賽格威發(fā)明人轉(zhuǎn)戰(zhàn)淡水凈化
????曾發(fā)明便攜式血液透析機(jī)和賽格威電動(dòng)代步車的新罕布什爾發(fā)明家迪恩?卡曼目前正在推廣一項(xiàng)新技術(shù)。有了這項(xiàng)新技術(shù),我們面臨的最為緊迫的問題就可得到緩解:為全球十多億面臨“水荒”的人提供清潔飲用水。這個(gè)名為Slingshot(得名于傳說中大衛(wèi)王打敗哥利亞所使用的武器——以此暗示清潔用水問題的嚴(yán)重性,明白了嗎?)的小盒子重約300磅,尺寸相當(dāng)于宿舍中用的冰箱。它可以處理各種污水,甚至咸水,每天可以產(chǎn)生200至250加侖的清潔水。為了證明它的效果,卡曼甚至用Slingshot把自己的尿液處理成清潔水,還親自喝了一杯。過去十年,卡曼一直在改進(jìn)這項(xiàng)技術(shù)。它使用一種蒸餾工藝,不需要昂貴的微孔濾膜或水泵。他所面臨的兩個(gè)挑戰(zhàn)分別是如何降低成本,以及如何在發(fā)展中國(guó)家推廣這項(xiàng)技術(shù)。 ????對(duì)于后者,這位發(fā)明家已經(jīng)找到了解決辦法。他旗下的工程設(shè)計(jì)公司DEKA位于新罕布什爾州曼徹斯特市,目前有員工400人,已經(jīng)與飲料業(yè)巨頭可口可樂公司(Coca-Cola)達(dá)成了合作。可口可樂公司認(rèn)為,清潔用水將成為21世紀(jì)最重大的問題之一。公司不僅希望減少生產(chǎn)用水,同時(shí)也投入大量時(shí)間和資金,希望為大眾提供清潔用水。卡曼說:“可口可樂擁有銷售渠道,可以將Slingshot送到有需要的人手中?!彼麄兊挠?jì)劃是向創(chuàng)業(yè)者提供設(shè)備,這樣一來,創(chuàng)業(yè)者就能有足夠的動(dòng)力對(duì)設(shè)備進(jìn)行保養(yǎng)和維護(hù)。 ????據(jù)卡曼計(jì)算,扣除銷售成本和電力消耗(設(shè)備所需的電量與吹風(fēng)機(jī)基本相當(dāng)),這款設(shè)備生產(chǎn)出的水,成本約為一美分/加侖,遠(yuǎn)遠(yuǎn)低于大多數(shù)發(fā)展中國(guó)家清潔用水的成本??嘈?,至2020年該項(xiàng)目將幫助500萬女性創(chuàng)業(yè)者完成創(chuàng)業(yè)。 ????另外一個(gè)難點(diǎn)在于成本。目前,Slingshot的成本約為7,000至8,000美元。不過卡曼認(rèn)為,只要實(shí)現(xiàn)規(guī)模化生產(chǎn),成本就會(huì)大幅下降。該設(shè)備在加納的測(cè)試運(yùn)行非常成功,他希望在今年年中正式投入生產(chǎn)。 ????關(guān)于Slingshot的意外收獲:卡曼相信自己的設(shè)備有商業(yè)市場(chǎng)。他說:“診所對(duì)于醫(yī)療用水有巨大需求,為當(dāng)?shù)亟ㄖ峁┑蔡N(yùn)含著巨大的機(jī)遇?!?/p> ????不過,這位發(fā)明家首先得干掉幾大行業(yè)巨頭。 ????譯者:劉進(jìn)龍/汪皓 |
????Dean Kamen, the New Hampshire inventor who brought us the portable dialysis machine and the Segway, is ramping up a new technology that may put a dent in one of our most pressing problems: providing clean drinking water to the billion plus people around world who lack it. Called the Slingshot (after David's tool for defeating Goliath—it's a giant problem, get it?), this 300 pound, dorm fridge-sized box can take any kind of sewage or even salt water and create 200 to 250 gallons a day of clean water. Kamen once demonstrated the Slingshot by turning his urine into clean water and drinking a glass of it. ????Kamen has been refining this technology—which uses a distilling process that doesn't need expensive membranes or pumps—for the past decade. His two challenges have been how to get the cost down and how to distribute the technology throughout the developing world. ????The inventor has the answer to the latter challenge. His engineering and design company DEKA, which employs 400 in an old mill in Manchester, N.H., has partnered with Coca-Cola. The giant beverage company, which believes clean water is one of the great issues of the 21st, not only wants to reduce the water it uses in manufacturing but also is donating time and money to bring clean water to the masses. Says Kamen; "Coke has the distribution channels to get the Slingshot into the hands of those who need it." The plan is to give the machines to entrepreneurs who will then have a motive to protect and maintain the equipment. ????Kamen calculates that the machines—not including the cost of distribution and the power to run them (they require about the same amount of energy as a hair dryer) can produce water for around a penny a gallon, much cheaper than what clean water costs in most of the developing world. Kamen believes that the program could have 5 million women entrepreneurs running businesses by 2020. ????The other sticking point is cost. So far the Slingshots cost about $7,000 to $8,000 dollars, but Kamen believes he can get that down dramatically with economies of scale. The units have been tested successfully in Ghana, and he hopes to start manufacturing them by mid-year. ????The newest twist on the Slingshot: Kamen believes there's a commercial market for his machine. "There's a huge opportunity for medical grade water in clinics and making fresh water locally for buildings," he says. ????But first this inventor has some giants to slay. |