About Sensing Tools

Smart beaches use technology to adapt to the changing needs of users and the environment.

By combining measurement, sensing, connectivity, and data analysis technologies from various sources such as IoT sensors, remote sensing, and social media platforms, we generate an intelligent monitoring platform that provides an integrated, real-time view of these natural environments.

The application provides detailed information, including physical data such as water temperature, UV radiation levels, and wave conditions, as well as other important aspects like water quality, beach accessibility and occupancy, visitor and local resident feedback, and available services, among others. This information helps both tourism and environmental managers adopt a more proactive, efficient approach tailored to the needs of tourists and the environment, while also helping visitors plan their trips better and enhance their experience, ensuring safer enjoyment of the natural environment.

Our approach also promotes more inclusive management by incorporating the opinions and needs of all communities. We use Social Sensing to capture and value the voices of all visitors, from local residents to tourists, ensuring that strategies align with everyone's interests and contribute to their collective well-being.

Our Smart Beaches service represents a breakthrough in how we manage and enjoy our natural resources. We are committed to helping destinations not only preserve the beauty of our coastal environments but also foster a responsible and enriching experience for all visitors.

The SMARTLAGOON project, funded by the European H2020 funds, emerges as an innovative response to the environmental and socioeconomic challenges faced by coastal lagoons, evaluated through the use case of Mar Menor, Murcia. This project has focused on developing a digital twin that accurately reflects the complexity of the socio-environmental interactions of the Mar Menor and its surroundings.

An advanced IoT infrastructure has been implemented, including oceanographic buoys and video cameras with real-time measurement capabilities. This technology allows continuous monitoring of water quality and hydrological flows, critical elements for effective lagoon management. In addition, remote sensing technologies, social network analysis, and open data repositories are used to collect and analyze crucial information on human behavior and economic and social impacts.

The project goes beyond space monitoring by promoting proactive resource management. This is achieved through community engagement by listening to and analyzing citizen perceptions expressed on social media. This approach allows strategies to be adapted to the real needs and concerns of the community, strengthening local commitment and shared responsibility in environmental conservation.

The SMARTLAGOON digital twin is not only offering practical and effective management for the Mar Menor but also establishes a replicable model for other coastal lagoons affected by similar environmental and anthropogenic challenges.

The CHAN-TWIN project emerges as an innovative technological development focused on creating a digital twin of the natural park of the Torrevieja and La Mata lagoon. This initiative aims to provide an integral and real-time vision of the state of the natural park, evaluating both environmental and socioeconomic aspects. Its main objective is to establish a sustainable balance between the economy and the environment, demonstrating how human activities and biodiversity can coexist harmoniously.

Through the digitization of multiple environmental variables - such as water quality, temperature, humidity, and noise levels - ecological variables - such as bird censuses -, and socioeconomic variables - such as flow control or citizen perception captured through Social Sensing - CHAN-TWIN offers a real-time management and monitoring platform. This digital twin allows managers and scientists to observe and predict complex dynamics within the park, facilitating informed decision-making for the conservation and sustainable use of natural resources.

In addition, the integration of the community's voice into the platform ensures that the development and management of the natural park are inclusive and reflect the needs and expectations of local visitors and residents.