JP2013517395A - A urinal and handwasher complex - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a composite of a urinal and a hand-washer. Here, the waste water from the handwasher is used to flush the urinal. The hand-washer and urinal are close to each other and / or in physical contact with each other. The handwasher is such that a virtual plane defined by a central plane extending vertically through the urinal is positioned at an offset angle with respect to a virtual plane defined by a central plane extending vertically through the handwasher Offset with respect to the urinal. This angle is in the range of 20 ° to 80 °, preferably in the range of 30 ° to 75 °, more preferably in the range of 40 ° to 70 °.
[Selection] Figure 5

Description

  The present invention relates to a composite of a urinal and a hand-washer. Here, the waste water from the hand-washer is used to wash out the urinal. The hand-washer and urinal are close to each other and / or in physical contact with each other.

  The hand-washer is offset with respect to the urinal so that a virtual plane defined by a central plane extending vertically through the urinal from the top to the bottom (preferably a vertical symmetry plane and / or small A vertical plane defined by an outlet / opening that flushes the toilet and the drain of the urinal is a virtual plane defined by a central plane that extends vertically through the hand-washer (preferably a vertical symmetry plane, and / or The vertical plane defined by the faucet and the drain of the hand-washer). Here, the offset angle is in the range of 20 ° to 80 °, preferably in the range of 30 ° to 75 °, more preferably in the range of 40 ° to 70 °, and still more preferably in the range of 40 ° to 60 °. It is.

  Preferably, the virtual vertical (symmetric) planes of the urinal and handwasher correspond to the direction of use by the user of the urinal and handwasher, respectively. As a result, the user orientation with respect to the urinal is offset with respect to the user orientation with respect to the hand-washer. Here, the offset angle is in the range of 20 ° to 80 °, preferably in the range of 30 ° to 75 °, more preferably in the range of 40 ° to 70 °, and still more preferably in the range of 40 ° to 60 °. It is.

  In a preferred embodiment of the invention, two or more composites of a urinal and a hand-washer are used in a toilet, preferably a public toilet.

  Preferably, the composite according to the invention is used in a private toilet, in particular in a private toilet in an RV vehicle (recreational vehicle), a camping wagon, a bus or a marine application, in particular a vehicle or other vessel. Used. Preferably, the complex according to the present invention is also used in a public toilet selected from the following list. This list includes public transport sites such as train stations, airports or highway toilet facilities, large ships or boats, hotels, restaurants, conference facilities, public buildings, especially museums, exhibition halls, cinemas, arts Includes houses, government buildings, schools and universities.

  The combination of a hand-washer and a urinal is in principle known from the prior art. For example, German utility model application DE200 07 812 discloses a composite of a hand-washer and a urinal. This complex is characterized by a single water inlet (hand wash faucet) and combined drainage for waste water from both hand wash and urinals. According to DE 200 07 812, the hand-washing device is arranged directly above the urinal. That is, the direction of use of the hand-washing machine matches the direction of use of the urinal.

  A similar “self-washing” urinal and hand wash basin fixture is described in US Pat. No. 5,862,546. Again, the handwasher is located directly above the urinal.

  Another combination of an integrated handwasher and urinal, in which the handwasher is arranged directly above the urinal, is disclosed in German utility model applications G94 13 046 and DE 298 10 298.

  An alternative embodiment of the combination of a hand-washer and a urinal (with a water reservoir) is disclosed in DE 197 04 452. The equipment disclosed in this document is intended to be installed in a guest bathroom in a mansion. Here, this facility uses an inflow port and a drain pipe that are already installed in such a customer bathroom. In addition to the integrated structure of the handwasher provided directly above the urinal, an alternative embodiment has been disclosed (see FIGS. 4 and 5 of DE 197 04 452), which allows the handwasher to be The form arrange | positioned orthogonally to the urinal is shown.

  Problems common to known embodiments of a water-saving composite of a urinal and a hand-washer are as follows. That is, the use of a urinal whose geometrical arrangement matches the direction of use of the urinal and the direction of use of the hand basin, that is, the user is at the same location where the hand basin is used. The arrangement will remain in place. While this is a geometric arrangement that is suitable and acceptable for use in a private or customer bathroom, this arrangement is unacceptable for a public toilet. In public toilets, urinals are typically dirty, and at least for hygienic reasons, potential users are potentially close to or even physically in contact with the urinal. In the meantime, it is not expected to use a hand-washer. In the public environment, there are also psychological barriers that prevent the use of hand-washing devices placed in close proximity (psychologically) to the urinal. These practical and physical barriers in the “hand-washer on the urinal” embodiment of the prior art present an obstacle to the commercialization of this equipment.

