Contributing to An Ongoing Study on Active Threat Responses
This project provided an opportunity for me to apply formative and evaluative research methods in the context of design studio practice. It included experiences across all phases of research design, data collection, analysis and design implementation. The mission of this project was to explore the role of Visual Communication Design in effecting positive change in the outcomes of active threat situations.
Between 2000-2018, 277 active shooter incidents in the United States occurred. In 2019, there were 28 active shooter incidents carried out by 30 active shooters, killing 97 people and wounding 150.
Timeline 5 months
Team John Brown VI, Maryam Mhr, Bethany Wells, Jonathon Bremer
My Role
Environmental Research, Layout Iteration, User Pathway Development, Visual design
Tools Used
Google Suite, Adobe XD
Findings from the First Installment of the Course
As a member of the second team of graduate students in this study, we built off of findings from peers whose research was done in 2015.
With a goal to explore how design could potentially aid in responses to active shooter scenarios, their spectrum of considerations included the following:
PROXIMITY
At what proximity to the threat does this solution provide aid?
COST
How does upfront cost balance with lifetime benefit? How would installation be factored into this?
TECHNOLOGY
How technologically-reliant is this solution?
ORDERS OF DESIGN
Is this solution a new way of communicating, a new tool, device, process, service, method, or way of thinking.
Our Guiding Question
How do we empower students, teachers, school staff, and emergency responders during an active threat by providing guidance so that they can make life-saving decisions?
Mobile Application & Threat Monitoring System
Watchtower is a mobile application dedicated to preserving student, faculty, and staff safety. It is used to assist with safe evacuation in active shooter and other life-threatening scenarios.
Students, teachers, or staff administrator are able to report threats to the rest of the school and local law enforcement.
REPORT
Allows user to share the location of the threat, what weapon is used, their proximity to threat, and whether it was heard or seen.
NOTIFY
Alerts users of an active threat, its location, and their distance to the safest exit. It also notifies users when emergency responders are on their way.
UPDATE
Specified updates of “I’m safe”, “Exit is blocked.”, “I’m injured”, “I’m in lockdown” for students and teachers as well as their locations.
GUIDE
Allows users to navigate interior environments and choose the fastest exit while considering their distance to the threat location and proximity of users.
INFORM
Reminds users of Run, Hide, Fight protocol when appropriate. It also gives details on what to do once safe after users are outside the building.
TRAIN
General overview of the app through formal training. Ideally, a training mode will allow users to become familiar with the app without the psychological weight of simulating a real-world scenario.
Researching & Integrating Existing Technologies
INDOOR POSITIONING SYSTEM
An indoor positioning system (IPS) is a network of devices used to locate people or objects where GPS and other satellite technologies lack precision or fail entirely.
Watchtower would use IPS in order to track users and provide location updates to relevant parties (i.e. teachers, staff, administration, and emergency responders.)
GLOBAL POSITIONING SYSTEM
Google Maps sets the standard for wayfinding applications. These GPSs are highly responsive and allow the user to mitigate noise.
Their recent development introduces an AR feature that inputs directional cues into the camera feed. We found that 2D maps were easier to follow.
Bluetooth beacons are hardware transmitters - a class of Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) devices that broadcast their identifier to nearby portable electronic devices. The technology enables smart phones, tablets and other devices to perform actions when in close proximity to a beacon.
These would need to be placed an approximate width apart in order to track and update users locations as fast as possible. They would work in coordination with gun sensors to guide students away from dangerous areas.
This fully automated detection system makes use of acoustic gunshot sound and flash detection. Powered over Ethernet (POE) and has a low power draw. Dual Modality improves reliability, increases detection rate and gives no false alerts.
Developing Prototypes for Testing
How do we make a visual system that allows users to know what is going on, their options to for safety, how to implement a plan, and how to find support while considering varying degrees of spatial intelligence?
Spatial intelligence (also visual intelligence, spatial ability or spatial reasoning) is the ability to imagine or visualize in one’s mind the positions of objects, their shapes, their spatial relations to one another and the movement they make to form new spatial relations.
Brainstorming possible decisions by a user based on situational needs. Digital Rendition of the student user pathway.
Creating an Account
This pathway has a series of forms that the user must fill before using the app. A lot of the information gathered through this pathway is similar to many other mobile app account creation pathways.
Some information, including the school, year, location, etc. are specific to this application and essential details in the event of an emergency.
With the information collected, the app will be able to map the user’s location and facilitate communication between student users and admins.
Student Pathways
REPORT & EVACUATE
In this pathway, the student user is allowed to file a report of a nearby threat undetected by the system’s hardware. They give a general location and the threat is sent to an Internal Admin for confirmation.
After the report is sent, the prioritized function is finding the safest navigation to exit. They are also able to review the tips and update their status for admins to review.
Student Pathways
ALERT TRIGGERED EVACUATION
In this pathway, the student user is alerted by the app. The prioritized function is finding the safest navigation to exit. They are also able to review the tips, and update their status for admins to review.
Internal Admin
The main function of this pathway is to empower teachers, school staff, and administration. The user serves as a buffer between the student’s report and a full-scale alert sent county-wide when the threat goes undetected by the sensor.
Once the alert is issued, safe evacuation is prioritized, similar to the student pathway. The key difference is the ability to view a status map, which shows the location of every user.
External Admin
These users exist outside of the building as emergency responders. This may include police, paramedics, firefighters, or call center operators.
Akin to internal admins, they are able to observe the status and locations of every user. They are also able to contact any internal admin through a directory to call or text.
This pathway prioritizes the location activity of the active threat.
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