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Chinese inventor creates “invisible” umbrella
A Chinese inventor has come up with a rather intriguing device that could end up replacing the traditional umbrella.
Chuan Wang’s Air Umbrella has been a raging success ever since it was placed on Kickstarter, the world’s largest crowdfunding platform.
The inventor from Nanjing had sought to raise $10,000; however, with six days still remaining to the Kickstarter campaign, he has already garnered pledges upwards of $70,000.
So what is it that the Air Umbrella does? Well, it’s a simple device that is shaped like a scepter, or perhaps you could look at it as a light-saber, if you are a sci-fi fan.
Once you click the button on the scepter, the battery within powers a set of fans at the head, creating a force field of air, which shields against the rain.
According to the product’s Kickstarter profile, Chuan, along with a few colleagues, worked on the idea with postgraduates from Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics from July in 2012 to August in 2013.
After identifying the potential of the product, they then worked with PhD students from Beijing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics to improve the design.
The final sample, which is currently being used for demonstrations, was completed in July 2014.
The makers say that the Air Umbrella will be available in three versions, and will hit the markets by December 2015.
Version A measures 30 cm. It is priced at $88 and has a battery life of 15 minutes.
Version B is 50-cm-long. It is priced at $98 and has a battery life of 30 minutes.
Version C is scalable, from 50 cm to 80 cm. It is priced at $108 and has a battery life of 30 minutes.
A Chinese inventor has come up with a rather intriguing device that could end up replacing the traditional umbrella.
Chuan Wang’s Air Umbrella has been a raging success ever since it was placed on Kickstarter, the world’s largest crowdfunding platform.
The inventor from Nanjing had sought to raise $10,000; however, with six days still remaining to the Kickstarter campaign, he has already garnered pledges upwards of $70,000.
So what is it that the Air Umbrella does? Well, it’s a simple device that is shaped like a scepter, or perhaps you could look at it as a light-saber, if you are a sci-fi fan.
Once you click the button on the scepter, the battery within powers a set of fans at the head, creating a force field of air, which shields against the rain.
According to the product’s Kickstarter profile, Chuan, along with a few colleagues, worked on the idea with postgraduates from Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics from July in 2012 to August in 2013.
After identifying the potential of the product, they then worked with PhD students from Beijing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics to improve the design.
The final sample, which is currently being used for demonstrations, was completed in July 2014.
The makers say that the Air Umbrella will be available in three versions, and will hit the markets by December 2015.
Version A measures 30 cm. It is priced at $88 and has a battery life of 15 minutes.
Version B is 50-cm-long. It is priced at $98 and has a battery life of 30 minutes.
Version C is scalable, from 50 cm to 80 cm. It is priced at $108 and has a battery life of 30 minutes.