Serviço de apoio a idosos recorrendo a veículos aéreos não tripulados
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2022-02-22
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O aumento da esperança média de vida e do envelhecimento da população mundial representam um desafio para as entidades prestadoras de serviços e cuidados de saúde tornando-se uma preocupação que apresenta implicações transversais a todos os setores da sociedade. Segundo uma projeção elaborada pelo Instituto Nacional de Estatística (INE), prevê-se que o índice de envelhecimento em 2080 seja de 317 idosos por cada 100 jovens. O êxodo rural contribui para um perfil demográfico envelhecido nomeadamente em zonas de baixa densidade populacional. O investimento nestas zonas não se torna rentável, o que condiciona o funcionamento dos serviços. Contudo, os idosos que habitam nestas zonas continuam a necessitar de cuidados e de aceder aos bens essenciais (e.g., bens alimentares, medicamentos). As tecnologias de nova geração adquiriram um papel importante na sociedade, permitindo automatizar os processos tornando-os mais rápidos e económicos minimizando a intervenção humana. Os veículos aéreos não tripulados – ou Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) são um fruto bastante promissor da constante evolução da tecnologia. Apresentam como principais vantagens a deslocação no espaço aéreo, a facilidade em alterar a direção e a possibilidade de transportar cargas, que possibilitam a criação de vários tipos de serviços, nomeadamente os serviços de entrega. A presente tese tem como objetivo principal apresentar uma solução que permita a criação de serviços no apoio a idosos residentes em zonas de baixa densidade populacional utilizando os UAV, de modo a possibilitar o acesso aos bens essenciais na sua habitação sem ser necessário deslocarem-se até à entidade prestadora de serviços. Na prossecução da análise dos trabalhos relacionados, onde foram identificadas as principais características dos UAV e dos serviços de entrega, foi possível perceber as entidades envolvidas num serviço de entrega. A entidade cliente, ao realizar um pedido a uma entidade prestadora de serviços, despoleta a primeira fase do processo logístico de distribuição. Depois, a entidade prestadora, recebe, analisa e processa o pedido e comunica com a entidade UAV Station. Esta entidade tem como responsabilidade selecionar e preparar o UAV adequado para realizar o transporte e entrega em segurança. Para interligar todas as entidades, é utilizada uma plataforma alojada na cloud, que possibilita a comunicação e gestão da informação entre entidades. A proposta de uma classificação do espaço aéreo permite categorizar as zonas terrestres, consoante o risco que representam em caso de acidente, o que possibilita a criação de corredores aéreos seguros para a utilização dos UAV. De modo a estudar a aplicabilidade da solução proposta num caso real, foram elaboradas entrevistas semiestruturadas a idosos e a colaboradores de entidades prestadoras de serviços a idosos, que permitiram identificar os serviços que os idosos residentes nestas zonas necessitam. Foi possível identificar uma entidade que fornece vários serviços domiciliários a idosos, nomeadamente a higienização, serviço de refeições, tratamento de roupas, entre outros. Dos serviços identificados, foi elaborado um estudo de aplicação da solução proposta que permitiu analisar a viabilidade dos UAV no serviço de entrega de refeições. Quando o UAV chega à habitação do cliente surge a dificuldade em definir um local seguro para entregar a mercadoria em segurança. A tecnologia utilizada para a navegação é o GPS, mas devido a possíveis interferências no sinal não assegura a precisão necessária para garantir a segurança no ato da entrega. Para colmatar esta lacuna, é proposto um sistema de baixo custo que possibilita a deteção de um recetor no local da entrega, utilizando técnicas de visão computacional ou – Computer Vision (CV). Todo o processo é realizado no próprio UAV, não havendo a necessidade de recorrer a uma comunicação externa. Os resultados obtidos mostram que o tempo médio para detetar uma pessoa é inferior a 3 segundos e permitem concluir que o momento ideal para iniciar o sistema de deteção encontra-se a uma distância horizontal de 25 m e a uma altitude de 10 m do recetor. O modelo de criação de serviços proposto na presente tese consiste na caracterização das entidades intervenientes e dos procedimentos necessários para a definição e implementação de serviços de entrega que utilizem os UAV. Permite que as entidades cliente, prestadora de serviços e UAV se interliguem através de uma plataforma alojada na cloud possibilitando a criação de serviços de entrega autónomos, flexíveis, mais rápidos e económicos à população que habita em zonas de baixa densidade populacional. É uma solução que pretende melhorar a qualidade de vida dos idosos, evitando que estes percorram longos caminhos para aceder aos bens. Esta abordagem, proporciona uma maior proximidade entre a população e as entidades de apoio, possibilitando que os idosos solicitem um bem a uma entidade prestadora e que o mesmo seja entregue autonomamente na sua residência mais rapidamente.
