Method and apparatus for separating and containing post-siphon solid waste and solids in a toilet

Abstract

According to this method, the solids are packed into individual bags (63) in a hose that is continuously fed with an air portion, the buoyant bags (63) are sealed and discharged into the sewer system. The device for this purpose comprises at least one siphon for treating the siphon outlet of the WC (100) in a closed system. A solids separation tank (3) for recovering solids, A solids pump (28) for conveying the separated solids upward through the riser pipe (4) and into the elevated solids tank (5); a portioning device (6) equipped with a discharge valve (7) for dropping portions of solid material into a tubular bag packaging unit (9) arranged below, a tubular bag packaging unit (9) for producing sealed and subsequently separated bags (63) having a solid and air content from a continuously fed tube for discharge into a sewer system; This includes the technical components.

Description

[Background technology]

[0001] Public sewer infrastructure is demanding and in many countries is constantly expanding, and in constant need of maintenance and repair. In developed countries, flush toilets, or toilets for short, are well established, where people defecate into a collection bowl and then flush the waste, along with used toilet paper, into the sewer system. All sewer pipes must be laid with a minimum slope to ensure sufficient gradient for the flow, and these drain into larger pipes and finally into larger underground sewers that carry the waste to treatment plants. There, the polluted water must be purified at great expense before being released into natural waters.

[0002] The history of disposal of domestic waste from human settlements is very ancient. The precursor of today's sewerage system was built in Rome more than 2000 years ago. This system drained sewage and storm water from the city. During the Middle Ages, previous techniques were neglected and disposal of feces was mainly done by washing, sometimes through the streets. As a result, the spread of disease bacteria could not be controlled. Many people fell victim to this neglect of hygiene.

[0003] As a result of the Industrial Revolution in Europe and North America in the 19th century, personal hygiene became an increasingly central concern, as people were often unable to go to work due to illness. Underground sewers were again built to discharge fecal matter into rivers or lakes. Over time, severe water pollution and the expansion of settlements exceeded the absorptive capacity and self-purification of water bodies. As a result of pollutants flowing into water bodies, people had major problems obtaining drinking water.

[0004] Gradually, economic development led to the disposal of fecal matter in newly built sewage treatment plants. Today, the system of central water supply, alluvial sewer, and "end of the pipe" central sewage treatment plant is an important part of the community's integrated water supply and disposal system.

[0005] Decentralized wastewater disposal has long been practiced in rural areas as an alternative to centralized wastewater treatment. Decentralized wastewater treatment refers to the treatment of domestic wastewater in small and very small sewage treatment plants, either as local facilities or as individual solutions. Stormwater is stored, infiltrated or discharged separately.

[0006] The above facts underscore the need to develop alternative wastewater and water strategies that are in line with contemporary knowledge and technological possibilities. Sustainable on-site wastewater policy approaches range from rainwater harvesting and use of treated wastewater to nutrient recovery and reuse in agriculture.

[0007] In 2011, the Melanie & Bill Gates Foundation organized a global competition to develop a simple toilet that was environmentally friendly and economical. The results were not encouraging. Moreover, the proposed solutions were not well suited to the vast population of 2.5 billion people who do not have direct access to a toilet.

[0008] The new approach assumes that, whenever possible, the problem should be solved at the source. However, this means that the users or operators of the corresponding toilet facilities have to pay additional costs to dispose of the waste. Since this is not and should not be the case, these ideas are excluded from the list of environmentally friendly disposal options.

[0009] In a combined system, domestic wastewater is discharged together with storm water through a combined sewerage system and treated in a WWTP. The wastewater mixture is purified at great technical expense. Reuse of the substances contained in the wastewater is practically impossible or can only be achieved with high technical efforts. Treated wastewater is discharged into receiving waterways and is lost from the groundwater balance within the city. There are no real "patent solutions" for (waste)water management. It is important to choose a technology adapted to the local climatic, hydrological, social, cultural and economic conditions.

[0010] Modern toilets offer the advantage of allowing comfortable and hygienic elimination within a building and minimizing unpleasant odors. However, they come at the cost of considerable water consumption: in most countries around 9 litres of potable water are used per flush, compared with 6 litres for improved flushing. The water is only used for transport purposes and must then be purified again, which is time-consuming and expensive.

[0011] Using Switzerland as an example, some figures are given below to illustrate the costs involved. According to a study carried out in November 2006 by EAWAG, the water research institute of the ETH Domain, there were already 759 sewage treatment plants, each serving more than 500 inhabitants, and 47,400 km of sewage pipes in Switzerland. In addition, there were more than 3,383 smaller sewage treatment plants, about 42,000 km of on-site drainage pipes, and connections to about 1,700,000 households. At that time, the total replacement cost of these public structures was already estimated at about CHF 65.3 billion, and that of on-site drainage systems at about CHF 16.8 billion. Together with the estimated value of CHF 17.4 billion for sanitation, the total value of the entire urban drainage system in Switzerland is just under CHF 100 billion. Of these, 34% is privately managed and 66% is under public management.

[0012] Even at that time, according to information provided by municipalities and by the cantons, the Swiss upper levels of municipalities, it was estimated that the annual costs of wastewater disposal would amount to CHF 1.69 billion. Of these, 48% came from wastewater treatment plants and 52% from sewerage systems. The annual operating costs of the entire public infrastructure amounted to approximately CHF 727 million, of which CHF 440 million (61%) was for the operation of wastewater treatment plants. Total interest costs amounted to CHF 92 million, thus amounting to 0.145% of the replacement cost.

[0013] The costs of sewerage systems were investigated in detail for over 500 municipalities, representing around 25% of the Swiss population. The estimated value of the public sewerage system in Switzerland amounts to CHF 55.2 billion, or around CHF 7,600 per inhabitant. The replacement cost of the sewerage system per metre of sewerage increases significantly with increasing residential density, while the replacement cost per inhabitant varies only slightly between the different types of municipalities. According to the available data, the annual investments required to renovate the sewerage system already amounted to around 0.8% of the system's replacement cost in 2006. Due to the state of the systems and their expected service life, the need for sewerage system renovation has increased significantly in recent years.

[0014] Along with all the advantages of modern urban drainage, the concept of sewerage and centralized sewage treatment also has drawbacks that raise doubts as to whether this established solution is the most sensible option in the long term. In this regard, the following aspects can be mentioned:

[0015] Alluvial sewer systems are not sufficient to provide a high level of water quality protection. Despite the large volumes of water treated and the high dilution rates, even expensive treated sewage often places a heavy burden on natural water bodies.

[0016] Existing sewerage systems and wastewater treatment plants are expensive to operate and maintain and require large investments to build.

[0017] Environmentally conscious material flow management through material separation and reuse of reusable materials is only possible to a limited extent with existing systems. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0018] Against this background, the present invention aims to achieve an improvement by separating solid waste and other solid materials such as toilet paper from the sewer flow and treating them separately, freeing up the entire sewer system and disposing of only flushing water through the sewer system, or, if necessary, disposing of urine as well.

[0019] The challenge is to create procedures and equipment that can meet the following requirements: 1. The process and equipment ensure that solid waste and toilet paper are separated from the sewer stream and treated separately to prevent direct contamination of the wastewater with these materials. 2. The device is small enough to be installed in the cistern bay behind a modern WC. 3. The device is designed to be as simple as possible, function reliably over the long term, be quiet (max 47dBA), and best of all be odorless. 4. The equipment shall be as easy to maintain and operate as possible. [Means for solving the problem]

[0020] The solution to these objectives lies in a process for separating solids from post-siphon flush toilets, characterized in that the solids are packed into individual bags in a hose that is continuously fed with an air portion, and the buoyant bags are sealed and discharged into the sewer system.

