The Avignon Avignon Computer Laboratory (LIA) at the heart of the "Le Petit Camion" research project

Avignon Université has announced the participation of its Laboratoire Informatique d'Avignon (LIA) in the Le Petit Camion research project, an ambitious initiative aimed at improving the handling of emergency calls using artificial intelligence. The project, funded by the French National Research Agency (ANR) to the tune of €720,000, is part of the "Global security, resilience and crisis management, cybersecurity" theme. It is being conducted in collaboration with a number of scientific and operational partners over a period of 48 months, with experiments under real conditions in alert processing centres. A launch event was held on 6 February at the Service départemental d'incendie et de secours de la Haute-Garonne (SDIS 31) in Colomiers, in the presence of the project partners.

A project to better understand and handle emergency calls

Emergency call centres receive an average of 1,000 calls a day, often under conditions of intense stress where key information can be overlooked. An insignificant sentence, such as "You do send a small truck, don't you?" played a decisive role in an incident where the standard emergency vehicle was unable to access the scene due to the narrowness of the street. By automatically analysing the conversation between the caller and the operator, the project aims to avoid such misunderstandings.

To meet this challenge, Le Petit Camion develops artificial intelligence-based tools for analysing the linguistic content of conversations, detecting speech intelligibility, attention levels and background noise.

The project is based on collaboration between researchers and operators in the field, to design practical solutions while respecting the autonomy of operators in their missions. It incorporates an ethical use of AI to improve the management of emergency interventions, while taking into account regulatory aspects, particularly with regard to the General Data Protection Regulation (RGPD).

The role of the Avignon Computing Laboratory (LIA)

As part of this project, the Laboratoire Informatique d'Avignon (LIA) is contributing its expertise in automatic speech and language processing. It is involved in two areas - Checking the linguistic consistency of calls by cross-referencing audio transcripts with information entered by operators, in partnership with Inria. - Analysis of the quality of caller/operator exchanges, in collaboration with IRIT, to assess the impact of background noise, the intelligibility of speech and the level of commitment shown by operators.

A concrete impact for emergency services

Through a collaborative approach involving several emergency services, researchers and industry, this project will develop innovative tools to improve the reliability of call analysis and support operators in their mission. By focusing on open science, this project will encourage the sharing of valuable methodologies and resources for all emergency services. Ultimately, it will help to optimise the management of emergency calls and improve operator training, with a direct impact on the effectiveness of response operations and public safety.

A consortium of experts

The project is coordinated by Jean-François Bonastre, Research Director at Inria Defence and Security and Professor at the Avignon Computer Laboratory (LIA). It brings together several partners:

• French National Institute for Research in Digital Science and Technology (Inria)
• Avignon Computing Laboratory (LIA - Avignon University)
• Institut de Recherche en Informatique de Toulouse (IRIT - University of Toulouse)
• Haute-Garonne Departmental Fire and Rescue Service (SDIS 31)
• AnthroPi, a digital services company specialising in AI

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About the Avignon Computer Laboratory (LIA)

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