Iot-based infrared healthcare bathtub

Abstract

An IoT-based infrared healthcare bathtub, according to the present invention, comprises: a bathtub main body (10); a plurality of near-infrared irradiation units (30) that are installed in the bathtub main body (10) and irradiate near-infrared light onto the body of a user in the bathtub main body (10); a data storage unit (60) that stores operation-related data of the near-infrared irradiation unit (30); an information provision unit (70) that wirelessly provides the data stored in the data storage unit (60) to a user terminal or a remote controller; and a control unit (80) that receives a signal from a sensor unit and controls the operation of the near-infrared irradiation unit (30), wherein the near-infrared irradiation unit (30) includes: a PCB (31); a plurality of near-infrared LEDs (32) mounted on the PCB (31); and a lens (33) for widening an orientation angle of near-infrared light emitted from the plurality of near-infrared LEDs (32) and directed into the bathtub main body (10) via a hole (38) or a light-transmitting window (39) formed in the bathtub main body (10).

Description

IoT-based infrared healthcare bathtub

[0001] The present invention relates to a bathtub, and more particularly, to an IOT-based infrared healthcare bathtub that can contribute to the health of a user by utilizing infrared rays, preferably near-infrared rays, which have a deep penetration depth into the skin and have health-beneficial effects.

[0002] This application claims priority to Korean Patent Application No. 10-2024-0002684, filed January 8, 2024, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.

[0003] In general, a bathtub is a tub that provides a space for the user to hold water for bathing.

[0004] Conventional bathtubs mostly offer limited functionality, providing users with a space to immerse themselves in water, and do not offer any special health-related features, which makes them lacking in healthcare aspects such as muscle relaxation, improved blood circulation, and stress relief.

[0005] In this regard, bathtubs with massage functions have been proposed recently, but they still have many limitations in terms of healthcare.

[0006] Furthermore, bathtubs are used regularly and for extended periods, and come into close contact with the user's body during use. Therefore, compared to other hygiene products, they are ideally suited to provide periodic health benefits. Despite this, existing bathtubs fail to offer additional, detailed benefits for health promotion or maintenance. Furthermore, they lack customized services tailored to individual health conditions and lack features to monitor or improve the user's health.

[0007] Therefore, there is a growing demand for the addition of features that can help with health and healthcare to existing bathtubs, which have been developed solely in terms of durability and design.

[0008] The present invention has been proposed to solve the problems of the prior art, and is configured to enable a user to exchange information related to near-infrared irradiation and / or user health-related information through a user terminal based on the Internet of Things, i.e., IOT, and provides an IOT-based infrared healthcare bathtub that can activate human tissues and promote blood circulation through the effect of irradiating near-infrared light in close proximity to various parts of the user's body during the use of the bathtub, thereby improving the health of the bathtub user.

[0009] An IOT-based infrared healthcare bathtub according to one aspect of the present invention comprises: a bathtub body (10) including a lower portion (16), a side portion (17), a back portion (18), and a front portion (19), and forming a space filled with water inside in which a user can immerse his / her body; a plurality of near-infrared irradiation units (30) installed in the bathtub body (10) to irradiate near-infrared light to a human body of a user within the bathtub body (10); a data storage unit (60) in which data related to the operation of the near-infrared irradiation units (30) is stored; an information provision unit (70) for wirelessly providing data stored in the data storage unit (60) to a user terminal or a remote controller; And it includes a control unit (80) that receives a signal from the sensor unit (11) and controls the operation of the near-infrared irradiation unit (30) independently or under the control of the user terminal or the remote controller, and the near-infrared irradiation unit (30) includes a PCB (31), a plurality of near-infrared LEDs (32) mounted on the PCB (31), and a lens (33) that widens the angle of direction of near-infrared light emitted from the plurality of near-infrared LEDs (32) and directed into the bathtub body (10) through a hole (38) or a light-transmitting window (39) formed in the bathtub body (10).

[0010] The above-described IOT-based infrared healthcare bathtub further includes a health information acquisition unit (90), and data related to the operation of the near-infrared irradiation unit (30) and health information data acquired by the health information acquisition unit (90) are stored in the data storage unit (60), and the data related to the operation of the near-infrared irradiation unit (30) and the user's health information data stored in the data storage unit (60) are wirelessly provided to a user terminal or remote controller through the information provision unit (70).

[0011] The above IoT-based infrared healthcare bathtub further includes a bathtub use detection unit (40) that is provided in the bathtub body (10) and detects whether a user is using the bathtub by a human body detection sensor and a water level sensor.

[0012] The above lens (33) or the light-transmitting window (39) is watertightly connected to the hole (38), and an air discharge passage (391) for compressed air that generates bubbles in the water contained in the bathtub body (10) is formed in the lens (33) or the light-transmitting window (39).

