JPH11154440A - Remote controller and toilet device having same - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve usability and to avoid erroneous operation by definitely distinguishing a particular switch. SOLUTION: A remote controller has a bowl cleaning switch 5 on the upper end surface of the body 2. The bowl cleaning device 5 has a shape that an operating part of it protrudes from the front surface of the body 2, and the front side of the operating part is pushed down and operated. While a switch group of the first cleaning switches 3a-a stop switch 3d, and a switch group of the first mode switches 4a-a second water force adjusting switch 4f are arranged on the front surface of the body 2, then they have a shape swelling from the front surface of the body 2 to form a spherical surface or a curved surface.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a remote controller for remotely controlling, for example, various kinds of household electric equipment and household equipment, and particularly to a multifunctional equipment without any confusion. It relates to an array of switches that can be handled.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Functional units such as general electric appliances such as televisions, videos, air conditioners, etc., which are already widely used as systems for water supply and hot water supply to a bath tub and the temperature setting thereof, and hot water flush toilet seats, include operation of functional units. Most of these days, remote controllers have been added.

A remote controller is generally provided with a number of switches for operating functional units of a device. For example, in the case of an air conditioner, a switch for switching between heating and cooling, temperature setting, setting of a timer, and the like are provided, and a display unit for displaying a set temperature and a reservation time by the timer is provided. In other device fields, switches for operating all functions of the target device are provided. Usually, the plurality of switches and the display unit are provided on a front surface of the main body which is an operation surface.

Conventionally, such a remote controller is relatively small and is used by hand.
In recent years, the number of operation targets has been increasing due to multifunctional devices. For this reason, many of them are provided so that they can be detached from a hanger fixed to a wall. And since the number of switches naturally increases as the number of operation targets increases,
When operating, the user is often confused and erroneously operated.

In response to such an increase in the number of switches,
For example, it is an effective means to determine the arrangement of switches and the size and shape of each of them based on a classification that mainly uses frequently used ones and subordinates that are not frequently used. Design is adopted.

For example, in a device which must be turned on and off, the power switch is a frequently used switch. Further, in the warm water flush toilet seat, the toilet flush switch is frequently used since the toilet flush is performed every time the toilet is used regardless of the presence or absence of the local flush. These frequently used switches are distinguished from other switches, and the size of the switch is increased so that the position of the switch can be easily put on a finger.

[0007]

However, there is a limit to the area where the switches can be arranged on the front surface of the main body. Therefore, if the number of switches increases with the increase in the number of functions, the switches that are frequently used may be reduced in size or the like. In some cases, the switch cannot be clearly distinguished from other switches. Therefore, in a remote controller having a large number of switches on the front surface of the main body, the frequently used switches are not sufficiently distinguished from each other, resulting in erroneous operation or poor usability.

The problem to be solved in the present invention is to provide a remote controller that can clearly distinguish specific switches and improve usability and avoid erroneous operations.

[0009]

In order to solve at least a part of the above problems, a remote controller according to the present invention is a remote controller for remotely operating a functional unit of a device to be operated. A switch operated by a user at the time of remote operation; and a main body on which the switch is disposed. The switch is disposed on a peripheral end surface of the main body. It has a shape protruding from the front surface.

In the remote controller of the present invention having the above configuration, a switch is provided on the peripheral end surface of the main body, and an operation portion of the switch is formed to protrude from the front surface of the main body. Therefore, the switch on the peripheral end face of the main body can be clearly distinguished from the switch on the front face of the main body, which is a conventional switch installation location, in terms of the location of the switch and the shape of the operation portion of the switch. In addition, since the switch on the peripheral end face of the main body does not inadvertently narrow the area where the switch can be disposed on the front face of the main body, the shape of the switch on the front face of the main body is not restricted. For this reason, the usability can be improved and erroneous operations can be effectively avoided.

In this case, if the switch is depressed, the operation direction of the switch on the peripheral end face of the main body can be the vertical direction or the horizontal direction. Therefore, in terms of the operation direction of the switch, the switch on the peripheral end face of the main body can be clearly distinguished from the switch on the front face of the main body whose operation direction is the front-back direction. For this reason, it is possible to further improve usability and more effectively avoid erroneous operations. In addition, if the switch on the peripheral end of the main body is arranged on the upper end surface of the main body when the user faces the remote controller, when the remote controller is mounted on a hanger such as a wall, there is no trouble in mounting the remote controller. It is preferable because there is no discomfort.

[0012] The remote controller of the present invention having the above configuration can also adopt the following mode. That is, a switch that is frequently used can be provided as a switch on the peripheral end surface of the main body. Further, a switch that is frequently used may be a power switch for turning on / off the power. With this configuration, a frequently used specific switch such as a power switch can be clearly distinguished from a switch on the front of the main body, and further improvement in usability and more effective avoidance of erroneous operation can be achieved. The specific switch is not limited to the frequency of use, and may be a switch that performs a function different from that when another switch is operated.

