Nowadays, auto-flush motion sensor toilets are in schools, airports, hotels, and tourist spots around the world. But do you know who invented this modern convenience? The answer may surprise you. It was Teng Hung-Chi of Nantou, Taiwan, who was only 19 when he created the original sensor urinal!

Teng's inspiration came in 1983 during an exhausting1 day of work as a mechanic. While using the restroom, Teng didn't want to dirty the urinal by pressing the flush button with his greasy hands. He began thinking about how to combine an infrared sensor with a water valve. Two months later, his invention was completed, and Teng sold the patent2 for 1.5 million NT dollars! Since then, Teng's creative inventions have earned him the title "Taiwan's Edison."

When people discover that an appliance3 is broken, they often stop using it. Not Teng, though. Since childhood, he has enjoyed learning about such appliances by taking them apart. His curiosity and persistence4 have helped him create many quality innovations.5 For Teng, inventing is nothing more than changing the status quo.

　 Teng's passionate interest in inventing has helped him win many prizes at the annual World Invention Contest. But behind these prestigious1 awards lie days and nights of continuous hard work.

For example, in 1999, Teng's "Remote Control Pager Device" made him the first Asian winner of the Genius Prize at the Nuremberg World Invention Exhibition. This invention can control every single appliance in a building from far away! During his award acceptance speech, Teng thanked retailers in Taiwan. If Teng was inspired and needed components, he would knock on the doors of these retailers, even in the middle of the night! Their doors were always open to him.

In addition to his lifelong interest in inventing things himself, Teng is also devoted to educating others about invention. The 40-year-old Teng encourages people to pursue2 fantastic notions3 and make them reality, instead of being limited by conventional4 thinking.

"As long as you can endure loneliness and you never give up, becoming an inventor isn't difficult at all," Teng says. "If every school cultivated just one outstanding5 inventor, our country would definitely benefit from spectacular inventions!"

-by Lily Tsai

　

现今，自动感应冲水马桶在全球的学校、机场、饭店及观光景点比比皆是。但你可知这一现代化便利设施是谁发明的吗？答案可能会令你大吃一惊。原来这是台湾南投人邓鸿吉的杰作；当他发明第一座感应冲水男用小便斗时，只有十九岁而已呢！

邓鸿吉的灵感源自于1983年一个辛苦修车的工作日。当他使用厕所时，不想用油腻腻的黑手按冲水钮，免得把男用小便斗弄脏了。于是他开始思考如何把红外线感应器与水际结合在一起。两个月后，他的发明大功告成了，该发明的专利还卖了150万台币！从此以后，邓鸿吉许多的创意发明让他赢得了"台湾的爱迪生"称号。

当人们发现家电用品坏了，通常就把它放在一边不用了。但邓鸿吉却不会这么做。他从小就喜欢把坏掉的家电用品拆开，藉此了解内部构造。他的好奇心与坚持到底的精神使他创造出许多优质的新发明。对邓鸿吉而言，发明不过是改变现况而已。

邓鸿吉对发明的热衷，使他在每年举办的世界发明比赛中赢得不少奖项。但在这些荣耀奖项的背后，是他日以继夜、勤奋不懈的工作。

举例来说，邓鸿吉的"呼叫器遥控装置"，使他在1999年纽伦堡世界发明展中，成为首位荣获天才奖的亚洲人。这项发明可以从很远的地方遥控整座建筑物中的每一样电器呢！邓鸿吉发表得奖感言时，特别感谢了台湾的零售商：当他灵感来了需要零件时，就算是三更半夜，他也会去敲这些零售商的门，而零售商的门总是为他而开着。

除了个人终其一生的发明兴趣外，邓鸿吉也积极投入发明教育。现年40岁的邓鸿吉鼓励人们要努力地异想天开，并让这些想法成真，而不要受限于制式的思考模式。

"只要你能耐得寂寞，而且永不放弃，成为一个发明家一点也不难。"邓鸿吉说："每一所学校只要能培育出一个杰出的发明家，我们的国家一定会从多彩多姿的发明品中大获益处！"