Distributed Cloud Framework for Real-Time Disaster Monitoring

Natural disasters are affecting us more routinely and at increased levels of danger (floods, earthquakes, and fires). To respond to disasters in a timely manner, we require smart systems that monitor and provide real-time alerts. In this project, we developed a system known as Distributed Cloud Framework for Real-Time Disaster Monitoring designed using AWS (Amazon Web Services). Rather than using actual sensors, we designed virtual sensors that provide simulated data (e.g., temperature, rainfall, and vibrations (for earthquakes)). This data is transmitted to the cloud by way of AWS IoT Core. AWS employs a Lambda function to check the values and provide alerts should something be amiss (e.g., a temperature of 100 degrees could potentially indicate a fire hazard, or a rainfall of 10” could provide flood warnings). The cool aspect of this system is that it is completely cloud-based, and therefore, highly scalable, fast, and generally inexpensive as it does not require expensive hardware. This research allows us to explore how cloud technology may be leveraged in detecting early disasters, and how we may better respond to protect lives and property