Excretion behavior recording device, excretion behavior recording method, and daily living activity display system

Abstract

This excretion behavior recording device comprises: a detection unit that detects vibration of a toilet; an extraction unit that extracts a characteristic quantity included in the vibration waveform, said characteristic quantity indicating respective excretion behaviors of a user for urination and defecation; a determination unit that determines whether a factor in the production of the vibration was urination or defecation, on the basis of the extracted characteristic quantity; and a recording unit that respectively records the determined urination and defecation.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This specification relates to an excretion behavior recording device and an excretion behavior recording method for recording the excretion behavior of a user of a toilet, and a daily life behavior display system including the excretion behavior recording device.

Background Art

[0002] With the progress of an aging society, the development of a system for supporting the care of home-bound elderly people and people with chronic diseases (users), particularly a care support system that remotely supports the application of IT technology, is underway. The care support system detects the daily life behaviors and health status of users and notifies a remote care manager or service providers of care services. Specific examples of the daily life behaviors to be detected include excretion behavior, eating behavior, sleep behavior, and the like. Conventionally, the daily life behaviors of users have been inferred based on, for example, the usage amounts of electricity, gas, and water.

[0003] On the other hand, the care manager formulates or modifies a care plan that conforms to the actual situation by referring to the notifications from the care support system. Also, the service provider changes the content of the care service by referring to the notifications. For example, when the daily life behaviors and health status of a user gradually decline, the care plan is modified to be more elaborate than before, and the care content is enriched. Technical examples of this type of care support system are disclosed in Patent Documents 1 and 2, and examples of detection technologies related to excretion behavior are disclosed in Patent Documents 3 and 4.

[0004] The excretion detection system of Patent Document 1 includes a gas sensor that detects gas generated from excrement, an acquisition means that extracts a feature amount of the detection signal of the gas sensor to obtain a feature amount vector, an excretion determination means that collates the feature amount vector in a feature amount space to determine the excretion situation, and an excretion situation notification means. According to this, it is said that the excretion pattern for each individual can be recognized using the gas sensor, and excretion can be accurately detected.

[0005] The life monitoring support device described in Patent Document 2 is connected to a device for acquiring user behavior information and a device for acquiring user biometric information, and includes a behavior estimation unit that estimates the user's lifestyle based on the user's behavior information, a health status determination unit that determines the user's health status based on the lifestyle behavior information and biometric information, and an output control unit that displays a monitoring screen including the health status on a display device on the caregiver's side.According to this, the user's health status can be grasped and provided to the caregiver.

[0006] The flush toilet device described in Patent Document 3 includes a first vibration sensor that detects a first vibration component based on the water flow in the drain trap of the toilet bowl, a second vibration sensor that is mounted in a position where it is difficult to detect the water flow and detects a second vibration component, and a drainage condition determination unit that determines a poor drainage condition of the toilet bowl by obtaining a net vibration component based on the water flow by subtracting the second vibration component from the first vibration component. According to this, the influence of vibrations based on factors other than water flow can be suppressed and the accuracy of determining a poor drainage condition of the toilet bowl can be improved.

[0007] The urinal cleaning system described in Patent Document 4 comprises a vibration detection means attached to the urinal, a determination means for determining whether or not urination has occurred based on the output of the vibration detection means, and a means for discharging cleaning fluid into the urinal based on the determination result of the determination means. According to this system, the state of the urinal can be accurately estimated by detecting vibrations, so the appropriate cleaning fluid can be dispensed according to the usage conditions. [Prior art documents] [Patent Documents]

[0008] [Patent Document 1] International Publication No. 2018 / 158978 [Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2014-186402 [Patent Document 3] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2020-20197 [Patent Document 4] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 10-299066 [Overview of the Initiative] [Problems that the invention aims to solve]

[0009] Incidentally, the technology described in Patent Document 1 uses a gas sensor to detect the user's excretory behavior and manage their health status, but it is intended for users lying on a futon or bed (bedridden users). Therefore, this technology cannot be applied to toilet users. In current technology targeting toilet users, the use of a camera-type sensor attached to the toilet seat is becoming mainstream. Since the camera-type sensor images urine and feces, it is possible to estimate the health status by analyzing the properties of urine and feces.

