JP2002282168A - Toilet seat elevating device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide the toilet seat elevating device of rational and inexpensive structure capable of reducing physical load for both a care-taken and a care- given. SOLUTION: A toilet seat elevating device 1 is provided with a base part 2, which can be fixed around a toilet bowl 10, an elevating toilet seat 3 located on the base part 2 while covering the upper surface of the toilet bowl 10, a four-node link mechanism 4 for respectively linking the base part 2 and the elevating toilet seat 3 on both left and right sides and a stretching member 5 respectively hinging both ends to the base part 2 and the elevating toilet seat 3. By contracting the stretching member 5, the four-node link mechanism 4 is folded and the elevating toilet seat 3 is moved down to a sitting position. By elongating the stretching member 5, the four-node link mechanism 4 is raised and the elevating toilet seat 3 is projected in front of the base part 2 while being moved up and inclined forward.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a toilet seat elevating device that can freely raise and lower a toilet seat.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art For elderly people, sick persons, physically handicapped persons, and the like who use a wheelchair (hereinafter, these are collectively referred to as "cared people"), they move from a wheelchair to a toilet (mainly a Western toilet) during stool. An operation of getting up from a toilet or sitting down on a wheelchair tends to be an unstable and dangerous operation. In addition, even in such a caregiver who assists the daily life of the cared person, the work of sitting and standing slowly while supporting the cared person's body during stool is an extremely physical work. is there. In particular, the mid-lumbar state while standing or sitting is the posture that places the most burden on the lower body of both the cared person and the carer.

[0003] Therefore, conventionally, an L-shaped handrail or a handrail rotating horizontally has been attached to a wall surface close to the toilet, or an armrest-shaped handrail has been attached to both sides of a toilet seat.

[0004]

However, the above-mentioned handrail is expected for the caregiver's own strength and cannot stably support the weight of the lower body of the care receiver. Therefore, when the cared person's upper body muscle strength is weak, it is not a very effective means of assistance.

[0005] The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and in particular, raises a care receiver from a wheelchair to make it stand up, and then slowly sits down on the toilet seat from that position or slowly raises it from the toilet seat. When supporting you,
By raising and lowering the toilet seat with a simple lifting function,
The purpose of the present invention is to reduce the physical burden on the care receiver and the caregiver while supporting a part of the weight of the care receiver with the toilet seat. That is, a problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide a toilet seat elevating device having a reasonable and inexpensive structure that can reduce the physical load on both the care giver and the care receiver.

[0006]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, a toilet seat elevating device according to the present invention comprises a base which can be installed around a toilet, and a lift which is disposed on the base so as to cover an upper surface of the toilet. A toilet seat, a four-joint link mechanism for connecting the base and the lifting toilet seat on both left and right sides, an elastic member having both ends hingedly connected to the base and the lifting toilet seat, and operating means for expanding and contracting the elastic member; With
By retracting the telescoping member, the four-bar linkage is folded and the elevating seat lowers to the seating position at the base, while extending the telescoping member raises the four-bar link mechanism to raise and lower the toilet seat. While rising
It is characterized in that it is configured to protrude forward of the base.

That is, according to the present invention, a base is installed so as to cover an existing Western-style toilet or Japanese-style toilet, and an elevating toilet seat is attached to the base, and the elevating toilet seat can be freely raised and lowered by expanding and contracting an extendable member. It is made possible. The support structure of the lifting seat is simplified by connecting the base and the lifting toilet seat via a four-bar linkage, and the raised lifting seat protrudes forward of the base. Therefore, by raising or lowering the elevating toilet seat according to its height when the care receiver stands up or sits down, it is possible to reduce the burden on the lower body by depositing the weight in the unstable waist posture to the elevating toilet seat. it can.

