Toilet equipment

Abstract

To provide a toilet bowl device capable of efficiently sterilizing an internal space of a toilet bowl.SOLUTION: A toilet bowl device 1 that discharges washing water to a bowl 12 on the condition that a toilet lid 20 is in a closed state includes a sterilizer unit 30 for sterilizing a toilet bowl internal space A which is formed by the bowl and the toilet lid in the closed state. The sterilizer unit performs sterilization when the toilet lid is in the closed state in conjunction with the discharge of wash water into the bowl.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

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

Background Art

[0002] Recently, in order to suppress the scattering of contaminants contained in excrement, water droplets of washing water, etc. around the toilet, it has been encouraged to flow washing water into the bowl with the toilet lid closed. Thereby, the scattering of contaminants around the toilet is suppressed.

[0003] In Patent Document 1 below, when an operation unit for a washing operation such as a washing switch is operated, first, the toilet lid is closed. Further, in Patent Document 2 below, when a seating detection unit detects that the user has left the seat, control is performed to close the toilet lid. Thus, there has also been proposed a device that controls the toilet lid to be closed prior to washing.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Patent Document 2

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] However, when washing water is flowed into the bowl with the toilet lid closed, although the scattering of contaminants contained in excrement, water droplets of washing water, etc. around the toilet can be suppressed, there is a risk that droplets containing contaminants adhere to the back surface facing the bowl side of the toilet lid and the seating surface of the toilet seat in the internal space of the toilet. If the next user uses the toilet with contaminants adhering to the surface on the bowl side of the toilet lid or the seating surface of the toilet seat, there is a risk that the contaminants adhere to the user. Further, since contaminants remain in the internal space of the toilet, there is a risk that bacteria will grow from there.

[0006] This invention was proposed in view of these circumstances, and its purpose is to provide a toilet device that efficiently disinfects the internal space of the toilet bowl. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] To achieve the above objective, the toilet device of the present invention is a toilet device in which flushing water is discharged into the bowl on the condition that the toilet lid is in a closed state, and is equipped with a sterilization device that sterilizes the internal space of the toilet bowl formed by the bowl and the closed toilet lid, and the sterilization device is characterized in that it performs sterilization with the toilet lid in the closed state in conjunction with the discharge of flushing water into the bowl. [Effects of the Invention]

[0008] Because the toilet device of the present invention has the above-described configuration, the internal space of the toilet can be efficiently disinfected. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0009] [Figure 1] This is a basic block diagram of a toilet device according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] This is a schematic perspective view of the toilet unit. [Figure 3] This is a schematic longitudinal cross-sectional view of the toilet device. [Figure 4] This flowchart shows an example of how the toilet device operates. [Figure 5] This flowchart shows an example of how the toilet device operates. [Figure 6] This flowchart shows an example of how the toilet device operates. [Figure 7] This flowchart shows an example of how the toilet device operates. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0010] The toilet device according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. The vertical direction will be described based on the state in which the toilet device 1 is installed on the floor 3. The front-back and left-right directions will be described based on the state in which the user is sitting on the seating surface 24a of the toilet seat 24 with their back to the open toilet lid 20. In this specification, the state in which the toilet lid 20 and toilet seat 24 are upright in a substantially vertical position is called the open state, and the state in which they are tilted substantially horizontally and substantially parallel to the opening surface of the bowl 12 is called the closed state. In Figure 2, both the toilet lid 20 and toilet seat 24 of the toilet device 1 are in the open state, and in Figure 3, both the toilet lid 20 and toilet seat 24 are in the closed state.

[0011] The toilet device 1 discharges flushing water into the bowl 12, provided that the toilet lid 20 is in a closed state. The toilet device 1 is equipped with a sterilization device 30 that sterilizes the internal space A of the toilet bowl formed by the bowl 12 and the closed toilet lid 20. The sterilization device 30 sterilizes the toilet bowl with the toilet lid 20 in a closed state, in conjunction with the discharge of flushing water into the bowl 12. The following explains in detail.

