JPH0357187Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed description of the invention] [Industrial application field] The present invention relates to a bathtub lid that is used as a washing area when placed on top of the bathtub when taking a bath. The original purpose is to prevent cold weather and foreign matter such as dirt from entering the bathtub, and the lid of the bathtub is structured so that the user can leave it on the bathtub and use it as a washing area in the bathhouse. be.

[Conventional technology]

In private bathrooms and public baths in Japan, there is a washing area outside the bathtub for washing the body, and the hot water stored in the bathtub is cooled by contact with the outside air. To prevent the temperature from dropping and to prevent dirt and other foreign matter from entering, a removable lid that is divided into several pieces is usually placed to keep the heat insulated.

Unlike Western-style baths where you wash your body in the bathtub and discard the hot water each time you take a bath, in our country bathtubs are used by family members, inn guests, and other bath users who submerge their bodies in the warm water inside the bathtub. Boys use the bathroom to warm up, wash their bodies and hair with soap and shampoo outside the bathtub, and, in the case of boys, shave their beards.

This custom has remained unchanged since the Edo period, when it was used as a public bath or a family bath in the home, and has remained an established form of usage to this day.

In this way, many families and many guests staying at inns, etc., who were strangers to each other, began to bathe by sharing the hot water in the same bathtub, and also by sharing the bathtub and washing area. Therefore, in order to clearly distinguish between the bathtub and the washing area, and to keep the water in the bathtub as clean as possible, avoid washing your body in the bathtub as much as possible, and wash your body outside the bathtub and use the water that has already been washed. It has become a fixed idea that the structure should be such that the water is discharged from the drain.

For this reason, a bathroom consists of two parts: a bathtub and a washing area, and the one with the smallest full water capacity among the commercially available unit baths, i.e., the internal dimension is 90 x width (W) x depth (D) x height. Even when using a bathtub with a size (H) of 64, that is, an internal area of 0.63 ^m2 ,
Washing area approximately the same area as the bathtub, i.e. approximately 1.3m ²
needed a bathroom.

In the case of a detached house or a luxury condominium with a floor area of ^80m2 or more, it is easy to allocate the bathroom area to ^4m2 to ^4m2 , but in high-rise public housing or ordinary private condominiums, the number of rooms is large. Moreover, in addition to increasing the number of living rooms to a certain extent, there was a strong demand from residents to make utilities such as kitchens, bathrooms, and toilets easier to use, so the area of each room was cut down to the minimum possible. Therefore, the area of the bathroom in these small houses is often 1.5 to ² m2, and the bathtub is no more than W100 x D75 x
It was limited to the size of H64.

As a result, bathtubs and washing areas were so cramped that people simply took a bath out of necessity, but it was far from giving them the feeling of freedom that comes from recovering from the day's fatigue.

As people's standard of living improves and the number of children they have increases, they desire to enjoy a sense of freedom by relaxing and stretching their whole body in a larger bathtub and washing their bodies while fully moving their limbs in a spacious washing area. Even if people try to expand their bathroom or request a house with a larger bathroom from the beginning, they find it extremely difficult to make such a request due to financial constraints, and many people have no choice but to give up. The reality is that there is no such thing.

[Problem that the invention attempts to solve]

This invention solves this difficult-to-solve problem by breaking away from conventional stereotypes and using the lid of the bathtub as it is as a washing area. This is what we are trying to solve by doing this.

This is an extremely novel idea, but in order to achieve this, it is necessary to make the structure of the lid completely different from conventional ones. The points are as follows.

First, when changing the structure of the lid and using it as a washing area above the bathtub, it is essential to prevent washing water from flowing into the bathtub. This is because if washing water flows into the bathtub, the hot water in the bathtub becomes dirty, which is completely unacceptable from the viewpoint of uncleanness.

For this purpose, the lid consists of multiple pieces (3 to 5 pieces) with a liquid-tight seal structure that has no gaps where water can leak, and can be bent freely at the joints.
Water, washed hot water, etc. must be prevented from leaking.

A second problem is that when the lid is used as a washing area, it is necessary that the lid be sloped appropriately so that the washing water flows down from the top surface of the lid toward the drain port as quickly as possible.

