JP3007530B2 - Door opening / closing bathtub device - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a door opening / closing bathtub device which is preferably used for bathing a physically handicapped person or an elderly person.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art An ordinary bath tub has a box shape with an open top, and a bather must cross the side wall into the bath tub, and it is difficult for a physically handicapped person or an elderly person to take a bath. Therefore, as a bathtub that can be easily bathed by a physically handicapped person or the like, a door opening / closing bathtub device as described below has been developed.

[0003] A door opening / closing bathtub apparatus has a configuration in which an opening is provided in a side wall of the bathtub, and the opening is opened and closed by, for example, a hinged door. In addition, this door opening / closing bathtub apparatus is usually provided with a tank in which hot water in the bathtub is temporarily transferred and stored.

[0004] When bathing a person with a physical disability, for example, using the door opening / closing bathtub apparatus, first the hot water stored in the bathtub is transferred to a tank arranged near the bathtub. The door is opened, and the physically handicapped person is moved together with the bathing chair using the opening in the side wall and placed in the bathtub. Then, the door is closed to close the opening in a liquid-tight manner, and the transferred hot water is returned from the tank back into the bathtub. With the above operation, a physically handicapped person can be bathed. In addition, when taking a bath, contrary to the above, the hot water in the bathtub is once transferred into the tank, and after the door is opened, the physically handicapped person is moved to the outside of the bathtub together with the chair using the opening. .

[0005]

In some cases, this type of door-closing bathtub apparatus has a sterilizing device connected to a door-closing bathtub or tank in order to keep the hot water in the bathtub clean. In the conventional door opening and closing type bathtub device, since the sterilizing device is provided only connected to the bathtub or the tank,
Although hot water can be sterilized when stored in the bathtub or tank to which the sterilizer is connected, there is a problem that sterilization cannot be performed when hot water is stored in the bathtub or tank to which the sterilizer is not connected. Was. If the state in which sterilization cannot be performed continues for a long time, the contamination of the hot water progresses, and the hot water must be replaced in spite of the short use time, which is economically disadvantageous.

As a method of coping with this, it is conceivable to provide a dedicated sterilizing device for both the bathtub and the tank. However, in this case, the cost of the entire device is increased, and the device becomes large and a large occupied space is required. Cause another problem.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a door opening / closing type bathing apparatus which can always sterilize hot water regardless of whether the hot water is in a bathtub or a tank. Aim.

[0008]

In order to achieve the above object, according to the present invention, a door opening / closing bathtub and hot water connected to the door opening / closing bathtub through a piping system and supplied to the door opening / closing bathtub are provided. A storage tank and a sterilizer for sterilizing hot water supplied to the door closable bathtub are provided. The sterilizer is connected to the door closable bathtub and the tank via a piping system, and the piping system is sterilized. and switching means for selectively switching to one of a door opening and closing bathtub and tank unit, switched by said changeover switching means
A pump for circulating the hot water in the obtained door opening / closing bathtub or tank to the sterilizer is interposed.

[0009]

According to the door opening / closing bathtub apparatus of the present invention, the sterilizing device is connected to the door opening / closing bathtub and the tank via a piping system.
And a pump 72e for circulating the hot water in the bathtub 2 or the tank 60 to the sterilizing device 71.
Regardless of whether the bath water is in the bathtub or tank,
Hot water can be sterilized.

[0010]

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a piping diagram showing the flow of hot water in a door opening / closing bathtub apparatus of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a side sectional view of the door opening / closing bathtub apparatus. FIG. 3 is a front sectional view of the door opening / closing bathtub apparatus.

As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, the door opening / closing bathtub apparatus shown here comprises a wheelchair 1 on which a bather is placed and a wheelchair 1.
And a bath tub 2 for opening and closing the bather by placing the bather at a predetermined position inside and filling the inside with hot water.

The wheelchair 1 will be described. As shown in FIG. 4, the wheelchair 1 includes a pedestal 10 with casters, a single support rod 11 erected on the pedestal 10, and an upper portion of the support rod 11. Chair frame 12 supported
And Rollers 12a are attached to the lower portions of both sides of the chair frame 12, and a footrest 13, a seat portion 14, and a backrest portion 1 are provided at the upper portion from the front to the rear.
5 are provided.

