Robots Saving Lives: A Literature Review About Search and Rescue (SAR) in Harsh Environments

In recent years, the rise in both natural and man-made disasters, along with armed conflicts and terrorist threats, has elevated the demand for Search and Rescue (SAR) missions worldwide. This paper underscores the critical necessity to enhance SAR capacity, safety, and capabilities, with a primary goal of reducing response times through the integration of robots into SAR operations. The examination of research on robotized SAR highlights deficiencies in both software and hardware, particularly focusing on perception systems for robotized SAR platforms.

I. Introduction

Recent years have seen an increase in the number of both man-made and natural disasters. Every year around 400 natural disasters are expected to happen around the world. Alongside natural disasters, there are 30–40 active armed conflicts at any time [1]. Furthermore, there is an ever-present threat of terrorist attacks, as well as an increased number of lost or missing people [2]. This increased number of disasters and subsequent number of Search and Rescue (SAR) operations leads to an increase in the workload of SAR teams around the world. Since the ultimate goal of any SAR operation is to save the lives of affected people, any way of increasing the capacity, safety, and capabilities of SAR teams, as well as reducing their response time, is of paramount importance. One of the main ways to accomplish these goals is to use robots in SAR operations.