[0021] Furthermore, this problem is solved by an apparatus for separating solids from a flush toilet downstream of a siphon, characterized in that it comprises at least the following technical components downstream of the siphon for processing the siphon outlet in a closed system: A solids separation tank for recovering solids, A solids pump to transport the separated solids upwards through a riser pipe into an elevated solids tank; A portioning device provided with a valve for dropping portions of the solid material into a tubular bag packaging unit arranged below, A tubular bag packaging unit for producing sealed and subsequently separated bags having solid and air contents from a continuously fed tube for discharge into the sewerage system. Effect of the Invention

[0022] This device or toilet system can also be combined, for example, with the TOTO toilet separation system from Toijs Toki Co. Ltd., Japan, or with the "Urine Trap" toilet from Keramik Laufen AG, Wahlenstrasse 46, CH-4242 Laufen, whereby urine can be collected and disposed of separately. In principle, however, with this system the liquid and solid parts of flushed urine are separated. The solids are processed and packaged so that they can be transported in the form of pillow-shaped bags, and these bags are transported through the sewer and either collected and disposed of directly at a sewage treatment plant without contaminating the water in the sewer system with feces, or concentrated outside the building in a collection container from where they are periodically disposed of. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0023] The device is presented on the basis of drawings, its structure is explained in more detail and its function for the process of separating solids is explained, from which the device can be properly described as a LEFT device, LEFT=(in German "Lokale Entsorgung von Festen Toilettenabfallen") in English "Local Disposal of Solid Toilet waste". It is shown below. [Figure 1] 1 is a longitudinal section of a toilet for separating urine and solid waste. [Diagram 2] FIG. 1 shows a standard installation frame with a water tank and connections for installing a wall-mounted WC of conventional design. [Diagram 3] FIG. 1 shows a house with a drainage system that separates urine and contains solid waste. [Figure 4] Oblique front view of a recessed unit with a frame for mounting the entire unit on the wall, installed behind a wall-mounted WC and equipped with all components for flush toilet operation with solids separation and bagging of solids. [Diagram 5] FIG. 2 shows the lower area of ​​the installation unit separately, as seen from behind. [Figure 6] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of all the components of an apparatus according to the invention for separating and bagging solid waste. [Figure 7] FIG. 13 is a diagram of an alternative lifting device for lifting solids from the solids separation tank in position to receive the solids from the solids separation tank in its collection basket. [Figure 8] 8 is a view of the lifting device shown in FIG. 7 when lifting the collection basket. [Figure 9] FIG. 8 is a view of the lift device shown in FIG. 7 with the bottom of the collection basket opened and the contents emptied into a dispensing device. [Figure 10] FIG. 8 is a view of the lifting device shown in FIG. 7 after the basket has been lifted and tilted into an emptying position. [Figure 11]FIG. 2 is an exploded view of a portioning device for portioning and dropping solid portions into bag packaging units, viewed obliquely from above along a central rotation axis. [Figure 12] 12 is a view of the dispensing device of FIG. 11 as seen obliquely from below. [Figure 13] FIG. 2 is a top view of the assembled portioning device. [Figure 14] FIG. 2 is a bottom view of the assembled portioning device. [Figure 15] FIG. 2 is a diagram of the tubular bag packaging unit in an initial state. [Figure 16] 1 shows the tubular bag packaging unit after the tube sections have been pulled up to form a single tubular bag. [Figure 17] FIG. 2 is a view of the tubular bag packaging unit prior to transverse sealing of the raised tube portions at their lower ends to form a single open-topped tubular bag. [Figure 18] FIG. 2 is a view of the tubular bag packaging unit after opening the top of a transversely sealed closed bottom bag. [Figure 19] FIG. 2 is a view of the tubular bag packaging unit during separation of a bag held open at the top from the following endless tube. [Figure 20] FIG. 13 shows a tubular bag packaging unit with the bag held open and the cutting device pulled apart and the support plate pushed under the bag when filling with solids. [Figure 21] FIG. 13 shows the tubular bag packaging unit after the air tube has been inserted, with the filled bag still held open and resting on the support plate. [Figure 22] FIG. 2 is a view of the tubular bag packaging unit when the top bag mouth of the bag is retracted. [Figure 23] FIG. 2 is a diagram of the tubular bag packaging unit during sealing of the closed top bag mouth. [Figure 24] FIG. 13 is a design drawing of a vacuum strip with a welding bar for welding around the mouth of the air tube. [Diagram 25]FIG. 13 is a view of a welded tubular bag packaging unit, shown suspended from the upper vacuum bar with weld bar, after the support plate has been removed and ready for discharge into the sewer system. [Figure 26] FIG. 13 shows a sliding chute wedged under the bag, with vacuum bars spaced apart, discharging the sealed bag as an odor trap for a sewer system into a discharge pipe with a siphon. [Figure 27] FIG. 1 is a diagram of an alternative tubular bag packaging unit for producing substantially circular bags, showing the state in which after a single open-top, arc-shaped tubular bag is formed for filling, the lower arc-shaped welding bars are used for arc-shaped welding of the raised tube portions after their retraction. [Figure 28] FIG. 28 is a diagram of the tubular bag packaging unit shown in FIG. 27, showing the bottom of the bag tightly sealed and suspended from the top vacuum bar after the bottom curved seal bar has moved away. [Figure 29] FIG. 25 is a view of the tubular bag packaging unit shown in FIGS. 23 and 24, showing the upper vacuum bars moving together to surround the air tube and the upper curved seal bars moving together after filling. [Diagram 30] FIG. 26 is a diagram of the tubular bag packaging unit according to FIG. 23 to FIG. 25, showing the state before the sealing bar in the vacuum bar seals around the lower air tube mouth and the upper arcuate seals after air is blown through the air tube, and then the upper arcuate sealing bar moves away. [Diagram 31] A diagram showing the situation after the support plate has been removed, the air tube has been pulled back upward, the slide channel or slide plate has been inserted under the tubular bag, and the vacuum bars have been moved away, after which the tubular bag drops onto the slide channel or slide plate. [Diagram 32] FIG. 13 is a diagram of an arcuate fuser bar having an arcuate spring-loaded knife on the outside of the fuser bar with a sharp edge for cutting off any remaining film remnants remaining on the outside. [Diagram 33]FIG. 1 is a diagram of a nearly completed circular tubular bag with sealed solids and air portions, inflated at the top and bottom. [Diagram 34] FIG. 1 is a photographic reproduction of a finished circular tubular bag of this type with inflated top and bottom portions as produced by a prototype system for proof of concept purposes. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0024] First, FIG. 1 shows a special existing toilet bowl 100 in longitudinal section, suitable for separating solid components of waste, including urine and used toilet paper and flushing water, at the source. For this purpose, the toilet bowl 100 has an additional platform bottom surface 101 at the front, which extends from the front toward approximately the center of the bowl 100 and terminates there in a sloping drainage nose 102. Urine is collected at this bottom surface 101 and then flows over this drainage nose 102 into a bottom collection chamber 103 and is discharged via a small siphon 104 through another small diameter pipe 105. In this way, urine is transferred to another container where it can be collected separately for further use. Solid waste falls down the back of the drainage nose 102 into the siphon water 106 of the large siphon 108 and then into a discharge pipe 107 that exits the toilet bowl 100 through the back of the siphon 108. Additionally, the present invention provides for the disposal of these solid portions of waste, as well as used toilet paper, which is also discharged through this large siphon 108 along with the waste and flush water.

[0025] Figure 2 shows in plan view a conventional wall-mounted installation unit for retrofit installation of a wall-mounted WC. It includes an installation frame 200 that rests in a height-adjustable manner on associated legs 202 and fits as a whole into a bay cut into the wall. Such a bay in the rear wall is typically 500 mm wide, 280 mm deep and up to about 1500 mm high. In new systems, the bay can also be extended upwards to room height to create more space for an installation module of tubular bag packaging for solids that has not yet been introduced. Within this installation frame 200, a water tank 201 is visible at the top in this example. Below this a cover 206 is visible in which a button 209 for operating the water tank 201 is located. The connecting pipe 205 for the flushing is located above the connection support 204 for the discharge pipe 107 from the siphon in Figure 1, and next to it and slightly below can be seen a threaded bushing 203 for screwing onto a wall mounted toilet, as well as an electrical connection 207 for connecting an under-shower toilet, and a signal line for controlling the whole system via a keypad 209 with display 210 above the toilet. This can be used to activate the flushing and to check the maintenance of an under-shower toilet if one is installed.

