JP2003293436A - Toilet stool washing device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To solve the problems that with the conventional photoelectric infrared sensor, the performance is varied with the color of a user's clothes, so in the case of black clothes, for example, no detection is caused, and that in the case of a collector type infrared sensor, it is influenced by the temperature of the atmosphere, so in the case of hot summer, for example, there is no difference between the body temperature of the user and the temperature of the atmosphere, no detection is caused, further that when the toilet stool is clogged, frequently such clogging is not known, so filthy water overflows, and on the other hand, in the case of a small quantity of excretion, excessive washing water is let flow to be wasted. <P>SOLUTION: A microwave sensor is installed on the top of a trap part of the toilet stool, thereby detecting the state of the trap. The microwave sensor is made movable, whereby the human body can be detected. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a toilet bowl cleaning device for discharging dirt by utilizing a siphon action.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art For cleaning toilet bowls, a mainstream method is to supply a predetermined amount of cleaning water by a cleaning operation. on the other hand,
In the sense of controlling the amount of washing water, there is also one that has a size switching function and can switch the amount of water between two patterns by controlling the water supply valve.

[0003]

However, in the conventional toilet bowl cleaning, the amount of cleaning water supplied to the toilet bowl in a specific cleaning pattern is a predetermined constant before the cleaning operation, and therefore, the toilet bowl is supplied to the toilet bowl. When there is a large amount of filth including toilet paper, the mess cannot be completely discharged to the drain pipe outside the toilet with a certain amount of wash water, and clogging may occur. When it occurs, in a common case, the next user may not know that it is clogged, and the next user may perform the toilet cleaning operation, and the dirty water may overflow. On the other hand, if the amount of filth is small, excess cleaning water will be supplied,
It was in vain. Further, it has been attempted to detect the presence or absence of the siphon action by a sensor such as a pressure sensor that comes into contact with the wash water, but the accuracy of the detection remains questionable. Furthermore, the sensor proposed hitherto is installed in a place where it is likely to be immersed in the accumulated water in the bowl or to be contaminated with dirt, detergent, etc., so it is not practical in terms of durability and reliability. There wasn't. An object of the present invention is to provide a toilet bowl cleaning device that realizes ideal cleaning by accurately detecting the cleaning state of a toilet bowl during cleaning and controlling the supply of cleaning water according to the cleaning state. To do.

[0004]

Means for Solving the Problems and Actions / Effects The invention according to claim 1 made in order to solve the above problems,
A microwave sensor transmitted to the trap of the toilet bowl detects the running water state in the trap, and based on the detection result, a water supply valve provided in a wash water supply passage for supplying the wash water to the toilet bowl. It is characterized by controlling.

Although it is possible to detect the cleaning state of the toilet using a pressure sensor, a visual sensor, etc., it is difficult to put it into practical use due to many problems in detection accuracy under poor environmental conditions such as inside a toilet. According to the present invention, it is possible to perform non-contact measurement by using microwaves, and further realize long life and high reliability without being exposed to a severe environment. Further, by detecting the cleaning state of the toilet bowl and controlling the water supply in accordance with the cleaning state which differs depending on the amount of dirt, the water supply pressure, etc., it is possible to make each cleaning ideal.

The invention according to a second aspect is characterized in that, in the toilet bowl cleaning device according to the first aspect, the water supply valve is controlled so that the siphon duration time is a certain level or more in the flowing water state.

According to the present invention, the siphon duration is monitored, and when it is determined that the siphon is clogged, the water supply valve in the wash water supply passage is further opened to increase the flow rate and eliminate the clog. If the clogging overlaps, it cannot be solved by increasing the flow rate alone, but if it is the initial clogging, it can be dealt with by increasing the flow rate. Further, since the water supply valve can be closed to stop water when the siphon duration time exceeds a certain level, useless washing water is not required.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, in the toilet bowl cleaning device according to the first aspect, after the inside of the trap becomes full due to the start of cleaning of the toilet, after that, the water in the trap disappears. During the period, it is characterized by reducing the amount of flush water supplied to the toilet bowl.

