JP7519002B2 - Bathtub cleaning system - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a bathtub cleaning system that includes a bathtub cleaning device, and in particular to a system that eliminates problems when commanding the start of a cleaning operation from an operation remote control outside the bathroom.

Conventionally, bathtub cleaning devices have been put into practical use, which include a cleaning nozzle at the bottom of the bathtub, a storage tank near the bathtub that stores hot and cold water from the hot water supply device, a cleaning unit having valves (on-off valves and constant flow valves), a cleaning pump, a check valve, a flow sensor, etc., and a detergent supply system that supplies detergent to the hot and cold water that is discharged, and which spray a cleaning solution made by adding detergent to the hot and cold water from the cleaning nozzle onto the inner surface of the bathtub to automatically clean the inner surface of the bathtub.

The bathtub cleaning device is basically operated by a cleaning operation remote control, but since the bathtub cleaning device is connected to the hot water supply device so as to be able to send and receive signals, it can also be operated by a bathroom operation remote control or a kitchen operation remote control.
Moreover, recently, it has become possible to remotely control the water heater and bathtub cleaning system via the Internet using a smartphone or the like.

Patent document 1 discloses a technology that prevents bathtub cleaning operation from being performed even if the bathtub cleaning operation switch is turned on while the bath function operation is being performed.

Patent document 2 discloses a remote control system that has a functional unit installed in a specified room, a remote control that can remotely control the functional unit from outside the specified room, and a detection means that detects the presence or absence of a person in the room, and that invalidates commands from the remote control if a person in the room is detected.

Patent No. 3593841 Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2019-68220

When the bathtub cleaning device is remotely operated using an operation remote control outside the bathroom (a kitchen operation remote control or a smartphone), the situation inside the bathroom cannot be known, so the bathtub cleaning device will start operating even if someone is in the bathroom. However, if the bathtub cleaning operation is started while there is someone in the bathroom, it will start regardless of the person's will in the bathroom, and if the bathtub lid is open, problems will arise such as the cleaning liquid splashing around the bathroom, spraying onto someone's face, or spraying onto clothes hanging in the bathroom.
If, as in Patent Document 2, the cleaning start command from outside is uniformly disabled when someone is in the bathroom, there is a problem in that cleaning cannot be started even if the bathtub lid is closed and cleaning is possible, even if cleaning is desired.

The object of the present invention is to provide a bathtub cleaning system that starts a cleaning operation when various predetermined conditions are met when a command to start the cleaning operation is given remotely.

The bathtub cleaning system of claim 1 is a bathtub cleaning system including a bathtub cleaning device that automatically cleans the bathtub by spraying a cleaning liquid made by adding detergent to hot water supplied from a water heater into the bathtub, and is characterized in that it is equipped with a notification means for notifying information related to bathtub cleaning, multiple operation remote controls for starting the cleaning operation from inside and outside the bathroom, a human presence sensor for detecting the presence of people in the bathroom, and a control means that can obtain hot water usage information from the water heater and control the bathtub cleaning device, and when a command to start cleaning is issued from the operation remote control outside the bathroom, if a person is detected by the human presence sensor, the start of the cleaning operation is temporarily suspended and the operation remote control in the bathroom is notified that cleaning will start , and if there is no operation on the operation remote control inside the home for a predetermined time after the notification of the start of cleaning, information indicating that it is on standby is displayed on the operation remote control that commanded the start of cleaning, and if there is no operation on the operation remote control inside the home for a further set time thereafter, information to the effect that the start of cleaning will be canceled is displayed on the operation remote control inside the home .

According to the above configuration, if a person is detected by the human presence sensor when a command to start cleaning is given from the operation remote control outside the bathroom, the start of the cleaning operation is temporarily stopped and an announcement that cleaning will start is made via the operation remote control in the bathroom, so that the cleaning operation will not start unexpectedly without the knowledge of people in the bathroom.
Furthermore, if there is no operation on the operation remote control inside the home for a specified time (e.g., two minutes), it is highly likely that no one is in the home, so the operation remote control that commanded the start of cleaning will display information indicating that it is waiting and will wait for a while, and if there is no operation on the operation remote control inside the home for a further set time (e.g., three minutes), it is highly likely that no one is in the home, so information to the effect that the start of cleaning is to be cancelled will be displayed on the operation remote control inside the home, and the start of cleaning will then be cancelled.

