法國“便攜廁所”亮相日內瓦國際發明展

The French have been credited with inventing the bidet and popularising pissoirs or public urinals, and now they can add the biodegradable and portable toilet to their name.

Frenchman Laurent Helewa designed the lightweight, easy to construct and carry toilet after Hurricane Katrina, when thousands of displaced people were crammed into a stadium for a week, with hardly any access to facilities.

"It's a taboo subject, but necessary in case of natural disasters," he told the reporters at the annual International Exhibition of Inventions in Geneva, pointing to the earthquakes in Japan and Haiti that displaced tens of thousands of people.

"The first problem is to have access to a toilet. Because if not, people will do their business wherever, and you end up with epidemics such as cholera," said Helewa, who is a doctor.

Weighing about two kilogrammes (4.4 pounds), his invention is essentially a piece of cardboard that folds into a boxed seat in a minute, and comes with plastic bags that each contain an absorbent pad to soak up liquids.

Helewa, who gamely climbed atop a sample, claimed that the heavy-duty version is able to withstand a weight of 200 kg and usage of 20 hours a day, after it was tested by four armies.

The French invention is among more than 1,000 creations showcased by inventors from 45 countries at this week's inventions fair in Geneva.

法國人曾以發明坐浴盆、以及普及公共廁所而著稱，如今，他們又可以因爲可生物降解的“便攜廁所”而讓人稱讚了。

法國人洛朗•海萊瓦在卡特里娜颶風過後設計了這款輕便、易於使用和攜帶的“便攜廁所”。卡特里娜颶風來臨時，成千上萬流離失所的人們在一個體育場擠了一週，而且無處如廁。

他在參加日內瓦年度國際發明展時告訴記者：“這個發明也許讓人忌諱，但在遇到自然災害時卻非常有用。”此前，發生在日本和海地的地震讓數萬人無家可歸。

身爲醫生的海萊瓦說：“頭等大事是找到廁所。因爲如果找不到，人們只得隨地解決，這會導致霍亂等傳染病的出現。”

這款便攜廁所重約兩公斤（4.4磅），使用者可以將構成廁所的一片紙板在一分鐘內折成一個盒狀座位。座位內部放着若干塑料袋，每個塑料袋都有可吸收液體的吸水墊。

海萊瓦還勇敢地坐在一個樣品上展示了一番，稱這款便攜廁所非常結實耐用，能夠承受200公斤的重壓，一天可以使用20個小時，曾在四支軍隊中做過測試。

在本週的日內瓦發明展上，來自45個國家的發明者共展出了一千多件展品。