[0012] The toilet device 1 comprises a bowl 12, a toilet flushing unit 13 that supplies flushing water to the bowl 12 and flushes the inside of the bowl 12, a toilet lid 20, a toilet lid opening / closing detection unit 21 that detects the opening and closing of the toilet lid 20, and a toilet lid drive unit 22 that opens and closes the toilet lid 20. The toilet device 1 also comprises a toilet lid operation unit 23 that receives opening and closing instructions from the user to the toilet lid drive unit 22. Furthermore, the toilet device 1 comprises a toilet seat 24, a toilet seat opening / closing detection unit 25 that detects the opening and closing of the toilet seat 24, a toilet seat drive unit 26 that opens and closes the toilet seat 24, a toilet seat operation unit 27 that receives opening and closing instructions to the toilet seat drive unit 26, and also includes a seating detection unit 28. Furthermore, the toilet device 1 includes a personal washing device 31 for washing the user's private parts, a disinfection device 30 for disinfecting the internal toilet space A formed by the bowl 12 and the closed toilet lid 20, and an air flow device 32 for circulating the air in the internal toilet space A. Next, we will explain in detail each component that makes up the toilet unit 1.

[0013] The toilet device 1 is a wall-mounted Western-style toilet device fixed to the floor 3, walls, etc. within the toilet space (toilet room). The toilet body 10 of this toilet device 1 includes a bowl 12 that opens upward, a rim portion 14 provided along the edge at the upper end of the bowl 12, and a skirt portion 11 that surrounds the periphery of the bowl 12. Further, above the rim portion 14, a toilet seat 24 and a toilet lid 20 that are rotatable and can be tilted with respect to the opening surface of the bowl 12 are provided.

[0014] Inside the internal space of the skirt portion 11, a toilet cleaning unit 13 is arranged that discharges the sewage in the bowl 12 and discharges cleaning water into the bowl 12 from a water supply port 2 such as a water pipe to clean the inside of the bowl 12. This toilet cleaning unit 13 has a water supply mechanism and a drainage mechanism.

[0015] The water supply mechanism includes a water supply port 2, a cleaning water supply path 15 that supplies the cleaning water supplied from the water supply port 2 into the bowl 12 from a discharge port 15b, and a water supply valve 15a arranged in the middle of the cleaning water supply path 15 that supplies or cuts off the water supply to the bowl 12.

[0016] The drainage mechanism has a movable trap 17 connected so as to extend rearward from the bottom of the bowl 12. This trap 17 is rotated in the vertical direction by a drive unit (not shown) to form a drainage state or a water sealing state. The trap 17 drawn by the solid line in FIG. 3 is in the position in the water sealing state, and the trap 17 drawn by the two-dot chain line in FIG. 3 shows the position in the drainage form rotated so that the open end 17a faces the drain port 18. The trap 17 is surrounded by a trap case 19 so that sewage and odors do not leak to the surroundings.

[0017] Note that the drainage mechanism is not limited to the movable trap 17, and it may be a trap 17 which is a bent cylindrical body connected so as to extend rearward from the bottom of the bowl 12 and extends downward and is connected to the drain port 18. As this type of drainage mechanism, there are a siphon type, a siphon jet type, a siphon vortex type, etc., and it is a mechanism in which a drainage state of draining the accumulated water together with the dirt in the bowl 12 or a water sealing state of accumulating the accumulated water in the bowl 12 is formed by the siphon action.

[0018] Further, the drainage mechanism is not limited to the siphon type and the movable type, and for example, it may be a wash-down type. In the illustrated example, the toilet device 1 is shown as a tankless type directly connected to the water supply without a flushing tank (low tank), but a configuration with a flushing tank may also be used.