In the above remote controller of the present invention, a toilet bowl cleaning device for cleaning a bowl portion of a toilet bowl,
A remote controller for remotely controlling a local cleaning device for cleaning a human body part of a user seated on the toilet as the functional unit, and a toilet cleaning switch operated by a user at the time of remote operation of the toilet cleaning device; A local cleaning switch operated by a user at the time of remote operation of the local cleaning device, provided on the main body, and having the toilet cleaning switch as the switch on the peripheral end surface of the main body. Can be.

Further, the toilet apparatus of the present invention comprises a toilet bowl cleaning device for cleaning a bowl portion of a toilet bowl, a local cleaning device for cleaning a human body part of a user sitting on the toilet bowl, and a remote controller for remotely controlling these devices. A toilet device provided with the toilet controller, wherein the remote controller is operated by a user during remote control of the toilet cleaning device, and is operated by the user during remote control of the local cleaning device. A toilet cleaning switch; and a main body on which the toilet cleaning switch and the local cleaning switch are disposed. The toilet cleaning switch is disposed on a peripheral end surface of the main body, and the operation unit of the user is provided by the main body. Characterized in that it has a shape protruding from the front surface.

In these remote controllers or toilet apparatuses, a toilet cleaning switch that is frequently used and is a switch for performing local cleaning and a different type of toilet cleaning, and a local cleaning for performing local cleaning that is a switch on the front of the main body. It can be clearly distinguished from a switch. Further, the area where the local cleaning switch can be disposed on the front surface of the main body is not inadvertently reduced. For this reason, the usability of the remote controller commonly used for remote control of the toilet flushing device and the local flushing device can be improved, and erroneous operation can be effectively avoided.

[0016]

Next, embodiments of the present invention will be described based on examples. FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the toilet apparatus of the embodiment.

In FIG. 1, a casing 52 having a toilet seat 52a and a toilet lid 52b integrally provided on a stool-type toilet body 51.
The casing 52 is provided with a washing water tank for supplying washing water to the balls of the toilet body 51, and has a local washing function. As is conventionally known, the local cleaning function includes a hot water tank that receives water from the outside and heats it, and a nozzle device that supplies cleaning water from the hot water tank and jets the cleaning water toward the local area. In addition to the above, a hot air drying device for releasing hot air after washing is provided. Then, the remote controller 1 for operating the heating temperature of the washing water in the hot water tank, all operations of the nozzle device and the hot air drying device, and the supply of the washing water from the washing water tank is provided by the hanger 6 provided on the wall.
1 is held.

FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view of the remote controller 1, FIG. 3 is a front view thereof, and FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of a main part on the bottom side. FIG. 2 (a) is a left side view and FIG. 5A is a bottom view, and FIGS. 5A and 5B are longitudinal sectional views taken along lines AA and BB in FIG. 3, respectively.

In the figure, a remote controller 1
All of the above-described local cleaning functions and operations including ball cleaning for supplying cleaning water from the cleaning water tank to the ball portion are performed. The main body 2 includes switches classified based on the frequency of use and the operation target. They are arranged as three groups.

The switches of the first group and the second group are for operating the local cleaning function, respectively. The switches of the first group include four switches arranged on the left and right as arranged on the left side. As a switch, it is arranged on the right side and up and down
It is equipped with a collection of individuals.

The first group of switches includes a first cleaning switch 3a, a second cleaning switch 3b, and a drying switch 3 in order from the top.
c and a stop switch 3d, each of which has a circular shape having the same outer diameter, has an outer shape which is spherically inflated from the surface of the main body 2 toward the front side, and by pressing each surface as a tact switch. It is one that can be operated. By pressing these switches, including other switches, infrared light is used between the device side by light emitting and receiving elements provided inside the light transmitting windows 1a and 1b provided on the left and right of the upper end of the main body 2. It is possible to send and receive signals.

The first cleaning switch 3a sets the nozzle device for the local cleaning function to anal cleaning, and the second cleaning switch 3b sets this nozzle device to a position where it can be used for bidets. That is, when the first washing switch 3a is pressed, the nozzle device advances to the anal washing position, and washing water is jetted from the nozzle device at that position to perform anal washing.
When the second washing switch 3b is pressed, the nozzle device advances to the bidet washing position, and washing water is jetted from the nozzle device at that position to execute bidet washing. The drying switch 3c operates the hot air drying device after the cleaning, and all the functional units such as the cleaning and the drying stop their operations through the pressing operation of the stop switch 3d.

