A.

Y 2019-2020, 1st Semester, Research in Daily Life 2, Santiago National High School

Optimizing WIFID: A Wireless Improvised Flood Indicator Device

Mordeno, R. ;Salva, C. ;Monter, R. ;Sumatra, R. ;Eliot, J. ;Jumarito, A. ;Luizon, S. ;Mordeno,

A. ;Pintor, C.

Science and Technology, Engineering and Mathematics, Santiago National High School, Philippines

Abstract

Optimizing WIFID: A Wireless Improvised Flood Indicator Device was

conducted at Zone 6 Poblacion 2, Santiago, Agusan del Norte on Monter's
Residence from September to October 2019. The transmitter was created
mainly with the used of improvised arduino. Its body was made using pail with
the given arduino on transmitter. As the styro sensors moved upward with the
addition of water, it hit the button sending signal to receptor. Direct Current
(DC) motors were activated after the transmission of signal hitting the button
of the siren systems to produce sound. These systems were detached from
the device to reach the desired distances. Results from respondents have
showed that it was loudly heard and highly effective with 4.60 and 4.78 points
respectively. Moreover, quantifying qualitative analysis using Fischer (F) test
equally showed that the null hypothesis was rejected statistically. F statistic
and p-value have coined 0.4216 and 0.05 respectively supporting the claim
that there's statistical significance and validity. It provided an account that the
output was effective which can be made and utilized at inexpensive way.
Factors affecting its functionality include signal blockage, inappropriate
antenna type, and poor battery management. It is recommended to utilize a
battery with optimum votage, measure the maximum radius the device can
reach and a wifi to cover a wider area as possible.

Keywords: flood, receptor, siren system, transmitter

I. Introduction
Parameters are indeed important to mitigate the unending problems at the
present. From the cases ranging from home-based problem, into the
contingent measures done in social setting. Meanwhile, technologies are
significant nowadays in order to address the risks posed to the community.
Philippines is prone to flooding due to its geographic location which
brought monsoons and typhoons in the region. According to World
Meteorological Organization (WMO), flood in more than 80 countries have
killed around 300,000 people and is expected to increase through the years
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 A.Y 2019-2020, 1st Semester, Research in Daily Life 2, Santiago National High School

(Apostol, 2015). On the other hand, approximately 80% of Metro Manila was
covered during rainy seasons that in some parts were nearly two meters deep
(Bongolan et. al, 2010). Tropical storms passing through the Philippines have
resulted in widespread flooding, deaths, and distractions, across the country.
In Mindanao, heavy rains brought by Sendong, Agaton, and Seniang caused
rivers to overflow in the cities of Cagayan de Oro, Iligan, and Butuan
respectively (Santillan, 2015).
According to the National Disaster Risk and Management Council
(NDRRMC), the combined effects of the rains that have lashed starting

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 A.Y 2019-2020, 1st Semester, Research in Daily Life 2, Santiago National High School

mid-January resulted in at least nine deaths, injured 10 people, damaged

homes and swept livelihoods, mainly in Caraga, Davao and Northern
Mindanao Regions (IFRC, 2017). Flood Hazards within the state must be
identified and the flood risk should be assessed including the prevention of
future flood damaged and disaster costs. The state’s people should be
informed about flood process, making them less vulnerable to natural hazards
(Gaillard et. al, 2008).
A project of UP Diliman’s Electrical and Electronics Engineering Institute,
Computer Science Department, and the National Center for Transportation
Studies is created for determining the traffic volume and flood warning in real
time. Urban Flood Monitoring System is employed with ultrasonic sensor
installed in a 3.2 meter post at center island along San Diego up to Earnshaw
Street in Espana, Manila. This sensor calculates the distance of the
floodwater and bounces its signals in the form of echoes into its transceivers
(Science and Technology Media Service, 2015).
It is equally important to have flood alarms or flood monitoring systems.
Flood monitoring is clever and productive way to monitor floods and prevent
possible damages. In the early stages of flood, the flood monitoring system
detects water and alarms you immediately, either via call or text messages. A
standard flood monitoring system that has a built-in detector and alarm
normally has three sensors that will probably become exposed to monitor and
set off an alarm, providing prior notice of a flood that could progress.
Some early warning flood indicator devices are useful including those that
are improvised, where siren system is attached to the device (Alfaro [Link],
2013). Moreover, the study was conducted to produce and test a wireless
improvise flood detector device. The siren system was detached from the
device itself into the desired distances. This was beneficial as it will raise
awareness among the residents and authority in terms of sudden increase of
water level in flood prone area to eventually make actions.

