60s: I have a store

Chapter 650 Success

The lights in the research lab stayed on until late at night, and the glow coming through the windows was particularly striking against the factory's nighttime backdrop, like a seed that was just beginning to sprout.

The wall clock struck seven times, its dull sound standing out clearly amidst the lively discussion.

Everyone then looked up at the time as if waking from a dream. The outside world was already shrouded in the thick darkness of night, and the streetlights in the factory area lit up one after another, casting a dim yellow light through the window onto the table where blueprints were scattered.

Li Chongguang rubbed his aching temples and realized that he had unknowingly been past the end of the workday for quite some time.

He looked around at the people around him. Everyone looked tired, but their eyes were still shining with excitement. Some people were still making final annotations on the drawings with pencils, while others were whispering to their colleagues next to them about their ideas.

He took a deep breath, then clapped his hands forcefully. The crisp sound made everyone stop what they were doing and turn their eyes to him.

"Alright, comrades, let's go home now!"

Li Chongguang's voice was slightly hoarse, but it conveyed an undeniable firmness: "Go back and get some rest tonight, make sure you're in good spirits, there's still a tough battle ahead."

He looked around the research lab. Apart from some basic tools and scattered parts, there was no special equipment needed to develop a small dryer. Testing instruments for heating elements, stamping molds for the outer shell, circuit debugging devices... he had to prepare everything from scratch.

"We don't have any equipment right now, so we can't discuss anything more practical if we stay here. We might as well conserve our energy and wait until the equipment and materials arrive tomorrow before we go all out to get things done."

Everyone nodded in understanding. Indeed, even a skilled cook can't cook without rice; without suitable equipment and materials, you can't develop a product just by talking and drawing.

A young researcher stretched out a big yawn, his bones making a "crack" sound, and said with a smile, "Section Chief Li is right, my brain is almost unable to function. I'll go back and get some sleep, maybe I'll wake up with a new inspiration tomorrow."

“Yeah, my eyes are practically glued shut, I need to go back and rest.” Another person chimed in, starting to tidy up the drawings and tools on the table.

No one said anything more. They quietly tidied up the things in front of them, carefully folding and putting away the scattered drawings, and putting the parts back into the toolbox. Their movements were gentle and careful, as if these were all treasures.

Zhou Yimin watched as everyone tidied up in an orderly manner, and a gratified smile appeared on his face.

Soon, the research lab was cleaned up again. Everyone said goodbye to Li Chongguang and Zhou Yimin and then left in twos and threes.

The sounds of their footsteps and laughter drifted down the corridor, the lingering warmth of their discussion seemingly still present in the air.

After Li Chongguang and Zhou Yimin saw the last person off and closed the door, the research room instantly fell silent, with only the occasional chirping of insects coming from outside the window.

Li Chongguang walked to the window, looked at the dark night sky outside, and his eyes were full of anticipation: "Tomorrow will be a new beginning."

Zhou Yimin walked over to him and nodded: "Okay, get some rest, let's work hard together tomorrow."

The next morning, just as dawn broke, Li Chongguang rode his bicycle to the factory.

He first went to the warehouse to find Lao Zhang and slammed the prepared materials list on the table: "Ten carbon fiber heating plates are needed, five brushless motors are needed, as well as high-temperature resistant silicone wire and thin steel plates for stamping. Make sure you get them all today."

Looking at the densely packed items on the list, Old Zhang clicked his tongue and said, "Section Chief Li, this fiberboard is not common. There are only three pieces in the warehouse. We'll have to go to the electromechanical market in the city to find the rest."

Li Chongguang gritted his teeth: "Then bring over the existing materials first, and I'll have someone make a trip to get the missing ones."

By the time everyone in the research lab arrived, Li Chongguang had already drawn an exploded diagram of the dryer on the ground.

"Xiao Zhang is in charge of the circuit group. First, refine the circuit diagrams for the heating element and the motor, and pay attention to voltage stability."

"Xiao Li will take two people to work on the structure. First, they will make a folding model out of cardboard to determine the position of the hinges. Lao Wang, you come with me to the workshop to see if we can borrow a stamping machine to make the prototype of the outer shell."

As he assigned tasks, he sorted and arranged the materials brought from the warehouse, with nickel-chromium alloy wire and fiberboard placed side by side on the table like two rows of soldiers waiting for inspection.

The crowd gathered around the pile of materials, their faces a mixture of excitement and trepidation.

Xiao Zhang was sketching on the drawing with a pencil, repeatedly erasing the "heating power" column. He had used 220V voltage when making the air fryer before, but the dryer was small, and if the power was too high, it would easily overheat, and if it was too low, it wouldn't dry the clothes.

He chewed on his pen for a long time, then finally pulled Old Wang over: "Master Wang, can you help me measure the resistance of this carbon fiber plate so I can calculate the power?"

Old Wang squatted down and connected the multimeter. As soon as the probes touched the heating plate, the pointer suddenly jumped up, which startled him so much that he quickly turned off the power: "This thing has low resistance and heats up quickly after being powered on. I need to add a thermostat."

Xiao Li in the workshop was looking at the cardboard with a headache.