The switches of the second group each have a substantially square front shape, and as shown in FIG.
It has a shape in which the outer shape in the width direction is expanded toward the front side in a curved shape, and its width dimension is about half the outer diameter of each switch of the first group. These switches of the second group include a first mode switch 4a and a second mode switch 4b for sequentially switching the cleaning mode by the nozzle device from the upper end, a nozzle advance switch 4c for advancing and retracting the cleaning position of the nozzle device, and a nozzle, respectively. It has a backward switch 4d. In addition, a first water switch 4e and a second water switch 4f for setting the force of the washing water from the nozzle device to be strong and weak respectively are arranged at intervals at the lower end side, and between these water switches 4e, 4f. And a display section 4g for displaying the degree of water force by liquid crystal.

Further, the remote controller 1 includes a main body 2
A ball cleaning switch 5 as a third group of switches is provided at the upper end of the lens and between the light transmission windows 3a and 3b at the left and right ends. This ball washing switch 5
As shown in (a), the upper end face of the main body 2 is connected to the main body 2 by a hinge 5a provided at the rear end. And
The ball washing switch 5 has an operation part in a shape protruding from the front surface of the main body 2 and can be operated by pressing the front end side of the operation part downward. A spring is installed around the hinge 5a so that the ball cleaning switch 5 can be held in the position shown in the drawing, and after the ball cleaning switch 5 is pressed, it can be returned to the original position.

As shown schematically in FIG. 5, the switches such as the first cleaning switch 3a correspond to the respective terminals 2b of the substrate 2a built in the main body 2, and these switches are used. Is pressed in the operation direction to apply an acting force to the terminal 2b to enable the operation of each functional unit.

In the above arrangement, a first group of switches for activating and stopping the cleaning and drying of the local cleaning function, that is, the first cleaning switch 3a to the stop switch 3d.
Is a set of items that are operated every time local cleaning is performed, but are arranged in a line in the vertical direction and related to the operation of the local cleaning function. Therefore, the user can select a group of switches (second group, third group) other than the area where the switches of the first group are arranged.
Each switch of the first group can be operated without paying attention to the group. In addition, each of the switches of the first group has a larger outer planar shape than the switches 4a to 4f for function setting, and a circular shape. For this reason, the user can strongly recognize that each of the switches in the first group is an operation switch, and does not feel confused about operations of basic functions such as washing and drying.

On the other hand, a first mode switch 4a to a second hydraulic switch 4f, which are a second group of switches for setting the function section.
Are smaller in shape than the switches in the first group for operating operation, but the switches in the second group for setting these functional units are all arranged in a row in the vertical direction. It is easy to recognize as a set of switches. And since the setting of the function is not performed frequently, as long as the user confirms that the switches of the second group are included in this aggregate,
The setting and switching operation of the target functional unit can be easily performed as needed.

Each of the switches in the first group for operation and the switches in the second group for function setting swell in a curved manner from the surface of the main body 2 as shown in FIG. Therefore, not only visual recognition of the three-dimensional shape of the switch group (second group) including the first group of switches itself and the first mode switch 4a and the like but also tactile sensation by touching with a hand. The difference can also prompt the user to determine the type of switch to be operated. For this reason, if the user touches each of the switches of the first group for operation operation by mistake when trying to set the function, the user may become accustomed to the operation after using the device several times. The operator can recognize that the operation is incorrect by the perception of the erroneous operation, and does not cause unnecessary erroneous operation.

Further, each of the switches of the second group for function setting is smaller in frontal shape than each of the switches of the first group for operation operation, but each of the switches of the second group is also curved. The presence of each of the switches in the second group is emphasized by such a swelling even if the shape is small. For this reason, even if the shape of each of the switches of the second group for function setting is made much smaller than that of each of the switches of the first group for operation operation, the influence on the operation and the occurrence of obstacles in terms of usability may occur. Can escape. Therefore, the operation surface of each switch of the second group can be arranged to be smaller, and the main body 2 itself can be made compact.

