Commode

Abstract

To provide a stand-alone commode being usable in places without commercial power or public water.SOLUTION: A stand-alone commode 1 purifies wastewater from a drain tank 7 by a reverse osmosis membrane water purifier 8b, temporarily stores permeated water from the reverse osmosis membrane water purifier 8b in a purification tank 9, when detecting that a water level of a water supply tank 6 reaches a water level regarded to have run out of the purified water, supplies purified water from the purification tank 9 to fill the water supply tank 6, and operates a circulation type microbubble generator 14 for a predetermined time relative to the water supply tank 6 in a full water state.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a portable washing device that uses circulating water. [Background technology]

[0002] As a circulation system in which the same water is used repeatedly, for example, Patent Document 1 discloses a circulation system in which the same water is used repeatedly at a construction site in the mountains. In this circulation filtration system, a flow pipe extending from a raw water tank is provided with a faucet at the end via an accumulator tank, and a tray is provided below the faucet, and the purified water received in the tray is returned to the raw water tank. In addition, a purification equipment including a reverse osmosis membrane water purification unit is provided in the middle of the flow pipe to purify the raw water. A branch pipe is connected in the middle of the flow pipe, and a purification device is provided in the middle of the branch pipe at predetermined intervals to pass the raw water through and return it to the raw water tank. Here, as an example of a purification device, an aeration device that supplies microbubbles or nanobubbles to the raw water is suggested. The same document also suggests providing a purification device upstream or downstream of the accumulator tank after passing through the osmosis membrane. There is a description that the purification equipment here may include an aeration device.

[0003] As a circulation system, for example, Patent Document 2 discloses a circulation type hair washing device that can wash the scalp of a person requiring care without using a hair wash. This technology involves placing a hair washing container near the bed, filling it with hot water in advance, sucking up the hot water with a circulation pump, and spraying it again into the hair washing container with a microbubble shower head while applying pressure. The microbubble shower head can increase the cleaning power by adding microbubbles to the hot water.

[0004] Although it is not a mobile system, Patent Document 3 discloses a technology for generating microbubbles, in which a fine bubble-containing solution (pure water) is circulated between a fine bubble generator and a storage tank to increase the concentration of microbubbles. According to the document, fine bubbles are bubbles with a diameter of less than 100 μm, and fine bubbles with a diameter of 1 μm or more and less than 100 μm are called "microbubbles" and have a high cleaning effect. "Microbubbles" disappear over time in water. Bubbles with a diameter of less than 1 μm are said to be called "ultra-fine bubbles." [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 7160287 [Patent Document 2] Publication No. 3203261 [Patent Document 3] JP 2023-105845 A [Patent Document 4] Patent No. 6358878 DISCLOSURE OF THEINVENTION [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] In nursing homes and hospitals, mobile washstands are moved close to those who need care and are bedridden or have difficulty moving, but washing hair with shampoo requires a large amount of water to rinse the shampoo out.Similarly, there is a demand for standalone mobile washstands that can be used in places without commercial power or public water.

[0007] Microbubbles are said to have excellent properties such as oil cleaning, sterilization, and deodorization due to their hydrophobic adsorption, negatively charged surface adsorption, and jacking-up effect. In addition, pure water is said to have a higher ability to dissolve impurities than tap water because it does not have any dissolved impurities. Therefore, by combining microbubbles with pure water, the cleaning effect of water alone can be improved, and dirt on the scalp and hair, including sebum, can be removed without using a hair wash, and the amount of water used can be reduced.

[0008] Water purification by reverse osmosis is a filtration using a non-porous membrane, and the pores of the non-porous membrane are made to have a pore size (several nm or less) that allows low molecular weight substances such as gas molecules and inorganic ions to pass through. In the technology of Patent Document 1, if an aeration device is provided in the middle of the branch pipe returning to the raw water tank, it is unclear whether the microbubbles returned to the raw water tank can be sucked up into the flow pipe and pass through the non-porous membrane. Incidentally, a technology using microbubbles to clean the osmosis membrane on the raw water side is shown in, for example, Patent Document 4. In addition, in the same document, when an aeration device as a purification facility is provided upstream or downstream of the accumulator tank after passing through the osmosis membrane, the raw water passes through the aeration device only once, and the bubble concentration of the microbubbles cannot be increased.

[0009] The technology of Patent Document 2 only passes the microbubble shower head once, so the bubble concentration of the microbubbles cannot be increased. In addition, there is no consideration of pure water generation. In addition, the technology of Patent Document 3 is capable of increasing the concentration of microbubbles using a circulating microbubble supply device, but it is intended for relatively large-capacity devices that require foundation work, etc., and does not consider mobile washbasins that reuse water, are mobile, and have limited capacity power batteries.

