RFID-based Tag-Along Displays for Incident Command System Workflow Management

In the extreme environment of the Emergency Operations Center, an important role of technology is to support the natural activities of users. Biological-related emergency incidents make special demands on users' ability to process displayed information, including information about what tasks must be done to comply with procedural workflows. Observations of Emergency Operations Centers suggest that migratory displays that tag along with moving workers may fit the task demands better than static workstations in some situations. We describe an example system, called EVEST, which uses RFID technology to drive migratory displays that provide workflow, alert and situational awareness information that is specific to the user and the user's work role. The goal of the EVEST system is to increase the efficiency of computer-human communications by utilizing the same procedures and cues that are already used for efficient human-human communication.