Anti-fire device scoops James Dyson Award

A device that can detect and automatically extinguish kitchen fires has won the James Dyson Award for emerging designers.

Royal College of Art graduates Yusuf Mohammed and Paul Thomas won the international design competition with their Automist invention.

The device (pictured), which can be fitted to any kitchen tap, contains a wireless heat detector. This triggers an under-sink pump that ‘aerosolises’ mains water, creating a fine mist that puts out the fire.

Mohammed and Thomas will share a £10 000 prize, while the RCA will receive the same amount for producing this year’s winners. The design duo claims that the idea came from a brainstorming session with firemen from Chelsea Fire Brigade.

James Dyson called the device ‘simple but clever’ and said that it should become a ‘permanent safety feature in the home’.

Second prize in the competition went to Glasgow School of Art student Jude Pullen for his Pressure Alert, which stops an air-sealing balloon inserted into patients’ airways during anaesthetics from overfilling and splitting the windpipe.

Third prize was awarded to RCA graduate Min Kyu Choi for his folding plug, which is a quarter of the size of a standard plug.

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  • Mark November 30, -0001 at 12:00 am

    Is it not massively dangerous to have aerosolised water in a kitchen environment where the heat source could be a chip pan or deep fat fryer. Seems a bit poorly thought out to me

  • Ian Johnson November 30, -0001 at 12:00 am

    Not sure about this. I think common sense i.e. don’t leave cooking unattended is the way forward. Once again we are looking at the cure not the cause.

  • Denis Curley November 30, -0001 at 12:00 am

    Fire, water and electricity in a kitchen do not mix.
    I’m suprised Chelsea Fire Brigade and James Dyson have backed such a proposal.

  • Denis Curley November 30, -0001 at 12:00 am

    Fire, water and electricity in a kitchen do not mix. I’m suprised Chelsea Fire Brigade and James Dyson have backed such a proposal.

  • MF Benton November 30, -0001 at 12:00 am

    I wonder how the heat sensor will be able to tell if the heat comes from a fire, or from the hot water?

  • Denis Curley November 30, -0001 at 12:00 am

    Uncontrolled water spray, electricity and fire in a kitchen are not safe. I’m suprised Chelsea Fire Brigade and James Dyson have backed such a proposal.

  • steve November 30, -0001 at 12:00 am

    Watermist is safe on both electrical and chip pan fires. The water droplets are so small that it does not disrupt the surface tension of the oil, which is why water mist is commonly used to protect industrial chip pan fryers. The droplets absorb heat by turning to steam and also displace oxygen.

  • Janet Woods November 30, -0001 at 12:00 am

    I think this sounds great.What a neat idea!

  • Mark Gamble November 30, -0001 at 12:00 am

    If you haven’t seen Min Kyu Choi’s entry, I highly recomment it. When I saw it the other week I thought it was great.
    http://www.minkyu.co.uk/Site/Product/Entries/2009/4/20_Folding_Plug_System.html

  • Geoff Davies November 30, -0001 at 12:00 am

    Oh wow. I really like the idea. I’d love this for my student flats. I had a fire last year and it cost a fortune. This sort of thing is just piece of mind.

  • Alan Hart November 30, -0001 at 12:00 am

    Geoff and anyone else interested, Automist will be on the market in limited numbers next year, initially in student and sheltered housing. We’ll be looking for pilot sites, so please feel free to get in touch via http://www.plumis.co.uk.

  • Ken Watanabe November 30, -0001 at 12:00 am

    The compettition was very tough this year. All of the top three were excellent.

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