[0013] The above health information acquisition unit includes a photoplethysmography measurement unit, and the photoplethysmography measurement unit includes one or more light-emitting units (91) and one or more light-receiving units (92) mounted on the PCB (31), and the light-emitting units (91) and the light-receiving units (92) are arranged closer to the optical axis of the lens (33) than the plurality of near-infrared LEDs (32).

[0014] The above-described IOT-based infrared healthcare bathtub further includes a far-infrared irradiation unit (30') installed in the bathtub body (10) and irradiating far-infrared light into the bathtub body (10), and data related to the operation of the near-infrared irradiation unit (30), data related to the operation of the far-infrared irradiation unit (30'), and health information data acquired by the health information acquisition unit (90) are stored in the data storage unit (60), and the data related to the operation of the near-infrared irradiation unit (30), data related to the operation of the far-infrared irradiation unit (30') stored in the data storage unit (60), and the user's health information data are wirelessly provided to a user terminal or remote controller through the information provision unit (70).

[0015] According to another aspect of the present invention, an IOT-based infrared healthcare bathtub comprises: a bathtub body (10) including a lower portion (16), a side portion (17), a back portion (18), and a front portion (19), and forming a space filled with water in which a user's body can be immersed; a plurality of near-infrared irradiation units (30) installed on the lower portion (16), the side portion (17), the back portion (18), and the front portion (18) of the bathtub body (10) to irradiate near-infrared light to the human body of a user immersed in the bathtub water; a far-infrared irradiation unit (30') installed on at least one of the lower portion (16), the side portion (17), the back portion (18), and the front portion (18) of the bathtub body (10) to irradiate far-infrared light to the human body of a user immersed in the bathtub water; an underwater massage nozzle unit (20) installed on at least one of the lower portion (16), the side portion (17), the back portion (18), and the front portion (19) of the bathtub body (10) to perform an underwater massage function; The bathtub use detection unit (40) is provided in the bathtub body (10) and detects whether or not the user is using the bathtub; a health information acquisition unit (90) acquires health information of the user located in the bathtub body (10); a data storage unit (60) in which data related to the operation of the near-infrared irradiation unit (30) and data related to the operation of the far-infrared irradiation unit (30') and health information data acquired by the health information acquisition unit (90) are stored; an information provision unit (70) for providing the data related to the operation of the near-infrared irradiation unit (30), the data related to the operation of the far-infrared irradiation unit (30') and the health information data stored in the data storage unit (60) to a user terminal or a remote controller; and a control unit (80) that receives a signal from the bathtub use detection unit (40) and controls the operations of the near-infrared irradiation unit (30) and the far-infrared irradiation unit (30') independently or under the control of the user terminal or the remote controller.

[0016] According to another aspect of the present invention, an IOT-based infrared healthcare bathtub comprises: a bathtub body (10) including a lower portion (16), a side portion (17), a back portion (18), and a front portion (19), and forming a space filled with water inside in which a user can immerse his / her body; a plurality of infrared irradiation units (30 or 30') installed in the bathtub body (10) to irradiate near-infrared light to a human body of a user within the bathtub body (10); a data storage unit (60) in which data related to the operation of the infrared irradiation units (30 or 30') is stored; an information provision unit (70) for wirelessly providing data stored in the data storage unit (60) to a user terminal or a remote controller; And it includes a control unit (80) that receives a signal from the sensor unit (11) and controls the operation of the infrared irradiation unit (30 or 30') independently or under the control of the user terminal or the remote controller, and the infrared irradiation unit (30 or 30') includes a PCB, a plurality of infrared LEDs mounted on the PCB, and a lens that widens the angle of direction of infrared light emitted from the plurality of infrared LEDs and directed into the bathtub body through a hole or a light-transmitting window formed in the bathtub body.

[0017] Here, the infrared irradiation unit (30 or 30') includes both a near-infrared irradiation unit including a near-infrared LED and a far-infrared irradiation unit including a far-infrared LED, and therefore, when only the near-infrared irradiation unit is installed, when only the far-infrared irradiation unit is installed, and when both are installed, all are within the scope of the present invention.

