JP2003075553A - Light sensor and toilet seat device using the light sensor - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To simplify the structure of a light sensor and reduce the cost of the light sensor and facilitate the integration of it to product by integrally constituting the light sensor for performing an object detection with a display element and dispensing with an exclusive light guide part. SOLUTION: Light transmitting and receiving elements 15 and 16 for performing the object detection, the display element 21 for luminously displaying the object detection state by the light transmitting and receiving elements and a display element cover 22 for covering the display element are mounted on a single holder 11. The holder 11 is covered with a front casing 12 and a rear casing 13, and the display element cover 22 comprises a protruding part 22a protruded in the direction approaching to the front casing 12. The protruding part 11a has the light guide function to the front casing 12.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an optical sensor for detecting an object and a toilet seat device using the optical sensor.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, when an object is detected and the object detection state is displayed on a display element, a light emitting / receiving element for detecting the object, an optical system member of the light emitting / receiving element, and a control of the light emitting / receiving element. An optical sensor is constructed by incorporating a circuit board on which a circuit is mounted in one holder, and a display element is incorporated in a dedicated holder different from this holder, and the optical sensor and the display element are arranged side by side separately. It was Further, in terms of appearance, a makeup front cover that covers the display element and the optical sensor is provided, and the object detection state is luminescently displayed by a part of the front cover by the display element. Further, when the waterproof structure is used, the optical sensor has a waterproof structure and the display element is covered with a display element cover separately from the waterproof structure to provide a waterproof structure.

[0003]

In the above prior art,
Even when the display element is installed in a dedicated holder and provided separately from the optical sensor, and the waterproof structure is used separately for the display element and the optical sensor, the size and cost are increased, and the product There was a problem that it was complicated to install in. Further, due to the arrangement of the light emitting / receiving element, the optical system member, the display element or the display element cover, the position of the front cover may be restricted and the distance between the display element cover and the front cover may be increased. In that case, it is necessary to provide a light guide member between the display element cover and the front cover,
There is a problem that the number of parts increases, resulting in large size and high cost.

Therefore, according to the present invention, the light emitting / receiving element for detecting an object and the display element are integrally formed, and the display element cover is provided with a light guiding function so that a dedicated light guiding member is not required and the structure is simplified. Cost reduction, cost reduction, and easy integration into products.

[0005]

In an optical sensor according to the present invention, a light emitting / receiving element for detecting an object, a display element for emitting and displaying an object detection state by the light emitting / receiving element, and a display element cover for covering the display element. And a single holder to which the light emitting / receiving element, the display element, and the display element cover are attached, and the holder is covered with a front cover located in front of the light emitting / receiving element and the display element cover. In addition, the front cover is provided with a display portion that faces the display element cover and that displays the object detection state by the display element. The display element cover includes the display portion. It is characterized in that a protrusion having a function of guiding light to the display portion is provided so as to protrude in a direction approaching. With this configuration, the light emitting / receiving element and the display element are not housed and held in one holder, and there is no need to provide the display element in a dedicated holder. The configuration is simple, downsizing and cost reduction are possible, and the product is It can be easily incorporated into. Further, since the display element cover is provided with a light guiding function and it is not necessary to provide a dedicated light guiding member, the cost can be further reduced.

Further, a toilet seat device using an optical sensor according to the present invention has a toilet lid and a toilet seat which are independently arranged so as to be capable of being opened and closed above the toilet bowl, and the optical sensor according to claim 1. It is characterized in that the toilet lid and the toilet seat are controlled to open and close based on the object detection information of the optical sensor. With this configuration, with the miniaturization and cost reduction of the optical sensor,
It is possible to reduce the size and cost of the toilet seat device.

[0007]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION An embodiment of the present invention will be described.