[0026] As shown in Fig. 3 based on a cross-section of a house with sewerage connection, there is a discharge pipe 110 for urine from the flush toilet 100 and, as will be shown later, a larger discharge pipe 111 for solid waste to be treated. Next to it are the drainage pipes 112 from the bathtub 113, the washbasin 114 and the washing machine 115, which lead in a conventional way to the sewer 119 and then to the sewer 109 and from there finally to the sewage treatment plant. On the other hand, the solid waste and toilet paper are specially treated according to the concept of the invention and are sealed and packed in buoyant bags, which are then transported floating in the wash water. As shown here, they are retained in a collection vessel 117 from where they are disposed of whenever necessary, or floated together with the wash water in the sewer 119 to the sewer 109 and to the sewage treatment plant, where they are separated from the sewage and disposed of separately.

[0027] The bags are therefore either collected in decentralised collection containers, for example at collection stations for one or several houses, or collected somewhere on the way to the sewage treatment plant and removed from the sewage system, or this is done only at the sewage treatment plant. In any case, it is important that human waste does not enter the water of the sewage system in the first place. Both urine and feces increasingly contain pharmaceutical residues that are difficult or impossible to remove from the sewage water. Such concentrated water, despite being treated, can have a negative effect on the flora and fauna of the water body. It has already been established that hormones in sewage, such as the active ingredients excreted from contraceptive pills, have a negative effect on the fertility of fish and other aquatic organisms. It is therefore wise to tackle this problem from the very start and not to contaminate the rinsing water with urine and excreta, but rather to use it simply as a transport medium. This is precisely the main point of the concept of the present invention, i.e. feces should not contaminate the water as much as possible, but the washing water should be used only to transport the sealed packaged bags, the contamination of which should be avoided as much as possible. Firstly, it will reduce the burden on wastewater treatment plants and, as mentioned above, it will also help prevent pharmaceutical residues from finding their way into rivers and lakes and ultimately into groundwater.

[0028] In the following, it is shown how compact the sealed packaging of solid waste according to this concept and the device required for this can be implemented. When realized as a recessed unit, the device has a width dimension of 500 mm, or more advantageously 750 mm, like other common standard elements. The connection points of the flush water inlet and outlet must be of normal dimensions so that commercially available WC systems can be connected to this module. A toilet model such as that shown in FIG. 1, which allows the solid and liquid outlets in the toilet to be separated, is advantageous, for example the toilet already available from TOTO, Toijs Toki Co., Japan, or the "Urine Trap" toilet from Keramik Laufen AG, Wahlenstrasse 46, CH-4242 Laufen. The actual processing of the solids to produce the sealed pillow-shaped bags is carried out only by the device according to the invention. In the various stations, the solids are portioned and sealed packaged to such an extent that the bags can float independently through the pipe system, which is in the existing or new pipe system for drainage. The advantage of this disposal method is, inter alia, that it does not impose any additional burden on the user or operator to operate the installation in the home, apart from the need to periodically change the packaging material cassettes and replenish them with disinfectant, which, however, corresponds to a maintenance cost comparable to that of a shower toilet.

[0029] FIG. 4 shows a recessed unit 1 for implementing the concept of packaging solids in a recessed bay where the module is installed as a complete recessed module in a similar manner to that conventionally used to install a water tank in a wall bay behind a toilet.

[0030] The recessed unit 1 is surrounded by a steel frame 49 that stands at the bottom of the wall bay. A connecting pipe 2 for the discharge pipe 107 of the toilet bowl 100 from FIG. 1 is visible at the bottom of the installed module. It leads to a solids separation tank 3. A riser pipe 4 runs upwards from the solids separation tank 3 to a solids tank 5, at the bottom of which there is a drum-shaped portioning device 6 with a valve 7 at the bottom. From here a drop pipe 8 leads to a tubular bag packaging unit 9. In its lower area a change cassette 10 is visible, in which the tubular bag material is stored in rolls. A sewage pipe 11 leads from this tubular bag packaging unit 9 to the sewerage system. A rinse tank 12 with fresh water is located in the upper center, to the right of which there is a grey water tank 13. At the lower right a brown water tank 14 is installed, from which water is used for the first rinse cycle. A rinse water connection 16 is visible in the center of the cross brace 15 of the steel frame 1. To the right of the sewer pipe 11 there is a power supply 17, above which there is an electronic computer unit 18 for controlling the whole system. In the topmost area to the right of the recessed unit there is an ultraviolet disinfection unit 19 for sterilizing the rinsing liquid in the grey water tank 13. To the left of that there is a control panel 20 with displays and buttons for controlling and operating all system components. It is clear that the whole aftertreatment of the outlet solid components must be carried out in a completely odor-free system in a sealed system, but the system components must still be accessible to carry out technical maintenance or repairs if necessary. Suitable odor-proof doors are provided for this purpose and can be opened if necessary.

[0031] FIG. 5 shows the lower area of ​​the installation unit separately, seen from behind. In particular, here we can see the tubular bag packaging unit 9 on the right and below that the solids separation tank 3. On the left of that we can see the distributor in the form of a rotary valve 21. The discharge pipe 107 from the toilet (FIG. 1) is connected to this distributor or to this rotary valve 21, so that the solids arriving from above, as well as the flushing water and urine, enter the solids separation tank 3 via pipe 23 in normal operation or directly into the downpipe 24 via pipe 22 in fault operation, which leads to the sewerage system. It is clear that the arrangement of the individual components in the installation module can be designed differently, depending on the design of the individual components. However, not only the solids tank 5 but also the rinse water tank 12 and the grey water tank 13 must be arranged as high as possible.

[0032] 6 shows a schematic diagram of all the components of an embedded unit according to the invention for separating and bagging solid waste. The toilet waste, i.e. solid waste, toilet paper and urine if the urine has not been drained separately beforehand, flows from the grey water tank 13, located at the top, containing about 4 liters of grey water, through the toilet bowl 100, via the siphon and rotary valve 21, when the latter is in position 1, into the solids separation tank 3. The solids sink below and the solids sensor 89 is activated. This switches on the solids pump 28 with integrated chopper 26, which pumps the solids mixed with the grey water upwards, via the riser pipe 4 and the open valve 30, into the solids tank 5, located as high as possible in the installed module. As soon as the solids sensor 89 detects that there are no solids in the lower solids separation tank 3, the solids pump 28 is switched off and the valve 30 is closed to prevent backflow of the aqueous solids slurry. The riser pipe 4 also serves as a reservoir for the solids slurry. The riser pipe 4 is always filled.

[0033] At the same time, excess grey water passively flows from the lower solids separation tank 3 through the overflow pipe 78, via the retention strainer 29 and the open brown water valve 97, into the brown water tank 14, which has a usable volume of approximately 4 liters measured to the mouth of the feed opening of the overflow pipe 78. A vent line 96 branching off from the top of the brown water tank 14 vents excess pressure created by filling to the sewer system. After the brown water tank 14 reaches its 4 liter limit, the overflow valve 91 is opened, allowing the contents of the brown water tank to be lowered to 2 liters.

[0034] Once this is achieved, a post-rinse is performed with about 2 liters from the fresh water tank 12, which is supplied with fresh water via valve 97, via valve 95. This flushes the toilet siphon. This relatively clean water now also flows passively into the brown water tank 14. At the end of this second flushing and filling process, 4 liters of brown water, whose quality has thus been improved, are conveyed by the feed pump 32 to the UV disinfection system 19 arranged above. The feed pump 32 is switched on intermittently in order to convey only as much brown water as the UV disinfection system 19 can handle. If the grey water tank 13, which is supplied with fresh water via valve 98 and from the disinfection system 19 via line 99, is not filled to 4 liters by the feed pump 32 after the delivery is completed, it is automatically refilled with fresh water. This two-stage rinsing process, first with grey water and then with fresh water, proves to be very economical. For 6 liters of flushing, only 2 liters of fresh water are needed and supplied. This saves valuable fresh water.

