ProjectTemplate

Author:	HÖWELER + YOON ARCHITECTURE
BOSTON, USA, 2014
http://www.howeleryoon.com/work/48/swing-time

DEVICES

Swing Time is a temporary installation developed within the framework of the

Massachusetts Convention Center Authority’s urban renewal initiative. The installation

integrates energy generation and plays, demonstrating the relation between production

and consumption.

The urban playscape is composed of 18 welded polypropylene swings, which hang under

a customfabricated solar canopy. The swings are designed in three different sizes so that

the community can engage and play with Swing Time as individuals or in groups.

Swing Time uses solar energy harvested from a series of photovoltaic cells that translate

UV rays into electrical illumination.

Responsive in real-time to environmental conditions, the playscape’s illumination

corresponds to a daily accumulation of solar power, translating UV rays into a visual

register that indexes the abundance of solar energy.

Photovoltaic cells integrated into the canopy capture and store solar energy during

daylight hours. Through an automated system, the accumulated energy is distributed into

LED lights located on the swings.

Moreover, accelerometers installed within each swing directly respond to the acceleration

forces and tilt exerted by users.

When the swings are not moving, they emit soft White light, thanks to the energy

collected during the day.

As the swings increase in momentum from a static position, a microcontroller adjusts the

LED output through a gradient scale from white blue to purple.

The responsive elements of Swing Time invite users

to interact with the swings and with each other. The overall theme of Swing Time is to

entice people of all ages to engage in active public play. Public play creates a community

laboratory and raises awareness of energy consumption and production.

DIAGRAM OF APPLIED TECHNOLOGIES

DAY VIEW

CONSTRUCTION PHASE

NIGHT VIEW