Automatic lifting urinal

Abstract

This invention provides a flush urinal that can be individually adjusted for each user, thereby minimizing the risk of bacterial spread due to urine splashing without increasing the size of the urinal itself. [Solution] The urinal 1 comprises a first tube 3 connected to a flushing water supply port 2a, a second tube 4 connected to a discharge port 2b for discharging liquid from the bowl portion 2, a sealing lid 20 configured to seal the opening 2c of the bowl portion 2, a pressure reducing pump 5 connected to the second tube 4 for reducing the pressure inside the bowl portion 2 when it is sealed by the sealing lid 20, a control unit that controls the opening and closing operation of the sealing lid 20 and the operation of the pressure reducing pump 5, a sliding part 6 that slides and holds the bowl portion 2 at a predetermined height according to the user, a drive device 7 comprising a motor 71 that generates a driving force to raise and lower the bowl portion 2 along the sliding part 6, and a drive control unit 72 that controls the driving of the motor 71, and a detection device 8 for detecting the user.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an automatically lifting / lowering flush urinal configured such that a bowl portion for receiving a user's urine can be automatically raised and lowered according to a user. [Background Art]

[0002] Conventionally, in public men's restrooms and the like, a urinal is sometimes installed separately from a toilet bowl. In such urinals, urine collides with the urinal and rebounds, so urine tends to easily splash from the urinal.

[0003] Further, since such urinals have fixed installation specifications, they cannot cope with different physical characteristics of each user, which increases the risk of bacterial spread due to urine splashing. Accordingly, techniques for suppressing urine rebound have been developed.

[0004] For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a flip-up flush urinal that suppresses urine rebound by reducing the distance between a user and the urinal. In this flip-up flush urinal, the bowl can freely move in any of the front-rear, left-right, and up-down directions, so that a user can press the edge of the bowl against the crotch to urinate into the bowl. [Prior Art Documents] [Patent Documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] Registered Utility Model No. 3153178 [Summary of the Invention] [Problems to be Solved by the Invention]

[0006] Traditional urinals for men were not individually adjusted to the appropriate position for each user, leading to hygiene problems such as the risk of bacterial spread due to urine splashing. On the other hand, in order to accommodate the different physical characteristics of each user as much as possible, it would be necessary to increase the size of the urinals, which would make it difficult to install them in narrow spaces such as hospital rooms.

[0007] Here, according to the technology described in Patent Document 1, the height of the bowl can be adjusted according to the user's height, for example, by moving the bowl. Therefore, it seems that the distance between the user and the urinal can be reduced, and splashing of urine can be suppressed. However, since this technology adjusts the height of the bowl by tilting a lever forward relative to a fixed end, the range of adjustment is limited, and it cannot be said that it can be individually adjusted to the appropriate position for each user. In addition, since the user presses the rim of the bowl against their crotch and urinates into the bowl, if multiple people share the urinal, a psychological barrier may arise in sharing a bowl that is pressed against the crotch of multiple people, and hygienic problems may also arise due to the contact of multiple people's crotches on the rim of the bowl. Thus, there is still room for improvement in technology that can minimize the risk of bacterial spread due to urine splashing without increasing the size of the urinal.

[0008] The purpose of this disclosure is to provide a flush urinal that can be individually adjusted for each user, thereby minimizing the risk of bacterial spread due to urine splashing without increasing the size of the urinal. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] The automatic lifting urinal of the present disclosure is an automatic lifting urinal configured to automatically raise and lower the bowl portion that receives the user's urine according to the user. The automatic lifting urinal comprises a flexible first tube connected to a supply port that supplies flushing water to the bowl portion, a flexible second tube connected to a discharge port that discharges the liquid in the bowl portion, a sealing lid configured to seal the opening of the bowl portion that opens toward the user, a depressurizing pump connected to the second tube and provided to depressurize the inside of the bowl portion when the opening is sealed by the sealing lid and to suck out the liquid in the bowl portion, a control unit that controls the opening and closing operation of the sealing lid and the operation of the depressurizing pump, a sliding portion configured to allow the bowl portion to slide vertically and to hold the bowl portion at a predetermined height according to the user, a drive unit that generates a driving force to raise and lower the bowl portion along the sliding portion, and a drive control unit that controls the driving of the drive unit, and a detection device for detecting the user.