Here, it is preferable that the degree of reducing the amount of washing water is individually set according to the configuration conditions such as the shape of the flow path of the toilet bowl, and in some cases, the supply of washing water may be stopped.
Further, as a means for reducing the amount of washing water, a flow control valve may be provided, or a plurality of water passages may be provided and switched. Of course, opening and closing the water supply valve is sufficient to stop the supply of wash water.

Generally, in a siphon toilet, an equal amount of flush water is continuously supplied until the siphon action occurs after the toilet flush is started and the accumulated water is stored again in the bowl bowl. Even if the flush water supplied to the toilet bowl is reduced during the siphon action, the waste water is wasted during this period because the waste is discharged from the toilet bowl by the siphon action. Further, the siphon action occurs when the trap section becomes full of water. Therefore, according to the present invention, by detecting that the trap portion is full of water,
That is, since the occurrence of the siphon effect can be expected, the amount of flush water supplied to the toilet bowl is reduced during the siphon effect. Next, when the accumulated water in the bowl part is discharged together with the waste, the water in the trap part disappears. Conversely, by detecting that the water in the trap part has disappeared, the accumulated water in the bowl part is discharged together with the dirt. Since it can be recognized that the water has been washed, wash water can be supplied afterwards to store the accumulated water in the bowl. As described above, it is possible to prevent the wasteful water supply during the occurrence of the siphon action which has been present in the past.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, a microwave sensor has a means for transmitting an electric wave, a means for receiving a reflected wave of the electric wave transmitted by the transmitting means, and a signal received by the receiving means. It is characterized in that a difference between the frequency and the frequency of the signal transmitted by the transmitting means is obtained, and the running water state in the trap is detected by a signal corresponding to the difference.

According to the present invention, since the microwave sensor utilizes the Doppler effect of microwaves, it is possible to accurately detect a moving object (here, movement of a person and movement of water). Furthermore, influences such as reflectance and ambient temperature can be ignored, and the state of running water in the trap can be detected in a non-contact manner, resulting in excellent durability.

According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, the microwave sensor is provided above the trap portion, and its transmission direction can be switched between a downward direction toward the trap and a horizontal direction toward the user. It is characterized by being.

According to the present invention, a single sensor can detect a plurality of objects to be detected, so that space and cost can be saved.

According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, the microwave sensor transmission direction is after detecting the user's use of the toilet bowl,
It is characterized in that it is switched from a horizontal direction toward the user to a downward direction toward the trap, and when it is determined that the toilet bowl has been washed based on the running water state in the trap, it is switched to a horizontal direction toward the user. To do. According to the present invention, the transmission direction of the microwave sensor is directed to the trap only during the detection of the cleaning state of the toilet bowl, and the state of the trap is not detected in other cases. That is, since it is clear whether the user is detected or the state of the trap is detected, noise or the like can be removed, leading to improvement in reliability.

The invention according to claim 7 is characterized in that transmission / reception of radio waves is stopped during switching of the transmission direction of the microwave sensor.

According to the present invention, since the microwave sensor is a sensor for measuring the relative speed between the sensor and the object,
When the transmission direction of the microwave sensor is switched, the relative speed change between the microwave sensor and the object is output to the sensor even if the object is not moving.
In order to eliminate such an adverse effect, it is appropriate to stop the transmission and reception of radio waves during switching of the transmission direction of the microwave sensor.

According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, in the toilet bowl cleaning device according to the first aspect, the microwave sensor is provided below the weir portion of the trap, and the weir is provided to secure the accumulated water after the siphon is cut off. It is characterized in that the supply of washing water is stopped when flowing water flowing into the part is detected.

Generally, in a toilet bowl having a trap portion, water is supplied to the bowl portion in order to prevent odors and insects from entering the room through the drainage channel and to prevent the next user's excrement from adhering to the toilet bowl. Although they are stored, it is often the case that extra water is supplied and wasted in preparation for variations in the shape of the bowl and variations in the water supply pressure. According to the present invention, it is possible to secure the accumulated water in the bowl portion just after the waste is discharged, so that the water can be saved.

