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When Captain Michael Hoose, a 15-year veteran of Santa Barbara (CA) Fire Department, needed a way to speed up data collection and improve the efficiency of data sharing during wildfire response, he and his team turned to digital pen-and-paper technology--more specifically, the Anoto1 digital pen and the Adapx2 software system.
The Anoto digital pen. (Photos courtesy of Tetra Tech.)
The following are some of the factors on which Captain Hoose based his decision.
The technology is easy to use, reliable, and cost effective--in reality, it is a pen and paper data-collection and -dissemination system. The pens are interchangeable among crew members entering the data, and they are much more economical to replace than ruggedized mobile computers if lost. The notes can be made with the digital pen on incident action plans, maps, and other documents. Writing on the document with the digital pen creates digitized data along with the pen strokes; a digital watermark is printed along with the map information. Each stroke of the pen on the paper map creates a red-line annotation that is geospatially referenced and added to the geodatabase. When the pen is docked into its USB port or a personal or laptop computer, the field data automatically appear in ArcGIS.
Crew members of Santa Barbara (CA) Fire Department updated data in the field using the digital pen.
Virtually all members can input and collect data. No special training or new tools are needed. The data can be shared more quickly from the incident command post (ICP) to the field firefighters, fostering quicker and more accurate operational decisions. No longer do crews have to leave the field to drive paper notes back to the command center so the information can be relayed to GIS analysts who will update the central GIS system.
If the pen is lost in the firefight, team members retain paper copies of the data, which they can share with the ICP. There is no need to reacquire lost data, if that is even possible.
The system saves time. Field data are instantly digitized and stored through the pen while generating a physical paper copy. There is no waiting for paper or manually reentering data or the need to support mobile computers in unpredictable field situations.
The system can also be used for prefire surveys to identify areas that are defensible or vulnerable, hazardous locations, water sources, archeological spots, and safety zones or other areas of interest in respect to wildfires. After the fire, teams can conduct postfire surveys to inspect and assess damage and the safety impact of fires on structures, roadways, and other important sites.
The system is conducive to the rapidly changing wildfire environment. Firefighters may have to survey from a helicopter to map the current fire lines, from the ground in unfamiliar back country, or from the engine cab in an urban setting.
Joplin Tornado
The system was also employed in the aftermath of the Joplin, Missouri, tornado that occurred on May 22, 2011, which destroyed 2,000 buildings and killed more than 158 people. The Ando digital pen and Adapx software system was used to capture information out in the field and in more remote locations.
The buildings and facilities destroyed by the tornado resulted in such environmental hazards as asbestos releases, chemical spills, and orphaned tanks. These hazards had to be assessed rapidly to identify those that posed immediate safety issues and those that could be addressed in the longer term. The alternative to the digital pen-software approach would have been the traditional method of having inspectors collect data on paper forms and maps and analysts working through the night at the emergency operations center to enter the hazards into an online database environmental agencies would use to update maps and triage hazard issues. Although paper was ideal for quickly capturing the data in the field, processing the data created a bottleneck.
Instead, Tetra Tech, a provider of consulting, engineering, and technical services worldwide was deployed to Joplin with Anoto digital pens and the Adapx software to inspect approximately 80 facilities. Personnel filled out more than 100 facility assessment forms, noting conditions and locations with the digital pen. When the digital pen was connected to a PC at the command center, all the data was automatically integrated into Excel, accessible in the original handwriting and as converted data using advanced character recognition. The time for data entry was cut by more than 87 percent. Analysis, triage, and planning were able to begin as soon as teams came in from the field and docked the digital pens.
Prior to using digital pens, Tetra Tech had explored PDA-based solutions, but the devices were complex and expensive, and required a great deal of training.
REFERENCES
1. For additional information, go to www.anoto.com.
2. Capturx in Seattle, Washington, is the creator of Adapx, which enables data collected with the Anoto digital on paper forms, maps, CAD prints, and notebooks to be automatically integrated and correctly formatted into OneNote, Excel, SharePoint, ArcGIS, or PDF files. Capturx uses advanced character recognition in Office apps to make data available for analysis, workflow automation, or use in other applications. The date, time, and author of each form entry--even the location from where it was sent--can be tracked to help validate data and meet compliance requirements. Additional information is at www.adapx.com.
If you have a product or service you would like to have considered for this column, please contact maryjd@pennwell.com.
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