JP2019067063A - Bathroom safety system - Google Patents

Abstract

To early and safely resolve a submerging state by determining whether or not a bather inside a bathtub is in the submerging state.SOLUTION: A bathroom safety system 10 comprises an ultrasonic transmission/reception device 12 for transmitting ultrasonic waves toward a bathtub 1, and receiving reflection waves thereof, that is disposed above the bathtub 1 inside a bathroom; a submerging determination device 13 for comparing a first distance with a second distance by calculating the first distance as a distance from the ultrasonic transmission/reception device 12 to a head-top portion of a bather 5 and the second distance as a distance from the ultrasonic transmission/reception device 12 to a structure used as a reference inside the bathroom, based on the received reflection waves to determine whether or not the bather 5 is in a submerging state, based on the comparison result; and a basket 9 having at least one hole on a side face or a bottom face, that is stored inside the bathtub 1; a basket control device B for controlling a basket lifting device elevating the basket 9 from a position of being stored inside the bathtub 1 to a position of resolving the submerging state of the bather 5, based on the determination of the submerging determination device 13.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 10

Description

  The present invention relates to a bathroom safety system for immediately detecting a state in which the head is submerged due to a temporary loss of consciousness or the like while taking a bath in a bath, and enabling the cancellation of the submerged state quickly and safely.

  One of the most common fatalities at home is drowning in a bathtub. As a factor to be drunk in the bathtub, there is an acute disease such as brain or heart due to a sudden rise in blood pressure due to contact with hot water in a cold season or a burden on the heart. In addition, blood circulation improves and blood pressure decreases when bathed in hot water, but rising from that state causes the brain and heart to become ischemic due to gravity, resulting in loss of consciousness, and falls and weakness in the bathtub. In some cases, it may sink without being able to support the body in the bathtub. Thus, it is known that the number of accidents in the bathtub is very large compared to the accident in the washing place.

  In addition, even when the family is in the same room, it is not possible to early find that the bath is in a submerged state, and as a result, there may be a loss of life. On the other hand, there are very few deaths due to bathing accidents in public baths compared with those in homes, and public baths are considered to have an eye around them and to be able to detect abnormalities early.

  In addition, there is an inter-phone function with another room provided in a remote control of a water heater or the like as a means for communicating an abnormality in the bathroom, but if a bather is in a state of unconsciousness, it can not of course be contacted.

  As described above, the bathroom is a dangerous place even in the home, and it is important to identify the accident in the bathroom at an early stage and treat it as life-saving as the aging of the population advances in recent years. Proposals for an abnormality detection device have been made.

  Patent Document 1 discloses a bathing state detection device that classifies and learns bather information into a plurality of bathing patterns and determines whether or not an abnormality has occurred in the current bather based on the bathing pattern. ing.

  The bathing state detection device described in Patent Document 1 automatically drains water until the water level in the bathtub drops to a safe water level when it is determined that an abnormality has occurred in the current bather.

Unexamined-Japanese-Patent No. 2015-207282

  However, since the bathing state detection device described in Patent Document 1 requires a considerable amount of time to complete drainage to a safe water level, it may not be possible to save the bather who has an abnormality.

  Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a bathroom safety system that eliminates a submerged state early and safely when a bather has an abnormality and reaches a submerged state.

  According to the present invention, there is provided an ultrasonic wave emitting and receiving apparatus disposed on the upper portion of a bath in a bathroom, emitting an ultrasonic wave toward the bath and receiving the reflected wave, and the supersonic wave based on the received reflected wave. Calculate the first distance, which is the distance from the sound wave generator / receiver to the head of the bather, and the second distance, which is the distance from the ultrasonic wave generator / receiver to the reference structure in the bathroom And a submersion judging device for comparing the first distance and the second distance and determining whether or not the bather is in a submersion state based on the comparison result; From the position housed inside the bath to the position where the bather's submersion state is canceled based on the judgment of the submersion determination device and the submersion having at least one or more holes in the side surface or the bottom surface A weir control device for controlling the weir lifting device to be raised; To provide a full safety system was painting.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, when abnormality generate | occur | produces in a bather and it becomes a submersion state, a submersion state can be canceled early and safely safely.

It is a schematic diagram showing an example of a bathroom safety system concerning an embodiment of the invention. It is the bird's-eye view which looked at a domestic bathroom from the upper surface. It is the bird's-eye view which looked at the household bathroom at the time of bathing from the upper surface. FIG. 4A is a schematic view showing a normal bathing state. FIG. 4 (b) is a schematic view showing a submerged state in which the head is submerged. FIG. 4C is a schematic view showing a submerged state in which the whole body is submerged. It is a block diagram showing an example of a submersion judging device concerning an embodiment of the invention. It is a wave form diagram showing a waveform of a reflected wave concerning an embodiment of the invention. It is a wave form diagram showing an envelope waveform and a differential waveform of a reflected wave concerning an embodiment of the invention. It is a flow chart for explaining an example of a submersion detection method concerning an embodiment of the invention. It is the schematic which shows an example of the bathroom safety system which concerns on the other embodiment of this invention. FIG. 10 (a) is a schematic view showing an example of a bathroom safety system provided with a bath having a bath lifting device and a bath. FIG.10 (b) is schematic which shows an example of the submersion state in the same bathroom safety system. FIG.10 (c) is schematic which shows an example of the state by which the submersion state in the same bathroom safety system was eliminated. FIG. 11 (a) is a schematic view showing an example of a submerged state in a bathroom safety system provided with a tub including a tub lifting device and a tub. FIG.11 (b) is schematic which shows an example of the state by which the submersion state in the same bathroom safety system was eliminated. It is the schematic which shows an example of the state by which the submersion state was eliminated in the bathroom safety system provided with the bath-lifting apparatus and the bathtub which has a tub.

