EP3587684A1

EP3587684A1 - Automatic flushing system and method

Info

Publication number: EP3587684A1
Application number: EP19182400.2A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Aykut Kizici; Onur Yenilmez; Fatih Gerenli; Bogac Simsir
Original assignee: Eczacibasi Yapi Gerecleri Sanayi ve Ticaret AS
Current assignee: Eczacibasi Yapi Gerecleri Sanayi ve Ticaret AS
Priority date: 2018-06-27
Filing date: 2019-06-25
Publication date: 2020-01-01
Also published as: KR20210022525A; WO2020050799A3; JP2021529273A; WO2020050799A2; US20210025152A1

Abstract

The invention relates to an automatic flushing system and method, which enable the degree of pollution to be detected and the flushing to be performed automatically according to the degree of pollution following the use of the ceramic sanitary ware (1). More particularly, the invention relates to an automatic flushing system and method, wherein it is possible to detect the pollution degree of the liquid within the ceramic sanitary ware (1) and/or within the connecting piece that connects the ceramic sanitary ware (1) to the wastewater installation and also to detect the foreign matter within the liquid by the use of the wireless signals and the flushing is performed automatically with required quantity of liquid according to the degree of pollution detected.

Description

Subject of the Invention

The invention relates to an automatic flushing system and method, which enable the degree of pollution to be detected and the flushing to be performed automatically according to the degree of pollution following the use of the ceramic sanitary ware.

State of the Art

The ceramic sanitary ware are mainly used for the purpose of personal cleaning in the bathrooms and toilets and for the purpose of washing various objects and foods in the kitchens. The water used during the cleaning and washing is required to be drained from the system. For this reason, the ceramic sanitary ware are connected to the wastewater installation via various connection members. Because the wastewater is conveyed by the wastewater installation, a malodor may pervade from the installation to the ambience in case the necessary measures are not taken. The S-pipes are used most of the time in order to prevent this situation. Owing to the S-pipe, some quantity of water remains in the system each time and this water forms a barrier between the wastewater installation and the ambience for preventing the diffusion of the malodor in the wastewater installation to the ambience.
Although the water accumulating within the S-pipe prevents the malodor in the wastewater installation from pervading to the ambience, said accumulated water itself may lead to the pervasion of the malodor to the ambience in case it becomes contaminated. Particularly in the toilet bowls and toilets, this water becomes contaminated after the use and it is necessary to activate the flushing system after the use in order to remove both the contaminated water and the waste material within the same from the S-pipe and to fill the S-pipe with clean water. In the existing systems, said flushing process is triggered manually most of the time by the user following the use and the flushing action is thus enabled.
With the advancing technology, different studies have been conducted with a view to automate the flushing systems. In such studies, the presence of a user in the ambience is detected by the sensors with different structures and the flushing automatically takes place when the user has left the specified area. The applications where a proximity sensor is employed, the sensor detects the user and the flushing system is activated when the user goes away are frequently employed. In such systems, the detection of a user is regarded as a data sufficient to trigger the flushing system irrespective of whether or not the toilet is actually used. This causes the flushing system to be activated even when it is not needed and thus an unnecessary consumption of water to take place.
The studies have been made on the systems, which monitor the use rather than the user, in order to prevent such undesirable water consumption. It has been aimed to detect the use by means of various optical sensors in some studies undertaken for this purpose, while some other studies have targeted the detection of the luminous transmittance of water and the detection of the solid matter in the water again with the help of the optical sensors.
The document no. US2016083949 describes a system comprised by the optical receivers and transmitters wherein the optical signal sent by the optical transmitter is received by the receiver and wherein whether or not the water is contaminated is determined according to the losses. In said document, the optical receivers and transmitters are mutually disposed on the toilet body in such a way that they are able to see one another and that the delivered optical signal passes through the water within the S-pipe to reach the receiver. In this manner, it is made possible to detect the pollution degree of the water within the toilet bowl and the solid objects within the water and thus to carry out the flushing process automatically. Another advantage of this system is that it prevents the unnecessary consumption of water owing to the fact that said system performs the flushing with a quantity of water that is necessary for flushing according to the pollution degree of the water. The main disadvantage of this system is that the process of placing said optical sensors on the toilet body in a way that they are able to see the interior of the toilet bowl is difficult and thus said process increases the costs and leads to various problems associated with the sealing. Consequently, the studies have been made on the systems that would allow the sensors to be fitted on the sanitary ware without having to make any hole on the ceramic sanitary ware.
In order to eliminate this problem, it has been aimed to detect the use by means of the wireless signals. In such studies the microwave radar sensors have mostly utilized. According to the document no. CN101550721 , a microwave radar sensor is positioned on a urinal wherein the flow into the urinal is detected by said sensor and the flushing is performed automatically once the flow has terminated. A similar system is disclosed also in the document no. JP2008249671 . According to the document no. JP2002285609 , a microwave radar sensor receiver and transmitter are positioned in the lower zone of a urinal wherein a flow is detected while it is occurring between the receiver and the transmitter and it is thus inferred that the urinal is being used. In said systems, it is not possible to detect the pollution degree of the water within the urinal by using the wireless signals.
With the invention, an automatic flushing system and method are described, wherein it is possible to detect the pollution degree of the waste liquid within the ceramic sanitary ware or within the connecting piece that connects the ceramic sanitary ware to the wastewater installation and also to detect the foreign matter within the waste liquid by the use of the wireless signals and the flushing is performed automatically with appropriate quantity of liquid according to the degree of pollution and wherein it is possible to achieve the same without making any hole on the ceramic sanitary ware or on the connecting piece that provides the connection between the ceramic sanitary ware and the wastewater installation, thus without any problem emerging in relation to the sealing and without needing a process like drilling a hole or forming a slot during the manufacture, and wherein the costs thus do not increase compared to the standard ceramic sanitary ware.

