Seismometer

Abstract

Seismometer (1) comprising - a container (1.1), - in the container (1.1) a fluid (1.2) filled up to a target mark (1.5), - an image acquisition device (1.4) for capturing the surface (1.3) of the fluid (1.2), - a storage device (1.6) for storing captured images of the surface (1.3) of the fluid (1.2), - a comparison device (1.7) for comparing at least one stored image of the surface (1.3) with images acquired at a later time , - a signaling device (1.8) controllable by the comparator (1.7).

Description

[0001] The invention relates to a seismometer according to claim 1.

[0002] Seismometers are used to detect vibrations, particularly those of the Earth's surface, for example, to record earthquakes. Conventional seismometers typically consist of a suspended mass whose relative motion to the Earth's surface can be measured. These seismometers are bulky and expensive.

[0003] The invention is based on the objective of creating a seismometer that, despite high sensitivity, has relatively small dimensions and can also be manufactured inexpensively.

[0004] This problem is solved by a seismometer according to claim 1. Advantageous embodiments of the seismometer are described in the dependent claims.

[0005] The invention is explained in more detail below with reference to the drawing.

[0006] This shows Fig. 1: A schematic representation of the seismometer.

[0007] The seismometer 1 comprises a container 1.1, which is filled with a liquid 1.2 up to a target line 1.4. An image acquisition device 1.4 is arranged at a distance from the surface 1.3 of the liquid 1.2, which acquires images of the surface 1.3 of the liquid 1.2. The output of the image acquisition device 1.4 is connected to a storage device 1.5. The storage device 1.5 is connected to a comparison device 1.6.

[0008] The comparator 1.6 is further connected to a signaling device 1.7. Water or glycerin can preferably be used as the liquid 1.2. The sensitivity of the seismometer 1 can be influenced, within certain limits, by the viscosity of the liquid 1.2.

[0009] The following describes the operation of seismometer 1. First, a calibration process is advantageously carried out. For this purpose, the image acquisition device 1.4 captures an initial image of the surface 1.3 of the liquid 1.2 on the seismometer 1, which is positioned without vibration. This image of the surface 1.3 is permanently stored in the storage device 1.5 and is available there for comparison with subsequently acquired images of the surface 1.3 of the liquid 1.2. During operation of seismometer 1, further images of the surface 1.3 of the liquid 1.2 are acquired, advantageously at a predefinable rate, and supplied to the storage device 1.5, where they can be stored, at least temporarily. In a comparison device 1.6, a comparison is performed between the image of the surface 1.3 of the liquid acquired during the calibration process and images of the surface 1.3 acquired later. Vibrations change the structure of the surface 1.3.This change is detected by the image acquisition device 1.4. In the comparison device 1.6, the captured images are compared with the image originally captured during the calibration process. If predefined limit values ​​are exceeded due to vibrations, a signaling device 1.7 can preferably be activated, which preferably emits an acoustic or visual warning signal. Reference symbol list 1 seismometer 1.1 Container 1.2 Fluid 1.3 Surface 1.4 Image capture device 1.5 Target mark 1.6 Storage setup 1.7 Comparative Institution 1.8 Signaling device

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