‘Swikini’ and self-cleaning path among UK inventions in 2022

Analysis of patent applications also reveals invention that only delivers text messages when you’re in the right mood

A swimsuit designed to look like a bikini, a system to make sure you never get sad text messages when you’re feeling low and a path that automatically washes away dog mess were just some of the creative ideas UK-based inventors came up with in 2022.

A Guardian analysis of the UK’s Intellectual Property Office (IPO) register found 6,416 patent applications registered to at least one UK inventor were published last year.