FIG. 5 and FIG. 6 show a toilet seat device using an optical sensor. The toilet seat device is an example of a target control device that is controlled based on the information from the optical sensor, and the device body 2 is fixed to the upper rear surface of the toilet bowl (not shown). A control circuit 10 for exchanging signals with the optical sensor is provided inside the apparatus body 2. A toilet lid 3 and a toilet seat 4 are provided above the toilet bowl so that they can be independently opened and closed. The device body 2 is provided with an optical sensor 5 for detecting that the user has entered the toilet in the vicinity of the rear ends of the toilet lid 3 and the toilet seat 4 and for detecting that the user has sat on the toilet seat 4. It is set up. A toilet lid drive motor 6a and a toilet seat drive motor 6b are provided inside the apparatus body 2 as an automatic opening / closing device 6 for opening and closing the toilet lid 3 and the toilet seat 4. In addition, a local cleaning device 8 that is activated only when a user sits on the toilet seat 4 is disposed inside the device body 2 by the cleaning water that has been passed through a supply pipe 7 from a tap water pressure source (not shown). It is set up. The operation switch 9 for instructing the start of cleaning is arranged at a position where a user sitting on the toilet seat 4 can easily operate it manually. The automatic opening / closing device 6 and the local cleaning device 8 are controlled by the control circuit 10.

An optical sensor 5 is shown in FIGS. The optical sensor 5 is one in which two sets of light emitting / receiving elements, a control circuit for controlling these light emitting / receiving elements, and each optical system member of each light emitting / receiving element are housed in one holder. That is, as shown in FIG. 4, the optical sensor 5 is provided with the holder 11,
Each of the light emitting / receiving elements, each optical system member, and the control circuit is housed and held in the holder 11. The light emitting / receiving element is composed of a light emitting element and a light receiving element.When the light emitted from the light emitting element is reflected by the object to be detected and is received by the light receiving element, it is detected by the light receiving position on the light receiving element. It can detect the distance to an object. When used in the toilet seat device 1,
When the detection distance is smaller than the predetermined distance a, it is determined that the user has entered the toilet, and when the detection distance is smaller than the predetermined distance a and smaller than the predetermined distance b, the user sits on the toilet seat 4. It has come to judge that it did. The two sets of light emitting / receiving elements are provided so that the toilet lid 3 does not interfere with the user whether the toilet lid 3 is closed or when the toilet lid 3 is open. This is for surely detecting the entry into the toilet and the seating of the user on the toilet seat 4. That is, when the toilet lid 3 is closed when the user enters the toilet, one of the light emitting and receiving elements detects the user entering the toilet, and then the user opens the toilet lid 3 to open the toilet seat 4 When the user sits on the seat, the other light emitting / receiving element detects the seat of the user on the toilet seat 4. Further, when the toilet lid 3 is opened when the user enters the toilet, the other light projecting / receiving element detects the user's entry into the toilet, and the other time when the user sits on the toilet seat 4 thereafter. The user's seating on the toilet seat 4 is detected by the light emitting / receiving element.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the holder 11
In the storage chamber 11a for storing and holding the first light projecting element 14.
And a storage chamber 11b for storing and holding the second light projecting element 15.
A storage chamber (not shown) for storing and holding a first light receiving element (not shown) forming a pair with the first light projecting element 14, and a second light receiving element 16 forming a pair with the second light projecting element 15. A storage chamber 11c for storing and holding, a storage chamber 11d for storing and holding an optical lens 17 as an optical system member, which communicates with the storage chamber 11a and is arranged in front of the first light projecting element 14, and communicates with the storage chamber 11b. A housing chamber 11e for housing and holding an optical lens 18 as an optical system member arranged in front of the second light projecting element 15.
And holds and holds an optical lens 19 as an optical system member that is arranged in front of the first light receiving element (not shown) and communicates with a storage chamber (not shown) that holds and holds the first light receiving element (not shown). A storage chamber 11f and a storage chamber 11g that communicates with the storage chamber 11c and that stores and holds the optical lens 20 as an optical system member arranged in front of the second light receiving element 15 are provided. That is, the holder 11 includes a light projecting / receiving element including a first light projecting element 14 and a first light receiving element (not shown) paired with the first light projecting element 14, and a second light projecting element. Element 1
5 and the second light emitting element 15 and the second light receiving element 16 forming a pair, and two sets of light emitting and receiving elements and optical lenses 17, 18, 19, 20 of each light emitting and receiving element.
Are assembled in a single holder 11. The respective optical lenses 17, 18, 19, 20 are tightly adhered to the inner walls of the storage chambers 11d, 11e, 11f, 11g along the entire outer peripheral edge thereof to store the storage chambers 11a, 11b, 11c and the first light receiving element. A front part of a storage chamber (not shown) for storing and holding (not shown) is sealed to have a waterproof structure. An adhesive agent (not shown) is applied to the entire circumference of each of the optical lenses 17, 18, 19, and 20.
The inner walls of d, 11e, 11f, and 11g are closely fixed and sealed between the inner walls of the storage chambers 11d, 11e, 11f, and 11g.

