JP2008237308A - Bathtub device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a bathtub device which can provide a correct massaging effect to a bather's back, especially the shoulder of the bather in a relaxed condition. <P>SOLUTION: The bathtub device has a bathtub, a first advance portion provided in the internal wall of the back side of the bathtub and capable of displacing the surface between a standard condition and an advance condition where the surface advances toward the interior of the bathtub more than in the standard condition, and a second advance portion. In the first advanced portion, two rows of a plurality of steps are provided in the vertical directions of the back side internal wall of the bathtub, and in the second advance portion, steps are arranged outward of the first advance portion provided above that. Consequently, the device can precisely provide a massaging effect to the shoulder portion in particular. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a bathtub apparatus, and more particularly to a bathtub apparatus that massages a bather.

  In recent years, health consciousness has increased, and there has been an increasing demand for easy massage during bathing. Therefore, a bath massage apparatus has been developed that massages bathers in a bathtub. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a bath massage apparatus installed in a bathtub, and the surface of the bather's sagittal surface that comes into contact with the back is a convex rounded surface. A protruding device is disclosed. In patent document 1, when a bather sits in a bathtub and the back is in contact with the convex rounded surface, the bather can be massaged by operating the air pump to project the push ball. Are listed.

The technique which considered the body shape described in patent document 1 considered the curvature of a user's back with respect to the bathtub longitudinal direction. However, the acupressure point where the massage effect can be expected extends to the shoulder region in close contact with the inner wall surface on the back side in the bather horizontal plane.
That is, with this conventional bathing apparatus, there is a problem that it is not possible to provide an accurate massage for the bather's back, particularly the shoulder.

  On the other hand, in patent document 2, a body can be periodically pressed by the pressing means using water pressure, without using an electric system. Moreover, since the pressing means presses the body using water pressure, if the supply pressure of water to the pressing means is adjusted, the pressing force can be adjusted by the pressing means, and a good massage effect can be obtained. Is described.

    However, as for the acupressure means using the water pressure used in Patent Document 2, a massage machine for the shoulder is installed at the upper part of the bathtub, and is imminent on the bather's head. This prevents the bather from receiving a massage in a relaxed state. Moreover, in the massage method grasped by a point like patent document 2, the subject that it is difficult to respond to the physique difference for every bather remains.

JP 2000-342653 A (FIG. 1) JP 2003-135548 A (FIGS. 32 and 33)

  The objective of this invention is providing the bathtub apparatus which can give the exact massage effect to a bather's back, especially a shoulder part in the relaxed state.

  According to an aspect of the present invention, the bathtub is provided on the inner wall surface on the back side of the bathtub, and the surface is displaced between the standard state and the advanced state in which the surface has advanced toward the inside of the bathtub from the standard state. A first advancing portion and a second advancing portion, the first advancing portion being arranged in a plurality of stages in two rows along the vertical direction of the back inner wall surface of the bathtub; In addition, a bathtub apparatus is provided that is disposed outward from the first advancing portion provided above.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the bathtub apparatus which can give a sufficient massage effect to a bather is realizable.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
First, a first embodiment of the present invention will be described.
FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating a bathtub device according to this embodiment.
FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating the bathtub device according to this embodiment.

  As shown in FIG. 1, in the bathtub apparatus 11 which concerns on this embodiment, the bathtub 2 is provided. The shape of the bathtub 2 is substantially rectangular when viewed from above, and both end portions in the longitudinal direction are the back side and the foot side. And the inner wall surface (henceforth "the back side surface") 21 of the back side of the bathtub 2 forms the continuous concave surface, inclining so that it may open upwards with respect to the orthogonal | vertical direction as a whole. The shape of the back side surface 21 is, for example, a concave curved surface such that when the bather M fits his back to the back side surface 21, the back is loosely rounded.

