Precision Information Environment for Collaborative Emergency Support (PIECES)

Decision makers responding to homeland security incidents must rapidly integrate and manage dynamic, time-sensitive information from many heterogeneous and multimodal information sources. Responders access this information through numerous software applications, all while attempting to collaborate in real-time. Based on the results of our Phase I design effort, we propose to develop and evaluate a Precision Information Environment for Coordinated Emergency Support (PIECES). Four core components characterize our approach. First, we will streamline access to multiple information resources by building PIECES on a software framework that uses emerging DHS data standards to fuse heterogeneous information for presentation through a single access point. Second, we will develop advanced, human-centered, multimodal displays within a fully tailorable environment to support manipulation, understanding, and exploitation of correlated data sources via an integrated view. Third, we will support collaboration between teams of local and distributed responders by providing a work environment that allows teams to share and manipulate data sources in real-time despite significant differences in hardware capability. Fourth, we will leverage existing, in-house technology and other emerging and planned DHS systems to rapidly prototype software components. This will allow us to evaluate PIECES capabilities and demonstrate to relevant stakeholders in regional EOCs.