Toilet seat device

Abstract

A toilet seat device according to an embodiment includes a hollow toilet seat and a sensor unit. The sensor unit includes a sensor case fixed so as to be exposed from an opening formed in the toilet seat, and the sensor case accommodates the sensor substrate therein. The sensor housing includes a fitting portion that fits into the toilet seat and fixes the sensor housing to the toilet seat. The fitting portion is positioned further toward the inside than the outer end of the sensor housing.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The disclosed embodiment relates to a toilet seat device. Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, a technique has been proposed in which an electrostatic sensor is provided on the inner surface of a toilet seat to sense the user's sitting down based on the output of the electrostatic sensor (for example, refer to Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2019-024933).

[0003] Furthermore, in the sensor unit including the sensor provided on the toilet seat, there is a sensor unit that is fixed so as to partially expose from the opening of the toilet seat. In this case, when the toilet seat is deformed due to the weight of the user sitting on the toilet seat, a load may act on the sensor substrate in the sensor unit due to the deformation of the toilet seat. Thus, in the prior art, there is room for improvement in reducing the load acting on the sensor substrate when the toilet seat is deformed. Summary of the invention

[0004] An object of one aspect of the embodiment is to provide a toilet seat device capable of reducing a load acting on a sensor substrate even when a toilet seat is deformed by a user sitting down.

[0005] A toilet seat device according to one embodiment of the present invention comprises: a hollow toilet seat; and a sensor portion, wherein the sensor portion includes a sensor housing fixed to be exposed from an opening formed in the toilet seat and accommodating a sensor substrate therein, the sensor housing including a fitting portion that fits into the toilet seat to fix the sensor housing to the toilet seat, the fitting portion being located on the inner side of an outer end of the sensor housing.

[0006] According to one aspect of the embodiment, even when the toilet seat is deformed by the user sitting down, the load acting on the sensor substrate can be reduced. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0007] A more complete appreciation of the present invention and the attendant advantages thereof will be readily appreciated by reading the following detailed description of the invention when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

[0008] Figure 1 It is a perspective view of a flush toilet apparatus including a toilet seat apparatus according to an embodiment.

[0009] Figure 2 This is a block diagram showing a configuration example of a measurement system.

[0010] Figure 3 is a perspective view of a sensor unit.

[0011] Figure 4 This is an exploded perspective view of the sensor unit.

[0012] Figure 5 This is a three-dimensional view of the toilet seat as seen from below.

[0013] Figure 6 yes Figure 1 VI-VI line cross-sectional view.

[0014] Figure 7 This is a diagram showing a state in which the toilet seat is deformed when a user sits down. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0015] Hereinafter, embodiments of the toilet seat device disclosed in the present application will be described in detail with reference to the attached drawings. It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described below.

[0016] (Implementation Method)

[0017] Reference Figure 1 The toilet seat device according to the embodiment will be described. Figure 1 2 is a perspective view of a flush toilet device including a toilet seat device according to an embodiment. Figure 1 and Figure 3 After that are schematic diagrams.

[0018] In addition, Figure 1 In the figure, for the convenience of explanation, a three-dimensional orthogonal coordinate system is illustrated, in which the X-axis direction, the Y-axis direction, and the Z-axis direction are orthogonal to each other, and the positive direction of the Z-axis is set as the vertical upward direction. In addition, in the following description, the positive direction of the X-axis is sometimes recorded as "left", the negative direction of the X-axis is recorded as "right", the positive direction of the Y-axis is recorded as "back", and the negative direction of the Y-axis is recorded as "front". In other words, as a direction observed from the perspective of a user sitting on the toilet seat 30 described later, it is sometimes recorded as "left", "right", "back", and "front". Therefore, in the following description, the X-axis direction is sometimes referred to as the left-right direction, the Y-axis direction is sometimes referred to as the front-back direction, and the Z-axis direction is sometimes referred to as the up-down direction (vertical direction).

