Shoulder Umbrella: A Revolutionary Approach to Rain Gear

Guorong Luo's Innovative Design Liberates Hands and Improves User Efficiency

The Shoulder Umbrella, or Should-brella, is unique in its shoulder support structure. This feature changes the umbrella's stability and provides a new ergonomic experience. The main focus of this project is simplifying the usage process so that users can use it naturally. This product was designed for people of almost all ages who frequently use umbrellas and need to multitask while using them.

Guorong Luo's design is realized through injection moulding using recycled PP plastic. This method ensures a low cost of mass production and sustainable development possibilities for existing product replacement. The handle size of the umbrella is 138 mm in width, 20 mm in depth, and 150 mm in height.

The main design of this umbrella is the handle. The umbrella handle is divided into two parts. The lower part is similar to the traditional umbrella handle, which is fixed. The upper half can be controlled by the thumb to rotate. It can be pushed through the shoulder and rise to a specific support position, locking the user's shoulder. Its shape is an irregular organic form derived from tests of prototypes and the human body, emphasizing ergonomics. It can closely fit the shape of people's shoulders to ensure the stability of support.

The project started in March 2017 in New York and finished in May 2017 in the same city. The development process started with the excavation of pain points. Then Luo did thorough market research, finding out the limitations of existing products. Through the study of different people, Luo found that some people use their shoulder to share the pressure. So, Luo started brainstorming, conceiving the structure possibilities of using the shoulder to support the umbrella. Luo made the initial prototypes with clay and after the force analysis, used 3D printing to make intermediate prototypes. Luo tested a variety of users and gradually found out the best organic shape of the handle that can tightly attach to the surface of shoulders and eventually got the final prototype.

This innovative and safe umbrella adapts to the modern lifestyle, liberating users’ hands and improving the usage efficiency. Its shoulder support structure changes the umbrella’s feature, increases stability and provides a new ergonomic experience. This design was designed for people of almost all ages who use the umbrella frequently and have multi-task to do when using it. Without using any new technologies and materials, it has a low mass-production fee and sustainable development possibilities for existing product replacement. The design was awarded a Golden A' Fashion and Travel Accessories Design Award in 2018, a prestigious award granted to marvelous, outstanding, and trendsetting creations that reflect the designer's prodigy and wisdom.