Augmented-reality helmets to change firefighting in Carmel

By MALEA VanOSTRAND
WISH-TV | wishtv.com

A Hamilton County fire department will be one of the first in the country to use augmented-reality helmets to help firefighters see through smoke.

The Carmel Fire Department says it’s the only department in the Midwest that will use the technology called C-THRU from Qwake Technologies.

Tim Griffin, the department’s public information officer, said, “It gives you not just possibly a body here, or a warm spot here, it outlines it. It’s almost like a sci-fi movie. You look at it and you think, this is the future.”

It’s designed for one of the most dangerous challenges firefighters face: zero visibility.

Inside a smoke-filled mock house, the helmet used augmented reality and thermal imaging to help navigate rooms, see heat signatures, and find people.

“It can give you that navigation inside,” Griffin said. “It gives you those real-time really detailed visuals of what you have inside those buildings.”

The system also livestreams video back to commanders, which will give crews more information in real time. The commanders can send back visual messages through the helmet.

Sam Cossman, co-founder and CEO of Qwake Technologies, said, “The combination of data from both of these places allows us to now, say a structure is going to collapse in a few minutes, get out.”

Carmel is one of 10 U.S. departments that will have access to the technology. The Carmel Fire Department will receive 16 helmets and four command tablets by midsummer.

Carmel Mayor Sue Finkam, a Republican, said, “There’s a cost of $375,000 for the three-year pilot period. We are partnering with our Heroes Club here to provide that technology for our Carmel residents.”

The Qwake equipment was funded by the Heroes Club of Carmel, with its members securing more than $200,000 to cover the cost of the new technology.

“Any chance we have to support the safety of our first responders, we’ll do it,” Heroes Club President Matt Frey said. “We see this as an obligation we have as residents and business owners to support those who protect us.”

This story was originally published by WISH-TV at wishtv.com/news/local-news/augmented-reality-helmets-to-change-firefighting-in-carmel.