Institutes & CentersInstitut für Alpine Notfallmedizin - Projects - DRONE-AED

DRONE-AED

Drohnenunterstützte Bereitstellung eines automatisierten externen Defibrillators in Bergregionen

Drohneneinsatz eines automatisierten externen Defibrillators in Gebirgsregionen

Die Verfügbarkeit eines automatisierten externen Defibrillators (AED) wenige Minuten nach Eintreten eines Herzstillstands kann die Erfolgsaussichten bei einem Herzstillstand erhöhen. Die Zahl der Besucher touristischer Bergregionen und abgelegener Gebiete wie Nationalparks oder Skigebiete hat zugenommen. Die Besucher sind zudem auch häufiger älter und haben somit ein höheres Risiko für einen Herzstillstand. Patienten in diesen Gebieten, die sonst nicht in angemessener Zeit erreichbar wären, könnte durch die frühzeitige Verfügbarkeit eines AED geholfen werden, wenn dieser mit alternativen Mitteln wie einer Drohne bereitgestellt wird.

Können unbemannte Flugsysteme (UAS) die Zeit bis zum Beginn der Behandlung bei einem Herzstillstand bei Bergrettungseinsätzen verkürzen, indem sie einen AED durch automatisierte Flüge in Bergregionen unter extremen Umweltbedingungen und mit einem geringeren CO2-Fußabdruck bereitstellen?

Unser Ziel ist es, einen früheren Behandlungsbeginn bei Herzstillstand in Bergregionen durch einen per Drohne gelieferten AED mit einem begrenzten ökologischen Fußabdruck zu demonstrieren.

1. Entwicklung eines voll funktionsfähigen UAS-Geräts, das in der Lage ist, einen AED in extremen Umgebungen automatisiert abzugeben und im Labor getestet wurde.
2. Eine prospektive Feldstudie, die zeigt, dass die automatisierte Lieferung von einem AED per Drohne weniger Zeit in Anspruch nimmt als die konventionelle Lieferung.
3. Beschreibung und Vergleich des CO2-Fußabdrucks verschiedener Transportmodalitäten an abgelegenen Orten.

Project duration: March 2023 - February 2024
Project status:
Funding:
Stiftungen (Other projects /Project)
Institutes: Institut für Alpine Notfallmedizin , Center for Sensing Solutions, terraXcube

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Dieses Projekt wurde mit der Unterstützung des Wettbewerbs Fusion Grant der Stiftung Sparkasse Bozen in Zusammenarbeit mit NOI Techpark, Südtiroler Wirtschaftsring und Wirtschaftsnetz Südtirol umgesetzt.

DRONE-AED Feldtests Pragser Wildsee (BZ) Oktober 2023

Credit: Eurac Research | Andrea De Giovanni

Scientific Publications

Journal article2026

Strategic Vertical Port Placement and Routing of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles for Automated Defibrillator Delivery in Mountainous Areas

Mejia-Aguilar A, Strapazzon G, Fajardo-Figueroa E, van Veelen MJ

Giacomo Strapazzon

Out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) is a major cause of death during mountain activities in the Alpine regions. Due to the time-critical nature of these emergencies and the logistical challenges of remote terrain, emergency medical services (EMS) are investigating the use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to deliver automated external defibrillators (AEDs). This study presents a geospatial strategy for optimising AED delivery by UAVs in mountainous environments, using the Province of South Tyrol, Italy, as a model region. A Geographic Information System (GIS) framework was developed to identify suitable sites for vertical drone ports based on terrain, infrastructure, and regulatory constraints. A Low-Altitude-Flight Elevation Model (LAFEM) was implemented to generate obstacle-avoiding, regulation-compliant 3D flight paths using least-cost path analysis. The results identified 542 potential vertical-port locations, covering approximately 49% of South Tyrol within ten minutes of flight, and demonstrated significant time savings for AED delivery in field tests compared with manual and Euclidean routing. These findings show that integrating GIS-based vertical-port placement and terrain-adaptive UAV routing can substantially improve AED accessibility and response times in mountainous regions. The LAFEM model aligns with U-space airspace regulations and supports safe, automated AED deployment for improved outcomes in OHCA emergencies

DOI Quelle

DOI: 10.3390/drones10010038

Journal article2024

Drones reduce the time to defibrillation in a highly visited non-urban area: A randomized simulation-based trial

van Veelen M, Vinetti G, Dal Cappello T, Eisendle F, Mejia-Aguilar A, Parin R, Oberhammer R, Falla M,

Tomas Dal Cappello, Giovanni Vinetti, Riccardo Parin, Marika Falla, Giacomo Strapazzon

Introduction: Out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) has a high global incidence and mortality rate, with early defibrillation significantly improving survival. Our aim was to assess the feasibility of autonomous drone delivery of automated external defibrillators (AED) in a non-urban area with physical barriers and compare the time to defibrillate (TTD) with bystander retrieval from a public access defibrillator (PAD) point and helicopter emergencymedical services (HEMS) physician performed defibrillation.
Methods: This randomized simulation-based trial with a cross-over design included bystanders performing AED retrievals either delivered by automated drone flight or on foot from a PAD point, and simulated HEMS interventions. The primary outcome was the time to defibrillation, with secondary outcomes comparing workload, perceived physical effort, and ease of use.
Results: Thirty-six simulations were performed. Drone-delivered AED intervention had a significantly shorter
TTD [2.2 (95 % CI 2.0–2.3) min] compared to PAD retrieval [12.4 (95 % CI 10.4–14.4) min] and HEMS [18.2
(95 % CI 17.1–19.2) min].
The self-reported physical effort on a visual analogue scale for drone-delivered AED was significantly lower versus PAD [2.5 (1 – 22) mm vs. 81 (65–99) mm, p = 0.02]. The overall mean workload measured by NASA-TLX was also significantly lower for drone delivery compared to PAD [4.3 (1.2–11.7) vs. 11.9 (5.5–14.5), p = 0.018].
Conclusion: The use of drones for automated AED delivery in a non-urban area with physical barriers is feasible and leads to a shorter time to defibrillation. Drone-delivered AEDs also involve a lower workload and perceived physical effort than AED retrieval on foot.