The footrest 13 is connected to the chair frame 12 by a pin at the base end. When an assistant or the like rotates the arm 16 connected to the footrest 13 clockwise in FIG. 2, the solid line in FIG. Is forcibly rotated to a predetermined angle and locked at that position. In such a locked state, the height of the lower end of the footrest 13 is substantially equal to the height of the upper surface of the bottom 36 of the door opening / closing bathtub 2.

The openable / closable bathtub 2 includes a door openable / closable bathtub body 30 having an open front surface (hereinafter, the left side in FIG. 2 is referred to as a front surface), and a door 31 for opening and closing the opening portion of the door openable / closable bathtub body 30. Consists of The door 31 is hingedly connected to the door opening / closing bathtub main body 30, and a locking means 32 for holding the door 31 in a closed state is provided between the door 31 and the door opening / closing bathtub main body 30 (see FIG. 4). ).

The bottom portion 36 of the tub body 30 is located above the casters of the wheelchair 1 and at a position corresponding to the support rod 11 of the wheelchair 1. Figures 3 and 4
As shown in (2), a cutout 37 is provided in the bottom portion 36 so as to extend backward from the opening 30a of the door opening / closing bathtub body 30 which is a mating surface with the door 31. The notch 37 allows the support rod 11 to enter when the wheelchair 1 is arranged at a predetermined position inside the door closable bathtub 2, and therefore,
The width of the notch 37 is set to a value slightly larger than the diameter of the support rod 11.

When the wheelchair 1 is arranged at a predetermined position inside the door opening / closing bathtub body 30, a pair of bottom sealing members 38, which sandwich the support rod 11 from both right and left sides to seal the notch 37, are provided on the bottom 36. 38 is provided movably in the left-right direction. As shown in FIG. 6, the bottom sealing members 38, 38 are fixed to the bottom 36 of the door opening / closing bathtub body 30, respectively, and the upper stainless steel plate 40 and the lower cross section L
It is disposed so as to be sandwiched between the support member 41 having a character shape. Further, a reinforcing member 39 having an L-shaped cross section for retaining the shape of the bottom sealing member 38 itself is attached to the bottom sealing members 38, 38, and a piston rod 42 a extending from the cylinder 42 via the reinforcing member 39. , The bottom seal portions 38, 38 are pressed and moved in the left-right direction. A plurality (four in the figure) of cylinders 42 are provided for the left and right bottom seal members 38, respectively.
It is supported by a support frame 43 disposed therein.

The bottom seal member 38 is made of a material having a suitable flexibility and water resistance, such as a sponge-like material having a large number of independent cells, styrene foam, rubber, or the like so as to exhibit a sealing property. . Further, as shown in FIG.
When disposed at a predetermined position inside 0, a concave portion 38a having the same curvature as the support rod 11 is provided on a side surface of the bottom seal member 38 corresponding to the support rod 11 of the wheelchair 1. In addition, reference numeral 44 in FIG. 6 is a sliding member made of, for example, Teflon or the like, which is interposed between the reinforcing member 39 and the supporting member 41 and ensures good sliding between them.

As shown in FIG. 3, a door opening / closing bathtub body 30 is provided.
A projecting part 4 that protrudes inward at the middle part in the height direction on the inner surface of the
5a, 45b are provided, and these overhang portions 45a, 45b are provided.
A flat portion 46 for supporting the rollers 17a of the wheelchair 1 is formed on the upper surface of the wheelchair 1.

In FIG. 3, reference numeral 47 denotes a door opening / closing bathtub main body 3.
No. 0 is a guide member supported by the bracket 48 on the bottom frame. Thus, when the wheelchair 1 is pushed toward the inside of the door-opening / closing bathtub 2, the square pipes on the pedestal 10 of the wheelchair 1 are guided by these guide members 47, and from the center of the door-opening / closing bathtub 2 to the left and right. It is prevented from shifting.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, the door 31 has a door body 50 and a plurality of cylinders 5 attached to the door body 50.
And a seal plate 52 that is supported through the doors 1,. Seal plate 52
A sealing portion 52a which is strongly in contact with an edge of the opening / closing bathtub main body 30 with the opening 30a to seal the abutting portion.
Is provided. As shown in FIG. 8, the lower seal portion 52 a is provided with an overhang portion 52 aa that projects toward the door opening / closing bathtub body 30. When the bottom sealing members 38, 38 provided on the bottom 36 of the door-opening / closing bathtub body 30 abut against each other, the overhanging portion 52aa is formed of a stainless steel plate 40, 40 on the bottom 36 of the bathtub body at the abutting portion. Abuts on the recess formed between them to seal this portion.

