A collapsed building during an earthquake in southern Taiwan led to the loss of many lives, again reminding people of the importance of disaster prevention. While we are yet unable to predict when the next earthquake will occur, we can prepare ourselves by making thorough plans that incorporate the two vital aspects of smart technology and disaster prevention among other considerations. Only then will we be able to mitigate the degree of loss and suffering in the face of major disasters.
Professor To-po Wang of NTUT has designed a Smart Earthquake Sensor that emits voice alerts when it detects a certain scale of seismic intensity. It projects LED lights that provide direction toward emergency exits and cuts off all potentially hazardous sources of power and gas. The sensor will automatically detect if the elevator is operating and force it to stop at the nearest floor, thereby effectively shortening the time needed to escape and decreasing the chances of secondary disaster.
In 2015, Professor Wang acquired funding for his design from the MOEA’s patent commercialization project, allowing him and his team to continue developing the sensor. Hongyuan Electromechanical Co., Ltd. assisted in commercialization, and together they broke through the last barriers of academic research. All the components of the Smart Earthquake Sensor, apart from the triple axis accelerometer, were developed and manufactured domestically in Taiwan. This fulfills the standards the MOEA proposed for utilizing local techniques and exemplifies how industry-academic collaboration enables academic research to maintain proximity to actual markets.
Under the support of the MOEA’s “Industrial Upgrading and Transformation Service Team for Emerging Industries” and the consultants of the New Taipei City SME Service Team, the industry-academic collaboration between NTUT and Hongyuan Electromechanical Co., Ltd. for product development and processor optimization of the smart earthquake disaster prevention mechanism was a great success. The two parties have not only become a benchmark for collaborative projects between industry, government, and academia, but have also accelerated developments in related industries, created high amounts of output value, and become an embodiment of how central policy can aid and support industrial transformations and service upgrades. In the future, the Service Team for Emerging Industries will persist in its endeavors to guide emerging industries from different sectors in the creation of greater value.