  Next, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following description of the drawings, the same or similar parts are denoted by the same or similar reference numerals. However, it should be noted that the drawings are schematic, and the relationship between the thickness and the planar dimension, the ratio of the thickness of each layer, and the like are different from the actual ones. Therefore, specific thicknesses and dimensions should be determined in consideration of the following description. Moreover, it is a matter of course that parts having different dimensional relationships and ratios among the drawings are included.

  In addition, the embodiments described below illustrate apparatuses and methods for embodying the technical idea of the present invention, and the technical idea of the present invention includes materials, shapes, structures, and the like of components. The arrangement etc. are not specified to the following. Various changes can be added to the technical idea of the present invention within the scope of the claims.

Embodiment 1
(Bathroom safety system)
As shown in FIG. 1, the bathroom safety system 10 according to the embodiment of the present invention is disposed on the ceiling 3 located above the bathtub 1 in the bathroom, and the bather 5 is bathing in the bathtub 1 A bather detection device 11 for detecting the sound, an ultrasonic wave emitting / receiving device 12 disposed on the ceiling 3 for transmitting ultrasonic waves toward the bathtub 1 and receiving a reflected wave of the transmitted ultrasonic waves, a bather detection device When it is detected that the bather 5 is taking a bath by 11, the distance L from the top of the head of the bather 5 to the water surface 6 in the bathtub 1 is calculated based on the received reflected wave. The submersion determination apparatus 13 which determines whether the bather 5 is in a submersion state based on the distance L from a crown part to the water surface 6 is provided. The distance between the ultrasonic wave generator / receiver 12 and the top of the head of the bather 5 is a first distance. The distance between the ultrasonic wave emitting and receiving device 12 and the structure serving as a reference in the bathroom such as the water surface 6 or the bath tub edge 8 described later is a second distance.

  An alarm device 14 is connected to the submersion determination device 13. The submersion determination device 13 and the alarm device 14 can be installed at any place inside or outside the bathroom, and may be incorporated in the bather detection device 11 or the ultrasonic wave emitting and receiving device 12. The bather detection device 11, the ultrasonic wave generation and reception device 12, the submersion determination device 13 and the alarm device 14 may be connected to each other by wire, or may transmit and receive signals wirelessly, and are connected via the Internet It may be

  FIG. 2 is a bird's-eye view of a household bathroom viewed from the ceiling 3. As shown in FIG. 2, the ceiling 3 can generally overlook the inside of the bathtub 1. A bathroom 7 is provided with a washing place 7 and a bathtub 1. The bathtub 1 is covered with a hot water 2 for bathing. A drainage tap 4 is provided in the bath 1. The automatic opening and closing of the drainage plug 4 is performed by a drainage plug control device A (not shown) connected to the submersion judging device 13. The drain valve control device A can be installed anywhere inside or outside the bathroom and may be built into the bathtub 1.

  FIG. 3 shows a state where a human (bather) 5 is taking a bath in the bathtub 1. In the bathroom, drowning in the bath may be unconscious for some reason when bathed in hot water 2 of bath 1 or when the blood pressure is rapidly lowered when it gets up to go out of bath 1 or the brain or heart may become ischemic. And becomes submerged in the hot water 2 of the bathtub 1 and occurs when the hot water 2 of the bathtub 1 blocks the breathing organs such as the nose and the mouth.

  The bathing state in bath 1 of bather 5 is shown in Drawing 4 (a)-Drawing 4 (c). In the bathing state shown in FIG. 4 (a), the distance L from the top of the head of the bather 5 to the water surface 6 is sufficient, and the breathing apparatus of the bather 5's nose and mouth is above the water surface 6, so breathing is normal. It is possible to

  The bathing state shown in FIG. 4B is a state in which the bather 5 loses his or her consciousness and loses his or her own ability and becomes submerged in the hot water 2 in the bathtub 1. Although the distance L from the top of the head of the bather 5 to the water surface 6 is small, and part of the head 51 is above the water surface 6, the water level is higher than the position of the chin and the respirator is below the water surface 6, It is dangerously submerged for maintaining breathing. Thus, even if the head 51 is exposed on the water surface 6, if the water surface 6 reaches the respiratory system, breathing becomes difficult or water enters the respiratory system, resulting in a submerged condition.

  In the bathing state shown in FIG. 4 (c), the bathing state shown in FIG. 4 (b) proceeds, and the entire body of the bather 5 is under the water surface 6, and the head 51 is also submerged, and it is in a clearly submerged state is there.

