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A Winning Ball

A teen uses her love of soccer to create a tool to help people recover from injuries

October 9, 2017
By Jennifer Marino Walters

ESSENTIAL QUESTION: Where do you think inventors get the inspiration for their ideas?

DREW PERINE/THE NEWS TRIBUNE

SOCCER SCIENCE: Amelia shows off her Press-Sure Soccer Ball.

Amelia Day has been playing soccer since she was 4 years old. So when a teacher assigned a project asking students to develop a solution to a real-world problem, Amelia immediately knew what to focus on. She wanted to use her love of soccer to help others. The 15-year-old from Washington state came up with the idea for a soccer training tool, called the Press-Sure Soccer Ball.

Like many soccer players, Amelia often struggled with accurately kicking the ball. “When you kick a ball incorrectly hundreds of times, you never really improve,” she says. Her solution was to create a high-tech ball that lets people know when they’ve properly landed a kick.

Amelia soon realized that her invention could aid more than just aspiring athletes. It could also help people undergoing physical therapy to restore balance and muscle control after an injury. Amelia’s idea landed her a place as a finalist at the 2016 Discovery Education 3M Young Scientist Challenge.

Amelia Day has been playing soccer since she was 4 years old. One day, a teacher assigned a project asking students to find a solution to a real-world problem. Right away, Amelia knew what to focus on. She wanted to use her love of soccer to help others. The 15-year-old from Washington State came up with the idea for a soccer-training tool. It’s called the Press-Sure Soccer Ball.

Amelia had the same problem as many soccer players. She struggled with kicking the ball properly. “When you kick a ball incorrectly hundreds of times, you never really improve,” she says. Her solution was to create a high-tech ball. It lets people know when they’ve properly landed a kick.

Amelia’s invention could help new athletes. But she soon realized that it could also help people after an injury. They needed to go through physical therapy to get back balance and muscle control. Others liked Amelia’s idea too. She was named a finalist at the 2016 Discovery Education 3M Young Scientist Challenge.

PRACTICE SHOT

Amelia created her device by attaching a soccer ball to a pole via a springy rubber tether (see Finding the Sweet Spot). The outside of the ball is marked with a square green target.

If you kick the target with enough force, you activate a pressure sensor inside the ball. That sensor sends an electrical signal through wires in the tether. A small computer detects the signal and triggers a beeping sound. The beep lets you know that your kick was a success.

Amelia made her device from a soccer ball.  She attached it to a pole with a rubber tether (see Finding the Sweet Spot). The outside of the ball is marked with a square green target.

A pressure sensor is inside the ball. If you kick the target with enough force, you activate the sensor. It sends an electrical signal through wires in the tether. A small computer detects the signal and triggers a beeping sound. That tells you that your kick was a success.

HELPING PEOPLE HEAL

Amelia believes the real benefit of her invention could be as a therapy tool for people with physical disabilities, like those caused by a stroke. A stroke occurs when blood flow to the brain is cut off, damaging nerve pathways like those that control movement. The act of kicking the Press-Sure Soccer Ball could help rebuild those connections. The physical and sensory stimulation provided by kicking the ball and hearing the beeps can help rewire the brain and build new nerve pathways. Plus, says Amelia, it’s more fun than typical physical therapy.

The invention could be a therapy tool for people with physical disabilities. Amelia believes that could be its real benefit. For example, some people suffer from a stroke. A stroke happens when blood flow in the brain is cut off. This damages nerve connections like those that control movement. Kicking the Press-Sure Soccer Ball could help rebuild those connections. And it’s more fun than typical physical therapy, says Amelia.  

FINDING THE SWEET SPOT

Here’s how Amelia designed her Press-Sure Soccer Ball to ensure that a person lands a proper kick.

Here’s how Amelia designed her Press-Sure Soccer Ball to ensure that a person lands a proper kick.

SHUTTERSTOCK. COM (BALL); JAMES PROVOST (DIAGRAM)

TARGET: If the target is kicked with enough force, a pressure sensor inside the ball is activated.

TARGET: If the target is kicked with enough force, a pressure sensor inside the ball is activated.

PRESSURE SENSOR: The sensor detects a change in the force exerted against the ball. It sends an electrical signal through wires in the ball’s tether to a small computer.

PRESSURE SENSOR: The sensor detects a change in the force exerted against the ball. It sends an electrical signal through wires in the ball’s tether to a small computer.

TETHER: A springy rubber cord connects the ball and its wires to the pole so the ball doesn’t go too far when kicked.

TETHER: A springy rubber cord connects the ball and its wires to the pole so the ball doesn’t go too far when kicked.

COMPUTER: A tiny programmable computer called the Raspberry Pi picks up the electrical signal from the pressure sensor and triggers a beeping sound.

COMPUTER: A tiny programmable computer called the Raspberry Pi picks up the electrical signal from the pressure sensor and triggers a beeping sound.

BLUETOOTH: Bluetooth technology uses radio waves to send beeping sounds from the Raspberry Pi to earbuds worn by the kicker. The beeps signal a successful kick.

BLUETOOTH: Bluetooth technology uses radio waves to send beeping sounds from the Raspberry Pi to earbuds worn by the kicker. The beeps signal a successful kick.

FINDING THE SWEET SPOT

Here’s how Amelia designed her Press-Sure Soccer Ball to ensure that a person lands a proper kick.

Here’s how Amelia designed her Press-Sure Soccer Ball to ensure that a person lands a proper kick.

SHUTTERSTOCK. COM (BALL); JAMES PROVOST (DIAGRAM)

TARGET: If the target is kicked with enough force, a pressure sensor inside the ball is activated.

TARGET: If the target is kicked with enough force, a pressure sensor inside the ball is activated.

PRESSURE SENSOR: The sensor detects a change in the force exerted against the ball. It sends an electrical signal through wires in the ball’s tether to a small computer.

PRESSURE SENSOR: The sensor detects a change in the force exerted against the ball. It sends an electrical signal through wires in the ball’s tether to a small computer.

TETHER: A springy rubber cord connects the ball and its wires to the pole so the ball doesn’t go too far when kicked.

TETHER: A springy rubber cord connects the ball and its wires to the pole so the ball doesn’t go too far when kicked.

COMPUTER: A tiny programmable computer called the Raspberry Pi picks up the electrical signal from the pressure sensor and triggers a beeping sound.

COMPUTER: A tiny programmable computer called the Raspberry Pi picks up the electrical signal from the pressure sensor and triggers a beeping sound.

BLUETOOTH: Bluetooth technology uses radio waves to send beeping sounds from the Raspberry Pi to earbuds worn by the kicker. The beeps signal a successful kick.

BLUETOOTH: Bluetooth technology uses radio waves to send beeping sounds from the Raspberry Pi to earbuds worn by the kicker. The beeps signal a successful kick.

CORE QUESTION: How could you turn a hobby or pastime you love into an invention to help others?

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