Toilet equipment

Abstract

The objective is to provide a toilet device that can reduce the bouncing of the toilet seat or lid, even when there is a gap in the fitting portion between the rotating output section and the rotating input section. [Solution] A toilet device comprising: a rotating body which is a toilet seat or toilet lid, configured to be able to open in the forward direction and close in the reverse direction from a closed position to an open position; a drive motor for opening and closing the opening and closing body; a rotational output unit which is rotationally driven based on the driving force of a drive unit such as a DC drive motor; and a rotational input unit which is rotationally driven by fitting with the rotation shaft with a gap and causing the opening and closing body to open and close, wherein the rotational output unit has a flexible thin-walled portion and a thick-walled portion which has less flexibility than the thin-walled portion, and the thin-walled portion is configured to cover the thick-walled portion in the axial diameter direction of the rotational output shaft.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present invention relates to a toilet apparatus.

BACKGROUND ART

[0002] Conventionally, a toilet apparatus including an electric opening / closing device configured to automatically open a toilet seat and a toilet lid is known.

[0003] For example, Patent Documents 1 and 2 realize a toilet apparatus including an electric opening / closing device that automatically opens and closes a toilet seat or a toilet lid using a drive source such as a DC motor.

PRIOR ART DOCUMENTS

PATENT DOCUMENTS

[0004]

PATENT DOCUMENT 1

PATENT DOCUMENT 2

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

PROBLEMS TO BE SOLVED BY THE INVENTION

[0005] In the opening operation control of the toilet seat and the toilet lid by the electric opening / closing control in the above-described toilet apparatus, suppression of the rebound of the toilet seat and the toilet lid at the open end is required in order to mitigate collision with a toilet tank or a washing panel and improve the operation quality. However, when the toilet seat and the toilet lid reach the position where the self-weight torque is reversed, due to the backlash between the rotation output section and the rotation input section of the toilet seat and the toilet lid that connects the rotation output section to the toilet seat and the toilet lid, an uncontrollable state occurs where the two parts do not come into contact. As a result, the toilet seat and the toilet lid perform the opening operation at a speed faster than that of the rotation output section, and rebound occurs due to collision with the rotation output section. Therefore, from the viewpoint of suppressing rebound, it is required that the backlash is small.

[0006] On the other hand, if the backlash is reduced, providing the backlash is indispensable in order to improve the assemblability of the toilet seat and the toilet lid and the ease of cleaning by attachment and detachment.

[0007] The object of the present invention is to provide a toilet device that can reduce the bouncing of the toilet seat or toilet lid even when there is a gap in the fitting portion between the rotating output portion and the rotating input portion. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] The first invention is a toilet device comprising: a rotating body which is a toilet seat or toilet lid, comprising an opening / closing body configured to be able to open in the forward direction and close in the reverse direction from a closed position to an open position; a drive motor for opening and closing the opening / closing body; a rotational output unit which is rotationally driven based on the driving force of the drive unit of the drive motor; and a rotational input unit which is rotationally driven by fitting with the rotation shaft with a gap and causing the opening / closing body to open and close, wherein the rotational output unit has a flexible thin-walled portion and a thick-walled portion which has less flexibility than the thin-walled portion, and the thin-walled portion is configured to cover the thick-walled portion in the axial radial direction of the rotational output shaft.

[0009] According to this toilet device, when the opening mechanism of the opening / closing body is opened, the collision between the rotation input part and the rotation output part in the closing direction is suppressed because the collision surface of the rotation output part is covered with the flexible thin part. Furthermore, by reducing the flexibility of the thick part, it is expected that the deflection of the rotation output shaft that occurs when the weight of the opening / closing body, the toilet seat and toilet lid, is large will be reduced.

[0010] Furthermore, the second invention is a toilet device characterized in that the thickened portion has a chamfered portion on the tip side in the axial direction of the rotating output shaft, and has an oval shape in the axial radial cross-section.

[0011] According to this toilet device, the shape of the tip of the thickened section is chamfered, which improves the ease of attaching and detaching the toilet seat and toilet lid. In addition, the shaft strength of the rotating output shaft can be improved by maximizing the shaft diameter of the thickened section.

[0012] Furthermore, the third invention is a toilet device characterized in that the thin-walled portion has a uniform thickness in the axial direction of the rotating output shaft.