[0010] The present invention provides a free-standing portable washstand that can be used in locations without commercial power or public water. [Means for solving the problem]

[0011] The portable washbasin device of the present invention purifies wastewater from a drain tank using a reverse osmosis membrane water purifier, and temporarily stores the permeated water from the reverse osmosis membrane water purifier in a purification tank. When it detects that the water level in the water supply tank has reached a level at which purified water is considered to have run out, it sends purified water from the purification tank to fill the water supply tank and operates a circulating microbubble generator for a predetermined period of time on the full water supply tank. Effect of the Invention

[0012] The mobile washbasin of the present invention can be moved anywhere, even in places without commercial power or public water, and the water used repeatedly is purified to pure water, making it pleasant to use. Microbubble processing is concentrated on a water supply tank that is full of water, which has the effect of reducing battery operation and reducing power consumption. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0013] [Figure 1] FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a mobile washroom device according to an embodiment. [Diagram 2] FIG. 11 is a flow diagram of a main process. [Diagram 3] FIG. 1 is a flow diagram of a purification process. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a flow diagram of a water supply replenishment process. [Diagram 5] FIG. 1 is a flow diagram of a water extraction process. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0014] FIG. 1 shows a block diagram of a mobile washbasin 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The mobile washbasin 1 is equipped with a cart 3 that can be moved freely and fixed by casters 2 with stoppers, a sink 4 provided on the top plate of the cart 3, a faucet 5 provided on the sink 4, a status display device 16, and a handle 15 for moving. 4a is a filter that filters out relatively large foreign matter such as hair. In addition, the cart 3 is equipped with a water supply tank 6, a drainage tank 7, a purifier 8, a purifier tank 9, a battery 10, a water supply pump 11, a control device 12, a valve 13, and a circulating microbubble generator 14.

[0015] The capacity of the water supply tank 6, the drainage tank 7, and the purification tank 9 is 10 to 15 liters. The water supply tank 6, the drainage tank 7, and the purification tank 9 are made of transparent or semi-transparent synthetic resin, so the amount of water in the tanks can be visually checked. The main purpose of the portable wash device 1 is for washing hair, and it is assumed that just under 2 liters of water will be used each time hair is washed.

[0016] The water supply tank 6, the drainage tank 7, and the purification tank 9 are provided with water level gauges 6a, 7a, and 9c, respectively. The circulation type microbubble generator 14 is equipped with a header 14a that is submerged in the water supply tank 6, and an air pump 14b that sends compressed air from outside the water supply tank 6 through a tube 31. The header 14a takes in water from a location near the bottom of the water supply tank 6, mixes in air from the air pump 14b, and releases it from a high position. By performing this operation in a circulating manner, bubbles with large diameters rise to the surface and disappear, and microbubbles with small diameters accumulate.

[0017] The purifier 8 is equipped with a pressure pump 8a, a reverse osmosis membrane water purifier 8b, and other purifiers 8c, which are connected in series by pipes 26 and 28. The reverse osmosis membrane water purifier 8b receives raw water from the pressure pump 8a via pipe 24, filter 17, and pipe 25, and discharges the permeated water that has permeated the reverse osmosis membrane to pipe 27. Concentrated water that has not permeated the reverse osmosis membrane is sent to the drainage tank 7 via pipe 27. The permeated water separated from the raw water is pure water from which impurities have been removed. The other purifiers 8c are optional and include an ultraviolet sterilizer and an ozone generator, but are not necessary.

[0018] The water supply pump 11 operates in conjunction with the movement of the water tap 5a of the faucet 5, and supplies purified water stored in the water supply tank 6 to the outlet 5b of the faucet 5 via pipes 21 and 22. Wastewater from the sink 4 is stored in the drainage tank 7 via pipe 30. Pipe 29 sends purified water purified by the purifier 8 to the purification tank 9. An electromagnetic valve 13 is provided midway from the purification tank 9 to the pipe 23 as a water sending means. The purification tank 9 is located higher than the water supply tank 6, and purified water can be sent to the water supply tank 6 by opening the electromagnetic valve 13.

[0019] The control device 12 controls the water supply pump 11, the circulating microbubble generator 14, the pressure pump 8a, and the valve 13. In addition, the status of the mobile washbasin device 1 is displayed on a status display device 16. The battery 10 supplies the control device 12 and the mobile washbasin device 1 with the necessary power.

[0020] 2 to 5 show the flow of processing by the control device 12. The control device 12 is a general-purpose control computer equipped with a CPU, memory, and input / output devices. The control device 12 repeatedly executes the main routine shown in FIG. 2A at a predetermined cyclic time interval. When an internal timer detects that a predetermined cyclic time has arrived (S10), the control device 12 executes the purification process (S11), bubble process (S12), water extraction process (S13), and other necessary processes (S14) in that order. The other necessary processes (S14) are maintenance processes and error processes for the mobile washbasin 1, and are not related to the operation of each mobile washbasin 1 when it is in use, so their explanation will be omitted.