Furthermore, even if hot water or water flows easily due to this slope, when the hot water or water reaches the edge of the lid, most of it will fall freely and reach the floor surface where the drain is located, but some of it will fall. Due to the surface tension between the lid and the lid, the water moves laterally along the underside of the lid and reaches the side of the bathtub, where it moves between the bottom of the lid and the top of the sidewall of the bathtub and flows into the bathtub. It flows in one by one.

This phenomenon is called circulating water, and even though the amount flowing in due to circulating water is extremely small compared to the unit amount of washing water used, it increases as the amount of washing water used increases. Since the amount of inflow also increases, contamination caused by such circulating water cannot be ignored.

The third problem is the strength of the lid. There are 3 lids
Assuming that it is made up of four plates, there will be a total of three lid plates on both ends of the frontage: the front side wall on the front side of the tank, the opposite side wall at the back, and one of the further back walls. It is supported by the walls, but the inner lids other than the lids at both ends are only supported by the two side walls corresponding to the frontage, so it is difficult to support the entire weight of the user who is sitting on them while washing. It must have sufficient strength.

The standard weight for adults is 50 to 70 kg, but large and relatively obese individuals may reach 80 kg or more, and in some cases as much as 100 kg. It must be ensured that there is no risk of breakage even when a load of 120 kg is applied to the

Further, when the bathtub is used simply as a lid, the slippage is not a problem to be considered, but when used as a washing area, if slippage occurs, it poses a danger for the bather to fall into the bathtub or onto the floor outside the bathtub.

To date, the wooden tub-shaped bathtubs that were used a long time ago, and the reinforced plastic and stainless steel units that are currently in use. Even on the bus,
The purpose of the lid was simply to cool the hot water inside and prevent dirt from getting in, so it didn't need to be particularly strong, so it was made of hollow, lightweight plastic or thin wood for easy handling, and the joints needed to be particularly watertight. It was thought that it would be sufficient if the hot water did not cool down due to the warm water vapor inside evaporating from the gap and replacing it with the cold air outside.

[Means for solving problems]

The first of the above problems is that in order to create a watertight structure that prevents washing water from flowing into the tank from the joint of the lid, it is necessary to use flexible cloth-like synthetic rubber, vinyl, etc. at the joint. A liquid-tight structure is created by using plastic strips as a seal.

Regarding the second problem, regarding the slope of the lid as a washing area with respect to the horizontal plane, from the point of view of water flow, the larger the slope angle, the better. is 2
~5° is preferred. Such an inclination of the top surface of the lid may be achieved by making the lid itself along the direction of the seam so that the top surface of the lid and its sealed seam form a waterway.Alternatively, the lid itself may have a flat plate shape with no slope. When installing the bathtub, the sidewall itself may be sloped so that it becomes lower from the upper surface of the sidewall at the back of the bathtub to the upper surface of the sidewall at the front.

To prevent water from flowing around the bathtub, a shielding rack is provided and the outer periphery of the bathtub is surrounded by this shielding rack, thereby preventing water from flowing around the bathtub. At the same time, even if a force that causes the lid to shift laterally acts on the lid, this lever can also serve to reliably hold the lid and prevent it from shifting.

The third problem, strength, is also related to the issue of material selection.

Wood is generally preferred for its feel and appearance when used as a washing area by sitting directly on the lid.

For the wood, use cypress boards, etc., finish them smooth and form base grain or tortoise-shell tile patterns, and use water- and heat-resistant paint that takes advantage of the wood grain to give it a good look. The board width and board thickness are selected depending on the frontage length and depth of the bathtub.

When using metal plates or plastic plates as materials, the shell structure should be hollow with the top, bottom and four sides surrounded by these materials, with the required reinforcing pillars inside, and waterproof insulation material should be sealed inside. If you leave it in place, it will be insulated from conductive cooling, which is good for keeping the hot water inside warm and giving you a good experience.

Suitable metal plates include stainless steel plates and corrosion-resistant high-strength aluminum alloys, and these metal plates can also be patterned by surface coloring.

Engineering plastics such as polyvinyl chloride, polycarbonate, and polyamide are used as plastic materials, and soft synthetic rubber is used as a sealing material for the joints, making use of its flexibility as well as its properties as a sealing material to seal the lid. Make it foldable.