[0018] According to the present invention, when a bathtub user immerses his / her body in water contained in the bathtub, a plurality of near-infrared irradiation units provided on the lower part, side part, backrest part, and / or front part of the bathtub irradiate near-infrared rays to the user in close proximity, thereby helping to improve the health of the bathtub user. The core of the infrared irradiation healthcare bathtub, which utilizes near-infrared rays that have the characteristic of penetrating into the human skin to a certain depth together with warm water, is the efficacy through smooth blood circulation and activation of the parasympathetic nerves. In other words, the infrared irradiation healthcare bathtub induces health improvement through activation of blood circulation and parasympathetic nerves, and by using warm water and near-infrared light that penetrates into the human body to a certain depth, it immediately warms the human body and promotes blood circulation, and as a result, it can improve pain and inflammation in specific areas such as indigestion, intestinal diseases, hemorrhoids, piles, cold hands and feet, etc., which are caused by poor blood circulation. More specifically, the infrared irradiation healthcare bathtub is effective in eliminating body waste and toxins through blood circulation, reducing body fat, alleviating skin diseases such as atopy, allergies, and eczema, increasing and strengthening immunity, detoxifying (irritating to the skin, heavy metals, mold, bacteria, etc.), relieving skin, muscles, and nerves through parasympathetic nerve activation, recovering from fatigue, relieving insomnia, relieving pain, relieving stress, beautifying the skin, and anti-aging. In addition, the present invention can provide the effects of improving blood circulation, recovering from fatigue, providing safe sunbathing without ultraviolet rays, improving depression or insomnia due to increased serotonin, promoting metabolism, reducing body fat, increasing muscle mass, activating enzyme functions, enhancing the activity of NK (Natural Killer) cells that kill cancer cells, and reducing pain.

[0019] In addition, the present invention provides a health information acquisition unit in a bathtub to check the health status of a bathtub user, collect the data, and effectively manage the user's health status using an IoT system. For example, if the health information acquisition unit includes a photoplethysmography measurement unit, the user's blood flow status is checked and collected, and the collected health data of the bathtub user is provided to the bathtub user's mobile phone app via the IoT system, allowing the user to check his or her health status.

[0020] There are already countless bathtub products on the market, but this product goes beyond the simple bathtub function and adds various healthcare functions such as those mentioned above, as well as a function that allows users to manage their health on a daily basis through a mobile phone app, differentiating it from general bathtub products.

[0021] In addition, the collected health information of users can be used to help users lead a healthy lifestyle through organic cooperation with institutions that require the user's health information, such as hospitals, pharmacies, and insurance companies, with the user's consent.

[0022] Figure 1 is a block diagram for explaining an overall IoT-based infrared healthcare bathtub according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0023] FIG. 2 is a schematic drawing of the upper surface of an IOT-based infrared healthcare bathtub according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0024] FIG. 3 is a schematic drawing of the back of an IOT-based infrared healthcare bathtub according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0025] FIG. 4 is a schematic drawing showing a side view of an IOT-based infrared healthcare bathtub according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0026] FIG. 5 is a drawing for explaining one embodiment of a near-infrared irradiation unit that can be applied to the IOT-based infrared healthcare bathtub illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 4.

[0027] FIG. 6 is a drawing for explaining another embodiment of a near-infrared irradiation unit that can be applied to the IOT-based infrared healthcare bathtub illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 4.

[0028] Figures 7 to 12 illustrate various effects of near-infrared rays, and Figure 13 is a block diagram for explaining an overall IOT-based infrared healthcare bathtub according to another embodiment of the present invention.

[0029] Fig. 14 is a drawing showing the upper surface of the IOT-based infrared healthcare bathtub illustrated in Fig. 13.

[0030] [Explanation of symbols]

[0031] 10: Bathtub body

[0032] 20: Underwater massage nozzle section

[0033] 30: Near-infrared irradiation section

[0034] 40: Bathtub use detection unit

[0035] 50: Near-infrared setting section

[0036] 60: Data storage

[0037] 70: Information Department

[0038] 80: Control unit

[0039] 90: Obtaining health information

[0040] 2: User terminal

[0041] Hereinafter, specific embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the attached drawings.

[0042] The embodiments of the present invention may be modified in various ways, and the scope of the present invention should not be construed as being limited to the embodiments detailed below. These embodiments are provided to more fully explain the present invention to those of ordinary skill in the art.

[0043] Accordingly, the shapes of components depicted in the drawings may be exaggerated to emphasize a clearer description. It should be noted that identical components may be depicted with the same reference numerals in each drawing. Furthermore, detailed descriptions of functions and configurations of known technologies that may unnecessarily obscure the gist of the present invention may be omitted.

[0044] First, the configuration of an IOT-based infrared healthcare bathtub according to a specific embodiment of the present invention is as follows through FIGS. 1 to 6.

[0045] As illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 6, an IOT-based infrared healthcare bathtub according to an embodiment of the present invention comprises a bathtub body (10) having a lower portion (16), a side portion (17), a back portion (18), and a front portion (19), and forming a space inside thereof filled with bathtub water for immersing a user's body; a plurality of near-infrared irradiation units (30) installed in the lower portion (16), the side portion (17), the back portion (18), and the front portion (18) of the bathtub body (10) to irradiate near-infrared light, more preferably, near-infrared light having a wavelength in the range of 600 nm to 1600 nm, into the bathtub body (10), more specifically, to the human body of a user immersed in water in the bathtub; and an underwater massage unit (30) installed in at least one of the lower portion (16), the side portion (17), the back portion (18), and the front portion (19) of the bathtub body (10), particularly, in the back portion (18) that functions as a backrest, and performing an underwater massage function. A massage nozzle unit (20), a bathtub use detection unit (40) provided in the bathtub body (10) to detect whether or not the user is using the bathtub, a control unit (80) that receives a signal from the bathtub use detection unit (40) to control the operation of the near-infrared irradiation unit (30) and stores data related to the operation of the near-infrared irradiation unit (30) in a data storage unit (60) during the control process, a near-infrared setting unit (50) in which near-infrared operation settings including the operation time (or, near-infrared irradiation time), the number of operations, and / or the near-infrared irradiation intensity of the near-infrared irradiation unit (30) are set, a health information acquisition unit (90) that acquires health status information of a user located in the bathtub body (10), and a data storage unit (60) in which data such as near-infrared irradiation setting values ​​including the operation time, the number of operations, and / or the infrared irradiation intensity of the near-infrared irradiation unit (30) and / or health status information acquired by the health information acquisition unit (90) are stored, It includes an information provision unit (70) for providing data stored in the above data storage unit (60) to the user.

[0046] At this time, the near-infrared setting unit (50), the data storage unit (60), and the health information acquisition unit (90) can also be controlled by the control unit (80).

[0047] The above bathtub use detection unit (40) may include a human body detection sensor that detects the user's human body and / or a water level detection sensor that detects the water level of the bathtub. Even if only one of the human body detection sensor and the water level detection sensor is used, the control unit (80) can determine the user's intention to use the bathtub and, based on the determination result, control the operation of the near-infrared ray irradiation unit (30) and the solenoid operation connected to the underwater massage nozzle unit (20). If the underwater massage function is omitted, the solenoid operation control function of the control unit (80) is also omitted. By applying both the human body detection sensor and the water level detection sensor, it is possible to prevent the near-infrared ray irradiation unit (30) from malfunctioning due to a user approaching the bathtub for other reasons, such as cleaning the bathtub, or mistaking the filling of water for actual use of the bathtub.

[0048] In addition, the near-infrared light irradiated from the near-infrared irradiation unit (30) has a relatively high penetrability for water, so a considerable amount of it penetrates deep into the water and transfers heat. Since the water contained in the bathtub body (10) absorbs the near-infrared light and converts it into heat, it is preferable that a water temperature sensor (81) be provided on one side of the bathtub body (10), more preferably, on the near-infrared irradiation unit (30) or in the vicinity thereof to measure the change in water temperature in the adjacent area. It is preferable that the near-infrared irradiation unit (30) be configured to operate according to a preset value, but the control unit (40) be configured to forcibly turn off the on operation of the near-infrared irradiation unit (30) according to a signal from the water temperature sensor (81) in order to prevent excessive rise of the bathtub water due to energy absorption of the near-infrared light.

[0049] The above information provision unit (70) may include a wireless communication unit for wireless communication with a user terminal, such as a smartphone (2) or an application applied thereto. Accordingly, the IoT-based infrared healthcare bathtub can wirelessly exchange data with a user terminal, i.e., a mobile phone or remote controller, through the above-described information provision unit (70).

[0050] As mentioned above, the near-infrared irradiation setting values ​​including the operating time, number of operations, and / or infrared irradiation intensity of the near-infrared irradiation unit (30) and / or the health status information acquired by the health information acquisition unit (90), or the water temperature information data are stored in the data storage unit (60), and the information stored in the data storage unit (60) in this way is provided to the user terminal (2), i.e., a smartphone, or a remote controller, by wireless data communication via the information provision unit (70). The user can control the near-infrared irradiation and other functions of the near-infrared irradiation unit (30) by connecting to the control unit (80) and the near-infrared setting unit (50) through an application pre-installed on the user terminal (2). At this time, it goes without saying that the control unit (80) can also control the near-infrared irradiation unit (30), etc., independently from the smartphone or remote control.

[0051] At this time, the control unit (80), the data storage unit (60), and the information provision unit (70) may be implemented by components and electric circuits mounted on a PCB installed on one side of the exterior of the bathtub body (10), but this does not limit the present invention.

[0052] The health information acquisition unit (90) may include various sensing devices known in the art or to be developed in the future that can detect or monitor the health status of a user located within the bathtub body (10). In the present embodiment, the health information acquisition unit (90) may include a photoplethysmography measurement unit, which may include a light emitting unit that irradiates light of a specific wavelength range to a specific area of ​​a human body located within the bathtub body (10) and a light receiving unit that receives light sensitivity according to changes in blood vessel volume of the human body. Although measurement is possible using a single wavelength, the utilization of pulse waves and accuracy can be further increased by measuring by irradiating two different wavelengths of light at one point. In this case, two light emitting units that irradiate light of different wavelength bands and two corresponding light receiving units may be used. Blood flow, blood vessel status, oxygen saturation, etc. collected by the photoplethysmography measurement unit can be measured. It may be advantageous for the above-mentioned near-infrared irradiation unit (30) to use a ceramic crystal glass material to activate the near-infrared wavelength.