  Moreover, the recessed part 23 is formed in the area | region by the side of the back surface 21 in the bottom face 22 of the bathtub 2, The bottom face is a concave surface. The shape of the recess 23 is a concave curved surface that matches the shape of the buttocks of the bather. For example, the back side surface 21 and the concave portion 23 form a continuous curved surface. Further, the region other than the region where the recess 23 is formed on the bottom surface 22 is a substantially horizontal flat surface 24. For this reason, the area | region in which the recessed part 23 is formed among the bottom faces 22 of the bathtub 2 is located below the area | region on the foot side, ie, the area | region in which the flat surface 24 is formed, and the recessed part 23 The boundary portion 25 between the flat surface 24 and the flat surface 24 is a curved surface having an obtuse angle.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the back side surface 21 is provided with at least two second advancing portions 30b arranged outward from the upper first advancing portion 30a. Further, the first advancing portion 30 a and the second advancing portion 30 b are connected to the driving means 4 installed outside the bathtub 2. The driving means 4 drives the first advancing portion 30a and the second advancing portion 30b.

  For example, the protruding amount 51 of the second advancing portion 30 b is larger than the protruding amount 50 of the first advancing portion 30 a, and the first advancing portion 30 a and the second advancing portion 30 b in the horizontal direction of the back side surface 21. The protrusion amounts 50 and 51 protrude the bather's body to a position for realizing an appropriate massage.

  In the present embodiment, the number of the second advancing portions 30b is reduced as the second advancing portions 30b disposed outward from the first advancing portions 30a are directed outward. By doing in this way, appropriate massage can be realized for each muscle group formed on the shoulder of the bather.

Next, operation | movement of the bathtub apparatus which concerns on this embodiment comprised as mentioned above is demonstrated.
FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating the operation of the bathtub device according to this embodiment.
First, as shown in FIG. 1, hot water W is accumulated in the bathtub 2, and all the advancing parts 3 are set to a standard state. Then, the bather M enters the bathtub 2, puts the buttocks in the recess 23 of the bottom surface 22, makes the back contact the back side surface 21, and makes the sole contact the foot side surface 27 to take a bathing posture. Thereby, the bather's M back | bend fits the concave surface of the back side surface 21, and curves a little convexly.
At this time, the back first advancement portion 30a is located at a position along the back and waist muscles (back muscles) R of the bather M, and the second advancement portion 30b is the first advancement portion provided above. The first advancing portion 30a disposed on the outside of 30a and located above is located in the vicinity of the rim of the bathtub 2 and in the vicinity of the back and shoulder muscles (trapezoidal muscles) of the bather M Is arranged at a height to stimulate.
At this time, the bather M may bring the sole into contact with the foot side surface 26.

  In this state, the driving means 4 changes the state of each advancement section 3 between the standard state and the advancement state. As a result, the surfaces of the first advancement portions 30a and the second advancement portions 30b that have entered the advance state project from the back side surface 21 and press the back or shoulders of the bather M, and each first advancement that has entered the standard state. The surfaces of the portion 30a and the second advancing portion 30b are substantially flush with the back side surface 21, and do not press the back and shoulders of the bather M. And the drive means 4 can massage a bather in various modes by driving each first advance part 30a and the second advance part 30b independently. At this time, since the buttocks of the bather M are held by the recess 23, even if the back is pressed toward the foot side by the advancing portion 3, the body does not move to the foot side.

Next, the effect of this embodiment will be described.
As a result of the research conducted by the present inventors, it has been found that when a person takes a bath, a relaxed state can be relaxed rather than a state where the back is stretched. In this embodiment, since the back side surface 21 of the bathtub 2 has a concave surface in the vertical direction, when the bather M drowns his back on the back side surface 21, the back of the bather M has a concave curved surface in the vertical direction. Will be generated. That is, the shape of the back side surface 21 matches the shape of the back of the bather M when the bather takes a natural bathing posture in which the back is gently rolled up. On the other hand, the back of the bather M in the horizontal direction also forms a concave curved surface, so that there is a gap N between the curve of the back of the bather M and the curve of the bathtub 2 on the horizontal plane, and the back side of the bathtub so as to fill the gap When the second advancing part 30b widely arranged in 21 advances, an appropriate massage can be realized for the body of the bather. Thereby, a bathing posture is also optimized, a bather can be relaxed, and a sufficient massage effect can be realized together with the thermal effect by bathing.

