ChalkAway: Portable Chalkboard Eraser with Vacuum

ChalkAway is a portable chalkboard eraser with a vacuum design that reduces health hazards and improves effectiveness. Developed by students, the low-cost and easy-to-use product provides users with a healthy learning environment free from dust dispersion. Through its innovative design, it seeks to overcome the shortcomings of traditional board erasers and become a popular solution for campuses. 



The blackboard is a crucial tool for learning in a classroom, and board erasers are necessary to keep them clean. Although some board erasers have vacuuming capabilities, they are not widely used because of their high cost and noise level. Therefore, traditional board erasers are commonly used on campuses to clean the boards. To address the issues of difficult cleaning, dust dispersal, easy breakage, and reduced wiping effect, a designer has come up with a complementary approach to improve traditional board erasers. The product retains the advantages of conventional board erasers such as low cost and ease of use while providing a healthier teaching environment. This innovation has the potential to become popular on campuses across Taiwan and beyond to meet users' needs. 



Product designers optimized the first generation of their product by gathering feedback from teachers and students through surveys. They incorporated ergonomic structure suggestions and made the product intuitive to use based on the opinions collected. The designers performed performance tests on various structural designs, including the radius of the curvature of the fan blade and the particle patterns of the wipers on both sides of the vacuum port. Durability and operational effectiveness were also evaluated to select a suitable structural design for the parts. As a result, 91% of the test subjects reported a significant reduction in dust, reducing the discomfort caused by using the product and effectively reducing the risk of Pneumoconiosis.