[0035] Usually, the control panel of a toilet has a small and a large flush button. The large button is used for flushing toilets with a fixed outlet, the small button is used only for urine flushing. The following situations can be distinguished: A) Pure urine discharge: When discharging pure urine, a small button activates the flush via the fresh water tank 12. The rotary valve 21 is switched to position 2 just before flushing and the urine flows conventionally into the outlet pipe 31 and thus into the sewer system. B) Large Button Misoperation: If the large button is pressed accidentally when no solids are being dispensed and the solids sensor 89 does not detect any solids in the solids separation tank 3, a 4 liter grey water rinse is activated. Thus, the 2 liter fresh water flush is not activated. Unused grey water flows into the brown water tank 14, where the overflow valve 91 is closed. The feed pump 32 intermittently pumps unused grey water back to the UV disinfection system until the grey water tank 13 is refilled. C) System overload: In case of high toilet usage, e.g. during a party or a large number of guests, the system may become overloaded: previously discharged solids may not yet have been processed. In this case, the system switches to emergency operation. The rotary valve 21 switches to position 2 and the valve 94 of the fresh water tank 12 in the module opens, releasing 4-5 litres of solids into the pipe 31 for the sewer system. As soon as the background solids processing is completed, the system returns to normal operation.

[0036] A separate drain 25 for the separately collected urine leads from the toilet 100 to a separate collection container, not shown here. The rotary valve 21 below the siphon of the toilet 100 is controlled by a motor and can take three positions: in the first position 1 for normal operation, the incoming flow-down material consisting of water, possibly urine if the urine is not collected separately, and solids such as excrement and toilet paper, is passed to the subsequent solids separation tank 3. In the second position 2, used in failure operation, the rotary valve 21 discharges the washed material in a conventional manner directly into the drain pipe 31 and then into the sewerage system. In the third position 3, intended for cleaning operations, for backwashing the subsequent solids separation tank 3, both the rotary valve 21 and the solids separation tank 3 can be cleaned and washed by cleaning nozzles arranged inside them. It is planned to connect the computer 18 of the PLC controller (Figure 4) to a web server so that the status of the system can also be queried and displayed decentrally. A webcam installed in the room can also be used for this purpose and can be cleaned with a cleaning nozzle if necessary.

[0037] During the rinsing step, excess grey water passively flows from its feed opening via retention strainer 29 and open brown water valve 89 into brown water tank 14, which has a usable volume of about 4 liters. A vent line 96 vents excess pressure caused by filling to the sewer system. Overflow valve 91 opens and after a defined time a fill of about 2 liters is reached. When this is reached, a flush from fresh water tank 12, also of 2 liters, is activated by valve 95 and overflow valve 91 is closed. This relatively clean water now also passively flows into the brown water tank. At the end of the second filling step, 4 liters of brown water, improved by fresh water, are intermittently conveyed by feed pump 32 to the UV disinfection system. Solids separation tank 3 is always filled with L max Filled up to the mark. Level L min When this level is reached, the solids feed pump 28 switches off in any case, since no more material can be aspirated below this level.

[0038] From a solids tank 5, located at the top of the embedded unit, a viscous slurry of excrement, toilet paper and a small amount of water is distributed via a portioning device 6 and a valve 7 to a tubular bag packaging unit 9 located below. The filling level of the solids tank 5 is monitored by a sensor so that the solids pump 28 can only be operated if the level in the solids tank 5 is not too high. The valve 7 is opened and closed under the control of the portioning unit 6.

[0039] A vent line 33 leads from the solids tank 5 to a drain pipe 31 to the sewerage system so that excessive pressure cannot build up in the solids tank 5. Down from the portioning device 6 an emergency line 34 leads via a solenoid valve 35 to the drain pipe 31 and into the sewerage system. If for any reason the tubular bag packaging unit 9 fails, the solids tank 5 can be emptied with its contents directly into the sewerage system.

[0040] The concepts presented so far rely on a fecal pump located at the bottom of the solids separation tank 3 to transport the solids upwards, which breaks them and transports them together with the rinse water to the solids tank above. An alternative realization for this upward transport of the solids is presented below, which ensures further processing of the solids or a slurry of solids in a discharge device for distribution to packaging units. As an alternative to the above-mentioned system, the 120° turn valve can be omitted / is not necessary, and the upper grey water tank can also be eliminated, and therefore the two-stage washing of the WC is also eliminated. This significantly simplifies the system and the water consumption during washing is conventional.

[0041] For this purpose, a lift system is used with a lift basket that can move up and down, which is shown in Fig. 7 to 10. When the toilet flush is activated, the solids and the flush water enter the lift basket 121 through the inlet pipe 120 of the lift system. The solids accumulate in the lift basket 121, and the flush water is discharged directly into the sewer system through the gutter 122 of the lift basket 121. The bottom of the lift basket 121 is formed by a lift basket bottom flap 123, which is held in the closed position by a tension or torsion spring. When filled, the lift basket 121 rises. For this purpose, the drive is provided by two threaded rods 124 arranged symmetrically on the lift basket 121 and by two threaded guide nuts 125 on the lift basket 121. A drive motor 126 is connected to the two threaded rods 124 via a toothed belt 127. A magnetic switch informs the control unit of the position of the lift basket 121. The lift basket 121 is kept on the track by guide profiles 128 arranged on both sides. For this purpose, complementary guide ribs 129 are attached to both sides of the lift basket 121. Both the fixed side profiles 128 and the guide ribs 129 on the lift basket 121 have V-shaped ends, which ensures that correct guidance is always restored when the lift basket 121 is lowered.

[0042] 8 shows the situation when the lift basket 121 has moved upwards. Two-thirds of its lateral guide ribs 129 have already moved upwards from the profiles 128. When the lift basket 121 reaches its upper position, the lateral guide ribs 129 of the lift basket 121, which previously slid upwards in the guide profiles 128, move away from them and the lift basket 121 is thus freely suspended on two opposing guide threaded nuts 125. As these nuts 125 are pivotally attached to the lift basket 121, the lift basket 121 can be tilted about a pivot axis 130 in this freely suspended position.

[0043] In FIG. 9 the lift basket 121 is shown in a position swung out laterally about the axis 130. In this swung out position it projects into the discharge chute 131. For the swing-out movement, for example, a catch hook, not shown here, grips the lift basket 121 at a connection point on the lower side and swivels or tilts it until the lift basket 121 is aligned with the discharge chute 131. A further catch hook grips the lift bottom flap 132 and opens it against the acting spring force until the solids stored in the lift basket 121 slide out of the lift basket 121 and into the portioning device for further processing. It is also possible to combine the two movements of swinging out the lift basket 121 and folding the bottom flap 123 by means of a kinematic drive.

[0044] When the lift basket 121 is emptied, its movements are performed in the reverse direction and sequence to those described above. The springs of the lift bottom flaps 123 close the lift basket 121 again, which is centered and held in place by the V-shaped guide profiles 128 during the subsequent downward movement of the lift basket 121. In the event of a system failure, the lift basket 121 can be positioned at intermediate height and the solids transported normally or conventionally directly to the sewer system.

[0045] These can be compressed into cylindrical solids by screw compression (meat grinder principle) or a similar principle. The solids are discharged by the rotation of the screw compression. They are then distributed in a packaging unit, which will be described later. Alternatively, the solids can be mixed to form a slurry with a defined viscosity, which is discharged with the addition of water and then sent through a discharge device to the packaging unit.

[0046] FIG. 11 shows the solids tank 5 and the portioning device 6 for portioning and dropping the solids from the solids tank 5 into the tubular bag packaging unit 9 in an exploded view along the central rotation axis. At the top, the solids tank 5 is shown open at the top. Below it is visible the rotor housing 36 and the portioning device 6 with the inlet opening 37 and the swiveling lever 38 inserted therein. The rotor 43 is shown below the rotor housing 36 and has a through channel 39. At the bottom is visible the fixed rotor housing base 40 with the outlet opening 41 and below it the motorized double drive 42 with two coaxial shafts. One shaft 47 rotates the rotor 43, the other shaft 48 rotates the swiveling lever 38 into the two intended rotation positions.

