Keywords

Introduction

CO-PROTECT, endorsed by the Greek General Secretariat of Research and Innovation, is a collaborative cluster project involving various technological enterprises and SMEs within Greece. Its mission is to foster innovation by integrating and enhancing high TRL products and services dedicated to natural disaster management, environmental crises, and civil protection. This pioneering initiative, aligned with the Greek Disaster Resilience Innovation Cluster, Defkalion (DRIC), seeks to develop globally applicable interoperable products. The consortium, comprising SMEs and top Greek research institutions, works to bridge technological gaps and deliver competitive solutions. CO-PROTECT’s offerings include interoperable tools for public and private entities such as Civil Protection Organizations, Emergency Management Services, and Law Enforcement Agencies. These tools enhance the efficiency of operational tasks and missions. Emphasizing international collaboration, the project’s strategy aims to elevate Greek SMEs and extend the reach of safety and security products to global markets. CO-PROTECT is uniquely designed to provide components that work together seamlessly, culminating in a unified platform that supports disaster and crisis management. The anticipated result is a significant enhancement in disaster and crisis management support, reflecting Greece’s leadership in this vital field.

Specifically, CO-PROTECT’s results encompass the following key areas:

  • Interoperability Framework: Creation of a standardized framework at the data models and services level. This framework facilitates communication and sharing between current products, services, methods, and solutions within CO-PROTECT’s platform, and can be extended to future developments.

  • Technological Solutions for Earthquakes: Provision of early warning systems for earthquakes and rapid damage assessment, leveraging risk assessment reasoning, fragility curves, and networks of specialized sensors and digital equipment.

  • Data Modeling for Flood and Weather Events: Development of data modeling solutions aimed at flood events and extreme weather forecasting, enhancing preparedness and informed decision-making.

  • Wildfire Management Solutions: Implementation of comprehensive solutions for managing wildfires, including risk mapping, fire spot detection and location, fire spread simulation, and support for fire control operations.

  • Critical Infrastructure Security: Introduction of solutions that assist in the surveillance and monitoring of security issues within critical infrastructures, ensuring robust protection.

These innovative outcomes represent a significant stride in disaster and crisis management, integrating multiple domains and technologies to provide a holistic approach to safety and security.

CO-PROTECT Common Interoperability Framework

As delineated above, the CO-PROTECT product repository encompasses various tools and solutions designed to assist with disaster and crisis management tasks. The repository is meticulously organized according to risk categories, including extreme weather, floods, wildfires, earthquakes, and the protection of critical infrastructures. Within this structure, the relevant components are crafted to be compatible with platforms, ensuring seamless interoperability of data and services.

Key to the success of these solutions is the ability to share common information and model data exchange appropriately to enable interoperable services. This is realized through implementing CO-PROTECT’s Common Interoperability Framework (CIF), a guideline that all integrated systems and applications must adhere to within the project’s platforms. The CIF consists of two primary models—data and service models—designed to facilitate maximum cooperation and exchange among disparate applications that are incorporated into the platform.

In the ensuing sections of this publication, readers will find a concise overview of the ontology representation and high-level architecture, supplemented by an in-depth exploration of the common data and service models. These models are instrumental in ensuring interoperability and cohesive functionality among the solutions provided within the CO-PROTECT initiative. The comprehensive integration approach sets the stage for an advanced, cooperative disaster and crisis management framework.

CO-PROTECT Architecture

Methodological Approach

Collaborative interoperability in CO-PROTECT requires harmonizing communication across various entities, including organizations, applications, command systems, and technological equipment, especially in civil protection crises and emergency management. CO-PROTECT’s framework fosters real-time data exchange, interagency communication, and operational synchronization during crises.

Figure 8.1 illustrates CO-PROTECT’s general data model, integrating diverse information sources with user requirements to formulate responses for different civil protection crises. Precise data acquisition is paramount, and robust systems ensure accuracy. Data models furnish essential definitions and formats, playing a pivotal albeit modest role in data systems development, yet with likely overarching influence on the outcomes.

