The N07 Periscope is a rotating optical device for looking over an obstacle. Two flat mirrors, a lower polycarbonate window and rotation around an axis let you peer behind a low wall, over a hedge and to the side, without leaning your head out. It works well in nurseries, schools, education centres and public spaces.
Two mirrors carry the image from behind an obstacle straight to the eye
It all starts at the lower window. A child puts an eye to it and, instead of their own shoes, sees what is happening high above their head. Where does this image come from? From two flat mirrors set at an angle, one above the other: the upper one catches the view in front of the periscope and reflects it downwards, the lower one sends that image straight to the eye. One of the oldest laws of optics is at work here: light reflects off a mirror at the same angle at which it strikes it. The same principle allowed Simon Lake to build the omniscope in 1902 - an instrument that let the submerged crew of a submarine watch the surface of the water.
For the same experience to be repeatable for years, a periscope for children in a nursery, school or hospital playground has to withstand any weather: rain, frost and sun. The frame is steel, galvanised and powder-coated, and the mechanical parts and rotation bearings are made of metals that do not rust, so the movement will not seize up after the first winter. The viewer is not made of glass: the image comes through polycarbonate. The equipment works outdoors all year round and is covered by a warranty. The manufacturer is EduPlayground, and the periscope is made in Poland.
Optics seen with your own eyes
The law of reflection stops being a sentence from a textbook and becomes something the child checks for themselves. The periscope shows that light can be guided in a chosen direction, and it does so without a screen or electricity, using only the light that falls on the playground anyway.
Practising careful looking
The small window shows only a small slice of the surroundings at a time, so to spot something you have to stop and watch calmly. Looking like this trains concentration and picking up details that are easy to miss on the run.
Playing detective and captain
Equipment that shows the unseen suggests roles all by itself: one moment it is a detective's kit for tracking a friend round the corner, the next a submarine captain's periscope. Taking on a role develops the imagination and turns ordinary looking around into a mission.
What's inside the periscope
Five elements: some let the image in, others guide it to the eye.
Lower window
You put your eye to the lower pane and look up into the column. To see anything, you have to bring your face close to the window and stand low - so from behind the obstacle, only the periscope can be seen, not the child.
Upper opening
The periscope's upper opening reaches where the child's eyes cannot: over a low wall, a fence or a hedge. This is where the image of the other side of the obstacle comes in, even one the child could not see over on tiptoe.
Two flat mirrors inside
The mirrors sit inside the column: one at the top, the other at the bottom, both set at an angle. The child can find them by eye and trace the path of the image - from the top, down, and then sideways to the eye. This turns looking into a small investigation of how the equipment works.
Rotation around its own axis
The periscope turns around its own axis, so one movement of the hands shifts the view from one side of the playground to the other - without taking your eye off the window. The child chooses the direction, not the way the equipment is set up, so one station covers all the surroundings.
Steel column anchored in the ground
The column is steel and stands on anchors set in the ground, so the equipment does not wobble when children turn it sideways. The spot is chosen once - ideally where something is happening on the other side: by a fence, a hedge or the wall of a building.
Specification
Technical data
Front view - from technical drawing N07.
Catalogue no.
N07
Dimensions
length: 48 cm | width: 45 cm | height: 222 cm
Safety zone
3.48 x 3.45 m
Children's age
from 3 years
Material
Steel frame, mechanical parts made of stainless steel, stainless bearings, viewer: polycarbonate
Protection
Galvanised, powder-coated frame
Colour
Green (RAL 6018), purple (RAL 4006).
Installation
Galvanised steel anchors L=75 cm, set in the ground and concreted in; bolted connection to the equipment.
Before the periscope goes into the playground, our adviser will help you plan all the technical details. We are with you at every stage of the project, sharing our knowledge and experience so that the equipment serves children as well as possible for many years.
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