[0047] The portioning device according to FIG. 11 is further illustrated with the aid of FIG. 12, which shows an oblique view from below. The through-channel of the rotor 43 is located below the inlet opening 46 of the rigid rotor housing 36. The pivot lever 38 slowly rotates over the inlet opening and fills the through-channel of the rotor 43. The pivot lever 38 can be operated either 360° or in the opposite direction. The rotor 43 then continues to rotate until its through-channel 39 is located above the outlet opening 41 of the rotor base 40. The mixture flows downwards via the valve 7 into the tubular bag packaging unit 9. The upper part of the through-channel 39 of the rotor 43 and the two side openings in the opposite rotor housing 36 prevent the formation of a vacuum, which would prevent the discharge of the mixed portion, by means of an air supply.

[0048] Figure 13 shows the assembled portioning device 6 from above, and Figure 14 from below, which distributes the metered equally sized portions via a distributing valve 7 arranged below to a tubular bag packaging unit 9, which is described in detail below based on its operation mode over a time axis.

[0049] Figure 15 shows the inside of the tubular bag packaging unit 9 in its initial state at start-up. It contains an "endless roll" 50 of tube 51, from which tubular bags can be produced by transverse welding. The unrolled part passes over two spring-loaded pressure rollers 52, 53 which roll against each other. At the upper end of the unrolled part one can see vacuum strips 54, 55 on both sides, each with an electrically heatable sealing strip 56 integrated into it.

[0050] From this initial state, two vacuum bars 54, 55 which adhere closely to both sides of the tubular material 51 and then move upwards by a motor press against it, while the tubular material 51 is unwound from the roll 50 and drawn through the two pressure rollers 52, 53, until the state shown in Fig. 16 is reached. The pressure rollers 52, 53 can be driven by a motor if necessary and torque controlled if necessary, so that in no case the mouth of the tubular bag is torn off from the vacuum strips 54, 55. In the view according to Fig. 12, the tube sections are pulled up to form a single tubular bag, which is held in this position by the vacuum bars 54, 55.

[0051] The next step is shown in Figure 17. Two electrically heatable welding bars 58, 59 with welding heat strips 57 move towards the tubular material 51 from either side and are pressed together over pressure rollers 52, 53. The tubular material 51 is now welded laterally, forming a pouch from the tube portion that is tightly sealed at the bottom and open at the top.

[0052] What happens next is shown in FIG. 18, where the vacuum pumps 76, 77 for the vacuum bars 54, 55 are shown. The two lower welded bars 58, 59 are already spaced apart as shown here, and the two upper vacuum bars 54, 55 are also spaced apart a little. As a result, the end regions 60, 61 of the hose material 51 break away from the vacuum bars 54, 55 and their heating or welded bars 56, as shown by the curved arrows, while half the hose width in the middle region remains held in place by the vacuum bars 54, 55. This results in the formation of a square opening 62 in the tubular bag 63. At the bottom of the tubular bag 63 can be seen the welded band region 64 that extends across the tube 51.

[0053] In the next step, as shown in Figure 19, the tubular bag 63 is cut along the centre of this strip 64 by a cutting device 65 equipped with a cutting blade 66 which moves along the beam of the cutting device 65 and cuts the tubular bag 51 with its cutting edge 67 which runs at an angle to the plane of the tubular material. Meanwhile, the welding beams 58, 59 carrying the electrically heatable welding bar 57 are translated by their actuation and move away from the hose 51.

[0054] The bag 63 is now held in a freely hanging state by the upper vacuum bars 54, 55. As shown in Figure 20, the cutting device 65 also translates away from the tube 51 and a motor-driven movable support plate 75 moves below the hanging bag 63. The vacuum bars 54, 55 then move downwards until the bag 63 stands loosely on the support plate 75, i.e. is no longer hanging. In this state, a feed tube 68 from a valve 7 (Figure 6) arranged above the tubular bag packaging unit 9 is lowered little by little into the bag 63, which is held open at the top, so that portions 69 of solid material are dropped into the bag 63.

[0055] The next FIG. 21 shows the tubular bag packaging unit 9 after the feed tube 68 has been retracted and after the air tube 70 has been inserted from above into the bag 63, with the filled bag 63 still held open at the top and resting on the support plate 75. The contents of the bag 63 have now been removed. FIG. 22 shows the tubular bag packaging unit 9 during the subsequent closing of the upper bag mouth 62 of the bag 63. The vacuum bars 54, 55 move towards each other as indicated by the dotted arrows and pinch the bag mouth 62. FIG. 23 shows the final state reached. Now, if necessary, air is pumped into the bag 63 via the air tube 70, so that the bag 63 inflates and contains an air portion, which ensures that it can later float in the sewer system. The resulting degree of inflation of the bag 63 can be controlled via the internal pressure. As soon as the set pressure is reached, the air pump is switched off. Alternatively, the inflation of the bag is limited in its extent, for example by light barriers 83 on both sides. As soon as the light barrier 83 is cleared, the air pump is stopped.

[0056] Finally, as will be explained with reference to Figure 24, the bag is welded at the insertion point of the air tube 70, after which the air tube 70 is pulled upwards out of the bag 63. The bag 63 is now sealed with its contents and air portion. In this state, the bag 63 is again firmly clamped and held securely at the top, while at the bottom it remains resting on the support plate 75. The vacuum strips 54, 55 which close around the air tube 70 weld the opening of the bag with their integral weld strip 56.

[0057] FIG. 24 shows a solution on how the vacuum strips 54, 55 with the weld bars 56 are designed in such a way that the bag 63 is first welded along the straight weld bar section 56, and then air is blown into the bag 63 through the air tube 70. The vacuum bars 54, 55 each have a recess 79 in the middle so as to seal around the inserted air tube 70. In this recess, they each extend downwards towards the air tube 70 to a hollow extension 82, into which the mouth 80 of the air tube 70 extends. A curved weld bar 81 extends along the edge of this extension. When the vacuum bars 54, 55 are still retracted and tightly surround the air tube 70 in their middle, the straight sections of the weld bars 56 on both sides of the air tube 70 are first activated to weld the bag 63, which is welded along these weld bar sections. Air can then be forced into the bag 63 through the air tube 70 and its mouth 80, until the bag 63 is fully inflated. Only then does the curved weld bar 81 also operate, welding the area of ​​the bag 63 around the opening 80 of the air tube 70. The bag is now hermetically welded closed and remains held by the vacuum bars 54, 55.

[0058] As shown in Figure 25, after the support plate 75 has moved laterally away, the filled and sealed bag 63 is left hanging freely on the two vacuum bars 54, 55. In the next step, as shown in Figure 26, the slide plate 71 is moved at an oblique angle under the hanging bag 63, and then the vacuum bars 54, 55 move apart after ventilation to the position shown in Figure 26, thereby allowing the bag 63 to fall, as indicated by the arrow, and then slide on this slide plate 71 into the drain pipe 31 and then into the sewer system. The drain pipe 31 is now equipped with a spring-loaded odour flap 87 to prevent odours from the sewer system from entering the whole device.

[0059] A particularly advantageous embodiment of the bag packaging for producing bags with rounded top and bottom is shown in the following figures. Figure 27 shows a special arc-shaped design of the lower sealing bars 83, 84. When the tubular bag material is pulled up from the vacuum bars 55, 54, these two arc-shaped sealing bars 83, 84 move together as shown by the arrows and pinch the tubular bag material 51 between them. Then, welding is performed by these two welding bars 83, 84, so that the tubular bag material 51 is welded in an arc-shaped sealed state at the bottom. At the same time, the material outside or below the welding beams 83, 84 is cut off by the special arc-shaped knife blades on the welding beams 83, 84 and falls into a collection container (not shown) below, from which these pieces can be emptied at any time.