In order to wash the bowl of the toilet body 51, by pressing the ball washing switch 5 from above, an opening / closing solenoid valve (not shown) provided in the flow path from the washing water tank to the toilet body 51 is opened for a predetermined time. This is done by: This ball cleaning is a function completely different from the local cleaning function. The ball cleaning switch 5 for cleaning the ball is different from the switches in the first and second groups for the local cleaning function in the following points. It was different. That is, the ball cleaning switch 5
Since the switches are disposed on the upper end surface of the main body 2, the switches are different from the first and second switches in the first and second groups with respect to the local cleaning in terms of the location of the switches. Further, since the ball washing switch 5 adopts the above-described arrangement position, the area where the switches of the first and second groups can be arranged on the front surface of the main body 2 is not inadvertently narrowed.
The switch on the front of the main body is not restricted in its shape and the like.
In addition, since the ball operation switch 5 has a switch operation portion protruding from the front surface of the main body 2, the first and second groups for local cleaning are also provided in terms of the shape of the switch operation portion. Are different from the above switches. Further, the ball cleaning switch 5 has a downward pressing operation direction, and is different from the first and second switches in the first and second groups with respect to the local cleaning also in the direction of the switch operation. From these facts, according to the remote controller 1, the ball cleaning switch 5 can be clearly distinguished from the first group and the second group of switches related to the local cleaning, and the first group and the second group of the respective switches can be distinguished from each other. An erroneous operation such as a pressing operation by mistake with the ball cleaning switch 5 can be reliably avoided. Therefore, even though the main body 2 is provided with switches for completely different operation targets of local cleaning and ball cleaning, these functions can be operated without error, and usability is improved.

The embodiments of the present invention have been described above.
The present invention is not limited to the above-described examples and embodiments at all, and it goes without saying that the present invention can be implemented in various modes without departing from the gist of the present invention.

For example, in the above-described embodiment, the ball washing switch 5 is commonly used when excreting urine and urine, but may be different between urine and urine. That is, the ball cleaning switch 5 is divided into right and left sides of the light transmission window 3a and the light transmission window 3b on the upper left and right sides of the main body 2, and one of them is used for stool to clean the ball portion with a large amount of cleaning water. The other may be used when urinating to clean the ball portion with a small amount of washing water. Further, in the above embodiment, the remote controller attached to the toilet device has been described as an example.
It is needless to say that the present invention can be applied to a home appliance such as a television and an air conditioner and a remote controller attached to a bathtub facility. In this case, since the power switch is a switch that is frequently used and is different from a switch such as a channel change switch, the power switch can be configured like the ball cleaning switch 5 in the remote controller 1 described above.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example in which a remote controller of the present invention is provided for operating a toilet apparatus having a local cleaning function and a ball cleaning function.

FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view of a remote controller.

FIG. 3 is a front view of the remote controller.

4 is an enlarged view of the bottom side of the remote controller of FIG. 3, wherein FIG. 4 (a) is a left side view and FIG. 4 (b) is a bottom view.

5A and 5B are vertical cross-sectional views of the remote controller, where FIG. 5A corresponds to a position taken along line AA of FIG. 3 and FIG. 5B corresponds to a position taken along line BB of FIG. .

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Remote controller 2 ... Main body 3a ... 1st washing switch 3b ... 2nd washing switch 3c ... Drying switch 3d ... Stop switch 4a ... 1st mode switch 4b ... 2nd mode switch 4c ... Slip forward switch 4d ... Nozzle retreat switch 4e ... 1st water switch 4f ... 2nd water switch 5 ... ball washing switch

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Seijiro Kawamura 2-1-1 Nakajima, Kokurakita-ku, Kitakyushu-shi, Fukuoka Tochiki Kiki Co., Ltd. (72) Kenichi Nagato 2 Nakajima, Kokurakita-ku, Kitakyushu-shi, Fukuoka No.1-1, Totoki Kiki Co., Ltd.

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A remote controller for remotely controlling a functional unit of a device to be operated, comprising: a switch operated by a user at the time of the remote operation; and a main body provided with the switch. The remote controller, wherein the switch is disposed on a peripheral end surface of the main body, and has a user operation unit in a shape protruding from a front surface of the main body. 2. The remote controller according to claim 1, further comprising a frequently used switch as the switch according to claim 1. 3. The remote controller according to claim 2, wherein the frequently used switch is a power switch for turning on / off the power. 4. The remote controller according to claim 1, wherein the functional unit includes a toilet cleaning device for cleaning a bowl portion of the toilet bowl and a local cleaning device for cleaning a human body portion of a user seated on the toilet. A controller, comprising: a toilet flushing switch operated by a user at the time of remote operation of the toilet flushing device; and a local flushing switch operated by a user at the time of remote operation of the local flushing device. A remote controller comprising: a toilet flush switch provided as the switch according to claim 1. 5. A toilet device comprising a toilet bowl cleaning device for cleaning a bowl portion of a toilet bowl, a local cleaning device for cleaning a human body part of a user sitting on the toilet bowl, and a remote controller for remotely controlling these devices. The remote controller, a toilet cleaning switch operated by a user at the time of remote operation of the toilet cleaning device; a local cleaning switch operated by a user at the time of remote operation of the local cleaning device; A flush switch and a main body on which the local flush switch is disposed, wherein the toilet flush switch is disposed on a peripheral end face of the main body, and has a user's operation unit in a shape protruding from a front surface of the main body. A toilet device comprising: