JPH1193243A - Sanitary cleaning device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To perform power-saving operation by simple operation by storing a toilet using condition as a using history, and judging the necessity of power-saving operation by history information of the same time zone of a storage part when switched to automatic power-saving operation. SOLUTION: When an automatic power-saving mode of an automatic power-saving switch 7 is set, power supply to a power-saving object circuit part such as a calorifier heater 4 and a toilet seat heater 5 is controlled on the basis of using history information of a storage part 9. In this case, the using history information is successively stored in the storage part 9, and at ordinary operation time, electric power is always supplied to the power-saving object circuit part. Next, when switched to automatic power-saving operation according to prescribed operation, the necessity of power-saving operation in respective time zones is judged on the basis of using history information of the same time zone stored in the storage part 9. At power-saving unnecessary time, electric power is supplied in a corresponding time zone, and at power-saving necessary time, power supply is stopped in a corresponding time zone, and power-saving operation is automatically performed. Therefore, the power-saving operation suitable for a toilet using condition can be performed by simpler operation than when selectively set from a fixed time zone.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a sanitary washing apparatus, and more particularly, to a sanitary washing apparatus that performs a power saving operation by stopping power supply to a power saving target circuit section such as a water heater or a toilet seat heater for a predetermined period.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Generally, in a sanitary washing apparatus for washing a local part of a human body by discharging hot water, tap water or the like is stored in a hot water tank and heated to a predetermined temperature by a water heater. In addition, a toilet seat heater is provided on the toilet seat that directly touches the user's skin, and if the toilet room temperature is low,
Some have a function of preliminarily heating the toilet seat with the toilet seat heater, and a function of providing a room heater and a fan to warm the air in the toilet room.

However, since the power consumed by the heaters is large, in a sanitary washing apparatus having a function of using these heaters, power supply to the power saving target circuit units such as the heaters is stopped during a time when the toilet is not frequently used. As a result, power consumption can be saved. Conventionally, in such a power saving operation, a 24-hour timer is provided, and power supply to the heater is stopped in a time zone of low usage frequency in one day.

[0004]

However, in such a conventional sanitary washing apparatus, when setting the time to stop the power supply to the heater and the time to restart the power supply, one or two desired time zones are set. Although it is possible, it is necessary to input by a relatively complicated key operation, and there is a problem that the setting cannot be easily changed and the operation burden is imposed on the user. Further, in the case of selecting and setting from a fixed time zone, the operation is simple, but there is a problem that a time zone suitable for the user's toilet use condition cannot be set. An object of the present invention is to solve such a problem, and an object of the present invention is to provide a sanitary washing device capable of performing a power saving operation in accordance with a user's toilet use condition by a simple operation.

[0005]

In order to achieve the above object, a sanitary washing apparatus according to the present invention uses toilet history information in each time zone provided by dividing a day into a plurality of times. And a storage unit for sequentially storing usage history information indicating that the toilet was used in a time period corresponding to the use of the toilet, and during normal operation, the power saving target circuit unit is always stored in the storage unit. When power is supplied and the mode is switched to the automatic power saving operation according to a predetermined operation, the necessity of the power saving operation in each time zone is determined based on the use history information of the same time zone stored in the storage unit, and the power saving operation is performed. When unnecessary, power is supplied to the power saving target circuit unit in a corresponding time zone, and when power saving is required, power supply to the power saving target circuit unit is stopped in a corresponding time zone to automatically perform power saving operation. And a control unit. . Therefore, the usage status of the toilet in each time zone is sequentially stored in the storage unit as usage history information, and when the operation is switched to the automatic power saving operation according to a predetermined operation, the necessity of the power saving operation in each time zone is stored. It is determined based on the usage history information of the same time zone stored in the unit, and if power saving is not required, power is supplied in the corresponding time zone, and if power saving is required, power feeding is stopped in the corresponding time zone. The power saving operation is automatically performed.

