Pneumatic Sponge Ball Accelerator, A ‘DIY Particle Accelerator’ Featuring 1,000 Sponge Balls

The Pneumatic Sponge Ball Accelerator is an art installation by Berlin-based inventor Niklas Roy that features 1,000 sponge balls traveling through a series of pneumatic tubes inspired by particle accelerators like CERN’s Large Hadron Collider. The tubes are power by household vacuum cleaners — which help the balls travel at speeds of around four meters per second.

As I’m a fan of science and physics in particular, I find it a pity that the current particle accelerators make the observation of the little speedy particles so complicated. This should be something that a broader audience can enjoy!

Roy is the self-described “inventor of useless things” behind such products as The Perpetual Energy Wasting Machine.

Pneumatic Sponge Ball Accelerator

Pneumatic Sponge Ball Accelerator

Pneumatic Sponge Ball Accelerator

Pneumatic Sponge Ball Accelerator

Pneumatic Sponge Ball Accelerator

Brian Heater
Brian Heater