Now, you can chill out on AC sofa

Just traverse across the length and breadth of the country and you would invariably find people going to great lengths to beat the heat, especially at public functions held in the open in  mostly hot, humid and sultry conditions – be it a marriage, religious function, political event or just a get together.

     But this technician from Gujarat – Dashrath Patel – wants you to remain firmly ensconced and get a cool experience right where you are seated. Instead of looking outwards, this air conditioning technician hit upon an idea to fit an AC in the sofa itself!

“I would see people sweat and uncomfortable at public functions. Even if you instal traditional khus sheets dripping with water, massive air coolers or air conditioners, the cooling was lost in the heat around in the environs. So I thought, what if I could somehow incorporate an air-conditioner within the sofa? Would it help reduce the loss of cooling in the environs? Would it be more effective than a wall air-conditioner that remains at a distance? So, I began working towards this goal and was successful in building my first prototype in 2007.  It was for a function at a temple,” Dashrath Patel said.

Though functional, it was a relatively a crude version and weighed almost 175 kg. This made it difficult for event organisers to move it around at the venue with ease. It also was cumbersome to handle.

“I had the knowledge to iron out any technical flaws but I was struggling with the design part and ways to reduce the weight as well as give the sofa a comfortable look and feel. The sofa had to be not just comfortable but also look sleek if it was to be used at public functions in the open or even sold commercially,”Patel, who has been in this business for almost two decades after getting his qualification in airconditioning from Industrial Training Institute, said.

He started looking around for help. And he got it from an institution that is the hub of designing in the country – National Institute of Design (NID), Ahmedabad.  “I heard that they had a ‘design clinic scheme’ for the Medium and Small Manufacturing Enterprises (MSME) Ministry. So I approached them," Patel said.

enses are borne by the ministry, with remaining 40 per cent given to the innovator as a grant.

“When Patel approached us he had a relatively crude product but wanted it to look luxurious and comfortable. He told us that he wants us to help him improve the design of his sofa, so that it can be transported and installed easily at various public events outdoors,” Jitendra Rajput of the NID said.

The NID later assigned a designer and NID alumni Ankit Vyas to work with Dashrathbhai on the project. “It was Ankitbhai who helped me modify the design, work with different materials and we were able to reduce the weight of sofa to manageable 35 kg,” Patel says.

Most of the parts in the earlier model, including the hose pipe of air-conditioner, were made of wood. This made it bulkier. Patel and Vyas decided to use glass fibre and PVC pipe instead, helping lighten the weight of the sofa.

“Other than reducing the weight, they have been able to do a lot of simplification with same mould and same dyes. It can be used in hot weather states and countries. The upholstery is also of a normal changeable fabric that can be washed or changed as per your liking,” Jitendra Rajput of Design Clinic said.

Today, the sofa has a split air-conditioning unit inside, linked by a pipe on an outer unit. The air flow comes out from vents on the hand-rest of the sofa and one can  control  the temperature using a simple remote control. And if you want to save electricity or are elderly or a person who prefers less cold clime, you could even run it on a fan mode!

The advantage of using AC sofa vis-à-vis tower ACs installed at various public functions is that it helps cut your power bill by as much as 10 per cent.

To be priced anywhere between a Rs 1 lakh to Rs 1.25 lakh, the sofa may burn the pocket a bit but Patel says that it would prove to be a good business for event managers, hotels, restaurants, big showrooms and commercial institutions to invest in.

“I hope it will sell in good numbers but my dreams depend solely on how well it is received in the market. I already have developed about four models and I am still working to make a few more adjustments to perfect the design and technology,” Patel adds.

Holding the patent for the AC sofa technology for 20 years, he also plans to open a showroom in Gandhinagar soon and brand it as Arrow Couch. He says it will give a feeling of being a luxury product. “We are now working on setting up our own website and brochures and hope to begin selling the sofas commercially after Diwali,” Patel says.
“I know it will do good. I could see it in twinkle in the eyes of my two young children – a 10-yr-old daughter and 17-yr-old son, who simply fell in love the moment they had ensconced themselves. Even you would love it,” he adds.  So simply sit back. Relax. Beat the heat with a switch. And just chill.