The bathtub cleaning system of claim 2 is characterized in that, in the invention of claim 1, if information indicating that hot water is being used is obtained when the cleaning operation is started, the start of the cleaning operation is temporarily suspended and an operation remote control in the bathroom is used to notify the user that cleaning is about to begin.
According to the above configuration, when hot water is being used, the start of the cleaning operation is temporarily stopped and a notification that cleaning will start is sent via the operation remote control in the bathroom. When hot water is being used, since there is a possibility that someone is in the bathroom, the person can be notified that cleaning will start.

The bathtub cleaning system of claim 3 is characterized in that, in the invention of claim 1, when the human presence sensor detects a person and temporarily suspends the start of the cleaning operation, an operating remote control outside the bathroom is also used to notify the user that cleaning will begin.
According to the above configuration, if a child is playing in the bathroom, the start of cleaning can be notified also from a remote control outside the bathroom (for example, a remote control operating in the kitchen), so that the child can be evacuated from the bathroom.

The bathtub cleaning system of claim 4 is characterized in that, in the invention of claim 2, when the information that hot water is being used is obtained and the start of the cleaning operation is temporarily suspended, the start of cleaning is also notified via an operating remote control outside the bathroom.
According to the above configuration, the same effect as that of claim 3 can be obtained.

The bathtub cleaning system of claim 5 is characterized in that, in the invention of any one of claims 1 to 4, after the start of cleaning is notified, the operating remote control that issued the notification can be used to select whether or not to start the cleaning operation.
According to the above configuration, since it is possible to select whether or not to start the cleaning operation, the bathtub can be cleaned only when it is really necessary, thereby preventing unnecessary cleaning.

The bathtub cleaning system of claim 6 is the invention of any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that after the start of cleaning is notified, the start of cleaning can be canceled by an operation remote control in the bathroom.
According to the above configuration, a person in the bathroom can cancel the start of cleaning, thereby preventing cleaning from being carried out against the person's will.

The present invention provides the various effects described above.

1 is a configuration diagram of a bathtub cleaning system according to an embodiment of the present invention. 11 is a flowchart of a first example of cleaning operation start control. 13 is a flowchart of a second example of cleaning operation start control.

The following describes the form for implementing the present invention based on examples.

First, the overall configuration of the bathtub cleaning system including the bathtub cleaning device 10 and its peripheral devices will be described.
As shown in Figure 1, a hot water supply device 2 for filling and reheating the bathtub 1 is connected to a bathtub 1 via a filling and reheating pipe 3. In addition, a drain plug 4 for draining hot and cold water and a cleaning nozzle 5 for cleaning the bathtub 1 by spraying detergent and hot and cold water are provided at the bottom of the bathtub 1.

Near the bathtub 1, there are disposed a cleaning unit 6 that supplies detergent and hot and cold water to the cleaning nozzle 5, a detergent tank 7 that stores detergent, and a drain switch 4a for opening and closing the drain plug 4. The bathtub cleaning device 10 has the cleaning unit 6, detergent tank 7, and cleaning nozzle 5, which are connected by multiple pipes.

The washing unit 6 is connected to a detergent pipe 7a for supplying detergent from a detergent tank 7 and a hot water pipe 2a for supplying hot water from the hot water supply device 2. For example, a power supply communication unit 8 installed on the ceiling of the bathroom is connected to the hot water supply device 2 by a power cord and a communication cord, and the power supply communication unit 8 and the washing unit 6 are connected by multiple drive control cords. A human presence sensor 9 is provided in the bathroom to detect the presence or absence of a person in the bathroom, and this human presence sensor 9 is connected to the power supply communication unit 8.

