Ahead of the pack
At 15, most teenagers are still finding themselves and where their capabilities lie. Not so Nipun Avishka. At 15 he has already invented a stringhopper machine and decided that he wants to study Information Technology.
A fine-tuned version of his invention has now won him the Dasis award at “Sahasak Nimavum”, the National Invention Exhibition organised by the Sri Lanka Inventors’ Commission (SLIC).
A student of Gurukula College (Kelaniya), Nipun having observed the difficult process his mother had to use to make string hoppers, decided to combine this observation with the knowledge his father had in repairing electronics to exhibit a stringhopper machine at the annual invention competition held at his school.
He created a semi-automated stringhopper machine that could squeeze the mixture into moulds, which led to him being placed among the top three in the competition. Many people who visited the exhibition expressed an interest in his machine and gave him suggestions on how to improve it.
Incorporating their suggestions and the help of the teacher in charge of the inventors’ club, S.P.A.R. Kumara, to further fine tune his device, Nipun’s machine was put forward by the school for the ‘Sahasak Nimavum’ exhibition.
His invention was one of 10 that were entered for competition and he won the Junior Dasis Award for the school category. Nipun says he had the help of his brother, father and teachers.
“What my father mostly helped me out with were the finer points of the electronic circuits. Apart from that I used the suggestions everyone gave me and further developed my idea,’ says Nipun.
Nipun’s invention is fully automated and improves on current machines which are only semi automated. The invention, as seen in the picture, is capable of squeezing the correct amount of mixture and producing cooked string hoppers.
Nipun Avishka
When the string hopper mixture is added into the cylinder, the machine will squeeze the mixture onto a mould. The plate beneath the mould revolves for even distribution and then the mould is sent to a conveyor belt where the string hoppers can be cooked inside a small oven and then come out fully cooked.
The model Nipun has made can hold multiple moulds which are pushed onto a plate one by one to have the mixture squeezed onto them and cooked.
“The timing has to be just right because the synchronisation of the revolving moulds with the mixture that is squeezed, the revolving plate and the conveyor belt is key,” says Nipun, adding that any issue in the synchronisation would prove disastrous.
But don’t expect to see this machine in shops very soon, because he is still in the process of obtaining a patent and then working on producing a workable machine from his model, all of which could take a few years.
“We have estimated that the cost of producing one machine would be around Rs. 50,000 because we have buy the correct material and take extra care as this machine would be producing food,” says Mr. Kumara.
He feels that the machine would be useful for people who make stringhoppers to sell on a slightly larger scale than homeowners would and hopes that people will take an interest and help out with the production costs.
Gurukula College has helped Nipun by promoting innovation and creativity in school through the ‘nava nipayum sangamaya’ or the new inventions club.
The club, which has organized competitions for the past two years, has helped teach children the importance of creating new things. Mrs. K. K. Krishani, vice principal of Gurukula College, felt that the dedication of the teachers is what helps develop the students’ ideas.
“We tell them to invent something and give a few examples of inventions which have been done previously and tell them to try it out themselves to understand the basic concept.
Then we ask them to make something.Whatever they make, whether it is a new invention or not, is appreciated and if their invention is not new we will try and help them make something new without discouraging them because if they make something that’s still a big step in the right direction,” she said. 
The new inventions club is run under the guidance of Mr. Kumara, who is a mathematics teacher. He feels that although he is in charge of the new inventions club, the support of the other teachers has been invaluable.
‘I will only facilitate the process and help when necessary. If the children need help that I can’t provide, I will direct them to the science or IT teachers,” he said, emphasising that the entire club conducts its activities with the help of many people.
Mr. Kumara feels that there might be other award winning inventions this year as well. “We started only in 2014 and we have already had one invention which won the first place. I’m sure we can try for other awards in the future as well,” he said.
So what does the 15-year-old inventor have to say? ‘I would like to thank the many people in my life who made this possible, especially my parents, Mr. Kumara and our vice principal Mrs. Krishanthi who have all helped facilitate the process and encouraged me to achieve all of this.
I aspire to become a computer programmer and even now I’m studying ICT for my Ordinary Level exam,’ Nipun said. He also hopes to create many other inventions in the future and feels that by helping his father with electronic repairs since the time he was small he has a background that is conducive to helping him achieve this goal.