FIGHTARs – teasers for firefighters training in immersive rescue environments Erasmus Project

Project Title

FIGHTARs – teasers for firefighters training in immersive rescue environments

Project Key Action

This project related with these key action: Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices

Project Action Type

This project related with this action type : Strategic Partnerships for vocational education and training

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2020

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: New innovative curricula/educational methods/development of training courses; Pedagogy and didactics; ICT – new technologies – digital competences

Project Summary

Firefighters are the role-model of modern heroes: a brave life safer in emergency situations. This positive image is tested each day and sometimes to the limit. Firefighters are all-rounders, rescuers, of persons and goods, and team-players. A wrong or slow response can set human lives at risk. To respond and react to emergencies accordingly, in a timely and professional manner, firefighters need to be up to date. This helps them to catch up with the increased methodological, strategic and technical demands of modern firefighting. Technological developments allow firefighters to immerse in more realistic training environments, by using visual aids, such as Augmented Reality or Smart glasses. This provides guidance and training for developing reasonable response strategies for several emergency situations.

Neither the technological nor the pedagogical benefits of immersive technologies have been tested so far, for firefighters training in the EU. The application in a training environment creates an immersive work or rescue environment. It responds to tendencies for modern training, in the context of a professional training 4.0 / VET 4.0.

FIGHTARs, as a transnational project, aims to prioritise specific skills/competencies for an immersive rescue environment in firefighters training, by providing guidance concerning pedagogical suitable options (didactic value added) as well as by developing, testing, evaluating and transferring several digital enriched training scenarios (“training toolkit”). This helps to create scenario-specific and personal training for firefighters in the piloting EU countries in CZ, LT, SK, EE, DE and CY. The applied methodology, to manager FIGHTARs, includes relevant measures of planning, executing, monitoring, controlling and closing activities.
The project will develop, test, evaluate and transfer didactic guidelines for using immersive/digital technologies in firefighters training (IO1) as well as tailor-made learning scenarios (IO2), for using e-learning modules combined with AR and 360° video. To institutionalise it excellence centres for immersive firefighters training (IO3) will be established to cater the local and regional, specific training demands.

The focus is on the training of future and existing firefighters, in a rather school-based/classroom setting. FIGHTARs create serval training schemes, according to legal or frequent needs, by enriching existing training offers. The use of immersive technology, such as Augmented Reality (AR) glasses, learning and 360° video, will optimise training and lead to better response/rescue patterns of firefighters, during a mission. These immersive technologies will be used in a blended learning framework, which combines e-learning modules with practical exercises using AR and 360° video.

Planned scenarios are e.g.:
– Opening safety doors (Learning video or AR remote Training),
– Risk assessment, when dealing with hazardous substances on site (360° video and learning video,
– fire tactics (360° videos and AR Remote training) and
– Rescuing persons from a crashed (electrical) car (AR Remote training, AR visualisation of a car)

The European Added Value to the project is sizeable, and crucial for the success of the project. In particular, the similarity of challenges that specialised firefighters training centres face across Europe means that a European initiative like FIGHTARs, provides modern and excellent training settings to support the efficiency of rescue missions, to save especially human lives. As one result, such a training portfolio will be highly interesting and responsive to firefighter trainers all over the EU.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 278417 Eur

Project Coordinator

Střední průmyslová škola chemická Pardubice & Country: CZ

Project Partners

• S.C.P.SERV LIMITED
• UGNIAGESIU GELBETOJU MOKYKLA
• SACHSISCHE BILDUNGSGESELLSCHAFT FURUMWELTSCHUTZ UND CHEMIEBERUFE DRESDEN MBH – SBG
• ZILINSKA UNIVERZITA V ZILINE
• SISEKAITSEAKADEEMIA