The hot water supply device 2 is, for example, a combustion-type hot water supply device that supplies hot water heated by using the heat of combustion of fuel, but it may also be a hot water supply device having a heat pump-type heat source unit. A bathroom operation remote control 11 and a kitchen operation remote control 12 are connected to the hot water supply device 2 for starting the hot water filling operation and the reheating operation, setting the hot water supply temperature, etc.

In addition, a cleaning operation remote control 13, which is used to start the cleaning operation of the bathtub cleaning device 10, is connected to the power communication unit 8 and the hot water supply device 2 so that signals can be sent and received. This cleaning operation remote control 13 is installed in the changing room. Note that remote control is an abbreviation for remote controller. The kitchen operation remote control 12 and bathroom operation remote control 11 can also communicate with the bathtub cleaning device 10 via the hot water supply device 2 and the power communication unit 8.

The kitchen operation remote control 12 has a touch-operable display section 12a and a voice output section 12b. The bathroom operation remote control 11 has a touch-operable display section 11a and a voice output section 11b. The washing operation remote control 13 has a touch-operable display section 13a and a voice output section 13b.

The bathroom operation remote control 11, kitchen operation remote control 12, and cleaning operation remote control 13 are connected to the Internet 15 via a home wireless network constructed, for example, by a line termination device 14 equipped with a router function. A server 16 installed by the provider (manufacturer, etc.) of the water heater 2 and bathtub cleaning device 10 is connected to the Internet 15.

The server 16 relays the data so that users of the water heater 2 and bathtub cleaning device 10 can operate them from a smartphone 17 or the like via the Internet 15 while away from home. The bathroom operation remote control 11, kitchen operation remote control 12, cleaning operation remote control 13, smartphone 17, etc. are remote controllers that can start the cleaning operation of the bathtub cleaning device 10.

The cleaning unit 6 of the bathtub cleaning device 10 includes a storage tank 22 for storing hot water, a hot water supply pipe 23 connected to the hot water supply pipe 2a and supplying hot water to the storage tank 22, the hot water supply pipe 23 having two branch passages 23a, 23b and a junction passage 23c where the branch passages 23a, 23b join, a filter 24 installed in the hot water supply pipe 23, an electromagnetic opening/closing valve 25a and a constant flow valve 26a installed in the branch passage 23a from the upstream side, and an electromagnetic opening/closing valve 25b and a constant flow valve 26b installed in the other branch passage 23b from the upstream side.

The storage tank 22 is provided with a float-type water level detector 22a capable of detecting low and high water levels, and the detection signal is supplied to the control unit 21 in the power supply communication unit 8. The storage tank 22 is also provided with an overflow pipe 22b.

The cleaning unit 6 further includes a discharge pipe 27 extending from the storage tank 22 to the cleaning noble 5, and a pump 28, a thermistor 29, two check valves 30, a flow sensor 31, and a venturi 32 to which the detergent supply pipe 7a is connected, which are arranged in this discharge pipe 27 from the upstream side. An electromagnetic opening/closing valve 7c is arranged in the detergent supply pipe 7a extending from the detergent tank 7.

The control unit 21 built into the power supply communication unit 8 includes, for example, a microcomputer having an arithmetic unit, a memory unit, an input/output unit, and a clock circuit, and controls the equipment related to the cleaning operation and the drain plug 4 based on control programs stored in the memory unit, as well as controlling the start of the cleaning operation described below.
During the cleaning operation, the control unit 21 opens the drain plug 4, controls the opening and closing of the electromagnetic valves 25a, 25b, 7c of the hot water supply pipe 23 and the detergent supply pipe 7a, the operation of the pump 28, etc., and also stores the cleaning operation history including the start and end times of the cleaning operation, the cleaning course, the number of cleaning operations (number of automatic cleanings), etc.

