Cloud-Based Crowdsourced Semantic Social Mobile App for Disaster Response

For effective disaster response, software technology needs to provide several key features: enable real-time reporting of events, aggregate and analyze event reports in real-time, display event reports on maps (2D) and geobrowsers (3D). We propose to leverage several leading-edge software technologies and trends, as well as relevant existing open-source / accessible software platforms and mapping clients. The technologies are: cloud-computing, crowdsourcing, semantic analysis, social media, mobile computing, and geospatial visualization. Our primary innovation is an architectural approach for combining these technologies into one coherent platform and a mobile app software tool for disaster response.

The proposed mobile app software tool directly addresses NASA's stated need for disaster response. It leverages and enhances broadly used technologies and platforms such as Ushahidi, Google App Engine, Twitter, Facebook and Google Maps. It enables the layering of real-time social media responses onto geobrowsers such as COAST and Google Earth. This technology can also be used in other NASA applications such as Air Traffic Control and Space Missions.

Platforms like Ushahidi are currently utilized in crowdsourced disaster response web sites and mobile apps. This technology will enhance these sites and applications by enabling semantic parsing of social media and implementation through cloud computing. Homeland security, Department of Defense, and Law Enforcement are some potential users. Hospitals and other healthcare service providers can use this technology for epidemics and pandemics.

This is early/mid-stage (TRL 5) — the most realistic path in is NASA SBIR/STTR, which funds small businesses and research institutions to develop technology aligned with NASA's needs (equity-free, phased funding). Check whether a current SBIR/STTR solicitation topic overlaps with this project's technology area, or contact the project directly (above) to ask.

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