[0020]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a sectional view of the toilet bowl cleaning device of the present invention, and FIG. 2 shows a block diagram of a detection sensor unit. The toilet bowl cleaning device 10 of FIG. 1 is equipped with the detection sensor unit 1 and can perform various operations (not shown) in the equipment based on the signal. Control BO
The X50 is composed of a portion that drives a sensor and a portion that controls water supply, and the microcomputer 19 controls the control.

The toilet cleaning device 10 has an automatic cleaning function. Of course, it is a toilet bowl that can be washed manually. In the normal state, the sealing water 21 is stored on the ball surface 2 of the toilet bowl cleaning device 10. When the toilet cleaning operation is started, the sealing water 21 causes the drainage channel 9
It is a mechanism that flows through the trap to the trap 9 and causes a siphon phenomenon to discharge the dirt. In the present invention, the cleaning operation is controlled by the signal from the detection sensor unit 1. Specifically, the current cleaning state is judged from the signal as shown in FIG. 4, and a normal waveform peculiar to the toilet cleaning device 10 is stored in advance in the microcomputer 19 in the sensor detection unit 1 and an abnormal waveform is detected. It is possible to control wash water and realize accurate water distribution operation.

FIG. 3 shows an output waveform (Doppler waveform) from the detection sensor unit 1 when a person approaches a toilet having a door in front of the toilet bowl cleaning device 10 and sits on the toilet seat. This is the input waveform. In the waveform,
The area a is a waveform until a person approaches the toilet and stops in front of the multifunctional toilet, in which the high frequency gradually decreases and the amplitude gradually increases. While b has an amplitude of 0 while a person stops and undresses, a waveform (not shown) of the same amplitude appears intermittently due to the movement of the body due to undressing. The area c is the waveform at the moment of sitting, and a waveform with a larger amplitude than the area a appears,
The amplitude gradually increases and continues until you sit down. The area of d is a waveform after sitting, and basically has an amplitude of 0, but a waveform having the same amplitude as the area of c shown by the area of e due to the movement of the body during sitting appears. Figure of judgment of separation
When the movement (e to a) opposite to the seating waveform of 3 is made, it is determined that the user is sitting and the sensor is switched. (Flow in FIG. 5) Further, since the person may sit again after leaving the seat, it is desirable to switch the sensor unless the person sits down for a certain period of time after leaving the seat.

A typical cleaning waveform will be described with reference to FIG. A is a waveform immediately after the start of cleaning, and the output waveform is violently moving because only air and a small amount of water are present in the trap 9. Similarly in B, since the sealing water has started to flow into the trap 9, a stable waveform has not yet been reached. C is a waveform during siphon generation, so trap 9
The inside is full of water. The reception antenna 14 in the detection sensor unit 1 that captures the Doppler signal receives a radio wave that is the same as the radio wave transmitted from the transmission antenna 11. That is, the Doppler signal is 0. (Because it is offset in the circuit, it is 3.5V in FIG. 4.) D and E are the states where the siphon is cut out, and F is the state where the ball surface 2 has started to seal water. Finally, G has completed a series of operations and is in a water-stopped state. In the cleaning sequence shown in FIG. 6, first, cleaning is started (S61), whether or not the siphon has completely occurred is monitored (S62), and if confirmed, a normal siphon time is set (S63) and siphon time measurement is started. To do.
(S64) The present situation is judged from the sensor waveform, and if the siphon is not raised correctly, the opening of the water supply valve is further opened to increase the amount of water. (S65) In addition, it is confirmed that the siphon has occurred normally and for a regular time (S66,
When the siphon is finished (S68) and the siphon is finished (S68), the water is stopped (S69) and the sequence is finished.