An automatic power saving switch for switching between an automatic power saving operation and a normal operation each time the switch is pressed is provided, and the control unit is configured to switch the power saving operation to the normal operation in response to the pressing of the automatic power saving switch. When the power is always supplied to the target circuit unit and the mode is switched to the automatic power saving operation in response to the depression of the automatic power saving switch, the necessity of the power saving operation in each time zone is stored in the storage unit in the same time zone. Judgment based on usage history information of the power supply, and if power saving is not required, supply power to the power saving target circuit section in the corresponding time zone, and if power saving is required, stop power supply to the power saving target circuit section in the corresponding time zone Then, power saving operation is automatically performed. Therefore, when the mode is switched to the normal operation according to the pressing of the automatic power saving switch, the power is always supplied to the power saving target circuit unit, and when the mode is switched to the automatic power saving operation according to the pressing of the automatic power saving switch, The necessity of the power saving operation in each time zone is determined based on the usage history information of the same time zone stored in the storage unit, and if power saving is not required, power is supplied in the corresponding time zone, and if power saving is required, The power supply is stopped in the corresponding time zone, and the power saving operation is automatically performed.

The control unit sequentially stores the usage history information for each time zone for each day of the week in the storage unit, and in each time zone based on the stored usage history information for the same day of the week and the same time zone. It is determined whether the power saving operation is necessary. Therefore, based on the stored usage history information of the same day of the week and the same time zone, it is determined whether the power saving operation is necessary in each time zone. Further, the control unit determines whether or not the power saving operation is necessary in each time zone based on the usage history information for the past several past weeks among the usage history information of the same time zone or the same day of the week and the same time zone. It is. Therefore, of the usage history information of the same time zone or the same day of the week and the same time zone,
The necessity of the power saving operation in each time zone is determined based on the usage history information for the past several weeks in recent times. In addition, when the toilet is used during the power saving operation, the control unit supplies power to the power saving target circuit unit within the time zone. Therefore, when the toilet is used during the power saving operation, power is supplied within that time zone.

[0008]

Next, the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a sanitary washing device according to an embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes an operation unit for a user to input instructions for various operations of the device, and 2 denotes a user to a toilet seat. A seating detection unit that detects seating / non-seating of the
Reference numeral 3 denotes a washing operation unit that cleans a local area of a user by discharging hot water, 4 denotes a water heater that warms tap water or the like to generate hot water that is discharged during the cleaning operation, 5 denotes a toilet seat heater that warms a toilet seat, and 6 denotes a toilet seat heater. This is a room warming operation unit that heats the toilet room with warm air.

Reference numeral 7 denotes an automatic power-saving switch for the user to input an instruction to switch between a power-on mode and an automatic power-saving mode, which will be described later. Reference numeral 8 denotes an internal timer counting unit that counts the day and time. The storage unit 10 stores various types of control information including history information indicating whether or not a toilet is used, and controls each unit of the apparatus, and stores the usage history information when a user detects use of the toilet 9
When the automatic power saving mode is set by operating the automatic power saving switch 7, the power saving target circuit units such as the water heater 4 and the toilet seat heater 5 are stored on the basis of the use history information in the storage unit 9. This is a control unit that performs power supply control.

Next, the operation of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 2 is a flowchart showing an operation mode switching process, FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing a use history information storage process, and FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a power supply control process. The control unit 10 executes the operation mode switching process of FIG. 2 according to the operation of the automatic power saving switch 7 by the user.
As the operation mode, an energization mode and an automatic power saving mode are provided, and each time the user operates (for example, presses) the automatic power saving switch, these operation modes are mutually switched.

The power supply mode (normal operation) is an operation mode in which power is always supplied to a power saving target circuit section such as the water heater 4 or the toilet seat heater 5. On the other hand, the automatic power saving mode (automatic power saving operation) refers to the water heater 4 based on toilet use history information stored in the storage unit 9.
This is an operation mode for automatically controlling power supply to a power saving target circuit unit such as the toilet seat heater 5 and the like.