  As the bather detection device 11 illustrated in FIG. 1, an imaging element (camera for imaging) can be used. The bather detection device 11 puts the bathtub 1 in the field of view F and detects the presence of the bather 5 in the bathtub 1 based on the image information. Generally, the bathtub 1 has many single-colored colors, and the bather 5 does not wear clothes, so most of the image of the bather 5 is occupied with a color centered on the skin color. Therefore, the color and range of the bathtub 1 are stored from the image of the entire bathtub 1 with no bather shown in FIG. 2, and the image of the bather 5 shown in FIG. 3 entering the bathtub 1 It is judged that the bather 5 is present in the bathtub 1 when the range of the color centering on the skin color exceeds a certain ratio unlike the color of the bathtub 1 in comparison with the above. In addition, since a bather may feel a sense of resistance when installing an imaging camera in a bathroom, an ultrasonic sensor is provided inside the bathtub 1 in place of the imaging camera, and bathing is performed using this ultrasonic sensor. You may judge the presence or absence of a person.

  The ultrasonic wave generator / receiver 12 shown in FIG. 1 intermittently transmits ultrasonic waves for a short time toward the entire bath 1. Further, the ultrasonic wave generator / receiver 12 receives a reflected wave (echo wave) in which the transmitted ultrasonic wave is reflected by the bather 5, the water surface 6, the bath rim 8, an accessory of the bath 1 or the like.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the submersion determining apparatus 13 includes a pulse generation circuit 101, an oscillation circuit 105, an intermittent circuit 104, a transmission amplification circuit 103, a transmission / reception switching circuit 102, a reception amplification circuit 106, a filter circuit 107, and waveform analysis. The circuit 108 includes a bather's reflected wave extraction unit 109, a water surface reflected wave extraction unit 110, a distance calculation unit 111, and a submersion determination unit 112. The bather's reflected wave extraction unit 109, the water surface reflected wave extraction unit 110, the distance calculation unit 111, and the submersion determination unit 112 are configured by, for example, a logic circuit of a central processing unit (CPU).

  The oscillation circuit 105 generates an AC signal in the ultrasonic band. The pulse generation circuit 101 generates a pulse for determining the transmission and reception time of ultrasonic waves, and outputs the pulse to the transmission and reception switching circuit 102, the intermittent circuit 104, and the waveform analysis circuit 108. The on / off circuit 104 is controlled by the pulse from the pulse generation circuit 101, and converts the AC signal from the oscillation circuit 105 into an AC waveform having a pulse-like amplitude. The transmission amplifier circuit 103 amplifies the alternating current signal from the intermittent circuit 104.

  The transmission / reception switching circuit 102 is controlled by the pulse from the pulse generation circuit 101 to switch the transmission / reception of the ultrasonic wave transmission / reception device 12. Pulsed ultrasonic waves with a short duration are emitted toward the bath 1 by the ultrasonic wave generator / receiver 12. The ultrasonic waves are reflected by the bather 5, the water surface 6, and the peripheral portion of the bathtub 1 to reach the ultrasonic wave generator / receiver 12 again. At the time when the reflected wave arrives, the transmission / reception switching circuit 102 switches the connection destination of the ultrasonic wave emitting / receiving device 12 to the reception amplification circuit 106.

The reception amplifier circuit 106 amplifies the reflected wave received by the ultrasonic wave generator / receiver 12.
The filter circuit 107 removes frequency components other than the transmitted ultrasonic waves. The output from the filter circuit 107 is input to the waveform analysis circuit 108.

  6 (a) to 6 (c) show received waveforms input to the waveform analysis circuit 108 in each bathing state shown in FIGS. 4 (a) to 4 (c). FIG. 6 (tx) shows the transmission waveform used as the reference of distance measurement.

  When the distance between the head 51 of the bather 5 and the water surface 6 is sufficient as shown in FIG. 4A, as shown in FIG. 6A, it is at the closest position from the ultrasonic wave emitting and receiving device 12. The reception waveform W11 reflected by the head 51 of a certain bather 5 is observed. Thereafter, diffuse reflection of each part of the body is observed, and the reception waveform W12 reflected by the bathtub edge 8 is observed at a fixed position. Then, the reception waveform W13 reflected on the water surface 6 is observed, and no clear waveform is observed thereafter.

  Further, when the distance between the head 51 of the bather 5 and the water surface 6 is short as shown in FIG. 4 (b), the reception waveform first reflected by the bathtub edge 8 as shown in FIG. 6 (b) W12 is observed at a fixed position. Then, the reception waveform W11 reflected by the head 51 of the bather 5 is observed. Thereafter, the reception waveform W13 reflected from the water surface 6 is observed thereafter, and no clear waveform is observed thereafter.

  When the head 51 of the bather 5 is submerged as shown in FIG. 4 (c), the reception waveform W12 reflected by the bathtub edge 8 is fixed as shown in FIG. 6 (c). The reception waveform W13 observed at the position and reflected by the water surface 6 is observed, and no clear waveform is observed thereafter.