[0010] However, when the goal is to understand a user's lifestyle rather than their overall health, the characteristics of urine and stool are not essential; simply distinguishing between urination and defecation and recording the frequency of each should suffice. In this case, applying a camera-type sensor would necessitate replacing the toilet seat with one equipped with a sensor, resulting in significant costs and effort during implementation. In short, a system using camera-type sensors would be considered an overinvestment when the goal is to understand the user's lifestyle.

[0011] Furthermore, the behavioral information acquisition device disclosed in Patent Document 2 is capable of estimating the user's daily activities. However, it does not describe specific means for detecting the user's excretory behavior. Moreover, while Patent Documents 3 and 4 detect the vibration of the toilet bowl, they do not describe how to distinguish between the user's urination and defecation.

[0012] Therefore, this specification aims to provide a device and method for recording excretory behavior that can distinguish and record a user's urination and defecation, and that have low implementation costs, as well as a lifestyle activity display system comprising an excretory behavior recording device. [Means for solving the problem]

[0013] This specification discloses an excretion behavior recording device comprising: a detection unit for detecting vibrations of a toilet bowl; an extraction unit for extracting feature quantities included in the vibration waveform that indicate the user's respective excretion behaviors of urination and defecation; a determination unit for determining, based on the extracted feature quantities, whether the cause of the vibration is urination or defecation; and a recording unit for recording the determined urination and defecation, respectively.

[0014] Furthermore, this specification discloses a method for recording excretory behavior, comprising: a detection step for detecting vibrations of a toilet; an extraction step for extracting feature quantities included in the vibration waveform that indicate the user's respective excretory behaviors of urination and defecation; a determination step for determining, based on the extracted feature quantities, whether the cause of the vibration is urination or defecation; and a recording step for recording the determined urination and defecation, respectively.

[0015] Furthermore, this specification discloses a lifestyle activity display system comprising: the aforementioned excretion activity recording device; a lifestyle activity recording device that detects and records the user's lifestyle activities in the home other than the aforementioned excretion activity; and a display device that displays a time-series diagram of multiple lifestyle activities, including the user's excretion activity. [Effects of the Invention]

[0016] The disclosed toilet behavior recording device, toilet behavior recording method, and daily living activity display system detect toilet vibrations, acquire vibration waveforms, extract characteristic quantities from the vibration waveforms, determine urination and defecation based on these characteristics, and record urination and defecation separately. This allows for the distinction and recording of each user's urination and defecation. Furthermore, the detection unit can be easily attached to the outside of the toilet, eliminating the need to replace the toilet seat, and the detection unit is less expensive than a camera-type sensor, resulting in low implementation costs. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0017] [Figure 1]It is a diagram schematically showing the configuration of the excretion behavior recording device of the embodiment. [Figure 2] It is a diagram conceptually explaining the determination methods of urination, defecation, and noise by the determination unit. [Figure 3] It is a diagram showing an example in which the display unit graphically represents and displays excretion behavior in chronological order. [Figure 4] It is a diagram schematically showing the configuration of the daily life behavior display system of the embodiment. [Figure 5] It is a diagram showing an example in which the display device graphically represents and displays a plurality of items of the user's daily life behavior in a daily life cycle.

Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention

[0018] 1. Excretion Behavior Recording Device 1 of the Embodiment The configuration of the excretion behavior recording device 1 of the embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. 1. The excretion behavior recording device 1 is a device that focuses on excretion behavior for the purpose of grasping the user's life cycle. The excretion behavior recording device 1 takes one user as the recording target and the toilet bowl B exclusively used by that user as the detection target. Therefore, a user living alone at home becomes the main recording target. The excretion behavior recording device 1 separately records the user's urination and defecation. The excretion behavior recording device 1 is composed of a detection unit 2, an extraction unit 3, a determination unit 4, a recording unit 5, etc., and further has an attached display unit 61.

[0019] 2. Detection Unit 2 The detection unit 2 detects the vibration of the toilet bowl B and outputs the detected vibration waveform W. The detection unit 2 is attached to the outer surface of the toilet bowl B. Specifically, the detection unit 2 is preferably attached at a position within the range of the height of the washing water stored in the toilet bowl B on the outer surface of the toilet bowl B, particularly slightly below the water surface level L of the washing water. A plurality of detection units 2 may be provided. The adhesion between the toilet bowl B and the detection unit 2 can be ensured by an attachment method using an adhesive or the like. Thereby, the attenuation of vibration on the attachment surface is suppressed. This attachment method does not require replacement of the toilet seat or the like and is easy and labor-saving.