[0060] Figure 28 shows the situation after the two arcuate welding bars 83, 84 with the electrically heatable welding strips 56 have been separated. Here, the lower sealed weld can be seen by the thick dashed line, which already creates an open bag 63 at the top, as already mentioned, which is held open in a square shape by the upper vacuum strips 55, 54. This figure also shows one of the two curved upper sealing bars 85. After the solids are dropped from the dispensing device in this state of the tubular bag 63 and fall into the tubular bag 63 held open at the top, the top also needs to be sealed.

[0061] This is shown in Figure 29. For this purpose, the upper vacuum bars 55, 54 move together and close the upper opening or mouth of the tubular bag 63 around the air tube 70 which remains protruding into the bag. Now a controlled amount of air is blown into the bag through the air tube 70 so that the bag assumes the desired curved shape with the bag bulging back and forth. The purpose of the air is to ensure that the completed tubular bag will be buoyant enough in the sewer system to float in the sewer pipe, or at least nearly so with sufficient buoyancy. After the air filling, the two upper curved welding bars 85, 86 move together and sandwich the tubular bag 63 between them, as shown by the arrows. The tubular material is then welded in close contact, and at the same time, the excess film pieces on the welding bars 85, 86 are cut or punched out by the curved blades of knives extending along the length of the actual electrically heatable welding bar 56 on which they are placed. The film pieces fall into the aforementioned collection vessel.

[0062] After the sealing bars 85, 86 have left the finished tubular bag 63, the situation is as shown in Figure 30. The tubular bag 63, curved at the top and bottom, with straight edges on both sides and bulging towards the front and back, contains both a defined portion of solid matter and a defined amount of air, which is now still suspended between the vacuum strips 55, 54 that were responsible for the welding at the bottom around the lower opening of the air tube 70.

[0063] Figure 31 shows what follows: the air tube 70 is pulled slightly upwards; the slide channel 71 or slide plate moves from below under the support plate 75, which is then withdrawn; the tubular bag 63 is released downwards through said slide channel 71 or slide plate by venting the vacuum bars 55, 54 and moving them apart to the position shown here; the tubular bag 63 then slides into the collection pipe 31 and falls downwards through a spring-loaded odor flap 87 pivotally arranged in a housing 88, and finally into the sewer system.

[0064] 32 shows the design of arcuate welding bars 83-86. It has an arcuate electrically heatable welding bar 56, with arcuate knives 73 having sharp edges extending radially in parallel on the outside of the electric welding bar 56. The arcuate knives 73 are advantageously arranged with their rear sides in the arcuate welding bars 83-86 so as to be slightly elastically flexible, for example by means of a spring plate arranged underneath or by means of a rubber-elastic profile as shown.

[0065] Finally, Figure 33 shows the bag 63 in its final state, after welding and punching. With the exception of two straight sections, the bag 63 is curved, i.e., almost circular with bulges at the top and bottom. Such bags 63 slide or float without any problems with the sewage in the sewer system, and eventually arrive intact at another collection station or sewage treatment plant for occasional emptying, where they float to a settling pond and can be removed for further processing.

[0066] FIG. 34 is a photograph of a tubular bag 63 from a prototype system, which successfully demonstrated technically that such a tubular bag 63 having a certain percentage of solids can actually be easily produced and can be easily flushed through a sewer system without damage. [Industrial Applicability]

[0067] Overall, this concept uses much less fresh water and significantly reduces the load on the sewage treatment plant because the solids are specially separated from the rinse water and do not mix with it, and therefore do not have to be separated again at the sewage treatment plant.

[0068] The disposal method for the bags 63 containing the solids is, in principle, to leave them open here. It is probably best to reuse them thermally, so that the heat generated can be used as process heat or for the treatment of hot water in a decentralized system.

[0069] I will also mention this as an aside. The entire apparatus and all its components are automatically monitored and controlled by a PLC controller with computer 18, which controls all the functions described. The device preferably includes a remote monitoring facility so that any fault is immediately detected and indicated by visual and audible alarms or such a message can be sent via an electronic network or via the internet to the smart phone of the building occupant and / or the service company. For example, it can be used to indicate that the roll 50 of tubular film material 51 is running low and will soon need to be replaced by a new roll. When the roll is used up, the tubular bag packaging unit 9 is stopped so that no encapsulation of solids is possible until a new roll 50 is installed in the form of a replacement cassette 10 (Figure 4) and ready for operation. Until this is completed, the rotary valve 21 switches to direct discharge to the sewer system and the toilet 100 is used as usual. In the case of domestic or residential collection points 117 (Figure 3), their filling level is monitored and reported directly to the inhabitants or to the disposal service provider who is responsible for ensuring that these collection points 117 are always emptied in a timely manner and always have sufficient free capacity. When the filling level reaches an adjustable maximum value, the tubular bag packaging unit 9 is shut off and no further bags can be disposed of, but instead the rotary valve 21 is switched to direct discharge into the sewerage system and the toilet can be used as usual. · Because the device can be housed in the installation module 1 as a complete unit, it can ideally be designed small enough to be connected to existing toilets as any alternative solution. In contrast to conventional toilets that are already installed, the discharge of the sealed packaged bag 63 must be ensured by a separate supply line and inlet to the existing drainage pipe. Otherwise, the whole installation module fits into a standardized installation bay for the installation of a water tank in a wall-mounted WC. The facility has been warmly welcomed by the wastewater treatment industry as it significantly reduces the burden on public wastewater treatment plants. Depending on the post-treatment or further processing of the waste material enclosed in the pillow-like bag 63, there is the possibility of beneficial further utilization of the waste material. This equipped system or concept offers the option of using standard toilet bowls from well-known manufacturers. Installation on frame elements (Duo Fix) with defined connection dimensions can also be used for built-in modules and standard WC toilets. The serviceable part of the system, i.e. the installation module 1, can be replaced as a unit (sliding module). The operation of this facility would not incur any additional costs compared to conventional disposal systems; in fact, it could ultimately be more cost-effective overall compared to current disposal systems. This device is completely sealed and therefore odorless. The device can be operated comfortably with minimal effort by the operator. Only a replacement cassette with a new roll 50 of hose material 51 needs to be inserted from time to time. Optionally, LEDs and web cameras can be installed inside the solids separation tank 3 and the solids tank 5 located at the top as well as inside the tubular bag packaging unit 9, so that the process in the individual components can be followed on a screen or control panel 20 from the outside if necessary and thus any malfunctions can be inspected and analyzed without opening anything. If necessary, the film clips are sent to a service center and you will immediately know what needs to be done. The bag 63 and, optionally, the accumulated urine are drained into a specially installed pipe system within the building for removal. · The installation can be realized as a modular box with commercially available dimensions, like the current lightweight systems from Geberit (Duofix&GIS) or Nussbaum (Optivis-Tec) or Grohe Germany. The standard width for wall installation is 500 mm or 750 mm, the height can be variable, for example 1120 mm, and the depth can be about 280 mm. These standard dimensions are the same for all other suppliers. This means that with the corresponding module for this installation any type of WC can be connected and operated. [Explanation of symbols]

