JPH07250775A - Toilet paper humidifier - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To provide a device which is operable without direct touch and allows the use of toilet paper which is water-soluble paper in the wetted state. CONSTITUTION:A humidifier has a sensor 1 for detecting the presence of an object and a spraying device 2, whereby it can be operated without direct touch, and allows the use of a toilet paper 7 which is a water-soluble paper in the wetted state.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a device for humidifying paper used in flush toilets.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, paper has been used in flush toilets for the purpose of removing dirt adhering to the body after toilet. In recent years, hot water washing machines have become widespread. This is a method of washing dirty parts of the body such as the anus and the like with a stream of warm water.

[Problems to be solved by the device]

[0003] However, the cleaning effect cannot be said to be sufficient by only applying a stream of hot water, and the hot water washer is expensive. On the other hand, even the method of wiping with a dry paper is not sufficient in the cleaning effect, and the skin may be damaged if it is forcibly rubbed. Ideally, a method of cleaning the body with a stream of water while rubbing the body with a detergent, which is a method usually used when cleaning the body in a bathroom, is excellent from the viewpoint of cleaning effect. A simple alternative to this is to wipe with a "moisturizer," which is a paper or cloth moistened with liquid. Dirt is easier to remove when rubbed with wet paper than with dry paper.

If a wet paper like this "moisturizer" can be used also in the toilet, a greater cleaning effect than dry paper can be expected. However, paper that can be used in flush toilets must be soluble in water and cannot be moistened with water from the time of factory shipment. The present invention has been made to provide a device that enables use of toilet paper, which is water-soluble paper, in a wet state.

[0005]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention is a humidifier for moistening a paper used in a flush toilet such as a toilet paper with a liquid, which is characterized by the following items. A humidifier having a sensor (1) for detecting the presence of an object and a spraying device (2). In particular, there is the above humidifier characterized by having a heating device (4) for preheating the fluid sprayed from the nozzle (3), which can reduce discomfort during use by using warm water.

Now, FIG. 1 shows an explanatory view of a humidifier for toilet paper according to the present invention. When it is detected by the sensor (1) that the toilet paper (7) is being extended, the control device (5) drives the mist blowing device (2). At this time, the fluid (8) in the tank (6) is atomized by the mist blowing device (2) including the pump (9), the heating device (4) and the injection nozzle (3) and is sprayed onto the toilet paper (7). It

As the sensor (1), various sensors used to determine the presence or absence of an object can be used. For example, a method of detecting a light ray emitted from a light emitting diode with a photodiode to detect an object entering the optical path, a method of detecting an object represented by a human body such as a hand due to a temperature change with a pyroelectric infrared sensor, object detection Ultrasonic sensors and the like.

As the atomizing device (2), a single-hole injection valve system for ejecting the fluid (8) at high speed without swirling, a swirl injection valve system for swirling the fluid and ejecting it in the form of a conical liquid film,
Various conventional techniques such as ultrasonic atomizers can be used. The figure shows an example in which the single hole injection method is adopted. A reciprocating pump was used as the pump (9). As the pump (9), a rotary pump or a turbo type pump may be used, but a reciprocating pump is preferable because high pressure and low flow rate are required in the present invention.

The heating device (4) is a device for heating the fluid to be injected to an appropriate temperature, and comprises a heating means such as a ceramic heater and a nichrome wire, a temperature sensor and a control circuit.
The position of the heating device (4) is preferably installed as close as possible to the nozzle (3) in order to prevent cold droplets from being jetted immediately after the spraying device (2) is activated.

As the fluid (8) to be jetted, in addition to water,
It is possible to use water containing a fragrance, a bactericide, a detergent or the like, or various things such as glycerin.

It is also possible to arrange two of these devices, one side of which sprays water containing a detergent and / or a bactericide and the other of which sprays water. This makes it possible to perform more complete cleaning. Moreover, you may use together with a warm water washing machine.

[0012]

By using the sensor (1), the spraying device (2) can be operated without touching the switch with the hand, and the spraying device (2) can be operated more cleanly. As a result of the experiment, between the dry toilet paper and the moistened toilet paper, the dry one is superior in terms of strength, but the wet one is better from the viewpoint of dirt removal and damage to the skin. Has proved to be excellent.

When water is applied to paper such as toilet paper that dissolves in water, the difference between spraying as fine droplets and direct application of water flow was investigated. As a result, it was found that it is easy to moisten the required area almost uniformly when spraying as fine droplets. On the other hand, when applying a stream of water directly, even if you move the paper by hand, it may come into contact with water only locally, causing the paper to be too wet and the strength of the paper to decrease significantly, and to cause the paper to be almost wet. It became clear.