[0053] In addition, it is preferable that the near-infrared irradiation unit (30) be configured to irradiate near-infrared rays in the wavelength range of approximately 600 to 1600 nm. The infrared irradiation time can be set, and typically 10 to 20 minutes is appropriate for a single use. When the bathtub use detection unit (40) detects a human body in the bathtub, the plurality of near-infrared irradiation units (30) are automatically turned on and operated automatically. The plurality of near-infrared irradiation units (30) can be set to blink. As briefly mentioned above, arbitrary setting adjustments can be made through the near-infrared setting unit (50) using a smartphone (2) or a remote controller having a solution application installed.

[0054] As mentioned above, a plurality of near-infrared ray irradiation units (30) are installed on the lower part (16), side part (17), back part (18), and front part (19) of the bathtub body (10) to irradiate near-infrared rays to the human body of a user immersed in the bathtub water. In this specification, the term "back part" refers to a part formed at a position where the user supports his or her back, and is typically formed to be inclined at a gentle angle so as to support the user's back and neck. The term "front part" refers to a part located on the opposite side of the back part, and typically a faucet can be positioned thereon.

[0055] FIG. 5 (a) and (b) are drawings for explaining embodiments of a near-infrared irradiation unit (30). Referring to these, the near-infrared irradiation unit (30) may include a PCB (31), a plurality of near-infrared LEDs (32) mounted on the PCB (31), and a lens (33) installed in front of the near-infrared LEDs (32) and configured to widen the angle of direction of near-infrared light irradiated into the bathtub body (10) through a hole (38) or a light-transmitting window (39) formed in the bathtub body (10). As shown in (a) of Fig. 5, when the transparent window (39) is omitted, the lens (33) can be watertightly joined to the hole by, for example, ultrasonic welding or a watertight member such as packing, and as shown in (b) of Fig. 5, when the hole is watertightly finished with the transparent window (39), the lens (33) can be placed between the near-infrared LED (32) and the transparent window (39). The reflector (34) has a shade shape that extends forward toward the lens (33) and can serve to collect near-infrared light onto the lens (33). The reflector (34) or a metal material with excellent heat dissipation performance is preferred. The lens (33) for expanding the beam angle can be a convex lens as shown, but alternatively, a lens that expands the beam angle in another way, such as an aspherical lens or a Fresnel lens, can be employed. PCB (31) is preferably a metal PCB based on a metal with high thermal conductivity, such as Al or Al alloy, so that it can quickly release the heat generated during near-infrared irradiation operation.

[0056] Hereinafter, referring to the drawings for explaining other embodiments of the near-infrared irradiation unit (30) of Fig. 6 (a) and (b), the near-infrared irradiation unit (30) may include a PCB (31), a plurality of near-infrared LEDs (32) mounted on the PCB (31), and a lens (33) disposed in front of the near-infrared LEDs (32) and configured to widen the angle of incidence of near-infrared light irradiated into the bathtub body (10) through a hole (38) or a light-transmitting window (39) formed in the bathtub body (10). At this time, referring to Fig. 6 (a), a compressed air discharge passage (331) for forming bubbles in the bathtub water is formed at an edge portion of the lens (33), and compressed air is introduced into the space within the bathtub body (10) through the compressed air discharge passage (331) connected to the air pipe, thereby generating bubbles that generate a massage effect in the bathtub water. In the case where the transparent window (39) shown in (b) of Fig. 6 is structured to block the hole and have a lens (33) positioned behind it, it may also be considered to form an air discharge passage (391) for generating bubbles in the transparent window (39).

[0057] Referring to FIGS. 5 and 6 together, a photoplethysmography measurement unit that can constitute all or part of the aforementioned health information acquisition unit (90; see FIG. 1) is additionally provided on a PCB (31) on which a plurality of near-infrared LEDs (32) are mounted. The photoplethysmography measurement unit includes one or more light-emitting units (91) and one or more light-receiving units (92) mounted on the PCB (31), wherein the light-emitting unit (91) irradiates light of a specific wavelength range to a specific area of ​​the user's body, and the light-receiving unit (92) receives the amount of light sensitivity according to the change in blood vessel volume of the body. Although measurement is possible using a single wavelength, the usability of the pulse wave can be increased and accuracy can be further improved by measuring by irradiating light of two different wavelengths at one point. At this time, the light emitting unit (91) and the light receiving unit (92) are arranged adjacent to the optical axis of the lens (33) so that the least refraction, reflection, or internal reflection occurs at the incident surface and the emission surface of the lens (33) compared to other near-infrared LEDs, which contributes to increasing measurement reliability.

