Critical infrastructure is becoming more digital, distributed and interconnected. Energy grids, smart cities, transport systems, communication networks and public services increasingly rely on sensors, edge devices, cloud platforms and automated decision-making. These technologies improve efficiency, but they also introduce new risks. Cyberattacks, power outages, communication failures, software faults, GNSS interference and natural disasters can disrupt essential services and create cascading effects across society.

The RESCUE project — Resilient Edge Systems for Critical Infrastructure and Urban Environments — addresses this challenge by developing technologies that help critical infrastructures remain operational during disruptive events. The project’s vision is to strengthen resilience through real-time intelligence at the edge, enabling systems to detect risks locally, react faster and continue operating even when central cloud services or communication links are degraded.

RESCUE brings together European industrial partners, research organizations, technology providers, public authorities and infrastructure operators. The project focuses on two major application domains: resilient energy systems and resilient urban environments. These domains are supported by technical developments in real-time edge AI, secure communications, cybersecurity, edge-to-cloud platforms and human-centered system design.

A key idea behind RESCUE is to move part of the intelligence closer to the infrastructure itself. Instead of relying only on centralized systems, edge nodes can process data locally, detect anomalies, support decision-making and maintain essential functions during disruptions. This approach can reduce response time, improve reliability and limit the impact of failures.

The project is structured around six project areas:

1. Real-time analysis and Edge AI
   Developing methods to detect anomalies, classify incidents and support faster responses using data processed close to the source.
2. Resilient communication, reliability and cybersecurity
   Creating secure and robust communication systems that can switch between different channels, including terrestrial and satellite links, when disruptions occur.
3. Technical edge platforms
   Building distributed edge-to-cloud platforms that support local processing, secure device management, data sharing and service continuity.
4. Resilient energy
   Demonstrating how edge computing, resilient communication and precise synchronization can support more robust energy distribution networks.
5. Resilient cities
   Enabling secure, privacy-preserving data sharing between public authorities, infrastructure operators and urban stakeholders.
6. Societal aspects
   Ensuring that the developed systems are usable, trusted and aligned with the needs of operators, citizens and other stakeholders.

RESCUE will validate its technologies through practical demonstrators. These include resilient energy scenarios involving transformation centers, edge nodes, distributed measurements, peer-to-peer energy mechanisms and backup communication channels. The project will also demonstrate secure data sharing and resilient digital services in smart city and regional environments.

By combining edge intelligence, cybersecurity, resilient communications and precise timing, RESCUE aims to contribute to safer, more adaptable and more autonomous critical infrastructures in Europe. The project supports European objectives for technological sovereignty, infrastructure resilience, cybersecurity, sustainability and the secure digitalization of essential services.

Safran Electronics & Defense contributes to RESCUE through its expertise in resilient Positioning, Navigation and Timing, White Rabbit and Precision Time Protocol technologies. Safran leads the Resilient Energy project area and develops synchronization solutions for distributed energy infrastructure, helping ensure coherent sensor measurements, reliable timing distribution and sub-microsecond synchronization between critical nodes. This work supports the deployment of resilient energy demonstrators capable of maintaining trusted timing and operational continuity even under degraded communication or GNSS conditions.

LEARN MORE: https://rescueproject.eu/

This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon Europe research and innovation programme under grant agreement No. 101225910. Swiss participants are funded by the Swiss State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation (SERI).