The door opening / closing bathtub 2 is provided with a tank 60 for storing hot water in the door opening / closing bathtub 2 and a piping system 61 for taking in and out hot water between the door opening / closing bathtub 2 and the tank 60. ing.

As shown in FIGS. 1, 3 and 5, a piping system 61 includes a first hot water supply / drainage pipe 63 connected to a connection port 62 of the door closable bathtub 2 and a connection port of a tank 60. 64 are connected to the second hot water supply / discharge pipe 65,
Three-way valves 66, 6 connected to hot water supply / discharge pipes 63, 65
7, the first and second intermediate pipes 68, 6 respectively connected to
9 is provided. Between the first and second intermediate pipes 68 and 69, there is only one hot water supply / drainage pump 70 for moving hot water from the tank 60 to the tank 60 or vice versa. It is provided interposed in the pipe 70a.

Therefore, the three-way valves 66 and 67 are controlled by control means (not shown), so that, for example, when the hot water is returned from the door opening / closing bathtub body 30 to the tank 60, the hot water is supplied as shown by a broken line in FIG. Piping 63, three-way valve 66, piping 69 from connection port 62 of door opening / closing bathtub body 30
To the suction side of the pump 70, and from the discharge side of the pump 70 to the tank 60 via the pipe 68, the three-way valve 67, and the pipe 65. Conversely, when the hot water is supplied from the tank 60 to the door opening / closing bathtub body 30, the hot water flows from the connection port 64 of the tank 60 to the pipe 65, as shown by the solid line in the figure.
It reaches the suction side of the pump 70 via the three-way valve 67 and the pipe 69, and reaches the door opening / closing bathtub body 30 from the discharge side of the pump 70 via the pipe 68, the three-way valve 66 and the pipe 63.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 71 denotes a sterilizer. Sterilizer 7
Reference numeral 1 denotes a door-opening / closing bathtub 2 and a tank 60 via a piping system 72.
And connected to. The piping system 72 is provided with switching means 73 for selectively switching the sterilizing device 71 between the bath tub 2 and the tank 60. The piping system 72
A three-way valve 72c is provided at the junction of the forward pipe 72a connected to the connection port of the door opening / closing bathtub 2 and the forward pipe 72b connected to the connection port of the tank 60, and extends from the three-way valve 72c to the sterilizer 71. A pump 72e and a three-way valve 72
f, filters 72g, 72g, and a three-way valve 72h are interposed, respectively. A three-way valve 72j is connected to a return pipe 72i extending from the sterilizing device 71, and one return pipe 72k extending bifurcated from the three-way valve 72j opens and closes a door. It is connected to the bathtub 2 and to the other return pipe 72lh tank 60. The sterilizing device 71 is a well-known device used in this type of bathtub device, and uses a device using ultraviolet rays, a device using chemicals, a device using heat, or a combination thereof. In addition, a bypass pipe 72m used at the time of backwashing the filter is connected between the three-way valves 72f and 72h. The three-way valves 72f and 72h constitute the switching means 73 for selectively switching the sterilizer 71 between the open / close bathtub 2 and the tank 60.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 75 denotes a communication pipe which communicates with the door tub 30. The communication pipe 75 is provided with upper and lower liquid level sensors 75a and 75b.
A communication pipe 76 communicates with the tank 60. The communication pipe 76 is provided with upper and lower liquid level sensors 76a and 76b. Reference numeral 77 denotes a mixing provided so that a water supply pipe 77a and a water supply pipe 77b intersect. The water supply pipe extends from the mixing 77 to the tank 60 side and the door opening / closing bathtub body 30 side, respectively. An electromagnetic valve 78 for automatic hot water supply is interposed in the hot water supply pipe extending to the hot water supply pipe. Reference numeral 80 denotes a heat retaining device provided with a heater, which compensates for a drop in the temperature of the hot water when the hot water passes through the sterilizing device 71.