  Moreover, in this embodiment, since the recessed part 23 is formed in the bottom face 22 of the bathtub 2, this recessed part 23 can hold | maintain the bather's M buttocks. Thereby, even if buoyancy acts on a bather, when a bather's back is pressed by the advance part 3, it can prevent that a bather's body moves to the foot side. As a result, the force received by the bather from the advancing portion 3 does not escape, and a massage with a sufficient pressing feeling is possible. Moreover, since the position of the buttocks is stabilized, the bather can press the waist and back against the back side surface 21 with the buttocks as a base point, and can arbitrarily change the angle of the upper body. Thereby, the pressing force by the advance part 3 can be adjusted arbitrarily.

  Furthermore, in this embodiment, since the region where the recess 23 is formed is located below the region where the flat surface 24 is formed, the boundary portion 25 between the recess 23 and the flat surface 24 has an obtuse angle. It has a smooth curved surface. For this reason, the boundary portion 25 does not press the base of the bather M, and the bather does not feel uncomfortable.

  Furthermore, in this embodiment, since the first advancing portion 30a is formed in a plurality of steps along the vertical direction, the back and waist of the bather can be massaged as a whole. Further, since the advancing portions 3 are arranged in two rows on both sides of the center line of the back side surface 21, the left and right back muscles of the bather can be massaged efficiently. Moreover, the 2nd advancing part 30b each arrange | positioned outward from the 1st advancing part 30a provided above is arranged in the both sides of the centerline C of the back side surface 21, and is 2nd from the 1st advancing part 30a. Since the advancing amount of the advancing portion 30b is large, the muscle groups provided on the left and right shoulders of the bather can be massaged efficiently. Further, the number of the second advancing portion 30b decreases as it goes outward from the first advancing portion 30a, whereby the second advancing portion 30b disposed outward from the second advancing portion 30b close to the center line C is The tip can be accurately positioned on the shoulder of the bather M. The arrangement in which the second advancing portion 30b expands outward from the first advancing portion 30a and decreases in number corresponds to the muscle group centered on the trapezius muscle, the subspinous muscle, the triangular muscle, the rhombus, and the spinal column standing muscle. You can touch. Thereby, the bather's back and shoulders as a whole can be massaged uniformly, increasing the massage effect and improving the feeling of use.

Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described.
FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating the bathtub device according to this embodiment.
FIG. 5 is a perspective cross-sectional view illustrating the bathtub device according to this embodiment.
3 and 5, the same components as those in FIG. 1 in the first embodiment described above are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof is omitted. The same applies to the other drawings to be described later.

  As shown in FIG. 3, in the bathtub apparatus 11 according to the present embodiment, compared to the first embodiment described above, the first advancing portion 30a on the back side is a muscle of the back and waist of the bather M ( The second advancing portion 30b is located outside the first advancing portion 30a provided above and has a plurality of second advancing portions 3b. Is different. Other configurations in the present embodiment are the same as those in the first embodiment.

Next, the operation and effect of this embodiment will be described. In the present embodiment, the second advancing portion 30b abuts on the shoulder of the bather M, and the first advancing portion 30a abuts on the back of the bather M. And by making the advance amount of the 2nd advance part 30b larger than the advance amount of the 1st advance part 30a, when both the advance parts 30a and 30b are in the advanced state, it becomes a concave curve of the back in the horizontal surface of the bather. The leading ends of both advancing portions 30a and 30b can be positioned along. Thereby, the bather's back and shoulders as a whole can be massaged evenly, increasing the massage effect and improving the feeling of use. Operations and effects other than those described above in the present embodiment are the same as those in the first embodiment described above.

Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described.
FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating the bathtub device according to this embodiment.
FIG. 4 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating the bathtub device according to this embodiment.
3 and 4, the same components as those in FIG. 1 in the first embodiment described above are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof is omitted. The same applies to the other drawings to be described later.