[0010] In the above-described automatic height-adjustable flush urinal, the height of the bowl can be individually adjusted for each user, and even if the bowl is relatively small, it is possible to minimize the risk of bacterial spread due to urine splashing. Furthermore, by operating a pressure-reducing pump on the bowl, which is sealed by a sealed lid, the pressure inside the bowl is reduced, and the liquid containing urine and flushing water inside the bowl is sucked out through the outlet to the second tube. This allows the inside of the bowl to be cleaned quickly and with a small amount of flushing water, and minimizes the situation in which odors from the bowl adversely affect the surrounding environment. In such an automatic lifting flush urinal, when the drive control unit of the drive unit receives a detection signal from the detection device regarding the user's approach to the bowl, it operates the drive unit to raise and lower and hold the bowl along the sliding part at a height based on the user's genital position. When the control unit receives a detection signal from the detection device regarding the user's distance from the bowl, it can seal the opening of the bowl with the sealing lid and operate the pressure reducing pump.

[0011] Furthermore, in this case, when the drive control unit of the drive unit receives a detection signal from the detection device regarding the distance of the user from the bowl, it activates the drive unit to move the bowl along the sliding part to an initial state where the bowl is located at the lower end of the sliding part, and the control unit may activate the pressure reducing pump when the bowl is in the initial state. This ensures that the pressure reducing pump is activated in the initial state when the bowl is positioned as low as possible relative to the face of a person who is at high risk of contamination by bacteria, etc. Therefore, the impact of urine on the surrounding environment, such as bacteria, can be more effectively suppressed. Also, when the urinal is not in use, the bowl, which is in the initial state described above and where bacteria from urine may be present in the urinal, is sealed by a sealed lid. This minimizes the impact of urine on the surrounding environment, such as bacteria, when the urinal is not in use.

[0012] Furthermore, in the above-described automatic lifting flush urinal, the detection device is configured to include a camera and an image processing device that acquires captured image data taken by the camera and performs predetermined processing based on the captured image data. The image processing device of the detection device estimates the position of the user's genitals based on the position of the user's head in the captured image data in which the user is photographed, and the drive control unit of the drive device raises and lowers and holds the bowl portion at a height based on the position of the user's genitals estimated by the image processing device. This makes it possible to estimate the position of the user's genitals with relatively high accuracy without photographing the user's genitals with a camera, thus preventing situations where users hesitate to use the urinal due to concerns about public order and morals.

[0013] In this case, the system further includes an alarm device that outputs a predetermined alarm, and the image processing device of the detection device determines whether the user's gaze is directed toward the bowl portion based on the captured image data of the user, and the control unit is configured to control the operation of the alarm device based on information from the image processing device of the detection device, in addition to the opening and closing operation of the sealing lid and the operation of the pressure reducing pump, and the alarm device may output the alarm if the user's gaze is not directed toward the bowl portion. This allows the alarm to alert the user if their gaze is taken away from the bowl portion before or during urination, and prevents the urine discharged from the user from straying from the bowl portion. As a result, the risk of bacterial spread due to urine splashing can be minimized. Furthermore, in this case, during the period when the control unit outputs the alarm from the alarm device, the drive control unit of the drive unit may operate the drive unit to periodically move the bowl portion up and down along the sliding part by a predetermined amount of movement. According to this, if a user's gaze is diverted from the bowl, an alarm will be sounded to draw their attention back to the bowl. Furthermore, for example, if a user is urinating, it will be encouraged to urinate in accordance with the up-and-down movement of the bowl. As a result, even if the bowl moves up and down, it is possible to effectively prevent the urine expelled by the user from deviating from the bowl.

[0014] Furthermore, in the above-described automatic lifting flush urinal, when the image processing device of the detection device detects the user approaching the bowl portion, it may determine, based on the captured image data of the user, whether the user's gaze is directed towards the bowl portion in the initial state where the bowl portion is located at the lower end of the sliding portion. The drive control unit of the drive device may, if the user's gaze is not directed towards the bowl portion, prohibit the operation of the drive unit, thereby preventing the bowl portion from moving to a height based on the user's genital position. This prevents users whose gaze is diverted from the bowl portion before starting to use the urinal from being provided with a urinal in a state where the urinal is held at genital position and the sealed lid is open, thus preventing urine from diverting from the bowl portion when a user whose gaze is diverted from the bowl portion uses the urinal. In addition, by prompting attention to the bowl portion in this way, it is possible to strongly encourage users to urinate into the bowl portion, and as a result, it is possible to suppress the risk of bacterial spread due to urine splashing as much as possible. [Effects of the Invention]