Object of the Invention

An object of the invention is to develop an automatic flushing system and method, which enable the flushing process to be performed automatically following the use of a ceramic sanitary ware.
Another object of the invention is to develop an automatic flushing system and method, wherein the pollution degree of the liquid within the ceramic sanitary ware and/or within the connecting piece that connects the ceramic sanitary ware to the wastewater installation is detected by means of the wireless signals after the use of said ceramic sanitary ware and thus the flushing is performed automatically with the required quantity of liquid.
Another object of the invention is to develop an automatic flushing system and method, wherein the pollution degree of the liquid is detected by a sensor that does not contact the liquid within the ceramic sanitary ware and/or within the connecting piece that connects the ceramic sanitary ware to the wastewater installation.
Another object of the invention is to develop an automatic flushing system and method, wherein the sensors are able to be fixed on the ceramic sanitary ware and/or on the connecting piece that connects the ceramic sanitary ware to the wastewater installation without having to make a hole or form a slot during the manufacture on the ceramic sanitary ware and/or on the connecting piece that connects the ceramic sanitary ware to the wastewater installation.
Another object of the invention is to develop an automatic flushing system and method able to be used in the existing ceramic sanitary ware without the need for any alteration or modification of the same.
Another object of the invention is to develop an automatic flushing system and method, wherein the pollution degree of the liquid is detected and the flushing is performed each time with a different quantity of liquid according to the pollution degree, in other words, each time only with a quantity of liquid that is necessary for flushing, and thus the unnecessary liquid consumption is prevented.

