Knowit Dataunit is now presenting Yggdrasil, a platform developed to transform large volumes of sensor and data sources into operational decision support in security-critical environments. The solution is already in use by government agency customers and is at the centre of a closed roundtable discussion that the company is hosting during Almedalen Week (Sweden's annual political and public affairs forum held in Visby, Gotland).

One of Yggdrasil's most prominent capabilities is the ability to use existing infrastructure as a sensor. Through Distributed Acoustic Sensing (DAS), fibre infrastructure can, for example, be used to detect, classify and track activities across large facilities, areas and distances.

"In many organisations, the infrastructure is already in place. By combining existing sensor sources with advanced analysis, new capabilities can be created without having to build entirely new systems," says Micael Bydén, adviser at Knowit Defence Initiative and former Supreme Commander of the Swedish Armed Forces.

Yggdrasil is developed to integrate with existing surveillance, command and security systems. The platform can be developed to receive data from, among other sources, fibre-based sensors, acoustic systems, cameras and other sensor sources, and to present analyses and classifications directly in the operator's existing tools.

As sensors and security systems generate ever-larger volumes of information, the need to quickly understand what that information actually means is also growing. According to Knowit, the problem in many cases is not a lack of data, but that operators themselves must interpret and prioritise between large quantities of alarms and signals.

Yggdrasil combines signal processing, machine learning, system integration and domain expertise to detect, classify and prioritise events in real time. The goal is to reduce the volume of noise and false alarms while enabling relevant events to be identified and contextualised more quickly.

"Traditional surveillance is often about detecting that something has happened. With Yggdrasil, we want to help the operator understand what is happening, whether it constitutes a threat, and what courses of action are available," says Micael Bydén.

The platform is developed for environments where multiple sensor sources need to work in concert and where decision-makers need to be able to move quickly from observation to action. By combining real-time analysis with historical patterns, the system can contribute to both surveillance, protection and longer-term intelligence development.

According to Knowit, this enables faster deployment than many traditional security solutions, since existing infrastructure and already established systems can be reused.

During Almedalen Week, the company is bringing together specially invited representatives from government agencies and the defence and security sector for a closed roundtable discussion focused entirely on Yggdrasil and how sensor fusion, machine learning and existing infrastructure can be used to strengthen Swedish security and intelligence capability.

For those who wish to continue the discussion, Knowit is also hosting a networking reception at Wisby Strand (Visby, Gotland) together with CAG on Wednesday at 17:00.

Would you like to know more about Yggdrasil or discuss possible use cases within critical infrastructure, security or defence? Contact Andreas Nilsson at andreas.x.nilsson@knowit.se for further dialogue or information about the activities during Almedalen Week.