First, in response to the operation of the automatic power saving switch 7, the control unit 10 determines whether or not the current operation mode is the energization mode (step 21). If the current operation mode is the energization mode (step 21: YES). Then, the mode shifts to the automatic power saving mode (step 22). On the other hand, if the current operation mode is not the energization mode (step 21: NO), the mode is returned to the energization mode (step 23), and the process ends.

Further, when the use of the toilet is detected by the user, the control unit 10 executes a use history information storage process shown in FIG. In this case, based on detection of seating by the seating detection unit 2 and detection of an arbitrary switch operation of the operation unit 1,
It detects that the toilet has been used by the user. The control unit 10 first acquires the current day of the week and time information from the internal timer count unit 8 (step 31).

Subsequently, the time zone of the corresponding day of the week is calculated from the information on the day of the week and the time information, and the usage history information indicating that the toilet has been used in the time zone, that is, “use of toilet” is calculated for each day of the week. The data is stored in the storage area of the storage unit 9 provided for each time zone (step 32).
In this case, in the initial state, each storage area is initialized with information indicating that the toilet is not used in the time zone of each day of the week, that is, information indicating “no toilet used”.

The internal timer counting section 8 does not count the absolute day of the week and the time, but stores the relative day and time information as 60 minutes × 24 = 1 day or 1 day × 7 days.
= Count and output every week. For example, in the day information, the day does not need to be information that directly indicates any of the seven days (Sun, Mon, Wed, Thu, Fri, and Sat), but information that indicates a position in a week that is repeated every seven days is sufficient. It is not necessary for the user to set a calendar and a clock as in the related art.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of storing usage history information at work, and FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of storing usage history information at home. In this case, the day is divided into time zones every two hours, and the use or non-use of the toilet is stored for each time zone. In particular, as the day of the week, seven sections A to G indicating the position in the week are provided, and the sections to be stored are shifted every 24 hours in order, and are stored in the same section after a lapse of seven days, that is, one week later. .

When the usage history information is actually stored in the storage unit 9, a storage area of one bit (“1” = used, “0” = not used) is set with each day and each time zone as an address. By allocating, the storage capacity can be significantly reduced as compared with the case of storing the used day and time information for each piece of usage history information.

In FIG. 6, in section D,
It is considered Sunday because there is no toilet use throughout the day, and in Section C it is considered Saturday because there is no toilet use in the afternoon. In FIG. 7, in section D, toilets are used throughout the day, and in other sections, toilets are not used during the day, so it is considered to be Sunday. In section C, toilets are used in the afternoon to be considered Saturday. Can be

The usage history information is stored over the past several weeks, in this case, over the past four weeks, and based on the usage history information over the past plural weeks in the same time zone on the same day of the week, power supply control described later is performed. Is performed. The usage history information of a predetermined number of weeks ago, for example, five weeks ago, is sequentially deleted each time the week is updated, and the usage history information of the last four weeks, that is, one to four weeks ago is used for statistical processing. Used.

The control unit 10 executes the power supply control process shown in FIG. 4 for each time period described above. First, it is determined whether the current operation mode is the automatic power saving mode (step 41).
In the case of the automatic power saving mode (step 41: YES),
The current day and time information is obtained from the internal timer count unit 8 (step 42), and the use history information of the corresponding time zone is obtained from the storage unit 9 (step 43).

For example, usage history information as shown in FIG. 6 has been stored for the past four weeks,
When it is 8:00, four weeks ago = “used”, three weeks ago = “not used”, and 2 from the corresponding time zone “18-20”
The use history information of “week ago =“ used ”, 1 week ago =“ used ”is read. Then, predetermined statistical processing is performed on the usage history information, and it is determined whether power saving is necessary in the time zone “18 to 20” based on the result (step 44).

In this case, the statistical processing includes the number of uses,
Calculate the deviation or weighting by the number of uses, etc.,
You may make it compare with a predetermined threshold value. For example, in FIGS. 6 and 7, in the same time period of the same day of the past four weeks, when the number of uses is 1 or less, that is, 1
Only when it is not used, it is judged that power saving is necessary. Various general statistical processes, such as determining whether power saving is necessary by fuzzy inference using a predetermined membership function, can be applied.