Further, the holder 11 is provided with a display for emitting light in two colors, for example, red and green, in order to emit and display an object detection state such as that the main power source is on or the user has entered the toilet. Display element 2 while accommodating and holding element 21
1, an element mounting portion 11h is provided in front of which the transparent display element cover 22 that covers the display element 21 is attached. A storage chamber for storing and holding the display element 21 is provided in the element mounting portion 11h, and a front portion of the storage chamber is sealed by a display element cover 22 to have a waterproof structure. An adhesive agent (not shown) is applied to the entire circumference of the display element cover 22, and the display element 21 is covered with the adhesive agent.
Is closely fixed to the wall surface of the storage chamber of the display element 21 to seal the space between the display element 21 and the wall surface of the storage chamber.

On the back surface of the holder 11, the first light projecting element 1 is provided.
Board 24 to which 4 is attached, board 25 to which the second light projecting element 15 is attached, and first light receiving element (not shown)
A substrate (not shown) to which the device is attached, and the second light receiving element 1
6 and the substrate 26 to which the display element 21 is attached are attached, and the first light projecting element 14, the second light projecting element 15, and the first light projecting element 14 are paired via these boards. First light receiving element (not shown), second light receiving element 16
Each element of the display element 21 is housed and held in each housing chamber. Then, the optical axis L1 of the light projection beam emitted from the first light projecting element 14 and the optical axis L2 of the light projection beam emitted from the second light projecting element 15 are set to be non-parallel. That is, the direction of the optical axis L1 of the light projected beam emitted from the first light projecting element 14 and the direction of the optical axis L2 of the light projected beam emitted from the second light projecting element 15 are different directions. The substrate (not shown) to which the substrates 24, 25, 26 and the first light receiving element (not shown) are attached is
Each position can be adjusted. As an example, a structure for adjusting the position of the substrate 25 will be described. As shown in FIG. 2, the board 25 is provided with a guide groove (not shown) extending in the left-right direction of FIG.
A and 25b are located in the guide groove, and the position of the guide groove can be adjusted in the horizontal direction of FIG. 2 by the length of the guide groove. Then, by adjusting the position of the substrate 25, the position of the second light projecting element 15 can be adjusted in the horizontal direction of FIG.
Thereby, the second light projecting element 15 passing through the center of the lens 18
The direction of the optical axis L2 of the projection beam emitted from is adjustable. Although not shown, the substrate 24 also has a similar structure, and the direction of the optical axis L1 of the light projection beam emitted from the first light projecting element 14 can also be adjusted. Further, the longitudinal direction of the guide groove is set to the vertical direction of FIG. 3 instead of the horizontal direction of FIG. 2 and the direction of the optical axis L1 of the light projection beam emitted from the first light projecting element 14 and the light projecting beam emitted from the second light projecting element 15. It is also possible to adjust the direction of the optical axis L2 of the projected beam. The direction of the optical axis L1 of the light projecting beam emitted from the first light projecting element 14 and the direction of the optical axis L2 of the light projecting beam emitted from the second light projecting element 15 are adjustable. The first light projecting element 14 and the second light projecting element 1 are installed according to the position and the situation when the light is installed at a desired position.
It may be necessary to change the light projecting direction of the light projecting beam emitted from No. 5, and in order to cope with this, the light projecting from the first light projecting element 14 and the second light projecting element 15 may be performed as necessary. The optical axes L1 and L2 of the beam can be adjusted.