  Similarly, a geometrical arrangement in which the hand-washer is located somewhat close to the urinal and orthogonal to the urinal is unacceptable in a public toilet. Because this means the following. That is, the user of the handwasher in the first combined unit of the handwasher and urinal sees the overall picture of the second user of the second combined unit of the handwasher and urinal. Such a geometry would not be acceptable to potential users of public toilets.

  Based on the above-mentioned problems related to the prior art related to the water-saving composite of a urinal and a hand-washer, the object according to the present invention is a water-saving type and is small enough to be accepted by a potential user of a public toilet. It is to provide a facility with a toilet and hand-washer.

  These and other objects are solved by the urinal and handwasher complex according to claim 1.

  Here, the present invention relates to a composite of a urinal and a hand-washer. Waste water from the handwasher is used to flush the urinal. The hand-washer and urinal are close to each other and / or in physical contact with each other.

  A central plane that extends vertically through the urinal from the top to the bottom (preferably a vertical symmetry plane and / or an outlet / opening for flushing the urinal and a drainage outlet of the urinal ) Is defined by a central plane extending vertically through the hand-washer (preferably a vertical symmetry plane and / or a vertical defined by the faucet and drain of the hand-washer The hand-washer is offset with respect to the urinal so that it is positioned at a predetermined angle relative to the plane. Here, the offset angle is in the range of 20 ° to 80 °, preferably in the range of 30 ° to 75 °, more preferably in the range of 40 ° to 70 °, and still more preferably in the range of 40 ° to 60 °.

  Preferably, the virtual vertical (symmetric) planes of the urinal and handwasher correspond to the direction of use by the respective user of the urinal and handwasher, respectively. As a result, the user orientation with respect to the urinal is offset with respect to the user orientation with respect to the hand-washer. Here, the offset angle is in the range of 20 ° to 80 °, preferably in the range of 30 ° to 75 °, more preferably in the range of 40 ° to 70 °, and still more preferably in the range of 40 ° to 60 °.

  Preferred embodiments of the handwasher and urinal complex are defined in the dependent claims.

  For example, public transport sites such as train stations, airports, or highway toilet facilities, hotels, restaurants, conference facilities, public buildings, especially museums, exhibition halls, movie theaters, art houses, government buildings, schools, universities In public toilets for men, such as those currently provided in, etc., many urinals, for example, 5 or more, 10 or more, or 20 or more are provided in one room. On the other hand, a similar or rather small number of handwashers are provided in a separate room. Significant cost savings can be achieved when these separate units present are replaced with the handwasher / urinal composite according to the present invention. According to the present invention, in addition to the water-saving effect, a cost reduction effect can be achieved for a space (needed to be cleaned) and a pipe (needed to be maintained).

Shows a urinal and handwasher complex, with an offset angle between a virtual vertical (symmetric) plane passing through the urinal from top to bottom and a virtual vertical (symmetric) plane passing through the handwasher from top to bottom , 45 ° is shown. In this embodiment, the urinal and hand-washer are realized as two separate units that are in direct physical contact with each other and can be independently replaced. In the public toilet environment (computer animation), the arrangement of the three composites of the urinal and handwasher shown in FIG. 1 is shown, and the view of the user of the first unit handwasher is It illustrates the principle of the present invention that it does not match the view of potential users. An alternative embodiment of a handwasher and urinal complex is shown in which the handwasher is not in direct physical contact with the urinal but by an isolation unit having a faucet. The form separated from the urinal is shown. This embodiment also shows how mirrors, paper feeders, and soap feeders can be advantageously incorporated into the inventive present configuration. An alternative embodiment is shown, in which four composite units, a urinal and a handwasher, are arranged, for example, around a pillar. Fig. 4 shows another embodiment according to the present invention, in which the urinal and the hand-washer are provided as one integrated unit.

  A urinal in the present invention should be understood to be any container or receptacle suitable for receiving a urine. There is no limitation on the shape and / or material of this urinal.

  Preferably, the urinal is suitable for installation on a wall and has appropriate piping.

  The urinal preferably has at least one opening, outlet or orifice. Through this opening, outlet, or orifice, water can be supplied to the interior of the urinal (ie, the area exposed to the urine). According to the present invention, the opening or orifice is also referred to as “opening / outlet for flushing the urinal”.

  In accordance with the present invention, at least a portion of the liquid used to flush the urinal is waste water from the hand basin of the urinal and hand basin complex.