[0008] Further, according to the present invention, the four-bar linkage may include:
It is characterized by comprising a short arm for hinge-connecting the base and the up-and-down toilet seat toward the front of the side, and a long arm for connecting the base and the up-and-down toilet seat to the side near the rear. According to the present invention, when the lift seat rises and approaches forward, the lift seat tilts slightly forward, so that it becomes easier to deposit weight in the mid-low back posture to the lift seat, and the seating / standing operation is further facilitated. .

Further, the present invention is characterized in that the expansion and contraction member comprises a hydraulic cylinder utilizing hydraulic pressure or pneumatic pressure, and a piston rod protruding and retracting in the hydraulic cylinder. According to the present invention, a sufficient supporting force and a smooth elevating operation can be obtained even if the fluid pressurizing / driving means is small, so that the elevating mechanism of the elevating seat can be realized simply and inexpensively.

The toilet seat elevating device according to the present invention is not limited to being installed on an existing toilet, but may be previously attached to a newly installed toilet and made into a unit. Also,
The toilet seat raising / lowering device of the present invention can be used not only for a severely cared person who uses a wheelchair but also for a general elderly person or a sick person who does not need a wheelchair.

[0011]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIGS. 1 and 2 are side views showing a state in which a toilet seat elevating device 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention is installed on an existing toilet bowl 10. FIG. 1 shows a state in which an elevator seat 3 is lowered. Reference numeral 2 denotes a state where the lifting toilet seat 3 is raised. FIG. 3 is a top view showing a state where the toilet seat elevating device 1 is installed on a toilet bowl 10, and FIG. 4 is a front view of the same.

The toilet seat elevating device 1 of the present invention includes a base 2 installed around the toilet 10 and an elevator seat 3 disposed on the base 2 so as to cover the upper surface of the toilet 10.

The base 2 in this embodiment is a toilet 1
And four legs 21 erected at the four corners around 0
And a reinforcing member 23 for connecting the lower portion of the leg portion 21 in the horizontal direction, so that the frame 22 is substantially at the same height as the upper surface of the existing toilet 10. Is formed. However, as long as the base 2 can be stably installed on the floor surface, the base 2 may have a cover-like shape surrounding the existing toilet 10 or may be formed integrally with the toilet 10.

The lifting toilet seat 3 has left and right side edges substantially parallel to each other.
The front edge is formed in a substantially semicircular shape in a top view, and a hole 31 for toilet is provided in the center. In the rear part of the elevator seat 3,
A backrest 32 is provided to support the waist when seated.

The lifting toilet seat 3 is connected to the base 2 via a four-bar linkage 4 and a telescopic member 5 as shown in FIGS. The four-bar link mechanism 4 and the telescopic member 5 are symmetrically arranged on both left and right sides of the toilet seat elevating device 1.

The four-joint link mechanism 4 is composed of side portions of the base 2 and the elevating toilet seat 3, and two arms whose both ends are hinged to each side. One of the two arms is a short arm 41 attached to the base 2 and the side of the lifting toilet seat 3 near the front of the side, and the other is a long arm attached to the base 2 and the lifting toilet seat 3 near the side of the side. 42. Both ends of each of the arms 41 and 42 are rotatably connected to the base 2 or the side of the elevating toilet seat 3. As shown in FIG. 1, this four-bar linkage 4
By folding the short arm 41 and the long arm 42 rearward with the hinge connection portion on the base 2 side as a fulcrum, the folding is performed.

The telescopic member 5 includes a hydraulic cylinder 51 using, for example, hydraulic pressure, pneumatic pressure, gas pressure, etc., and a piston rod 52 inserted into the hydraulic cylinder 51 and protruding by pressurization in the hydraulic cylinder 51. Is formed. Both ends of the elastic member 5 are the base 2 and the lifting toilet seat 3
Are hingedly connected to the side portions, respectively. In addition, a pump, a motor, a battery, a supply tube for a fluid, an operation lever and a switch for pressurizing and depressurizing the fluid, and the like, which are required according to the type of the fluid, are also attached to the elastic member 5. However, known technologies can be used for these auxiliary facilities, and their mounting positions are not particularly limited as long as they do not disturb the seating, so they are not shown in the drawings of the present application.