DOI Quelle

DOI: 10.1016/j.ajem.2024.09.036

Conference proceedings article2024

Towards an automatic UAS-based mapping tool for first responders: Defibrillator Missions in Alpine Regions

Fajardo Figueroa E, Mejia-Aguilar A, van Veelen MJ

Cardiovascular disorders are the main cause of emergencies with fatal outcomes related to mountain activities in Alpine Regions (averaging 23%) [1]. The limited timespan to assist effectively these urgencies, is driving rescue teams to adopt novel strategies, like delivering Automatic External Defibrillators (AED) using Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS), to aid in cases of Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrests (OHCA) in remote settings [2]. Recent studies have shown the efficiency of drones to carry supplies flying over long distances, making them a promising solution to improve the response time of Emergency Medical Services (EMS) [3], especially in rural areas [2]. However, critical factors need further optimization for widespread implementation in mountain environments [4]. In Alpine Regions, the successful implementation of this solution needs to identify suitable locations to deploy the drones within limited facilities and a routing workflow capable to find optimal pathways in a 3D environment [4]. The spatial component of these requirements, can be addressed through the use of cartographic and geostatistical methods based on suitability models [5], and least-cost paths [6]. Generating drone routes compatible with the on-going design of a secure airspace for UAS operations, as the U-Space [7], keeping a safe altitude across topographic variations while avoiding obstacles, to support the joint efforts of emergency teams [8]. According to the presented statements, this research aims to design a map-driven distributed emergency drone service network, enable to localize suitable areas and propose time-effective strategies for delivering Automatic External Defibrillators (AED) in Alpine Regions (Figure 1). As a contribution to the development of a solution for first responders to plan automatic Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) missions in mountainous environments.

The first phase of the study focuses on designing a map-driven distributed emergency drone service network tailored to deploy UAS-AED missions within the Province of South Tyrol, Italy [4]. This identifies suitable areas for positioning drone stations (Figure 2), based on the unique spatial characteristics of the region [9]. Potential locations to place the UAS stations are selected as the base of the proposed network, considering the spatial distribution of existing facilities in the studied area [4].

The second phase focuses on defining a cartographic workflow for programming automatic flight missions to facilitate the efficient delivery of defibrillators using drones in Alpine environments, taking South Tyrol as a model for its implementation and testing. After a comprehensive analysis of the spatial variables critical for navigating demanding mountain scenarios, the study introduces the Low-Altitude-Flight Elevation Model (LAFEM) as a modified surface model for creating flight routes using least-cost path methods [10].

Subsequently, a semi-automatic workflow, based on geographic information management and geoprocessing techniques, is developed to generate optimal flight paths for AED delivery using drones. To assess the effectiveness of the proposed workflow, field tests are conducted to compare its performance against other routing approaches considered by first responders in rescue missions [11] (Figure 3).

The outcomes of this project show the extent that would have an emergency drone service network in the studied region, and the promising improvements of considering a routing workflow to plan automatic UAS-AED missions in mountain environments based on cartographic methods.

DOI

DOI: 10.5194/ica-abs-7-37-2024

All Publications

Strategic Vertical Port Placement and Routing of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles for Automated Defibrillator Delivery in Mountainous Areas
Mejia-Aguilar A, Strapazzon G, Fajardo-Figueroa E, van Veelen MJ (2026)
MDPI AG
Zeitschriftenartikel
Drones

Weitere Informationen: https://doi.org/10.3390/drones10010038

https://doi.org/10.3390/drones10010038

Towards an automatic UAS-based mapping tool for first responders: Defibrillator Missions in Alpine Regions
Fajardo Figueroa E, Mejia-Aguilar A, van Veelen MJ (2024)
Beitrag in Konferenzband

Conference: EuroCarto 2024 | Vienna | 9.9.2024 - 11.9.2024

https://doi.org/10.5194/ica-abs-7-37-2024

Drones reduce the time to defibrillation in a highly visited non-urban area: A randomized simulation-based trial
van Veelen M, Vinetti G, Dal Cappello T, Eisendle F, Mejia-Aguilar A, Parin R, Oberhammer R, Falla M, Strapazzon G (2024)
Zeitschriftenartikel
The American Journal of Emergency Medicine

Weitere Informationen: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ajem.2024.09.036

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ajem.2024.09.036

Project Partners

MAVTech srl

Project Team

Giacomo Strapazzon

Roberto Mendicino

Giovanni Vinetti

Miriam Gottardi

Riccardo Parin

Abraham Mejia Aguilar

Team Member

Technische
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Conference proceedings article2024

Towards an automatic UAS-based mapping tool for first responders: Defibrillator Missions in Alpine Regions

Fajardo Figueroa E, Mejia-Aguilar A, van Veelen MJ

DOI

DOI: 10.5194/ica-abs-7-37-2024

DRONE-AED

Drohnenunterstützte Bereitstellung eines automatisierten externen Defibrillators in Bergregionen