The cleaning operation will now be described.
When the cleaning operation of bathtub cleaning device 10 is started by operating any of the bathroom operation remote control 11, kitchen operation remote control 12, cleaning operation remote control 13, smartphone 17, etc., with the bathtub lid closed, control unit 21 opens drain plug 4 and, while storing hot and cold water in storage tank 22, drives pump 28 to spray and spray from cleaning nozzle 5 a cleaning liquid made by mixing hot and cold water with detergent.

One washing process includes an initial rinse wash using only hot and cold water, followed by multiple washes and standby operations using a cleaning solution, and a final rinse wash using only hot and cold water. The wash and standby operations include a washing operation using a cleaning solution and a standby operation following this washing operation.

The flow rate of the constant flow valves 26a, 26b is, for example, 5 L/min each, and the discharge rate of the pump 28 is, for example, 6.5 L/min. When the water level in the storage tank 22 becomes low, both electromagnetic valves 25a, 25b are opened and hot water is supplied at a flow rate of 10 L/min. When the water level in the storage tank 22 becomes high, one of the electromagnetic valves 25a, 25b is closed and hot water is supplied at a flow rate of 5 L/min.

Next, the cleaning operation start control performed by the control unit 21 will be described.
First, a first example of the cleaning operation start control will be described with reference to Fig. 2. Symbols Si (i = 1, 2, ...) in the flow chart of Fig. 2 indicate each step.

When this cleaning operation start control starts, it is determined whether or not a cleaning operation start command has been received from an operation remote control outside the bathroom (S1). In this embodiment, the operation remote control outside the bathroom is, for example, a smartphone 17. If the determination in S1 is No, S1 is repeated. If the start command is received and the determination in S1 is Yes, it is determined in S2 whether or not the human presence sensor 9 has detected a person. If the determination is No, the process moves to S8. If the determination in S2 is Yes (i.e., if there is a person in the bathroom), the start of the cleaning operation is temporarily halted in S3.

If cleaning of bathtub 1 is suddenly started by remote control while there is someone in the bathroom, the cleaning liquid may get into the eyes or onto clothes, so the cleaning liquid must be temporarily stopped.
Next, in S4, a notification that cleaning will start is issued using bathroom remote controller 11. This notification is issued by both text display and voice output, although it may be issued by either one of them.

Next, in S5, it is determined whether or not the bathroom remote control 11 has been operated by someone in the bathroom, and if the determination is No, the process proceeds to S11. If the determination is Yes, in S6, a text message is displayed asking whether or not the user wishes to cancel the start of the cleaning operation. If the determination is No, the process proceeds to S11, but if the determination is Yes, the start of the cleaning operation is cancelled in S7 and the process returns.

If the determination in S2 is No, the process proceeds to S8, where it is determined whether hot water is being used, and if the determination is No, the process proceeds to S17. If hot water is being used, the start of the cleaning operation is temporarily stopped in S9. If hot water is being used, there is a possibility that someone is in the house and may go to the bathroom, so the start of the cleaning operation is temporarily stopped in the same way as in S3.

In the next step S10, similar to S4, the bathroom remote control 11 is used to notify the user that cleaning is about to begin. This notification is made by both text display and audio output. However, it may be made by either one of them.

In S11, it is determined whether or not the bathroom operation remote control 11 or the kitchen operation remote control 12 (i.e., the operation remote control within the home) has been operated for a predetermined time (e.g., 2 minutes) after the alarm. If there has been operation, the process proceeds to S17; if there has not been operation, the process proceeds to S12.
In the next step S12, a notification (text display, audio output) indicating that the device is on standby is issued to the operating remote controller (the smartphone 17 in this embodiment) that issued the start command.

In the next step S13, it is determined whether or not the bathroom operation remote control 11 or the kitchen operation remote control 12 (i.e., the operation remote control within the home) has been operated within the set time (e.g., 3 minutes) after the notification in S12. If there has been operation, the process proceeds to S17. If there has not been operation, the process proceeds to S14.
In S14, similarly to S2, it is determined whether or not the human presence sensor detects a human. If the determination is Yes, the process proceeds to S15, and if the determination is No, the process proceeds to S17.