[0013] This toilet device allows for the mitigation of collisions between the rotation input and rotation output sections in both the opening and closing directions by making the thickness of the flexible thin section uniform. Furthermore, it can absorb loads from external forces that may be applied to the entire axial direction, such as when attaching or detaching the toilet seat and lid. Additionally, by covering the thick section with a uniform thickness, it is possible to improve the ease of attaching and detaching the toilet lid and the axial strength of the rotation output shaft, which are the intended features of the thick section shape.

[0014] According to this toilet device, the thick, less flexible section accounts for the majority of the thickness of the rotating output shaft, thereby reducing the deflection of the output shaft due to the load of the toilet seat and lid, and the angle wobble of the toilet seat and lid at the open end. [Effects of the Invention]

[0015] According to an aspect of the present invention, it is possible to suppress the bouncing at the open end of the toilet seat and toilet lid, thereby achieving smooth opening and closing operations. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0016] [Figure 1] This is a perspective view illustrating a toilet device according to the embodiment. [Figure 2] This is a perspective view showing the configuration of the first toilet seat hinge portion 31 according to the embodiment. [Figure 3] This is a perspective view showing the configuration of the first toilet seat hinge portion 61 according to the embodiment. [Figure 4] This is a plan view illustrating a part of a toilet system according to the embodiment. [Figure 5] This is a perspective view showing the configuration of the electrically operated opening / closing unit 80 according to the embodiment. [Figure 6] This is a plan view showing the configuration of the output shaft 85 of the electrically operated opening / closing unit 80 according to the embodiment. [Figure 7]This is a diagram for explaining the state of the toilet lid at each rotation angle, the self-weight torque for each rotation angle, and the mechanism of rattling of the toilet lid in a conventional toilet apparatus. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

[0017] First, the background that led to the present invention will be described. The present inventors studied the backlash between the rotation output unit and the rotation input unit. If this backlash is large, an uncontrollable region where the two do not come into contact during the electric opening / closing operation is generated, making control difficult, which causes bouncing between the toilet seat or the toilet lid and the rotation output unit. The bouncing of the toilet seat or the toilet lid may cause collision with the toilet tank or the washing panel and degrade the quality of the opening / closing operation, which may give the user a sense of discomfort. On the other hand, if the backlash is excessively reduced, the assemblability of the toilet seat and the toilet lid, and the ease of cleaning by attachment and detachment may be significantly reduced. The present invention has been made based on such findings to suppress bouncing without deteriorating the assemblability of the toilet seat and the toilet lid.

[0018] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. For ease of understanding, identical constituent elements in each drawing are denoted by identical reference numerals as much as possible, and redundant descriptions are omitted.

[0019] As shown in Figure 1, a toilet apparatus 100 (toilet seat apparatus) according to the embodiment includes a casing 10, a toilet seat 30 on which a user sits, and a toilet lid 50 that covers the toilet seat 30. Each of the toilet seat 30 and the toilet lid 50 is rotatably supported with respect to the casing 10. In other words, each of the toilet seat 30 and the toilet lid 50 is pivotally supported on the casing 10 so as to be openable and closable. The state in Figure 1 is a state where the toilet seat 30 is closed (lowered) and the toilet lid 50 is open (raised). In the closed state, the toilet lid 50 covers a part of the casing 10 and the upper surface of the toilet seat 30 from above.

[0020] The casing 10 contains a body washing function unit that washes the user's private parts (such as their buttocks) while they are sitting on the toilet seat 30. For example, the casing 10 may contain a washing nozzle 70 and a control circuit that controls the operation of the washing nozzle 70. When the user is sitting on the toilet seat 30, the washing nozzle 70 extends forward from inside the casing 10 and discharges washing water towards the user's private parts. The casing 10 may also be appropriately equipped with various mechanisms such as a "warm air drying function" that blows warm air towards the user's buttocks while they are sitting on the toilet seat 30 to dry them, a "deodorizing unit", and an "indoor heating unit".

[0021] As shown in Figure 1, the casing 10 has an upper surface 15. In front of the upper surface 15, there is a pair of stepped sections (first stepped section 19a and second stepped section 19b) arranged in the left-right direction.

[0022] The toilet seat 30 has a pair of toilet seat hinges (a first toilet seat hinge 31 and a second toilet seat hinge 32) arranged in the left-right direction. The first toilet seat hinge 31 is located on the first stepped portion 19a. The second toilet seat hinge 32 is located on the second stepped portion 19b. The toilet seat 30 is pivotally supported at the first toilet seat hinge 31 and the second toilet seat hinge 32. In addition, a toilet seat drive side shaft hole 31a is formed on the inner surface of the first toilet seat hinge 31 as shown in Figure 2. The toilet seat drive side shaft hole 31a is open horizontally on the inner surface of the first toilet seat hinge 31, and when the toilet seat 30 is opened or closed, the opening direction surface 31b of the toilet seat drive side shaft hole and the closing direction surface 31c of the toilet seat drive side shaft hole come into contact with the output shaft 85 of the toilet seat opening / closing unit 80a, which will be described later, thereby performing the opening and closing drive.

