Enlarge image
Not a prop from the Star Wars saga: Dyson's portable air purifier
Photo:
dyson
Dyson products are usually found in utility rooms, on desks or hanging on toilet walls.
But after vacuum cleaners, table lamps and hand dryers, the company now wants to launch its first product for on the go: headphones that fan filtered air at the user.
Or vice versa, a portable air purifier that you can also use to listen to music.
However, wearing it in public requires a certain amount of courage.
The design of the prototype, which SPIEGEL was able to view, is reminiscent in equal parts of the Cylons from Battlestar Galactica and Darth Vader from Star Wars.
Because in addition to the voluminous ear cups, you wear a bracket in front of your head that covers your mouth and nose.
But it is precisely this bracket that delivers the core function of the Zone: fresh – or at least freshly cleaned – air.
The British company has been producing air purifiers for years and they don't look like other devices in this category either.
Then, six years ago, the company said it decided to develop a portable air purifier.
After all, air pollution isn't just a problem indoors, says chief engineer Jake Dyson.
Rather, one has to struggle with it “at school, at work and when travelling, whether on foot, by bicycle or with public or private transport”.
More than 500 prototypes
According to Dyson, the Zone not only preceded years of development and miniaturization, but also "more than 500 prototypes".
At the beginning, the technology was still housed in a backpack, and the filtered air was fed to the mouth and nose via a kind of snorkel.
From that point of view, the model that the company now wants to launch is quite an achievement.
The fact that it can also play music seems to be just a side effect.
Actually, the headphone shape is the result of the search for a way to combine all the technology in a device that can be worn on the head.
Suppress your own noises
There are small compressors in the Zone's ear cups that suck in the outside air through two filters, which catch particles and allergens.
A layer of carbon enriched with potassium is designed to trap pollutants such as nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and sulfur dioxide (SO2).
The air cleaned in this way is then rinsed in front of the mouth and nose, so to speak, through air channels in the temples.
Also because the motors of the compressors emit noises, the active noise cancellation of the headphones is important.
In addition to noise from outside, it should also dampen noise from inside.
In addition, Dyson promises that the Zone produces a "pure, full sound".
At least a team of audio engineers and acousticians "tried to develop an excellent sound".
This is new territory for the vacuum cleaner manufacturer.
What the Dyson Zone can really do and whether you actually dare to take it to the streets or to the theater - and how people react to it - will only be able to be tried out later in the year.
The company plans to launch it in the fall.
The price will then be announced at the latest.
For now, Dyson will want to explore what potential customers would be willing to pay for clean air and sound.