[0015] According to this disclosure, by being individually adjusted for each user, it is possible to provide a flush urinal that can minimize the risk of bacterial spread due to urine splashing without increasing the size of the urinal. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0016] [Figure 1] This figure shows the schematic configuration of an automatic lifting type flush urinal in the first embodiment. [Figure 2] This is the first figure illustrating the automatic raising and lowering operation of the bowl portion of a urinal in the first embodiment. [Figure 3] This is a second diagram illustrating the automatic raising and lowering operation of the bowl portion of the urinal in the first embodiment. [Figure 4] The first figure illustrates the flow of operation of a urinal in the second embodiment. [Figure 5]It is a second diagram illustrating an operation flow of the urinal according to the second embodiment. [Figure 6] It is a third diagram illustrating an operation flow of the urinal according to the second embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0017] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings. The configurations of the following embodiments are illustrative, and the present disclosure is not limited to the configurations of the embodiments.

[0018] First Embodiment An outline of the automatically lifting flushing urinal according to the first embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. 1. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of the automatically lifting flushing urinal according to the present embodiment. The urinal 1 according to the present embodiment is an automatically lifting flushing urinal configured such that a bowl portion for receiving a user's urine can be automatically lifted and lowered according to the user.

[0019] As shown in FIG. 1, the urinal 1 includes a bowl portion 2 that receives a user's urine. Here, the bowl portion 2 is, for example, a relatively small bowl formed in a hemispherical shape with a diameter of approximately 20 cm. The bowl portion 2 is provided with a supply port 2a for supplying flushing water, a discharge port 2b for discharging liquid containing urine and flushing water, and an opening 2c that opens toward the user.

[0020] A first tube 3 is connected to the supply port 2a of the bowl portion 2. Here, the first tube 3 is a flexible tube, and can be implemented by, for example, a tube configured to be expandable and contractible in a bellows shape. This allows the first tube 3 to follow the bowl portion 2 that slides in the vertical direction as will be described later.

[0021] Furthermore, a second tube 4 is connected to the outlet 2b of the bowl portion 2. Here, the second tube 4 is also a flexible tube, which can be realized, for example, by a tube that is expandable and contractible by a bellows shape. This allows the second tube 4 to follow the bowl portion 2, which slides in the vertical direction as will be described later.

[0022] As shown in Figure 1, a depressurizing pump 5 is connected to the second tube 4. The depressurizing pump 5 is configured to reduce the pressure inside the bowl portion 2 when the opening 2c is sealed by a sealing lid 20 (not shown in Figure 1), and for example, a well-known vacuum pump may be used. When the pressure inside the bowl portion 2 is reduced from the side of the outlet 2b by such a depressurizing pump 5, the liquid containing urine and washing water inside the bowl portion 2 can be sucked out from the outlet 2b toward the second tube 4. At this time, the supply port 2a of the bowl portion 2 may be closed by a valve, for example. Alternatively, the supply port 2a of the bowl portion 2 may be left open, and the pressure inside the bowl portion 2 when the opening 2c is sealed by the sealing lid 20 may be reduced so that washing water is guided from the first tube 3 into the bowl portion 2 by the pressure difference between the bowl portion 2 and the first tube 3, and the liquid containing urine and washing water inside the bowl portion 2 is sucked out from the outlet 2b toward the second tube 4.

[0023] Here, the urinal 1 includes a control unit that controls the opening and closing operation of the sealing lid 20 and the operation of the pressure reducing pump 5. The control unit is implemented, for example, by a microcontroller, and in this case, it may consist of a processor such as a CPU and a storage device such as RAM or ROM. Furthermore, the control unit includes a communication interface. In this case, the communication interface for connecting to a network consists of, for example, a network interface board and a communication circuit for communication. The sealing lid 20 is connected to the bowl portion 2 via a hinge, for example, and a motor is placed on the hinge, so that the opening 2c of the bowl portion 2 can be opened and closed in response to a command from the control unit.

[0024] Furthermore, the urinal 1 is equipped with a sliding part 6. Here, the sliding part 6 is configured to slide the bowl part 2 vertically and to hold the bowl part 2 at a predetermined height according to the user, and is composed of a holding part 61, a screw shaft 62, and a linear guide 63. The holding part 61 is connected to the bowl part 2 and holds the bowl part 2, and by sliding along the rail of the linear guide 63, the sliding part 6 can slide the bowl part 2 vertically and hold the bowl part 2 at a predetermined height according to the user. The linear guide 63 itself does not have a propulsive force, and the holding part 61 is driven by the action of the screw shaft 62 and a motor 71, which will be described later.