[0021] FIG. 2B illustrates the first to fourth levels used in the following description. The first level is the water level at which it is detected that wastewater has been poured into the drainage tank 7, and more specifically, it is the lowest water level at which the pressure pump 8a can take in wastewater from the drainage tank 7. The second level is the water level at which it is considered that there is no purified water left in the water supply tank 6. The third level is the water level at which it is determined that there is enough purified water stored in the purification tank 9 to fill the water supply tank 6. The fourth level is the water level when the water supply tank 6 is full.

[0022] The purification process (S11) is a process for purifying the wastewater by the purification device 8. In FIG. 3, in the purification process (S11), the water level of the wastewater tank 7 detected by the water level gauge 7a is detected (S21), and if it is equal to or lower than the first level, the pressurizing pump 8a is stopped (S24), and the process returns to the main routine. If it is equal to or higher than the first level, the water level of the purification tank 8 is detected (S22), and if it is equal to or higher than the third level, the purification tank 8 is full, so the pressurizing pump 8a is stopped (S24), and the process returns to the main routine. If it is equal to or lower than the third level, there is free space in the purification tank 8, so the pressurizing pump 8a is operated (S23), and the process returns to the main routine. That is, in the purification process (S11), if the pressurizing pump 8a can take in water, it means that as long as there is free space in the purification tank 8, the pressurizing pump 8a continues to send wastewater to the purification device 8. In the reverse osmosis membrane water purifier 8b of the purification device 8, the amount of permeated water that permeates the reverse osmosis membrane is significantly less than the amount of water sent by the pressurizing pump 8a. Therefore, purification by the reverse osmosis membrane water purifier 8b is kept in operation as long as the pressure pump 8a can operate.

[0023] The bubble process (S12) is a process for generating microbubbles in the water supply tank 6. In FIG. 4, the amount of purified water in the water supply tank 6 is checked (S31). If it is equal to or higher than the second level, the process returns to the main routine. If it is equal to or lower than the second level, the amount of purified water in the purification tank 9 is checked (S32). If it is equal to or lower than the third level and there is insufficient purified water in the purification tank 9, the total amount of water held by the mobile washbasin device 1 is deemed to have decreased, and a request for water reinforcement is displayed on the status display device 16 (S33).

[0024] It is checked whether the water level in the drain tank 7 is equal to or higher than the first level (S34). When the operator replenishes water, the operator goes through the procedure of pouring water from the sink 4 into the drain tank 7. Here, the amount of water required is, for example, 2 liters per hair wash. When the amount of water in the drain tank 7 increases, the display of the water replenishment request on the status display device 16 is erased, and the process returns to the main routine (S35). After this, the purification device 8 starts operating through the purification process (S11). That is, the water replenished by the operator passes through the reverse osmosis membrane water purifier 8b once, and becomes permeated water, i.e., pure water.

[0025] In step (S32), if there is sufficient purified water in the purification tank 9, the purified water is transferred from the purification tank 9 to the water supply tank 6 and microbubble processing is performed (S36). In step S36, the status display device 16 displays "preparation in progress". The solenoid valve 13 is opened, the purified water is transferred from the purification tank 9 to the water supply tank 6, and the purified water is poured into the water supply tank 6 up to the fourth level, and when the water supply tank 6 is filled up, the solenoid valve 13 is closed. Then, the microbubble processing is performed by the circulation type microbubble generator 14 for a predetermined time. In the microbubble processing, the header 14a takes water from a location near the bottom of the water supply tank 6, mixes it with compressed air from the air pump 14b, and releases it from a high position. Microbubbles with small diameters are accumulated. Since the microbubbles are saturated when they reach a certain amount, this predetermined time is set to a time that approaches the saturation amount. When the microbubble processing is completed, "preparation is complete" is displayed and the process returns to the main routine (until the microbubble processing is completed, the process remains in step (S36) and does not return to the main routine).

[0026] The water dispensing process (S13) is a process for discharging purified water from the faucet 5. In FIG. 5, it is checked whether the faucet 5a is open (S41). If it is not open, the water supply pump 11 is stopped (S44) and the process returns to the main routine. It is checked whether there is a water level equal to or higher than the second level (S42). If the water level is insufficient, the water supply pump 11 is stopped (S44). If the water level is sufficient, the water supply pump 11 is operated (S43), purified water is discharged from the discharge port 5b, and the process returns to the main routine.

[0027] The operation of the portable washbasin device 1 of this embodiment will be described. The mobile washbasin 1 is moved close to the person requiring care, and the hair of the person requiring care is washed. No shampoo is used. The amount of water used per person is just under 2 liters. The power required for the mobile washbasin 1 is supplied from the battery 10, and it operates as a completely standalone device that is separated from the external supply.