Subsequently, it is determined whether or not power saving is required in this time zone (step 45). If power saving is required (step 45: YES), the power saving target circuit units such as the water heater 4 and the toilet seat heater 5 are sent. Is stopped (step 46).
On the other hand, if power saving is not required (step 45: NO), power supply to the power saving target circuit units such as the water heater 4 and the toilet seat heater 5 is started (step 47), and the process ends.

If it is determined in step 41 that the current operation mode is not the automatic power saving mode but the energizing mode (step 41: NO), the process proceeds to step 47 to start power supply to the heater and end the process. I do. in this way,
At all times, the use of toilets in each time zone is stored as usage history information, and when the mode is switched to the automatic power saving mode by operating the automatic power saving switch, the time zone based on the past usage history information of the same time zone is used. In this case, the necessity of power saving is determined, so that a power saving operation suitable for a user's toilet usage can be performed by a simple operation.

Further, the use history information is stored for each time zone and day of the week, and in the automatic power saving mode, the necessity of power saving in the time zone is determined based on the use history information of the same time zone of the past same day of the week. As a result, more accurate power saving operation can be performed even when the usage status of the toilet greatly changes depending on the day of the week. In addition, since the necessity of power saving is determined based on the usage history information of the last few weeks, when the usage status of the toilet gradually changes due to the season etc. without being affected by the usage history much earlier However, the power saving operation can follow the change.

It should be noted that instead of the above-described use history information storage process (FIG. 3), a use history information storage process as shown in FIG. 5 may be performed. First, after detecting the use of the toilet by the user and storing the use history information (steps 51 and 52), it is determined whether or not the current operation mode is the automatic power saving mode (step 53). (Step 53: YES), it is determined that there is a high possibility that the toilet will be used again, and power supply to the heater is started (Step 54).

Thus, when the automatic power saving mode is set, even when the heater power supply is stopped,
Power is immediately supplied to the heater in response to use of the toilet, and power supply is continued until the next power supply necessity determination, that is, the end of the current time zone. Therefore, in the same time zone, washing with warm water and a warm toilet seat can be provided at the time of next use.

In the above description, the water heater 4 and the toilet seat heater 5 have been described as examples of the power saving target circuit portion of the power saving operation. However, the present invention is not limited to this. Any circuit unit that can stop the supply can be subjected to the power saving operation as described above. Also, in the above description, a case has been described in which the use history information of the same day of the week and the same time zone is used to determine the necessity of power saving, but if the use history information has not been sufficiently stored over the past several weeks, Alternatively, the usage history information of the same time zone may be used ignoring the day of the week, and the automatic power saving operation can be performed even if the usage history information is small.

[0029]

As described above, according to the present invention, there is provided a storage unit for storing toilet use status as use history information in each time zone provided by dividing a day into a plurality.
The use history information indicating that the toilet was used in the corresponding time zone according to the use of the toilet is sequentially stored in the storage unit, and during normal operation, power is always supplied to the power saving target circuit unit, and according to a predetermined operation, When the operation is switched to the automatic power saving operation, the necessity of the power saving operation in each time zone is determined based on the use history information of the same time zone stored in the storage unit. The power supply is performed in a power band, and when power saving is required, the power supply is stopped in a corresponding time zone to automatically perform a power saving operation. Therefore, as compared with the conventional method of setting the time at which power supply to the heater is stopped and the time at which power supply is resumed, and the method of selecting and setting from several fixed time zones, the usage is simpler. The automatic power saving operation adapted to the use situation of the restroom of the user becomes possible.

