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Friday, August 19, 2011

Air Conditioned Clothing

http://www.inhabitat.com
Japan’s hot and humid summers have led to many great ideas and inventions to try and stay cool and beat the summer heat. The latest is from Japanese entrepreneur Hiroshi Ichigaya, and is air conditioned clothing. Ichigaya is selling jackets, shirts and pants fitted with battery-powered “personal cooling systems”. Small fans circulate so much air over the wearer’s body that a 31C room feels comfortable, according to America’s ABC News, which has tested the clothing. According to ABC News, Ichigaya is selling to 1000 companies and even getting requests from the Prime Minister’s office for half a million jackets.


Japan’s residents have been asked to cut energy use, so they’re resorting to this clothing brand called Kuchofuku to save money. Initiatives such as “Super Cool Biz” encourage employees to ditch jackets and ties and turn down air conditioning, while the power saving drive has also sparked demand for cooling gadgets.

How does it all work?

The fans in the Kuchofuku jacket are connected to a lithium-ion battery pack that lasts for 11 hours on a single charge. This is only a fraction of the power used by a conventional air-con according to Ichigaya. Up to 20 litres per second of air circulates throughout the jacket and escapes through the collar and cuffs, which allows the wearer to dry off sweat and cool down.

A standard air conditioned jacket sells for around 11,000 yen about ($140).

Check out the video below to see the Air Conditioned Jacket

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4 comments:

  1. linaAugust 20, 2011 at 7:40 AM

    Getting one of those would be nice, for people who has to endure the heat and w/o the comfort of a/c. ;)

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  2. Japan-AustraliaAugust 20, 2011 at 3:52 PM

    Thanks Lina, great for people who have to work in hot factories with no air-con.

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  3. Jenny WoolfAugust 21, 2011 at 7:37 AM

    What a really brilliant idea. Pity they don't look very trendy, but if the weather was bad enough I would consider this.

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  4. Japan-AustraliaAugust 21, 2011 at 12:26 PM

    Thanks Jenny, not so much a fashion trend but something you would wear inside as a means of staying cool. Japan is trying to conserve even more energy now after the March disaster so air-cons are being set at 30C which is very warm.

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