The Idea of Land Movement Sensor from Thursina Team Wins Silver in ISTEC 2025
As many as five students of Thursina International Islamic Boarding School (IIBS) presented a structural monitoring innovation entitled Slopeguard in the International Science, Technology, and Engineering Competition (ISTEC) held in Bali on 8–11 May 2024.
This prestigious event, held by Bandung Creative Society, is a place for students to showcase the research results and innovations in the fields of science, technology, and engineering. The Thursina IIBS team consists of Raihan Rahman Al-hakim, Elroy Tito Deandre, Muhammad Rafi Agna, Afrand Muhammad, and Akif Al Hafidz Taufik. "We would like to prove that students are able to innovate in the field of technology. We designed Slopeguard to be accessible and used in areas with minimal monitoring technology," said Afrand Muhammad, one of the team members.
The team introduced Slopeguard as an early detection system for land movement based on Discrete Wavelet Transform (DWT) technology equipped with an MPU6050 tilt sensor and an ESP32 microcontroller. It is capable of detecting slope changes of up to 0.05° per minute even amidst environmental noise disturbances. Afrand Muhammad said the Slopeguard project was designed to be applied in areas with limited resources, in addition to infrastructure monitoring technology in developed areas.
The system is also equipped with a tiered warning feature, dividing potential structural risks into three levels: slight shifts, significant deviations, and severe damage threats. The feature is capable of helping infrastructure managers to prevent damage and reduce maintenance costs.
Inspired by the incident of a retaining wall collapse in one of the schools in Malang, the team assessed the importance of accurate, real-time, and affordable structural monitoring technology. Slopeguard is considered suitable for areas with limited resources by affordable price and adjustable use in various conditions.
The participation of Thursina IIBS team in ISTEC 2024 reflects the spirit of innovation and concern for public safety, and demonstrates the contribution of young generation in providing technological solutions to today's infrastructure challenges. (sls/lil)