〔Example〕

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a side view showing the arrangement of a bathroom using the bathtub lid of the present invention. Reference numeral 10 in the figure indicates the entire lid, and the lid 10 is lowered as it goes from the left end to the right end of the drawing. It is slanted so that

Reference numeral 12 denotes a cover base plate constituting the cover 10, which is composed of three plates in the figure.

Reference numeral 14 is a bar that serves both to block circulating water and to shift the lid.
It extends downward from the lower side surface of the periphery of 0. A width and height of 1 to 3 cm is sufficient. In the figure, reference numeral 18 denotes an installation leg formed integrally with the bathtub 16. 17
is the wall surface of the bathroom, and 19 is the floor surface.

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the bathtub lid of the present invention shown in Fig. 1A, in which the lid 12 is made of wood such as Japanese cypress and is finished with water-resistant and heat-resistant paint, and 23 and 25 are router-processed. It shows the thin vertical and horizontal grooves that are formed by the base stripes and make up the tile pattern.

3A is a side cross-sectional view of the lid of the present invention taken along the line A--A in FIG. 2, and FIG. 3B is a side cross-sectional view taken along the line B--B in FIG. FIG. 3B shows that the lid 10 of the present invention is composed of three lid base plates 12. Lid base plate 12
A flexible sheet 22 made of elastomer material such as synthetic rubber is interposed between adjacent lid base plates 12.
A sufficient distance S is maintained between them so that folding is not hindered, and they are connected in a liquid-tight manner against hot water, water, etc.

In this embodiment, the cover base plate 12 is made of a wood board such as Japanese cypress, and as shown in an enlarged view in FIG. 20 is formed, and a flexible sheet 22 is closely attached to the shoulder portions 20 of the facing base plates of both lids using a silicone-based water-resistant adhesive so as to maintain a distance S and to avoid any gaps. A press plate 24 made of metal or hard plastic is placed on top of the flexible sheet 22 and screwed to the lid.
At this time, the depth of the shoulder portion is adjusted such that the upper surface of the presser plate 24 is aligned with the upper surface of the lid base plate 12, and the flexible sheet 2 is
2. The dimensions of the holding plate 24 are set in advance.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view showing a joint between two adjacent base plates when the cover base plate 12 is constructed using a metal plate such as stainless steel or high-strength aluminum alloy. In this case, a hollow shell structure with a metal plate as the outer shell is used, a required number of reinforcing columns 26 are provided inside, and a water-resistant heat insulating material 28 such as styrene foam, polyurethane foam, or glass wool is filled.

In the embodiments shown in Figures 1 to 4, the lid itself has a sloped structure to allow the flow of hot water.
0, that is, the lid base plate 12 does not have an inclination, and the inclination angle θ is 1 when installing the bathtub as shown in FIG.
The purpose of drainage can be achieved by keeping the angle at ~5° (usually 2-3°).

Figures 6 and 7 show a structure for blocking circulating water, in which a funnel-shaped undercut 32 is provided on the side of each lid base plate, in place of the above-mentioned beams, to supplement the water and let it flow downward. This makes it possible to block out circulating water with a simpler structure. In this case, a plurality of protrusions 36 are provided around the upper edge of the bathtub to prevent the lid from slipping.

The lid 10 of the present invention can be used as shown in Fig. 3B when taking a bath.
As shown in FIGS. and C, the left end lid base plate 12 is rotated clockwise along the flexible sheet 22 as shown by arrow A, and placed on top of the center lid base plate, and then the right end lid base plate 12 is rotated clockwise along the flexible sheet 22 as shown in arrow A. By rotating as shown by arrow B, the anti-slip and water-preventing rods 14 can be folded over one another.

[Effect of idea]

The bathtub lid of the present invention is constructed in this way, so when no one is bathing, it can be placed on top of the bathtub to keep the water warm, and when taking a bath, it can be folded up as described above and placed over the bathtub. Place it on one end or on the floor outside the tank.

To use it as a washing area, you can unfold the lid over the bathtub and sit on it, or you can sit on a small washing chair and wash your head and whole body.