[0028] The hair of the person requiring care is washed with purified water in the water supply tank 6, and wastewater accumulates in the drainage tank 7, but is successively purified into permeated water (pure water) by the reverse osmosis membrane water purifier 8b, and further purified as necessary by an ultraviolet sterilizer, an ozone generator, etc., before being stored as purified water in the purification tank 9. The water level in the water supply tank 6 drops, while purified water accumulates in the purification tank 9.

[0029] When the water level in the water supply tank 6 reaches a level at which the purified water in the water supply tank 6 is considered to be depleted, purified water is transferred from the purification tank 9 to the water supply tank 6, and the tank is filled with purified water before microbubble treatment is performed. Then, when the microbubble treatment is completed, the purified water is reused.

[0030] According to this embodiment, the following effects can be obtained. The mobile washbasin device 1 can be moved anywhere, even to places without commercial power or public water, and the water used repeatedly is purified to a drinkable level by a reverse osmosis membrane water purifier 8b, so that the water can be used comfortably.

[0031] The purified water in the water supply tank 6 is pure water purified by the reverse osmosis membrane water purifier 8b and contains microbubbles, so it has high detergency and can be used for washing hair, etc. without using detergent.

[0032] Furthermore, the amount of purified water in the water supply tank 6 is constant as a full water amount, and the microbubble treatment is also carried out for a predetermined time, so that the amount of microbubbles in the water supply tank 6 can be stably secured.

[0033] In the microbubble processing, once the microbubbles reach saturation, further processing cannot increase the number of microbubbles. In this embodiment, the microbubble processing is performed intensively on the water supply tank 6 that is full of water, so that the operation of the battery 10 can be reduced and power consumption can be suppressed.

[0034] When the total amount of water held in the portable washbasin device 1 decreases, water can be poured in from the sink 4, where it will be purified by the reverse osmosis membrane water purifier 8b and will automatically be stored in the water tank 6 while still containing microbubbles. For this reason, the water to be added does not have to be tap water, and can be, for example, well water or rainwater.

[0035] In the above embodiment, the purified water was sent by gravity using the electromagnetic valve 13 as the water sending means from the purified tank 9 to the water supply tank 6, but a pump may be used as another water sending means. Also, a heater may be provided to heat the purified water from the water supply tank 6 to 20°C to 30°C. When using a heater, it is preferable to receive power from a commercial power source rather than from the battery 10.

[0036] In this embodiment, the mobile washbasin 1 is moved close to a person requiring care to wash the hair of the person requiring care, but it goes without saying that the mobile washbasin 1 can be used for hand washing. The mobile washbasin 1 of this embodiment can be used not only in facilities for people requiring care, but also in construction sites and work sites in the mountains / offshore. It can also be used to wash not only people, but also pets. [Explanation of symbols]

[0037] 1 Mobile washstand 2 Caster 3 Cart 4. Sink 5. Faucet 5a Faucet 5b Discharge port 6. Water tank 6a, 7a, 9c water level gauge 7. Drainage tank 8 Purification Equipment 8a Pressure pump 8b Reverse osmosis water purifier 8c Purification equipment 9. Purification Tank 10 Battery 11 Water Pump 12 Control device 13 Valve 14 Circulating Microbubble Generator 14a Header 14b Air pump 15 Handle 16 Status display device 17 Filters 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30 Piping 31 Tube

Claims

1. A movable cart equipped with a sink; A faucet provided on the sink; a water supply tank for storing purified water discharged from the faucet; A drainage tank for collecting drainage from the sink; a purification tank for storing purified water; a reverse osmosis membrane water purifier that sends the wastewater from the wastewater tank pressurized by a pressure pump to a reverse osmosis membrane, sends the permeated water that has permeated the reverse osmosis membrane to the purification tank, and sends the concentrated water that has not permeated the reverse osmosis membrane to the wastewater tank; A circulation type microbubble generator that includes a header that is submerged in the water supply tank and an air pump that sends compressed air from outside the water supply tank, takes water from a point near the bottom of the water supply tank, mixes the water with compressed air, and releases the water from a high position; A control device; A battery that supplies power to the pressure pump, the circulating microbubble generator, and the control device; having The control device includes: When it is detected that wastewater has been poured into the wastewater tank, the pressurizing pump is operated to cause the reverse osmosis membrane water purifier to produce the permeated water and the concentrated water; A portable washing device characterized in that, when it is detected that the water level in the water supply tank has reached a level at which purified water is deemed to have run out, purified water is supplied from the purification tank to fill the water supply tank, and the circulating microbubble generator is operated for a predetermined period of time on the water supply tank that is full.

2. In the mobile washbasin of claim 1, the control device stops operation of the pressure pump when it detects that enough purified water has accumulated in the purification tank to fill the water supply tank.

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