[0020] With the above mounting method, the detection unit 2 can detect vibrations of the toilet bowl B with high sensitivity. In addition, the detection unit 2 also has high sensitivity to vibrations transmitted from the flushing water to the toilet bowl B. The detection unit 2 has one or more means of outputting the vibration waveform W, such as a signal line, a wired communication unit, and a wireless communication unit. Furthermore, a replaceable dry cell battery or a power supply unit connected to a 100V AC power source in the residence can be used as the power source for the detection unit 2.

[0021] The detection unit 2 can be a vibration sensor that detects vibrations in a frequency range lower than the audible range. However, it is not limited to this, and the detection unit 2 may also be a sound sensor that detects vibrations in the audible range, or an ultrasonic sensor that detects vibrations in a frequency range higher than the audible range, etc. In other words, the frequency of vibrations detected by the detection unit 2 is not limited in this specification. Furthermore, the detection unit 2 is less expensive than a camera-type sensor for analyzing the properties of urine and feces.

[0022] The vibration waveform W is generated by the user's excretory behavior. Specifically, vibrations are generated when excreted urine or feces collide with the toilet bowl B. Alternatively, when urine or feces fall into the flushing water, the flushing water vibrates, and this vibration propagates to the toilet bowl B. The vibration waveform W is also generated when the toilet cover or seat is opened and closed, when the user sits down, and when the flushing water is discharged. Furthermore, noise caused by various vibration sources, as well as background noise, may also be detected by the detection unit 2. Background noise generally refers to vibrations whose source cannot be identified, have a small amplitude, and have irregular frequency and timing. Vibration waveforms W caused by factors other than urine and feces are not the intended target for detection and can therefore be called noise.

[0023] 3.Extraction part 3 The extraction unit 3, the determination unit 4, and the recording unit 5 are integrally configured using an FPGA device 3A (Field-Programmable-Gate-Array Device). The FPGA device 3A is provided separately from the detection unit 2, or is provided integrally with the detection unit 2. The FPGA device 3A acquires the vibration waveform W from the detection unit 2 using one or more of the signal lines, wired communication unit, and wireless communication unit.

[0024] The FPGA device 3A is a "programmable integrated circuit," and it is possible to perform individual waveform processing and judgment processing for each toilet bowl B. For example, since the vibration generation conditions and propagation characteristics differ depending on the structure of the toilet bowl B, the method of waveform processing performed by the extraction unit 3 on the vibration waveform W can be changed, and the judgment values ​​used by the judgment unit 4 can be set individually.

[0025] The extraction unit 3 extracts feature quantities included in the vibration waveform W that indicate the user's respective excretory behaviors of urination and defecation. In this embodiment, the feature quantities include the duration TC of the vibration waveform W and the maximum amplitude AM of the vibration waveform W. The duration TC is defined as the time period during which the amplitude of the vibration waveform W exceeds the noise level of the background noise. In other words, the extraction unit 3 maintains the noise level of the background noise, which may differ for each toilet B, and determines the duration TC and maximum amplitude AM for vibration waveforms W that exceed this noise level.

[0026] Furthermore, the extraction unit 3 preferably includes a bandpass filter, and more preferably includes multiple types of bandpass filters with different passband frequencies. The first purpose of including a bandpass filter is to remove noise, and the second purpose is to distinguish between urination and defecation. The frequency bands in which noise occurs, the frequency bands characteristic of vibrations during urination, and the frequency bands characteristic of vibrations during defecation can be measured individually for each toilet B in each residence. Therefore, based on the measurement results, the FPGA device 3A can be adjusted to appropriately set the passband frequency of the bandpass filter for each toilet B.

[0027] In other words, a bandpass filter with a first passband frequency that removes noise from one vibration waveform W while allowing the vibration component during urination to pass through, and a bandpass filter with a second passband frequency that removes noise from one vibration waveform W while allowing the vibration component during defecation to pass through, can be provided. The extraction unit 3 can then extract feature quantities from the vibration waveforms for urination detection and defecation detection output from the two bandpass filters, respectively. As a result, even if urination and defecation overlap in time, the extraction unit 3 can extract feature quantities separately for the two vibration waveforms. However, multiple types of bandpass filters are not essential, and the extraction unit 3 may extract feature quantities from the original vibration waveform W, or from a single waveform obtained by removing noise from the vibration waveform W.