[0019] The toilet lid drive unit 22 and the toilet seat drive unit 26 are each composed of a motor or the like. The toilet lid drive unit 22 electrically opens and closes (raises and lowers) the toilet lid 20 when there is an instruction from the toilet lid operation unit 23 or the like, and the toilet seat drive unit 26 electrically opens and closes (raises and lowers) the toilet seat 24 when there is an instruction from the toilet seat operation unit 27 or the like.

[0020] As shown in FIG. 2, the toilet device 1 is provided with three shutters 14a arranged in the left-right direction near the center of the rear side of the rim portion 14. The shutters 14a are normally closed and open in conjunction with the operation of members (in this embodiment, the sterilization device 30, the local cleaning device 31, the air flow device 32) provided on the rear side of the shutters 14a. The shutters 14a are numbered 14aa, 14ab, 14ac in order from the left side (the right side when the user is sitting on the seating surface 24a of the toilet seat 24 with their back to the open toilet lid 20) on the paper surface of FIG. 2. The shutter 14aa opens when the sterilization device 30 sprays a spraying agent such as ozone water into the toilet interior space A, the shutter 14ab opens when the local cleaning device 31 operates, and the shutter 14ac opens when the air flow device 32 operates.

[0021] In this embodiment, the sterilization device 30 is built into the toilet bowl body 10 and is configured as an ozone water generator for generating ozone water to sterilize the internal space A of the toilet bowl. The sterilization device 30 sprays ozone water into the internal space A of the toilet bowl through a flow path 30a connecting the bowl 12 and the sterilization device 30. The sterilization device 30 sprays ozone water into the internal space A of the toilet bowl by appropriately injecting pre-generated ozone water into the washing water during the washing process, or by atomizing the ozone water after the washing process is completed.

[0022] The ozone water generator can be configured such that, for example, a container in which the anode and cathode are separated by an ion exchange membrane (a type that allows only positive ions to pass through) is used to electrolyze water supplied from a water inlet 2 such as a water pipe, and the ozone water generated is stored on the anode side. If diamond electrodes are used as the anode and cathode, ozone water can be generated efficiently. When disinfecting with ozone water, the gas produced by the volatilization of the ozone water can disinfect areas that are difficult to reach with liquid, such as the underside 20a of the toilet lid 20 (the side facing the bowl 12 when the toilet lid 20 is closed) and the seating surface 24a of the toilet seat 24. Note that in Figure 3, the connection between the disinfection device 30 and the water inlet 2 is not shown.

[0023] The configuration of the disinfection device 30 is not limited to those described above, and the location where the disinfection device 30 is installed is not limited to that shown in the figure. The spraying agent used by the disinfection device 30 is not limited to ozonated water produced by electrolyzing tap water. The disinfection device 30 may spray a pre-replenished spraying agent into the toilet bowl interior space A. Alternatively, the disinfection device 30 may spray a gas generated using a pre-replenished agent into the toilet bowl interior space A, while simultaneously using an air flow device 32 to circulate air and efficiently diffuse the gas. Examples of these spraying agents include hypochlorous acid water and hypochlorous acid gas. Furthermore, the disinfection device 30 may be configured to spray fine particle ions having disinfecting and virus-inhibiting effects, generated by applying high voltage to moisture in the air. In addition, the disinfection device 30 may be configured to include an ultraviolet light that is installed on the toilet lid 20, toilet seat 24, rim 14, etc., and irradiates ultraviolet light toward the toilet bowl interior space A. Furthermore, the toilet unit 1 may be configured by combining multiple types of disinfection devices 30 as described above. In addition, a spraying device may be provided for spraying ozonated water or spraying agent from the disinfection device 30 in a mist-like manner towards the internal space A of the toilet.

