—through such mechanisms as:
• Hierarchical control: lower levels elaborate and follow higher level commands;
• Arbitration: deliberative elements must resolve disagreements arising from conflicting simultaneous goals such as obstacle avoidance and waypoint seeking;
• Exception handling: faster elements deal with exceptions quickly and propagate them upward.
When higher layers are present, they provide commands, which are elaborated and executed by lower layers. However, each layer has the capacity to control the vehicle independent of the layers above it to generate respectively the behaviours of (dense) waypoint following, obstacle avoidance, and global path planning. Each layer has the authority to ignore the commands passed to it in order to respond quickly to an exception or emergency.
Vehicle autonomous control
In order to perform autonomous control, the Sub-System Commander component has been developed. It performs the following tasks:
• UGV Control
• Emergency control
• Mission Management
The Subsystem Commander is able to receive high-level missions from C2 and perform them autonomously, according to the applicable rules/constrains. It builds the mission plan that parses the missions to UGV components. It activates all needed subsystems according to the mission objectives at any given time.
The SSC detailed functions are:
• Preparing the UGV components for the mission to be executed
• Running the system processes that realize the mission
• Handling exceptions during the mission execution
• Mission advance control
• Mission constrains management - for example, lowering the maximum velocity due to certain pre-programmed conditions, such as GPS blackouts or critical system failures
• Reports Handling - preparing and sending reports to C2.
Localization
For the UGV localization, the "Method and system for automatically guiding an unmanned vehicle", European patent EP 1 899 778 B1 is used.
The method is based on determining vehicle position by navigation sensors fusion – inertial navigation system, DGPS and odometers.
During TALOS UGV development, numerous changes and improvements were made to the original algorithm.
Mapping
During TALOS UGV development, a real time data fusion module was developed. The module receives and processes mapping sensors raw data to create a "Logical Sensor Maps" and then combines them to a one unified map. Two laser mapping sensors were used - 3D Velodyne HDL-64E laser range finder and IBEO LUX laser range finder.
Road detection algorithms were developed, since road detection is a pre-requisite for UGV. Before abiding traffic rules, even road recognition and obstacles avoidance is challenging, as there are many possible features defining roads, such as pavement (asphalt ) or road borders such as sidewalks, ditches, fences, vegetation or walls.
In addition, a lot of work has been done on SLAM algorithms, but they are still immature. IAI is continuing working on this issue in other projects and has achieved a significant progress.
Low Level Control
The Vehicle Control System (VCS) was developed by 'VTT Technical Research Center of Finland'. The VCS goal is to implement vehicle control.
The VCS consists of two components:
• Waypoint Driver
The Waypoint Driver is responsible for determining the actual trajectory and speed of the UGV during the movement. The optimization algorithm is used to minimize the curvature of the path while staying as close as possible to the waypoints in the local path.
• Primitive Driver
The Primitive Driver is responsible for interface with the UGV mechanical systems.
Path Planning
UGV has two planning systems – global and local.
The global path planning is based on expert system, which has the ability to analyze the following parameters in order to create a global path:
• Area topography
• Mobility limitations (vehicle kinematics and dynamics)
• Vehicle traversability (mobility due to ground conditions)
• Environmental conditions (weather, visibility...)
The local planning system is able to plan and update in real time the actual vehicle path. The global path plan have to be adapted to changes that occur in the environment (e.g. detection of obstacles not previously stored in the World Model), errors in the position and orientation of the vehicle (off-plan drift), the presence of smooth areas not explicitly represented in the road network, and the like. For reasons such as these, the a priori plan must be under constant scrutiny to determine whether and how it must be updated.
The goal of the local path planner is to enable the UGV to drive at maximal possible speed while avoiding obstacles and staying inside the global path plan corridor.
The concept of its operation is as following:
o Combining the global path waypoints that are in close proximity of the vehicle, the Environmental Map and the actual road center and boundaries
o Combining close obstacles (that UGV can not pass between them) to one obstacle
o Looking for areas, which indicate the collision of a path segment to be driven by the vehicle with newly found obstacles
o Once a potential collision course is detected, executing a dynamic (re)planning process that attempts to rapidly replace an appropriate number of pre-planned path waypoints with a new set of path waypoints that:
o Avoids the obstacle (takes into account clearance issues with potential obstacles)
o Traversable by the vehicle
o Is legally drivable by the vehicle (subject to several kinematics and dynamic constraints including maximum lateral acceleration, maximum steering angle, maximum steering rate and maximum deceleration
o Reconnects with the pre-planned route as soon as practical
o Never takes the vehicle outside of the current boundary constraints
o Takes advantage of relevant a priori data (e.g. road network)
o Minimizes the performance cost of the new path segments
Conclusions
During the TALOS system development, a significant progress has been made on most of the technological challenges. The system has been developed from scratch and was successfully demonstrated, showing autonomous behaviour, path planning, low level control and sensors fusion. However, there are still challenges to deal with, such as SLAM. As stated above, IAI is working continuously to overcome said challenges and has made serious progress.
Potential Impact:
The project will make its main socio-economic impact through blazing a trial in application of the advanced robotic technologies not only in the security sector, but also in other branches of European industry. The approach adopted in the project provides a clear illustration of how robotic technology will allow the core and associated EU members to enhance both the skill set of their workforce, and improve overall productivity. In the proposed application it is possible to envisage the transition of assistance vehicle drivers into operators and high-level controllers of fleets of unmanned vehicles, thus facilitating an advance in their underlying competencies.
In the field of border security TALOS is paving the path to surveillance equipment of new generation. Systems based on the TALOS concept will not only be efficient, fast and reliable - TALOS is also another step on the way to cost effective security solutions. Cost effectiveness can be achieved by providing the capability of moving the system from one area of operation to another, and adapting it to the operational conditions existing there. Moreover, initiatives like CRATE (Centralized Record of Available Technical Equipment) and RABIT (Rapid Border Intervention Teams) have already shown that the EU member states are ready for sharing the equipment and personnel for border surveillance in case of emergency. TALOS is a solution to be used in the same manner. Although the project is research in its nature, the demonstration of its result, planned for the end of the project is expected to work as a catalytic agent for further development and implementation of systems based on the concept.
TALOS is influencing European research by contributing to the exploration of the field of robotic perception (sensors processing / fusion), multi robot command and control as well as mobile communication. It is also promoting research in other fields: mapping and localization, artificial intelligence, low level vehicle control and robotic navigation. The research will trigger spin-offs in the academic and industrial community. The prototype of the system will serve as a platform for introducing and evaluating new ideas. The demonstration will unveil technology gaps, thus it will enable to provide guidance for future research.
Main dissemination activities and exploitation results
TALOS webpage has been developed at the project beginning (2008) and updated regularly. In 2011 - after the recommendation from the EC - its layout and some parts of the content were modified, in order to stress the non-military character of the project.
Furthermore, project logo, diagrams or photographs illustrating and promoting the work of the project (including videos, etc…), as well as the list of all beneficiaries with the corresponding contact names can be submitted without any restriction.
A) TALOS logo - has been developed at the beginning of the project (2008)
B) TALOS leaflet - has been developed in two colour/content versions. 1st version was printed at the beginning of the project (2008). In 2011 - after the recommendation from EC the layout and some parts of the content were modified, in order to stress the non-military character of the project.
C) TALOS poster (roll-up) has also been developed in two colour/content versions. 1st version was printed at the beginning of the project (2008), for the purpose of the 1st Project Workshop with End-Users, and illustrated various project-related events (workshops, review meetings, conference stands etc.). In 2011 - after the recommendation from EC the layout and some parts of the content were modified, in order to stress the non-military character of the project.
D) TALOS dissemination movie
The dissemination movie has been developed in three basic versions and an additional one - in a form of a documentary.
First version of the dissemination movie was released in 2009, on the request of EC/REA representatives present at the first Project Review Meeting, to be shortly shown at the project stand during the SRC’09.
Second version was produced in 2011, according to recommendations from the Project Officer, in order to stress the non-military character of the project, and included the footage from the EUAB 8/3rd Workshop meeting, which covered the Demo in field presentation.
Third version has been produced as the final one at the end of the project.
Along with the third version a documentary version has also been produced, in order to show the project history and project works in a more detail.
E) List of all beneficiaries with the corresponding contact names
Use and dissemination of foreground
According to Description of Work the Exploitation and Dissemination Plan was prepared at M30. TALOS is an integrated project, so at this stage of the project execution the Partners had already the clear view of prospective project results exploitation and dissemination.
During the whole project duration the public awareness of project status and prospects was achieved by updated web page and project presentations at various conferences, meetings and other fora. Two movies of project concepts and results were prepared and distributed among interested entities and placed on the project web site.