  In one embodiment of the present invention, water from other water sources that are not from the handwasher may be used in addition to the wastewater from the handwasher. Configurations in which the at least one additional water source is a fresh water source are also within the scope of the present invention.

  The invention also relates to an embodiment in which waste water from a hand-washer is stored in a storage device before being fed into the urinal.

  Preferably, any of the process of supplying water into the urinal involves only waste water from the hand-washer, or water from hand-washer and / or storage units mixed with other water sources (waste water) Controlled by the control unit. This control unit may be, for example, a central processing unit, a timer, a central control unit, or any other possible controller.

  The urinal of the present invention has at least one drainage unit, and the drainage unit is suitable for draining urine and any water (waste water) used for washing the urinal.

  In accordance with the present invention, the urinal has one virtual plane, which is defined by a central plane that extends vertically through the center of the urinal (ie, from top to bottom). Preferably, the plane is a vertical symmetrical plane and / or a vertical plane defined by the outlet / opening for flushing the urinal and the urinal drain.

  Preferably, the plane is orthogonal to a desired position of the urinal user (imaginary line passing through the shoulder and head). For a symmetrically shaped urinal, the imaginary plane of the urinal coincides with a vertical symmetry plane, which in this case is a mirror plane (see, eg, FIG. 1).

  A similar virtual plane can be defined for the handwasher. According to the present invention, the virtual plane extends through the center of the handwasher (preferably a vertical symmetry plane and / or a vertical plane defined by the handwasher faucet and drain).

  Preferably, the virtual vertical (symmetric) planes of the urinal and handwasher correspond to the direction of use by the respective user of the urinal and handwasher, respectively.

  In accordance with the present invention, the urinal and handwasher are offset relative to each other as defined by the offset angle between the vertical (symmetric / center) plane of the urinal and the vertical (symmetric / center) plane of the handwasher. Is done. Here, the offset angle is in the range of 20 ° to 80 °, preferably in the range of 30 ° to 75 °, more preferably in the range of 40 ° to 70 °, and still more preferably in the range of 40 ° to 60 °. With this geometry, the user orientation relative to the urinal will be offset with respect to the user orientation relative to the hand-washer. Here, the offset angle is in the range of 20 ° to 80 °, preferably in the range of 30 ° to 75 °, more preferably in the range of 40 ° to 70 °, and still more preferably in the range of 40 ° to 60 °.

  The hand-washing machine according to the present invention has at least one supply unit (preferably a faucet) for supplying fresh water. The hand washing machine further includes at least one drainage unit for draining used water. The used water is collected in the container / receptacle of the handwasher.

  In accordance with the invention, fresh water supplied from the waste water and / or supply unit is led from the drainage unit of the handwasher to an opening / outlet for flushing the urinal.

  Preferably, natural gravity is used to move the waste water from the handwasher through the handwasher drainage unit to the opening / outlet for flushing the urinal. In other embodiments, the pump or pump means is in addition to or in place of gravity to move waste water from the drainage unit of the handwasher to an opening / outlet for flushing the urinal. , May be used. Preferably, a combination of gravity and pump is used.

  As already mentioned, in order to flush the urinal, in addition to the wastewater from the handwasher (or freshly supplied fresh water that passes through the handwasher), fresh water from other separated fresh water lines / fresh water sources However, the urinal tubing may be arranged so that it is added to flush the urinal through the opening / outlet. The fresh water may be passed through the handwasher when the user is not using the handwasher.

  In accordance with the present invention, two or more such openings / outlets for flushing the urinal can be used, for example, two openings / outlets on the opposite side of the urinal, respectively, to more thoroughly flush the interior of the urinal. It may be provided to be arranged. Preferably, of these two or more openings / outlets, one or more or all of the openings / outlets are connected to the drainage unit of the handwasher.

  In accordance with the present invention, waste water from the handwasher passes through the drainage unit of the handwasher, passes through the urinal, passes through the urinal drainage unit, and is drained.

  There is no limitation on the shape, geometry or material of the handwasher.

  In one embodiment, the hand-washer is placed in close proximity to the urinal, but is not placed in direct physical contact with (or in close proximity to) the urinal. However, in this embodiment, the waste water of the handwasher (or fresh water freshly supplied from the faucet) is used to flush the urinal from the handwasher drainage unit, for example, via another separate pipe. Directed to the opening / orifice.

  If the hand-washer is not in direct physical contact with the urinal, the distance between the two outer surfaces of the urinal and the hand-washer that are closest to each other is 40 cm or less, preferably 30 cm Hereinafter, it is more preferably 20 cm or less, more preferably 10 cm or less, and further preferably 5 cm or less.