Fig. 8.1
A flow diagram of the co-protect data model. The user requirements have diverse information sources like geo, metro, topographic, and forest fuel leading to civil protection crises like forest fires, floods, earthquakes, and critical infrastructures leading to an innovative approach to disaster management.

CO-PROTECT data model

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Postuser definition and requirement elicitation, the project recognized fragmented solutions within the Greek market by consortium organizations. Their unique characteristics were scrutinized, and the optimal data models for each crisis scenario were adopted. This selection focused on the prerequisites for subsequent integration into a seamless interoperable framework solution, highlighting the methodical approach in unifying disparate technologies and methodologies for enhanced crisis response.

This integrative strategy is central to CO-PROTECT’s innovative approach to disaster management.

CO-PROTECT Reference Architecture

Figure 8.2 illustrates the reference architecture of CO-PROTECT, delineating the core architecture (right) and the governance framework for interoperability (left).

Fig. 8.2
A block diagram. The integrated governance of environmental incident management public service with legal, organizational, semantic, and technical interoperability is connected to security and privacy with integrated public services, delivery, and internal and external sources with intelligence and information services.

CO-PROTECT reference architecture

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This architecture ensures an interoperable framework regardless of the specific natural disaster addressed, encompassing Legal, Organizational, Semantic, and Technical dimensions.

Legal Interoperability aligns cross-border information exchange laws; Organizational Interoperability molds cross-organizational goals and processes; Semantic Interoperability ensures shared understanding through standards like semantic dictionaries; Technical Interoperability manages system-level connections, such as data integration.

Collectively, these frameworks orchestrate public or private environmental incident management, culminating in a holistic solution that meets user needs and offers unified public services. Such coordination is vital for managing crises involving multiple entities, steered by authorized planning and implementation.

Within CO-PROTECT’s architecture, stored event data in designated Databases (DBs) fosters intraorganizational communication, with integration extending to external sources, enhancing service capabilities. This data amalgamation forms crisis management mechanisms. Accurate interpretation relies on dictionary standards from interoperability repositories. Interoperable data, accessed through specialized mechanisms, is presented to users via various control devices, ensuring timely and competent service provision. This comprehensive approach encapsulates CO-PROTECT’s innovative strategy, leveraging interoperability to create a cohesive, real-time response system for effective crisis management.

Common Data Model

This chapter outlines CO-PROTECT’s methodology for determining the data model that governs communication across key areas such as earthquakes, wildfires, floods, extreme weather events, and critical infrastructure protection. Recognizing the complexity of disaster management, CO-PROTECT opted to adapt the existing Copernicus EMS service data model (CDM-EMS) [1] rather than create a new model. This choice assures interoperability with existing systems and is economically efficient in terms of time and resources.

The CDM-EMS, already widely adopted and validated for disaster management, was tailored to CO-PROTECT’s specific needs, ensuring compatibility for data access and exchange. This decision was grounded in a comprehensive analysis of available options and international literature [2, 3], with a focus on time efficiency and alignment with CO-PROTECT’s requirements.

The adaptation process encompassed specific stages, reflecting a strategic approach to customization (Fig. 8.3). This method underscores CO-PROTECT’s commitment to leveraging existing innovations, enhancing efficiency, and promoting interoperability. By harnessing a tested operational data model [4, 5] and strategically customizing it, CO-PROTECT has showcased a practical and innovative approach that resonates with the complex demands of disaster management, emphasizing collaboration, efficiency, and adaptability.

Fig. 8.3
A flow diagram of adapting and specializing the E M S data model. It includes analysis of existing data models, identification of required modifications, development of the specialized data model, ensuring interoperability, testing data model, and data model development.

Methodological approach for adapting and specializing the EMS data model to CO-PROTECT needs

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The envisaged chapter underscores the criticality of standardization and interoperability, aiming for consistency and accuracy in data collection and management within the realm of natural disaster response and critical event handling. The proposed specialized data model CDM-COPROTECT seeks to enhance the efficiency and efficacy of data management and analysis.

CDM-COPROTECT extends the existing CDM-EMS, inheriting its broad applicability and alignment with Copernicus EMS services. Simultaneously, it adds the requisite depth and specialization to fulfill CO-PROTECT’s unique requirements.

The structured data model fosters a unified framework streamlining data management, information analysis, and decision-making. A primary challenge was correlating four distinct datasets (Earthquake, Flood, Fire, Critical Infrastructure) using common characteristics to identify disaster types. The solution dynamically accesses the relevant dataset, based on the characterized disaster type, ensuring smooth data management and analysis. Separate datasets were crafted for the four different pillars, with a distinct level (Observed Event) created to establish a stable one-to-many cardinality relationship, signifying the disaster type and corresponding data (Fig. 8.4).

Fig. 8.4
A flow diagram of the data model for disaster management. The system incorporates a robust framework for management, analysis, and decision-making, interconnected with four essential datasets focusing on earthquake, flood, fire, and critical infrastructure.

CO-PROTECT common data model

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CO-PROTECT’s proposed data model embodies a comprehensive framework that facilitates robust management and analysis of information related to various natural disasters and critical infrastructure protection. Designed for seamless communication and interoperability among software and hardware entities within the project’s scope, it epitomizes a strategic approach toward integrated and responsive disaster management. This model represents a significant advancement in the field, leveraging standardized practices to drive effective response mechanisms.

The CDM-EMS’s Observed_Event level [6] was strategically leveraged and expanded to serve the specific requirements of CO-PROTECT’s four principal pillars, encompassing the application and technology interdependencies. Building on the existing structural elements of CDM-EMS (Group 1, Group 2, and Group 3), additional structures and tables were introduced, tailored to the unique requirements of each disaster category (Group 4: EARTHQUAKE, GROUP 5: FLOOD, GROUP 6: FIRE, and GROUP 7: CRITICAL_INFRASTRUCTURE).

Common Service Model

Interoperability holds paramount significance for civil protection services, enabling seamless communication and information exchange during all phases of crisis management, including preparedness, response, mitigation, and recovery. Employing a common service model to manage information flow in emergencies is instrumental in assuring the interoperability of integrated technology solutions.

CO-PROTECT’s logical service model encapsulates logical groupings of tools and services, reflecting abstract representations of the system’s main components and articulating their interconnections. These groupings are categorized into the following four levels, each corresponding to the specific functions and processes they support:

This structured approach underscores CO-PROTECT’s dedication to fostering coherent and efficient communication within the multifaceted landscape of disaster management, leveraging logical design to enhance functional interplay and responsiveness.

Data Layer

CO-PROTECT’s Data Layer focuses on collecting, storing, and organizing primary data. It is where the data from various sensors, including satellites and weather stations, are cataloged and managed. These sensors are chosen based on the technology and environmental risk, detecting specific characteristics for effective intervention strategies. The Data Layer includes systems like satellites and stations that collect raw data, channeling them to higher levels of the platform. This collection of environmental data plays a crucial role in understanding and monitoring natural phenomena, translating raw observations into actionable insights. The meticulous design of the Data Layer emphasizes CO-PROTECT’s commitment to precise data handling, employing cutting-edge technology to foster a robust understanding of environmental dynamics and serving as the foundation for effective disaster management.

Data Analysis Layer

The Data Analysis Layer in CO-PROTECT’s architecture serves as the processing hub where data captured in the Data Layer is scrutinized, analyzed, and transformed. This critical layer metamorphoses raw data into actionable information through a series of intricate techniques.

Within this layer, a comprehensive suite of procedures and tools is deployed for data cleaning, filtering, normalization, and transformation, priming the data for more nuanced analysis. The analysis engine, a core component of this layer, is equipped with a myriad of algorithms and models specifically designed to distill information and discern patterns from the sensor recordings.