  As shown in FIG. 4, in the bathtub apparatus 11 according to the present embodiment, compared to the first embodiment described above, the bathtub apparatus 11 is disposed outward from the first advancing portion 30 a provided above. A plurality of second advancement portions 30b are provided, and the advancement amount of the second advancement portion 30b adjacent to the first advancement portion 30a is larger than the advancement amount of the first advancement portion 30a provided along the center line C. In addition, the amount of advancement of the second advancing portion 30b increases as it approaches the outside from the center line C. Other configurations in the present embodiment are the same as those in the first embodiment.

  In addition, as shown in FIG. 3, in the bathtub apparatus 11 which concerns on this embodiment, compared with the above-mentioned 1st Embodiment, it each arrange | positions outward rather than the 1st advancing part 30a provided upwards. A plurality of second advancing portions 30b are provided, and the number of second advancing portions 30b decreases as the second advancing portions 30b disposed outward from the first advancing portions 30a decrease outward. It is different. Other configurations in the present embodiment are the same as those in the first embodiment.

  Next, the operation and effect of this embodiment will be described. In the present embodiment, by making the advance amount of the second advance portion 30b larger than the advance amount of the first advance portion 30a, when both the advance portions 30a and 30b are in the advanced state, the back in the bather's horizontal plane The leading ends of both advancing portions 30a and 30b can be positioned along the concave curve. Furthermore, the number of the second advancing part 30b decreases as it goes outward from the first advancing part 30a, whereby the second advancing part 30b disposed outward from the second advancing part 30b close to the center line C is The tip can be accurately positioned on the shoulder of the bather M. The arrangement in which the second advancing portion 30b expands outward from the first advancing portion 30a and decreases in number corresponds to the muscle group centered on the trapezius muscle, the subspinous muscle, the triangular muscle, the rhombus, and the spinal column standing muscle. You can touch. Thereby, the bather's back and shoulders as a whole can be massaged uniformly, increasing the massage effect and improving the feeling of use. Operations and effects other than those described above in the present embodiment are the same as those in the first embodiment described above.

Next, a specific example for realizing the above-described embodiment of the present invention will be described.
FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a bathtub device according to this example.
FIG. 5 is a transparent perspective view illustrating the bathtub of the bathtub device according to this example.
FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the advancing portion of the bathtub device according to this example.
As shown in FIG. 2, in the bathtub device 16 according to this specific example, the bathtub 2, the advancing portion 3, and the driving means 40 are provided.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the shape of the bathtub 2 is a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape. Among the inner wall surfaces, one surface of both end surfaces intersecting the longitudinal direction is the back side surface 21, and the other surface is the foot side surface 22. is there. The dorsal side surface 21 is a surface with which the back abuts when a bather (not shown) takes a bathing posture, and has a concave curved surface while being inclined obliquely upward as a whole. The concave curved surface of the back side surface 21 is a curved surface such that when the bather fits his / her back, the bather's back is gently rounded, and the curvature radius in the vertical section is, for example, about 800 mm. Further, the foot side surface 22 stands up in a substantially vertical direction.

  On the bottom surface 22 of the bathtub 2, a recess 23 is formed in a region in contact with the back side surface 21, and a region other than the recess 23 on the bottom surface 23 is a flat surface 25. The bottom surface of the recess 23 forms a concave curved surface and is located at a position lower than the flat surface 24. The concave curved surface of the concave portion 23 is a curved surface that holds the buttocks of the bather, and the radius of curvature in the vertical section is, for example, about 600 mm. The back side surface 21 and the bottom surface of the recess 23 form, for example, a continuous curved surface without a bent portion. Further, the boundary portion 25 between the concave portion 23 and the flat surface 24 is a smooth curved surface that forms an obtuse bent portion.