[0024] The air flow device 32 is a component that circulates the air inside the toilet bowl space A in conjunction with the sterilization by the sterilization device 30. In this embodiment, the drying fan of the local washing device 31, which dries the wet buttocks etc., is used as the air flow device 32. Alternatively, instead of or in addition to the drying fan, a deodorizing fan of a deodorizing device may be used as the air flow device 32. When a deodorizing fan is used as the air flow device 32, the fan that rotates to draw in air from inside the bowl 12 for deodorization can be rotated in the reverse direction to blow air towards the toilet bowl space A. Furthermore, the air flow device 32 is not limited to using a drying fan or a deodorizing fan, and a dedicated fan for circulating the air inside the toilet bowl space A may be provided. In this embodiment, the toilet unit 1 is configured to use an air flow device 32 to efficiently diffuse the mist of ozonated water sprayed by the disinfection device 30 and the ozone gas generated when the ozonated water volatilizes within the internal space A of the toilet. However, a configuration without the air flow device 32 is also possible.

[0025] Furthermore, the toilet unit 1 is equipped with a toilet lid opening prevention means 8 that prevents the toilet lid 20 from being opened while disinfection is being performed by the disinfection device 30. Examples of toilet lid opening prevention means 8 include a mechanism that applies reverse torque to the toilet lid 20 or a locking mechanism that locks the rotation of the toilet lid 20's rotating shaft when the user tries to open the toilet lid 20 by putting their hand on it or by using the toilet lid operating unit 23. Other examples of toilet lid opening prevention means 8 include a mechanism that warns the user against opening the toilet lid 20 by issuing a warning signal such as a warning sound or the illumination of a lamp by the notification unit 7. By preventing the toilet lid 20 from being opened by the toilet lid opening prevention means 8, it is suppressed that the toilet lid 20 may be opened by the user during the disinfection operation of the disinfection device 30 and that the user may be sprayed with ozonated water or ozone gas. Furthermore, depending on the type of disinfection method used by the disinfection device 30, it may be undesirable for the human body. Therefore, the user's safety is improved by preventing the toilet lid 20 from being opened by the toilet lid opening prevention means 8.

[0026] The toilet unit 1 includes a main unit operation unit (not shown) provided on the toilet body 10 and a remote control 40 located away from the toilet body 10. These are equipped with operation switches and buttons for various operations and settings. An infrared communication type is preferably used as the remote control 40. The remote control 40 is equipped with a transmitter unit (not shown), and the toilet body 10 is equipped with a receiver unit (not shown).

[0027] The seating detection unit 28 may include, for example, a load sensor built into the toilet seat 24 or an infrared sensor located near the rotation axis of the toilet seat 24. These sensors detect when the user is seated or standing up. The toilet lid opening / closing detection unit 21 and the toilet seat opening / closing detection unit 25 are configured to detect the opening / closing state based on the opening angle.

[0028] The human body detection unit 9 employs infrared sensors, ultrasonic sensors, etc., located near the rotation axis of the toilet bowl body 10 and the toilet seat 24. These sensors detect when a user approaches and enters or leaves the toilet room.

[0029] Furthermore, the toilet unit 1 may be equipped with various functional devices such as a deodorizing device for deodorizing the inside of the bowl 12 and a heating unit for warming the toilet seat 24.

[0030] Furthermore, the toilet device 1 includes a flushing operation unit 29 that outputs flushing instructions to the toilet flushing unit 13. This flushing operation unit 29 includes a flushing button 29a for defecation and a flushing button 29b for urination that output flushing instructions to the toilet flushing unit 13 via a control unit 5, which will be described later.

[0031] Furthermore, it is desirable that the flushing operation unit 29 be located on either the main unit operation unit on the toilet bowl 10 or the remote control 40 located at a distance from the toilet bowl 10. Alternatively, instead of providing both a flushing button 29a for defecation and a flushing button 29b for urination, a single flushing button may be used to output the flushing instruction. In other words, in that case, there is no distinction between a large volume of water for defecation and a small volume for urination in the bowl 12; only one type of large volume of water for defecation is used.

