American children have been inspired by NINA’s research on painting wind turbine rotor blades black to reduce bird collisions. This has taken them to the top of the First Lego League.
NINA’s research on painting rotor blades black to reduce bird collisions with wind turbines has generated a lot of attention around the world since the article ‘Paint it black: Efficacy of increased wind turbine rotor blade visibility to reduce avian fatalities’ was published. It has now also inspired young people to further develop the concept in Lego.
An American team won first place in the regional competition of the First Lego League, knocking out 39 other teams. In March, they even won the state competition in Utah. The goal is to win the Lego League World Championship.
“I have seen the results of the American team’s work, and it looks pretty cool”, says senior researcher Roel May, who has led the research on the ‘paint it black’ concept at NINA.
Glitter on rotor blades
Among other things, the children have further developed the concept of putting glitter on the rotor blades in addition to painting them black, as their research indicates that the visibility of black rotor blades decreases when the birds are very close. By using glitter, the children found that visibility increased when one gets closer to the rotor blades, and that the two solutions could therefore complement each other.
One of the Lego turbines also has an ultrasonic sensor behind the blades. It automatically stops if an eagle gets too close.
Computer models show that black paint helps
In addition to the Lego models, the children have also conducted simulations using computer models.
In one of the models, one can adjust the speed, colour and visibility of the rotor blades by pressing various buttons. This model shows that having a black rotor blade helps. The glitter blade is also based on this simulator.
In another simulation, one can change the speed of rotation and the colour of the blade in the code, while the turbine can be rotated and viewed in 3D. This simulation also shows that the colour black has a positive effect.
Flying through a wind farm in computer games
They have also developed three computer games where you can help an eagle fly through a wind farm. In the game called Eagle Evade, you can collect glitter and black paint to make the blades more visible. They have called the other two games Eagle game and Eagle versus Turbine.
Praise from the judges
The judges praised the children for seeking help from world-leading experts. They were also praised for thinking of a solution to a real problem.
“Using innovative solutions and forms of communication, the children show that the coming generation is already helping to take care of the natural environment. The industry can learn from this”, says Roel May.
Chris Ashworth, coach of the Programming Pickles FIRST Lego League robotics team