Created on 08.07
What is Archimedes Water Screw
Concept and Origin
The Archimedes Water Screw is an unpowered playground equipment originated from the screw pump invented by the ancient Greek scientist Archimedes. It is used to lift water from a lower to a higher level by the principle of screw. Its main structure is composed of screw rod and cylinder. It is driven by human power. It is powered by people turning the handle or operating the pedal mechanism to drive the screw to rotate. The rotation of the screw drives the water to climb up along the spiral groove and then discharge from the upper outlet. Modern products are made of cutting, welding, polishing and other processes and integrated entertainment, science popularization and educational functions. They are widely used in parks, children's playgrounds, squares and other places.
Classification
Screw-type Water Lifters
Screw-type water lifter has single or double screw pipe as its core part. Water is lifted by people turning the handle to drive the spiral blade inside the pipe. The basic screw is driven by people's power, with single screw pipe structure, simple operation and low price, generally 10-20 cm in diameter and 0.5-2 m in height. The pair of disc water play has parallel design with two screw pipes. Its diameter is 15-30 cm and height is 1-3 m. It can be used for two people competition or cooperation to lift water. The hand-cranked water lifter has diameter of 30-50 cm and length of 1-3 m. It is operated by people to lift water independently. Foot-pedal water lifter is paired with water wheel structure and driven by multiple people to cooperate. Some products use transparent pipes to let people see the path of water climbing.
Pump-type Water Lifter
This kind of water lifter imitates the lever or piston of traditional sluice gates or hand-pump wells. It lifts water by negative pressure generated by people stepping on pedal or pushing handle. There are two kinds of sluice gate pump and antique well pump. The former pumps water by foot or hand pressure. The later is equipped with hand of wooden or alloy and has handle generally 0.3-2 m high. It is easy to operate and suitable for children of younger age.
Water Wheel Type
Water wheel type lifters combine design of traditional water wheels. They lift water either by the water current or by manually rotating the wheel. Bowl-shaped water wheel lifter has radial arrangement with bowl-like blades. Its diameter is 1-1.5 m. Blades are made of food-grade plastic or stainless steel. They look beautiful and make splashing water effect. They are installed as single unit lifter at the edge of shallow pool for one or multiple people to play. They are installed as single unit lifter at the edge of shallow pool for one or multiple people to play. They are an indispensable interactive equipment in water parks and public parks.
Combination Water Play Units
Combination water lifters combine modules of screw type, pump type, water wheel type into a composite water play unit. Such units can be long, with multiple sections, and include multi-levels of trough and obstacle design, as in the Archimedes Water Play Combination which can be up to 4.5 meters in length. Water flow direction is adjustable and some combination units also allow interaction with sand and gravel. Exploratory play is greatly enhanced and combination units are much more adaptable to different settings.The key features of combination units are their comprehensive functionality, water flow direction being adjustable, allowing interaction with sand and gravel, and improving the potential for exploration play and multi-person cooperation, thereby providing users with more challenging and interesting water control experiences.
Gameplay
Water Screw focuses on operation, which can be single-player or multiplayer cooperative gameplay. In single-player gameplay, a user turns a crank or pedals to drive the device and observes the physical process of the water being lifted by the screw. In multiplayer gameplay, players can compete on who can lift the water fastest or work together to control where the water flow should go, e.g. into certain channels, water sprayers or small water wheels. Additional gameplay can involve digging channels in a sandbox and using the lifted water to irrigate. Alternatively, lifted water can be used to drive other forms of water play equipment, e.g. water guns or slides, adding more fun to the water-house experience. This type of interactive design allows users to apply their hands to complete tasks and understand the principles of fluid dynamics and mechanical transmission physically through play.
Advantages
Interactive water park equipment combining scientific principles and fun is always a hit with children in water parks. By operating it, children can intuitively learn about the application of the principle of leverage and the physical properties of fluids without any difficulty and will be stimulated to explore more about science. Being unpowered and human-operated, it can reflect the concept of environment-friendliness and provides high safety, which is ideal for parent-child interaction. The equipment is made from 304 stainless steel, corrosion-resisting and anti-aging, suitable for outdoor use. The low-water-level design (water depth around 30-40 cm) makes it less risky as well. As an important landscape equipment, it combines art and function together and is highly applicable to outdoor playgrounds, water parks and shopping malls to attract more visitors.
Precautions
The manufacturing of an Archimedes Water Screw should comply with material and craftsmanship requirements strictly. The main body should be made from 304 stainless steel and be cut, welded and polished. The screw blade should be burr-free and the gap between the screw blade and cylinder wall should be ≤3 mm to guarantee the water-lifting effect. The rotating part should be well lubricated to ensure smooth running with noise ≤60 decibales.On installation, it is advisable to have a tilt angle of 30°–45°.The base should be embedded to a depth of 30-40 cm so as to ensure stability of installation.The inlet for water should be located below the minimum water level.Requirements for safety and health: All exposed parts shall have radius corners; gaps shall be ≤5 mm to avoid pinching accidents.The operating area should be padded with matting that prevents slipping. Regularly check the seal of the bearing.Clear debris out of the screw pipe.Prevent reverse rotation which may lead to jamming of the mechanism.Water quality shall meet the requirement of hygiene.Requirements for equipment: Equipment shall comply with GB/T 18168-2017 General Technical Conditions for Water playground equipment and have a service life of ≥50,000 rotations.