[0028] 4. Judgment part 4 The determination unit 4 determines whether the source of the vibration is urination or defecation based on the extracted feature quantities, namely the duration TC and the maximum amplitude value AM. An example of the determination method of the determination unit 4 is shown in Figure 2. In Figure 2, the horizontal axis represents the duration TC of the vibration waveform W, and the vertical axis represents the maximum amplitude value AM of the vibration waveform W. In addition, the rectangular region (1) in the figure represents urination, the rectangular region (2) represents defecation, and regions (A) to (D) represent noise.

[0029] When the influence of background noise or other noise is small or sufficient noise reduction can be performed, the determination unit 4 makes the following determinations: Specifically, the determination unit 4 determines that the cause of the vibration is urination if the duration TC is longer than the first threshold time T1 and the maximum amplitude value AM is smaller than the first threshold amplitude value A1. The determination unit 4 also determines that the cause of the vibration is defecation if the duration TC is shorter than the second threshold time T2 and the maximum amplitude value AM is larger than the second threshold amplitude value A2. Furthermore, if the determination unit 4 cannot determine that the cause of the vibration is at least one of urination or defecation, it determines that the cause of the vibration is noise other than urination and defecation.

[0030] In practice, the influence of background noise and other noises should often be considered. In this case, the determination unit 4 determines that the cause of the vibration is urination if the duration TC is longer than the first threshold time T1 and shorter than the third threshold time T3, and the maximum amplitude value AM is smaller than the first threshold amplitude value A1 and larger than the third threshold amplitude value A3 (1). The determination unit 4 also determines that the cause of the vibration is defecation if the duration TC is shorter than the second threshold time T2 and longer than the fourth threshold time T4, and the maximum amplitude value AM is larger than the second threshold amplitude value A2 and smaller than the fourth threshold amplitude value A4 (2). Furthermore, the determination unit 4 determines that the cause of the vibration is noise in all other cases.

[0031] In Figure 2, noise in the region where the duration TC is longer than the third threshold time T3 (A) includes, for example, vibrations during the operation of a ventilation mechanism for deodorization. Noise in the region where the maximum amplitude value AM is greater than the fourth threshold amplitude value A4 (B) includes, for example, vibrations during the discharge of flushing water. Noise in the region where the duration TC is shorter than the fourth threshold time T4 (C) includes, for example, vibrations during the opening and closing of the toilet cover or seat, and vibrations when a user sits down. Noise in the region where the maximum amplitude value AM is smaller than the third threshold amplitude value A3 (D) includes, for example, background noise.

[0032] As mentioned above, the four threshold time and four threshold amplitude values ​​shown in the diagram can be set to different values ​​for each of the toilets B. This setting can be done by adjusting the FPGA device 3A. In other words, after the installer visits the user's home and installs the detection unit 2, the vibration waveform W during urination and defecation can be measured, the noise generation status can be measured, and the FPGA device 3A can be adjusted based on the measurement results to optimize the operating conditions of the excretion behavior recording device 1. Note that the relative magnitudes of the threshold time and the relative magnitudes of the threshold amplitude values ​​are not limited, but it is necessary to set them so that region (1) and region (2) do not overlap.

[0033] 5. Record Section 5 The recording unit 5 distinguishes and records urination and defecation as determined by the determination unit 4. More specifically, the recording unit 5 records urination and defecation in association with the date and time of their occurrence. Alternatively, the recording unit 5 aggregates and records the number of times urination and defecation occur per day. Furthermore, the recording unit 5 may also record supplementary information such as the time taken by the user for the excretory behavior.

[0034] Furthermore, the recording unit 5 records two urinations as a single urination if the interval between them is less than a predetermined time. For example, if the detection unit 2 detects two vibration waveforms W at a 3-minute interval and the determination unit 4 determines that there are two urinations, it is more natural to consider that the user's single urination behavior is divided into two. Therefore, a predetermined time longer than the 3 minutes in the above example, such as 10 minutes, is set. Then, in response to the determination unit 4's determination of two urinations within the predetermined time, the recording unit 5 treats them as a single urination and records them.

[0035] Furthermore, similar to the case of urination, the recording unit 5 records two bowel movements as a single bowel movement if the interval between them is less than or equal to a predetermined time. On the other hand, if the determination unit 4 determines that one urination and one bowel movement have occurred within a predetermined time, the recording unit 5 records the urination and bowel movement as separate events.