[0025] More specifically, the sliding part 6 is driven by a drive device 7. Here, the drive device 7 includes a motor 71 that generates a driving force to raise and lower the bowl part 2 along the linear guide 63 of the sliding part 6, and a drive control unit 72 that controls the driving of the motor 71. The motor 71 is, for example, a gear motor or a stepping motor, and rotates the screw shaft 62 within a predetermined angle range according to a command from the drive control unit 72. The drive control unit 72 is implemented by, for example, a microcontroller, and in this case, it may consist of a processor such as a CPU and a storage device such as RAM or ROM. Furthermore, the drive control unit 72 includes a communication interface. In this case, the communication interface for connecting to a network is, for example, composed of a network interface board and a communication circuit for communication.

[0026] Furthermore, the urinal 1 is equipped with a detection device 8. Here, the detection device 8 is a device for detecting a user, and in this embodiment, it is composed of a camera 81 and an image processing device 82. The camera 81 is a device for photographing the user of the urinal 1 and has the function of accepting image input such as still images and videos, and is specifically implemented by a camera using an image sensor such as Charged-Coupled Devices (CCD), Metal-oxide-semiconductor (MOS), or Complementary Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor (CMOS). The image processing device 82 acquires the image data of the user of the urinal 1 captured by the camera 81 and performs predetermined processing based on the image data.

[0027] Here, the image processing device 82 can be any electronic device with processing capabilities for calculation and processing operations such as data acquisition, generation, and updating, for example, a computer. That is, the image processing device 82 can be configured as a computer having a processor such as a CPU or GPU, main memory such as RAM or ROM, and auxiliary storage such as an EPROM, hard disk drive, or removable media. The removable media may be, for example, a USB memory stick or a disk recording medium such as a CD or DVD. The auxiliary storage device stores an operating system (OS), various programs, various tables, etc. Furthermore, the image processing device 82 includes a communication interface. In this case, the communication interface for connecting to a network is configured to include, for example, a network interface board and a communication circuit for communication.

[0028] Next, we will explain the automatic raising and lowering operation of the bowl portion 2 in the urinal 1 configured in this way.

[0029] Figure 2 is a first diagram illustrating the automatic raising and lowering operation of the bowl portion 2 of the urinal 1 in this embodiment.

[0030] In this embodiment, when the urinal 1 is not in use, the bowl portion 2 is positioned in its initial state. This initial state is when the bowl portion 2 is located at the lower end of the sliding portion 6, that is, when the retaining portion 61 connected to the bowl portion 2 is located at the lower end of the linear guide 63 in the sliding portion 6. When the bowl portion 2 is in its initial state, the opening 2c of the bowl portion 2 is sealed by the sealing lid 20.

[0031] As a result, when the urinal 1 is not in use, the bowl portion 2 of the urinal 1 is positioned as low as possible to the face of a person who is at high risk of contamination by bacteria, and the bowl portion 2 in the urinal 1, where bacteria from urine may be present, is sealed by the airtight lid 20. This makes it possible to minimize the impact of bacteria from urine on the surrounding environment when the urinal 1 is not in use.

[0032] Then, when the drive control unit 72 of the drive unit 7 receives a detection signal from the detection device 8 regarding the user's approach to the bowl portion 2, it operates the motor 71, as shown in Figure 2, to move the bowl portion 2 along the sliding portion 6 toward a height based on the user's genital position.

[0033] In the detection device 8, when the camera 81 captures images of people around the urinal 1, the image processing device 82 analyzes the captured image data using a well-known image processing method to determine whether there are any people among those around the urinal 1 who are attempting to approach the bowl 2 as users of the urinal 1. If it is determined that there are users approaching the bowl 2, this information is transmitted from the image processing device 82 of the detection device 8 to the drive control unit 72 of the drive device 7 via the communication interface. As a result, the drive control unit 72 of the drive device 7 can obtain a detection signal regarding the user's approach to the bowl 2 from the detection device 8.

[0034] Upon acquiring the above detection signal, the drive control unit 72 operates the motor 71 so that the screw shaft 62 of the sliding part 6 is rotated. In the sliding part 6, the holding part 61 functions as a nut that engages with the male thread of the screw shaft 62, and moves up and down guided by the linear guide 63 as the screw shaft 62 rotates. In other words, the sliding part 6 has the function of converting the rotational motion of the motor 71 into linear motion. Therefore, the drive control unit 72 rotates the screw shaft 62 based on a predetermined correlation between the rotation angle of the motor 71 and the linear movement distance of the holding part 61 so that the bowl part 2 is held at a height based on the user's genital position. In addition, a manual handle may be provided on the end of the screw shaft 62 opposite to the side connected to the motor 71 so that the bowl part 2 can be raised and lowered even if the power supply to the urinal 1 is stopped due to a disaster or the like. This allows the user to rotate the screw shaft 62 by turning the manual handle and raise and lower the bowl part 2.

