From:  The Intelligent Software Agents Lab, The Robotics Institute, Carnegie Mellon University
Contact:  Lori Price, Writer/Editor: nospam-lrprice at cs dot cmu dot edu
Written by: Michael D. Rectenwald, June 2001

Software Agent Technologies Speed Emergency Response to Terrorism Crises

Researchers at Carnegie Mellon’s Robotics Institute have developed armies of intelligent agents that act as response teams able to spontaneously find, interconnect, and cooperate to overcome the chaos that impedes emergency responses to disasters such as the recent Trade Center and Pentagon attacks. 

As threats to national security change to include well-orchestrated, covert and unexpected terrorist attacks, we must add to our lines of defense superior information gathering and fusing capabilities. Visual recognition agents that can instantly perceive threats, relay information, and coordinate responses with teams of agents and humans, can proactively stop attacks before they occur, and respond instantly when they cannot be prevented. 

Agent technologies offer the greatest opportunity for sifting through the mountains of often contradictory information, to supply the right information to the right decision makers, in time to avert and respond to crises. 

Dr. Katia Sycara of the Intelligent Software Agents Lab in the Robotics Institute is conducting agent research for the Defense Advanced Projects Agency, Office of Naval Research, and the Air Force Office of Scientific Research, and is prepared to provide background information on technology challenges to emergency response, and the solutions offered by intelligent software agents.

A technology demonstration, including video, and computer graphic segments illustrating the role of intelligent agents in an emergency bomb response scenario, is available.

Carnegie Mellon’s Intelligent Software Agents Lab leads the world in agent technology, solving problems that others are only beginning to take note of, and applying that technology to multiple domains. We welcome you and/or members of your writing staff to come and experience demonstrations of our software agent technology and several of its applications.

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