Description of the Figures

Figure 1 : A side sectional view of the ceramic sanitary ware
Figure 2 : A bottom view of the ceramic sanitary ware
Figure 3 : A front sectional view of the ceramic sanitary ware
Figure 4 : An angled rear view of the ceramic sanitary ware
Figure 5 : An angled bottom view of the ceramic sanitary ware
Figure 6 : An angled side view of the ceramic sanitary ware

Reference Numerals

1: : Ceramic sanitary ware
2: : Elbow structure
3: : Pollution detection member
4: : Pollution detection member connection

Detailed Description of the Invention

The invention relates to an automatic flushing system and method, which enable the degree of pollution to be detected and the flushing to be performed automatically according to the degree of pollution following the use of the ceramic sanitary ware (1). More particularly, the invention relates to an automatic flushing system and method, wherein it is possible to detect the pollution degree of the liquid within the ceramic sanitary ware (1) and/or within the connecting piece that connects the ceramic sanitary ware (1) to the wastewater installation and also to detect the foreign matter within the liquid by the use of the wireless signals and the flushing is performed automatically with required quantity of liquid according to the degree of pollution detected.
The liquid used in the areas like bathroom, toilet and kitchen is conveyed to the wastewater installation and removed from the system owing to the connection of the ceramic sanitary ware (1) with the wastewater installation. Most of the time the elbow structures (2) are employed in order to prevent the malodor in the wastewater installation from pervading to the ambience. Some quantity of liquid is always present within the elbow structure (2) and said liquid forms a barrier between the wastewater installation and the ambience, thereby prevents the diffusion of the malodor. Following the use of the ceramic sanitary ware (1), the transfer of the contaminated water and the solid matter within the elbow structure (2) to the wastewater installation is provided by means of some quantity of liquid. In order to achieve the desired hygiene conditions, it is necessary to realize the flushing with different quantities of liquid according to the pollution degree of the liquid within the elbow structure (2). In case an adequate quantity of water is not used, the flushing does not occur in a complete manner, in other words, the contaminated liquid or solid matter remains within the elbow structure (2); on the other hand, the use of a quantity of liquid that is more than necessary leads to the undesired liquid consumption.
With the invention, an automatic flushing system and method are developed in order to preclude such undesired situations, wherein the pollution degree of the liquid within the elbow structure (2) is detected and the flushing is performed with different quantities of liquid according to the pollution degree. In order to detect the pollution degree of the liquid within the elbow structure (2), at least one pollution detection member (3) is utilized in the system according to the invention. The pollution detection member (3) is a receiver or a transmitter or a transceiver. The wireless signals sent by the pollution detection member (3) in other words transmitter or the transceiver pass through the liquid present within the elbow structure (2) and reach the same pollution detection member (3) in other words the same transceiver or receiver or reach a different pollution detection member (3) in other words a different transceiver or receiver. Depending on the variation in the wireless signals, the pollution degree of the liquid within the elbow structure (2) is determined.
The number and positions of the pollution detection members (3) being employed may vary depending on the preferences and needs of the user. The pollution detection member (3) are positioned on the same level as the liquid within the elbow structure (2), preferably in a way to face the outer wall of the elbow structure (2). In the embodiments where it is preferred to use a single pollution detection member (3), the signals sent by the transmitter and receiver or transceiver pass through the outer walls of the elbow structure (2) and reach the contaminated liquid within said elbow structure (2). The electromagnetic properties of the liquid exhibit variations according to the degree of pollution of said liquid, where the signals that are reflected and that return to the same receiver and transmitter or transceiver differ according to the electromagnetic properties of the liquid. The degree of pollution of the liquid is determined based on such differences.