[0070] 1 Installation module for solids separation and tubular bag packaging 2. Connection pipe for the discharge pipe 107 from the WC 100 3. Solids Separation Tank 4. Ascending Pipe 5. Solids tank on top of module 6. Portioning device 7 Valve 8. Down Pipe 9. Tubular bag packaging unit 10 9 removable cassettes 11 Sewer pipes in modules 12 Water tank in module 13 Grey water tank in module 14 Brown water tank in module Cross bracing of steel frames from 15 1 16 1 Rinse water connection 17 Power from 1 18 in 1 Electronic Computer Unit / PLC Control Unit 19 in 1 UV disinfection system 20 1 Control Panel 21 Rotary Valve 22 Pipe that goes directly into the downdraft pipe 24 23 Pipe to solids separation tank 3 24 Drop pipe to sewer system (Fig. 5) 25 Separate drain for urine (Figure 6) 26 Paddle wheel agitator as a vibrator 27 Tank bottom 28 Solids Pump 29 Retaining strainer 30 Valve in riser pipe 4 31 Outlet pipe to sewer system 32 Supply pump for brown water to UV disinfection unit 19 33 Vent line for solids tank 5 34 Emergency line from dispenser 6 35 Motor valve of emergency line 34 to pipe 31 36 Rotor housing 37 36 Entrance opening 38 Rotating lever in rotor housing 39 consecutive channels 40 Rotor housing base 41 Exit opening 42 Electric double drive for two coaxial shafts 43 Rotor 44 Rotor 43 shaft 45 Axis for turning lever 38 46 Fresh water pipe to grey water tank 47 Axis to rotor 43 48 Axis to pivot lever 38 49 Module 1 Steel Frame 50 continuous rolls of hose 51 Hose 52, 53 Press roll 54, 55 Vacuum bar 56 54, 55 Heating / welding strips 57 58, 59 Heating / Welding Strips 58, 59 Lower welding bar 60 End region of hose material at one end 61 End area of ​​hose material at other end 62 Square opening, tube mouth 63 Tube Bag 64 Hose welded strip area 65 Cutting device 66 Cutting Knife 67 Cutting edge of cutting blade 66 68 Solids supply tube for tubular bag 63 69 Solid part 70 Air Tube 71 Slide plate, slide channel, slide channel 72 Interface around the circular cushion bag 73 Knife on semicircular weld bar 74 Bag corner area before cutting 75 Support plate 76 Vacuum pump for vacuum strip 54 77 Vacuum pump for vacuum strip 55 78 Overflow pipe from solids separation tank 3 to brown water tank 14 79 Recess for air pipe 70 of squeegee 55 80 Air pipe 70 mouth 81 Arc weld around orifice 80 of air tube 70 82 Orifice 80 Continuation on welded bars 55, 54 for surrounding air tube 70 83 Front lower arched welded beam 84 Rear lower arched welded beam 85 Front upper arched welded beam 86 Rear upper arched welded beam 87 Odor damper with spring 88 Housing for odor trap 89 Solid Sensor 90 Cleaning valve 91 Overflow valve 92 Rubber elastic profile under knife 73 93 Grey water tank valve 94 Valve to fresh water tank 95 Rinse valve Fresh water tank 96 Ventilation Line 97 Fresh Water Tank Supply Valve 98 Valve Supplying grey water tank 13 99 Pipe from disinfection device to grey water tank 100 WC toilet bowl 101 WC100 platform floor 102 Hanging nose of floor portion 101 103 WC100 Recovery Room 104 Small siphon for urine 105 Small urine pipe 106 Siphon Water 107 Drainage pipes to sewer system 108 Large siphon for solids outlet 109 Sewers to sewage treatment plants 110 Urine drainage pipe 111 Large drainage pipe for solids outlet 112 Drain pipe Bathtub 113 Bathtub 114 Hand-washing area 115 Washing Machine 117 Collection container 119 Sewerage System 120 Lift inlet pipe 121 Lift Basket 122 Lift cage groove 123 Swivel base plate 124 Threaded Rod 125 Guide screw nut 126 Drive motor 127 Toothed Belt 128 Guidance Profile 129 Guide rib of lift cage 121 130 Lift basket pivot axis 131 Drainage pipe 200 Installation Frame 201 Water tank 202 Installation frame legs 203 Threaded Bush 204 WC drain connection part 205 WC flushing connection pipe 207 Electrical Connections 209 Keypad 210 Display above WC

Claims

1. 1. A method for separating solids from a flush toilet (100) downstream of the siphon (108) of the flush toilet (100), characterized in that the solids, together with an air portion, are packed into individual bags (63) on a continuously supplied hose (51), and the buoyant bags (63) are sealed and discharged into a sewer (119).

2. 10. A method of operating an apparatus for separating solids from a flush toilet (100) downstream of a siphon (108) of the flush toilet (100) according to claim 1, comprising: a) said solids are fed into a solids separation tank (3) from where they fall partly from above into the catch basket (121) of the lift system; b) the solids are conveyed upwards in the catch basket (121) of the lift system and simultaneously drained through the catch basket (121); c) the solids are transported from the catch basket (121) to a portioning device (6), from where they are partially discharged (69) through a valve (7) and fall into the mouth (62) of a tubular bag (63) held open at the top, the tubular bag (63) being produced at the bottom by a transverse welding (64) of a tube (51) of a roll (50) continuously fed from below, held at the mouth by vacuum bars (54, 55) and separated from the endless tube (51) under the transverse welding (64), then a support plate (75) moves under the bag (63) and the bag (63) is placed on it (75); d) the bag (63) is filled and inflated, and then the mouth (62) is welded closed; e) Releasing the load and moving the vacuum bars (55, 54) apart causes the bag (63) to fall onto a slide channel (71) or slide plate, after which it is discharged into the sewer system via a discharge pipe (31); A method characterized by:

3. 10. A method of operating an apparatus for separating solids from a flush toilet (100) downstream of a siphon (108) of the flush toilet (100) according to claim 1, comprising: a) the solids are fed to a solids separation tank (3) where they are broken down into a viscous slurry and allowed to fall to the bottom (27) thereof; b) the viscous slurry is pumped by a solids pump (28) into an elevated solids tank (5); c) the viscous slurry is partially (69) discharged by the dispensing device (6) through a valve (7) into the mouth (62) of a tubular bag (63) held open at the top, the tubular bag (63) is produced at the bottom by a transverse welding (64) of the tube (51) of a roller (50) continuously fed from below, the tubular bag (63) is held at the mouth by vacuum strips (54, 55) and is cut off from the endless tube (51) under the transverse welding (64), then a support plate (75) moves under the bag (63) and the bag (63) is placed on it (75); d) the bag (63) is filled and inflated, and then the mouth (62) is welded closed; e) Releasing the load and moving the vacuum bars (55, 54) apart, the bags (63) fall onto a slide channel (71) or slide plate and are then discharged into the sewer system via a discharge pipe (31); A method characterized by:

4. 10. A method of operating an apparatus for separating solids from a flush toilet (100) according to claim 1 or 3, wherein the solids, which after flushing from the upper grey water tank (13) and the urine if the solid waste and urine have not been separately drained beforehand, enter the solids separation tank (3) from the toilet bowl (100) via a siphon and a rotary valve (21) and are mixed with grey water, are pumped upwards through a riser pipe (4) into the one solids tank (5), and the excess grey water is removed. The method is characterized in that water flows back into the brown water tank (14) via an overflow pipe (78), the contents of the brown water tank are lowered to 2 liters, a post-rinse is performed with approximately 2 liters from the fresh water tank (12), a rinse is performed to clean the toilet siphon, this relatively clean water flows back into the brown water tank (14), after this second filling step is completed the brown water is conveyed to a UV disinfection system (19) located above, and finally the brown water tank is filled with fresh water as needed.

5. 4. A method for operating an apparatus for separating solids from a flush toilet (100) according to claim 1 or 3, comprising: a) In case of pure urine discharge, a small button activates flushing through the fresh water tank (12) and the rotary valve (21) is set in a position where the urine is conventionally discharged into the outlet pipe (31) and then into the sewerage system; b) In case of a misoperation of the large button, after no solids are dispensed, a 4 liter grey water rinse is activated without a fresh water rinse, and the unused grey water is supplied to the brown water tank (14), after which the grey water is pumped back to the grey water tank (13); c) In case of overload, the system switches to emergency operation by switching the rotary valve (21) to position 2, flushing from the fresh water tank (12) is carried out and everything is discharged directly into the sewer system, then switches to normal operation. A method characterized by:

6. 2. The apparatus for separating solids from a flush toilet (100) downstream of a siphon (108) of the flush toilet (100) according to claim 1, further comprising, downstream of the siphon (108), at least one device for treating the siphon outlet in a closed system. a solids separation tank (3) for recovering said solids, a solids pump (28) for conveying the separated solids upwards in a riser pipe (4) into an elevated solids tank (5), or a lift system with a catch basket (121) for lifting the solids and simultaneously draining them and tipping them out; a portioning device (6) having a valve (7) for dropping the solids portion (69) received from the solids pump (28) or the lift basket (121) into a tubular bag packaging unit (9) located below it; a tubular bag packaging unit (9) for producing sealed and subsequently separated bags (63) with solid and air contents from a continuously supplied tube (51) for discharge into said sewer system; 1. A device, characterized in that it comprises the technical components:

7. 7. The device for separating solids from flush toilets (100) according to claim 6, characterized in that it comprises a lift system having a collection basket (121) with slots (122) or holes in its side walls and a bottom (123) that can be folded against spring force, the catch basket (121) can be transported upward by a motor, guided on a profile (128), and in its uppermost position can be swung out laterally about a lateral axis (130), and then its bottom (123) can be folded by the motor so that the solids contained therein can be tilted and discharged through a dumping chute (131) into the dispensing device located below.