[0036] The recording destination of the recording unit 5 is the internal memory 51 of the FPGA device 3A. However, it is not limited to this, and the recording unit 5 may also record to external memory via wired communication or wireless communication. An example of external memory is the memory of a personal computer 6 having a display unit 61. The excretion behavior recording method of this embodiment is executed by the sequential operation of the detection unit 2, extraction unit 3, determination unit 4, and recording unit 5.

[0037] 6.Display section 61 The display unit 61 displays the contents recorded by the recording unit 5. In this embodiment, a display program in the personal computer 6 runs to edit the contents of the internal memory 51 or external memory and display them on the display unit 61. The display unit 61 may be located away from the user's home and may be able to retrieve the contents of the recording unit 5 using a public communication line such as the internet.

[0038] The display unit 61 displays excretory behavior in a time-series diagrammatic format. For example, the display example of the display unit 61 shown in Figure 3 displays the user's "excretory behavior over one week" in a time-series graph. In the upper left of the display example, the display period "2020 / 09 / 07~09 / 13" and the user's name "Mr. / Ms. ○○" are displayed. In the displayed graph, the white circles and dashed line graphs represent the trend of the number of urinations per day, and the black circles and solid line graphs represent the trend of the number of defecations per day. At the top of the graph, it is displayed that the number of defecations over the week was 12, and the number of urinations over the week was 33. Note that the display period is not limited to one week, but can be two weeks or one month, and can be made variable by setting.

[0039] The care manager or service provider responsible for the user can determine whether the user's toileting behavior is good or bad by visually checking the display on the display unit 61. At this time, the number of urinations and defecations are displayed separately in diagrams, making visual confirmation and judgment easy. For example, if there is a significant increase or decrease in the number of urinations or defecations, it may raise concerns about the user's health, and the care manager or service provider can take appropriate action such as making a phone inquiry or providing emergency home care.

[0040] In the excretion behavior recording device 1 of this embodiment, the detection unit 2 detects vibrations of the toilet bowl B and acquires vibration waveforms W, the extraction unit 3 extracts feature quantities of the vibration waveforms W, the determination unit 4 determines urination and defecation based on the feature quantities, and the recording unit 5 records urination and defecation respectively. Thus, it is possible to distinguish and record the user's urination and defecation separately. Furthermore, the detection unit 2 can be easily attached to the outside of the toilet bowl B, eliminating the need to replace the toilet seat, and the detection unit 2 is less expensive than a camera-type sensor, resulting in low implementation costs.

[0041] 7. Lifestyle activity display system 1A of the embodiment We will now move on to the description of the lifestyle activity display system 1A of the embodiment. In conventional care support systems, the lifestyle activities of users were indirectly estimated based on the amount of electricity, gas, and water used. However, because this estimation method is indirect, it was difficult to accurately capture the lifestyle activities of users. For example, lifestyle activities that can be estimated from water usage include multiple activities such as bathing, cooking, washing, and using the toilet, and it is difficult to distinguish between them. Also, in the conventional technology disclosed in Patent Document 2, etc., the lifestyle activities of users are displayed in a table format, making it difficult to visually confirm whether the user is spending each day regularly and in good condition.

[0042] The lifestyle activity display system 1A of this embodiment provides a solution to the problems described above. The lifestyle activity display system 1A is a system that focuses on multiple lifestyle activities with the aim of understanding the user's lifestyle cycle. The lifestyle activity display system 1A detects multiple lifestyle activities for a single user and displays the detected lifestyle activities in a chronological diagram. As shown in Figure 4, the lifestyle activity display system 1A consists of an excretion activity recording device 1, a lifestyle activity recording device 7, and a display device 8, and utilizes the services of a cloud server 9.

[0043] The defecation behavior recording device 1 has already been described. However, the display unit 61 is omitted. The recording unit 5 considers the pre-defecation preparation time for the occurrence time of the vibration waveform W and the post-defecation processing time for the disappearance time of the vibration waveform W for urination and defecation determined by the determination unit 4. The pre-defecation preparation time is the time from when the user enters the toilet until they actually start urinating or defecating. The post-defecation processing time is the time from when the user actually finishes urinating or defecating until they leave the toilet. Therefore, the recording unit 5 considers the time obtained by going back the pre-defecation preparation time from the occurrence time of the vibration waveform W as the start time of the defecation behavior, and the time obtained by the post-defecation processing time from the disappearance time of the vibration waveform W as the end time of the defecation behavior.

