Nokia Showcases LTE-Connected Drones for First Responders

By Mike Ball / 20 Feb 2017
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Nokia has showcased how drones can facilitate efficient rescue operations for first responders. Using its Ultra Compact Network – a highly portable base station – Nokia has demonstrated the creation of an instant high-speed LTE network to establish connectivity between video camera-equipped drones and a control center. The demonstration of the “Nokia Saves Lives” initiative took place at the UAE Drones for Good (D4G) Award event in Dubai.

Network connectivity is often the first priority of any rescue operation since it is often compromised in disaster situations. Nokia’s Ultra Compact Network provides a standalone LTE network to quickly re-establish connectivity to various mission-critical applications including video-equipped drones. Drones can stream video and other sensor data in real time from the disaster site to a control center, providing inputs such as exact locations where people are stranded and nature of the difficulty of reaching the locations.

The Nokia Saving Lives initiative establishes such a control center in a disaster location which analyzes data using Nokia Video Analytics technology to derive useful insights that enable quick decision-making for prioritizing tasks for efficient and safe rescue operations. Nokia’s Video and Data Analytics solution, together with rescue applications and mission advisor tools, provides the required intelligence for making appropriate decisions quickly.

Nokia recently became a member of the GSMA Humanitarian Connectivity Charter, which aims to support improved access to communication and information for those affected by crisis in order to reduce the loss of life and positively contribute to humanitarian response. Nokia will continue such cooperation and will partner with operators and NGOs in its initiative to help rescue operations, providing a limited number of its Nokia Saving Lives initiative with a not-for-profit approach. The initiative is currently being tested with operators and NGOs and will be demonstrated at Mobile World Congress 2017.

Bernard Najm, head of the Middle East Market Unit, Nokia, said: “Nokia always strives to expand the human possibilities of technologies for the benefit of mankind. We are committed to corporate social responsibility, and with ‘Nokia Saves Lives’ we want to use our technologies with drones to show efficient rescue operations in collaboration with NGOs and network operators. The selection of this initiative by the UAE Drones for Good Award for a public demonstration in Dubai clearly shows usefulness of this innovative initiative for smart disaster recovery.”

Posted by Mike Ball Mike Ball is our resident technical editor here at Unmanned Systems Technology. Combining his passion for teaching, advanced engineering and all things unmanned, Mike keeps a watchful eye over everything related to the unmanned technical sector. With over 10 years’ experience in the unmanned field and a degree in engineering, Mike’s been heading up our technical team here for the last 8 years. Connect & Contact