On the bottom surface of the holder 11, the first light projecting element 1 is provided.
4 and the second light projecting element 15 electrically connected to the first
A circuit board 23, which is equipped with a control circuit for controlling the light projecting element 14 and the second light projecting element 15, is electrically connected to the display element 21 and exchanges signals with the toilet seat device 1. A board mounting portion 11i mounted is provided. That is, the holder 11 incorporates the circuit board 23 on which the control circuit for each light emitting / receiving element is mounted. The circuit board 23 is connected to each of the boards 24, 25, 26 and the board (not shown) to which the first light receiving element (not shown) is attached. Circuit board 23 and boards 24, 25 and first
Substrate (not shown) to which the light receiving element (not shown) of is attached
A lead wire is used to connect each of the boards, and a flexible cable 27 is used to connect the board 26 and the circuit board 23. That is, the display element 21 is the circuit board 2
3 is electrically connected to the control circuit 10 to transmit and receive signals to and from the control circuit 10. All the connection lines of the light emitting and receiving elements and the display element 21, that is, a cable 29 described later, are integrated into one body, and the toilet seat device is collectively assembled. 1 is connected to the control circuit 10.

Locking portions 11j are formed on both side surfaces of the holder 11, and the front cover 1 is attached to these locking portions 11j.
2 is detachably locked. The front cover 12 includes a front surface portion 12 a facing the front surface of the holder 11 and a holder 11
A top surface portion 12b facing the top surface of the holder 11 and side surface portions 12c facing both side surfaces of the holder 11, and a back surface opening 12d exposing the back surface of the holder 11 and a bottom surface opening 12e exposing the bottom surface of the holder 11 are provided. is there. On the side surface portion 12c,
A locking window 12f for locking the locking portion 11j of the holder 11 is provided. A window hole 12g is provided in the front surface portion 12a at a position facing the display element cover 22.
A member that transmits light is fitted to and joined to the display window 28.
Is formed. The front surface portion 12a cuts visible light to make the front surface of the holder 11 invisible, and functions as a makeup cover to improve the appearance. The rear opening 12d allows the substrate 24,
The position of each substrate of the substrates (not shown) to which 25, 26 and the first light receiving element (not shown) are attached can be adjusted, and the position of each light projecting element or each light receiving element can be freely adjusted. The display element cover 22 is disposed close to the display window portion 28. That is, the display element cover 22 is
The projection 22a is provided on the front surface, and the projection 22a serves to guide the light to the display window 28 by narrowing the space between the projection 22a and the display window 28.

A rear cover 13 is attached to the holder 11 with screws (not shown). The rear cover 13 includes a bottom surface portion 13 a facing the bottom surface of the holder 11 and a back surface portion 13 b facing the back surface of the holder 11. When the rear cover 13 is attached, the rear surface portion 13b is closely joined to the rear surface and the bottom surface of the holder 11 so that the rear surface opening 12d of the front cover 12 is closed by the rear surface portion 13b and the front cover 1 is attached.
The second bottom surface opening 12e is closed by the bottom surface portion 13a. The back surface portion 13b is provided with a first opening 13c which serves as a lead-out portion for a cable 29 which is a bundle-like connecting wire connected to the circuit board 23. The cable 29 also includes a connecting line for the display element 21. On the back surface of the rear cover 13, the periphery of the first opening 13c is surrounded and the cable 29
Is formed with a frame portion 13d for sealing for stably fixing the above. The lid 30 is fitted to the sealing frame portion 13d,
The lid 30 is provided with a second opening 30a which is displaced with respect to the first opening 13c. The cable 29 is inserted into both openings 13c and 30a, and is pulled out to the back side of the rear cover 13 as shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 3, the lid 30 has a mounting screw 3
1 is inserted through the rear cover 13 via the mounting screw 31.
It is also fixed to the holder 11. The mounting screw 31 penetrates the rear cover 13 and is screwed into the holder 11. That is, the rear cover 13 and the lid body 30 are screwed to the holder 11 with one mounting screw 31.