[0019] like Figure 1 As shown, the flush toilet device 1 includes a flush toilet 10 and a toilet seat device 20. The flush toilet 10 includes a bowl 11. The bowl 11 is formed into a bowl shape that can receive waste. The bowl 11 is cleaned by the spitted cleaning water, and the cleaning water that has cleaned the bowl 11 is discharged through a drainage pipe not shown. In addition, the flush toilet 10 is made of ceramic, for example. It should be noted that the flush toilet 10 is not limited to ceramic, and can be made of resin, for example, or a combination of ceramic and resin.

[0020] The toilet seat device 20 is mounted on the upper part of the flush toilet 10, and includes a toilet seat 30, a toilet cover 36, a functional part 38, and a sensor unit 40. It should be noted that the toilet seat device 20 can be mounted on the flush toilet 10 in a detachable manner relative to the flush toilet 10, or can be mounted in an integrated manner with the flush toilet 10.

[0021] The toilet seat 30 is formed in a ring shape with an opening in the center, and is arranged along the inner edge 12 at a position overlapping with the opening of the flush toilet 10. The toilet seat 30 is made of resin, for example, and has a seat surface 31 for the user to sit on. The seat surface 31 supports the buttocks, thighs, etc. of the seated user. In addition, the toilet seat 30 is formed in a hollow shape, and a sensor unit 40 and the like are provided inside.

[0022] The toilet lid 36 is mounted in an openable and closable manner relative to the toilet seat 30. The functional portion 38 contains, for example, a nozzle device, and the nozzle device sprays washing water toward the user's body to perform local washing. It should be noted that the toilet seat device 20 may also be configured without the toilet lid 36 and the functional portion 38.

[0023] The sensor unit 40 includes a sensor 51 (see FIG. 5 ) which can measure various states related to a user using the flush toilet apparatus 1. Figure 2 ). For example, the sensor 51 is a sensor capable of measuring the blood flow state of a user sitting on the toilet seat 30. As the sensor 51, an optical biosensor can be used. Figure 2 A measurement system including the sensor 51 will be described. Figure 2 This is a block diagram showing a configuration example of a measurement system.

[0024] like Figure 2 As shown, the measurement system 100 includes: the above-mentioned sensor 51, the control device 110 and the display device 120. The sensor 51 irradiates, for example, infrared rays, visible light, and laser light to the user sitting on the toilet seat 30. Specifically, when the user is sitting on the toilet seat 30, the sensor 51 irradiates infrared rays or the like to the measurement site of the user's buttocks or thighs. The sensor 51 causes the blood vessels (blood flow) of the user to reflect the irradiated light, and receives the reflected light (scattered light). The sensor 51 outputs signals related to the irradiated light and the reflected light, such as the frequency of the irradiated light and the reflected light, to the control device 110.

[0025] The control device 110 includes a control unit 111, a storage unit 112, and a communication unit 113. It should be noted that the control device 110 is accommodated in the functional unit 38 (see Figure 1 ), but are not limited to them.

[0026] The control unit 111 is implemented by, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit), an MPU (Micro Processing Unit), etc., using a RAM (Random Access Memory) as a work area to execute a program stored in the storage unit 112. It should be noted that the control unit 111 can also be implemented by hardware such as an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array), etc. The storage unit 112 is implemented by semiconductor memory elements such as RAM, flash memory, etc., which have volatile memory and non-volatile memory.

[0027] The control unit 111 measures the blood flow state, such as the pulse rate, pulse fluctuation, and blood flow rate of the user, based on the signal output from the sensor 51. For example, the control unit 111 performs a process of sensing the flow rate change of red blood cells flowing in the blood vessels using infrared rays. The control unit 111 performs a process of sensing the frequency of the Doppler shift caused by the red blood cells flowing in the blood vessels. That is, the control unit 111 performs a process of analyzing the signal related to the irradiated light and the reflected light to measure the blood flow state. It should be noted that the blood flow state to be measured is not limited to the pulse rate, pulse fluctuation, blood flow rate, etc. of the user mentioned above, as long as it is a state related to the blood flow of the user.

[0028] The communication unit 113 transmits and receives information to and from the display device 120. It should be noted that the control device 110 and the display device 120 may be connected by wireless communication or by wired communication. The control unit 111 outputs information indicating the measured blood flow state to the display device 120 via the communication unit 113.