An automatic power saving switch is provided for switching between an automatic power saving operation and a normal operation each time the switch is pressed. When the power is always supplied to the power saving switch and the operation is switched to the automatic power saving operation in response to the depression of the automatic power saving switch, the use history information of the same time zone stored in the storage unit regarding the necessity of the power saving operation in each time zone is stored. If power saving is not required, power is supplied to the power-save target circuit in the corresponding time zone, and if power saving is required, power supply to the power-save target circuit is stopped in the corresponding time slot and automatically Power saving operation. Therefore, every time the automatic power saving switch is pressed, the operation is switched between the automatic power saving operation and the normal operation,
An extremely simple operation of depressing the automatic power saving switch during normal operation enables an automatic power saving operation adapted to the user's toilet use situation.

In addition, the usage history information is stored in the storage unit for each time zone for each day of the week, and based on the stored usage history information for the same day of the week and the same time zone, the necessity of the power saving operation in each time zone is stored. Since the determination is made, it is possible to perform an appropriate power saving operation even when the toilet usage status differs depending on the day of the week. In addition, since the usage history information of the same time zone or the same day of the week and the same time zone, the necessity of the power saving operation in each time zone is determined based on the usage history information of the latest past weeks, Even if the usage status of the toilet gradually changes due to the season or the like, the power saving operation can be made to follow the change without being affected by the usage history long before.

Further, when the toilet is used during the power saving operation, the power is supplied to the power saving target circuit portion within the time zone. Therefore, when the automatic power saving mode is set, the heater power is supplied. When the toilet is stopped, power is supplied to the heater immediately when the toilet is used, and power supply is continued until the next power supply necessity determination, that is, until the end of the current time zone. At this point, the toilet seat can be washed with warm water and the toilet seat can be kept warm.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a sanitary washing device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating an operation mode switching process.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating a usage history information storage process.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating a power supply control process.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating another usage history information storage process.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of storing usage history information.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing another example of storing usage history information.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Operation part, 2 ... Seating detection part, 3 ... Cleaning operation part, 4 ... Water heater, 5 ... Toilet seat heater, 6 ... Room warming operation part, 7 ... Automatic power saving switch, 8 ... Internal timer count part, 9 ... Storage unit, 10 ... Control unit.

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A sanitary washing apparatus which performs a power saving operation by stopping power supply to a predetermined power saving target circuit portion such as a water heater or a toilet seat heater for a predetermined time period. A storage unit that stores the usage status of the toilet in the time zone as usage history information, and usage history information indicating that the toilet was used in the corresponding time zone according to the usage of the toilet in the storage unit sequentially, during normal operation Is the same time stored in the storage unit as to whether or not the power saving operation is necessary in each time zone when the power saving operation is switched to the automatic power saving operation in accordance with a predetermined operation. Judgment based on band usage history information,
When power saving is not required, power is supplied to the power saving target circuit unit in a corresponding time zone, and when power saving is required, power supply to the power saving target circuit unit is stopped in a corresponding time zone and power saving operation is automatically performed. A sanitary washing device comprising: 2. The sanitary washing device according to claim 1, further comprising: an automatic power saving switch configured to switch between an automatic power saving operation and a normal operation each time the switch is depressed. When the operation is switched to the operation, the power is always supplied to the power saving target circuit unit. When the operation is switched to the automatic power saving operation in response to the depression of the automatic power saving switch, the necessity of the power saving operation in each time zone is required. Is determined based on the use history information of the same time zone stored in the storage unit, and if power saving is not required, power is supplied to the power saving target circuit unit in the corresponding time zone, and if power saving is required, A sanitary washing apparatus wherein power supply to the power saving target circuit unit is stopped in a time zone to automatically perform a power saving operation. 3. The sanitary washing device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit sequentially stores the usage history information in the storage unit for each time zone for each day of the week, and stores the stored same day of the week and the same time. A sanitary washing apparatus characterized in that it determines whether or not a power saving operation is required in each time zone based on usage history information of the zone. 4. The sanitary washing device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit is configured to use the last several weeks of usage history information among usage history information of the same time zone, the same day of the week, and the same time zone. A sanitary washing device characterized by determining whether power saving operation is necessary in each time zone. 5. The sanitary washing device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit supplies power to the power saving target circuit unit during the time period when the toilet is used during the power saving operation. Characteristic sanitary washing device.