Behind the lid body 30, a space surrounded by the frame portion 13d is filled with a sealing material 32 such as silicon, and the sealing material 32 seals the lead-out portion of the cable 29 to provide a waterproof structure. Has become. When the sealing material 32 is filled behind the lid body 30, the sealing material 32 does not flow into the back side of the holder 11. That is, the middle portion of the cable 29 bends and passes through the second opening 30a,
Since the second opening 30a is closed by 9, the sealing material 32 is filled from the second opening 30a to the inside of the lid body 30 when the sealing material 32 is filled. Opening 13c
It is prevented from penetrating inside the rear cover 13. The connector 33 shown in FIG. 4 is connected to the tip of the cable 29 pulled out from the sealing material 32 to the rear of the rear cover 13, and is connected to the control circuit 10 of the toilet seat device 1 shown in FIG. 6 via the connector 33. ing.

Next, the operation of the toilet seat device 1 will be described.

When the toilet seat 4 and the toilet lid 3 are both closed when the user enters the toilet, the first light projecting element 14
The light emitted from is received by a first light receiving element (not shown) to detect the distance to the user. When the detection distance to the user is smaller than the predetermined distance a, it is determined that the user has entered the toilet, and the control circuit 10 turns on the display element 21 and the toilet lid drive motor 6a based on the detection information. It is driven to open the toilet lid 3. At this time, the toilet seat drive motor 6b is not driven, the toilet seat 4 is not opened unnecessarily, and the user can sit on the toilet lid 3. After opening the toilet lid 3, the light emitted from the second light projecting element 15
The light receiving element 16 detects the distance to the user. When the detection distance to the user is smaller than the predetermined distance a and further smaller than the predetermined distance b, the user is in the toilet seat 4
Based on this detection information, the control circuit 10 enables the local cleaning device 8 to operate. And
When the user manually operates the operation switch 9, the local cleaning device 8 is activated and various modes of cleaning are possible.

When the toilet seat 4 and the toilet lid 3 are both open when the user enters the toilet, the second light projecting element 15
The light emitted from is received by the second light receiving element 16 and the distance to the user is detected. When the detected distance to the user is smaller than the predetermined distance a, it is determined that the user has entered the toilet, and the control circuit 10 turns on the display element 21 and drives the toilet seat drive motor 6b based on the detected information. Then, the toilet seat 4 is closed. At this time, the toilet lid drive motor 6a is not driven, the toilet lid 3 is not closed unnecessarily, and the user can sit on the toilet seat 4. After the toilet seat 4 is closed, the light emitted from the second light projecting element 15 is
The light receiving element 16 detects the distance to the user. When the detection distance to the user is smaller than the predetermined distance a and further smaller than the predetermined distance b, the user is in the toilet seat 4
Based on this detection information, the control circuit 10 enables the local cleaning device 8 to operate. And
When the user manually operates the operation switch 9, the local cleaning device 8 is activated and various modes of cleaning are possible.

When the toilet seat 4 is closed and the toilet lid 3 is open when the user enters the toilet, the second light projecting element 1
The light emitted from 5 is received by the second light receiving element 16 to detect the distance to the user. When the detected distance to the user is smaller than the predetermined distance a, it is determined that the user has entered the toilet, and the control circuit 10 turns on the display element 21 based on the detected information. At this time, the toilet lid drive motor 6
a and the toilet seat drive motor 6b are not driven, the toilet lid 3 is not closed unnecessarily, and the toilet seat 4 is not opened unnecessarily, and the user can sit on the toilet seat 4. After that, the light emitted from the second light projecting element 15 is received by the second light receiving element 16 to detect the distance to the user. When the detection distance to the user is smaller than the predetermined distance a and smaller than the predetermined distance b, it is determined that the user is seated on the toilet seat 4, and the control circuit 10 causes the local cleaning device 8 to operate based on the detection information. Ready to operate. Then, when the user manually operates the operation switch 9, the local cleaning device 8 is activated and various modes of cleaning are possible.