[0035] In this embodiment, the image processing device 82 of the detection device 8 estimates the position of the user's genitals. Specifically, the image processing device 82 estimates the position of the user's genitals based on the position of the user's head in the captured image data of the user.

[0036] If the camera 81 were to photograph the user's genitals to determine their location, this could be considered contrary to public order and morals, causing the user to hesitate to use the urinal 1. Therefore, after careful consideration, the Disclosing Party found a correlation between a person's head height and genital height, and discovered that by using this predetermined correlation, the user's genital location can be accurately estimated based on the user's head position. In other words, this method allows for the estimation of the user's genital location without photographing the user's genitals with the camera 81, thus preventing the user from hesitating to use the urinal 1.

[0037] Then, the information regarding the estimated position of the user's genitals is transmitted via the communication interface from the image processing device 82 of the detection device 8 to the drive control unit 72 of the drive device 7. This allows the drive control unit 72 to rotate the screw shaft 62 based on a predetermined correlation between the rotation angle of the motor 71 and the linear movement distance of the holding part 61, so that the bowl part 2 is held at a height based on the position of the user's genitals.

[0038] Here, Figure 3 is a second diagram illustrating the automatic raising and lowering operation of the bowl portion 2 of the urinal 1 in this embodiment.

[0039] As described above, when the bowl portion 2 is moved toward a height based on the user's genital position, as shown in Figure 3, the bowl portion 2 is held in a position where, for example, its center approximately coincides with the height of the user's genital position. Furthermore, when the drive control unit 72 of the drive device 7 stops the operation of the motor 71, the holding portion 61 that engages with the male thread of the screw shaft 62 at the sliding portion 6 is held in that stopping position, that is, the bowl portion 2 connected to the holding portion 61 is held. With this, the height of the bowl portion 2 in the urinal 1 is individually adjusted for each user, and even if the size of the bowl portion 2 is relatively small, the risk of bacterial spread due to urine splashing can be suppressed as much as possible.

[0040] At this time, in response to a command from the control unit mentioned above, the sealed lid 20 is opened as shown in Figure 3, allowing the user to urinate towards the opening 2c of the bowl section 2.

[0041] Then, when the control unit receives a detection signal from the detection device 8 regarding the user's distance from the bowl portion 2, it seals the opening 2c of the bowl portion 2 with the sealing lid 20 and activates the pressure reducing pump 5. Here, the image processing device 82 of the detection device 8 can determine the user's distance from the bowl portion 2 by analyzing the image data of the user of the urinal 1 captured by the camera 81 using a well-known image processing method. When it is determined that the user has moved away from the bowl portion 2, this information is transmitted from the image processing device 82 of the detection device 8 to the control unit via the communication interface. The control unit then receives a detection signal from the detection device 8 regarding the user's distance from the bowl portion 2 and activates a motor located on the hinge connecting the bowl portion 2 and the sealing lid 20, thereby sealing the opening 2c of the bowl portion 2 with the sealing lid 20. Furthermore, the control unit operates the pressure reducing pump 5 on the bowl section 2, which is sealed at the opening 2c by the sealing lid 20, thereby reducing the pressure inside the bowl section 2 and drawing the liquid containing urine and washing water from the bowl section 2 towards the second tube 4 through the outlet 2b. This allows the inside of the bowl section 2 to be cleaned in a short time and with a small amount of washing water, and minimizes the situation in which odors from the bowl section 2 adversely affect the surrounding environment.

[0042] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the control unit may move the bowl portion 2 to its initial position before starting the operation of the pressure reducing pump 5 described above. In this case, when the drive control unit 72 of the drive unit 7 receives a detection signal from the detection device 8 regarding the distance of the user from the bowl portion 2, it operates the motor 71 to move the bowl portion 2 along the sliding portion 6 to its initial position. At this time, the control unit may also perform the operation of closing the sealing lid 20. Then, with the bowl portion 2 in its initial position, the control unit operates the pressure reducing pump 5. This makes it possible to more effectively suppress the impact of urine on the surrounding environment, such as bacteria.

[0043] As described above, with the urinal 1, the height of the bowl 2 is automatically adjusted individually for each user, thereby minimizing the risk of bacterial spread due to urine splashing without increasing the size of the urinal.