Another example of the cleaning sequence is shown in FIG. First, cleaning is started (S71), and it is monitored whether or not the siphon has completely occurred (S72). If the siphon can be confirmed, the water supply valve is narrowed (S73). Next, when the siphon ends (Y in S74), the water supply valve is opened for a predetermined time (S75), and the sequence ends. Further, the detection sensor unit 1 includes a transmitter 13, a receiver 17, a control unit 18, and a microcomputer 1.
And the transmission circuit 12 is included in the transmission device 13.
Is built in. Similarly, the receiving device 1 includes a receiving circuit 1
5 and the difference detection circuit 16 are built in. The operation is such that the command from the microcomputer 19 is transmitted through the signal line 20 to the transmission circuit 1
It is transmitted to 2 and transmitted as a microwave. The transmitted microwave is radiated from the transmitting antenna 11 toward the detected object. The microwave reflected from the object to be detected is received by the receiving antenna 14, passes through the receiving circuit 15, and the difference detection circuit 16 detects the difference from the transmission signal. The signal of the difference is a so-called Doppler signal, and if the detected object does not move, no signal appears. The above Doppler signal is sent to the microcomputer 1
9 and the control means 18 controls the operation of the toilet bowl cleaning device 10.

FIG. 8 shows the present embodiment realized in a toilet space. When a person is not in the toilet, the detection sensor unit 1 in FIG. 8 faces the entrance of the toilet for sensing. The detection sensor unit 1 includes a motor 40 as a drive source, a drive device 41 as a drive unit, and a microcomputer 19 as a control unit. In response to a command from the microcomputer 19, the motor 40 is driven via the drive device 41.
Can be driven to operate the detection sensor unit 1.

In this embodiment, the method of mechanically operating the detection sensor unit has been described, but it is also possible to electrically switch sensors having different directivities to detect human bodies and detect clogging. As described above, the detection sensor unit 1 faces the human body 31 until a person enters and sits in the toilet shown in the flowchart of FIG. (S1) After sitting down, the detection sensor unit 1 is operated by the above-described operation to move the detection sensor unit 1 in the direction of the trap 9 parallel to the floor surface, and the preparation for detecting the cleaning operation is completed. (S2) Then, if a cleaning lever (not shown) is pressed (that is, manual cleaning), a cleaning subroutine is started. (S3) If the sensor unit 1 is moved toward the trap 9 and then separated from the sensor unit 1 without manual cleaning, automatic cleaning is started.
(S4) In this case, the sensor unit 1 is used to detect the separation.
It is better not to face the trap 9, but it is already facing the trap 9 in preparation for manual cleaning. However, since the directivity of the sensor unit 1 can be designed to be quite wide, it is possible to judge that the user has left the seat even in this direction. Further, when trap clogging is detected, the abnormality is transmitted to the outside without cleaning the toilet bowl. As a method of transmission, various methods such as displaying an anomaly on the display unit, notifying an anomaly with an LED, and announcing by voice can be considered.

FIG. 10 is a view showing an example of the construction of a toilet bowl cleaning device for supplying the water for sealing the bowl portion of the toilet bowl without excess or deficiency.
The sealing water 71 discharged filth through the drainage port 73 in order to prevent odors and insects from entering the room through the drainage channel and to prevent the excrement of the next user from adhering to the toilet bowl. Later stored in the bowl. The water level of the sealing water 73 is the trap portion 74.
When the height (Hmax) of the weir is maximum, and when the water level is the maximum (Hmax), even if the washing water is further supplied, it only flows over the weir of the trap portion 74 and flows out from the discharge port 73. On the other hand, if the water level of the sealing water 73 is too low, it will not play its original role, so it is preferable to store the water so that it does not exceed the weir 74a of the trap portion 74. In order to achieve this purpose, the detection unit 72 is provided below the weir 74a of the trap portion 74, and the siphon is generated and the siphon is cut off from the start of washing, and the water level is set to an optimum height in the process of storing the sealing water 73. Can be detected. Specifically, at the beginning of opening the water supply valve in S75 of the cleaning flow shown in FIG. 7, there is no cleaning water flowing into the weir 74a because the siphon has been cut off, but the water supply valve is opened for a predetermined time. Since the wash water flows into the weir portion 74a, as a result, the detection unit 72 outputs a signal as shown in FIG. That is, since the detection unit 72 limits the detection range to the vicinity, it should be started after the water level approaches the height of the dam (T1
~) Indicates changes. Since the control unit 75 closes the water supply valve based on this signal, the sealing water 71 can be secured at an optimum height without wasting water at all.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example in which a microwave sensor unit is applied to a toilet bowl cleaning device.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an internal configuration of a cleaning state detection unit.