He wanted to create a structure that could fold 180 degrees, but the hinges would jam as soon as they were installed. Either it would fold to 90 degrees and then become completely immobile, or it would be too loose and wobbly.

By the fifth model, the cardboard was creased and became frayed. In frustration, he slammed the model onto the table, exclaiming, "Why won't this damn hinge work?"

The young researcher next to him picked up the model and examined it from all angles: "How about we try a different approach? We can use canvas as the connecting straps, which is both flexible and saves on materials."

The two men's eyes lit up, and they immediately found some old canvases to test the paperboard. They used a stapler to fix the two ends of the cardboard, and it actually folded smoothly.

Li Chongguang spent the whole morning working in the workshop and finally managed to borrow a stamping machine.

He stuffed the thin steel plate into the machine, his palms sweating profusely as he pressed the switch—this was his first attempt at stamping a curved shell, and if he didn't control the force well, he would crack the steel plate.

With a muffled "hum," the steel plate slid out of the machine, its edges indeed slightly deformed. He squatted down and used sandpaper to smooth the rough edges, not even noticing the cuts on his fingers: "Let's do it again, this time reduce the pressure by two notches."

It wasn't until the third steel plate was completed that the curved shell finally took shape. He held it up to the light, and even the bloodshot in his eyes seemed to be smiling.

At lunchtime, everyone squatted at the entrance of the research lab with their lunchboxes, and the conversation inevitably turned to the dryer.

"My circuit keeps tripping, I guess I chose a fuse that's too thin," Xiao Zhang muttered while eating rice.

Xiao Li immediately chimed in, "Our canvas connecting strip is done, but we're worried it won't withstand high temperatures."

Li Chongguang ate a couple of bites of rice, then suddenly stood up: "Go to the warehouse this afternoon to find some insulation cotton, and try wrapping it around the canvas."

The afternoon sun slanted in through the window, casting the shadows of tools on the floor.

Xiao Zhang squatted on the ground connecting the wires, the soldering iron tip turning red-hot, and the solder wire melting into small beads as soon as it touched the circuit board.

Xiao Li and his friends were using glue to stick canvas onto the cardboard model, and their fingers were sticky with glue.

Li Chongguang then used calipers to measure the curvature of the outer casing bit by bit, recording each measurement in his notebook.

No one spoke; only the sizzling of the soldering iron, the pungent smell of glue, and the scratching of the pen tip across the paper mingled in the room.

Zhou Yimin came over for a look during his lunch break and happened to see Xiao Zhang startled by the sudden spark.

"Don't rush, first disconnect the power and check the wiring." He squatted down to help troubleshoot and found that the thermostat contacts were not properly connected: "Look here, the wire ends need to be twisted into a spiral shape before soldering, otherwise it's easy to have a loose connection."

Xiao Zhang blushed and nodded, reconnecting the wires as instructed, and sure enough, there were no more problems.

As the sun began to set, the first rudimentary prototype was finally erected.

Without an outer casing, it was covered with cardboard; the exposed wiring looked like a tangled spider web.

The motor was temporarily fixed to the wooden board, making a "buzzing" sound as it turned. Li Chongguang stuffed a wet shirt inside, and the moment he pressed the switch, everyone held their breath.

Three minutes later, the edges of the shirt actually started to get hot, and Xiao Zhang suddenly exclaimed, "The temperature has reached 50 degrees!"

A burst of cheers erupted from the crowd, and even Li Chongguang, who had maintained a tense expression, broke into a smile.

Although this prototype was far from being up to standard, with uneven heating and air leaks at the folds, everyone in the research lab felt that all the exploration from scratch and the blueprints soaked in sweat had been meaningful, just by looking at the slightly warm shirt.

Over the next three days, Zhou Yimin practically became the "firefighter" for the research lab.

After finishing his daily work in the procurement department, he would immediately immerse himself in the research lab, appearing wherever there was a problem, from material selection to structural optimization.

The next afternoon, Xiao Zhang's team got stuck on the temperature control system—the dryer would suddenly lose power after running for half an hour, and they couldn't find the problem despite repeated debugging.

Zhou Yimin squatted on the ground, looking through the circuit diagram. He tapped the contacts on the thermostat with his finger: "Try raising the temperature control threshold by five degrees. The current setting is too sensitive. It trips the circuit breaker as soon as the temperature rises slightly."

He then pointed to the junction of the lines: "A heat sink needs to be added here. Heat tends to accumulate where the current is concentrated, and it will burn out the wires over time."

Xiao Zhang followed the instructions with some skepticism, carefully twisting the wire ends into a spiral shape and then wrapping them with heat-insulating tape when rewiring. During the power-on test, the dryer ran steadily for an hour, with the temperature remaining stable at around 60 degrees Celsius. Xiao Zhang was so excited that he almost dropped the soldering iron on the ground.

On the morning of the third day, Xiao Li was troubled by the deformed canvas connecting straps—the canvas wrapped with heat insulation cotton had shrunk under the high temperature and became stiff when folded.