Statement of the Problem

This research focused mainly on creating a wireless improvise flood
indicator device and testing its capability. It seeks to answer the following:
1. What are the components in creating the product?
2. Is WIFID an effective flood indicator device?
3. What are the factors that may inhibit its functionality?

Hypothesis
The siren system should not be detached from the body of the device
itself.

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 A.Y 2019-2020, 1st Semester, Research in Daily Life 2, Santiago National High School

Significance of the Study

The study was conducted primarily to introduce a wireless product out of
improvised [Link] flood indicator device was beneficial to the following
disciplines:

Residents. The people within the study area will benefit from the device as
it will raise awareness among them.
Authorities. It will provide some significant insights to the agencies with the
progress of water level. In this way, prior interventions may follow.
Medium. The device was better when it’s detachable. The farther the
distance, the more efficient it could signal the residents as well as the
responsible authority.

Scope and Delimitations

The research focused mainly on creating and testing the potential of the
product’s effectivity. This was conducted on Zone 6 Poblacion 2, Santiago,
Agusan del Norte. This was limited on identifying the components to be used,
effictivity, and factors that may affect its functionality when informing the
people. It’s wireless but not limited with the durability when immense water is
added on the product.

II. Materials and Methods

Research Locale

The study was conducted at Zone 6 Poblacion 2, Santiago, Agusan del

Norte on Monter’s Residence. This undertaking was covered from September
to October 2019.

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 A.Y 2019-2020, 1st Semester, Research in Daily Life 2, Santiago National High School

Figure [Link] Study Area

Research Design

An experimental method was administered along with the materials

intended to achieve the desired product.

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 A.Y 2019-2020, 1st Semester, Research in Daily Life 2, Santiago National High School

TRANSMITTER

SIGNAL
SIREN SYSTEM
RECEPTOR
WIFID

POWER SYSTEM

Figure 2. Illustration showing WIFID along with the inputs used.

Collection and Preparation of Materials

Creation of the Transmitter

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 A.Y 2019-2020, 1st Semester, Research in Daily Life 2, Santiago National High School

Figure 3A. The transmitter along with arduino and styro sensors.

Transmitter sends a control signal to the receiver using a radio waves, which
drives a motor, causing a specific action to occur (Tyson, 2019). The transmitter
was created mainly with the used of improvise arduino from remote car, which
serves as the sender of signal as well as an indicator of the increase in water
level. The body of the transmitter was made with the use of pail, where its inner
part was covered with cellophane to protect the inner components from any
leakage. Two styro sensors were made. The styro was installed on the base of
the device attached to an aluminum antenna pipe. It will serve as an indicator for
the increase of water level. As the water level raises, the styro also moves
upward until the pipe hit the button sending signal to the receptor. The first styro
was set for the first 12 inches increased in water level, while the next one was for
the next 24 inches increased in water level from its initial level.

Making the Signal Receptor and Siren Systems

Figure 3B. The receptor together with the siren systems.

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 A.Y 2019-2020, 1st Semester, Research in Daily Life 2, Santiago National High School

Receptors are antenna and circuit board inside RC toys that receives signals
from transmitters and activates motors inside the toy as commanded by
transmitter (Tyson, 2019). The receptor corresponds with the given improvised
arduino from the transmitter of RC (Radio Control) toy car. As the signal was sent,
DC motors move until it hit the button of the siren systems. The process
happened in the same procedure for the both two sets of siren systems.
Two siren systems were created and attached to the body of signal receptor.
For the siren systems, four speakers were used. The first 2 speakers alarm as the
water level increases up to 12 inches from its initial level. Meanwhile, the next two
speakers alarm when the water level reaches 24 inches from its initial level.

