Modern smartphones are often equipped with accelerometers. These small chips helped define the smartphone screen orientation and position in the smartphone space. Microelectromechanical (MEMS) accelerometers can measure the frequency of ground motion , the frequency of vibration of vehicles, buildings and structures. accelerometer in iPhoneV time accelerometers have helped to improve the use of automotive airbags.
Researchers concluded that the accelerometer can capture real-time seismic activity. These data were presented in the Bulletin of the Seismological Society of American (BSSA).
For their findings, scientists tested the accelerometers that are present in the smartphone the iPhone from Apple. The work of this chip compared to the sensor, which serves to measure the strength of earthquakes EpiSensor ES-T. The experiment showed that a simple MEMS- accelerometer can detect moderate to strong earthquakes, but only if the sensor is close to the epicenter of the earthquake. But the weak pushes accelerometer determines – it will prevent interference. At the same time, the researchers are confident that in the future the usual smart phones equipped with accelerometers that can sense earthquakes of magnitude less than 5 points.
This means that smartphones can be turned into a kind of seismic network, which allows to perceive and transmit information about ground motion. The information obtained can be processed, and a special service will be able to notify residents of the disaster.
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