Next, a specific method of bathing a bather using the above-configured door opening / closing bathtub apparatus will be described.
For example, when a physically handicapped person is bathed using the door opening / closing bath 1, operations 1) to 7) described below are performed. At this time, the tank 60 and the door opening / closing bathtub body 30
Is not filled with hot water, the wheelchair 1 does not move into the door opening / closing bathtub body 30, and the door 31 is in an open state.

1) Preparation for bathing First, a bathing (hot water storage) switch (not shown) is turned on.
Then, the electromagnetic valve 78 is opened, and hot water is automatically supplied from the mixing 77 to the tank 60. When the liquid level in the tank 60 rises to a predetermined height, the fact is detected by the liquid level detection sensor 76a, and the hot water supply is automatically stopped.

2) Setting the Wheelchair in the Bathtub The bather is placed on the wheelchair 1 and the arm 16 is pulled upward to raise the footrest 13 diagonally upward. In this state, the bather is inserted together with the wheelchair into the inside of the door opening / closing bathtub body 30 in which the door 31 is opened in advance. At this time, when the wheelchair 1 is pushed into a predetermined position inside the door opening / closing bathtub main body 30, a lock mechanism (not shown) operates to lock the wheelchair 1 at that position.

3) Preparation for Hot Water Supply Next, the door 31 is manually closed. Then, when the door 31 is closed, a sensor (not shown) is operated, and the locking means 32 is operated to lock the door 31 in the closed state. Subsequently, each cylinder 42 provided at the lower portion of the bottom of the door opening / closing bathtub body 30
Extend synchronously, and a pair of bottom sealing members 38, 3
8 are moved so as to approach each other, and the support rod 11 of the wheelchair 1 is sandwiched from both sides. This seals the notch 37 at the bottom 36 of the door opening / closing bathtub body 30.

Next, the cylinders 51,... Incorporated in the door 31 are extended in synchronization with each other, and the seal portion 52a inside the door 31 is pressed against the opening edge of the bathtub main body 30 to open and close the door. The opening of the bathtub body 30 is sealed.

4) Hot water supply to bathtub Next, when a bathing switch (not shown) is turned on, the two-way valves 66 and 67 are controlled based on a signal issued from the control unit, and at the same time, the pump 70 is started. Hot water is supplied to the door opening / closing bathtub body 30. Hot water supply
The liquid level in the door opening / closing bathtub body 30 continues until the liquid level reaches a predetermined level. When the liquid level reaches the predetermined level, a signal is output from the liquid level detection sensor 75a, the pump 70 is turned off, and the hot water supply is stopped. You. As described above, the bather can be brought into the bathing state.

5) Automatic drainage from bathtub to tank Next, when taking a bath, first, a bathing switch is turned on. Then, at the same time as the opening and closing of the three-way valves 66 and 67, the pump 70 is started again, and the hot water in the door opening / closing bathtub main body 30 is transferred to the tank 60. At this time, even if all the hot water in the door opening / closing bathtub body 30 is returned to the tank 60, such as when a large amount of dirty hot water is discarded from the door opening / closing bathtub body 30 during bathing, the tank 60 When the water level does not reach the upper limit position, the solenoid valve 78 is automatically opened, and the hot water is automatically supplied to the tank 60 by the mixing 77 (see FIG. 11).

The reason why the tank 60 is filled with hot water up to the upper limit position is to avoid running out of hot water when the hot water in the tank is returned to the bathtub body 30 afterwards. In addition, the capacity of the tank 60 is set in advance to be larger than the capacity of the door-opening / closing bathtub main body 30. This means that dirt settling on the bottom of the tank 60 is returned into the door-opening / closing bathtub main body 30 again. This is to avoid.

6) Opening the door When the discharge of the hot water from the bath tub body 30 is completed, the door opening switch is turned on. Then, a signal is issued from a control unit (not shown), and the door opening / closing bathtub body 30 and the door 3
The seal with 1 is released. That is, each of the cylinders 51,... Incorporated in the door 31 is shortened in synchronization with each other, and the seal portion 52a inside the door 31 is moved in a direction away from the opening edge of the door opening / closing bathtub body 30. Then, the seal at the opening of the bathtub body 30 is opened. Then
The door closing lock by the locking means 32 is released, and a cylinder (not shown) for opening the door operates to open the door 31.