Creating the Device Power System

Figure 3C. Utilizing solar panel as a device power system.

The transmitter, signal receptors as well as the siren systems require

chargeable batteries. Solar panels were used for the regeneration of energy. For
the transmitter, a 3.00 V chargeable battery was utilized to power up the device.
For the signal receptors and siren systems, another 3.00 V chargeable battery
was used to make it functional. Solar panels were used which serves as the
chargers of the device.

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 A.Y 2019-2020, 1st Semester, Research in Daily Life 2, Santiago National High School

Testing the Device Functionality

TRANSMITTER RECEPTOR

SIREN SYSTEM

STYRO
SENSOR

STYRO
SENSOR

Figure 3D. Illustration showing the set-up of the device.

The set-up was prepared on Monter’s Residence. The transmitter was placed
on the mouth of the pail. The water added on it was assumed as the initial water
level. Expecting that the flood rises, the water was added to the container to
increase the water level for the first set - a 12 inches increased in the level. The
same procedure will be conducted with the preceeding set with 24 inches
increased in water level. The sets of siren system will alarm allowing a louder
sound that may reach the designated distances.

Statistical Analysis
Qualitative Analysis was transformed into Quantitative Distribution (Ellens,
2016). Central Tendency using mean was used upon the scaling system, while
two-tailed F test was employed for observing the null hypothesis (Scenedor and
Cochran, 2013).

III. Results and Discussion

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 A.Y 2019-2020, 1st Semester, Research in Daily Life 2, Santiago National High School

Transmitter Receptor

Siren System

Styro

Sensors Figure 4. The components used in creating WIFID.

This figure illustrated the material which were used during the
conduct of the study.

BOYLES EGOS MORANTE CEBRIAN

MONTER
(A) (B) (C)
(D)

Figure 3. Map of Monter’s Residence

SALVA
CERVANTES DESMAS (G)
CERVANTES SALVA
(F) DESMAS
(E)
(E) (F) (G)

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 A.Y 2019-2020, 1st Semester, Research in Daily Life 2, Santiago National High School

Figure 4. Map of Monter’s Residence

SCALE REMARK
4.50-5.00 Loudly Heard
3.50-4.49 Fairly Heard
2.50-3.49 Slightly Heard
1.50-2.49 Poorly Heard
1.00-1.49 Not Heard

Table 1. The Five - Point Likert Scale was used upon the scaling system for
the intensity of the speaker (Mcleod, 2019).

Respondents Distance in radius of respondents Points

from WIFID (m)
A 10 5.00
B 5 5.00
C 6 4.49
D 10 4.49
E 20 4.00
F 15 4.20
G 8 5.00
Mean 4.60

Table 2. The table showed the results on the intensity of siren system based
from the distances of respondents on the device using scaling tape.

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 A.Y 2019-2020, 1st Semester, Research in Daily Life 2, Santiago National High School

The data showed that respondents A, B, and G posed the highest points with
5.00. Meanwhile, respondent E appeared to have the least points with 4.00. It
implied that the intensity of siren system decreases with distance (Alfaro et. al,
2013). Overall mean was found to be 4.60 which clearly showed that it’s loudly
heard.

Not Heard 0

Poorly Heard 0

Slightly Heard 0

Fairly Heard 4

Loudly Heard 3

0 0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5 3 3.5 4 4.5

frequency

Figure 5. Distribution of frequency on the intensity of the siren system

based from the respondents.

The graph showed that 3 out of 7 respondents held that the speakers are
loudly heard, while 4 of them believed that it’s fairly heard. No frequecies were
recorded for the preceeding scales.

SCALE REMARK
4.50 - 5.00 Highly Effective

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3.50 - 4.49 Effective

2.50 - 3.49 Fairly Effective
1.50 - 2.49 Poorly Effective
1.00 - 1.49 Ineffective

Table [Link] Five - Point Likert Scale was used upon the scaling system for
the effectivity of the siren system (Mcleod, 2019).