[0029] The display device 120 displays information indicating the measured blood flow state. Thus, the user can confirm (understand) his own blood flow state. It should be noted that the display device 120 can be a display unit of a remote controller that outputs an operation instruction of the toilet seat device 20 and a cleaning instruction of the flush toilet 10, or a display unit of a portable terminal used by the user, etc., but these are only examples and not limitations.

[0030] It should be noted that the sensor 51 is not limited to the above-mentioned sensor for measuring the user's blood flow state, and may also be other types of sensors such as a load sensor for measuring the user's weight, a body fat sensor for measuring the user's body fat percentage, etc.

[0031] Back to Figure 1As described above, an opening 32 is formed in the seat surface 31 of the toilet seat 30. The sensor unit 40 of the embodiment is fixed to the toilet seat 30 with a portion exposed from the opening 32. As described above, when a user sits on the toilet seat 30 to which the sensor unit 40 is fixed, the toilet seat 30 may be deformed due to the weight of the user. As described later, since a sensor substrate on which the sensor 51 is mounted is accommodated in the sensor unit 40, if the toilet seat 30 is deformed, a load (load) due to the deformation may act on the sensor substrate.

[0032] Therefore, in the present embodiment, even when the toilet seat 30 is deformed by the user sitting down, it is assumed that the load acting on the sensor substrate can be reduced.

[0033] Reference Figure 3 and Figure 4 , the sensor unit 40 of this embodiment will be described in detail. Figure 3 is a perspective view of the sensor unit 40, Figure 4 It is an exploded perspective view of the sensor unit 40 .

[0034] The sensor unit 40 includes a sensor substrate 52 ( Figure 3 ), sensor housing 60, first elastic member 70 (not visible in Figure 3 The sensor unit 40 is an example of a sensor section.

[0035] like Figure 4 As shown in the figure, a sensor 51 is mounted on a sensor substrate 52. For example, the sensor substrate 52 is made of resin, and the upper surface is set as a main surface 52a. The sensor 51 is mounted near the center of the main surface 52a of the sensor substrate 52. It should be noted that, although the illustration is omitted, the sensor 51 includes an irradiation part for irradiating irradiation light, a light receiving part for receiving reflected light, and the like.

[0036] The sensor housing 60 accommodates the sensor substrate 52, the first elastic member 70, etc. The sensor housing 60 is made of resin, but is not limited to this.

[0037] The sensor housing 60 includes a main body 61, a protruding portion 62, and a pressing portion 63. The main body 61 is formed in, for example, a hollow rectangular parallelepiped shape. The lower surface side of the main body 61 is open.

[0038] The protrusion 62 is formed to protrude upward from the upper part of the main body 61. The protrusion 62 is formed, for example, in a hollow cylindrical shape. A sensor window 62a that transmits irradiation light and reflected light is provided at the upper part of the protrusion 62. That is, the sensor 51 irradiates the irradiation light to the user through the sensor window 62a, and receives the reflected light reflected by the blood vessels of the user through the sensor window 62a.

[0039] The protruding portion 62 is provided with a fitting portion 64 for fitting and fixing the sensor housing 60 to the toilet seat 30. The fitting portion 64 includes an insertion hole 64a opened upward and a groove 64b extending from the insertion hole 64a in the circumferential direction of the protruding portion 62.

[0040] Here, before continuing the description of the fitting portion 64, refer to Figure 5 The configuration on the toilet seat 30 side corresponding to the fitting portion 64 will be described. Figure 5 This is a three-dimensional view of the toilet seat 30 when viewed from below. Figure 5 In the figure, the bottom surface portion (lower surface portion) on the opposite side to the seat surface 31 of the toilet seat 30 is omitted.

[0041] like Figure 5 As shown, the toilet seat 30 is provided with a fitted portion 33 that fits with the fitting portion 64 of the sensor housing 60. The fitted portion 33 is formed on the inner surface 30a side of the hollow toilet seat 30 and near the opening 32 of the toilet seat 30. The fitted portion 33 includes a cylindrical portion 33a and a claw portion 33b.

