Disabled inventor receives second patent

Busan man is hard at work on more inventions

Park Jae-du, 42, is classified as having mental retardation, but that did not stop him from being granted a patent for one of his inventions. His large vinyl wrapper can be used to keep fish and shellfish alive and fresh, otherwise easily spoiled in hot summer weather. His patented wrapper is an upgrade of a model that he developed in 1999.

Born to a poor family in a farming village in Yechon, North Gyeongsang Province, Park went to live in Busan alone after dropping out of high school. He worked at a factory during the day and attended classes at night, finally obtaining a ’Grade 2’ technical qualification.

He developed the wrapper out of love for his two sons, currently in middle and high school. He does not live with his children now, but six years ago, when they were on a picnic together, the seed was born for his patented invention.

On the picnic, his children caught several fish at a brook and took them home. But within two hours, the fish had died. "I was very sad to see my kids crying over the dead fish," Park said.

By attaching air filters to ordinary vinyl bags, he was able to keep caught seafood alive. "It is easy to replace the clean water [in the bag], and by maintaining the water temperature within the container at 5-10 degrees Celsius, it is possible to keep fish alive as long as six months," Park said.

He received a patent for the wrapper in 1999, and obtained another patent for the upgraded container which can keep a greater number of fish alive longer.

However, he has been an uphill struggle. Park began a business with his invention, but it failed. He divorced his wife and had to live apart from his two sons, and lost his house due to his debt. Now, he manages to earn a living by doing physical labor at construction sites, but he invests most of his wages into his inventions.

He is developing a portable pack to keep flowers fresh for a long time and is seeking sponsors who are interested in helping him get a patent on that invention, as well.

"As I have a poor memory when compared with other people, I experienced many difficulties. I have also seen many trials and errors, but I have been able to concentrate on my inventions, thinking of my children," he said.