  In other embodiments, the handwasher and urinal are in close proximity to each other but are not in physical contact and are separated from each other by other units, such as, for example, a separation unit that preferably includes a faucet. Is done. An embodiment in which an isolation unit is arranged between the urinal and the hand-washer is shown in FIG. Here, the faucet is not part of the hand-washer, but part of the isolation unit. Such an arrangement appears to be particularly advantageous to emphasize the separation between the urinal and the handwasher.

  In one embodiment of the invention, a combined urinal and handwashing unit of 2 or more, more preferably 4 or more, more preferably 5 or more, more preferably 8 or more, more preferably 10 or more, The urinals are installed next to each other in the same room. An example of such a preferred embodiment is shown in FIG.

  Installation of multiple urinal and hand-washing appliances next to each other means, for example, airports, railway stations, government buildings, office buildings, schools, universities, restaurants, cultural venues, sports stadiums, etc. This is a typical arrangement in the toilet.

  One particularly advantageous aspect of the geometry of the present invention, namely the arrangement or “offset” of a hand-washer relative to the urinal (in any case close to the urinal), allows a plurality of these units to be placed between the units. It becomes possible to arrange | position so that it may mutually adjoin, without providing a physical boundary (for example, a wall or a threshold). Because the view of the person using the urinal does not match the view of the potential user of the adjacent urinal, the view of the person using the hand-washer is the same as that of the other (adjacent) units. This is because it does not match the view of a potential user of a urinal. In such an array of multiple units, if the urinal and the hand-washer are arranged at 90 ° relative to each other, the respective fields of view will intersect severely.

  Although not required, it is also consistent with the present invention to provide a sill or wall between two or more combined units of a urinal and a hand-washer.

  In fact, in the preferred embodiment shown in FIG. 4, two, three, four or more, preferably four, urinal and handwasher composite units are placed around a pillar, pole or post.

  In one embodiment according to the present invention, the urinal and handwasher are provided as two separate structural units that can be replaced or removed independently of each other (see, eg, FIG. 1). ). This embodiment has the advantages of flexibility, good design possibilities, and ease of maintenance / repair.

  In an alternative embodiment, the urinal and handwasher are provided as an integral unit (see FIG. 5). This structure is less flexible (ie, if either the urinal or handwasher fails, the entire unit must be replaced), while this structure is manufactured at a lower cost And can be installed more easily. In a preferred embodiment, such an integral unit is made from one main material, in particular a ceramic material, a resin material or a composite material. Such an integral unit is particularly preferably cast, extruded or press molded.

  In a preferred embodiment of the invention, a sensor is provided in the urinal, which sensor detects the start and / or end of the urination process. Preferably, when the sensor and the associated control unit detect that the urination process has ended, for example after the last detection of urine inflow, after a predetermined period of time, Feeding is started automatically, preferably via a faucet.

  As outlined above, the flushing of the urinal and / or the operation of the water supply unit of the hand-washer is preferably controlled by at least one control unit. The control unit preferably has at least one sensor.

  Suitable sensors can be, for example, liquid sensors, weight sensors, urea sensors, pressure sensors, and / or water level sensors. In one embodiment, the sensor permanently detects urine inflow and sets a predetermined internal trigger after, for example, 3 seconds or more of urine inflow. When urine is not detected in a predetermined period (for example, 3 seconds), the second signal can be output after the first signal is output (triggered). If both signals are output, the control unit then starts supplying fresh water to the handwasher, preferably by operating the faucet faucet. This encourages or assists hand-washing by the user of the urinal. Preferably, a sufficient time offset is provided between the detection of the end of the urine inflow and the supply of water. More preferably, the “automatic” water supply is stopped after elapse of a predetermined period (for example, 5 seconds).

  Preferably, in addition to the preferred embodiment, which relates to an automatic water supply triggered by utilizing a urine, the handwasher is for initiating a water supply process, as is common in modern handwashers. There are also sensors. Thereby, a hand-washing machine can be used without utilizing a urine.

  The preferred embodiment of triggering the water supply by utilizing a urine will have the added benefit of improving hygiene, as the urinal user is encouraged to wash their hands.

  For all embodiments of the present invention, the combined urinal and handwasher unit according to the present invention is a urinal and handwasher known from the prior art, especially for urinals used in public toilet environments. On the other hand, it has the following advantages.