  Here, as the characteristics of each reflected wave, the reception waveform W12 reflected by the bathtub edge 8, the reception waveform W13 reflected by the water surface 6, and the reception waveform (not shown) at a fixed object such as an accessory of the bathtub 1 are The reflectance is high because the density is high with respect to air close to perpendicular to the traveling direction of the ultrasonic waves, and the waveform is observed as a sharp (sharp) waveform. On the other hand, the reception waveform W11 reflected by the bather 5 does not become a sharp (sharp) waveform due to the human body surface having a complicated uneven shape, the presence of hair or the like, etc., and the amplitude changes with distance. The waveform has a duration that Therefore, the reception waveforms W12 and W13 at the fixed object and the reception waveform W11 of the bather 5 can be clearly distinguished based on the sharpness (profile) of the waveforms.

  Further, the reflected wave reflected by the water surface 6 has the largest amplitude (reflected intensity) in FIG. 6C because the area of the water surface 6 changes due to the bather 5 being immersed in the hot water 2 of the bather 5. (B) In the order shown in FIG. 6 (a), the amplitude gradually changes with time due to the change of the reflection surface due to the wave on the water surface 6 as it becomes smaller in the order. On the other hand, the amplitude of the reflected wave at the bathtub edge 8 and the reflected wave at the fixed object such as the accessory of the bathtub 1 does not change with time. Furthermore, when the horizontal level of the water surface 6 is the lowest around the bathtub 1, the steep reception waveform with the longest delay time from transmission to reception of ultrasonic waves is reflected on the water surface 6 It can be identified as a reflected wave. Therefore, the reception waveform W13 reflected by the water surface 6, and the reception waveform W12 at the bathtub edge 8 and the reception waveform at a fixed object such as an accessory of the bathtub 1 are delayed from transmission to reception of ultrasonic waves. A clear distinction can be made based on time and / or any variation of the amplitude of the reflected wave (reflected intensity) or a combination thereof.

  Further, the reception waveform W12 reflected by the bathtub edge portion 8 among the reflected waves of the ultrasonic waves is a reflection to a portion of which the distance is fixed with respect to the ultrasonic wave generator / receiver 12. For this reason, it is also possible to correct the distance measurement result during bathing and improve the accuracy of the distinction of the received waveform by measuring the distance from the ultrasonic wave emitting and receiving device 12 to the bathtub edge 8 in advance. .

  The waveform analysis circuit 108 shown in FIG. 5 performs envelope detection on the received waveform input from the filter circuit 107 and outputs an envelope waveform. Furthermore, the waveform analysis circuit 108 outputs a differentiated waveform obtained by differentiating the envelope waveform.

  The envelope waveforms of the reception waveform shown in FIGS. 6A to 6C are shown in FIGS. 7A to 7C, and the differential waveforms of the envelope waveforms are shown in FIGS. 7A to 7C. It shows in (c '). Here, the detection waveform W23 of the reception waveform reflected by the water surface 6 and the detection waveform W22 of the reception waveform reflected by the bathtub edge portion 8 are for a reflection wave by an object close to a plane perpendicular to the traveling direction of the ultrasonic wave. The waveform has a sharp (sharp) rising edge, and each of the differential waveforms W33 and W32 has a pulse-like waveform. On the other hand, since the human body has complicated micro unevenness on its surface and there are few faces perpendicular to the direction of travel of the ultrasonic waves, the detection waveform W21 of the reception waveform at the bather 5 changes gently and its differential waveform W31 Also in comparison with the differential waveform W33 of the reception waveform reflected by the water surface 6 and the differential waveform W32 of the reception waveform reflected by the bathtub edge portion 8, the level is gentle and low. In addition to the reception waveforms shown in FIGS. 6 (a) to 6 (c), the envelope waveforms shown in FIGS. 7 (a) to 7 (c) and FIGS. 7 (a ') to 7 (c') The received waveform can be more accurately distinguished by using the differential waveform shown in FIG.

  The bather reflected wave extraction unit 109 shown in FIG. 5 is received based on the received waveform output from the waveform analysis circuit 108, its envelope waveform, and its differential waveform, or a combination of two or more thereof. The reflected wave at the bather 5 is extracted (differentiated) from the reflected wave. The bather's reflected wave extraction unit 109 extracts, for example, the reception waveform W11 of a relatively gentle waveform among the reception waveforms W11, W12, and W13 shown in FIG. Do.

  The water surface reflected wave extraction unit 110 shown in FIG. 5 receives the received reflection based on any one of the waveform of the reflected wave output from the waveform analysis circuit 108, the envelope waveform, and the differential waveform, or a combination of two or more thereof. The reflected wave reflected by the water surface 6 is extracted (differentiated) from the wave. The water surface reflected wave extraction unit 110 distinguishes among the received waveforms W11, W12, W13 shown in FIG. 6A, for example, the steep received waveforms W12, W13 and the smooth received waveform W11 based on the sharpness. Do. Furthermore, the water surface reflected wave extraction unit 110 varies in amplitude (reflection intensity) with time among the steep reception waveforms W12 and W13, and the delay time t3 from transmission to reception of ultrasonic waves is longest. The reception waveform W13 is extracted as a reflected wave reflected by the water surface 6.