[0042] The cylindrical portion 33a is formed so as to protrude downward while surrounding the opening 32. The claw portion 33b is formed so as to protrude radially outward from the lower end 33a1 side of the cylindrical portion 33a. A plurality of (for example, two) claw portions 33b are formed on the cylindrical portion 33a. It should be noted that the positions and numbers of the claw portions 33b are merely examples and are not intended to be limiting.

[0043] By fitting the fitting portion 33 configured as described above, Figure 4 The sensor housing 60 is fixed to the toilet seat 30 by the fitting portion 64 shown in the figure. Specifically, first, the claw portion 33b of the fitted portion 33 is inserted into the insertion hole 64a of the fitting portion 64. Then, when the sensor housing 60 is rotated along the circumferential direction of the protrusion 62, the claw portion 33b of the fitted portion 33 slides toward the groove portion 64b of the fitting portion 64 and is locked. Thus, the fitting portion 64 is fitted to the fitted portion 33, and the sensor housing 60 is fixed to the toilet seat 30. In other words, the main body 61, the protrusion 62, etc. of the sensor housing 60 are fixed to the toilet seat 30.

[0044] Reference Figure 6 , the state in which the sensor housing 60 is fixed to the toilet seat 30 is clarified. Figure 6 yes Figure 1 It should be noted that in Figure 6 In FIG. 1 , a user A sitting on the seat surface 31 of the toilet seat 30 is indicated by a two-dot chain line, and a measurement site of the user A is indicated by a reference numeral “ A1 ”.

[0045] like Figure 6As shown, when the sensor housing 60 is fixed to the toilet seat 30, the sensor window 62a of the protrusion 62 is located at a position exposed from the opening 32 of the toilet seat 30. It should be noted that the position of the fitting portion 64 in the sensor housing 60 will be described in detail later.

[0046] continue Figure 4 and Figure 6 As described above, the pressing portion 63 is formed in a flat plate shape. The pressing portion 63 is assembled to the main body 61 from the opening side of the lower surface of the main body 61, and is fixed to the main body 61. At this time, the sensor substrate 52 and the first elastic member 70 are interposed between the main body 61 and the pressing portion 63.

[0047] Specifically, a plurality of (for example, two) screw insertion holes 63b are formed in the pressing portion 63. In addition, screw holes (at positions corresponding to the screw insertion holes 63b) are formed in the main body 61. Figure 4 Then, for example, with the sensor substrate 52 and the first elastic member 70 disposed between the upper surface of the pressing portion 63 and the main body 61, the screw 90 is inserted through the screw insertion hole 63b and fastened to the screw hole of the main body 61, thereby fixing the pressing portion 63 to the main body 61.

[0048] Furthermore, the sensor substrate 52 is fixed to the pressing portion 63 fixed to the main body 61 by being sandwiched between the main body 61. That is, the sensor substrate 52 is fixed to the pressing portion 63.

[0049] Furthermore, the pressing portion 63 is formed with a non-contact portion 63a that does not come into contact with the sensor substrate 52. The non-contact portion 63a is an opening portion (notch portion) formed near the center of the pressing portion 63 having a flat plate shape.

[0050] The first elastic member 70 is formed of a material having elasticity, such as rubber. A gasket or the like can be used as the first elastic member 70. When the pressing portion 63 is fixed to the main body 61, the first elastic member 70 is arranged (sandwiched) between the sensor substrate 52 and the main body 61. It should be noted that the first elastic member 70 is an example of a substrate-side elastic member.

[0051] In addition, the first elastic member 70 is formed in a flat plate shape, and an opening 70a is formed near the center thereof. The opening 70a is formed at a position corresponding to the sensor 51 of the sensor substrate 52. Specifically, the opening 70a is formed at a position where the sensor 51 is inserted when the first elastic member 70 is arranged between the sensor substrate 52 and the main body 61. The first elastic member 70 is formed to cover the portion 52b other than the sensor 51 mounted on the sensor substrate 52 through the opening 70a.

[0052] The second elastic member 80 is formed of a material having elasticity, such as rubber. An O-ring or the like can be used as the second elastic member 80. Figure 6 As shown, the second elastic member 80 is disposed (interposed) between the protrusion 62 of the sensor housing 60 and the toilet seat 30 (more precisely, the cylindrical portion 33a of the fitted portion 33). The second elastic member 80 is an example of a protrusion-side elastic member.

