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Japan’s Answer to Deadly Summer Heat Is a Refrigerator for Humans

The Do Hiemon Box blasts chilled air at overheated users, giving workers and visitors a quick escape from extreme heat.

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Japanese summers are now so unbearable that someone looked at a refrigerator and thought, logically, that humans should just go in one.

The Do Hiemon Box, created by Japanese refrigeration company SDRS and sold through industrial supplier Trusco Nakayama, is exactly what it sounds like: a metallic, glass-fronted booth the size and shape of a vending machine—and that’s not a coincidence, since the design was directly inspired by Japan’s ubiquitous refrigerated vending machines. A person climbs in, sits on the built-in seat, and gets blasted with air chilled to around 5°C (41°F), targeting the head, neck, shoulders, and back. The interior holds a steady 15°C (59°F). Ten minutes inside is reportedly enough to........

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