  The distance calculation unit 111 shown in FIG. 5 is based on the reflected wave by the bather 5 extracted by the bather reflected wave extraction unit 109 and the reflected wave reflected by the water surface 6 extracted by the water surface reflected wave extraction unit 110. The distance L from the top of the head of the bather 5 to the water surface 6 is calculated. The distance calculation unit 111 calculates, for example, a delay time from transmission of an ultrasonic wave to reception of the reflection wave of the bather 5 extracted by the bather reflection wave extraction unit 109. Furthermore, the distance calculation unit 111 calculates a delay time from transmission of an ultrasonic wave to reception of the reflected wave reflected by the water surface 6 extracted by the water surface reflected wave extraction unit 110. Furthermore, the distance calculation unit 111 calculates the distance L from the top of the head of the bather 5 to the water surface 6 based on the delay times.

  In the case of the bathing state shown in FIG. 4A, in FIGS. 6 and 7, the delay time from the transmission of the ultrasonic wave to the reception of the reflected wave reflected at the top of the head of the bather 5 is t1 (seconds). Assuming that the delay time from sending an ultrasonic wave to receiving a reflected wave reflected on the water surface is t3 (seconds), the propagation velocity v (meters per second) of the sound wave in dry air at 1 atmosphere is the temperature T ° C In general, it can be expressed by the following equation (1).

v = 331.5 + 0.61 T (1)

Therefore, the distance calculation unit 111 can calculate the distance L (meters) from the top of the head of the bather 5 to the water surface 6 using the following equation (2).

L = 0.5 × (t3−t1) × (331.5 + 0.61 T) / 2 (2)

Also in the case of the bathing state shown in FIG. 4B, the distance calculation unit 111 similarly transmits an ultrasonic wave based on the reflected wave by the bather 5 extracted by the bather reflected wave extraction unit 109. A delay time t2 until reception is calculated, and based on the reflected wave reflected by the water surface 6 extracted by the water surface reflected wave extraction unit 110, a delay time t3 from transmission to reception of the ultrasonic wave is calculated. Based on the delay times t2 and t3, the distance L from the top of the head of the bather 5 to the water surface 6 is calculated.

  Moreover, since the distance calculation unit 111 is in the bathing state shown in FIG. 4C, the reception waveform W13 reflected on the water surface 6 is obtained by the reflected wave extraction unit as shown in FIG. If the reflected wave of the person 5 is not extracted, the process is not performed.

The submersion determination unit 112 determines whether or not the bather 5 is in a submersion state based on the distance L from the top of the bather 5 to the water surface 6 calculated by the distance calculation unit 111. The submersion determination unit 112 compares the distance L from the top of the head to the water surface 6 with the threshold (for example, 20 cm), and determines the submersion state when the distance L from the top of the head to the water surface 6 is less than the threshold (for example, 20 cm) Do. The threshold is set, for example, in the range of 10 cm to 20 cm, but is not particularly limited, and can be appropriately set according to the size of the head 51 of the bather 5 who uses the bathroom, the position of the respirator, the bathing posture, etc. . The threshold may be stored in advance in a storage device or the like (not shown).
The submersion determination unit 112 determines whether the bather 5 is in a submersion state, using the distance from the top of the head to the top surface of the bath rim 8 instead of the distance L from the top of the head to the water surface 6 You may As the threshold value in this case, a value obtained by subtracting the difference between the height of the water surface 6 and the height of the bathtub edge 8 may be used as the threshold value when the water surface 6 is used. Also, the threshold value in this case may be set in advance as a predetermined value within the range of approximately 15 cm to 30 cm. Thus, the distance (difference in height) between a reference structure in the bathroom such as the washroom 7 and the lid of the bath (not shown) as well as the bath rim 8 and the top of the head of the bather 5 It can be determined based on whether it is in a submerged state. Unlike the water surface 6, the structure in the bathroom has no fluctuation, so the distance calculation unit 111 can stably calculate the distance between the top of the bather 5 and the reference structure in the bathroom.

  Here, as shown in the equation (1), the propagation velocity of the sound wave in the air is greatly affected by the air temperature, but the velocity change when the air temperature changes by ± 15 ° C. is less than ± 3%, and the water is submerged It is an error of around ± 0.6 cm, assuming that the temperature inside the bathroom at the time of general bathing is about 30 ° C against the distance of 20 cm, which is the distance to judge the condition, and compared with the method of measuring the distance between the water level and the head 51 individually. Therefore, there is an advantage that temperature correction is not particularly required.

  Furthermore, since the submersion determination unit 112 is in the submersion state as shown in FIG. 4C, it is detected that the bather 5 is bathing by the bather detection device 11, and the bather's reflected wave When the reflected wave of the bather 5 is not extracted by the extraction unit 109 as shown in FIG. 6C, it is determined that the bather 5 is in a submerged state.

  The alarm device 14 issues an alarm when the submersion determination unit 112 determines that the bather 5 is in the submersion state. The alarm device 14 notifies that the bather 5 is in a submerged state to the outside of the bathroom or to a predetermined report destination when a predetermined time elapses without the alarm release operation being performed after the alarm is issued.

(Sinking detection method)
Next, an example of a method of detecting water immersion using the bathroom safety system 10 according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

  (A) In step S1, the bather detection device 11 monitors whether the bather 5 is present in the bathtub 1 as needed. When the bather 5 is detected, the process proceeds to step S2.