[0044] Since pre-excretion preparation time and post-excretion cleanup time vary greatly from user to user, it is preferable to set these individually for each user. Furthermore, pre-excretion preparation time and post-excretion cleanup time can naturally fluctuate with each user's excretion behavior and therefore contain errors. Nevertheless, by taking pre-excretion preparation time and post-excretion cleanup time into consideration, the time required for excretion can be made closer to the actual time.

[0045] The recording unit 5 records excretion data in its internal memory 51, associating it with whether it is urination or defecation, the date of occurrence, the start time, and the end time. Furthermore, the recording unit 5 transmits the same excretion data to the cloud access unit 91. The recording unit 5 may also omit recording the excretion data in its internal memory 51 and only transmit it to the cloud access unit 91. The cloud access unit 91 is, for example, communication software that runs continuously on a personal computer in the user's home. The cloud access unit 91 transmits the received excretion data to the cloud server 9.

[0046] Cloud server 9 is part of a publicly known computer service system that allows access from multiple users. Cloud server 9 requires users to enter an ID code and password to ensure confidentiality. Cloud server 9 stores the received excretion data in cloud memory 92.

[0047] The daily living activity recording device 7 detects and records the user's daily living activities within the home, excluding toileting activities. These activities include eating, sleeping, washing face and hands, getting dressed, and bathing. In this embodiment, eating and sleeping activities are the targets of detection and recording. The daily living activity recording device 7 consists of a first detection unit 71, a second detection unit 72, an analysis unit 73, and a recording unit 74, among others.

[0048] The two detection units (71, 72) detect the user's movements within the user's home. The detection units (71, 72) can include video cameras, radar sensors, infrared cameras, etc., and multiple units or different types can be used in combination. The first detection unit 71 is placed in the dining room where the user eats. The second detection unit 72 is placed in the bedroom where the user sleeps. The two detection units (71, 72) detect the user's movements and send the acquired movement data to the analysis unit 73.

[0049] The analysis unit 73 and the recording unit 74 can be configured using a computer device 7A. The analysis unit 73 analyzes the movements in the received motion data to determine the user's daily activities. For example, the analysis unit 73 analyzes the position, posture, and direction of movement of the user's trunk, head, and limbs to identify daily activities. Specifically, the analysis unit 73 determines that if the user is sitting in a chair and moving their hands between the table and their head in the motion data from the first detection unit 71, it is eating. The analysis unit 73 also determines that if the user is lying on bedding in the motion data from the second detection unit 72, it is sleeping. The analysis unit 73 further distinguishes between light sleep and deep sleep based on the movement of the limbs and other movements such as turning over in bed. The analysis unit 73 sends the start and end times of each of the eating activities, light sleep activities, and deep sleep activities to the recording unit 74.

[0050] The recording unit 74 accepts input from the user regarding eating behavior, specifically the meal menu. The recording unit 74 records meal data in memory 75, associating the date, start time, end time, and meal menu of the eating behavior. Furthermore, the recording unit 74 transmits the same meal data to the cloud access unit 91. The recording unit 74 also records sleep data in memory 75, associating the date, start time, and end time of light sleep behavior and deep sleep behavior. Furthermore, the recording unit 74 transmits the same sleep data to the cloud access unit 91. Note that the recording unit 74 may omit recording the meal data and sleep data in memory 75 and only transmit them to the cloud access unit 91.

[0051] The cloud access unit 91 transmits the received meal data and sleep data to the cloud server 9. The cloud server 9 stores the meal data and sleep data in the cloud memory 92. As a result, the cloud memory 92 accumulates excretion data, meal data, and sleep data.

[0052] The display device 8 displays a time-series diagram of multiple daily living activities of the user, including their toileting behavior. The display device 8 is capable of accessing the cloud server 9 and can be installed remotely from the user's home. There can be multiple display devices 8. Examples of display devices 8 include smartphones or tablet devices owned by care managers, and personal computers installed at care service companies.

[0053] In this embodiment, the display device 8 diagrams and displays the user's eating, elimination, and sleep behaviors as a daily life cycle. In other words, as one example of a chronological diagram, the display device 8 diagrams the daily "life cycle" as exemplified in Figure 5. In the upper left of the display example in Figure 5, the date of the day to be displayed, "2020 / 09 / 07," and the user's name, "Mr. / Ms. ○○," are displayed.

