Redefining “innovation”, Dyson leads technological breakthroughs with the spirit of inventors – the second Dyson Technology Festival presents unique invention concepts

Since its establishment, Dyson has adhered to lean engineering and sought disruptive solutions, and has now become an industry-leading global technology company. Behind the cutting-edge products, its innovative ideas and inventor spirit have laid the foundation for a series of unrepeatable core technologies and breakthrough products of Dyson.

On December 18, 2022, the second Dyson Technology Festival kicked off in Shenzhen. With the theme of “Invention, Foreseeing the Future”, this Dyson Science and Technology Festival presents Dyson’s unique engineer culture and core technology in an all-round way with the help of multiple forms, continuously conveys innovative ideas, and inspires young talents in the future.

At the event, James Dyson, founder and chief engineer of Dyson, and John Churchill, chief technology officer, sent a message to the Chinese audience through video, sharing examples of Dyson’s technological innovation and the ideas behind it, and encouraging young people to start the journey of invention and creation. In the roundtable session, Dyson engineers, representatives of the 2022 Dyson Design Award China champion team, pioneers in the fields of education and technology, and senior media professionals discussed technological innovation and talent development from multi-dimensional perspectives, and talked about the spirit of inventors. Many media, college students with engineering or invention dreams, Dyson users, and the general audience gathered at the scene to experience Dyson’s unique brand and technology concept up close.

Dyson CTO John Churchill video message

Technology first, redefine innovation

Last year, Dyson launched the first technology festival, presenting cutting-edge technology experience to consumers and media, and becoming an annual technology event. The Dyson Technology Festival was unveiled as a special part of the “Geek Park Innovation Conference 2023”. In addition to the collection and display of innovative technologies, it also demonstrated the brand’s unique brand innovation genes. As a global research and technology company, since its establishment in 1993, Dyson has insisted on the excellence of technology and the inventor spirit of daring to challenge and not being afraid of failure, constantly seeking breakthroughs and technological innovations.

James Dyson shared, “I hope to encourage everyone, especially young people, to become engineers and scientists with enough courage and confidence to solve the world’s problems.” Dyson has always been an inventor, actively inspiring and motivating engineers Solve problems in novel ways.

As Dyson’s chief technology officer, John Churchill has a deep understanding of Dyson’s engineer culture. He further shared, “Dyson will insist on asking engineers to challenge the limit, even if they fail. Gain inspiration from failure and accumulate experience. Propose a new solution and solve the problem in another way.” It is this spiritual core that has allowed Dyson to give Dyson products infinite vitality with leading technology and inventions along the way, and has always been at the forefront of technology. And this also affects generations of Dyson engineers. For them, the passion to create, the desire to improve things and the need to solve problems will not change. They adhere to technology-oriented, constantly learn from failures, create and improve better designs, technologies and products.

In an era where new technologies and concepts are constantly emerging, Dyson’s technology research and development has always been closely related to the market or consumers, aiming to solve problems that are easily overlooked by others. Dyson’s more than 6,000 scientists and engineers solve one new problem after another in their own way every day. “Dyson defines ‘innovation’ as a product that can really change people’s behavior.” John Churchill happily talked about Dyson’s latest innovative technology and achievements in the video, “We have created an epoch-making cordless vacuum cleaner category with brand-new motor technology The newly launched G5 Detect cordless vacuum cleaner this year is equipped with the latest and most powerful motor ^[1] . At the same time, it has recently announced that it will launch the world premiere Dyson Zone in China The air-purifying headphones also mark Dyson’s entry into new territory. “The birth and iteration of every disruptive new technology and product is based on the goal of continuously bringing better solutions to consumers, and it is also a manifestation of Dyson’s practice of the spirit of the inventor.

Dyson G5 Detect cordless vacuum cleaner, Dyson Zone Air Purifying Headphones

We understand that in the process of discovering and solving problems, the Dyson R&D team will spend a long time optimizing and adjusting. Every Dyson product in the research and development stage will go through the testing and development of thousands of models. In the process again, Dyson engineers will continue to discover new problems. When solving a problem, new problems may arise again, and it takes a lot of time to conduct research to solve difficult problems. For example, during the development of the Dyson hair straightener, engineers used the prototype to do a drop test. The initial test was not optimistic. Repeated tests failed to find the cause of the problem. When they were at a loss, the engineers found it under the high-speed camera. The reason turned out to be that the inertia of the battery component caused the main body to bend and then hit the screw column that fixed the heating plate. This failure was not realized at the beginning of the design. Although faced with the pressure of the product landing, the Dyson R&D team still started from scratch. Material, structure, Starting with the design, 6 solutions were formulated. All team members acted separately to make prototypes, tried one solution after another, and optimized one by one. Finally, the optimal solution was selected to solve the problem.