In the next step S15, bathroom remote controller 11 and kitchen remote controller 12 (i.e., remote controllers for use within the home) are notified of the cancellation of the start of the cleaning operation by displaying text. However, audio output may also be used in combination.
In addition, if the operation remote control that issued the start command is not an operation remote control within the home as in this embodiment, the operation remote control that issued the start command may also notify that the start of the cleaning operation is to be canceled.
Then, in the next step S16, the start of the cleaning operation is cancelled, and then the process returns.
On the other hand, in S17, the cleaning operation is started and this control ends.

The operation and effect of the first example of the cleaning operation start control will be described.
If there is a person in the bathroom, the start of the cleaning operation is temporarily stopped and a notification that the cleaning operation is about to start is sent to the bathroom operation remote control 11. This prevents the cleaning operation from being started unexpectedly without the knowledge of the person in the bathroom.

After confirming that there is someone in the bathroom by judging in S5, the system asks if the person wants to cancel the start of the cleaning operation, and if they do, the cleaning operation is canceled, so the control respects the wishes of the person in the bathroom.

On the other hand, when hot water is being used, there is a possibility that someone is in the house and going to the bathroom, so in this case too, the start of the cleaning operation is temporarily stopped and the bathroom operation remote control 11 is notified that the cleaning operation is about to start.
In S11, if there is no operation of the bathroom operation remote control 11 or the kitchen operation remote control 12 for a specified period of time after the notification of the start of the cleaning operation, a notification indicating standby is sent to the operation remote control (smartphone 17) that issued the cleaning start command, so that the operator who issued the command can understand the situation and feel at ease.

After that, if there is no operation of the bathroom operation remote control 11 or the kitchen operation remote control 12 for a further set time, since there is a high possibility that no one is in the house, the bathroom operation remote control and the kitchen operation remote control display a message to the effect that the start of the washing operation is to be cancelled, and then the start of the washing operation is cancelled.
If the determination in S11 is No or the determination in S13 is No, it is highly likely that someone is present in the house, so the cleaning operation is started in S17.

Next, a second example of the cleaning operation start control will be described with reference to Fig. 3. Symbols Si (i = 1, 2, ...) in the flow chart of Fig. 3 indicate each step.
Incidentally, S1 to S4 and S8 to S10 in FIG. 3 are substantially similar to S1 to S4 and S8 to S10 in FIG. 2, and therefore the description thereof will be omitted.

S4 is slightly different from S4 in the first example. In S4, bathroom remote controller 11 and kitchen remote controller 12 notify (by displaying text and outputting voice) that a flushing operation is about to start.
In S20 following S4, a selection screen for selecting whether or not to start a washing operation is displayed on bathroom operation remote controller 11 and kitchen operation remote controller 12. In the next S21, it is determined whether or not starting a washing operation is necessary, and if the determination is Yes in S22, the start of the washing operation is canceled and the process returns.
If the determination in S21 is No, the process proceeds to S26.

S10 is slightly different from S10 in FIG. 2, and in this S10, bathroom remote controller 11 and kitchen remote controller 12 are notified (by text display and voice output) that cleaning is about to begin.
In S23 following S10, a selection screen for selecting whether or not to start the washing operation is displayed on bathroom operation remote controller 11 and kitchen operation remote controller 12. In S24, it is determined whether or not to start the washing operation, and if the determination is Yes, the start of the washing operation is canceled in S25 and the process returns. If the determination is No in S24, the process proceeds to S26.
In S26, the cleaning operation is started, and then this control ends.

The operation and effect of the second example of the cleaning operation start control will be described.
The actions and effects of S1 to S4 are substantially the same as those in the first example.
In S4, the start of washing is notified by bathroom operation remote control 11 and kitchen operation remote control 12, in S20 a screen for selecting whether or not to start washing operation is displayed on bathroom operation remote control 11 and kitchen operation remote control 12, in S21 a decision is made as to whether or not to start washing operation, and if not, the start of washing operation is cancelled. In this way, the washing operation can be started or cancelled while respecting the wishes of the person in the bathroom or kitchen.