7) Remove the wheelchair from the bathtub. The lock for positioning and holding the wheelchair 1 at a predetermined position in the door opening / closing bathtub body 30 is released, and the wheelchair 1 is taken out of the door opening / closing bathtub body 30. That is, a signal is issued from a control unit (not shown), and the cylinders 42 provided at the lower part of the bottom of the door opening / closing bathtub main body 30 are shortened in synchronization with each other, and the pair of bottom sealing members 38, 38 are moved away from each other. Then, after the engagement of the wheelchair 1 with the support rod 11 is released, the caregiver releases the lock mechanism (not shown) for positioning and locking the wheelchair 1 to the door opening / closing bathtub main body 30 and places the bather. The wheelchair 1 is pulled out from the bathtub body 30 with the door open and closed. The above is one cycle of bathing, and when the next bather is subsequently to be bathed, the above operations 2) to 7) may be repeated.

In the above bathing operation, the sterilizing device 71
Is connected to the door opening / closing bathtub 2 and the tank 60 via a piping system 72, and the piping system 72 has a switching means for selectively switching the sterilizer 71 between the door opening / closing bathtub 2 and the tank 60. 73 and a pump 72e for circulating the hot water in the bathtub 2 or the tank 60 to the sterilizer 71, the switching operation is performed regardless of whether the hot water for bathing is in the open / close bathtub 2 or the tank 60. By means of the means 73, the disinfection device 71 is switched so as to be connected to the door opening / closing bathtub 2 or the tank 60 where the hot water is present, and the pump is operated, whereby the hot water for bathing can always be sterilized.

In the above embodiment, an example in which the present invention is applied to the door opening / closing bathtub main body 30 having an open front side has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this. The present invention can also be applied to a door opening / closing bathtub body 30 that is opened and closed by a door.

[0038]

As described above, according to the present invention, the following excellent effects can be obtained. According to the invention described in claim 1,
The disinfection device is connected to the door-opening tub and the tank via a piping system, and the piping system 72 switches the disinfection device 71 between the door-closing tub 2 and the tank 60. Means 73 and switched by the switching means
The hot water in the door opening / closing bathtub 2 or the tank 60 is sterilized by the sterilizer 7.
Since the pump 72e for circulating water is interposed, the hot water can always be sterilized regardless of whether the hot water for bathing is in the bathtub or the tank. Further, since only one system is required for the sterilizing apparatus, it is economically advantageous, and furthermore, there is no problem such as the apparatus being large-sized and requiring a large occupied space.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a piping diagram of a door opening / closing bathtub apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a side cross-sectional view of a door opening / closing bathtub apparatus.

FIG. 3 is a front sectional view of a door opening / closing bathtub apparatus.

FIG. 4 is a plan view of a door opening / closing bathtub apparatus.

FIG. 5 is a plan view showing details of a bottom portion of a door opening / closing bathtub main body.

FIG. 6 is a sectional view taken along the line BB in FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a sectional view taken along the line CC of FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is a sectional view taken along the line DD in FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 is an explanatory view showing the movement of a door opening / closing bathtub apparatus.

FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing the movement of a door opening / closing bathtub apparatus.

FIG. 11 is an explanatory view showing the movement of a door opening / closing bathtub apparatus.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Wheelchair 2 Door opening / closing bathtub 10 Pedestal 11 Support rod 12 Chair part frame 13 Footrest 30 Door opening / closing bathtub main body 31 Door 32 Locking means 36 Bottom 37 Notch 38 Bottom seal member 42 Cylinder 50 Door main body 51 Cylinder 52 Seal material 52a Seal Unit 60 Tank 61 Piping system 70 Hot water supply / drain pump 71 Sterilizer 72 Piping system 73 Switching means 72e Pump 72f, 72h Three-way valve

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] 1. A door open / close tub, a tank connected to the door open / close tub via a piping system for storing hot water to be supplied to the door open / close tub, and sterilizing hot water supplied to the door open / close tub. And a sterilizer is connected to the door opening / closing bathtub and the tank via a piping system, and the piping system includes a sterilizing device selected from a door opening / closing bathtub and a tank. and switching means for switching to, the switched by said changeover switching means
A door opening / closing bathtub device, which is provided with a pump that circulates the obtained door opening / closing bathtub or hot water in a tank to a sterilizer.