The toilet seat elevating device 1 thus configured is
When the telescopic member 5 is contracted as shown in FIG. 1, the four-joint link mechanism 4 is folded, and the elevating toilet seat 3 is lowered to a position close to the base 2 to be in a seated state. On the other hand, when the telescopic member 5 is extended as shown in FIG. 2, the four-joint link mechanism 4 is raised, and the elevating toilet seat 3 rises and approaches slightly forward of the base 2. At this time, the lifting toilet seat 3 is restrained by the turning radii of the short arm 41 and the long arm 42 and tilts forward so that the rear side is slightly higher. When sitting or standing up, the weight of the lower body in the mid-lumbar posture can be reduced by gradually raising or lowering the weight in this state while depositing it on the lifting / lowering toilet seat 3.

As described above, the toilet seat elevating device 1 of the present invention comprises:
Since the lifting and lowering toilet seat 3 can be raised and lowered smoothly by a rational and compact mechanism, it is easy to reduce the weight of the apparatus itself, and it is possible to manufacture the apparatus at low cost.

In the above-described embodiment, the case where the toilet seat elevating device 1 is installed on the existing Western toilet 10 has been described as an example. However, the toilet seat elevating device 1 of the present invention may be installed on a Japanese toilet. it can. In the case of installing on a Japanese-style toilet, the distance between the seating position of the lifting toilet seat 3 and the upper surface of the Japanese-style toilet becomes large. It is preferable to connect the water supply facility so that it opens in the toilet bowl and the flush water can flow into the bowl. In addition, the toilet seat elevating device 1 can be installed on a Japanese-style big and small toilet bowl (so-called "train toilet") provided with a step on the floor by making the shape of the base 2 correspond to the step on the floor. Can be.

[0022]

According to the toilet seat elevating device of the present invention, the toilet seat can be raised and lowered smoothly by a simple and compact mechanism. The physical load on the care receiver and the caregiver can be significantly reduced. In addition, it can be easily installed regardless of the type of toilet and whether it is existing or newly installed.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side view of a toilet seat elevating device according to an embodiment of the present invention, showing a state where an elevating toilet seat is lowered.

FIG. 2 is a side view of the toilet seat elevating device, showing a state where the elevator seat is raised.

FIG. 3 is a top view of the toilet seat elevating device.

FIG. 4 is a front view of the toilet seat elevating device.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Toilet seat elevating device 10 Toilet bowl 2 Base 3 Elevating toilet seat 4 Four-bar linkage 41 Short arm 42 Long arm 5 Telescopic member 51 Fluid pressure cylinder 52 Piston rod

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A base that can be installed around a toilet bowl, a lifting toilet seat disposed on the base so as to cover an upper surface of the toilet bowl, and a four-node connecting the base and the lifting toilet seat on both left and right sides, respectively. A link mechanism, an extendable member having both ends hingedly connected to the base and the elevating seat, respectively, and an operating means for extending and retracting the extendable member, wherein the four-joint link mechanism is folded by contracting the extendable member. While raising and lowering the toilet seat to the seating position at the base, by extending the telescopic member, the four-joint link mechanism is raised and the lifting toilet seat rises,
A toilet seat elevating device configured to protrude forward of a base. 2. The four-joint link mechanism comprises a short arm for hinge-connecting the base and the up-and-down toilet seat near the front of the side, and a long arm for hinge-connecting the base and the up-and-down toilet seat to the side near the rear. The toilet seat elevating device according to claim 1. 3. The toilet seat elevating device according to claim 1, wherein the extendable member comprises a hydraulic cylinder using hydraulic pressure or pneumatic pressure, and a piston rod that protrudes and retracts in the hydraulic cylinder. .