[0058] Meanwhile, it is preferable that the photoplethysmography measurement unit utilize two light-emitting units that irradiate light of different wavelength bands and two corresponding light-receiving units. As mentioned above, health information such as blood flow, vascular condition, and oxygen saturation collected by the photoplethysmography measurement unit is stored in the data storage unit (60; see Fig. 1) and can be transmitted to the user's smartphone (2; see Fig. 1) or a remote controller.

[0059] Referring again to FIGS. 1 to 6, the operational effects according to the operation of the IoT-based healthcare infrared bathtub of the present invention described above will be examined.

[0060] The IOT-based healthcare infrared bathtub according to the present invention is operated based on an IOT system that allows users to arbitrarily adjust optional operations before use, such as Wi-Fi, IOT solutions, and smartphone (2) apps.

[0061] The technical feature of the IoT-based healthcare bathtub according to the present invention is that a near-infrared ray irradiation unit (30) is installed in the bathtub body (10) to reflect the characteristics of thermal therapy that is effective when performed periodically, such as blood circulation and strengthening immunity, thereby providing the beneficial characteristics of near-infrared rays that penetrate deeper into the human body than other radiant energy and perform various human recovery functions.

[0062]

[0063] The clinical trial results of Figs. 7 to 12 (subjects: men and women visiting gynecology and urology departments) and the table below can be confirmed.

[0064] 1. Rapid uterine recovery after childbirth or gynecological treatment - It helps prevent uterine aging, early menopause, and continuous uterine care that is very important after surgery. 2. Promotes bowel function - The warming effect on the lower abdomen and rectum helps relieve fundamental constipation by making bowel movements smooth, and it keeps the mucous membrane skin of the anus comfortable, which is effective in relieving itching. 3. The effect of comfortably drying the moist female area - It creates a vaginal environment that fungal harmful bacteria hate, and is effective in preventing vaginitis, unpleasant female area odor, and Y-zone discoloration. 4. Discharge of waste products such as menstrual blood and vaginal discharge - When infrared rays are irradiated, waste products such as menstrual blood, vaginal discharge, vaginal discharge, and secretions that have accumulated in the uterus are discharged cleanly and in a timely manner through uterine blood circulation, helping to maintain a clean and healthy uterus. 5. Improved immunity (NK immunity index increased by 28.3%) - NK cells are immune cells that directly destroy virus-infected cells or cancer cells, and are particularly helpful in building strong immunity against viruses and cancer. - A 1 degree increase in body temperature increases immunity by 50% - A 1 degree decrease in body temperature reduces immunity by 30% & basal metabolic rate by 12% 6. Prostate circulation - The prostate is located in the front of men, so it has a high infrared thermal effect, and it helps prostate circulation, improving prostatitis and benign prostatic hyperplasia.

[0065] In addition, near-infrared rays stimulate the dermis, helping to produce collagen and elastin, and transmit heat waves to blood vessels, contributing to improved blood circulation.

[0066] In particular, near-infrared rays penetrate the skin more than 10 mm to produce nitric oxide, thereby expanding capillaries and improving blood circulation.

[0067] Additionally, it closely examines the skin from the epidermis to the muscle layer, ensuring vascular health, relieving stress, sterilizing wounds that may be present on the body, and helping them heal more quickly.

[0068] Referring back to FIGS. 1 to 6, the IoT healthcare bathtub according to the present embodiment operates based on IoT, and information such as the usage time of the near-infrared irradiation unit (30) and the health information of the bathtub user are stored in the data storage unit (60) and can be transmitted to the user in a Wi-Fi or Bluetooth environment. Information on the average usage time of the user per bathtub is also obtained from the usage time of the near-infrared irradiation unit (30), and this can also be utilized as information for checking the user's health status.

[0069] According to the present invention, by providing various bathtub usage information to a user smartphone app through an information provision unit (70) under the control of a control unit (80), it is possible to assist in the management and monitoring of the user's health.

[0070] Therefore, the IOT-based healthcare bathtub according to this embodiment can perform a near-infrared irradiation function based on IOT, and can help lead a healthier lifestyle through remote control using an IOT solution app or remote controller and data management of bathtub usage information.

[0071]

[0072] Referring to FIGS. 13 and 14, an IOT-based healthcare bathtub according to another embodiment of the present invention is described as follows.