The increase in average life expectancy and the aging of the world's population represents a challenge to health care providers, becoming a preoccupation that has implications for all sectors of society. According to a projection prepared by the National Institute of Statistics (INE), the aging index in 2080 is expected to be 317 elderly people for every 100 young people. The rural exodus contributes to an aging demographic profile, especially in areas of low population density. Investment in these areas becomes not cost-effective, which restricts the operation of services. However, the elderly living in these areas continue to need care and access to essential goods (e.g., food, medicine). New generation technologies have acquired an important role in society, allowing processes to be automated, faster, and more economical while minimizing human intervention. Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) are a very promising result of the constant evolution of technology. The main advantages of UAVs are their movement in the air, the facility to change direction and the possibility of carrying payloads, which enable the creation of various types of services, including delivery services. The main objective of this thesis is to present a solution that allows the creation of services to support the elderly living in low population density areas using UAVs, to provide access to essential goods in their homes without the need to travel to the service provider. Following the analysis of related work, where the main characteristics of UAVs and delivery services were identified, it was possible to understand the entities involved in a delivery service. The customer entity, by performing an order to a service provider, triggers the first phase of the distribution logistics process. Then, the provider entity, receives, analyzes, and processes the request and communicates with the UAV Station entity. This entity is responsible for selecting and preparing the appropriate UAV to perform the safe transport and delivery. To connect all entities, a cloud-hosted platform is used, which enables communication and information management between entities. The proposal for an airspace classification makes it possible to classify ground areas according to the risk they represent in the case of an accident, which makes it possible to create safe air lanes for the use of UAVs. To study the applicability of the proposed solution in a real case, semi-structured interviews were conducted with the elderly and with collaborators of entities providing services to the elderly, which allowed the identification of the services that elderly residents in these areas need. It was possible to identify one entity that provides several domiciliary services to the elderly, namely hygiene, meal service, clothes care, among others. From the identified services, an application study of the proposed solution was prepared, which allowed the analysis of the viability of UAVs in the meal delivery service. When the UAV arrives at the customer's home, the difficulty emerges in defining a safe location to deliver the goods safely. GPS is the technology used for navigation, but because of possible interferences in the signal, it does not provide the necessary precision to ensure the safety of the delivery. To fill this gap, a low-cost system is proposed that enables the detection of a receiver at the delivery location, using Computer Vision (CV) techniques. All the process is performed in the UAV itself, with no need for external communication. The results obtained show that the average time to detect a person is less than 3 seconds and allow the conclusion that the optimal moment to start the detection system is at a horizontal distance of 25 m and an altitude of 10 m from the receiver. The model of service creation proposed in this thesis consists of the characterization of the intervening entities and the necessary procedures for the definition and implementation of delivery services that use UAVs. It allows the client, service provider and UAV entities to connect through a platform hosted in the cloud, enabling the creation of autonomous, flexible, faster, and economical delivery services to the population living in low population density areas. It is a solution that aims to improve the quality of life of the elderly, avoiding the need for them to travel long distances to access goods. This approach provides greater proximity between the population and the support entities, enabling the elderly to request a product from a provider and have it delivered autonomously to their home more quickly.
The increase in average life expectancy and the aging of the world's population represents a challenge to health care providers, becoming a preoccupation that has implications for all sectors of society. According to a projection prepared by the National Institute of Statistics (INE), the aging index in 2080 is expected to be 317 elderly people for every 100 young people. The rural exodus contributes to an aging demographic profile, especially in areas of low population density. Investment in these areas becomes not cost-effective, which restricts the operation of services. However, the elderly living in these areas continue to need care and access to essential goods (e.g., food, medicine). New generation technologies have acquired an important role in society, allowing processes to be automated, faster, and more economical while minimizing human intervention. Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) are a very promising result of the constant evolution of technology. The main advantages of UAVs are their movement in the air, the facility to change direction and the possibility of carrying payloads, which enable the creation of various types of services, including delivery services. The main objective of this thesis is to present a solution that allows the creation of services to support the elderly living in low population density areas using UAVs, to provide access to essential goods in their homes without the need to travel to the service provider. Following the analysis of related work, where the main characteristics of UAVs and delivery services were identified, it was possible to understand the entities involved in a delivery service. The customer entity, by performing an order to a service provider, triggers the first phase of the distribution logistics process. Then, the provider entity, receives, analyzes, and processes the request and communicates with the UAV Station entity. This entity is responsible for selecting and preparing the appropriate UAV to perform the safe transport and delivery. To connect all entities, a cloud-hosted platform is used, which enables communication and information management between entities. The proposal for an airspace classification makes it possible to classify ground areas according to the risk they represent in the case of an accident, which makes it possible to create safe air lanes for the use of UAVs. To study the applicability of the proposed solution in a real case, semi-structured interviews were conducted with the elderly and with collaborators of entities providing services to the elderly, which allowed the identification of the services that elderly residents in these areas need. It was possible to identify one entity that provides several domiciliary services to the elderly, namely hygiene, meal service, clothes care, among others. From the identified services, an application study of the proposed solution was prepared, which allowed the analysis of the viability of UAVs in the meal delivery service. When the UAV arrives at the customer's home, the difficulty emerges in defining a safe location to deliver the goods safely. GPS is the technology used for navigation, but because of possible interferences in the signal, it does not provide the necessary precision to ensure the safety of the delivery. To fill this gap, a low-cost system is proposed that enables the detection of a receiver at the delivery location, using Computer Vision (CV) techniques. All the process is performed in the UAV itself, with no need for external communication. The results obtained show that the average time to detect a person is less than 3 seconds and allow the conclusion that the optimal moment to start the detection system is at a horizontal distance of 25 m and an altitude of 10 m from the receiver. The model of service creation proposed in this thesis consists of the characterization of the intervening entities and the necessary procedures for the definition and implementation of delivery services that use UAVs. It allows the client, service provider and UAV entities to connect through a platform hosted in the cloud, enabling the creation of autonomous, flexible, faster, and economical delivery services to the population living in low population density areas. It is a solution that aims to improve the quality of life of the elderly, avoiding the need for them to travel long distances to access goods. This approach provides greater proximity between the population and the support entities, enabling the elderly to request a product from a provider and have it delivered autonomously to their home more quickly.
Descrição
Tese de Doutoramento em Informática apresentada à Universidade de Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro
Palavras-chave
serviços de apoio a idosos , serviços de entrega autónomos