In the optical sensor 5 used for controlling the opening / closing drive of the toilet lid 3 and the toilet seat 4 in this manner, the first light projecting element 14 and the first light receiving element which forms a pair with the first light projecting element 14. A first light projecting / receiving element composed of an element (not shown), a second light projecting element 15 and a second light receiving element 16 forming a pair with the second light projecting element 15. Two sets of light emitting and receiving elements, two light emitting and receiving elements, optical lenses 17, 18, 19, 20 of each light emitting and receiving element and a circuit board 23 on which a control circuit for each light emitting and receiving element is mounted are incorporated in a single holder 11. Therefore, the two sets of light emitting / receiving elements and the like are integrally configured as a whole, so that the size and cost can be reduced, and the toilet seat device can be easily incorporated into the device body 2. Also,
In the toilet seat device using the optical sensor 5, the size and cost of the optical sensor 5 can be reduced as the size and cost of the optical sensor 5 are reduced. The same effect can be obtained not only when two sets of light emitting / receiving elements are incorporated in a single holder 11, but also when three or more sets of light emitting / receiving elements are incorporated in a single holder 11. 5, the display element 21 is attached to the single holder 11.
Since the display element 21 is held by the single holder 11 in addition to the two sets of light emitting / receiving elements, the display element 21 does not need to be provided in a dedicated holder. Can be simplified, which also enables downsizing and cost reduction. Further, as the size and cost of the optical sensor 5 are reduced, the size and cost of the toilet seat device can be reduced. In this case as well, similar effects can be obtained not only when two sets of light emitting / receiving elements are incorporated in the single holder 11, but also when three or more sets of light emitting / receiving elements are incorporated in the single holder 11. To be

Further, in the optical sensor 5, the display element 21 is connected to the circuit board 23, and the display element 21 is connected to the control circuit 10 through the circuit board 23 and the two sets of light emitting and receiving elements through the common lead-out portion by the cable 29. Because it is connected,
By simply connecting the connector 33 to the control circuit 10, the two sets of the light emitting / receiving element and the display element 21 can be easily connected to the control circuit 10, which also enables cost reduction. Further, in the toilet seat device using the optical sensor 5, since the optical sensor 5 in which the light emitting / receiving element and the display element 21 are simply connected to the circuit board 23 is used, two sets of the light emitting / receiving element and the display element 21 are used. The optical sensor 5 can be easily incorporated by integrally connecting the connection line of 1., and the cost can also be reduced by this. In this case as well, the same effect can be obtained not only by providing two sets of light emitting / receiving elements but also by incorporating one set or three or more sets of light emitting / receiving elements in a single holder 11.

Further, in the optical sensor 5, the front cover 12 is provided in front of the holder 11, and when the user enters the toilet by the display element 21 through the display window portion 28 of the front cover 12, the fact is indicated by light emission. However, since the display element cover 22 is provided with the projecting portion 22a having a light guiding function to the display window section 28 in the vicinity of the display window section 28, the light emitted from the display element 21 efficiently reaches the display window section 28. When the user enters the room, he / she can clearly display that fact on the display window portion 28, and the visibility is improved. Therefore, it is not necessary to provide a dedicated light guide member between the display element cover 22 and the display window portion 28, and this also enables cost reduction.

Further, in the optical sensor 5, the front cover 12 is provided with a back opening 12d for exposing the back surface of the holder 11,
A substrate 24 to which the first light projecting element 14 is attached through the rear opening 12d, a substrate 25 to which the second light projecting element 15 is attached, and a substrate (not shown) to which the first light receiving element (not shown) is attached, Since the position of the second light receiving element 16 and the substrate 26 to which the display element 21 is attached can be adjusted, the rear opening is retained even after the front cover 12 is locked to the holder 11 and the holder 11 is covered with the front cover 12. The position of each light projecting element or each light receiving element is adjusted through 12d to easily adjust the direction of the optical axis of the light projecting beam emitted from the first light projecting element 14 or the second light projecting element 15 as necessary. And can be easily incorporated into the toilet seat device.
Also, since the rear opening 12d is closed by the rear cover 13,
There is no inconvenience in waterproofing and dustproofing. Further, since the circuit board 23 is attached to the bottom surface of the holder 11 and the bottom opening 12e exposing the bottom surface of the holder 11 is formed in the front cover 12, the bottom opening 12e is formed even after the front cover 12 covers the holder 11. Through this, the connection state between the control circuit 10 of the toilet seat device and the circuit board 23 can be adjusted. In addition, the bottom opening 12e has the rear cover 13
Since it is closed with, there will be no inconvenience in waterproofing and dustproofing. Further, since the rear cover 13 is tightly joined to the back surface and the bottom surface of the holder 11, the inconvenience of waterproofing and dustproofing can be eliminated easily and surely.