[0073] As shown in FIGS. 13 and 14, the IOT-based infrared healthcare bathtub according to the present embodiment includes a bathtub body (10) that forms a space inside thereof filled with bathtub water for immersing the user's body, a plurality of near-infrared irradiation units (30) that are installed in the lower part (16), the side part (17), the back part (18) and the front part (18) of the bathtub body (10) and irradiate near-infrared light to the human body of the user immersed in the bathtub water, a plurality of far-infrared irradiation units (30') that are installed in the lower part (16), the side part (17), the back part (18) and the front part (18) of the bathtub body (10) and irradiate far-infrared light to the human body of the user immersed in the bathtub water, and a plurality of far-infrared irradiation units (30') that are installed in the lower part (16), the side part (17), the back part (18) and the front part (19) of the bathtub body (10) and irradiate far-infrared light to the human body of the user immersed in the bathtub water, At least one location, in particular, an underwater massage nozzle unit (20) installed on a back portion (18) that functions as a backrest and performs an underwater massage function, a bathtub use detection unit (40) provided in the bathtub body (10) to detect whether the bathtub is being used, a control unit (80) that receives a signal from the bathtub use detection unit (40) and controls the operation of the near-infrared ray irradiation unit (30) and the far-infrared ray irradiation unit (30'), a near-infrared ray setting unit (50) and a far-infrared ray setting unit (50') that set the operation of the near-infrared ray and the far-infrared ray, including the operation time (or, irradiation time), the number of operations, and / or the irradiation intensity of the near-infrared ray irradiation unit (30) and the far-infrared ray irradiation unit (30'), a health information acquisition unit (90) that acquires health status information of a user located in the bathtub body (10), and the operation time of the near-infrared ray irradiation unit (30) and the far-infrared ray irradiation unit (30'), A data storage unit (60) in which data such as near-infrared irradiation setting values ​​including the number of movements and / or irradiation intensity, far-infrared irradiation setting values ​​and / or health status information acquired by the health information acquisition unit (90) is stored,It includes an information provision unit (70) for providing data stored in the above data storage unit (60) to the user.

[0074] At this time, the near-infrared setting unit (50), the far-infrared setting unit (50'), the data storage unit (60), and the health information acquisition unit (90) can also be controlled by the control unit (80).

[0075] The above bathtub use detection unit (40) may include a human body detection sensor that detects the user's human body and a water level detection sensor that detects the water level of the bathtub.

[0076] In addition, a water temperature sensor (81) for measuring the temperature change of the bathtub water is provided on one side of the bathtub body (10). In addition, an ambient temperature sensor (82) for measuring the temperature of the air around the bathtub may be further provided on the outside of the bathtub body (10). The control unit (80) calculates or predicts the optimal operating time, optimal operating cycle, and optimal irradiation intensity of the near-infrared irradiation unit (30) and the far-infrared irradiation unit (30') that can perform far-infrared irradiation and near-infrared irradiation while maintaining the temperature of the bathtub water at an appropriate temperature based on the water temperature information and ambient temperature information provided by the water temperature sensor (81) and the ambient temperature sensor (82), and the volume of the bathtub water measured from the water level sensor, and the setting values ​​of the near-infrared irradiation unit (30) and the far-infrared irradiation unit (30'), and can control the near-infrared irradiation unit (30) and the far-infrared irradiation unit (30') based on the resultant values.

[0077] In addition, in the previous embodiment, instead of omitting the light emitting unit for the photoplethysmography measurement unit mounted together with the near-infrared LED on the PCB included in the near-infrared irradiation unit (30), multiple sets of light emitting units (91) and light receiving units (92) are installed vertically in the upper center of the back portion (18) that functions as a backrest. The multiple sets of light emitting units (91) and light receiving units (92) for the photoplethysmography measurement unit arranged vertically allow one set among the multiple sets to be used for measurement depending on the physical condition of the user.

[0078] The control unit (80) can control various electronic elements in the bathtub, including the near-infrared irradiation unit (30), the far-infrared irradiation unit (30'), and the solenoid, independently and / or through the control of a user terminal (2) or remote controller that is linked through an installed application.

[0079] The remaining configuration is substantially the same or similar to the previous embodiment, and therefore, description of overlapping content is omitted.

[0080] Modified embodiments should not be understood individually from the technical spirit or scope of the present invention, and such modified embodiments should be included within the scope of the appended claims of the present invention.

Claims

1. A bathtub body (10) including a lower part (16), a side part (17), a back part (18) and a front part (19), and forming a space filled with water inside in which a user can immerse his / her body; A plurality of near-infrared irradiation units (30) installed in the bathtub body (10) and irradiating near-infrared light to the human body of a user within the bathtub body (10); A data storage unit (60) in which data related to the operation of the above near-infrared irradiation unit (30) is stored; An information providing unit (70) for wirelessly providing data stored in the above data storage unit (60) to a user terminal or remote controller; and It includes a control unit (80) that receives a signal from the sensor unit (11) and controls the operation of the near-infrared irradiation unit (30) independently or under the control of the user terminal or the remote controller. An IOT-based infrared healthcare bathtub characterized in that the near-infrared irradiation unit (30) includes a PCB (31), a plurality of near-infrared LEDs (32) mounted on the PCB (31), and a lens (33) that expands the angle of incidence of near-infrared light emitted from the plurality of near-infrared LEDs (32) and directed into the bathtub body (10) through a hole (38) or a light-transmitting window (39) formed in the bathtub body (10).