In S10, the bathroom operation remote control 11 and the kitchen operation remote control 12 are notified that cleaning will begin, and in S23, a screen is displayed on the bathroom operation remote control 11 and the kitchen operation remote control 12 to select whether or not to start the cleaning operation.

Therefore, whether a person is in the bathroom or in the kitchen, the above selection screen can be viewed and the person can select whether or not to start the washing operation.
In S21 and S24, the selection result of whether or not to start the cleaning operation is confirmed, and if the cleaning operation is not necessary, the selection is cancelled, and if the cleaning operation is necessary, the cleaning operation is started.
This allows for control that respects the wishes of people in the home.

Next, a modification of the above embodiment will be described.
(1) The notification of S4 and the display of S6 in Fig. 2 may be notified or displayed on the washing operation remote controller 13 in the changing room. Also, the display of S14 may be displayed on the washing operation remote controller 13.
(2) The notification in S10 in FIG. 2 may be made not only by bathroom operation remote controller 11 but also by washing operation remote controller 13.

(3) The notification of S4 and the display of S20 in Fig. 3 may be notified or displayed by the cleaning operation remote control 13. The display of S14 may also be displayed by the cleaning operation remote control 13. The notification of S10 and the display of S23 may also be notified or displayed by the cleaning operation remote control 13.
(4) In addition, a person skilled in the art can implement the present invention by adding various modifications without departing from the spirit of the present invention, and the present invention also includes such modifications.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 Bathtub 2 Hot water supply device 6 Cleaning unit 8 Power supply communication unit 9 Human presence sensor 10 Bathtub cleaning device 11 Bathtub operation remote control 12 Kitchen operation remote control 13 Cleaning operation remote control 17 Smartphone 21 Control unit

Claims (6)

A bathtub cleaning system including a bathtub cleaning device that automatically cleans a bathtub by spraying a cleaning solution containing hot water supplied from a hot water supply device into the bathtub,
The bathtub cleaning device is provided with a notification means for notifying information related to bathtub cleaning, a plurality of operation remote controls for starting the cleaning operation from inside and outside the bathroom, a human presence sensor for detecting the presence or absence of a person in the bathroom, and a control means for acquiring hot water usage information from the hot water supply device and controlling the bathtub cleaning device,
When a command to start cleaning is issued from an operation remote controller outside the bathroom, if a person is detected by the human presence sensor, the start of the cleaning operation is temporarily stopped, and the start of cleaning is notified by the operation remote controller in the bathroom ;
This bathtub cleaning system is characterized in that if there is no operation on the operation remote control inside the home for a specified time after the notification of the start of cleaning, information indicating that the operation remote control which commanded the start of cleaning is on standby is displayed on the operation remote control which commanded the start of cleaning, and if there is no operation on the operation remote control inside the home for a further set time thereafter, information to the effect that the start of cleaning is cancelled is displayed on the operation remote control inside the home . The bathtub cleaning system described in claim 1, characterized in that if information indicating hot water use is acquired when starting the cleaning operation, the start of the cleaning operation is temporarily stopped and a notification that cleaning will start is sent via an operation remote control in the bathroom. The bathtub cleaning system according to claim 1, characterized in that when the human presence sensor detects a person and pauses the start of the cleaning operation, the system also notifies the user that cleaning will start via an operation remote control outside the bathroom. The bathtub cleaning system according to claim 2, characterized in that when the information indicating that hot water is being used is acquired and the start of the cleaning operation is temporarily suspended, the start of cleaning is also notified via an operation remote control outside the bathroom. The bathtub cleaning system according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that after the start of cleaning is notified, the user can select whether or not to start the cleaning operation using the operation remote control that issued the notification. The bathtub cleaning system according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that after the start of cleaning is notified, the start of cleaning can be canceled by an operation remote control in the bathroom.

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