[0044] <Second Embodiment> The urinal 1 in the second embodiment will be described with reference to Figures 4 to 6. The urinal 1 in this embodiment further includes an alarm device that outputs a predetermined alarm. The control unit described in the first embodiment above is configured to control the operation of the alarm device in addition to the opening and closing operation of the sealing lid 20 and the operation of the pressure reducing pump 5. The alarm device is, for example, a speaker that alerts the user of the urinal 1 with a warning sound. In addition to the speaker, the alarm device may also include a patrol light (registered trademark) that displays a warning light.

[0045] Figure 4 is a first diagram illustrating the flow of operation of the urinal 1 in this embodiment. Figure 4 describes the flow of operation between the detection device 8, the drive device 7, and the control unit in the urinal 1 of this embodiment, as well as the processes performed by the detection device 8, the drive device 7, and the control unit.

[0046] In the flow shown in Figure 4, first, when the detection device 8 detects the user approaching the bowl portion 2, the detection signal is transmitted from the detection device 8 to the drive unit 7 and the control unit (S101).

[0047] Then, when the drive unit 7 receives a detection signal transmitted from the detection device 8 (S102), it drives the motor 71 (S103). As a result, the bowl portion 2 moves along the sliding portion 6 from its initial height to a height based on the user's genital position. At this time, as described in the first embodiment above, the drive unit 7 separately acquires information regarding the height of the user's genital position estimated by the detection device 8.

[0048] Furthermore, when the control unit receives a detection signal transmitted from the detection device 8 (S104), it executes a control to open the sealed lid 20 (S105). As a result, the opening 2c of the bowl portion 2, which was initially closed by the sealed lid 20, is opened.

[0049] Next, with the bowl portion 2 held at a height based on the user's genital position, the detection device 8 detects the user's gaze toward the urinal 1 (S106). The image processing device 82 of the detection device 8 then analyzes the image data of the user captured by the camera 81 using a well-known image processing method to determine whether or not the user's gaze is directed toward the bowl portion 2 (S107). If the S107 process is positive, that is, if the user's gaze is directed toward the bowl portion 2, the detection device 8 proceeds to the S111 process. If the S107 process is negative, that is, if the user's gaze is not directed toward the bowl portion 2, the detection device 8 proceeds to the S108 process.

[0050] If the S107 process determines that the user is not looking at the bowl 2, that is, if the user's gaze is not directed towards the bowl 2, a detection signal is sent from the detection device 8 to the control unit (S108). Upon acquiring this information (S109), the control unit executes a control to output an alarm from the alarm device (S110). As described above, the alarm device is, for example, a speaker that alerts the user of the urinal 1 with a warning sound, and in this case, the S110 process outputs a warning sound from the speaker to attract the user's attention. The speaker can be placed at any position on the bowl 2. This allows the alarm sound to alert the user if their gaze is taken away from the bowl 2 before or during urination, preventing the urine expelled from the bowl 2. As a result, the risk of bacterial spread due to urine splashing can be minimized.

[0051] On the other hand, if the S107 process determines that the user is in a positive position, that is, if the user's gaze is directed towards the bowl portion 2, the above-mentioned output control for alarm activation is not performed. Instead, the detection device 8 detects the user's distance from the bowl portion 2, and the detection signal is transmitted from the detection device 8 to the drive unit 7 and the control unit (S111).

[0052] Then, when the drive unit 7 receives a detection signal transmitted from the detection device 8 (S112), it drives the motor 71 (S113). As a result, the bowl portion 2 moves along the sliding portion 6 from a height based on the user's genital position to its initial state.

[0053] Furthermore, when the control unit receives a detection signal transmitted from the detection device 8 (S114), it executes a control to close the sealing lid 20 (S115). Then, with the opening 2c of the bowl portion 2 sealed by the sealing lid 20, it drives the pressure reducing pump 5 (S116).

[0054] As a result, the bowl portion 2 of the urinal 1 is positioned as low as possible relative to the faces of people who are at high risk of contamination by bacteria, and the bowl portion 2 in the urinal 1, where bacteria from urine may be present, can be cleaned with a small amount of flushing water in a short time by the depressurizing pump 5 while it is sealed by the airtight lid 20, thereby minimizing the impact of bacteria from urine on the surrounding environment.