[0023] The toilet lid 50 has a pair of toilet lid hinges (a first toilet lid hinge 61 and a second toilet lid hinge 62) arranged in the left-right direction. The toilet lid hinges are located on the inside of the toilet lid. The first toilet lid hinge 61 is positioned on the first stepped portion 19a. The second toilet lid hinge 62 is positioned on the second stepped portion 19b. The toilet lid 50 is pivotally supported at the first toilet lid hinge 61 and the second toilet lid hinge 62. In addition, a toilet lid drive side shaft hole 61a is formed on the inner surface of the first toilet lid hinge 61, as shown in Figure 3. The toilet lid drive side shaft hole 61a is opened horizontally on the inner surface of the first toilet lid hinge portion 61, and when the toilet lid 50 is opened or closed, the opening direction surface 61b of the toilet lid drive side shaft hole and the closing direction surface 61c of the toilet seat drive side shaft hole come into contact with the output shaft 85 of the toilet seat opening / closing unit 80a, which will be described later, thereby performing the opening and closing drive.

[0024] Figure 4 shows the casing 10 viewed from above with the toilet seat 30 closed. Note that the toilet lid 50 is not shown in the illustration. As shown in Figure 4, the toilet device 100 has an electric opening / closing unit 80 (electric opening / closing device). The electric opening / closing unit 80 is capable of opening and closing at least one of the toilet seat 30 and the toilet lid 50. In this example, the electric opening / closing unit 80 is provided as a toilet seat opening / closing unit 80a capable of opening and closing the toilet seat 30, and a toilet lid opening / closing unit 80b capable of opening and closing the toilet lid 50. At least a part of each electric opening / closing unit 80 is provided inside the casing 10. The electric opening / closing unit 80 has a drive unit such as a motor, and opens and closes the toilet seat 30 or the toilet lid 50 by the driving force of the drive unit.

[0025] For example, the output shaft 85 of the toilet seat opening / closing unit 80a protrudes from the side of the casing 10 at the first stepped portion 19a and is connected to the toilet seat 30 directly or indirectly. In this example, the output shaft 85 of the toilet seat opening / closing unit 80a engages with the toilet seat drive side shaft hole 31a of the first toilet seat hinge portion 31. The toilet seat opening / closing unit 80a rotates the first toilet seat hinge portion 31 by rotating the output shaft 85 with the torque of the motor, thereby rotating the toilet seat 30. The toilet seat opening / closing unit 80a may also be provided on the second toilet seat hinge portion 32 side.

[0026] Similarly, the output shaft 85 of the toilet lid opening / closing unit 80b protrudes from the side of the casing 10 at the first stepped portion 19a and is connected to the toilet lid 50 directly or indirectly. In this example, the output shaft 85 of the toilet lid opening / closing unit 80b engages with the toilet lid drive side shaft hole 61a of the first toilet lid hinge portion 61. The toilet lid opening / closing unit 80b rotates the first toilet lid hinge portion 61 and the toilet lid 50 by rotating the output shaft 85 with the torque of the motor. The toilet lid opening / closing unit 80b may also be provided on the second toilet lid hinge portion 62 side.

[0027] Next, the electric opening and closing unit 80 will be described. Figure 5 is a perspective view showing the configuration of the electric opening and closing unit 80 according to the embodiment. Figure 5 is also a plan view showing the configuration of the output shaft 85 of the electric opening and closing unit 80 according to the embodiment. As shown in Figure 5, the output shaft 85 of the electric opening and closing unit 80 is formed in an oval shape in the axial direction, and has a chamfered portion 88a on the output shaft tip surface 88 of the output shaft 85 in the axial direction. By forming it in an oval shape in the axial direction, the shaft diameter can be increased compared to when it is rectangular in the axial direction, and the axial strength in the axial direction can be improved. In addition, by providing the chamfered portion 88a on the output shaft tip surface 88, play can be provided in the fitting between the toilet seat drive side shaft hole 31a and the toilet lid drive side shaft hole 61a, thereby improving the ease of attaching and detaching the toilet seat 30 and the toilet lid 50. When opening and closing the toilet seat 30 and toilet lid 50, the opening direction surface 86a of the electric opening / closing unit output shaft and the closing direction surface 86b of the electric opening / closing unit output shaft come into contact with the opening direction surface 31b of the toilet seat drive side shaft hole and the closing direction surface 31c of the toilet seat drive side shaft hole and the opening direction surface 61b of the toilet lid drive side shaft hole and the closing direction surface 61c of the toilet lid drive side shaft hole, thereby driving the opening and closing.

