Tsunami early warning system architecture based on automation technologies

Abstract

The occurrence of a tsunami after an earthquake in a coastal zone is very probable but not certain. This situation leads to a difficult decision about the best action to take: to evacuate or not. Tsunami Early Warning Systems (TEWS) are designed to clarify this situation informing people if there is real danger for them. On the other side, automation technologies used in the industry share a lot of structural and functional issues with many of the TEWS around the world. Therefore we propose to take advantage of the progress of commercial products for the development of TEWS. In this case, the time saved in research, development and implementation of specific hardware and software for a TEWS justifies the additional cost associated with the use of commercial products. The paper starts with a brief description of TEWS and automation technologies, followed by a comparison between them to finish with a conceptual proposal for a TEWS architecture based on automation technologies and other available products.