[0054] In the example shown in Figure 5, three bar graphs are displayed corresponding to three daily activities: eating, excretion, and sleep. Each bar graph has a left end representing 0:00 and a right end representing 24:00, and is divided into 1-hour intervals by thin lines. The upper bar graph for eating shows breakfast eating activities from 7:20 to 7:50 with hatching. Furthermore, the breakfast menu "rice, miso soup, fried egg" is displayed in the lower margin corresponding to breakfast. In addition, lunch eating activities and the menu "sweet bean paste bun, tea" from 12:20 to 13:00 are displayed. Finally, dinner eating activities and the menu "rice, miso soup, grilled fish" from 18:00 to 18:50 are displayed.

[0055] Furthermore, the middle bar graph for excretion displays defecation and urination with different hatching. Similar to eating behavior, the start and end times are also displayed for excretory behavior. Additionally, the lower bar graph for sleep displays light and deep sleep with different hatching. Similar to eating behavior, the start and end times are also displayed for sleep behavior. Above the bar graph, the number of meals per day is displayed as 3. Behind this display, the number of bowel movements is shown as 2, the number of urinations as 4, and the sleep duration as 5.5 hours.

[0056] The display device 8 displays multiple daily content items, as exemplified in Figure 5, i.e., several days' worth, arranged vertically. Alternatively, the display device 8 allows the user to scroll and move each of the multiple days' life cycles vertically. Alternatively, the display device 8 allows the user to sequentially switch between each of the multiple days' life cycles and display each day's worth at the same position on the screen using a click operation. In any of these display methods, the display device 8 can display the user's multiple days' life cycles in a comparative manner.

[0057] Care managers and service providers responsible for the user can accurately distinguish and understand the user's daily activities by visually viewing the display content of the display device 8. Furthermore, since the user's daily routine is displayed in a diagrammatic format, they can accurately understand the user's daily life cycle.

[0058] Furthermore, because the display is diagrammatic rather than in a text-based table format, visual confirmation is easy, and the relationships between multiple daily activities are easily seen. For example, it is easy to visually grasp things like whether sleep was interrupted for urination, or the length of time between urination after waking up in the morning and breakfast. In addition, since the user's daily cycles for multiple days are displayed in comparison, even small changes in the daily cycle can be easily grasped. For example, by comparing the daily cycles of the day before yesterday, yesterday, and today, it is possible to grasp slight differences in meal times and sleep times.

[0059] In addition, regarding eating behavior, not only the number of meals and their timing, but also the menus of the meals are recorded and displayed. Therefore, it becomes possible to understand the quality of the meals, such as the nutritional balance and whether there is a bias towards instant foods. Furthermore, regarding sleep behavior, not only the duration and timing of sleep are recorded and displayed, but also the distinction between light sleep and deep sleep is made. Therefore, in addition to the length of sleep, it becomes possible to understand the quality of sleep.

[0060] 8. Modifications and Applications of Embodiments Furthermore, the excretion behavior recording device 1 may be configured to display data on a remote display unit 61 using the services of a cloud server 9. In addition, the accuracy of the determination unit 4 can be improved by using a sensor that detects when a user enters the toilet where the toilet bowl B is installed. In other words, the determination unit 4 can correctly identify vibration waveforms W during periods when no user is in the toilet as noise, and can accurately determine the number of times a user urinates and defecates based on their actions from the time they enter the toilet until they leave. Examples of sensors used for this purpose include toilet door opening / closing detection sensors, infrared motion sensors that detect users, and surveillance cameras.

[0061] Furthermore, the features extracted by the extraction unit 3 are not limited to the duration TC and maximum amplitude AM of the vibration waveform W. For example, the extraction unit 3 may use the area of ​​the vibration waveform W corresponding to the vibration energy as a feature. Alternatively, the extraction unit 3 may determine the frequency distribution of the vibration waveform W and use the distribution pattern or the magnitude of specific frequency components as features. If the features are changed, the determination method and determination values ​​of the determination unit 4 will naturally be changed to match the features.

[0062] Furthermore, the cloud server 9 can be omitted in the lifestyle activity display system 1A. For example, the display device 8 can be configured to directly acquire excretion data from the recording unit 5 and to directly acquire meal data and sleep data from the recording unit 74. In addition, the lifestyle activity recording device 7 may be configured to have a detection unit installed in the bathroom to detect and record the user's bathing behavior, or to have a detection unit installed at the washbasin to detect and record the user's face washing and hand washing behavior.

