Elderly inventor shows no signs of slowing down

Shenzhen resident Zong Enze, who is in his 90s, remains energetic and enjoys inventing things. He said he is continuing his dream from when he was young.

Born in November 1924 in Langfang, Hebei province, Zong graduated in 1949 from the Northwest Agricultural University, today known as the Northwest A&F University. He worked in Lanzhou, Gansu province, and liked to invent things in his spare time.

In 1965, he won a title as one of the top 10 inventors in Lanzhou.

Zong moved to Shenzhen to live with his children six years ago, and his interest in inventions continues. He told local newspaper Shenzhen Special Zone Daily that he continues doing this to prevent his thinking from slowing. In addition, making models and doing experiments provides him with some physical exercise, he said.

He hopes to promote his inventions to the market quickly and said the city is a place of innovation as the government encourages creation.

"Shenzhen has many advantages for inventions and inventors," he said. "Firstly, the patent office workers are always helpful and encouraging. Secondly, I can easily find the materials I need and workshops to make prototypes, and the people there are friendly."

He said a hardware store owner in the city's Bantian area helped him cut and weld materials "countless times" last year but only asked for payment once.

Zong receives a few thousand yuan in pension each month, and spends part on travel and the rest on his inventions and applying for patents. He has so far been granted 20 patents, mostly for mechanical designs, such as a puzzle lock for vehicle gear levers and a steering wheel lock.

Zong told the newspaper that the inspiration for all his inventions comes from his life experience.

When he first went to Shenzhen, he found that things kept in safes easily turned moldy because of the wet climate in the southern China city. He designed a sealed dry safe based on his specialty in designing locks while living in Lanzhou.

Zong suffers cervical spondylosis - age-related wear and tear of the spinal disks - and a doctor suggested he use a hard pillow. After using a hard pillow for a week, he noticed some improvement so he designed a pillow that is soft on one side to help sleep and hard on the other to help treat the condition.

Although the patent application for the pillow is still in the review period, Zong said he has given 100 prototypes to friends and all said it worked well.

Another three of his patent applications are also in the review period.

"I have revised each of the gadgets at least 20 times to make them as simple and effective as possible and to reduce the cost," Zong said.

He added he has recently been pondering how to integrate Chinese cultural elements into his patented designs.

zhangzhao@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 04/15/2015 page17)