  (B) In step S 2, the ultrasonic wave generator / receiver 12 emits ultrasonic waves toward the bathtub 1. The transmitted ultrasonic wave is reflected by the bather 5, the water surface 6, the bath tub edge 8 or the like, and the reflected wave is received by the ultrasonic wave generator / receiver 12.

  (C) In step S3, the waveform analysis circuit 108 outputs the waveform of the reflected wave received by the ultrasonic wave generator / receiver 12, its envelope waveform, and its differential waveform.

  (D) In step S4, the bather's reflected wave extraction unit 109 selects the bather among the received reflected waves based on the received waveform output from the waveform analysis circuit 108, the envelope waveform thereof, and the sharpness of the differential waveform thereof. Extract the reflected wave at 5.

  (E) In step S5, the water surface reflected wave extraction unit 110 receives the reception waveform output from the waveform analysis circuit 108, the sharpness of the envelope waveform and its differential waveform, and the delay from the transmission to the reception of the ultrasonic wave. The reflected wave reflected by the water surface 6 is extracted based on the time and the fluctuation of the amplitude of the reflected wave with time.

  (F) In step S6, the distance calculation unit 111 selects the reflection wave of the bather 5 extracted by the bather reflection wave extraction unit 109 and the reflection wave reflected by the water surface 6 extracted by the water surface reflection wave extraction unit 110. Based on the distance L from the top of the head of the bather 5 to the water surface 6 is calculated.

(G) In step S7, the bather 5 compares the distance L from the top of the bather 5 to the water surface 6 calculated by the distance calculator 111 with a threshold value (for example, 20 cm). It is determined whether or not it is in a submerged state. When the distance L from the top of the bather 5 to the water surface 6 is equal to or greater than the threshold and the bather 5 is determined not to be submerged, the process is completed.
On the other hand, if it is determined in step S7 that the distance L from the top of the bather 5 to the water surface 6 is less than the threshold value and it is determined that the water is submerged, the process proceeds to step S8. In addition, as described above, the bather 5 is in a submerged state by calculating the distance between the structure in the bathroom other than the water surface 6 such as the bath tub edge 8 and the head of the bather 5 and comparing with the threshold value. It may be determined whether or not.

  (H) In step S8, the alarm device 14 issues an alarm and measures the time during which the alarm is issued.

  (I) In step S9, the alarm device 14 determines whether the alarm has been canceled within a predetermined time. If it is determined that the alarm is canceled within a predetermined time, the process is completed. On the other hand, if it is determined that the alarm is not canceled within a predetermined time, the process proceeds to step S10.

  (N) In step S10, an emergency measure such as notification to the outside by the alarm device 14 and emergency drainage of the hot water 2 in the bathtub 1 by the drainage plug 4 is performed.

  The series of procedures shown in FIG. 8 can be executed by controlling the bathroom safety system 10 shown in FIG. 1 by a program of an algorithm equivalent to that in FIG. This program may be stored in a storage device or the like (not shown). Further, this program can be stored in a computer readable recording medium, and the recording medium can be read by a storage device to execute the series of procedures of the embodiment of the present invention.

  As described above, according to the bathroom safety system 10 according to the embodiment of the present invention, it is determined that the user is taking a bath based on the video information using the bather detection device 11, and measurement using the ultrasonic wave emitting and receiving device 12 By measuring the relative distance L between the top of the bather 5 and the water surface 6 by the distance, the respiratory organ was submerged without being affected by the water level of the hot water 2 in the bath 1 or the bathing posture of the bather 5 Submersion condition can be judged instantly. As a result, it is possible to perform an early lifesaving treatment by performing an external notification automatically, and performing an operation such as opening the drainage tap 4 automatically and lowering the water level, and dying can account for a large proportion in a bathing accident. It is possible to prevent the situation that will happen.

  Moreover, in the conventional proposal, in many cases, a sensor is attached to the inside of bathtub 1 or a wall surface, the structure of a bathroom is restricted, and it was difficult to attach to the existing bathroom. On the other hand, according to the embodiment of the present invention, since it is only necessary to attach the bather detection device 11 and the ultrasonic wave emitting / receiving device 12 to the ceiling 3 located above the bathtub 1, there are few restrictions. It is easy to attach to a bathroom, and the number of sensors attached may be small.

  Furthermore, since the image recognition by the bather detection device 11 and the distance measurement by the ultrasonic wave emitting / receiving device 12 are performed from the ceiling 3 located above the bathtub 1, there is no obstacle and image recognition and distance measurement can be easily performed. it can.

  Furthermore, since the distance from the ceiling 3 to the bather 5 (delay time of the reflected wave) and the distance from the ceiling 3 to the water surface 6 (delay time of the reflected wave) are determined by the same reflected wave, the relative error is The correction of the ultrasonic wave propagation speed due to temperature is also unnecessary, and the distance L from the top of the head of the bather 5 to the water surface 6 can be accurately calculated.

In the embodiment of the present invention, the case where one ultrasonic wave generator / receiver 12 is used has been described, but a plurality of ultrasonic wave transmitters / receivers 12a and 12b may be used as shown in FIG. .
The accuracy of the submersion judgment is obtained by detecting the head area and the leg area of the bather 5 by dividing the general rectangular bath 1 by using a plurality of ultrasonic wave emitting and receiving devices 12a and 12b. It is possible to improve.