Zhou Yimin touched the material of the canvas and suddenly remembered that there was a batch of nylon material for making waterproof cloth in the warehouse: "Try using that. Nylon is heat-resistant and tensile-resistant. Cut it into long strips as connecting strips and fix it with copper rivets on both sides. It's stronger than glue."

He squatted down to help measure the dimensions: "The length needs to be left with two centimeters of leeway so it won't be too tight when folding."

Around noon, the newly made connecting belt was successfully tested. It rotated smoothly and silently when flipped 180 degrees. Xiao Li held up the model and spun around: "Section Chief Zhou, your trick is amazing!"

The most difficult problem arose on the afternoon of the third day.

After the stamped steel plate shell is fitted with the heating plate, local overheating always occurs. The temperature on the side closer to the motor can soar to 70 degrees Celsius, while the other side is only 40 degrees Celsius.

Li Chongguang was sweating profusely and was about to thicken the insulation layer when Zhou Yimin pointed to the inside of the outer casing: "The problem isn't the insulation, it's the airflow design. Look here, the fan's air outlet is right in front of the heating plate, and the heat is trapped in the corner."

He picked up a piece of chalk and drew an arc-shaped air duct on the outer casing: "Move the air outlet three centimeters diagonally upward to allow the hot air to circulate along the inner wall of the casing, and then open three heat dissipation holes on the side, and the temperature will naturally become more uniform."

Old Wang took the electric drill and drilled holes in the positions indicated. After reassembling and testing, the temperature difference was indeed reduced to within five degrees.

Three days later, in the evening, when the last screw was tightened, the research lab was so quiet you could hear someone breathing.

This small dryer finally looks decent: the silver-gray steel plate shell is smooth and rounded, the nylon connecting strips at the folds gleam with a dark light, and the knobs on the control panel are clearly labeled with three settings: "low temperature", "medium temperature" and "high temperature".

Li Chongguang put a freshly washed sweater inside, and Zhou Yimin pressed the switch. The motor emitted a slight hum, and warm air quickly flowed out of the vent.

Half an hour later, the sweater was taken out and found to be dry and fluffy. A thermometer was used to measure the temperature, and the difference between the inside and outside was no more than three degrees.

Xiao Zhang stared at the pointer on the control panel: "Running continuously for two hours, the temperature is stable, and there was no tripping!"

Xiao Li repeatedly folded the machine, and the connecting strap remained as flexible as ever: "The outer casing temperature is 38 degrees Celsius, not hot to the touch!"

The crowd gathered around the dryer, the culmination of three days' hard work, and suddenly erupted in thunderous applause.

Li Chongguang gripped Zhou Yimin's hand tightly, his knuckles turning white: "Yimin, without you, we would have taken at least half a month longer on the wrong path!"

Zhou Yimin smiled and wiped the sweat from his forehead, looking at the indicator light on the machine: "This is the result of everyone's hard work. This is only the first step. Next, it needs to be put to the test of the market."

The sunset glow streamed through the window, gilding the dryer with a golden hue.

This little machine, born from scratch, now seems to have sprouted wings in everyone's eyes, ready to fly to a wider world.

Zhou Yimin cleared his throat and said, "Everyone has worked hard these past few days. Let's go have a meal first!"

Upon hearing this, everyone was stunned for a moment before realizing that their stomachs were already growling with hunger.

Three consecutive days of intense work had made them almost forget about hunger, but Zhou Yimin's reminder brought a wave of fatigue and hunger back.

"Section Chief Zhou is right, it's time to have a proper meal," Li Chongguang said with a smile, rubbing his shoulders.

Zhou Yimin smiled and took the lead in walking out: "Let's go, I've already spoken to the cafeteria and they've reserved some food for our research lab."

Upon hearing this, everyone's faces lit up with surprise, and they quickly followed Zhou Yimin toward the cafeteria.

Although everyone was tired along the way, they couldn't hide their excitement when talking about the newly developed small dryer.

When I arrived at the cafeteria, there weren't many people left, and the cafeteria staff were preparing to pack up.

Seeing Zhou Yimin enter with a group of people, he quickly came forward to greet them: "Section Chief Zhou, you've finally arrived! I've saved all the food for you, it's just been heated up, please eat it while it's hot."

As he spoke, the chef lifted the lid of a large steamer next to him, and a rich aroma of food immediately wafted out.

Inside were steaming hot steamed buns and dumplings, along with several large plates of stir-fried dishes, including braised pork, stir-fried greens, scrambled eggs with tomatoes, and even a pot of tender chicken soup. It looked so appetizing.

"Section Chief Zhou, you've thought of everything so thoroughly." Xiao Zhang's eyes lit up as he looked at the food, and he couldn't help but swallow hard.

Zhou Yimin smiled and said, "Everyone has used up too much energy these past few days, so they need to replenish their nutrition. Please sit down and eat."

Everyone found a seat, picked up their bowls and chopsticks, and began to wolf down their food.

Li Chongguang picked up a piece of braised pork and put it in his mouth, sighing with satisfaction: "This meat is stewed so tenderly, it's so fragrant."

Xiao Li picked up a bowl of chicken soup and sipped it slowly, a comfortable expression on his face.

(End of this chapter)