  A plurality of first advancing portions 30 a are provided along a center line C extending in the vertical direction of the back side surface 21. The first advancing portion 30 a is provided in two rows in total, one row on each side of the center line C, and is arranged symmetrically with respect to the center line C. Further, the first advancing portions 30a are arranged, for example, at equal intervals in each row, and are separated from the center line C by, for example, about 30 mm.

  Further, the second advancing portions 30b, which are characterized by being arranged outwardly from the first advancing portion 30a provided above the back side surface 21, are arranged symmetrically with respect to the center line C. The second advancing portion 30b is arranged corresponding to the characteristic muscle group of the shoulder muscle group in each row, and presses not only the muscle group that drives the shoulder portion but also the deltoid muscle that drives the shoulder. .

  As shown in FIG. 6, each advancing portion 3 is provided with a cylindrical holding cylinder 31. The holding cylinder 31 is water-tightly connected to the outer surface of the back side surface 21, and a portion of the back side surface 21 to which the holding cylinder 31 is attached is opened, whereby the inside of the holding cylinder 31 is It communicates with the inside of the bathtub 2.

  An airbag 32 is provided inside the holding cylinder 31. The air bag 32 has a substantially cylindrical bellows shape, and extends along the bellows arrangement direction when air is introduced therein, and contracts along the bellows arrangement direction when the air inside is discharged. That is, the airbag 32 expands and contracts in one direction as air flows in and out. The airbag 32 is arranged so that the arrangement direction of the bellows, that is, the expansion and contraction direction is, for example, perpendicular to the back side surface 21, and the end far from the back side surface 21 is watertight to the inner surface of the holding cylinder 31. It is connected to.

  Further, a receiving plate 33 is movably provided in a portion closer to the bathtub 2 than the airbag 32 inside the holding cylinder 31, and is in contact with the airbag 32. A protruding member 34 is connected to the surface of the receiving plate 33 on the opposite side of the airbag 32. The protruding member 34 is a cylindrical member made of, for example, a hard resin material, and the tip end portion 34a on the side not connected to the receiving plate 33 is rounded. Furthermore, a spring 35 is provided between the back side plate 21 and the receiving plate 33 inside the holding cylinder 31 and urges the receiving plate 33 in a direction away from the back side plate 21.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 2, in the driving means 40, the pump 41, the air tube 42 that communicates the pump 41 and the airbag 32 (see FIG. 6) of each advance portion 3, and the air tube 42 in the middle. Each provided switching valve 43 is provided. The switching valve 43 is, for example, a three-way solenoid valve, and can switch between pressurization to the advancing unit 3 and air discharge from the advancing unit 3. The pump 41 and the switching valve 43 are connected to a controller 44 that controls them. In FIG. 2, for the sake of simplicity, the control unit 44 is depicted as being connected only to the uppermost switching valve 43. It is possible to control the valve 43 independently.

Next, the operation of this example will be described.
When the pump 41 is not operating, the spring 35 urges the receiving plate 33, and the receiving plate 33 presses the airbag 32, so that the airbag 32 is in a contracted state. Thereby, the protrusion member 34 is accommodated in the holding cylinder 31, and the advancing part 3 is in a standard state. Then, the bather enters the bathtub 2 and takes a bathing posture. At this time, the bather's buttocks stabilized by bringing the palm of the bather into contact with the palm support portion 4 enters and is held in the recess 23. Further, the back is in contact with the back side surface 21 and is bent gently. Further, the sole of the foot contacts the side surface 26 of the foot.

  In this state, the control unit 44 operates the pump 41 so that the pump 41 supplies air to the air tube 42. Then, when the control unit 44 operates the switching valve 43 to connect the pump 41 and each advancement unit 3, air flows into the airbag 32 of the advancement unit 3, and the airbag 32 is springed by the pressure. It expands by overcoming the urging force of 35, and pushes the protruding member 34 toward the inside of the bathtub 2 through the receiving plate 33. As a result, the advancing portion 3 enters the advancing state, and the tip end portion 34a of the protruding member 34 presses the bather's back or waist. Thereafter, when the control unit 44 switches the switching valve 43 to allow the airbag 32 of the advancement unit 3 to communicate with the outside, the airbag 32 is contracted by the urging force of the spring 35, and the protruding member 34 is placed in the holding cylinder 31. Stored. Thereby, the advance part 3 returns to a standard state. By repeating this operation, the advancing portion 3 repeats the standard state and the advancing state, and the protruding member 34 reciprocates linearly.

