Personal Project
Earthquake Monitoring System
Project Duration
2018–2022
Role and Contribution
Project Manager and Lead Developer (Approx. 90% Contribution)
Technologies and Skills Applied
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Embedded Hardware Design (OrCAD: Schematic Design, PCB Layout)
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Embedded Software Development (STM32 – C with RTOS)
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Web Front-End Development and UI Design (HTML, CSS, JavaScript)
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Web Back-End Development (Node.js, MariaDB/MySQL, Socket Programming in C)
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Hardware Design (CAD)
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Hardware Integration and Electrical Installation
Introduction
Following the historic M5.4 earthquake near Pohang and the success of the POSTECH Weather Station, I developed a complete earthquake monitoring system commissioned by the university.
This end-to-end project included designing the seismometer hardware, the embedded software (STM32F4 MCU with CMSIS-DSP filtering), and a full-stack web platform (Node.js/MariaDB) for real-time waveform tracking, alerts, and historical data analysis.
Implementation
During the development of the embedded system, I prioritized high-accuracy time synchronization between the distributed units. For the accelerometer’s low-pass filtering, I implemented a 14th-order Butterworth filter, utilizing the CMSIS-DSP library and the hardware floating-point unit (FPU) of the STM32 MCU.
To ensure efficient data monitoring and transmission, the system was built on the FreeRTOS real-time operating system. Processed acceleration data was stored in an internal queue and securely transmitted to the web backend via Ethernet using LwIP middleware.
Prototype of Developed Seismometer Circuitry & CAD Modelling of Seismometer Housing (Nov 2018)
Official Certification Testing (KTL) for the POSTECH Earthquake Monitoring System (Jul 2019)
Application
A total of three seismometer units were deployed across the POSTECH campus, successfully detecting and monitoring earthquakes with a Modified Mercalli Intensity (MMI) scale rating of II or higher.
The system was integrated into the university’s disaster prevention and emergency response framework, enabling automated SMS alerts and real-time dashboard monitoring for the situation room. Furthermore, it served as a critical safety measure during major university events, including the 2019 POSTECH entrance examinations.
Website for Real-Time Monitoring and Alert for Earthquake (2019)
Installation of Seismometer Platform (Feb 2019)
Seismometer Platform (Mar 2019)
Shown in the Media
![[대구MBC뉴스] 포스텍, 국내 최초 지진관측대피시스템 구축 00-00-14.png](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/b520b9_151a6ef717984b1b9e2649d601e2c8c7~mv2.png/v1/fill/w_980,h_551,al_c,q_90,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_avif,quality_auto/%5B%EB%8C%80%EA%B5%ACMBC%EB%89%B4%EC%8A%A4%5D%20%ED%8F%AC%EC%8A%A4%ED%85%8D%2C%20%EA%B5%AD%EB%82%B4%20%EC%B5%9C%EC%B4%88%20%EC%A7%80%EC%A7%84%EA%B4%80%EC%B8%A1%EB%8C%80%ED%94%BC%EC%8B%9C%EC%8A%A4%ED%85%9C%20%EA%B5%AC%EC%B6%95%2000-00-14.png)
POSTECH Earthquake Monitoring System Introduced in Korean Public Broadcaster MBC News (Nov 2018)
![5초만에 대피 문자 181122[TBC-띠비띠] 00-00-19 (1).png](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/b520b9_ab4aa21a26a84a808fe137ea0ac1fd37~mv2.png/v1/fill/w_980,h_549,al_c,q_90,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01,enc_avif,quality_auto/5%EC%B4%88%EB%A7%8C%EC%97%90%20%EB%8C%80%ED%94%BC%20%EB%AC%B8%EC%9E%90%20181122%5BTBC-%EB%9D%A0%EB%B9%84%EB%9D%A0%5D%2000-00-19%20(1).png)
POSTECH Earthquake Monitoring System Introduced in Korean Private Broadcaster TBC News (Nov 2018)