Clothing Care Solution for the Future: A Vision for 2030
- Tejas Pawar
- Nov 20, 2021
- 3 min read
“This project is a personal initiative where I designed a futuristic, eco-friendly clothing care solution, integrating advanced technologies like ultrasonic drying, hydrodynamic cleaning, and UV sterilization, tailored for affordable and efficient use in Indian households by 2030.”
Duration:
1 week
Project type:
Personal
Team member:
Tejas Pawar
Aim:
“Design a Samsung smart clothing care solution (inclusive of cleaning, sterilizing, and drying functionalities) tailored for domestic use in India by the year 2030, with a focus on accessibility for socio-economic classes A and B.”
Introduction
As we approach 2030, the demand for efficient, eco-friendly, and affordable clothing care solutions in India continues to grow. The key challenge is to design a device that integrates cleaning, sterilizing, and drying functionalities, while making it accessible to socio-economic classes A and B. In response to this, I have conceptualized a smart clothing care solution that promises to revolutionize the way we care for our garments.
Understanding the Challenges in the Current Market
Limited Drying Capacity:
Clothing care devices like Samsung Airdresser and LG-Styler have small drying capacities, presenting challenges for quick drying in Indian households without dryers.
Affordability Barriers:
Current clothing care products, including Samsung Airdresser and LG-Styler, are priced beyond the financial reach of socio-economic groups A and B.
Features Overload:
Clothing care devices, such as Samsung Airdresser and LG-Styler, suffer from an overload of features
User Research
Laundry Process Gap:
Modern devices like Samsung Airdresser and LG-Styler in India skip the traditional quantity drying step, creating a gap in the laundry process.
Issues with Sun Drying:
Sun-drying poses challenges such as weather dependency, dust, pollution, color fading, and hard wrinkle lines, leading to potential rewashing.
User Handling and Device Complexity:
Adults and maids primarily handle modern laundry devices, potentially causing overload and usability issues due to device complexity.
Impact of Frequent Washing:
Frequent washing accelerates wear and tear, impacting the lifespan of clothes and raising environmental concerns.
Inefficient Water and Energy Usage:
Users often use a full washing cycle for minor stain removal, contributing to unnecessary water and energy consumption.
Proposed Innovative Technology
1. Ultrasonic dryers: ORNL and GE Appliances collaborated on a DOE-funded project to create an energy-efficient clothes dryer. The prototype utilizes ultrasonic transducers to mechanically extract water from fabric, avoiding the energy-intensive heat-based drying process. The goal is to increase the energy factor from 3.7 to 5.43 lb. per kWh without extending drying time by more than 20%. The project ran from October 2018 to July 2020, aiming to offer a more sustainable and efficient alternative to traditional dryers.
2. Hydrodynamic Cleaning: Hydrodynamic cleaning, as exemplified by the W’AIR device, uses a precise blend of water, air, and detergent to create a powerful blast that effectively removes dirt, stains, and odors from fabrics. This gentle and versatile method is suitable for various items, including clothing, delicate garments, and footwear. Importantly, it is environmentally friendly, minimizing water and detergent usage for a sustainable fabric care solution.
3. UV Light Sterilization: UV-C light is used to disinfect garments, eliminating bacteria and viruses in just a few minutes, ensuring that your clothes are both clean and hygienic.
4. Aroma Steaming: This feature combines high-temperature steam with essential oils to provide automatic ironing, wrinkle management, and a pleasant fragrance while sterilizing garments.
Possible areas of improvements
Need for refreshment:
Clothes often emerge with stubborn wrinkles and lines after improperly drying, affecting their overall appearance.
Extended drying periods or adverse weather conditions can result in clothes retaining dampness and developing unpleasant odours.
Wasteful Washing Habits:
The tendency to use a full washing cycle for minor stain removal leads to unnecessary water and energy consumption.
Impact on Clothing Lifespan:
Frequent washing accelerates wear and tear, negatively impacting the lifespan of clothes and contributing to environmental concerns.
Missing gap:
In the Indian laundry system, a gap exists as the prevalent sun drying method is not seamlessly integrated with modern clothing care devices like Samsung Airdresser and LG-Styler. These devices often skip or replace the traditional dryer phase, hindering the effectiveness and convenience of the overall laundry process.
Feature Overload:
Current devices suffer from feature overload, driving up costs and complicating user experience.
Limited Drying Capacity:
Current clothing care devices ( Samsung Airdresser, LG-Styler) have a small capacity for drying clothes, posing challenges for households in need of quick drying.
Affordability Barriers:
The pricing of current clothing care products places them beyond the financial reach of socio-economic groups A and B.
Ideation
Solution