  Also, as shown in FIG. 5, the case has been described in which the transmission / reception switching circuit 102 is provided and one ultrasonic wave transmission / reception device 12 also serving as transmission / reception of ultrasonic waves is described. You may have separately the receiver which receives the reflected wave of the ultrasonic wave.

  Further, in the embodiment of the present invention, the delay time from when the distance calculation unit 111 transmits the ultrasonic wave to when the reflected wave reflected by the head of the bather 5 is received, and after the ultrasonic wave is transmitted. Although the case where the distance L from the top of the head of the bather 5 to the water surface 6 is calculated using the equation (2) from the delay time until receiving the reflected wave reflected by the water surface 6 has been described, The distance from the top to the ultrasonic wave generator / receiver 12 and the distance from the water surface 6 to the ultrasonic wave transmitter / receiver 12 are calculated, and the difference L between the head of the bather 5 and the water surface 6 is calculated from the difference between these distances. You may

Second Embodiment
In the first embodiment, when the submersion determination device 13 determines that the bather 5 is in the submersion state, notification to the outside by the alarm device 14, and the hot water in the bathtub 1 by the drainage plug 4 and the drainage plug control device A 2 shows the bathroom safety system 10 which eliminates the submersion condition of the bather by performing emergency measures such as emergency drainage. In the second embodiment, a bathroom safety system 10 including a tub having a tub 9 and various types of tub lifting devices 210 to 230 shown in FIGS. 10 to 12 will be described. The configuration for determining the submersion state is the same as that of the first embodiment, so the description will be omitted. In addition, in FIG. 10 to FIG. 12, the hot water 2 is omitted in order to clearly show the crucible 9 and various kinds of crucible lifting devices 210 to 230.

  Hereinafter, as an example of a crucible lifting device, a crucible lifting device 210 using a jack up, a crucible lifting device 220 using a lifting lever, and a crucible lifting device 230 using a bag body will be mentioned. The crucible raising and lowering apparatus may be any apparatus for raising the crucible 9 so as to be separated from the state accommodated in the bathtub 1, and is not limited to the configuration of the crucible raising and lowering apparatus 210 to 230.

(Sail lifter using jack up)
FIG. 10 (a) shows the structure of a bathtub having a weir 9 and a weir lifting device 210. As shown in FIG. The weir 9 is housed in contact with the inside of the bathtub 1 and has at least one or more drainage holes 91 on the bottom or side. The weir raising and lowering device 210 controls the raising and lowering of the weir 9 by receiving a signal from a weir control device B (not shown) connected to the submersion judging device 13. The submersion determination apparatus 13 and the flooding control apparatus B may be connected to each other by wire, may transmit and receive signals wirelessly, and may be connected via the Internet.

  Since 籠 9 needs to be shaped into a shape that can support the weight of bather 5 and can be accommodated in contact with the inside of bathtub 1, FRP (Fiber Glass Reinforced Plastic), acrylic It is preferable to use a material such as stainless steel or the like which has a certain strength and which is relatively easy to form.

  FIG. 10 (b) shows a state in which the bather 5 is submerged in the bathtub 1 having the crucible lifting device 210. As shown in FIG. The mastication control device B operates the mastication lifting device 210 when the signal indicating that the bather 5 is in a submerged state is received from the submersion determination device 13, and the submerged state of the bather 5 is eliminated. Raise 籠 9 up. The crucible lifting device 210 uses a jack-up, and lifts the crucible 9 by an actuator such as oil pressure, air pressure or screw rotating mechanism provided at the bath tub edge 8.

  Whether the submersion state of the bather 5 has been eliminated or not is determined by the submersion determination unit 112 and the weir control device B using a structure that becomes a reference in the bathroom such as the bath tub edge 8 and the top of the bather 5 The determination is made based on the fact that the distance (difference in height) of the value of. The threshold value may be predetermined in advance within a range of approximately 5 cm to 30 cm. Also, in order to ensure that the bather 5 comes out of the bathtub, a predetermined height for raising the bale 9 is set in advance, and the bale control device B determines whether or not the submersion state has been eliminated. Instead, it may be considered that the bather 5 is in a state where the submersion state of the bather 5 has been eliminated by raising the weir 9 to a predetermined height.

  FIG. 11C shows a state in which the bather's 5 submerged state has been eliminated by raising the weir 9 in the bathtub 1 having the weir lifting device 210. At the beginning, the hot water 2 present inside the weir 9 moves between the bathtub 1 and the weir 9 via the drainage hole 91 as the weir 9 rises. Therefore, when the position of the top of the head of the bather 5 is higher than the water surface 6, the submerged state of the bather 5 is eliminated. By making the weir 9 into a shape having a plurality of drainage holes 91 on the bottom or side, it is possible to accelerate the movement of the hot water and to shorten the time for the bather 5 to get rid of the submerged condition. The weir 9 may be reticulated on the bottom or side.

  In the present embodiment, since the submersion state can be canceled while maintaining the posture of the bather 5 at the time of submersion, it is considered as a disease where it is not desirable for non-medical workers to change the posture of the patient, such as brain disease. It can also be applied safely.