[0053] The sensor unit 40 of this embodiment is configured as described above, and even when the toilet seat 30 is deformed by the user sitting on it, the load acting on the sensor substrate 52 can be reduced. Figure 7 Provide explanation. Figure 7 The toilet seat 30 is deformed by the user sitting down. Figure 6 Same cross-section view.

[0054] like Figure 7 As shown, when a user sits on the toilet seat 30 and a load F acts, the toilet seat 30 deforms. Due to this deformation, a load acts from the fitted portion 33 through the fitting portion 64 on the protrusion 62 and the main body 61 of the sensor housing 60, and the main body 61 also deforms.

[0055] Thus, even when the toilet seat 30 and the main body 61 are deformed by the user sitting down, the load acting on the sensor substrate 52 can be reduced because the sensor substrate 52 is fixed to the pressing portion 63. That is, the sensor housing 60 includes the main body 61 fixed to the toilet seat 30 and the pressing portion 63 not directly fixed to the toilet seat 30, and the sensor substrate 52 is fixed to the pressing portion 63. Therefore, even when the toilet seat 30 and the like are deformed, the load acting on the sensor substrate 52 can be reduced.

[0056] In addition, the pressing portion 63 includes a non-contact portion 63a that does not contact the sensor substrate 52. That is, the pressing portion 63 is configured to be partially in contact with the sensor substrate 52. Thus, even when the pressing portion 63 is deformed in a greatly deflected manner due to deformation of the toilet seat 30, for example, the load acting on the sensor substrate 52 can be reduced by an amount that does not contact the sensor substrate 52.

[0057] Here, refer to Figure 6 The main body side length C1 where the main body 61 contacts the sensor substrate 52 and the pressing portion side length C2 where the pressing portion 63 contacts the sensor substrate 52 when viewed from the side will be described. It should be noted that the first elastic member 70 is disposed between the main body 61 and the sensor substrate 52. Therefore, the main body side length C1 is the length where the main body 61 contacts the sensor substrate 52 via the first elastic member 70.

[0058] like Figure 6As shown, the main body side length C1 is set shorter than the pressing portion side length C2 (C1<C2). In other words, the pressing portion side length C2 is set longer than the main body side length C1.

[0059] In this way, by setting the main body side length C1 to be shorter than the pressing part side length C2, the load acting on the sensor substrate 52 from the main body 61 side when the toilet seat 30 is deformed can be reduced compared to the case where the main body side length C1 is longer than the pressing part side length C2. That is, when the main body side length C1 is longer than the pressing part side length C2, the load acting on the sensor substrate 52 from the main body 61 side increases due to the lever principle, but as described above, by making the main body side length C1 shorter than the pressing part side length C2, the load acting on the sensor substrate 52 can be reduced.

[0060] In addition, a first elastic member 70 is disposed between the sensor substrate 52 and the main body 61. Figure 7 As shown, even when the toilet seat 30 is deformed and the main body 61 is also deformed, the first elastic member 70 receives and absorbs the deformation of the main body 61, thereby reducing the load acting on the sensor substrate 52.

[0061] Furthermore, the first elastic member 70 is formed to cover the portion 52b other than the sensor 51 mounted on the sensor substrate 52. Since the first elastic member 70 has the above-mentioned opening 70a, it is formed to cover the portion 52b other than the portion on which the sensor 51 is mounted on the main surface 52a of the sensor substrate 52. Thus, even if the toilet seat 30 and the main body 61 are deformed due to the user sitting down, for example, and the first elastic member 70 that receives the deformation of the main body 61 is deformed, the influence on the sensor 51 can be suppressed as much as possible. Therefore, the sensing accuracy by the sensor 51 can be kept from being impaired.

[0062] Next, the position of the fitting portion 64 for fixing the sensor housing 60 to the toilet seat 30 described above will be described in detail.

[0063] like Figure 6 and Figure 7 As shown, the fitting portion 64 is located inside the outer end 60a of the sensor housing 60. Specifically, the fitting portion 64 is located along an imaginary line 60x extending upward from the outer end 60a of the sensor housing 60 (see Figure 6 ) on the inner side.