The project scientific results were presented at three important conferences: NavSup 2010, EuroGNC 2011 and EuroNav 2012. There was one paper published in referenced journal, and at least two are planned to be published based on the latest conference presentations. The Consortium presented system capabilities at two filed demonstrations for End User Advisory Board and other interested audience. The demonstrations proved the system existing capabilities and gave opportunities for discussing further developments and extension of applications. Many Partners declared further dissemination activities of project results after its completion.
The TALOS project offers a novel, innovative concept for border protection, based on autonomous ground and air vehicles, which will pave the way for further research and implementation of the system. The main features of the TALOS system are adaptability, scalability, transportability, semi-autonomous operation and autonomy from logistic point of view. The system may be deployed in any type of land border with and without ground infrastructure. The scalability allows to tailor the system to the type of terrain and the size of the protected area.
The trans European dimension of the project is reflected by the Consortium composition, which groups the research teams from countries from the “old EU”, like Belgium, Finland, France, Greece and Spain, “new EU”, like Estonia Poland and Romania and the “associated countries” like Israel and Turkey. Awareness of the TALOS project results in such a variety of countries makes good prospect for prospective commercialisation of the system.
TALOS system exploitation plan was based on the consortium expertise supported by End User Advisory Board (EUAB) and also by the opinions of other prospective users of the system met at various places, where TALOS system was presented. The respective Partners declared further use of project results in terms of commercially exploitable knowledge, improving scientific and technological quality, prospective product development. Also application of project results in education and in personnel skills development were envisioned.
Consortium is aware that complete TALOS system may be too complex solution for some of Border Guards across Europe. But the whole system and many technologies (subsystems or even specific solutions) developed in the TALOS project may be exploited by respective individually or in collaboration with other consortium members.
TALOS system is based on three main subsystems:
• Command, Control, Communication and Computer Centre (C4 ISR)
• Unmanned Platforms
• Communication.
The key challenges for C4 ISR subsystem in TALOS were coordination and control of different unmanned platforms. These required controlling and coordinating of data flow, effective planning based on open system architecture and well defined interfaces as well as use of 3D terrain models and maps.
In C4 ISR the examples of commercially exploitable knowledge are:
• Clock Synchronization Software (EBIC)
• 3D immersive visualization for complete situational awareness of unmanned systems (STM),
• Developing of add-ons and plug-ins for open-source GIS software to achieve new functionality and better integration (STM),
• Tree mapping from remote sensing imagery to realistic terrain visualisation and visibility calculations (VTT).
In terms of improving scientific and technological quality for C4 ISR Partners declared achieving
• Electro-optical and infrared (EO/IR) performance modelling and simulation (ONERA)
• Climatological / environmental impact studies on EO/IR sensors performances (ONERA)
• Optimization of advanced EO / IR sensors to meet customer requirements (ONERA)
• Tight integration with sensor data coming from unmanned systems (STM)
• Interface to JAUS middleware (STM)
• Improvements on easy of use characteristics of GIS tactical map module especially by giving a great situational awareness to the operator who also has a teleoperation responsibility (STM)
• Knowledge on patterns for more efficient data exchange between two distinct open source software namely WorldWind and uDIG (STM)
• Integration of Open Scene Graph (OSG), Open Dynamics Engine (ODE), Joint Architecture for Unmanned Systems (JAUS) and PostGIS/PostgreSQL database in virtual TALOS model (VTT, Defendec)
Prospective product development for C4 ISR
• Clock Synchronization Software (EBIC)
• Command post (shelter) integrated to an existing C2 system (HAI)
• 3D simulator for optics systems (ONERA)
• GIS supported command control systems including mission planning and execution (STM)
• Various security systems (STM)
• Situational awareness and resource management supported by desktop GIS software focusing on disaster management concept (STM)
• Strategy Computer Games (STM)
• Surveillance Systems (STM)
• A reusable GIS library with 2D and 3D capabilities (STM)
Specific for C4 ISR personnel skills and qualifications are
• Improving knowledge on climatological / environmental database and software (ONERA)
• Improving knowledge on advanced EO / IR technologies (ONERA)
• Experience on developing EO /IR sensors modelling (ONERA)
• Experience on working on an European project (ONERA)
• Experience on developing simulators (ONERA)
• Experience on developing software with different partners (ONERA)
• Experience on developing Software based on Eclipse RCP (Rich Client Platform) (ONERA).