Hosting various analytical models and algorithms, this segment of the platform is tasked with extracting meaningful insights from the preprocessed sensor data. Depending on the specific use case and the complexity of the data, the analysis may encompass a broad spectrum of techniques. This includes but is not limited to statistical analysis, machine learning, artificial intelligence, and other advanced analytical methodologies.

Data Visualization Layer

The Data Visualization Layer within CO-PROTECT’s framework focuses on translating analytical results into visually accessible forms. This layer renders complex data into formats that facilitate easy understanding by incorporating visual tools such as graphs, charts, and interactive visualizations. The goal is to make intricate analysis outcomes accessible and actionable without losing complex insights. A distinguishing feature of this layer is its adaptability to user preferences, allowing for customized dashboards that align with individual needs. The Data Visualization Layer reflects CO-PROTECT’s commitment to user-centric design, bridging the gap between technical analysis and practical user comprehension. By transforming data into visual narratives, it enhances the platform’s usability, fostering informed decision-making through intuitive design. It embodies CO-PROTECT’s dedication to making complex environmental data accessible to diverse stakeholders.

Management Layer

The Management Layer, the culmination of CO-PROTECT’s process, emphasizes holistic system management, tools, services, and data management. Designed to bolster decision-making and trigger relevant processes, it incorporates various tools and services that empower users to make informed decisions tailored to specific incidents, responsibilities, and operational needs.

As depicted in Fig. 8.5, a seamless correlation exists between successive layers. Information cascades from initial field measurements through data analysis and culminates in user presentation. This integrated flow furnishes users and administrators with a comprehensive understanding of the prevailing situation, arming them with the requisite information to make judicious decisions and execute corresponding actions. This Management Layer epitomizes CO-PROTECT’s strategic alignment of technology and governance, orchestrating a coordinated response to dynamic challenges.

Fig. 8.5
A block diagram of the layers of data visualization. The layers are the data layer, data analysis layer, data visualization layer, and management layer.

Logical groups of tools/services (layers)

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Interoperability Tools

CO-PROTECT utilizes specialized technologies for reliable, immediate, and secure information transmission. These include:

  • Geoserver [7]: An open-source software enabling users to share and publish geospatial data and maps online, fostering spatial awareness and collaboration.

  • Apache Kafka [8]: An open-source messaging platform tailored for high-performance, reliable, and scalable real-time data transmission between discrete applications and systems, ensuring seamless integration.

  • REST APIs (Representational State Transfer Application Programming Interfaces) [9]: A widely adopted architecture instrumental in designing and developing interfaces that facilitate interaction between various applications and systems in the digital landscape.

  • FTP (File Transfer Protocol) [10] and SFTP (SSH File Transfer Protocol): Distinct protocols utilized for transferring files between computers over the Internet, ensuring secure and efficient data movement.

Together, these technologies form CO-PROTECT’s technological backbone, each serving a distinct function within the system. Their combined use ensures seamless integration and robust data flow within the platform, catering to the multifaceted needs of disaster management. CO-PROTECT’s choice of these tools reflects a commitment to innovation, interoperability, and security, reinforcing its stance as a responsive and advanced system in the field of civil protection.

Conclusions

CO-PROTECT combines innovative solutions and collaboration with EU entities to enhance civil protection and support Greek SMEs. In summary, the proposed solution’s value is substantial and multifaceted. It addresses emergencies at various levels by fostering technological, organizational, and business interoperability. Integrating diverse tools creates a platform for efficient management of environmental crises, reflecting the project’s commitment to innovation and cooperation.

The efficacy of this approach is rooted in key foundational elements:

  • Common Data Model: Ensuring a uniform language across tools and services.

  • Common Service Model: Facilitating seamless interaction through a unified framework.

  • Connection to Specific Use Cases: Tailoring responses to unique emergency needs.

  • Internal Structure & Interoperability: A meticulous understanding of interaction dynamics.

Building upon these principles, CO-PROTECT integrates tools and services, forming a cohesive platform that enhances civil protection efficiency across multiple levels. Its innovative approach sets a precedent for collaboration in disaster management, guiding future endeavors in this vital field.