WP1 – Project Management
This WP will be led by CERTH. The goal of this work-package will be to run an effective managerial scheme, build-up/coordinate and support internal information, communication. Organize project infrastructure for information flow, communication, networking of project partners. This WP will aim at the Build-up/support of communication/ information flow to the public and relevant organizations. CERTH will be the key contact point between the European Commission Services and the rest of the SMILE consortium, tackling to that effect all involved administrative or otherwise issues.
WP2 – User Requirements, Use Cases and BCP System Architecture
The main aim of this WP is to set the end-user requirements that will drive the research and development of the context-aware biometrics as well as to define a set of enriched use cases that will be deployed in the pilot application scenarios foreseen in the project. A specific methodology will be planned towards the delivery of a thorough analysis of the current BCP approaches and the current practices and technologies used with the respect to the domains and areas the project will address. Based on the latest trends in the related border control services, as well as the extracted user needs and preferences, a set of mobile-based authentication related application will be drafted that will be used to validate the proposed biometric framework within various contextual environments.
Novel frameworks for providing seamless connection to mobile devices will be investigated as well as any advancement in the biometric domain regarding the implementation guidelines for modularity. Concerning the cross-BCP interconnection middle-ware (cloud), state of the art services and implementations will be taken into account, in order to deliver an abstract enough framework capable to adapt to the needs of modern BCPs. Research will not only focus on the technological advancements that SMILE will deliver, but it will also consider the requirements and recommendations on user convenience and the increase of the flow in border control procedures. In this respect, it will provide a functional analysis of the End User requirements, fully addressing technological limitations and challenges for making the land BCPs “smarter”.
The current WP will provide the definition the architectural components that compose the high level view of the system and the specifications for the design and implementation phases. The system specifications will be defined according to the existing standardization activities in European and International level while special attention will be given to the design of the mobile BCP platform, to support modularity and extendibility the for the existing technologies and devices used at BCP points, whilst ensuring high security of the data interchanges for the utilization of the multimodal biometric authentication framework.
WP3 – Modular Biometrics Platform and Mobile Services
The main objective of this WP is to introduce and establish the concept of Border Security Capillaries and Clusters. Furthermore, WP3 aims to deliver an efficient, versatile and economically feasible multimodal biometric platform based on a set of commercial and custom (smartphones) devices for the manual inspection of the passing people. Existing and new heterogeneous sensing methods will be merged with the aim of delivering comprehensive and localized information about specific border crossing areas under inspection. Due to the expected sizes under the scope of SMILE framework, a relatively high number of devices are expected, so beyond their technical effectiveness for biometric data collection, illicit activity pattern detection, special attention will be paid to their cost efficient and easy integration, deployment and maintenance. At the same time, SMILE will ensure the applicability of the Land Security Capillaries in all potential Land Border terrains.
WP4 –Border Monitoring Data Collection, Analysis and Alerts Information Management
In this work-package, an Interoperable Knowledge Base infrastructure of services and tools for Monitoring, Detection and Alerts Information Management will be deployed. The Knowledge Base will be composed of a two-tiered federated storage component for metadata and data management. Furthermore, it will be supported by 1) Data pre-processing and aggregation services components for data alignment, 2) Semantic services with modeled ontologies and reasoning for augmenting context awareness; 3) Visual Analytics components for the detection of objects and patterns in multiple control scenes in SMILE Border Security Architecture, 4) high level fusion and reasoning with advanced Border Security operation states detection, estimated uncertainties and learning with dissemination of alerts on illicit identifications which may be inflicted on SMILE Border Security Infrastructure and 5) Uniform Interconnectivity with existing European Border Management Information Systems. The deployed Knowledge service infrastructure adopts open standards for assuring interoperability with the SMILE system of systems.
WP5 – Interoperable communications fabric and uniform data exchanges
This WP will identify the communication technologies and techniques and will review also the appropriate interfaces of the heterogeneous Border Control Detection devices (sensor/biometrics modules), which will be integrated on a common platform achieving the uniform, versatile, scalable and robust operation of the proposed wide area system. Within SMILE, this communication gateway will be a multi-layered one, supporting seamless connectivity, communication and interoperability, authentication and authorization protocols, defined in an open, flexible, extensible way, with relevant SMILE APIs for enabling the connection between the data collection tools and the cloud back-end platform as well as the connection between front end sensors, mobile devices and control elements to the fusion system. This approach will facilitate the efficient, secure and transparent transfer of data and information between the various system entities and layers.