Although this process will encounter many difficulties, it also shows Dyson’s unique engineer culture – not afraid of difficulties, starting from the perspective of problem solving, analyzing problems, and then constantly breaking through and solving problems.

Focusing on the future, inspiring the next generation of inventors

Over the years, while deeply cultivating its own technology research and development and innovation, Dyson also attaches great importance to the innovative ability of young people, and actively participates in engineering education, encouraging young “blood” to make the world a better place. In the roundtable session, Dyson engineer Ma Tao said: “Dyson always believes that young people are naturally good at solving problems. Whether it is the Dyson Design Award or the science and engineering education resources we have developed, the ultimate goal is to inspire more Young people explore innovation and join the ranks of creation and invention.” Ren Min, the founder of Chushan Venture Capital who has been in the education industry for many years, has witnessed the innovation process of many young people and also emphasized the importance of cultivating innovative talents. Based on their own experience and insights, the guests at the scene hoped to help more young people who have the dream of inventors and scientists.

Talk about the spirit of inventors in the round table session

In 2005, the Dyson Design Award was officially launched to encourage young people to create solutions to current and future problems through engineering and invention. This year, there are as many as 502 entries from the Chinese competition area, and the total number of entries ranks among the best among the 30 participating countries and regions. Among them, the champion work “CareRare Rare Disease Screening Program” stood out in the international selection and ranked among the top 20 in the world. Yuan Wang, the representative of his team, said at the scene, “In fact, the group of patients with rare diseases in my country is not uncommon. We want to serve these groups Do something meaningful and solve their problems from life to follow-up treatment to study and employment. I am very grateful to the Dyson Design Award for providing a platform for young people like me to realize their self-worth, and I hope there will be more Young people can join in.”

Yuan Wang’s immediate impression after winning the award was that he was deeply encouraged. When he signed up, he did not expect to get such a good result. Winning the championship is a surprise, and it also gives great encouragement to the whole team, making the team more confident and confident. In the future, they can go deeper into the industry and introduce their work to others. At the same time, the title of Dyson Design Award champion will also become an endorsement that can prove the team’s ability and continue to empower future development.

In Yuan Wang’s view, future inventors should have the spirit of insight into real problems and be able to propose solutions to the problems, and thus be able to truly help others—especially those vulnerable groups that most people cannot pay attention to.

In addition to college students, science and engineering education for young people is also the focus of Dyson. The three major engineering education resources Dyson launched for children of different ages, “Little Engineer Challenge”, “Engineering Solutions: Air Pollution” and “Design·Create·Test” were officially introduced into China this year, aiming to cultivate children’s understanding of science and technology. and inventions, providing them with new ideas to solve problems and new perspectives on problems. Up to now, nearly 1 million Chinese students have benefited from Dyson’s engineering education support projects.

Experience Dyson’s innovative ideas in an all-round way

In this science and technology festival, Dyson also specially set up an “invention” theme exhibition. The audience started the experience from the display area of ​​the new book “Invention: James Dyson’s Creation Journey”, and they can have a deeper understanding of James Dyson’s more than 50 years of creation and invention stories and the concept of not being afraid of failure and being brave in innovation. It is this kind of spiritual culture that has laid a solid foundation for Dyson’s series of core technologies and innovative products that cannot be copied.

“Invention” Dyson theme exhibition area

Dyson also brought these breakthrough technologies and products to the exhibition area. Dyson’s first bagless vacuum cleaner DC01, which ushered in a new era of vacuum cleaners, continuously upgraded digital motors, and airflow multiplication technology in Dyson Supersonic The application of hair dryers, etc., are vividly displayed to the audience with rich technology demonstration devices, VR and other interactive equipment, creating an immersive exhibition experience.

Dyson core technology and technology display

It is worth mentioning that over the years, the domestic and foreign award-winning works and prototypes of the Dyson Design Award have been unveiled offline in the form of theme exhibitions for the first time. A collection of 6 prototypes and 24 works were presented, covering multiple fields such as renewable energy, new materials, and medical care, including SHIELD nearshore garbage collection equipment and ThermoWear smart orthotics, which won awards in the China competition this year. The audience can appreciate these ingenious ideas and unique designs up close, and feel the wisdom and power of the younger generation to promote a better life.

Dyson Design Award works and prototype display

The development of science and technology is constantly changing people’s lives, and young people continue to become the new driving force for technological innovation. Through this science and technology festival, Dyson will more fully convey the spirit of inventors and the culture of engineers behind them to the public. In the future, Dyson will continue to make breakthroughs in technology and products with an innovative spirit, and hopes to inspire more young people to use creativity to solve practical problems in life, and jointly create a beautiful and inclusive future of technology.