Brains to burn this lot…
Some of the brightest, young in the country are gathered at the RDS for the BT Young Scientist & Technology Exhibition and JOE paid particular attention to three innovations that might be seen on a pitch in the near future.
1) A vacuum rugby kicking-tee
This has a genuine application right now.
If you’ve ever had to place a rugby ball on a kicking tee during a windy morning then you’ll know just how infuriating it can be.
We’ve all seen that ‘you have to be joking me’ look on a scrum-half’s face as he trudges over to the ball, before lying on the grass and praying he doesn’t get a boot in the head.
Number 10’s around the world will be pleased to hear that three students from Gaelcholáiste Luimnigh, Limerick have devised a kicking tee that aims to take this wind induced frustration away from professional place-kickers.
Daniel Enright, Brian Riordan and Ben Ryan have invented a kicking-tee that holds the ball in place via a vacuum which makes it almost impossible for the ball to move in the wind.
Somewhere we hope that Messrs Sexton, Madigan, Keatley, Pienaar et all are smiling. If this piece of kit was introduced then there would be no need for this type of thing.
The three students said that they found their inspiration from those cold nights they spent watching Munster at Thomond/ Musgrave Park and also from their own playing experiences playing for UL Bohs and Young Munster.
If you’re worried that the tee will still be stuck to the ball as it flies through the air then don’t be, an ultrasonic sensor detects when the players boot is about to make impact with the ball and releases the suction 8 milliseconds before contact. Go science.
The wind resistant device has already been tested and the three lads have already had a meeting with Munster assistant coach Ian Costello who seems open to the idea of using this devise during training. Take a look at their design below.
2) A wearable and cheap TMO system
Staying with rugby and JOE was also impressed with a light, portable and wearable TMO camera that referees can wear during matches.
Martin O’Donnachadha of De La Salle College in Louth impressed us with his invention that relays the referee’s point of view straight into the TMO’s screen.
Imagine a live stream of ref-cam but with the capability to spool backwards and view events from the referee’s perspective.
We all know that the TMO uses TV camera angles to help their decision to award or disallow a try but another set of eyes would definitely be helpful.
Anything that helps the officials make the correct call… unless it’s against Ireland of course.
3) The student devised system that reduces cruciate injuries
The final sporting innovation that we saw came from Diarmuid O’Sullivan, Paul O’Sullivan and Colin Kelly from Patrician Academy in Cork who used cruciate knee injuries in their local club, Kilshannig, as inspiration to help. The lads surveyed countless local GAA players and helped devise an injury prevention programme that’s currently being used by DCU’s GAA team.
The Dublin college have since reported a 70% drop in injuries since it’s introduction and it’s no surprise that the three students are more than happy to offer their insights to Brian Cuthbert and Jimmy-Barry Murphy ahead of the new season.
