Han Ximin

    ximhan@126.com

    HE’S never been to outer space, but he’s invented an on-board toilet used there. He doesn’t have a college education, but he has 112 inventions along with 29 Chinese patents and four international patents.

    Jin Xukai introduced his latest invention, an elevator that he says will never malfunction, to visitors at this year’s China Hi-Tech Fair.

    His revolutionary design, called Jin’s Safety Elevator, doesn’t use pulleys and cables like traditional elevators. Its platform and carriage are comprised of several elevating systems and direction controls and powered by a direct, low-pressure electric current.

    “Traditional elevators, due to limitations of technical theories and structure, have some safety faults in operation, especially when encountering blackouts and fire hazards,” Jin said. “They’re costly in production, installation and maintenance.”

    Jin’s elevator saves up to 70 percent of traditional elevators’ costs by using a direct-current engine and reducing unnecessary parts. It takes up a lot less space, too. “An elevator serving three floors, for example, could occupy 21.21 square meters, but this elevator would only occupy 5.07 square meters,” Jin said.

    Jin’s elevator has manual operation functions that would be available during blackouts.

    “This could help rescue elderly people, children and pregnant women in the 15 crucial minutes after a fire danger starts,” Jin said.

    Jin said the elevator has passed safety assessments and earned approval from the State special equipment authorities. Two companies have made initial investments totaling 50 million yuan (US$8.15 million) to make samples, he added.

    Born in 1974 in a village in Sichuan Province, Jin showed strong enthusiasm for inventing things starting at age 6.

    After graduating from high school, he worked as a security guard in supermarkets, hotels and nightclubs in Hainan, Guangzhou, Zhongshan and Shenzhen.

    “The first six years in Haikou were the toughest, as I spent every penny on inventions and couldn’t even buy a small gift for my mother. In six years, I changed jobs 14 times and didn’t go back to my hometown once because I had to make field trips or conduct market research for my inventions,” said Jin, who now is a manager of a high-tech company in Sichuan Province.

    Jin first became famous in 1998, when some of his inventions were the subject of reports by newspapers and TV stations.