[0032] The toilet device 1 controls the above-mentioned control targets (toilet flushing unit 13 such as the water supply valve 15a and trap 17, toilet lid drive unit 22, toilet seat drive unit 26, etc.), while also including a control unit 5 that receives output signals from the flushing operation unit 29, toilet lid opening / closing detection unit 21, toilet seat opening / closing detection unit 25, seating detection unit 28, etc. This control unit 5 is composed of a processor such as a CPU or MPU and various programs. The toilet device 1 further includes a timing unit 6 that measures the time since the flushing by the toilet flushing unit 13 was completed, and a power supply unit (not shown) that supplies power to the toilet device 1, etc.

[0033] Furthermore, the toilet device 1 is equipped with a notification unit 7 consisting of a speaker or the like that notifies the user of any abnormalities, status, or guidance of the device using sound or voice synthesis. The notification unit 7 may also be configured to include, in addition to or instead of sound output, a display such as an LED or a lamp that lights up or flashes.

[0034] Next, the operation examples of this toilet device 1 will be explained based on the flowcharts in Figures 4 to 7. Figures 4 to 6 explain the operation example when a flushing instruction is given, and Figure 7 explains the operation example when the human body detection unit 9 detects a person during the disinfection operation. Note that the following operation examples are just examples and are not limited to these. Also, in the following explanation, the flushing instruction is assumed to be made by operating the flushing operation unit 29, but is not limited to this. For example, the seating detection unit 28 may detect when the user leaves the toilet seat 24, and a flushing instruction may be issued triggered by the change from seated to unseated.

[0035] In the following description of operation, the detection of the open / closed state of the toilet lid 20 and the open / closed state of the toilet seat 24 is performed by the respective detection units, but the description of the operation of these detection units will be omitted. Similarly, the opening and closing operations of the toilet lid 20 and the toilet seat 24 are performed by the respective drive units, but the description of these drive units will also be omitted.

[0036] First, the operation shown in Figure 4 will be explained following the flowchart shown in steps S100 to S106. In the following explanation, the operation steps in Figures 4 to 7 will be abbreviated as "Sxxx" instead of "Step Sxxx".

[0037] When the control unit 5 receives a cleaning instruction from the cleaning operation unit 29, it determines whether the toilet lid 20 is open or closed (S101). If the toilet lid 20 is closed, the control unit 5 starts the cleaning process (N in S101, S102). If the cleaning operation unit 29 is equipped with a toilet flushing button 29a and a toilet flushing button 29b, the cleaning process performs a full flush when the toilet flushing button 29a is operated, and a partial flush when the toilet flushing button 29b is operated.

[0038] On the other hand, if the toilet lid 20 is open when the flushing operation unit 29 issues a flushing instruction (Y in S101), the control unit 5 determines whether the toilet seat 24 is open or closed (S104). If the toilet seat 24 is closed, the toilet lid 20 is closed (N in S104, S105). On the other hand, if the toilet seat 24 is open, the toilet seat 24 is controlled to close, and then, or in conjunction with the closing operation of the toilet seat 24, the toilet lid 20 is closed (Y in S104, S106, S105). In this way, if the toilet lid 20 is closed, the flushing process is started (S102).

[0039] Simultaneously with the cleaning process in S102, or during the cleaning process after a predetermined time has elapsed since the start of the cleaning process (S103), the disinfection process by the disinfection device 30 is started. The disinfection process may involve spraying ozonated water using the disinfection device 30, which is an ozonated water generator as described above, or the disinfection process may be carried out using a disinfection device 30 with a configuration different from that shown in the figure or described above.

[0040] As described above, in the toilet device 1 that performs the operation shown in Figure 4, the disinfection process is started simultaneously with or while the flushing process is in progress. This disinfects the space A inside the toilet bowl, suppressing the growth of bacteria.

[0041] Next, we will explain the operation example shown in Figure 5, following steps S201 to S208. Note that we will omit explanations of parts that overlap with the flowchart in Figure 4 mentioned above.