WP6 – SMILE Security mechanisms trusted data exchange and storage
This WP will mainly deal with the design and functional specifications of the various security methods offered by SMILE paradigm. This includes the definition of the homomorphic encryption mechanisms and the extension of the existing CEA compilation infrastructure necessary for the encrypted data processing. It also includes the definition and design of the photonic PUF based solution as well as the analysis of the usage of modern Cloud Security policies to enhance the security level of data dissemination, processing, and presentation within EU Border Management Information Systems compliant architecture. Moreover, the design of a EU compliant eID solution able to deal with specificities of SMILE technologies and components will be performed.
WP7 – SMILE Ecosystem, Technology Test Implementation and Evaluation. Interoperability Issues on BCPs
This WP will address interoperability issues between all SMILE components. Initially, an extensive analysis will be performed to analyse the existing standards (WP9) and technologies used in BCP controls worldwide, as well as the corresponding national and international legislations By this analysis a set of specifications will be defined that should be followed during the design and development of the mobile platform that will be able to support border control checks-cards and related action and services. This WP will have a dedicated task that will address the integration of the mobile BCP system with the cloud-based interoperable system, whilst ensuring extendibility and adaptability to BCP standards and devices.
Furthermore another objective of this WP is to test SMILE in real conditions during several pilot demonstrations or integrity tests. FINT will work in close collaboration with the end-user partners of the consortium. In order to guarantee the success of the project, it is primordial to establish a permanent link between technical developers and end-users in order to have an optimal configuration for the system. This will be done all along the project (performing as much as possible pre-tests of subsystems) and field tests and integrity tests success will be the results of these fruitful collaborations. Finally a DEMO will be performed where several Border Crossing Points at the same time and location are being monitored in order to control the flow of people and to prevent and to detect illicit activity. WP7 is strongly connected with the previous ones as it requires the competences of all the partners that have set up the SMILE framework in order to install it in an operational way (DEMO).
WP8 – Legal and Ethical assessment on data privacy, Adaptive Ethics, Standardization and Regulatory Activities
This WP aims at identifying the indicators that are relevant for an analysis of perception and acceptance of technologies that are used for monitoring/control/surveillance of Border Cross Points. In order to guaranteed the adherence of project activities and their future implementation to privacy protection needs, it identifies the legal frameworks regulating the management of biometric data gathered and the information from monitoring public spaces and their adaptive capacity to the introduction of new monitoring technologies in EU. The WP also addresses ethic issues, by identifying the key concerns on the protection of privacy implied in the monitoring and management of data for research purposes. Furthermore, the WP adopts a dynamic and flexible perspective, investigating the degree at which legal frameworks convey and are able to keep adapting to current and emerging ethical issues linked to always more sophisticated border monitoring and control technologies. WP 9 also aims at ensuring that project activities comply with EU regulations on data protection.
WP focuses also on reaching pre-normative standards capable to facilitate the interoperability of secure technologies. Recommendations on policies and ethical aspects which are relevant for the development of SMILE will be also delivered. Further, by taking into account the regulatory and policy (compliance) perspectives, this work package will also enhance the application and adoption potential of the SMILE research outcomes. Given these objectives and the required activities to meet them, this WP will run throughout the whole duration of the project and have a high number of interactions (e.g. formulating legal requirements which have to be met) with other work packages.
Finally This work package is committed to provide an essential contribution to rapid and consistent decision making for Border Security systems deployment and operations to support Member State administrations to gain full benefit of the advantages of a ubiquitous and standardized approach that will foster transnational collaboration and homogeneity across member states and different types of Border Security Technologies. With respect to this ambition the vision of this WP is:
- to support Border Security Strategy of Europe
- to support national deployment strategies, activities and operations
- to support related decision making processes to be more efficient and faster
- via an easy to access (single entry), consistent (linked to all necessary data sources and processed to one information source), up-to-date (maintained) toolkit for Border Security applications decision making.
WP9 - Awareness raising and Exploitation Activities
This WP is designed to manage and facilitate the dissemination of project results from the scientific and public understanding point of view as well as investigate the possibilities of further research or actual implementation and exploitation of these results. Main activities include the presentation and dissemination of results, support to synergies with related projects, preparation of International Scientific and Technological publications, participation to Scientific and technical meetings and Analysis and preparation of commercial exploitation