UPV technology to protect World Heritage

A team of researchers from the ITACA Institute of the Universitat Politècnica de València, in collaboration with the Department of Conservation and Restoration of Cultural Heritage of the UPV, has developed a new real-time data monitoring system that will help protect the prehistoric cave paintings at the Abrigo de Los Toros del Prado del Navazo in Albarracín (Teruel).

The action, framed in the project "WiMOSA: Wireless non-stop MOnitoring system for heritage SAfeguard", aims to develop monitoring systems that contribute to the preventive conservation of the artistic, archaeological and architectural heritage of different cultural scenarios, using the "Internet of Things" (IoT) and the most innovative information technologies.

To this end, a team of researchers from ITACA-UPV has installed a series of devices in Los Pinares de Rodeno de Albarracín (Teruel) to service the wireless sensors in the area.

"By interconnecting the different sensors via the Internet, recommendations are made in the event of risk situations and automatic action is taken in an area of high heritage value, such as the set of prehistoric cave paintings in the Abrigo de Los Toros del Prado del Navazo de Albarracín," explains Ángel Perles Ivars, project coordinator.

IoT technology, the key

The orography of the area presented logistical and access challenges that hindered the installation of infrastructure and equipment. However, an Internet of Things (IoT) gateway was successfully implemented to service the wireless sensors in the area. The company Puyo Área Tecnológica collaborated in the implementation of the gateway.

"The cave paintings of the Los Toros del Navazo shelter are part of the Rock Art of the Mediterranean Arc of the Iberian Peninsula, declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. Their conservation is essential to preserve history and cultural identity, and the IoT technology used in this project contributes significantly to this goal by allowing continuous and accurate monitoring," the research partners said.

The project, funded by the Ministry of Science and Innovation, is also being implemented at other cultural sites such as IVAM, the Museum of America and the Monastery of Santa María de El Paular, with the Spanish Institute for Cultural Heritage as one of the partners.