Tulane professor invents way to use children's playground equipment

New Orleans CityBusiness, Jan 19, 2004 by Amber Bethel

Generating electricity can be child's play, according to one Tulane professor.

Raj Pandian, a professor of engineering and computer science at Tulane University, has designed a way to bottle the energy children exert on the playground and save it for use later.

The invention, which Pandian calls a playful energy converter, can be made with items purchased at any hardware store and attached to children's playground equipment.

Last spring he introduced a power-generating retrofitted seesaw in Michigan. The seesaw was equipped with pneumatic cylinders beneath each seat. The cylinders were each bounded to an air compartment.

As the children push their seats up and down, the device pumps air through the cylinders and into the tanks. From there, a device called an inflator transforms the air into electrical power, storing it in batteries.

Two children playing on a seesaw for half an hour generate enough power to run a laptop computer for 20 minutes or longer, depending on the weight and pace of the children, Pandian said.

The invention, which has a patent pending, is adaptable to swingsets and merry-go-rounds.

Pandian said his research is an attempt to help the 40% of the world's population without regular access to electricity.

I was looking for a low-cost, simple technology mechanism, because solar and wind power are pretty expensive, Pandian said. I came across the idea of children playing and thought it would be nice to use some of that power of children at play to produce power to use as a back-up source in areas like schools.

Pandian envisions the product being used in developing countries to educate children. Pandian expects each generator to cost slightly more than $200.

I hope to do some more research and fine tuning of the system for improving its efficiency and to weather-proof it, Pandian said. Other than that, the system is easy to develop for commercial and educational use.

Jim Berry, curator of programs at the Alfred P. Sloan Museum in Flint, Mich., said he wants an educational playground at the museum featuring Pandian's invention.

Berry met Pandian through his work in the engineering program at the University of Michigan, where Pandian worked until he transferred to Tulane in September.

What he did was take a lot of engineering thinking from India that was not common in the United States and tried to apply it here, Berry said.

He said Pandian also fabricated an underwater robot used at the museum, which students can steer over the Internet.

He saw the value in getting students - both college-age and younger - interested in becoming inventors and engineers, Berry said.

Pandian worked to ensure the power generating playground equipment is safe for children, contains no acid and isn't explosive.

I suppose in a Third World country the difficulty of putting power lines in and getting electricity into a small village may be more trouble than it's worth, Berry said. He brought up this idea of using children who have boundless energy, and using their play to power a radio that would bring news into the village, for instance.

Berry thinks Pandian will receive funding to develop his idea on a larger scale.

He's Flint's loss and New Orleans' gain, Berry said.