Students, faculty help inventor develop ’smart bat’ technology

When he coached his kids in Little League, Greg Layton watched the young players struggle to learn how to bunt.

Sure, bunting isn’t the coolest move in the batter’s box — that would be hitting doubles, triples or home runs. Sometimes, though, a bunt is the most strategic way to get on base and keep the opposing team off guard.

“It was funny to watch the kids bunt because when you square off to bunt a baseball, you can do the square stance or what they call a pivot stance,” said Layton, who lives in Lake George, N.Y., and works as a sales executive at an insurance company. “You’re supposed to have the bat up by your eyes, and if the pitch is low, you bend your knees. What kids do, because there’s not a training tool to help them, they stab at it. They lose their depth perception of where the ball is.”

This gave Layton the idea for an invention: a “smart bat” that could help teach proper bunting stance and offer kids other cool statistics such as bat positioning and swing speed. He believed this level of real-time feedback would be a great training aide for children who are just starting to learn softball or baseball.

He worked on various iterations of the idea for many years, by himself and later with a team from Clarkson University — but it never felt quite right until he connected with Binghamton University’s Strategic Partnership for Industrial Resurgence (SPIR) program.

Operated through the Thomas J. Watson College of Engineering and Applied Science’s Office of Industrial Outreach, SPIR partners with small and midsize businesses in New York to help them with technology solutions to challenging business problems. For the smart bat project, Associate Professor David Klotzkin from the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering advised electrical engineering students Doug Wagner and Rohan Dengle during the 2022-23 academic year. Benson Chan, associate director for the Integrated Electronics Engineering Center (IEEC), also contributed to the design project.

A logo and other branding for the bat — now called BuntNBlast — were created through the Design Thinking and Innovation Center of Excellence, an alliance between Binghamton University and Vishwakarma University in Pune, India. Professors Prashant Acharya and Kailas Patil at Vishwakarma advised graphic design students for the final product.

“This SPIR project is a shining example of the impact that our program can have on a small or startup business,” said Michael Testani, Watson College’s senior director of outreach and engagement. “The SPIR program can assemble the breadth and depth of resources from across the University to help companies solve their most serious technical challenges.”

Layton met regularly with the Binghamton team to develop ideas. The final prototype, which uses sensors, vibrations and alarms to guide users to the right stance and swing, is made of plastic and meant to be used with a whiffle ball or a similar softball. It also includes a digital readout of key statistics and includes a complementary phone app that tracks players’ progress on Android or iOS devices.

“I didn’t really have much experience with designing a printed circuit board,” said Wagner, a rising senior. “A distinct goal was put in front of me, so I had to learn it. I had to take some of my limited knowledge and take it to the next level. That was really fun, and it’s definitely a skill that I want to keep progressing with to do more complicated designs.”

Klotzkin — who worked in industry before joining the Watson College faculty in 2008 — is happy that SPIR gives students the chance to solve problems outside an academic setting.

“What is done in classes is a different world than what’s actually done in industry, so it’s a great experience,” he said.

Klotzkin and Wagner recently gave Layton the smart bat prototype, schematics and other information developed during the project. Layton has received a patent for the product and is seeking manufacturers to produce BuntNBlast for both consumers and baseball or softball teams.

“I think we’re going to generate a lot of excitement. I’ve got goosebumps!” Layton said. “This has been a long time coming, and these guys really did a nice job.”