[0064] Thus, even when the toilet seat 30 is deformed by the user sitting down, the load acting on the sensor substrate 52 can be reduced. Figure 7As shown, even when the toilet seat 30 is deformed, the fitting portion 64 follows the deformation of the toilet seat 30 and bears the force of deformation, so that the sensor housing 60 itself is not easily deformed. In addition, since the fitting portion 64 is located at a position closer to the inside than the outer end 60a of the sensor housing 60, the deformation caused by the following of the fitting portion 64 can be suppressed from being applied to the entire sensor housing 60, so the load acting on the sensor substrate 52 can be reduced. In addition, since the sensor housing 60 is fixed to the toilet seat 30 by the fitting portion 64, even if, for example, the user presses the exposed part of the sensor housing 60 by mistake, the sensor housing 60 can be prevented from being detached from the toilet seat 30.

[0065] In addition, the sensor housing 60 is exposed from the opening 32 formed in the seat surface 31 of the toilet seat 30. Then, the fitting portion 64 is located above the sensor substrate 52, preferably above the sensor 51 mounted on the sensor substrate 52. Specifically, the fitting portion 64 is set so that the center position in the vertical direction is located above the main surface (i.e., upper surface) 52a on the upper side of the sensor substrate 52, and the fitting portion 64 is preferably set to be located above the upper surface 51a of the sensor 51 by a distance (height) B. It should be noted that the distance B can be set to any value.

[0066] In this way, since the fitting portion 64 and the sensor 51 are arranged to be separated in the height direction (vertical direction), the load acting on the sensor substrate 52 due to the deformation of the fitting portion 64 can be further reduced.

[0067] In addition, the second elastic member 80 is arranged between the protruding portion 62 and the toilet seat 30. Thus, even when the toilet seat 30 is deformed, the load acting on the sensor substrate 52 can be further reduced. That is, in the fitting portion 64, there is a possibility that the influence of the load from the toilet seat 30 will be concentrated on a part of the fitting portion 64 due to the dimensional error or the like. Therefore, by arranging the second elastic member 80 between the protruding portion 62 of the sensor housing 60 and the toilet seat 30, the shaking caused by the dimensional error or the like can be suppressed, and the movement of the sensor housing 60 in the height direction relative to the toilet seat 30 can be restricted. Therefore, the influence of the load from the toilet seat 30 is not easy to be concentrated on a part of the fitting portion 64, and as a result, the load acting on the sensor substrate 52 can be further reduced. In addition, by the second elastic member 80, it is possible to prevent water from entering the toilet seat 30, and absorb the impact on the sensor substrate 52 caused by opening and closing the toilet seat 30 and sitting.

[0068] The second elastic member 80 is disposed so that its vertical height is the same as that of the fitting portion 64. It should be noted that the same height does not necessarily require the height to be exactly the same, and the height may be the same within a certain allowable range.

[0069] Thus, even when the toilet seat 30 is deformed by the user sitting down, both the fitting portion 64 and the second elastic member 80 can follow the deformation of the toilet seat 30 and receive the deformation. Therefore, the load acting on the sensor substrate 52 can be further reduced.

[0070] A toilet seat device according to one embodiment of the present invention comprises: a hollow toilet seat; and a sensor portion, wherein the sensor portion includes a sensor housing fixed to be exposed from an opening formed in the toilet seat and accommodating a sensor substrate therein, the sensor housing including a fitting portion that fits into the toilet seat to fix the sensor housing to the toilet seat, the fitting portion being located on the inner side of an outer end of the sensor housing.

[0071] Thus, even when the toilet seat is deformed due to the user sitting down, the load acting on the sensor substrate can be reduced. That is, even when the toilet seat is deformed, the fitting portion follows the deformation of the toilet seat and bears the force of the deformation, so that the sensor housing itself is not easily deformed. In addition, since the fitting portion is located at a position closer to the inside than the outer end of the sensor housing, the deformation caused by the following of the fitting portion can be suppressed from being applied to the entire sensor housing, so the load acting on the sensor substrate can be reduced. Moreover, since the sensor housing is fixed to the toilet seat by the fitting portion, even if, for example, the user mistakenly presses the exposed part of the sensor housing, the sensor housing can be prevented from detaching from the toilet seat.

