A team of researchers from NYU Tandon C2Smarter – Tier 1 University Transportation Center, funded by the US Department of Transportation – has received a NVIDIA Academic Grant Program Award for developing an advanced simulation system aimed at improving emergency response in urban areas.
The project, called NanoDT (Nano Digital Twin), will create a detailed virtual replica (or “digital twin”) of Downtown Brooklyn that can help emergency responders better navigate crash scenes and manage traffic disruptions. The project is led by the Principal Investigator (PI) kan ozbayDirector of C2SMARTER and Professor at NYU Tandon civil and urban engineering department, with co-PI Zilin Bian, research scientist at C2SMARTER.
By integrating 3D visualization with real-time traffic data, the NanoDT system will offer a comprehensive and dynamic view of emergency situations to enhance situational awareness and response strategies.
While similar to other urban modeling projects, NanoDT focuses specifically on emergency response and coordination between traffic management centers. The system is intended to help cities better deal with major disruptions, such as the recent Baltimore bridge collapse or Philadelphia’s I-95 highway collapse, which could cause serious casualties and economic losses.
“Emergency responders often rely on human reporting or limited information obtained from static cameras,” Dr. Bian said. “Our system will give them a bird’s-eye view of crash scenes, helping them identify optimal routes and predict secondary crash risks.”
“In urban emergencies, where every second counts, NanoDT’s real-time 3D visualization will transform traditional response methods into dynamic, data-driven decisions,” said Dr. Ozbay. “Ultimately, we want to help save more lives in critical situations.”
The technology takes advantage of existing city infrastructure, including traffic cameras and open data feeds, eliminating the need for additional investment in data collection. The system processes this existing data using artificial intelligence to create real-time 3D simulations of accident scenes, allowing responders to assess conditions before arriving.
A major innovation is the system’s ability to identify nearby resources such as parking lots and urgent care facilities. “If there is a parking lot behind an accident site, responders can park emergency vehicles there instead of blocking traffic lanes,” Dr. Bian said. This approach can help reduce the secondary disruptions that often occur during emergency response.
The one-year project, starting this month, will leverage NVIDIA technologies including RTX 6000 Ada Generation GPUThe nvidia module structure, and nvidia omniverse platform. Modulus will be used for physics-based modeling and will help build the Omniverse 3D simulation workflow.
The project is currently in the proof-of-concept phase, in which researchers – including Dr. Fan Zuo, a research scientist at C2SMARTER – are using publicly available traffic and transportation data about Downtown Brooklyn to demonstrate its potential. are using. If successful, the technology could be implemented in cities that already have extensive camera infrastructure, providing a cost-effective way to increase emergency response capabilities.
“We are excited that NYU Tandon’s C2Smarter is piloting NanoDT in Downtown Brooklyn,” said Regina Meier, President of the Downtown Brooklyn Partnership. “Leveraging AI technology to analyze public data and better coordinate responses to major disruptions and emergencies is truly unprecedented, and with the density of public transit and proximity to interstate highways and the East River Bridges, Downtown Brooklyn is an ideal Study area. This is a prime example of using New York City as a living laboratory to create solutions that improve the lives of all New Yorkers, and we look forward to the results.
NanoDT connects C2SMARTER’s growing digital twin portfolio implemented in other parts of New York City, including Harlem – into one Project With the New York City Fire Department to reduce emergency vehicle response times – and MetLife Stadium, in a project to help with traffic management decisions both on and offline.
“The C2SMARTER team will keep going forward Transportation systems and engineering fields using computationally demanding Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning-based data acquisition and prediction approaches for congestion reduction and management in megacities like New York City,” Dr. Ozbey said. “Industry collaboration with leading companies like NVIDIA is expected to play a vital role in ensuring the success of these pioneering projects that will ultimately save lives and money across the country.”
The NVIDIA Academic Grants Program advances academic research by providing researchers with world-class computing access and resources. Applications are now open for full-time faculty members in accredited academic institutions interested in processing large-scale datasets, training graph neural networks and accelerating projects in data analytics, statistical methods, robotics, autonomous vehicles, 6G, Federated Learning. Using NVIDIA technologies to bring. , and smart spaces.
About New York University Tandon School of Engineering
The NYU Tandon School of Engineering is home to a community of renowned faculty, graduate and undergraduate students who are developing innovative technologies that power cities, enable communications around the world, fight climate change, and create a healthier, safer, and more equitable reality. United in the mission to understand and create technology. And the digital world. The school’s culture focuses on encouraging rigorous, interdisciplinary collaboration and research; promoting inclusivity, entrepreneurial thinking and diverse perspectives; and creating innovative and accessible pathways to lifelong learning in STEM. NYU Tandon was founded in 1854, the founding year of both the New York University School of Civil Engineering and Architecture and the Brooklyn Collegiate and Polytechnic Institute. Located in the heart of Brooklyn, NYU Tandon is an important part of New York University and its unique global network. For more information visit engineering.nyu.edu,
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