FIG. 3 is a waveform of a microwave sensor when detecting a human body.

FIG. 4 is a graph in which a time response output from a microwave sensor recognized by a microcomputer is amplified during cleaning.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing a switching operation of the microwave sensor.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing specific cleaning.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing specific cleaning.

FIG. 8 is an example in which a toilet bowl cleaning device with a built-in microwave sensor unit is installed in a toilet.

FIG. 9 is a configuration diagram of a control box for scanning the detection sensor unit of the microwave sensor.

FIG. 10 is a diagram showing another example in which the microwave sensor unit is applied to a toilet bowl cleaning device.

FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of an output signal of a detection sensor unit.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 ... Detection sensor unit, 2 ... Ball surface, 9 ... Trap, 10 ... Toilet bowl cleaning device, 11 ... Transmitting antenna, 12 ...
Transmitting circuit, 13 ... Transmitting device, 14 ... Receiving antenna, 15
... reception circuit, 16 ... difference detection circuit, 17 reception device, 18
... control means, 19 ... microcomputer, 20 ... signal line, 31 ... human body, 40 ... motor, 41 ... drive device, 50 ... control BO
X, 60 ... Water supply valve drive unit, 70 ... Toilet bowl cleaning device, 71 ...
Sealing water, 72 ... Detection sensor unit, 73 ... Drainage port, 74
... trap section, 74a ... weir, 75 ... control section, 76 ... water supply valve drive section

   ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued front page    (72) Inventor Masahiro Shinkawa             2-1-1 Nakajima, Kokurakita-ku, Kitakyushu City, Fukuoka Prefecture             No. Totoki Equipment Co., Ltd. F term (reference) 2D039 AA02 AC03 DB00 FA03 FC00

Claims (8)

[Claims] 1. A microwave sensor transmitted to a trap of a toilet bowl detects a flowing water state in the trap, and based on the detection result, a flush water supply channel for supplying flush water to the toilet bowl. A toilet bowl cleaning device characterized by controlling a provided water supply valve. 2. The toilet bowl cleaning apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the water supply valve is controlled so that the siphon is kept running for a certain time or longer. 3. The toilet bowl cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein after the toilet is flushed, the inside of the trap is filled with water, and thereafter, the washing is supplied to the toilet until there is no more water in the trap. A toilet bowl cleaning device characterized by reducing the amount of water. 4. The microwave sensor comprises means for transmitting an electric wave, means for receiving a reflected wave of the electric wave transmitted by the transmitting means, frequency of a signal received by the receiving means, and transmission by the transmitting means. 4. The toilet bowl cleaning device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein a difference between the frequency of the generated signal and the frequency is obtained, and the running water state in the trap is detected by a signal according to the difference. . 5. The microwave sensor is provided above the trap portion, and its transmission direction can be switched between a downward direction toward the trap and a horizontal direction toward the user. The toilet bowl cleaning device according to any one of claims 1 to 4. 6. The transmission direction of the microwave sensor is
After detecting the user's use of the toilet bowl, it is switched from the horizontal direction toward the user to the downward direction toward the trap, and when it is judged that the toilet bowl has been washed based on the running water state in the trap, the user is directed to the user. The toilet bowl cleaning device according to claim 5, wherein the toilet bowl cleaning device is switched to a horizontal direction. 7. The toilet bowl cleaning device according to claim 5, wherein transmission / reception of radio waves is stopped during switching of the transmission direction of the microwave sensor. 8. The toilet bowl cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein the microwave sensor is provided below the weir portion of the trap, and detects running water flowing into the weir portion to secure accumulated water after the siphon is cut off. A toilet bowl cleaning device characterized in that the supply of cleaning water is stopped.