A Data-Driven Situational Awareness System for Enhanced Air Cargo Operations Emergency Control

Abstract

Based on the constant need for safety and operational cost optimization, the air-cargo industry is continually evolving in the context of Industry 4.0. Used wisely, data can help the industry to provide critical resilience that will allow authorities to take proper measures/actions in response to unexpected disasters and secure societal protection. The “INTELLICONT” project combines state-of-the-art technologies blended with novel solutions to improve the loading/unloading time, the structural status awareness, and the safety and security of the air-cargo related operations (prior to, during, and after the flight), as well as to enhance their capabilities related to the execution of their duties. The suggested system is contextually aligned and harmonized with the existing international and EU regulations. In the present work, the remote monitoring and control system for intelligent aircraft cargo containers have been presented from the software perspective. The intelligent containers integrate three types of sensors, Structural Health Monitoring, fire suppression, and locking status indication. The focus has been given to the design and development of a Human Machine Interface (HMI) capable to visualize all related data for better and safer control of the aircraft cargo. It is shown that the system can contribute to making the air transportations safer, environmentally friendlier, faster and with the lowest possible cost.