[0063] Furthermore, the display device 8 may switch between displaying or display side-by-side not only the "Life Cycle" screen shown in Figure 5, but also the "Weekly Excretion Behavior" screen shown in Figure 3, the "Weekly Eating Behavior" screen (not shown), and the "Weekly Sleep Behavior" screen, based on the selection operation of the display menu. The embodiment can be modified and applied in various other ways. [Explanation of symbols]

[0064] 1: Excretion behavior recording device 1A: Daily living activity display system 2: Detection unit 3: Extraction unit 3A: FPGA device 4: Judgment unit 5: Recording unit 51: Internal memory 6: Personal computer 61: Display unit 7: Daily living activity recording device 71, 72: Detection unit 73: Analysis unit 74: Recording unit 75: Memory 8: Display device 9: Cloud server 92: Cloud memory B: Toilet W: Vibration waveform TC: Duration AM: Maximum amplitude value

Claims

1. A detection unit that detects vibrations of the toilet bowl, An extraction unit that extracts feature quantities included in the vibration waveform that indicate the user's respective excretory behaviors of urination and defecation, A determination unit that determines whether the cause of the vibration is urination or defecation based on the extracted feature quantities, The system includes a recording unit that records the determined urination and defecation, respectively. The aforementioned feature quantities include the duration and maximum amplitude of the vibration waveform. The determination unit, The duration is compared with a plurality of threshold times, and the maximum amplitude value is compared with a plurality of threshold amplitude values ​​to determine that the cause of the vibration is one of urination, defecation, or noise, and the plurality of threshold times and the plurality of threshold amplitude values ​​are set to different values ​​for each of the plurality of toilets. Excretion behavior recording device.

2. The excretion behavior recording device according to claim 1, wherein the detection unit is mounted on the outer surface of the toilet bowl at a position within the height range of the flushing water stored in the toilet bowl.

3. The excretory behavior recording device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the recording unit records the determined urination and defecation in association with the date and time of their occurrence.

4. The extraction unit, the determination unit, and the recording unit are configured using FPGA devices (Field-Programmable-Gate-Array Devices). The recording unit records data to the internal memory of the FPGA device, or records data to an external memory via communication. The excretion behavior recording device according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

5. The excretion behavior recording device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, further comprising a display unit for displaying the contents recorded by the recording unit.

6. The excretion behavior recording device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the detection unit is provided in the toilet where the user to be recorded is one person.

7. A defecation behavior recording device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, A lifestyle activity recording device that detects and records the user's lifestyle activities in the home other than the aforementioned excretory activities, A display device that displays the user's daily activities, including the excretory behavior, in a time-series diagrammatic manner, A lifestyle activity display system equipped with the following features.

8. The aforementioned lifestyle activity recording device is A detection unit for detecting the user's movements within their home, An analysis unit that analyzes the detected actions to determine the lifestyle behaviors, It has a recording unit that records the requested lifestyle activity in correspondence with the date and time of its occurrence, A lifestyle activity display system according to claim 7.

9. The lifestyle activity display system according to claim 7 or 8, wherein the display device diagrammatically displays the user's multiple lifestyle activities in a daily lifestyle cycle.

10. The lifestyle activity display system according to any one of claims 7 to 9, wherein the lifestyle activity of the user includes at least one of the following: eating, sleeping, washing face and hands, getting dressed, and bathing.

11. A detection step to detect vibrations in the toilet bowl, An extraction step of extracting feature quantities included in the vibration waveform that indicate the user's respective excretory behaviors of urination and defecation, A determination step of determining whether the cause of the vibration is urination or defecation based on the extracted feature quantities, The system includes a recording step for recording the determined urination and defecation, respectively. The integrated circuit performs the extraction step, the determination step, and the recording step. The aforementioned feature quantities include the duration and maximum amplitude of the vibration waveform. In the aforementioned determination step, The duration is compared with a plurality of threshold times, and the maximum amplitude value is compared with a plurality of threshold amplitude values ​​to determine that the cause of the vibration is one of urination, defecation, or noise, and the plurality of threshold times and the plurality of threshold amplitude values ​​are set to different values ​​for each of the plurality of toilets. Method for recording elimination behavior.

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