[0042] The operations of S201, S206, S207, and S208 in Figure 5 are substantially the same as the operations of S101, S104, S105, and S106 in Figure 4, so their explanation is omitted. In short, when the user issues a cleaning command using the cleaning operation unit 29, regardless of the open / closed state of the toilet lid 20 and toilet seat 24 when the cleaning command is received, the toilet lid 20 will be closed immediately before cleaning begins (N in S201, S207).

[0043] If the toilet lid 20 is closed, washing water is discharged into the bowl 12 to start washing (S202). After washing is finished, disinfection is started by the disinfection device 30 (S203, S205). A delay of a certain amount of time may be set between the end of washing and the start of disinfection (S204). If a delay is set, the time measurement unit 6 measures the time since the end of washing (or the time since the start of washing), and disinfection is started by the disinfection device 30 after a certain period of time has elapsed.

[0044] Next, we will explain the operation example in Figure 6 according to S301 to S307. Note that we will omit the explanation of parts that overlap with the flowchart in Figure 4 mentioned above.

[0045] Steps S301, S305, S306, and S307 in Figure 6 are essentially the same as steps S101, S104, S105, and S106 in Figure 4, so their explanation is omitted. In short, when the user issues a cleaning instruction using the cleaning operation unit 29, regardless of the open / closed state of the toilet lid 20 and toilet seat 24, the toilet lid 20 will ultimately be in the closed state (N in S301, S306).

[0046] If the toilet lid 20 is closed, the toilet flushing unit 13 discharges flushing water into the bowl 12 to start the flushing process (S302). During or after this flushing process, the human body detection unit 9 detects whether there is a person near the toilet body 10 (S303). If there is no person near the toilet body 10, the disinfection process by the disinfection device 30 is started (N in S303, S304). If there is a person near the toilet body 10, the disinfection process by the disinfection device 30 is not started until the human body detection unit 9 no longer detects a person (Y in S303). In short, in the operation example in Figure 6, the activation condition for the disinfection operation of the disinfection device 30 is that the human body detection unit 9 does not detect a person after the flushing command. In this case, if the human body detection unit 9 is configured to operate during the flushing process, the disinfection process may be started when the human body detection unit 9 stops detecting a person during the flushing process, or it may not be started until after the flushing process is completed.

[0047] As described above, in the operation examples in Figures 4 to 6, washing is initiated when the toilet lid 20 is closed and washing water is discharged into the bowl 12. The disinfection device 30 then disinfects the toilet with the lid 20 closed, in conjunction with the discharge of washing water into the bowl 12 (in conjunction with washing). In the operation example in Figure 4, disinfection is initiated simultaneously with or during the washing process. In the operation example in Figure 5, disinfection is initiated immediately after the washing process is completed or after a predetermined time has elapsed since the washing process was completed. In the operation example in Figure 6, disinfection is initiated after the person has left the toilet following the washing instruction. Thus, various timings are used for initiating the disinfection process by the disinfection device 30.

[0048] Some disinfection methods used by the disinfection device 30 may be undesirable to the human body. In such cases, it is preferable to employ the example operation shown in Figure 5, which includes a delay after the completion of cleaning, or the example operation shown in Figure 6, which does not start the disinfection process until a person is no longer detected near the toilet bowl 10. Furthermore, if the disinfection method does not have adverse effects on the human body, it is acceptable to employ the example operation shown in Figure 4 or the example operation shown in Figure 5, which starts disinfection immediately after the completion of cleaning.

[0049] In the toilet device 1 of this embodiment, the disinfection device 30 disinfects the internal space A of the toilet bowl when the toilet lid 20 is closed. With the toilet lid 20 closed, the spraying agent such as ozone gas volatilized from the ozonated water fills the internal space A of the toilet bowl, efficiently disinfecting every corner of the internal space A, including the underside 20a of the toilet lid 20 and the seating surface 24a of the toilet seat 24. In addition, with the toilet lid 20 closed, the spraying agent such as ozone gas is less likely to leak out of the toilet bowl body 10.

