Several years ago, Walton designer Dominic Robinson gave up trying to sleep during a flight to Hong Kong and instead drew a design for a new aircraft seat on a piece of paper writes Barry Goodson.

Last week that design landed him the prestigious title of British Invention of the Year when his novel aircraft seat scooped the Diamond Award at the annual British Invention Show.

The seat moves forward and down into a cavity beneath the seat in front, vastly improving the passenger's comfort and chances of sleep.

Dominic, whose Blue Sky Product Design is based in Pond Close, Walton, said: "I was surprised when I found out I had won. It is quite special. Sometimes people think you are a dreamer and it is really tough to keep going against the odds."

He said: "I was on a flight to Hong Kong. I woke up with a terrible ache in my shoulders.

"Being a designer you don't look at things without coming up with solutions, so I drew a design for a new seat on a small piece of paper, and it went from there."

Years of development later, he claims that it is belief that brought his design so far from its humble roots.

He said: "You have to really, really believe in what you are doing, so this is a huge achievement. I can't quite describe it."

Winning the award brings with it kudos that can help designers find a licensing agreement with a manufacturer, but Dominic says he has been in confidential negotiations for production since before winning the award.

The inventor himself claims to have slept well in the prototype of his seat design, and soon we may all be sleeping comfortably on long-haul flights, courtesy of Dominic Robinson's pen and paper.

Kingston Inventors Club meets on the third Wednesday of each month on the university campus. For details, call 020 8547 8605.