8. 7. An apparatus for separating solids from a flush toilet (100) according to claim 6, characterized in that it comprises a fresh water tank (12) and a grey water tank (13) in the upper part of the flush toilet (100) for successively flushing the flush toilet (100) first with grey water and then with fresh water, and a brown water tank (14) in the lower part of the flush toilet (100), the brown water tank (14) being supplied by an overflow pipe (78) of the solids separation tank (3) and having a pump (32) for conveying the brown water to a UV disinfection unit (19) in the upper part of the grey water tank (13), the UV disinfection unit (19) having a supply line (99) to the grey water tank (13), and the grey water tank (13) can also be supplied with a fresh water supply line (46).

9. 8. An apparatus for separating solids from a flush toilet (100) according to claim 6, wherein the solids separation tank (3) for collecting the solids includes an agitator (26) with a paddle wheel for breaking down the solids into a viscous slurry, and has a conically tapered bottom (27) at the lower part, at which the solids pump (28) draws the solids slurry, and the riser pipe (4) for conveying the solids upward has an electrically operable shut-off valve (30) for preventing backflow when the solids pump (28) is stopped.

10. 9. The apparatus for separating solids from a flush toilet (100) according to any one of claims 6 to 8, characterized in that the dispensing device (6) has a rotor housing (36) with an inlet opening (37) at the top and an outlet opening at the bottom, and with a rotatable pivot lever (38) therein, a rotor (43) in the rotor housing (36) having a through channel (39), and the dispensing device (6) has an electric double drive (42) with two coaxial shafts (47, 48) for rotating the rotor (43) and the pivot lever (38) in both directions.

11. In the device for separating solids from a flush toilet (100) according to any one of claims 6 to 8, the tubular bag packaging unit (9) comprises a tube (51) which can be continuously fed from a roller (50) and is guided from bottom to top by two pressing rollers (52, 53) which roll against each other, and the tube (51) has two vacuum strips (54, 55) of a sealing strip (56) at the top, each of which can move towards or away from each other, and these vacuum strips (54, 55) are used to separate the solids from the tube.

1. An apparatus for carrying a hose (51) at its upper end, which can be lifted by suction and then opened to form a rectangular mouth (62) by moving the vacuum bars (54, 55) apart, the apparatus further comprising two lower welding bars (58, 59) for welding the hose (51) laterally in a straight or arc below the length of the bag measured from the upper mouth (62), and a cutting device (65) for cutting the hose (51) below the resulting straight or arc below the resulting transverse weld (64).

12. 9. The apparatus for separating solids from a flush toilet (100) according to any one of claims 6 to 8, comprising two pairs of arc-shaped welding bars (83, 84; 85, 86), i.e., a lower pair (83, 84) with the inside of the arc facing upward, and an upper pair (85, 86) of arc-shaped welding bars with the inside of the arc facing downward, which first create an arc-shaped seal on the lower part of the bag material (51) and, after filling, create an arc-shaped seal on the upper part of the bag material, thereby creating a generally circular bag (63) that bulges forward and backward, and the upper and lower pairs of arc-shaped welding bars (83, 84; 85, 86) have blades (73) extending radially outward of the sealing bars to cut off any remaining film on the outside of the generally circular bag (63) created.

13. 9. The apparatus for separating solid matter from a flush toilet (100) according to any one of claims 6 to 8, characterized in that the tubular bag packaging unit (9) comprises an air tube (70) that can be lowered into the mouth of the bag, blowing air into the bag (63) filled with a portion of solid matter, which can close the mouth (62) of the bag around the air tube (70) by moving the vacuum bars (54, 55), which can close the mouth (62) of the bag around the air tube (70) and be sealed by its sealing bar (56), and after withdrawing the air tube (70) at the top, the mouth (62) can also be sealed at that position, so that a sealed bag (63) containing air and a portion of solid matter (69) can be produced.

14. 9. The device for separating solids from a flush toilet (100) according to any one of claims 6 to 8, characterized in that it comprises a slide channel (71) or slide plate as an inclined surface for the sealed welded bag (63), which can be pulled into the area below the bag (63) after the support plate (75) below the bag (63) is removed by the motor drive, and then, by releasing the vacuum bars (54, 55), the bag (63) slides on this slide plate (71) into a discharge pipe (31) having a spring-loaded anti-odor flap (87), and after passing through the latter, into the sewer.

15. 9. The device for separating solids from a flush toilet (100) according to any one of claims 6 to 8, characterized in that it comprises an electrically operated 120° rotary valve (21) which, after being connected to the toilet bowl (100) so as to be installed downstream of its siphon (108), forms a bifurcated valve with three positions, the first position being for normal operation, in which the inflowing flow-through material consisting of water, possibly urine if urine has not been separated, and solids such as excrement and toilet paper, is collected in the downstream solids separation tank (3), the second position being for failure operation, in which the rotary valve (21) discharges the flow-through material directly into the sewerage system in a conventional manner, and the third position being for cleaning operation for backwashing the downstream solids separation tank (3), in which the rotary valve (21) and the solids separation tank (3) can be cleaned through a cleaning nozzle suitably arranged inside the device.

16. 9. The device for separating solids from a flush toilet (100) according to any one of claims 6 to 8, characterized in that it comprises an electronic control unit PLC (18) for processing electrical signals from all components and controlling them, and that spray nozzles for cleaning areas therein that are prone to soiling and a web camera for recording the state of the device and the processes inside in real time are installed in the device.

17. An apparatus for separating solids from a flush toilet (100) according to any one of claims 6 to 8, which comprises: a) the motor-driven 120° rotary valve (21); b) the agitator (26) in the solids separation tank (3); c) the solids pump (28) for lifting the solids or the lift system comprising the lift basket (121) which can be lifted at the top and tilted to discharge; d) the shut-off valve (30) in the riser (4); e) the dispensing device (6), f) said valve (7) below said dispensing device (6); g) the vacuum bars (54, 55; 83, 84) for the mouth (62) of the tubular bag (63) movable horizontally and vertically by a motor, their suction capabilities and their integrated sealing bar (56); h) said vacuum bars (58, 59; 83, 84) which can be moved horizontally and laterally by a motor to perform lateral or arc welding along the bottom surface of the bag (63) to be produced; i) said motor-driven support plate (75) that can be retracted under said suspended bag (63); j) said slide (71) or said slide channel or slide plate which can be retracted as an inclined surface under the filled bag (63); k) the brown water pump (32); l) said UV disinfection unit (19); m) All line valves, n) all spray nozzles for occasional internal cleaning of said equipment; o) All monitoring elements such as cameras, sensors, etc.

1. The device according to claim 1, further comprising an electronic control unit PLC (18) for processing the electrical signals from the components of said device and for electronically controlling them.

18. 9. An apparatus for separating solids from a flush toilet (100) according to any one of claims 6 to 8, characterized in that the entire apparatus with all its components is installed as a complete installation module (1) in a steel frame (49), which fits into a standard installation bay for a wall-mounted WC, i.e. a width of up to 750 mm, a depth of 280 mm and a height of 1500 mm to 2200 mm.

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