In a preferred embodiment of the invention, more than one pollution detection member (3) is used. Again, these pollution detection members (3) in other word receiver or transmitter or transceivers are positioned around the outer wall of the elbow structure (2) in such a way that at least one receiver or transmitter or transceiver will face at least one other receiver or transmitter or transceiver. According to this embodiment, the signals sent by the transmitter or transceiver pass through the elbow structure (2) and the liquid within the elbow structure (2) and are received by another transceiver or receiver, which is positioned opposite to the first transmitter or transceiver. Depending on the difference between the signal sent by the transmitter or transceiver and the signals received by the receiver or transceiver, the pollution degree of the liquid within the elbow structure (2) is determined.
Depending on the needs, preferences and area of use, the pollution detection member (3) may be positioned in a way to send signals in the direction parallel to the long side of the ceramic sanitary ware (1) and/or in the direction perpendicular to the long side of the ceramic sanitary ware (1) and/or in the upward direction from the floor.
The pollution detection member (3) are preferably connected to a main processing unit by means of a pollution detection member connection (4). The main processing unit enables a pollution detection member (3) to send a signal, the sent signal to be received by another pollution detection member (3) or the reflected signals to be received by the same pollution detection member (3). In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the pollution detection member (3) operates in the band range of 1 kHz - 6 GHz. In another preferred embodiment of the invention, the pollution detection member (3) operates in the band range of 6 GHz - 18 GHz. In another preferred embodiment of the invention, the pollution detection member (3) operates in the band range of 18 GHz - 40 GHz. In another preferred embodiment of the invention, the pollution detection member (3) operates in the band range of 40 GHz - 100 GHz. The received signals are recorded preferably as amplitude and phase and said recorded amplitude and phase are compared to the amplitude and phase that are measured in case the clean liquid is present within the elbow structure (2) in order to decide the degree of pollution of the liquid. In order to perform the flushing with the necessary quantity of liquid according to the degree of pollution, the flushing system is triggered by the main processing unit and the flushing process is thus performed.
The ceramic sanitary ware (1) may be a sink, urinal, Turkish style toilet and a toilet bowl, but it is not limited thereto and may be in the form of any ceramic sanitary ware (1).
Especially in case said ceramic sanitary ware (1) is a toilet bowl or Turkish style toilet, the realization of the automatic flushing process while the toilet is being used is an undesirable situation that needs to be prevented. For this purpose, a user sensor is utilized. Said sensor detects that the ceramic sanitary ware (1) is currently in use or that the use has ended and transmits the respective information to the main processing unit. Based on this information, the automatic flushing process is not performed until the information that the use has ended is transmitted to the main processing unit even if it has been detected that the liquid within the elbow structure (2) is contaminated. Preferably, the flushing is not performed for a predefined duration even after the information that the use has ended is transmitted by the sensor; in other words, the flushing is performed with a certain delay to thereby be made sure that the user has moved away from the ceramic sanitary ware (1).
Said sensor could be a vibration sensor to be placed on the ceramic sanitary ware (1) or on a means like the toilet seat cover contacted during the use of ceramic sanitary ware (1); a proximity sensor to be placed on the ceramic sanitary ware (1) or at any point within the ambience where the ceramic sanitary ware (1) is present for detecting a user, or any optical sensor as well as a sound sensor.
The automatic flushing method according to the invention comprises the following process steps:

The wireless signals are sent at certain intervals by the pollution detection member (3) to the liquid within the elbow structure (2) and said sent signals are received by the same pollution detection member (3) or another pollution detection member (3) depending on the use.
The received signals are compared to the reference values defined in the main processing unit and the pollution degree of the liquid within the elbow structure (2) is decided as a result of said comparison.
The flushing is performed with a predefined quantity of liquid according to the pollution degree.

In the automatic flushing system and method according to the invention, the automatic calibration is performed before each use, in order to increase the accuracy of the detected pollution degree. A threshold value for considering the liquid to be contaminated is defined in the main processing unit. In case the pollution degree detected by the pollution detection member (3) is above this threshold value, the flushing is performed automatically irrespective of whether or not the ceramic sanitary ware (1) has been used. According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, a user approaching the ceramic sanitary ware (1) is additionally detected by means of the sensors and the pollution degree of the liquid before the use is recorded and taken as a reference. The pollution degree after the use is compared to the reference value recorded before the use, and as a result of this comparison, the extent to which the liquid within the elbow structure (2) has been contaminated due to use is assessed and the flushing process is performed accordingly. In other words, the flushing process is prevented from being repeated continuously due to the change in the electromagnetic structure of the liquid resulting from the dissolution, in the liquid within the elbow structure (2), of the chemicals that are used because of partial contamination of the source liquid, for the purpose of cleaning the ceramic sanitary ware (1) and for other similar reasons.
In a preferred embodiment of the method according to the invention, a maximum number of flushing attempts is defined in the system in order to prevent the unnecessary consumption of water resulting from the successive flushing attempts performed by the system in case the liquid within the elbow structure (2) has become contaminated by any foreign matter and said contamination is not able to be removed by the flushing system. The flushing attempts are performed at most as many times as said maximum number in order to clean the liquid within the elbow structure (2), then the system switches into the standby mode and becomes disabled. In the preferred embodiment of the invention, the system that has been disabled may be activated again upon the system being triggered manually.
Another preferred embodiment of the method according to the invention comprises the odor suppression function. In case the ceramic sanitary ware (1) is not used for a long duration, the liquid within the elbow structure (2) will evaporate over time and the malodors originating from the wastewater installation will pervade to the ambience if the liquid drops below a certain level. In order to avoid such a situation, the flushing system is activated in case the liquid within the elbow structure (2) drops below the predefined level, thereby enabling the elbow structure (2) to be filled with liquid and enabling said liquid to perform its barrier function. The liquid level may be detected by means of the pollution detection member (3). The quantity of liquid within the elbow structure (2) may be determined by comparing the signals received by the receivers or transceivers to the reference values.
Another procedure that improves the accuracy of said method is the calibration performed after the installation. The pollution values detected by means of the pollution detection member (3) may differ according to the type of the ceramic sanitary ware (1) being used, of the flushing mechanism and of the liquid employed for the purpose of flushing. Consequently, the system is calibrated after the installation to achieve a more accurate detection of the pollution degree. During said calibration, the flushing system is activated manually to enable the liquid within the elbow structure (2) to be cleaned. Once it is made sure that the liquid is clean, the information that the liquid is clean is defined in the system. Then, the ceramic sanitary ware (1) is used and the liquid within the elbow structure (2) is defined to be contaminated after the use. Thus the system takes these values as reference for the subsequent uses, wherein said system takes the decision for whether or not activating the flushing system by comparing the current values to these reference values. The chemical structures of the urine and feces of the users also differ and cause the electromagnetic properties of the liquid within the elbow structure (2) to vary by different extents. According to said method, the electromagnetic properties of the liquid within the elbow structure (2) are recorded. The reference values are set automatically by the system by taking the averages of said recorded values. Thus, it is made possible to increase the detection accuracy for the pollution degree of the liquid within the elbow structure (2) and to perform the flushing with the right quantity of liquid.
Owing to the automatic flushing system and method according to the invention, the pollution after the use is detected by means of the wireless signals without any physical contact occurring with the contaminated liquid and the flushing is performed automatically with the necessary quantity of water, without having to make any change in the structure of the existing ceramic sanitary ware (1), and in this way, the liquid saving and the efficient flushing in the ceramic sanitary ware (1) are accomplished without complicating the manufacturing process for the ceramic sanitary ware (1) and without increasing the costs.