[0072] Furthermore, the sensor housing is exposed from the opening formed in the seat surface of the toilet seat, and the fitting portion is located above the sensor substrate.

[0073] In this way, since the fitting portion and the sensor are arranged to be separated in the height direction, the load acting on the sensor substrate due to deformation of the fitting portion can be further reduced.

[0074] Furthermore, the sensor case includes a main body and a protrusion that protrudes from the main body and is exposed from the opening of the toilet seat, and a protrusion-side elastic member is disposed between the protrusion and the toilet seat.

[0075] Thus, even when the toilet seat is deformed, the load acting on the sensor substrate can be further reduced. That is, in the fitting portion, shaking occurs due to dimensional errors and the like, and the influence of the load from the toilet seat may be concentrated on a part of the fitting portion. Therefore, by disposing the protrusion-side elastic member between the protrusion of the sensor housing and the toilet seat, shaking caused by dimensional errors and the like can be suppressed, and the movement of the sensor housing in the height direction relative to the toilet seat can be restricted. Therefore, the influence of the load from the toilet seat is not easy to be concentrated on a part of the fitting portion, and as a result, the load acting on the sensor substrate can be further reduced. In addition, the protrusion-side elastic member can prevent water from intruding into the toilet seat, and can absorb the impact on the sensor substrate caused by opening and closing the toilet seat and sitting.

[0076] Furthermore, the protrusion-side elastic member is disposed so that its vertical height becomes the same as that of the fitting portion.

[0077] Thus, even when the toilet seat is deformed by the user sitting down, both the fitting portion and the protrusion-side elastic member can follow the deformation of the toilet seat and receive the deformation. Therefore, the load acting on the sensor substrate can be further reduced.

[0078] Furthermore, the sensor housing includes a main body portion fixed to the toilet seat and a pressing portion fixed to the main body portion, and the sensor substrate is fixed to the pressing portion.

[0079] Thus, even when the toilet seat or the main body is deformed by the user sitting down, the load acting on the sensor substrate can be reduced because the sensor substrate is fixed to the pressing portion. That is, the sensor housing includes a main body fixed to the toilet seat and a pressing portion not directly fixed to the toilet seat, and the sensor substrate is fixed to the pressing portion. Therefore, even when the toilet seat or the like is deformed, the load acting on the sensor substrate can be reduced.

[0080] Furthermore, the pressing portion includes a non-contact portion that does not come into contact with the sensor substrate.

[0081] Thus, since the pressing part has the non-contact part, the pressing part and the sensor substrate are partially in contact. Thus, even if the pressing part is greatly deformed due to deformation of the toilet seat, for example, the load acting on the sensor substrate can be reduced by an amount that does not contact the sensor substrate.

[0082] In addition, the sensor substrate is arranged and fixed between the pressing portion and the main body, and when viewed from the side, the length of the main body side where the main body contacts the sensor substrate is set to be shorter than the length of the pressing portion side where the pressing portion contacts the sensor substrate.

[0083] In this way, by setting the length of the main body side shorter than the length of the pressing part side, the load acting on the sensor substrate from the main body side when the toilet seat is deformed can be reduced compared to the case where the length of the main body side is longer than the length of the pressing part side. That is, when the length of the main body side is longer than the length of the pressing part side, the load acting on the sensor substrate from the main body side increases due to the lever principle, but as described above, by making the length of the main body side shorter than the length of the pressing part side, the load acting on the sensor substrate can be reduced.

[0084] Furthermore, the toilet seat device includes a substrate-side elastic member disposed between the sensor substrate and the main body.

[0085] Thus, even when the toilet seat is deformed and the main body is also deformed, for example, the board-side elastic member receives and absorbs the deformation of the main body, and thus the load acting on the sensor board can be reduced.

[0086] Furthermore, the substrate-side elastic member is formed to cover a portion other than the sensor mounted on the sensor substrate.

[0087] Thus, even if the toilet seat and the main body are deformed by the user sitting down, and the substrate-side elastic member receiving the deformation of the main body is deformed, the influence on the sensor can be minimized, thereby preventing the sensing accuracy of the sensor from being impaired.