2. In paragraph 1, An IOT-based infrared healthcare bathtub further comprising a health information acquisition unit (90), wherein operation-related data of the near-infrared irradiation unit (30) and health information data acquired by the health information acquisition unit (90) are stored in the data storage unit (60), and the operation-related data of the near-infrared irradiation unit (30) stored in the data storage unit (60) and the health information data are wirelessly provided to a user terminal or remote controller through the information provision unit (70).

3. In paragraph 1, An IOT-based infrared healthcare bathtub characterized by further including a bathtub use detection unit (40) provided in the bathtub body (10) to detect whether a user is using the bathtub by a human body detection sensor and a water level sensor.

4. In paragraph 1, An IOT-based infrared healthcare bathtub characterized in that the lens (33) or the transparent window (39) is watertightly coupled to the hole (38), and an air discharge passage (391) for compressed air that generates bubbles in water contained in the bathtub body (10) is formed in the lens (33) or the transparent window (39).

5. In paragraph 2, An IOT-based infrared healthcare bathtub, wherein the health information acquisition unit includes a photoelectric pulse measurement unit, and the photoelectric pulse measurement unit includes one or more light-emitting units (91) and one or more light-receiving units (92) mounted on the PCB (31), and the light-emitting units (91) and the light-receiving units (92) are arranged closer to the optical axis of the lens (33) than the plurality of near-infrared LEDs (32).

6. In paragraph 1, An IOT-based infrared healthcare bathtub characterized in that it further includes a far-infrared irradiation unit (30') installed in the bathtub body (10) and irradiates far-infrared light into the bathtub body (10), wherein operation-related data of the near-infrared irradiation unit (30), operation-related data of the far-infrared irradiation unit (30'), and health information data acquired by the health information acquisition unit (90) are stored in the data storage unit (60), and the operation-related data of the near-infrared irradiation unit (30), operation-related data of the far-infrared irradiation unit (30') stored in the data storage unit (60), and the user's health information data are wirelessly provided to a user terminal or remote controller through the information provision unit (70).

7. A bathtub body (10) including a lower part (16), a side part (17), a back part (18), and a front part (19) and forming a space filled with water in which the user can immerse their body; A plurality of near-infrared irradiation units (30) installed on the lower part (16), side part (17), back part (18) and front part (18) of the above bathtub body (10) to irradiate near-infrared light to the human body of a user immersed in the bathtub water; A far-infrared ray irradiation unit (30') installed on at least one of the lower part (16), side part (17), back part (18) and front part (18) of the bathtub body (10) to irradiate far-infrared light to the human body of a user immersed in the bathtub water; An underwater massage nozzle part (20) installed on at least one of the lower part (16), side part (17), back part (18) and front part (19) of the bathtub body (10) and performing an underwater massage function; A bathtub use detection unit (40) provided in the above bathtub body (10) to detect whether the user is using the bathtub; A health information acquisition unit (90) that acquires health information of a user located within the bathtub body (10); A data storage unit (60) in which data related to the operation of the above near-infrared irradiation unit (30), data related to the operation of the above far-infrared irradiation unit (30'), and health information data acquired by the above health information acquisition unit (90) are stored; An information providing unit (70) for providing data related to the operation of the near-infrared irradiation unit (30), data related to the operation of the far-infrared irradiation unit (30'), and the health information data stored in the data storage unit (60) to a user terminal or remote controller; and An IOT-based infrared healthcare bathtub characterized by including a control unit (80) that receives a signal from the bathtub use detection unit (40) and controls the operation of the near-infrared ray irradiation unit (30) and the far-infrared ray irradiation unit (30') independently or under the control of the user terminal or remote controller.

8. A bathtub body (10) including a lower part (16), a side part (17), a back part (18), and a front part (19), and forming a space filled with water inside in which a user can immerse his / her body; A plurality of infrared ray irradiation units (30 or 30') installed in the bathtub body (10) and irradiating near-infrared light to the human body of a user within the bathtub body (10); A data storage unit (60) in which operation-related data of the above infrared irradiation unit (30 or 30') is stored; An information providing unit (70) for wirelessly providing data stored in the above data storage unit (60) to a user terminal or remote controller; and It includes a control unit (80) that receives a signal from the sensor unit (11) and controls the operation of the infrared irradiation unit (30 or 30') independently or under the control of the user terminal or the remote controller. An IOT-based infrared healthcare bathtub characterized in that the infrared irradiation unit (30 or 30') includes a PCB, a plurality of infrared LEDs mounted on the PCB, and a lens that expands the angle of incidence of infrared light emitted from the plurality of infrared LEDs and directed into the bathtub body through a hole or light-transmitting window formed in the bathtub body.

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