As mentioned above, the spaces 12 between each lid base plate are connected with a plastic sheet 22 made of flexible synthetic rubber to form a liquid-tight structure. A floor that flows along the slope along the surface of the bath (for moving in and out of the bath and attaching/detaching the lid)
It reaches the top and reaches the drain. At the lower edge of each blank plate 12, a piece of wood is placed around the outer periphery of the upper edge of the side wall of the bathtub, which also serves to block the circulating water and prevent the lid from slipping, so that the hot water and water used will not leak into the tank. It is completely prevented from flowing in as surrounding water.

The undercut 32 and the protrusion 36 shown in FIGS. 6A and 6B can achieve the purpose of blocking water and preventing slippage in the same manner as the above-mentioned lever 14.

In this way, by using the bathtub lid of the present invention, the area above the bathtub can be used as a washing area without ^any hindrance.
x 1.0 m) can be allocated as a bathroom, it is possible to accommodate a relatively large unit bath with a width of 120 cm, and also provide a minimum amount of space outside the bathtub for moving in and out and attaching/removing the lid. Therefore, it has an extremely large contribution to make to the housing-related industry.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Figure 1 is a side view showing the arrangement of a bathtub using the bathtub lid of the present invention in a bathroom, Figure 2 is a plan view showing the arrangement of the lid of the invention in a bathroom, and Figure 3A is a 2
3B is a side sectional view of the lid of the present invention taken along line A-A in the figure, FIG. 3B is a side sectional view taken along line BB in FIG. 2, and FIG. 4 is FIG. FIG. 5 is a side sectional view showing another embodiment of the present invention in which the bathtub itself is installed with a slight inclination to the horizontal, and FIG. FIG. 7 is a front view of an embodiment in which a water-blocking undercut is provided around the outer periphery that requires blocking, and FIG. 7 is a sectional view taken along the - line in FIG. 6. The correspondence between the reference numerals in the drawings and the parts or positions constituting or relating to the present invention is shown below. 10... Lid (whole), 12... Lid base plate, 14...
...Water cutoff and slip prevention rod, 16...Bathtub, 17
... Side wall of the bathtub, 18 ... Legs of the bathtub, 19 ... Floor surface, 20 ... Shoulder provided on the lid base plate, 22 ... Flexible sheet, 24 ... Pressing plate, 26 ... Support column, 2
8...insulation material, 32...undercut, 36...
Anti-slip protrusion.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claim for Utility Model Registration] (1) A lid element that constitutes one lid for a bathtub, in which a plurality of lid elements are successively spaced side by side facing each other and connected in a foldable and liquid-tight manner. A board that, when placed on the upper surface of one of the two pairs of opposing side walls of a bathtub, forms a sufficient angle with respect to a horizontal surface to allow hot water, water, etc. to flow down toward one side. A lid base plate that serves as a single bathtub lid and a washing area, and a plurality of lid base plates are arranged so that their side edges face each other, and the adjacent side edges are liquid-tight. A water-resistant and heat-resistant flexible sheet that connects to the lid base plate and allows the respective lid base plates to be stacked and folded, and prevents infiltration of hot water or water flowing down on the lid base plate due to a circular water phenomenon. A bathtub lid that can be used as a washing area while being placed on the bathtub, and includes a mechanism for preventing the lid from slipping. (2) Utility Model Registration Claim 1. The bathtub lid as set forth in claim 1, wherein the lid base plate itself is manufactured with a slope at an angle sufficient for the flow of hot water or water. (3) Utility model registration Claim 1: The bathtub lid, wherein the slope of the lid is obtained by installing the bathtub at a predetermined angle. (4) Utility Model Registration In the bathtub lid according to claim 1, the mechanism for blocking circulating water and preventing slippage of the lid includes a plurality of circulating water blocking mechanisms that hang downward from the outer edge of the back surface of the lid base plate. A bathtub lid characterized by being made of wood. (5) In the bathtub lid as set forth in claim 1 of the utility model registration claim, the mechanism for blocking the circulating water and preventing the lid from slipping is located outside the lower side of a funnel-shaped undercut provided on a required side surface of the blank plate. A bathtub lid consisting of a plurality of anti-slip protrusions provided around the periphery.