[0055] Figure 5 is a second diagram illustrating the flow of operation of the urinal 1 in this embodiment. Figure 5 describes the flow of operation between the detection device 8, the drive device 7, and the control unit in the urinal 1 of this embodiment, and the processes executed by the detection device 8, the drive device 7, and the control unit. In each process shown in Figure 5, processes that are substantially the same as those shown in Figure 4 are denoted by the same reference numerals and their detailed explanation is omitted. Also, in the flow shown in Figure 5, the illustration of processes S101 to S105 shown in Figure 4 is omitted.

[0056] In the flow shown in Figure 5, if the S107 process determines that the user's gaze is not directed towards the bowl portion 2, a detection signal is sent from the detection device 8 to the drive device 7 and the control unit (S108). Upon acquiring this information (S201), the drive device 7 drives the motor 71 (S202). At this time, the drive control unit 72 of the drive device 7 drives the motor 71 so that the bowl portion 2 moves up and down periodically along the sliding portion 6 by a predetermined amount of movement. The amount of movement is, for example, 1 to 5 cm. At this time, the control unit acquires the detection signal from the detection device 8 (S109) and executes control to output an alarm from the alarm device (S110).

[0057] As shown in the flow chart in Figure 5, during the period when the control unit outputs an alarm from the alarm device, the drive control unit 72 of the drive unit 7 periodically moves the bowl portion 2 up and down along the sliding portion 6 by a predetermined amount. This allows the system to alert users who have taken their eyes off the bowl portion 2 with a warning sound, and also encourages users who are urinating to urinate in accordance with the up and down movement of the bowl portion 2. As a result, even if the bowl portion 2 moves up and down, it is possible to effectively prevent the urine discharged from the user from deviating from the bowl portion 2.

[0058] Figure 6 is a third diagram illustrating the flow of operation of the urinal 1 in this embodiment. Figure 6 describes the flow of operation between the detection device 8, the drive device 7, and the control unit in the urinal 1 of this embodiment, and the processes executed by the detection device 8, the drive device 7, and the control unit. In each process shown in Figure 6, processes that are substantially the same as those shown in Figure 4 are denoted by the same reference numerals and their detailed explanation is omitted. Also, in the flow shown in Figure 6, the processes from S106 to S116 shown in Figure 4 are not illustrated.

[0059] In the flow shown in Figure 6, in the process of S101, when the detection device 8 detects the user approaching the bowl portion 2, the detection device 8 then detects the gaze of the user of the urinal 1 in the initial state where the bowl portion 2 is positioned at the lower end of the sliding portion 6 (S301). The image processing device 82 of the detection device 8 then analyzes the image data of the user captured by the camera 81 using a well-known image processing method to determine whether or not the user's gaze is directed towards the bowl portion 2 (S302). If the determination in the process of S302 is positive, that is, if the user's gaze is directed towards the bowl portion 2, the detection device 8 proceeds to the process of S306. If the determination in the process of S302 is negative, that is, if the user's gaze is not directed towards the bowl portion 2, the detection device 8 proceeds to the process of S303.

[0060] If the S302 process determines that the user's gaze is not directed towards the bowl portion 2, a detection signal is sent from the detection device 8 to the drive device 7 (S303). Upon acquiring this information (S304), the drive device 7 prohibits the motor 71 from being driven (S305). In other words, the bowl portion 2 is not moved to a height based on the user's genital position. This prevents users who have taken their gaze away from the bowl portion 2 before starting to use the urinal 1 from being provided with the urinal 1 held at genital position and the sealed lid 20 open, thus preventing urine from diverting from the bowl portion 2 when a user uses the urinal 1 while their gaze is away from the bowl portion 2. Furthermore, by proactively encouraging attention to the bowl portion 2 in this way, the user is strongly encouraged to urinate into the bowl portion 2, and as a result, the risk of bacterial spread due to urine splashing can be suppressed as much as possible.

[0061] On the other hand, if the S302 process determines that the user's gaze is directed towards the bowl portion 2, the detection signal is transmitted from the detection device 8 to the drive unit 7 and the control unit (S306).

[0062] Then, when the drive unit 7 receives a detection signal transmitted from the detection device 8 (S307), it drives the motor 71 (S308). As a result, the bowl portion 2 moves along the sliding portion 6 from its initial height to a height based on the user's genital position. At this time, as described in the first embodiment above, the drive unit 7 separately obtains information regarding the height of the user's genital position estimated by the detection device 8.

[0063] Furthermore, when the control unit receives a detection signal transmitted from the detection device 8 (S309), it executes a control to open the sealed lid 20 (S310). As a result, the opening 2c of the bowl portion 2, which was initially closed by the sealed lid 20, is opened.

