Information Management Supporting Deployment of a Light Fieldable Laboratory: A Case for Ebola Crisis

Improved information collection, interpretation and processing are vitally important for optimized crisis response. A comprehensive information management (IM) system using ontology-based approach is aimed to handle heterogeneous information and to model the operational domain knowledge associated with the deployment of a light fieldable laboratory (LFL) during the recent Ebola crisis in Guinea. This LFL mission was part of the B-LiFE (Biological Light Fieldable Laboratory for Emergencies) project which integrates analytical and space-based technologies. LFL can be considered as a toolbox where all operational functions and related tools are incorporated into a single information space. An ontology can therefore be applied to facilitate the preparation and management of next LFL missions. The aim is to provide technical compatibility of information shared between tools and to align terminology and definitions while complying with guidelines, best practices and procedures. Accordingly, the LFL domain becomes a formalized and structured modeling of LFL concepts, procedures and functions which, in turn, helps distinguishing functions which are necessary for the mission from those which are incompatible according to a given mission or scenario. Such consistent logical modelling allows then to efficiently plan and configure any LFL mission by selecting and activating in due time, among all available functions and tools, those which are strictly mandatory.