Introduction

In this article, we will be guiding you briefly about how to make an earthquake alarm working model for a science project that can be put together to make an actual alarm that can detect Earthquakes.

Have you ever been caught off guard in an earthquake before? Everyone who did knows how frightening it seems to be in the initial phase when every part of your surroundings starts shaking at a certain rhythm. However, what if you could hear it before you feel the earthquake? Yes! Thanks to earthquake alarms. Getting an earthquake alarm could be expensive to buy, and for some, it may also be non-affordable, so why not Do-It-Yourself?

Supplies

For this project, we will be needing.

Tools

• Glue gun

Materials

• LED light (preferably red)
• 1 kilo-ohm resistor
• Wire
• Buzzer
• Copper wire
• Steel nut
• 9v Battery
• 9v Battery clip connector
• On/Off switch
• Cardboard

Steps To Make Earthquake Alarm Working Model

Step 1:Take a piece of 15cm x 15cm of cardboard, which will be the alarm’s base. Fix a 4cm x 8cm cardboard at a perpendicular angle using the glue gun. Then, take another 4cm x 4cm cardboard at stick it to the rectangular piece at a right angle. The model should look like this.

Take Cardboard and stick it at a right angle

Step 2: Take a 7cm long copper wire, fold it and twist it. When done, penetrate that through the perpendicular cardboard, like this.

Step 3: Take the steel nut, penetrate a copper wire through the nut and twist it. The nut would act as a pendulum in the model. Fix this steel nut in the model by taking the tail (copper wire tied to the steel nut) and putting it across the small square cardboard. After doing, fix the pendulum in its place using a glue gun. Make sure you penetrate the pendulum across the small knot using copper wire on the perpendicular cardboard piece.

Fix this steel nut in the model

Step 4: Now, we need to work with the buzzer and the LED light. Firstly, take the 1-kilo ohm resistor and fix it at one end of the LED light. This can be done using a heating mechanism.

Fix the 1-kilo ohm Resistor and the LED light

Then, take the buzzer and fix this LED to the two ends of the buzzer using heat.

Fix buzzer to LED

Step 5: Now you have to connect the battery connector, and the on/off switch to the buzzer and LED light to form a working circuit. Join the red wire of the battery connector and the buzzer. Now, join one black wire rooting from the on/off switch to the copper wire of the ‘pendulum’ structure and the other black wire rooting from the buzzer to the other copper wire penetrated through the cardboard.

Join buzzer to the other copper wire

The model should look like the image below.

Connect the battery connector and the switch

Step 6: Fix a battery to the battery connector. Using the glue gun, fix the on/off switch, the battery, buzzer and the LED light at the edge of the cardboard base to complete the model. Ensure the switch is kept on to make the model a functional earthquake alarm.

Earthquake Alarm Working Model

Recommendations

• Always be careful and wear safety glass while performing science projects which protect your eyes.
• Beware of sharp objects, pointy wires etc.
• Children should be assisted by adults.
• Properly handle the heating object or device to avoid burning accidents.

Making an earthquake alarm at home is easy and less time-consuming. Keeping the pandemic in mind, such science projects can also be done at home by kids as such practices are considered good brain activities and promote creativity amongst young people.

Saquib Siddiqui

Saquib Siddiqui is a Mechanical Engineer and a content creator. He has special interest in science experiments and teaches the same to school and college students. He is also a technical lead at RUDE LABS PVT. LTD.