by Rachel M. Lusby

Burien resident Roger Patten, of Roger Patten AIA, says he has come up with the best way to replace bridge structures such as the 520 floating bridge by way of his invention, the “buoyancy stabilized pier.”

Patten has patented this new idea and wants to formally present it to the Seattle City Council soon.

The concept of the buoyancy stabilized pier is that the pier structure itself would have a chamber which is filled with either air or some other buoyant substance. This would create, as the patent states, a “buoyant force.” The pier structure would be able to absorb the shock of an earthquake or a tsunami, as it would move along with the earthquake and would not break apart during the tsunami.

“It doesn’t depend on Earth’s stability,” Patten says.

Roger Patten in his Burien office.

To build such a structure, says Patten based on research of the cost of materials and labor, “would cost about $2 billion dollars less” than what is being proposed to the city of Seattle currently regarding the 520 floating bridge.

The buoyancy stabilized bridge is different in comparison to a floating bridge in that it is embedded in the sea floor, and held by the sea pressure which forces the bottom into the soil. The buoyancy actually stabilizes the load.

In regard to the 520 bridge replacement, Patten’s idea gives thought not only to the structure itself, but also to accessibility to recreational facilities for residents and tourists. This new bridge concept would cross Lake Washington, Lake Union and Portage Bay. Traffic on the upper level of the bridge would be uninterrupted the entire way until reaching 1-5, while the lower level would be designed for metro, light rail, biking and pedestrians, allowing them easy access to places such as the Arboretum.

“This is much less expensive than what they’re proposing to do,” says Patten, “and there would be no traffic interruptions while in construction.”

Illustration from Roger Patten's patent.

The part under the patent is the stabilizing structure itself. The actual bridge structure could be designed in any manner. However, the design Patten has come up with for the bridge allows for light rail access, metro, pedestrians and bicyclists. It gives thought to development of other areas, such as the usage of Portage Bay and the north shore of the Arboretum.

Patten wants to apply this idea for a buoyancy stabilized pier to many other bridge structures, not only including local projects such as the Viaduct and Elliot Bay Bridge, but also for projects in other parts of the world; places such as Sicily or the Mediterranean.

The patent for the buoyancy stabilized structure will stand for 17 years.

Patten's patented design “would cost about $2 billion dollars less” than what is being proposed to the city of Seattle currently regarding the 520 floating bridge.

Here’s a video released by the Washington State Department of Transportation showing their “preferred alternative” version of the proposed 520 bridge:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Students from Highline School Disctrict’s Aviation High School in Des Moines have developed two inventions and are applying for a patent for one of them.

Students developed one invention while designing and building a hovercraft in science class. Students decided a practical use for hovercraft might be to use them to move heavy store shelves, allowing staff to clean under them and re-arrange displays. The concept of the hovercraft was joined with shelving to produce “hovershelving”. Students researched the idea and found that there was nothing like it in existence.  They have applied for a patent through the United States Patent Office.

“How many high school students can add ‘patent pending’ to their college applications?” asked Aviation High School teacher Larry Welch.

Studying house systems led to another invention.  While looking at electrical, heating, and plumbing systems, students learned that the average person uses about 50 gallons of water today–about 200 gallons for a family of four. With the goal of conserving water, students designed a model home that separates graywater (non-sewage wastewater) from total wastewater. The graywater can be stored and used to irrigate lawns and gardens.  Many states allow graywater use, but Washington does not, citing environmental and health issues.

On Monday, October 20, students will present their model home idea to State Representative Dave Upthegrove. Students hope to convince Representative Upthegrove, chairman of the ecology committee, to promote legislation to allow graywater use in Washington.

Aviation High School’s mission is to be the premier public high school of choice for students in King County and the region who wish to pursue their passion for aviation and aerospace in a learning environment that prepares them for higher education, citizenship, and work.

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