[0028] As shown in Figure 6, the output shaft 85 is molded in two layers in the radial direction, consisting of a first output shaft layer 85a made of a flexible elastic material and a second output shaft layer 85b made of an elastic material with higher flexibility than the first output shaft layer 85a. The second output shaft layer 85b covers the first output shaft layer 85a in the radial direction and is molded to have a uniform thickness in the radial direction. By making the thickness of the second output shaft layer 85b uniform, collisions between the output shaft 85 and the toilet seat drive side shaft hole 31a and the toilet seat drive side shaft hole 61a can be mitigated in both directions of opening and closing the toilet seat 30 and the toilet seat lid 50. Furthermore, it can absorb loads from external forces that may be applied to the entire radial direction, such as during attachment and detachment. In this embodiment, the first output shaft layer 85a and the second output shaft layer 85b are elastic members capable of absorbing impact loads through elastic deformation, with the first output shaft layer 85a being molded from nylon resin and the second output shaft layer 85b being molded from silicone rubber, nitrile rubber, or the like.

[0029] Here, we will explain the rattling caused by the gap that occurs when the toilet lid 50 or toilet seat 30 is opened in a conventional toilet system. We will explain using the toilet lid 50 as an example, but the same applies to the toilet seat 30.

[0030] Figure 7(A) shows the state of the toilet lid 50 (or the output shaft 85 of the toilet lid opening / closing unit 80b) at each rotation angle and a graph of the self-weight torque (load torque) of the toilet lid 50 for each rotation angle. Figure 7(B) is a diagram illustrating the mechanism of rattle at the fitting portion between the output shaft 85 of the toilet lid opening / closing unit 80b and the toilet lid drive side shaft hole 61a that occurs when the toilet lid 50 is driven to open.

[0031] In Figure 7(A), the vertical axis represents the self-weight torque of the toilet lid 50, and the horizontal axis represents the rotation angle of the toilet lid 50. On the vertical axis, a self-weight torque greater than 0 means that the self-weight torque of the toilet lid 50 acts in the closing direction, and a value less than 0 means that the self-weight torque of the toilet lid 50 acts in the opening direction. An angle of 0° corresponds to the toilet lid 50 being completely closed, and the fully open angle corresponds to the toilet lid being opened to its limit angle.

[0032] In the toilet device, when the toilet lid is opened, as shown in Figure 7(A), the self-weight torque of the toilet lid 50 acts in the closing direction of the toilet lid 50 from the closed state of the toilet lid 50 up to the self-weight torque reversal position P10 (for example, the angle at which the center of gravity of the toilet lid 50 is located vertically above the axis of rotation, and the self-weight torque of the toilet lid becomes 0). However, beyond this self-weight torque reversal position P10, the self-weight torque of the toilet lid 50 reverses from the closing direction to the opening direction of the toilet lid 50.

[0033] The toilet lid drive shaft hole 61a and the output shaft 85 of the toilet lid opening / closing unit 80b at this time will be explained using Figure 7(B). When the toilet lid 50 starts to open, the output shaft 85 of the toilet lid opening / closing unit 80b rotates in the opening direction, and the opening direction surface 86a of the output shaft of the electric opening / closing unit and the opening direction surface 61b of the toilet lid drive shaft hole come into contact, causing the toilet lid 50 to start rotating in the opening direction. When the toilet lid reaches the above-mentioned self-weight torque reversal position, the toilet lid drive shaft hole 61a overtakes the output shaft of the electric opening / closing unit, so the opening direction surface 86a of the output shaft of the electric opening / closing unit and the opening direction surface 61a of the toilet lid drive shaft hole come into contact. After that, the toilet lid drive shaft hole 61a, which has overtaken the output shaft of the electric opening / closing unit, gains momentum, and the closing direction surface 86b of the output shaft of the electric opening / closing unit and the closing direction surface 61c of the toilet lid drive shaft hole come into contact. When the closed-direction surface 86b of the output shaft of the electric opening / closing unit and the closed-direction surface 61c of the shaft hole on the toilet lid drive side come into contact, they were not in contact until just before, and the toilet lid 50 is in a state where its operation cannot be controlled by the toilet lid opening / closing unit 80b. As a result, a collision occurs between the closed-direction surface 86b of the output shaft of the electric opening / closing unit and the closed-direction surface 61c of the shaft hole on the toilet lid drive side. This causes the toilet lid 50 to bounce, leading to collisions with the toilet tank or flushing panel and a decrease in the quality of the opening and closing operation.