  First, a large amount of water can be saved by reusing waste water from a hand-washer to flush the urinal. This has obvious advantages both in terms of cost savings for toilet operations and for the conservation of the environment and scarce resources of the earth. In this context, common water-saving urinal means are so-called “waterless” urinals or chemical urinals, in which they are either not cleaned at all or only intermittently cleaned. This obviously leads to water savings for the urinal, but this configuration has the disadvantage that it can lead to odor problems by not performing the cleaning operation. However, masking odors with chemicals goes against resource conservation goals. Also, a waterless urinal does not conserve or reuse water from a separate handwasher. The present invention provides the same water saving effect as a so-called waterless urinal, but has the additional advantage of flushing the urinal. This eliminates or exempts the use of chemicals to deal with odors and other problems with urinal hygiene.

  Second, the combined urinal and handwasher unit of the present invention offers the potential for significant space savings. This is because it is possible to reduce the number of hand-washing machines that need to be installed in the entire public toilet (the hand-washing machine needs to be installed for a toilet provided in the toilet).

  Third, the configuration of the present invention can minimize the required piping and therefore minimize the cost of operation and maintenance in public toilets.

  Fourth, perhaps most importantly, the special geometry of the present invention provides for the first time a number of combined units of urinals and handwashers in a public toilet environment. This is because the user experiences the same degree of privacy as he would for a public toilet, as in the case of a separate urinal and handwasher.

Claims (15)

Waste water from the hand-washer is used to flush the urinal,
The handwasher and the urinal are a composite of a urinal and a handwasher in close proximity to each other or in physical contact with each other,
A virtual plane defined by a central plane extending vertically through the urinal from the top to the bottom is positioned at a predetermined angle relative to a virtual plane defined by a central plane extending vertically through the hand-washer The hand basin is offset with respect to the urinal,
The offset angle is in the range of 20 ° to 80 °, preferably in the range of 30 ° to 75 °, more preferably in the range of 40 ° to 70 °, and still more preferably in the range of 40 ° to 60 °. And the complex. The urinal has at least one opening, outlet, or orifice;
Through the opening, outlet or orifice, water is supplied to the interior of the urinal, i.e. the area exposed to the urine,
The composite of claim 1, wherein the water optionally comprises waste water from the hand-washing machine, along with water from a fresh water source, or is waste water from the hand-washing machine.   The composite according to claim 1 or 2, wherein waste water from the hand-washer is stored in a storage device before being supplied into the urinal.   The supply of any water to the urinal is controlled by a control unit such as, for example, a central processing unit, a timer, a central control unit, or any other controller. Complex. The hand washing machine is
At least one supply unit for supplying fresh water, preferably a faucet;
And at least one drainage unit for draining used water collected in the container / receptacle of the handwasher,
The composite according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the used water becomes waste water for washing away the urinal. Natural gravity is used to move waste water from the handwasher through the drainage unit of the handwasher to an opening, orifice, or outlet,
6. A complex according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein water is supplied into the urinal through the opening, orifice or outlet, optionally with a pump. The hand-washer is in direct contact with the urinal, or
The distance between the two outer surfaces of the urinal and the hand-washing device, which are closest to each other, is 40 cm or less, preferably 30 cm or less, more preferably 20 cm or less, more preferably 10 cm or less, more preferably 5 cm or less. The composite_body | complex of any one of Claims 1-6.   The composite according to claim 1, wherein the hand-washing device and the urinal are separated by at least one isolation unit. The handwasher and the urinal are provided as two separate structural units;
The composite according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the structural units are replaceable or removable independently of each other.   The composite according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the urinal and the hand-washer are provided as an integrated unit. The urinal is provided with a sensor,
The composite according to any one of claims 1 to 10, wherein the sensor detects at least one of a start and an end of a urination process.   12. Use of a urinal and handwasher complex according to any one of claims 1 to 11, in one room, preferably in a public toilet, of 2 or more, preferably 4 or more, preferably 8 or more. .   The public toilets are public transport sites such as railway stations, airports or highway toilet facilities, hotels, restaurants, conference facilities, public buildings, especially museums, exhibition halls, movie theaters, art houses, government buildings 13. Use according to claim 12, selected from a list including school, university.   14. Use according to claim 12 or 13, wherein two, three, four or more, preferably four, urinal and handwashing combined units are arranged around a pillar, pole or post.   12. At least one of claims 1 to 11 in a vehicle room, in particular a RV car, a camping wagon, a bus, or a private room, in particular a private toilet, in a marine application, in particular a boat or other marine vessel. How to use the urinal-handwasher complex as described.

Images