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Flat swing seats are not recommended for use on school or church playgrounds because they can increase the likelihood of injury from the impact of unoccupied swings.
ADA approved swing seats are available for around $500.
See: Swing Seats | Landscape Structures
Seat Height:
Preschool-age 12 inches School-age 16 inches Tot swings (bucket enclosed seats) 24 inchesSee more safety information based on U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), Handbook for Public Playground Safety, Pub. No. 325 at
a-frame angle - Tipping Force:
As you swing higher you slow down so the centripetal force is decreasing.
You can get up to almost 90° before slack. | YouTube
Angles on swing sets
Using a simple pendulum approximation, at the point of , the maximum tipping force occurs when the swing is at π=45Β°
angle. In general the forces on the bar are:
π΄π₯=βcosπ(ππsinπ+ππΏ)βππΏπΛ2sinπ
where πΏ is the chain length,
π is the torque applied by your back on the pelvis (pull up torque)
and π
is the mass of the swinger.
If β
is the height of the bar from the ground, and π
the base distance across the A-frame then the forces on supports are
π΄π¦=πcosπ(πcosπ+πΏπΛ2)βππΏsinπ
The seated rider changes the orientation of her body with respect to the rope, causing an increase in system energy.
Pumping your legs on a swing increases your potential energy. This is done by raising your legs at the peak of each swing, which increases the height of your body's center of mass. This makes you swing higher.
Seated pumping is the better strategy at low amplitudes, but above certain amplitude standing is more effective.
Strategy for Pumping a swing while standing | Smithsonian
How to pump a swing. | College Mathematics Journal
When stands up the centre of mass gets higher which is also the point of oscillation. As a result the effective length will decrease. Now since the time period varies with the square root of the effective length, time period will decrease.