Earthquakes are a frequent occurrence in Taiwan. Lin Hui-ming, a resident of Lucao Township in Chiayi County, has observed that more households are using natural gas, which uses longer and more numerous pipes than is the case for bottled gas, but safety control devices are installed on the gas company side, making it hard for customers to inspect them. When an earthquake happens, it can easily cause pipes to crack or become loose or detached and leak. If people are not careful, this can lead to gas explosions that may cause death or injury. Lin researched the problem and developed a “compound gas safety valve” that can be installed on the customer side. His inventions garnered gold medal awards at the Taipei International Invention Show last year and the year before, and Lin has obtained patents for them in 13 different countries. Lin merits the title of “gas safety expert.”
Lin, who is 49 years old, has been in the gas business for more than 30 years. In the course of delivering and installing gas equipment, he has seen many households whose gas equipment is not safe enough, and he has also seen cases of gas explosions, so 12 years ago he started doing research on mechanical shut-off devices that could be installed on gas cylinders. He won a gold medal for this kind of device in the National Invention and Creation Awards.
Lin says that, for both bottled gas and natural gas pipes, leaks can easily occur following an earthquake, so he designed a gas safety valve with an electronic smart control device that automatically shuts off when there is a magnitude five earthquake. The device can shut off the gas automatically after a fixed time or if it detects that nobody is in the kitchen, thus reducing the danger. Lin is currently manufacturing and installing the devices in cooperation with construction companies and home security system businesses. For the sake of home safety, Lin recommends that people should inspect their gas pipes after earthquakes happen, or else install shut-off devices, safety valves or similar equipment, so as to reduce the possibility of gas explosions occurring.
Photo: Lin I-chang, Liberty Times
照片：自由時報記者林宜樟
(Liberty Times, translated by Julian Clegg)
台灣時常發生地震，嘉義縣鹿草鄉民林揮明觀察發現，天然瓦斯用戶增加，其管線較桶裝瓦斯長又多，安全控制裝置卻在公司端，用戶難以檢查，地震時易造成管線斷裂、鬆脫而漏氣，若有不慎會引發氣爆死傷。林揮明研發可安裝在用戶端的「複合式瓦斯安全閥」，前、去年都獲得台北國際發明展金牌獎，取得十三國專利，堪稱「瓦斯安全達人」。
林揮明今年四十九歲，從事瓦斯行業三十多年，運送安裝過程中，看見許多家庭的瓦斯設備安全性不足，又常看到氣爆案件，十二年前開始研究可裝在桶裝瓦斯上的機械式切斷裝置，曾摘下國家發明創作獎金牌。
林揮明說，不論是桶裝瓦斯或天然氣管線，地震後都容易有漏氣問題，他設計將瓦斯安全閥再加上電子智慧管理裝置，遇到五級地震就會自動關閉，可定時或自動偵測人是否在廚房，來關閉瓦斯，降低危險性，目前已和建商、住宅安全系統廠商合作生產安裝。為了居住安全，建議民眾在地震後檢查瓦斯管線，或安裝斷路器、安全閥等設備，減少發生氣爆的機會。
（自由時報記者林宜樟）
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