How IoT helps Us in Preserving World History

Our future is the Internet of Things (IoT), and we can preserve our past with its help. Though the main function of IoT is to make environment and objects more reactive and responsive through various connected sensors, these sensors are also used in monitoring historic buildings as well. With IoT preserving world’s heritage preservation become easier, smarter and more authentic. Using future technology will open new dimensions in the world history preservation. IoT technology helps us connected to our collective past.

One of the most prominent examples of such history preserving technology had seen in May 2016, when some part of the Arno river embankment collapsed in the Italian city of Florence, leaving the World’s most famous Ponte Vecchio bridge with same fate. To deal with the threat the Geology Department of the University of Florence has installed a series of geological sensors that can monitor the bridge established in 14^th century. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site so preserving it is of prime importance for the nation.

The system will provide real-time data that is remotely collected through the sensors. The system was developed by a Barcelona based IoT company named Worldsensing. They have installed load sensing remote monitoring system throughout the 32-meter bridge. All the sensors were wireless and can be controlled by a single monitoring device by means of data exchange.

Those sensors monitor the stability of the bridge, along with the surrounding area, and provide real-time data. The micro monitoring will ensure that Ponte Vecchio isn’t at risk of collapse. The sensors will send a stream of data to the main operating system in Florence, and the operating team will monitor the incoming data with the help of Loadsensing Software Suite.

The bridge maintenance was under the responsibility of the Florence City Council, who can proactively respond in any case of danger by helping preserve the life of the bridge along with those who are using it daily.

Albert Zaragoza, the CTO of Worldsensing explains the operating team will receive the monitoring data using the power of IoT that can fetch the data faster and allow to take action even faster by cross-referencing those data with other signals. With the help of IoT technologies, cities and companies can respond faster to prevent disasters that otherwise would have been difficult to detect.

The Ponto Vecchio is not the only example of preserving world history with the help of IoT. Nowadays, every heritage building is covered with surveillance cameras to monitor the overall scenario from a security point of view. Sensors are installed outside of the exhibition boxes so that the exhibit condition and movement can be tracked on a 24/7 basis.

Several historic buildings can be maintained and monitored with the help of IoT technologies, so the modern invention is saving our precious historic culture, and the whole world is looking forward to this.