Further, it has become clear that the average particle size of the droplets is preferably about 10 μm to 1 mm. Also, the amount of water sprayed will vary depending on the amount of paper used and personal preference, but is 0.1c.
0.02 cm ³ to 1.0 cm ³ is suitable based on m ³ . Injection time is suitably about 5 seconds per second, injection flow rate is suitably ^{0.004cm 3 / s ~ 1.0cm 3 /} s. When the flow of liquid generated by the pump (9) has pulsation, it may be considered as the average flow rate during one cycle. As a result of the experiment, it became clear that it is possible to maintain sufficient strength for normal use within about 1 minute after wetting, depending on the degree of wetting.

Next, the temperature of the jetted water and the feeling during use were investigated for 6 subjects in a temperature range of 10 ° C to 50 ° C. As a result, at 10 ℃, everyone answered that it was too cold, and at 40 ℃, everyone answered that it was just right. At 50 ° C, 3 people answered that it was not preferable because the droplets hit the hand and became hot when the paper was put out to the spraying device. Further, when water containing 0.01% by weight of perfume was used as the liquid (8) to be sprayed, four people answered that they had a better feeling of use than water alone.

It was revealed that spraying atomized water onto toilet paper immediately before use improves both the cleaning effect and the feeling of use.

[0017]

EXAMPLE An example of the humidifier according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. When the toilet paper (7) supported by hand is detected by the pyroelectric infrared sensor (1), the reciprocating pump (9) operates for a predetermined time. This operating time may be appropriately determined according to the injection flow rate, but 1 second to 5 seconds is preferable. The position of the sensor (1) may be anywhere.

The average effective pressure of the pump was 0.1 MPa, and the diameter of the injection hole of the injection nozzle (3) was 0.1 mm. It should be noted that the larger the pump pressure and the smaller the injection hole diameter, the smaller the average particle size of the ejected droplets. Further, the larger the pump pressure and the larger the injection hole diameter, the larger the flow rate of the fluid to be injected.
For details on the technology for ejecting liquid in the form of liquid droplets, refer to the document "The heat engine system, Sankaido".

FIG. 2 shows an embodiment of the humidifier according to the present invention. While the arm supporting the toilet paper (7) is being detected by the object detecting ultrasonic sensor (1), the reciprocating pump (9) is activated and the nozzle (3) contains glycerin containing a germicide and an aromatic agent. Is sprayed. The average effective pressure of the pump was 0.05 to 0.5 MPa, and it could be adjusted by the switch attached to the outer surface of the spray device (2). The injection flow rate of the injection nozzle (3) was set to about 0.01 to 0.03 cm ³ / s. The heating device (4) is always operated and its set temperature is
The temperature can be set stepwise within the range of 20 to 50 ° C by the rotary switch attached to the spray device (2).

FIG. 3 shows an embodiment of the heating device (4). Inside the heating device (4), the inner diameter is 10mm in the section of 100mm in length
The liquid (8) filled in the stainless steel pipe (18) is heated by the heat generated by the heating element (20) using electric resistance heating. Inside the pipe (18), a heat sink may be arranged parallel to the flow. Since the volume of this pipe is sufficiently large with respect to the flow rate of the liquid, the temperature of the liquid inside the pipe is kept substantially constant regardless of the operating state of the pump (9).

The heating element (20) is automatically controlled so that the temperature of the liquid (8) reaches a predetermined temperature based on the information of the temperature sensor (17). The heat storage body (19) was made of aluminum alloy, and the heat insulating material (21) was made of glass wool. The heating device (4) is not limited to this example, and may be any device that can stably supply the liquid (8) at a predetermined temperature.

[0022]

EFFECTS OF THE INVENTION By using a humidifier characterized by having a sensor (1) for detecting the presence of an object and a spraying device (2), a paper that can be operated without direct contact and is soluble in water It has become possible to provide a device that allows the use of certain toilet paper in a damp condition.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining the configuration of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining an embodiment according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a diagram for explaining an embodiment according to the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 A sensor that detects the presence or absence of an object. Pyroelectric infrared sensor, ultrasonic sensor for object detection, etc. 2 Mist blower. Device for ejecting liquid (8) into minute droplets 3 Ejection nozzle 4 Heating device 5 Control device 6 Tank for storing fluid to be ejected 7 Object to be moistened such as toilet paper 8 Ejection of water, glycerin, etc. Fluid 9 Pump. Reciprocating pump, rotary pump, gear pump, etc. 10 Filter 11 Ejected Droplet 12 Drain Pipe 13 Waste Liquid Tank 14 Object Detection Range of Ultrasonic Sensor (1) (within about 10 cm from Sensor) 15 Spherical Dip for Collecting Waste Liquid 16 Wall Surface to Attach Spraying Device (2) 17 Temperature sensor for measuring the temperature of the liquid (8) inside the pipe (18) 18 Pipe for guiding the liquid (8) to the nozzle (3) 19 A material having a large thermal conductivity coefficient and a large specific heat 20 A heating element. Heat transfer wire, ceramic heater, etc. 21 thermal insulation

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A humidifier having a sensor (1) for detecting the presence of an object and a spraying device (2). 2. A heating device (4) for preheating a fluid jetted from a nozzle (3).
Humidifier described in.