Respondents Points
A 5.00
B 5.00
C 5.00
D 4.49
E 4.00
F 4.49
G 5.00
Mean 4.78

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 A.Y 2019-2020, 1st Semester, Research in Daily Life 2, Santiago National High School

Table 4. The table showed the results on the effectivity of the device based
from the respondents.

Respondents A, B, C, and G believed that WIFID was highly effective with

5.00 points. At the same time, 4.49 points were gathered from respondents D,
E, and F who said that the product is effective. Overall mean was 4.78 which
manifested that it's higly effective.

Poorly Effective 0

Slightly Effective 0

Fairly Effective 0

Effective 3

Highly Effective 4

0 0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5 3 3.5 4 4.5

frequency

Figure 6. Distribution of frequency on the effectivity of the device based

from the respondents.

The graph showed that 4 out of 7 respondents held that it's highly
effective, while 3 of them concluded that it’s effective. No frequencies were
recorded for the preceeding scales.
This indicated that the intensity of siren system would highly affect the
overall effectivity of the flood indicator device.

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 A.Y 2019-2020, 1st Semester, Research in Daily Life 2, Santiago National High School

Quantifying Qualitative Analysis

The qualitative analysis was converted into quantitative distribution in

order to test the statistical relationship and validity (Ellens, 2016).

Data Mean Standard Variance Degree of F Statistic Cumulative Two-tailed

deviation Freedom Probability Critical F-
Value

x 4.60 0.2583 0.0667 6

0.4216 0.16 4.2840
y 4.78 0.3977 0.1582 6

Table 5. The parameters of F Distribution using two-tailed f-test (0.05 level

of significance).

The table showed the parametric distribution of the two variables being
observed at 0.05 level of significance. It can be drawn that since F statistic is
less than the two-tailed critical f-value, the two vaiances are not equal
statistically. This means that the null hypothesis was rejected (Dinov, 2019).

H 0 : 012  0 22

Cumulative probability equal to 0.16 indicated that the F value known as

F statistic would not likely be greater than the critical f-value (Stattrek, 2019).

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 A.Y 2019-2020, 1st Semester, Research in Daily Life 2, Santiago National High School

Figure 7. A right-skewed diagram showing the distribution of critical f-value

and p - value (Desai, 2017).

SIGNAL
f-value representedBATTERY
The curve showed the criticalANTENNA by distance from the
purple solid line to the vertical axis, while its p-value was the shaded region.
P-value equal to 0.05 which was minimum supported also the claim that the null
hypothesis was rejected statistically as the alpha level was not exceeded. Validity
and statistical significance were suggested since the critcal f-value was relatively
bigger than the p-value result (Grabowski, 2016).

Factors Affecting its Functionality

Figure 8. Factors affecting the functionality of WIFID.

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 A.Y 2019-2020, 1st Semester, Research in Daily Life 2, Santiago National High School

The signal blockage can be one of the leading reasons that may inhibit its
functionality. This may be due to the obstruction of any object between the
transmitter and receptor. Inappropriate antenna type should be considered also
as it will disrupt good reception along with the receptor. Most transmitters will
exhibit audible distortion or weakened signal when there's a failure in managing
battery (Vear, 2017).
Overheating of the components and lower intensity of the siren system
are due to voltage of the battery. The battery's voltage must neither deficit nor
exceed to avoid inconvenience like short circuit (Carol, 2019).

IV. Conclusion
A wireless improvised flood indicator device was created using
recyclable materials. Results from respondents have showed that WIFID was
loudly heard and highly effective with 4.60 and 4.78 points respectively. It was
revealed that the intensity of speaker depends on its distance from the
transmitter. Quantitative distribution using F test with F statistic and p-value
equal to 0.4216 and 0.05 respectively supported the claim that the null
hypothesis was rejected statistically providing an account for validity and
statistical significance. Implications have showed that the device was an
effective product. While the output was held effective during the investigation,
it was also important revealing the probability of separating the siren systems
from the device. It offered a new way of producing a cheaper flood indicator
device. Factors contributing to its functionality include poor signal,
inappropriate antenna type, and the voltage of battery resulting to lower
intensity of speaker and overheating of the transmitter.

