LG Electronics said on the 24th that it has launched hands-on training on electronic appliances for children and adolescents with disabilities in partnership with the Korean Intellectual Property Office.
LG Electronics the previous day held an experiential class on appliance invention and accessibility for 30 children and adolescents enrolled at Daniel School, a private special school for students with developmental disabilities in Seocho District, Seoul.
The training is part of the "business agreement to enhance accessibility for people with disabilities in using home appliances" signed in March this year by LG Electronics and the Korean Intellectual Property Office, and was organized by linking LG Electronics' "Home Appliance School one-day class" with the Korea Invention Promotion Association (KIPA)'s "visiting invention experience classroom."
The "Home Appliance School one-day class" is an experiential program that lets any child or adolescent learn the electrical and mechanical principles of home appliances through play and use them safely. The "visiting invention experience classroom" is hosted by the Korean Intellectual Property Office and run by the Korea Invention Promotion Association (KIPA) to provide equal creativity and invention education to children and adolescents from education-vulnerable groups.
Going forward, LG Electronics plans to join hands with the Korean Intellectual Property Office to seek activities to foster and support the growth of young inventors, while also working to identify customer experiences to improve appliance accessibility.
In March, LG Electronics held an idea contest to "enhance accessibility in using appliances for people with disabilities" using the Korea Invention Promotion Association (KIPA)'s idea transaction platform "Idearo," and collected a total of about 250 ideas over about a month.
Among them, four new ideas for the "LG Comfort Kit," an assistive accessory that helps anyone use products easily regardless of gender, age, or disability, were selected as the final winners, and the company is reviewing the feasibility of applying them to actual products and services.
LG Electronics is pursuing various activities to improve appliance accessibility under its ESG vision of "a better life for all." Through initiatives such as the "Home Appliance School Project," which distributes easy-reading books free of charge so children and adolescents with developmental disabilities can use products safely, and the "Everyone's LG for Everyone" campaign, which introduces how to use products and services via videos for customers with disabilities and seniors, the company is spreading safe appliance usage to a broad range of customers.
Lee Hyangeun, head of HS CX at LG Electronics, said, "We will continue to prepare a variety of educational activities that help any child or adolescent understand home appliances correctly and use them safely, and provide inclusive customer experiences."