(籠 籠 lifting device using a lifting lever)
FIG. 11A shows a state in which the bather 5 is submerged in the bathtub 1 having the crucible lifting device 220. The mastication control device B operates the mastication lifting device 220 when the signal indicating that the bather 5 is in the submerged state is received from the submersion determination device 13, and the submerged state of the bather 5 is eliminated. Raise 籠 9 up. The crucible lifting device 220 has a lever on the bottom surface of the bathtub 1 and lifts the crucible 9 by tilting the lever in the direction of the broken line arrow. Since it is the same as that of the case of the cage | basket raising / lowering apparatus 210, judgment of whether the submersion state of the bather 5 is cancelled | released is abbreviate | omitted.

  FIG. 11 (b) shows a state in which the bather's 5 submerged state has been eliminated by raising the weir 9 in the bathtub 1 having the weir lifting device 220. The weir 9 preferably has a plurality of drainage holes 91 as described above. In this case, in order to slide the tip of the lever 221 smoothly when the lever 221 is tilted, it is preferable that the weir 9 have a region where the drainage hole 91 does not exist on the outside of the bottom surface. Further, it is more preferable to provide a guide such as a rail or a groove in which the tip of the lever slides smoothly in a region where the drainage hole 91 of the weir 9 does not exist.

  In order to support the weight of the bather 5 and stably hold and raise the crucible 9, it is desirable that the crucible lifting device 220 be provided with a plurality of levers. FIG. 11 (b) shows a configuration provided with two levers as an example. The lever may be rod-like or plate-like. The levers may be arranged as a pair tilting in opposite directions (broken line arrow direction) as shown in FIG. 11 (b), or may be arranged as a pair tilting in the same direction. A lever that tilts in the same direction, a lever that tilts in the opposite direction, and a plurality of levers may be combined.

(Seal lifter using bag)
FIG. 12 shows a state in which the bather's 5 submerged state has been eliminated by raising the weir 9 in the bathtub 1 having the weir lifting device 230. The mastication control device B operates the mastication lifting device 220 when the signal indicating that the bather 5 is in the submerged state is received from the submersion determination device 13, and the submerged state of the bather 5 is eliminated. Raise 籠 9 up. Since it is the same as that of the case of the cage | basket raising / lowering apparatus 210, judgment of whether the submersion state of the bather 5 is cancelled | released is abbreviate | omitted.

  The weir lifting device 230 raises the weir 9 by inflating the bag located at the bottom of the bathtub 1. The crucible lifting device 230 inflates the bag body 231 by injecting the pressure-controlled fluid via the pipe 231. As the fluid to be injected into the bag, it is preferable to use a safe fluid, such as air or water, which has relatively little influence on the human body. In addition, you may expand a bag by chemical reactions, such as combustion of a explosive.

  The weir control device B may be used in place of the alarm device 14 and the flush valve control device A, or may be used together. When the weir control device B is used together with the alarm device 14 and the flush stopper control device A, the weir control device B raises the weir 9 while the alarm device 14 issues an alarm based on the signal from the submersion judging device 13 The drain control device A opens the drain 4 and starts draining.

  When the drainage control is completed, or when the rescue of the bather 5 is completed, etc., there is no need to raise the crucible 9, the crucible control unit B lowers the crucible 9 to be housed in the bathtub 1. You may control to return.

Thus, it is a matter of course that the present invention includes various embodiments and the like which are not described herein. Accordingly, the technical scope of the present invention is defined only by the invention extraction matters according to the scope of claims appropriate from the above description.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Tub 2 ... Hot water 3 ... Ceiling 4 ... Drain tap 5 ... Bather 6 ... Water surface 7 ... Washing place 8 ... Bath tub edge 9 ... Bath 10 Transmitter / receiver 13: Submersion judging device 14: Alarm device 51: Head 91: Drain hole 101: Pulse generation circuit 102: Transmission / reception switching circuit 103: Transmission amplification circuit 104: Intermittent circuit 105: Oscillation circuit 106: Reception amplification Circuit 107 ... filter circuit 108 ... waveform analysis circuit 109 ... bather's reflection wave extraction unit 110 ... water surface reflection wave extraction unit 111 ... distance calculation unit 112 ... submersion determination unit 210 ... 籠 lift device 220 ... 籠 lift device 230 ... 籠 lift device 231 ... pipe

Claims (1)

An ultrasonic generator / receiver disposed at the top of a bath in a bathroom, emitting ultrasonic waves toward the bath and receiving the reflected waves;
Based on the received reflected wave, a first distance, which is a distance from the ultrasonic wave emitting and receiving device to the top of the head of the bather, and a structure from the ultrasonic wave emitting and receiving device to a reference structure in the bathroom A second distance, which is a distance, is calculated, the first distance and the second distance are compared, and based on the comparison result, it is determined whether the bather is submerged or not A submersion judging device,
A weir housed inside the bath and having at least one hole in the side or bottom;
A weir control device for controlling the weir lifting device that raises the weir from a position housed inside the bathtub to a position where the water bather's submersion state is canceled based on the judgment of the water submersion judging device;
, Bathroom safety system.

Images