Navigating in Zero-Visibility: A Haptic Guidance System for Improving Egress and Situation Awareness of Professional Firefighters

ObjectiveThis study investigates the utility of providing haptic guidance in a firefighter navigation system (FNS) for zero-visibility search and rescue operations, and the impact on situation awareness (SA).BackgroundFirefighters often encounter the challenge of navigating in zero-visibility conditions and needing to egress structures by navigating a reverse path of travel from memory. Their reliance on memory and limited spatial awareness under these conditions increases the risk of error, injury, and fatality, particularly as path complexity increases.MethodEighteen active-duty firefighters traversed inbound paths of varying complexity into a single-story building while blindfolded. Participants then attempted to egress along the same path using either their Standard Operating Procedures, or while aided by the FNS. The FNS presented vibrations on a waist-worn belt to communicate turn-by-turn guidance along the egress path as well as spatial information to help orient participants to the direction of task-relevant target locations.ResultsFirefighters using the FNS were more likely to successfully retrace their inbound path, less likely to wander off-path, and maintained better SA. These beneficial effects were more pronounced with greater path complexity.ConclusionThe FNS reduced firefighters' spatial disorientation and improved both egress efficiency and SA under simulated zero-visibility conditions commonly found in structural firefighting.ApplicationEquipping firefighters with a haptic navigation system has the potential to improve firefighting capability while increasing the safety of both firefighters and those being rescued. The methodology developed here can serve as a framework for future testing and analysis of haptic navigation systems in field conditions.