Japan Disaster Sparks Demand for Air-Conditioned Clothes -
As far as summer fashion goes, clothes with built-in electric fans leave a little something to be desired.
But Hiroshi Ichigaya has managed to turn his breezy invention into the must-have item of the summer, thanks to sweltering temperatures and a power shortage stemming from the triple disasters that hit Japan in March. The founder of Kuchofuku, or "air-conditioned clothing" in Japanese, says sales for his clothes have increased 10-fold. Phones at his office haven't stopped ringing.
"People ask me, why would I want to wear a jacket when it's so hot," Ichigaya, a former Sony engineer, said. "I tell them, because it's cooler than being naked."
Kuchofuku jackets come equipped with a pair of battery-operated fans on the sides, which draw air in. Ichigaya says the constant breeze running inside the jacket helps evaporate all the sweat and creates a personal cooling system in the process. The goal is not to lower temperatures outside the body but expand the body's comfort zone, and eliminate the need for energy-consuming air conditioners, Ichigaya said.
Case in point: at Kuchofuku headquarters in Toda, outside of Tokyo, a thermometer shows the room temperature clocking in at a stuffy 88 degrees, with 59 percent humidity. Yet workers sit at their desks wearing Kuchofuku jackets without a bead of sweat in sight, the hum from the fans echoing in the background.
Read more -
http://abcnews.go.com/International/japan-disaster-sparks-demand-air-conditioned-clothes/story?id=14210492
As far as summer fashion goes, clothes with built-in electric fans leave a little something to be desired.
But Hiroshi Ichigaya has managed to turn his breezy invention into the must-have item of the summer, thanks to sweltering temperatures and a power shortage stemming from the triple disasters that hit Japan in March. The founder of Kuchofuku, or "air-conditioned clothing" in Japanese, says sales for his clothes have increased 10-fold. Phones at his office haven't stopped ringing.
"People ask me, why would I want to wear a jacket when it's so hot," Ichigaya, a former Sony engineer, said. "I tell them, because it's cooler than being naked."
Kuchofuku jackets come equipped with a pair of battery-operated fans on the sides, which draw air in. Ichigaya says the constant breeze running inside the jacket helps evaporate all the sweat and creates a personal cooling system in the process. The goal is not to lower temperatures outside the body but expand the body's comfort zone, and eliminate the need for energy-consuming air conditioners, Ichigaya said.
Case in point: at Kuchofuku headquarters in Toda, outside of Tokyo, a thermometer shows the room temperature clocking in at a stuffy 88 degrees, with 59 percent humidity. Yet workers sit at their desks wearing Kuchofuku jackets without a bead of sweat in sight, the hum from the fans echoing in the background.
Read more -
http://abcnews.go.com/International/japan-disaster-sparks-demand-air-conditioned-clothes/story?id=14210492
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