[0034] In this invention, the output shaft 85 of the electric opening / closing unit is configured such that a second output shaft layer 85b, formed from a flexible elastic member, covers the first output shaft layer 85a in the radial direction. Therefore, when the closing direction surface 86b of the electric opening / closing unit output shaft 86b collides with the closing direction surface 61c of the toilet lid drive side shaft hole, the closing direction surface 86b of the electric opening / closing unit output shaft 86b bends and undergoes elastic deformation, thereby absorbing and mitigating the impact load. Furthermore, when the toilet lid 50 is driven to close, the closing direction surface 86b of the electric opening / closing unit output shaft 86b and the closing direction surface 61c of the toilet lid drive side shaft hole come into contact, causing the toilet lid 50 to begin rotating in the closing direction. However, once the self-weight torque reversal position is exceeded, the self-weight torque of the toilet lid 50 reverses from the opening direction to the closing direction. Consequently, a collision occurs between the opening direction surface 86a of the electric opening / closing unit output shaft 86a and the opening direction surface 61b of the toilet lid drive side shaft hole, opposite to the opening drive. Since the output shaft 85 of the electric opening / closing unit is covered in the radial direction by an elastic member, the closing direction surface 86b of the output shaft of the electric opening / closing unit can also bend and undergo elastic deformation. Similar to the opening operation, it can absorb and mitigate the impact load generated during the closing drive. Therefore, it is possible to suppress the bouncing at the open end of the toilet lid 50 and provide a toilet device that operates smoothly in both opening and closing. The same applies to the toilet seat 30, and the above effects can be achieved therein.

[0035] Embodiments of the present invention have been described above. However, the present invention is not limited to these descriptions. Modifications made by those skilled in the art to the above-described embodiments are also included within the scope of the present invention, as long as they retain the features of the present invention. For example, the shape, dimensions, materials, arrangement, and installation configuration of each element of the toilet device are not limited to those exemplified and can be modified as appropriate. Furthermore, the elements of each of the embodiments described above can be combined to the extent technically possible, and these combinations are also included within the scope of the present invention insofar as they include the features of the present invention. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0036] 10 Casing 15 Top side 19a First step section 19b Second step section 30 toilet seats 31. First toilet seat hinge section 31a Toilet seat drive shaft hole 31b Toilet seat drive side shaft hole opening direction surface 31c Toilet seat drive side shaft hole closing direction surface 32 Second toilet seat hinge section 50 toilet lid 61. First toilet lid hinge section 61a Toilet lid drive shaft hole 61b Toilet lid drive side shaft hole opening direction surface 61c Toilet lid drive side shaft hole closing direction surface 62 Second toilet lid hinge section 70 Cleaning Nozzles 80 Electric opening and closing unit 80a Toilet seat opening / closing unit 80b Toilet lid opening / closing unit 85 Output shaft 85a First output axial layer 85b Second Output Axis Layer 86a Electric opening / closing unit output shaft opening direction surface 86b Electric opening / closing unit output shaft closing direction surface 88 Output shaft tip surface 88a Chamfered section 100 toilet equipment P10 Self-weight torque reversal position

Claims

1. A rotating body which is a toilet seat or toilet lid, An opening / closing mechanism configured to allow opening in the forward direction and closing in the reverse direction from the closed position to the open position, A drive motor for opening and closing the aforementioned opening / closing body, A rotational output unit that is rotationally driven based on the driving force of the drive unit of the aforementioned drive motor, The aforementioned pivot shaft is fitted with a gap between them, thereby being driven to rotate. A rotation input unit for opening and closing the aforementioned opening / closing body, Equipped with, The aforementioned rotating output section has a flexible thin-walled section, It has a thicker section having lower flexibility than the thin section, The toilet device is characterized in that the thin-walled portion is configured to cover the thick-walled portion in the axial direction of the rotating output shaft.

2. The aforementioned thickened portion is The aforementioned rotating output shaft has a chamfered portion on the tip side in the axial direction, The toilet device according to claim 1, characterized in that the cross-section in the axial radial direction is oval in shape.

3. The thin-walled portion is The toilet device according to claim 1, characterized in that the rotating output shaft has a uniform thickness in the axial direction.

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