A pedal-powered umbrella dryer that spins your umbrella around to dry it off. Donghae Kwang-hee and Choi Seo-yoon, both high school seniors this year, created the invention, which won the Minister of Science and ICT Award. At a special exhibition to commemorate the recent Invention Day, President Yoon Seok-yeol stepped on it and tried it out, creating a buzz.
According to the Korea Invention Promotion Association on Thursday, Choi’s stepping umbrella dryer won the Minister of Science and Technology Award for excellence at the 2022 Korea Student Invention Exhibition. The idea is to keep wet umbrellas indoors on rainy days in an eco-friendly and efficient way. He wanted to dry them without using electricity or plastic.
They came up with the idea of a dehydrator. Inspired by dehydrators, which use centrifugal force to remove water from laundry, vegetables, etc. It consisted of a dome, a stand, a swivel, a pedal, and a water tank. When the umbrella is placed in the dome and the pedal is pressed, the umbrella rotates rapidly to dry the water.
The umbrella dryer was also demonstrated by President Yoon himself, which attracted attention. Prior to the 58th Invention Day Ceremony at COEX in Seoul on April 12, Yoon visited a youth invention exhibition, where he saw several inventions, including the umbrella dryer, and encouraged the youth. According to a video posted by the presidential office on YouTube, Yoon personally stepped on the pedals of the dryer several times and listened to Choi Yang explain it to him먹튀검증.
South Korean President Yoon Seok-yul demonstrates a “foot-stepping umbrella dryer” at a youth invention exhibition ahead of the 58th Invention Day ceremony at COEX in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, on Nov. 12. /Yonhap
Choi revealed the details of the invention and its principle on YTN Radio’s “Wise Radio Life” on Nov. 23. “When I carried an umbrella on campus on a rainy day, I felt that the corridors and classrooms became slippery, causing some of my friends to fall and get injured, and the inside of the building became dirty,” Choi said. “I thought that in order to effectively dry the umbrella, it must be stretched out and dried, and since it should be used anywhere, I thought of a way to avoid using machines such as electricity and motors. Then I got a hint from a dehydrator.”
The design for the stepping umbrella dryer was hand-drawn by Choi. “I don’t know how to use professional programs like CAD or Photoshop, so I had to draw the whole design and the partial design by hand to refine it. This process was a bit laborious, but it was also the most fun.”
“I was more proud than ever to be praised for my own invention, and I felt like I had received a reward that was more valuable than anything else,” Yoon said of the demonstration. “After the demonstration, he encouraged me to do a good job, and at that time, just seeing him was like a dream.” “At the time, I was so nervous and shaky that I made a small mistake, which is a little regrettable when I look back on it now.”
The umbrella dryer has now been patented and is awaiting review. “I want to be the kind of person who can do something good for the world and be a little more helpful,” Choi said. “If I had the chance, I would like to invent another invention that can contribute to environmental protection.” “Just as no one is good at anything from the beginning, inventing is about starting with small things around you, experiencing small successes, and then challenging yourself to do something bigger,” he said. “You may encounter failures, but I believe that if you overcome them, you can achieve greater success.”