Further, in the optical sensor 5, the rear cover 13 is provided with the first opening 13c and the lid 30 is formed with the second opening 30a for pulling the middle portion of the cable 29 into the bent state to the outside. Since the intermediate portion of the cable 29 is bent by 13 and the lid 30 and pulled out from the back side, the cable 2
Even when a tensile force is applied to the cable 9, no stress is generated in the connection portion of the cable 29 with the circuit board 23, and no conduction failure occurs. Further, since the rear cover 13 and the lid body 30 are screwed to the holder 11 by the same mounting screw 31, the lid body 30 can be easily assembled with the rear cover 13. Further, since the space surrounded by the frame portion 13d behind the lid 30 is filled with the sealing material 32 to form a waterproof structure, the usage fee of the sealing material 32 can be reduced and the cost is low.

In the optical sensor 5, the first light projecting element 1
Since the optical axis L1 of the projection beam emitted from 4 and the optical axis L2 of the projection beam emitted from the second light projecting element 15 are provided non-parallel, it is possible to detect an object in different directions, The degree of freedom in the installation position in the toilet seat device is improved, and the degree of freedom in designing and designing the toilet seat device is improved. Also, the first
Optical axis L1 of the light projection beam emitted from the second light projection element 14 and optical axis L of the light projection beam emitted from the second light projection element 15
2 is adjustable in its direction, the optical axis L1 of the projection beam emitted from the first projection element 14 and the second
Each direction of the optical axis L2 of the light projection beam emitted from the light projecting element 15 can be arbitrarily adjusted, and it is possible to easily detect any direction according to the user's entry position into the toilet. You can

[0027]

According to the optical sensor of the present invention, the light projecting / receiving element and the display element are housed and held in one holder, and it is not necessary to provide the display element in a dedicated holder. Cost reduction and cost reduction, and easy integration into products. Further, since the display element cover has a light guiding function, it is not necessary to provide a dedicated light guiding member,
Further cost reduction is possible.

Further, the toilet seat device using the optical sensor according to the present invention can be downsized and reduced in cost, and since the optical sensor which can be easily incorporated into a product is used, it is reduced in size and cost. It is also possible to incorporate the optical sensor easily.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view of essential parts showing an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along the line AA in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along the line BB of FIG.

4 is an exploded perspective view of FIG. 1. FIG.

FIG. 5 is a reduced plan view showing a toilet seat device using the optical sensor of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a toilet seat device.

[Explanation of symbols]

3 toilet lid 4 toilet seat 5 Optical sensor 11 holder 12 Front cover 14,15 Projector 16 Light receiving element 21 Display element 22 Display element cover 22a protrusion

   ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued front page    (72) Inventor Hiroshi Takahashi             Sei 1-1 Akanehama, Narashino City, Chiba Prefecture             Co-Precision Co., Ltd. F term (reference) 2D037 AB07 AD14 AD16

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A light emitting / receiving element for detecting an object, and a display element for emitting and displaying an object detection state by the light emitting / receiving element.
A display element cover that covers the display element, a single holder to which the light emitting / receiving element, the display element, and the display element cover are attached are provided, and the holder is in front of the light emitting / receiving element and the display element cover. Is covered with a front cover located in the front cover, the front cover is provided with a display unit that is positioned to face the display element cover and in which the object detection state is emitted by the display element. The optical sensor, wherein the element cover is provided with a protrusion that protrudes in a direction approaching the display unit and has a function of guiding light to the display unit. 2. A toilet lid and a toilet seat, which are independently arranged so as to be opened and closed above the toilet bowl, and an optical sensor according to claim 1, and the toilet lid and the toilet seat are based on object detection information of the optical sensor. A toilet seat device, wherein the toilet seat is controlled to open and close.