The umbrella also serves as a tent fitted with LED lights
Customers can request for brand logos or other personalised designs on their Lanmodo car umbrella
One thing that really gets my goat is seeing my gold-plated Rolls Royce covered in bird shit every time I hold my annual night of revelry and debauchery by the lake. Thankfully, my butler takes care of the cleaning so it isn’t much of a problem.
But for the average joe who would rather not clean their cars so often, Chinese startup Lanmodo has a solution to that pain point — a giant umbrella. Once deployed on the rooftop of the car via a suction cup (so no scratches), the umbrella can protect the vehicle from the elements raining down from the sky, including debris and bird shit.
Lanmodo claims it can also lower the temperature of the car’s interior by up to 36 degrees during a hot day. This effectively reduces the ‘hot-oven’ sensation when stepping into a car after it has been parked in the open.
Drivers can deploy the umbrella using a wireless remote controller. It has an internal rechargeable battery that can last for up to 45 days on a single charge, which takes four hours.
The process of installing and launching it is pretty straightforward. Lanmodo says the umbrella takes about 30 seconds to set up and eight seconds to open and close. It measures only 85 cm when closed so it can fit into the trunk of any car. It is also pretty light, weighing about 6.5 kg.
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And in case you were wondering whether you can drive around with the umbrella deployed, don’t; Lanmodo says it significantly reduces the driver’s visibility (and honestly, it makes the car look unsightly).
Lanmodo’s umbrella comes in different sizes to fit a range of car types including Sedans, SUVs, Pickups, Jeeps, Minis and 4WDs.
More than just a car umbrella
Besides sheltering the car, Lanmodo’s car umbrella can also be used deployed as a generic beach umbrella. At full height, it measures 1.9 metres, it can also withstand winds of up to 29 miles (46 km) per hour.
For the rugged camping folks, the umbrella can turn into a four-person tent. It even comes equipped with LED lights to make the night more colourful and USB ports for the ones who can’t bare to part with their smartphones even on a camping trip.
If you wish to find out more details about Lanmodo’s umbrella, click here. And here’s a video.
There is no price stated yet. Lanmodo is in the process of launching a crowdfunding campaign for it.
My personal thoughts on this nifty device are that there is any market appeal at all, it would be small. Frequent campers may prefer to buy established brand name tents instead of this hybrid, although, stress tests would have to be conducted for proper comparisons.
And drivers may not be willing to invest in the money — or effort — to use an umbrella that protects their cars. Let’s take bird shit, for example, even if the umbrella absorbed them, drivers would still have to clean the stains from the brolly because it is really smelly and disgusting to just leave them there before chucking it into the boot.
When you think about it, it takes less effort to just drive into a car wash and pay a car service attendant to go give the car a good scrubbing.
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Image Credit: Lanmodo
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