• Discover of JAUS architecture (ONERA)
• Experience on using JAUS protocol to implements interoperability between subsystems (ONERA)
• Discover of OpenSceneGraph Library (ONERA)
• Experience in developing a user library base on OSG to generate 2D and 3D Images for simulators (ONERA)
• Knowledge on JAUS Architecture (STM).
• Experience on applying JAUS Reference Architecture in Command & Control of unmanned systems. (STM)
• Experience on development of 3D GIS Applications (STM)
• Effective Eclipse RCP development ability (STM).
• Experience on using uDIG as underlying desktop GIS infrastructure (STM).
• Experience on using GeoTools and JTS libraries and GDAL Tools (STM).
• Experience on setting up and using GeoServer. WMS concepts and advanced knowledge on performance improvements by tiling and caching (STM).
• Experience on setting up PostGIS/PostgreSQL database, interface description and testing (VTT)
The key challenges for Unmanned Ground Vehicles (UGV) subsystems in TALOS were localisation (especially without GPS, development of SLAM algorithms), path planning, data fusion and autonomous behaviour.
In Unmanned Ground Vehicles (UGV) subsystems the examples of commercially exploitable knowledge are:
• Virtual model for autonomous ground vehicle operation: training for UGV control, telecommunications network planning, mission/route planning and rehearsal, area recognition (VTT)
• New methods and algorithms for navigation sensors integrations (WUT)
In terms of improving scientific and technological quality for Unmanned Ground Vehicles (UGV) subsystems Partners declared:
• Improvement of laboratory equipment, software and procedures for mobile platforms navigation (WUT)
• Improve Engineering design abilities for robotics & autonomous surveillance systems (WUT)
• Vehicle control software (VTT)
Prospective product development for Unmanned Ground Vehicles (UGV) subsystems
• Support of new multisensors systems (WUT)
• Path planning (VTT)
Specific for Unmanned Ground Vehicles (UGV) subsystems application of project results in education and improvement of personnel skills and qualifications are
• Cooperation in development of Mobile Robots Excellence Centre in order to organize place for students for conducting experiments and writing thesis, based on the equipment developed in project as well as the test site created for project needs (PIAP)
• Experience transferred to university syllabuses (WUT).
• Theoretical knowledge, programming and hardware operation skills (WUT)
• Promoting the personnel's technological skills in the following disciplines: Project management, System Engineering, Software, Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering (IAI)
The key challenge for Communication subsystem in TALOS was ensuring reliability, security, quality of service, performance, scalability, network management, compatibility of the radio end-systems and integration with external applications..
In communication subsystems the examples of commercially exploitable knowledge are:
• Software for probing QoS parameters in the transmission channel (ITTI)
• Software for switching among data streams in order to ensure reliable video streaming based on QoS measures of radio connections (ITTI)
• CDMA EV-DO standard based services with increased performance of (TP)
• Architecture design, deployment, management and exploitation of WiMAX networks for providing wideband communications (TTI)
• Handover algorithms for different radio access networks (TTI)
In terms of improving scientific and technological quality for communication Partners declared achieving
• Deeper knowledge about Qt programming (ITTI)
• Capability of handling of MPEG streams for programming purposes (ITTI)
• Better understanding of CDMA related issues (TP)
• Development of simpler handover algorithms for using them in scenarios where full Mobile IP protocol support is not required (TTI)
• Optimization of WiMAX Mobile Networks for rural NLOS scenarios (forests) (TTI).
• Enhancements to network planning of WiMAX and CDMA450 networks (VTT)
• Enhancements to real-time monitoring of WiMAX and CDMA 450 systems and use of application level QoS information (VTT, TTI)
Prospective communication product development may be
• Proxy server for nearly seamless switching of video streams transmitted through several and different radio interfaces (ITTI)
• Client-server software for nearly seamless switching of video streams transmitted through few different radio interfaces (ITTI)
• Intelligent & seamless handover tool (TTI)
Specific for communication area personnel skills and qualifications are
• Improving understanding of modern mobile systems (ITTI).
• Programming in Qt (ITTI).
• Handling video streams for programming (ITTI).
• Programming tools for QoS measurement (ITTI).
• Deeper knowledge about Qt programming (ITTI)
Participation in TALOS project led to increased productivity of Partners in the field specific for their expertise and activity (see Table below).
List of Websites:
TALOS Project public website is available at: www.talos-border.eu
Responsible for site’s content: PIAP (aspronska@piap.pl)
Webpage administrator: WUT (mzasuwa@meil.pw.edu.pl)