[0064] Next, with the bowl portion 2 held at a height based on the user's genital position, the detection device 8 detects the user's line of sight in the urinal 1 (S106). The process from S106 onward is as described in the explanation of Figure 4 above.

[0065] Furthermore, with the urinal 1 described above, the risk of bacterial spread due to urine splashing can be minimized without increasing the size of the urinal.

[0066] <Other variations> The embodiments described above are merely examples, and this disclosure may be modified and implemented as appropriate without departing from its essence. For example, the means described in this disclosure can be freely combined and implemented as long as no technical inconsistencies arise.

[0067] Furthermore, although the above embodiment describes an example in which the sliding portion 6 includes a holding portion 61, a screw shaft 62, and a linear guide 63, the sliding portion of this disclosure is not limited to this, and any configuration that allows the bowl portion to slide vertically and holds the bowl portion at a predetermined height according to the user is acceptable. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0068] 1... Urinal 2.. Bowl section 2a...Supply port 2b...Discharge port 2c...Opening 20...Tight lid 3. First tube 4. Second tube 5. Pressure reducing pump 6. Sliding part 7. Drive system 71... Motor 72.. Drive Control Unit 8. Detection device

Claims

1. An automatic lifting type flush urinal configured to automatically raise and lower the bowl portion that receives the user's urine, A flexible first tube connected to a supply port that supplies cleaning water to the bowl portion, A flexible second tube connected to an outlet for discharging the liquid in the bowl portion, A sealing lid configured to be able to seal the opening of the bowl portion that opens toward the user, A vacuum pump connected to the second tube and provided to reduce the pressure inside the bowl portion, with the opening sealed by the sealing lid, and to suck out the liquid inside the bowl portion, A control unit that controls the opening and closing operation of the sealing lid and the operation of the pressure reducing pump, A sliding part configured to allow the bowl portion to slide vertically, the sliding part holding the bowl portion at a predetermined height according to the user, A drive device comprising a drive unit that generates a driving force to raise and lower the bowl portion along the sliding portion, and a drive control unit that controls the driving of the drive unit, A detection device for detecting the user, An automatic lifting, flushable urinal.

2. When the drive control unit of the drive device receives a detection signal from the detection device regarding the user's approach to the bowl portion, it activates the drive unit to raise and lower the bowl portion along the sliding portion to a height based on the user's genital position and hold it there. When the control unit receives a detection signal from the detection device regarding the user's distance from the bowl portion, it seals the opening of the bowl portion with the sealing lid and activates the pressure reducing pump. The automatic lifting type flush urinal according to claim 1.

3. When the drive control unit of the drive device receives a detection signal from the detection device regarding the distance of the user from the bowl portion, it activates the drive unit to move the bowl portion along the sliding portion to an initial state in which the bowl portion is located at the lower end of the sliding portion. The control unit operates the pressure reducing pump when the bowl portion is in the initial position. The automatic lifting type flush urinal according to claim 2.

4. The detection device comprises a camera and an image processing device that acquires captured image data captured by the camera and performs predetermined processing based on the captured image data. The image processing device of the detection device estimates the position of the user's genitals based on the position of the user's head in the captured image data in which the user is photographed. The drive control unit of the drive device raises and lowers the bowl portion to a height based on the position of the user's genitals estimated by the image processing device and holds it there. The automatic lifting type flush urinal according to claim 2.

5. It is further equipped with an alarm device that outputs a predetermined alarm, The image processing device of the detection device determines, based on the captured image data taken of the user, whether or not the user's gaze is directed toward the bowl portion. The control unit, In addition to the opening and closing operation of the sealed lid and the operation of the pressure reducing pump, the detection device is configured to be able to control the operation of the alarm device based on information from the image processing device of the detection device. If the user's gaze is not directed toward the bowl portion, the alarm device will output the alarm. The automatic lifting type flush urinal according to claim 4.

6. During the period in which the control unit outputs the alarm from the alarm device, the drive control unit of the drive device operates the drive unit to periodically move the bowl portion up and down along the sliding portion by a predetermined amount of movement. The automatic lifting type flush urinal according to claim 5.

7. When the image processing device of the detection device detects the user approaching the bowl portion, it determines, based on the captured image data taken of the user, whether or not the user's gaze is directed toward the bowl portion in the initial state where the bowl portion is located at the lower end of the sliding portion. The drive control unit of the drive device prevents the operation of the drive unit when the user's gaze is not directed toward the bowl portion, thereby preventing the bowl portion from moving to a height based on the user's genital position. The automatic lifting type flush urinal according to claim 4.

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