[0050] Next, we will explain the operation example shown in Figure 7 in accordance with S401 and S402. Figure 7 shows the operation when the human body detection unit 9 changes from not detecting a human body to detecting one during the disinfection process as shown in Figures 4 to 6. When the human body detection unit 9 detects a human body during the disinfection process, the disinfection device 30 stops the disinfection process (S401). Then, it opens the toilet lid 20 which is in a closed state (S402). In short, in Figure 7, the disinfection operation of the disinfection device 30 is operated under the condition that no human body is detected.

[0051] If a person leaves the toilet after the toilet lid 20 has been opened without using the toilet (without issuing a flushing command), the disinfection process may be restarted. Also, if a flushing command is issued again after the toilet lid 20 has been opened, the operation shown in Figures 4 to 6 may be performed, and disinfection of the toilet bowl interior space A may be restarted.

[0052] In the operation examples shown in Figures 4 and 5, the system is configured to allow disinfection even if the human body detection unit 9 detects a person. Therefore, if the control shown in Figure 7 is added to the control shown in Figures 4 and 5, and disinfection is started while the human body detection unit 9 is detecting a person, the disinfection will continue. Then, after the person leaves the toilet room and the human body detection unit 9 becomes non-detective, if a person is detected again during the disinfection process, the operation example shown in Figure 7 will be performed and the disinfection process will stop. In short, in this case, the disinfection process is stopped when the human body detection unit 9 changes from non-detection to detection.

[0053] The configuration of the toilet bowl device 1 is not limited to those described above or illustrated. For example, in Figure 3, the sterilization device 30 is configured to open the shutter 14aa and then spray ozonated water into the toilet bowl interior space A through the flow path 30a. However, the shutter 14aa may be omitted, and the flow path 30a may be connected to the flushing water supply path 15. In this case, the ozonated water is supplied to the toilet bowl interior space A from the discharge port 15b of the flushing water supply path 15.

[0054] Furthermore, the operation examples of the toilet device 1 are not limited to those described above or illustrated. For example, in the operation example of Figure 6, a certain delay may be set after the human body detection unit 9 in S303 stops detecting a person, and then the human body detection unit 9 detects a person again to confirm that there is no person before starting the disinfection process. With such a configuration, even if a person who was waiting outside enters the toilet room after someone has left, the toilet device 1 can be prevented from entering the room while disinfection is in progress.

[0055] Alternatively, the system may be configured such that disinfection by the disinfection device 30 is not performed when the urine flushing button 29b is operated, but disinfection by the disinfection device 30 is performed when the feces flushing button 29a is operated. Unlike feces, urine does not contain many contaminants, so by not performing disinfection when urination occurs (when the urine flushing button 29b is operated), costs such as electricity bills can be reduced. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0056] 1 Toilet equipment 8 Means for prohibiting opening of toilet lid 10 Toilet bowl 12 bowls 20 toilet lid 24 toilet seats 30 Disinfection devices 32 Air flow device A Toilet interior space

Claims

1. A toilet device in which flush water is discharged into a bowl on the condition that the toilet lid is in a closed state, a sterilization device for sterilizing the internal space of the toilet formed by the bowl and the toilet lid in a closed state, The sterilization device is characterized in that it performs sterilization while the toilet lid is closed in conjunction with the discharge of flush water into the bowl.

2. In claim 1, A toilet apparatus characterized by comprising a toilet lid opening prohibition means for prohibiting the toilet lid from being opened while sterilization is being performed by the sterilization device.

3. In claim 1 or 2, The toilet apparatus is characterized in that the sterilization device starts sterilization when a person is not detected as an activation condition.

4. In any one of claims 1 to 3, The toilet apparatus is characterized in that the sterilization operation is stopped when a state of a person changes from non-detection to detection during the sterilization operation.

5. In any one of claims 1 to 4, A toilet apparatus characterized by comprising an air flow device that flows air within the interior space of the toilet bowl in conjunction with sterilization by the sterilization device.

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