  And the control part 44 can massage a bather in various modes by driving each advance part 3 independently. For example, the control unit 44 may periodically change the state of each advancement unit 3, make the period the same for all the advancement units 3, and change the phase between the advancement units 3. In one example, the control unit 44 drives the pair of advancing units 3 arranged on the same stage with the same phase, while gradually delaying the phase from the uppermost advancing unit 3 toward the lower advancing unit 3. To do. Thereby, the bather can obtain a massage feeling such that the back is swallowed from the shoulder to the waist.

Next, the effect of this example will be described.
According to this specific example, the bathtub apparatus according to the first embodiment described above can be configured without arranging an electrical component inside the bathtub. This eliminates the need for measures against electric leakage and electric shock, and measures against corrosion of electrical parts caused by hot water, thereby realizing a low-cost and highly reliable bathtub apparatus. The effects other than those described above in this specific example are the same as those in the first embodiment.

  In this specific example, as in the second embodiment, the advance amount of the lowermost advance portion may be larger than the advance amount of the uppermost advance portion. Further, as in the third embodiment described above, the advance direction of at least one advance portion may be inclined downward with respect to the direction perpendicular to the back side surface. Furthermore, a fluid other than air, that is, a gas or a liquid may be supplied into the airbag 32. Furthermore, in this specific example, a drain outlet may not be provided on the bottom surface 22 of the bathtub 2 but a drain outlet may be provided at the bottom of the recess 23.

  Furthermore, in this specific example, a headrest may be provided on the rim of the bathtub 2 and on the substantially extended surface of the back side surface 21. Such a headrest may be formed of, for example, a waterproof cushion material, and may be movable within a certain range with respect to the bathtub 2 or may be detachable from the bathtub 2.

It is typical sectional drawing which illustrates the bathtub apparatus which concerns on the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram which illustrates the bathtub apparatus which concerns on the specific example of this invention. It is typical sectional drawing which illustrates the bathtub apparatus which concerns on the 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is typical sectional drawing which illustrates operation | movement of the bathtub apparatus which concerns on this embodiment. It is typical sectional drawing which illustrates operation | movement of the bathtub apparatus which concerns on this embodiment. It is a perspective sectional view which illustrates the bathtub of the bathtub apparatus concerning this example. It is sectional drawing which illustrates the advance part of the bathtub apparatus which concerns on this example.

Explanation of symbols

2 bathtub, 21 back side, 22 bottom, 23 recess, 24 flat surface, 25 boundary part, 26 foot side, 3 3a advance part, 30a first advance part, 30b second advance part, 4 drive means, 11 bathtub apparatus, 31 holding cylinder, 32 airbag, 33 backing plate, 34 projecting member, 34a tip, 35 spring, 40 driving means, 41 pump, 42 air tube, 43 switching valve, 44 control unit, 50 first advancement projecting amount , 51 Second advancement protrusion amount, M bather, N gap, R spine, W hot water

Claims (3)

A bathtub,
Provided on the inner wall of the back of the bathtub,
A first advancing portion that is displaceable between a standard state and an advancing state that has advanced toward the inside of the bathtub than the standard state; and a second advancing portion, A plurality of stages are arranged in two rows along the vertical direction of the back inner wall surface of the bathtub,
Said 2nd advancing part is each arrange | positioned outward from said 1st advancing part provided upwards, The bathtub apparatus characterized by the above-mentioned.   The bathtub apparatus according to claim 1, wherein at least two of the second advancing portions are disposed outward from the first advancing portions disposed in the two rows. The bathtub apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the second advancement portion has a larger advancement amount than the first advancement portion, and the advancement amount increases toward the outside.

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