V. Recommendation
Since the study was limited only on testing the effectivity of a wireless
improvised flood indicator device, the researchers would like to recommend the
following:

1. Utilize a battery with optimum voltage to increase the intensity of siren system
and trace the flow of electricity within it.
2. Measure the maximum radius that the device can reach.
3. Use a wifi in order to cover wider area.
4. Conduct a study covering the neighbouring barangays of Santiago, Agusan del
Norte.

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 A.Y 2019-2020, 1st Semester, Research in Daily Life 2, Santiago National High School

Acknowledgement

First of all, to Almighty God who bestowed wisdom and patience to the
researchers especially on the hard times of the study.
Second, to Mrs. Maria Lourdes C. Egos, the research adviser, for the full
support and genuine encouragement so we could furtherly enhanced and
realized our manuscript.
Third, to the respondents in the study area who willingly cooperated and
understood so that the conduct of the study became possible.
Fourth, to Jed Andrei Arbelo who let the researchers borrowed the laptop
that greatly helped upon accomplishing the investigation.
Fifth, to Juliah Laira Gabon for allowing the researchers to print out hard
copies of the research paper.
Sixth, to Lourdes Lisbos for the significant assistance and wholehearted
motivation.
And lastly, to our friends , classmates, and familes for the moral and
financial support that have encouraged us to pursue the research in the long
run.

The Researchers

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References

Alfaro et. al (2013). Design of an Early Warning Flood Level Indicator, pp. 1-8

Apostol (2015). Scenario and Sensitivity Analysis for Flooding Vulnerability Using
Genetic Algorithms, The Scientific Computing Laboratory, p. 1

Bongolan et. al (2010). The Mathematics in Flood Disaster Management and Risk
Assessment , pp. 20-23

Carol (2019). The Relationship of Voltage, Loudness, Power and Decibels.

Retrievedfrom[Link]
dness-power-and-decibels/

Desai (2017). What must you know in order to perform an F test. Retrieved
from[Link]
est

Dinov (2019). F Distribution Table. REtrieved from

[Link]

Ellens (2016). Converting Qualitative Data Into Quantitative Data. Retrieved from
[Link]

Gaillard et. al (2008). Living with Increasing Floods: Insights from a Rural

Grabowski (2016). Might Not Mean What You Think: American Statistical
Association Clarifies P Values. Retrieved from
[Link]

IFRC (2017). Philippines: Floods and Landslides. Retrieved from

[Link]

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Author’s E-mail: salvachistian14@[Link] Teacher: Mrs. Maria Lourdes C. Egos

 A.Y 2019-2020, 1st Semester, Research in Daily Life 2, Santiago National High School

Makinano, J. (2015). Flood Hazard Mapping of River Basins in Caraga Region,

Mindanao, Philippines Through the CSU PHIL-LIDAR 1 PROJECT. Retrieved
from [Link]

McLeod (2019). Likert Scale Definition, Examples and Analysis. Retrieved from
[Link]

Philippine Community. Disaster Prevention and Management, 17 (3), pp. 383-395

Snedecor and Cochran (2013). F - test for Equality of two variances. Retrieved
from [Link]

Stattrek (2019). F Distribution and Cumulative probability. Retrieved from

[Link]

S & T Media Service (2015). Traffic and Urban Flood Tool Using Dost Data
Promises Easier Navigation by Motorist. Retrieved from

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[Link]
[Link]

Tyson (2019). How Radio Controlled Toys Work. Retrieved from

[Link]

Vear (2017). Five Mistakes to Avoid When Using Wireless. Retrieved from
[Link]
en-using-wireless

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APPENDICES

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I. Collection of Materials Needed

A. Transmitter

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09-15-19 09-15-19

B. Receptors and Siren System

09-15-19 09-15-19

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C. Device Power System

10-13-19

II. Measuring the distance of the device from the respondents.

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10-13-19
10-21-19

10-21-19

10-21

III. Testing the device functionality

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10-26-19
10-26-19

10-26-19

09-15-19 10-26-19

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III. The researchers while doing survey on the respondents.

10-21-19 10-21-19

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10-21-19 10-21-19

10-21-19
10-21-19

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