[0088] <Supplementary explanation>

[0089] (1) A toilet seat device comprising:

[0090] Hollow toilet seats; and

[0091] a sensor unit including a sensor housing fixed so as to be exposed from an opening formed in the toilet seat and accommodating a sensor substrate therein;

[0092] The sensor housing includes a fitting portion that fits into the toilet seat to fix the sensor housing to the toilet seat.

[0093] The fitting portion is located inside the outer end of the sensor housing.

[0094] (2) The toilet seat device according to (1), wherein:

[0095] The sensor housing is exposed from the opening formed on the seat surface of the toilet seat.

[0096] The fitting portion is located above the sensor substrate.

[0097] (3) The toilet seat device according to (1) or (2), wherein:

[0098] The sensor housing comprises:

[0099] the main body; and

[0100] A protrusion protrudes from the main body and is exposed from the opening of the toilet seat, wherein an elastic member is arranged between the protrusion and the toilet seat.

[0101] (4) The toilet seat device according to (3), wherein:

[0102] The elastic member is arranged so that the height in the vertical direction is the same as that of the fitting portion.

[0103] (5) The toilet seat device according to any one of (1) to (4), wherein

[0104] The sensor housing comprises:

[0105] A main body portion, fixed to the toilet seat; and

[0106] A pressing part is fixed to the main body.

[0107] The sensor substrate is fixed to the pressing portion.

[0108] (6) The toilet seat device according to (5), wherein:

[0109] The pressing portion includes a non-contact portion that does not come into contact with the sensor substrate.

[0110] (7) The toilet seat device according to (5) or (6), wherein:

[0111] The sensor substrate is arranged and fixed between the pressing portion and the main body.

[0112] In a side view, a length of the main body portion on a side where the main body portion contacts the sensor substrate is set to be shorter than a length of the pressing portion on a side where the pressing portion contacts the sensor substrate.

[0113] (8) The toilet seat device according to any one of (5) to (7), wherein

[0114] The toilet seat device includes a substrate-side elastic member disposed between the sensor substrate and the main body.

[0115] (9) The toilet seat device according to (8), wherein:

[0116] The substrate-side elastic member is formed to cover a portion other than a sensor mounted on the sensor substrate.

Claims

1. A toilet seat device, comprising: Hollow toilet seats; and a sensor unit including a sensor housing fixed so as to be exposed from an opening formed in the toilet seat and accommodating a sensor substrate therein; The sensor housing includes a fitting portion that fits into the toilet seat to fix the sensor housing to the toilet seat. The fitting portion is located inside the outer end of the sensor housing.

2. The toilet seat device according to claim 1, wherein: The sensor housing is exposed from the opening formed on the seat surface of the toilet seat. The fitting portion is located above the sensor substrate.

3. The toilet seat device according to claim 1, wherein: The sensor housing comprises: the main body; and a protrusion, the protrusion protruding from the main body and exposed from the opening of the toilet seat, A protrusion-side elastic member is disposed between the protrusion and the toilet seat.

4. The toilet seat device according to claim 3, wherein: The protrusion-side elastic member is disposed so that the height in the vertical direction becomes the same as that of the fitting portion.

5. The toilet seat device according to claim 1, wherein: The sensor housing comprises: A main body portion, fixed to the toilet seat; and A pressing part is fixed to the main body. The sensor substrate is fixed to the pressing portion.

6. The toilet seat device according to claim 5, wherein: The pressing portion includes a non-contact portion that does not come into contact with the sensor substrate.

7. The toilet seat device according to claim 5, wherein: The sensor substrate is arranged and fixed between the pressing portion and the main body. In a side view, a length of the main body portion on a side where the main body portion contacts the sensor substrate is set to be shorter than a length of the pressing portion on a side where the pressing portion contacts the sensor substrate.

8. The toilet seat device according to claim 5, wherein: The toilet seat device includes a substrate-side elastic member disposed between the sensor substrate and the main body.

9. The toilet seat device according to claim 8, wherein: The substrate-side elastic member is formed to cover a portion other than a sensor mounted on the sensor substrate.

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