Claims

An automatic flushing system, which enables the degree of pollution to be detected following the use of the ceramic sanitary ware (1) and the flushing to be performed automatically, characterized in that it comprises at least one pollution detection member (3) which is a receiver or a transmitter or a transceiver being positioned in a way to face the wall of the elbow structure (2), which enables the ceramic sanitary ware (1) to be connected to the wastewater installation, and enabling to detect the pollution degree of the liquid with wireless signals.
An automatic flushing system according to Claim 1 characterized in that said pollution detection member (3) is a receiver and a transmitter or a transceiver capable of sending wireless signals and capable of catching the reflected signals that pass through the elbow structure (2) and through the liquid within the elbow structure (2) in order to detect the degree of pollution.
An automatic flushing system according to Claim 1 characterized in that it comprises at least one first transceiver or transmitter capable of sending wireless signals in order to detect the pollution and at least one second transceiver or receiver capable of catching the wireless signals, which are sent by the first transceiver or transmitter and which pass through the elbow structure (2) and the liquid within the elbow structure (2).
An automatic flushing system according to Claim 1 characterized in that it comprises at least one main processing unit, which determines the signal to be sent by the transmitter or transceiver, records the received signal by the receiver or transceiver and decides on the degree of pollution based on the difference between the sent and received signals.
An automatic flushing system according to Claim 4 characterized in that the main processing unit is a main processing unit, which records the signals sent and received by the transceiver or transmitter or receiver preferably in the form of amplitude and phase.
An automatic flushing system according to Claim 4 characterized in that the main processing unit is a main processing unit, which enables the flushing to be performed with the necessary quantity of liquid based on the degree of pollution detected.
An automatic flushing system according to Claim 1 characterized in that it comprises at least one sensor, which enables to detect that the use of the ceramic sanitary ware (1) has ended and/or a user has approached the ceramic sanitary ware (1).
An automatic flushing system according to Claim 7 characterized in that the sensor is an optical sensor, a sensor detecting the vibrations or a sensor detecting the sound.
An automatic flushing system according to Claim 1 characterized in that the pollution detection member (3) operates in the band range of 1 kHz - 6 GHz.
An automatic flushing system according to Claim 1 characterized in that the pollution detection member (3) operates in the band range of 6 GHz - 18 GHz.
An automatic flushing system according to Claim 1 characterized in that the pollution detection member (3) operates in the band range of 18 GHz - 40 GHz.
An automatic flushing system according to Claim 1 characterized in that the pollution detection member (3) operates in the band range of 40 GHz - 100 GHz.
An automatic flushing method, which enables the degree of pollution to be detected following the use of the ceramic sanitary ware (1) and the flushing to be performed automatically, characterized in that it comprises the process steps of
• sending of the wireless signals at certain intervals by the pollution detection member (3) to the liquid within the elbow structure (2) and receipt of said sent signals by the same pollution detection member (3) or another pollution detection member (3) depending on the use,

• comparing the received signals to the reference values defined in the main processing unit and deciding the pollution degree as a result of said comparison, and

• performing the flushing process with a predefined quantity of liquid according to the pollution degree.
An automatic flushing method according to Claim 13 characterized in that in case it is detected that a user approaches the ceramic sanitary ware (1), the pollution degree of the liquid within the elbow structure (2) is measured and recorded, and the degree of pollution is decided as a result of comparison of the pollution degree after the use to the initially measured values.
An automatic flushing method according to Claim 13 characterized in that in case it is detected that the use of the ceramic sanitary ware (1) has ended and in case the flushing process is required, the flushing is performed with a certain delay from the end of use.
An automatic flushing method according to Claim 13 characterized in that it comprises the calibration function enabling to manually perform the flushing after the installation of the automatic flushing system in the respective ceramic sanitary ware (1) is completed, enabling to define in the main processing unit the respective status as clean once it is made sure that the ceramic sanitary ware (1) is cleaned, enabling to define in the main processing unit the respective status as contaminated after the ceramic sanitary ware (1) is used and enabling to perform the flushing process for the subsequent uses according to these reference values.
An automatic flushing method according to Claim 13 characterized in that the pollution degrees before the use and after the use are recorded, said pollution degrees before the use and after the use are averaged separately and the reference values of clean water and contaminated water are set automatically by the system based on these average values.
An automatic flushing method according to Claim 13 characterized in that in case the pollution degree is above the desired value for any reason despite having performed the flushing process, the maximum number of flushing attempts as defined in the main processing unit are performed and then the automatic flushing system switches into the standby state.
An automatic flushing method according to Claim 13 characterized in that in case the liquid within the elbow structure (2) drops below the predefined level, the flushing process is performed and the liquid level is enabled to reach the desired minimum value.