Development of Wireless Sensor Network for Slope Monitoring

An increase in the number of landslides around the world, especially during the monsoon season, has caused extensive damage to properties and lives. The latest tragedy on 21st May 2011 in Hulu Langat, Malaysia which claimed 16 lives, has become an indicator that a capable real-time monitoring system is crucial in order to avoid this terrible incident from happening again. This paper describes the deployment of Wireless Sensor Network interfaced with suitable sensors for slope monitoring. The sensors include soil moisture sensor, pressure sensor and flexible bend sensor. The system is designed to collect the data from the sensors, transmit it to the base station, present the data with graphical representation and interprets it so that a suitable level of warning can be declared. Along with the prototype, a slope model has also been built to demonstrate the event of landslide. Results obtained from experiments conducted with the prototype and slope model show that several levels of warning can be issued depending on the severity of the slope's stability ranging from early warning to emergency warning. These warnings will enable appropriate actions to be taken in preventing the occurrences of catastrophic tragedies.