WO2004086927A1 - Urine-separating toilet - Google Patents

Abstract

A toilet of the type where urine and faeces are separated and conveyed to separate outlets, comprising a toilet bowl with chambers for urine and faeces respectively, possibly with a partition between the chambers and with a preferably raisable seat (1) for the user. The seat (1) is provided with support surfaces for a sitting toilet user, and is made of a relatively firm material with an inner edge area which forms an abutment surface for the toilet user in a sitting position. In this edge area there is provided a portion (4) which is arranged to cause the user to find a position on the toilet which promotes the desired separation of urine and faeces. Furthermore, an element may be provided for placing in the toilet bowl, which can be moved between a position which blocks the faeces chamber and a position which does not block the faeces chamber.

Description

Urine-separating toilet

The invention relates to a toilet of the type where urine and faeces are separated and conveyed to separate outlets, comprising a toilet bowl with chambers for urine and faeces respectively, possibly with a partition between the chambers, and with a seat which preferably can be raised. With most of the toilets currently in use, urine and faeces are discharged through the same outlet into a public sewerage system or to a common collection point. However, the excrement, particularly the urine, has great potential for use, for example, in agriculture. In order to utilise the urine, it is important to keep it separated from the faeces, and in as pure and concentrated a form as possible.

Over the years several toilet designs have been developed in order to achieve such a separation of urine and faeces. Examples of these can be found in WO 97/24971, WO 01/25555 and WO 01/25554. In the first of these a partition is employed to divide the toilet bowl into two separate chambers for the two components of the excrement. A general problem hitherto has been that the user of the toilet has to sit in the correct position to enable urine and faeces to land on each side of the partition. This can easily become soiled and will be difficult to clean. In the other above-mentioned patent publications the toilet bowl is divided into two chambers with a raised portion between them, with the result that urine is collected in the front chamber while the faeces is collected in the rear chamber. In the front chamber there is a discharge opening for the urine which is closed when the user rises, thus enabling this part also to be flushed. Once again the problem arises that the user has to sit in the correct position in order to achieve the desired separation effect. In WO 01/25555 a solution is also described when the toilet is used by a male in a standing position as a urinal. When the lid is raised, the urine outlet is opened while simultaneously the flushing device is blocked. There is no mention of a blocking of the faeces opening and it is therefore assumed that only a part of the urine is discharged through the intended outlet. The object of the present invention is to provide means for ensuring that when the toilet is used, the urine is passed to the urine chamber in a reliable manner, while the faeces are passed to the faeces chamber.

A more particular object of the invention, therefore, is to enable a user in a sitting position on the toilet to attain the correct position relative to these two chambers. This object is achieved by a special design of the toilet seat as characterised in the claims.

An additional object of the invention is to further develop a toilet of the type mentioned in the introduction so that it also fulfils its role as a separation toilet when the toilet is used as a urinal, i.e. by a person in a standing position. The characterising features of this embodiment will be apparent in claims 6-11.

The basis of the invention is that the user of the toilet must be in the correct position relative to the partition between the two chambers. This is particularly important in order to avoid faecal elements in the urine. The need for correct positioning applies to both adults and children.

A person sitting on a hard seat will notice that two bones, called the ischial tuberosities, on the pelvic girdle will abut against the base, producing a certain amount of discomfort in the sitting position. It is therefore preferable to sit on a soft cushion which absorbs this point loading. With the conventional toilet seats or seat rings this is no problem since the two ischial tuberosities will be located inside the seat ring which is relatively wide all the way round. The position of these bone points on the skeleton varies relatively little between women and men and between adults and children. This fact is exploited in the present invention, where the ring of the toilet seat is designed in such a manner that the support plates will have portions which are so designed that by means of their shape, characteristics or position they cause discomfort to the ischial tuberosities by pressing against them. This can be achieved in various ways. The seat is made of a relatively firm material with an inner edge area which forms the abutment surface for the toilet user in a sitting position. In this edge area there is provided a portion either in the form of a projection made of the firm material or as a yielding portion. This portion will cause the user to find a position on the toilet that promotes the desired separation of urine and faeces. An advantageous embodiment is to give the seat a keyhole-like shape. An alternative is to provide the seat with an inwardly- facing protrusion in the inner edge area that causes the user to push or position himself in front of or behind this area so that the ischial tuberosities do not come into contact with it. Furthermore, the seat, which is made of a firm and relatively hard material in the desired area where the ischial tuberosity has to be placed, has a soft portion or yielding portion, thus making it natural to seat oneself with the ischial tuberosities thereon. Should the user wish to urinate in a standing position, according to the invention an element may be provided which can be moved between the position where it covers the urine chamber and the position that blocks the faeces chamber. This element can also guide urine to the urine outlet. The element may advantageously be rotatably attached to the toilet bowl on the lower edge of the seat by means of two spindles. Another version is to have the element located above the urine outlet and when the lid or the seat ring is lifted, for example by means of gravity or via an arm mechanism, it is moved to a position that blocks off the faeces chamber. A third possibility is for the element to be located behind the faeces chamber and to have a curved surface which abuts against a protrusion on the underside of the seat ring, and when the seat is raised rotates the part to a position that covers the faeces outlet and guides the urine towards the urine outlet.

The invention will now be explained in greater detail by means of embodiments illustrated in the drawing, in which: figs. 1-5 illustrate 5 alternative embodiments of a seat for a toilet according to the invention, figs. 6-12 illustrate different embodiments of a bowl- or plate-shaped element for blocking the faeces chamber, viewed separately and mounted in the toilet respectively, and figs. 13-14 illustrate a further embodiment of a toilet with bowl.

Figures 1-5 illustrate five different alternative designs of the seat part in order to achieve a correct positioning of the user on the toilet. The seat ring is generally indicated by 1 and is in the form of an annular element in the normal per se manner. The inner edge area of the seat ring, however, is specially designed. The main component of the actual seat is made of a firm or hard material and in the embodiment in fig. 1 is in the shape of a keyhole with the widest part in the rear area 2 and a narrow front part 3. When the user has to sit on the seat, contact will be made with the user's ischial tuberosity on the pelvic area if he sits too far forward, and the ischial bones, which are indicated in the figures by a small ring and the letter "A", will be located on the narrow part in the front portion 3. The user will therefore move backwards to the position where the ischial bones "A" come into the extended part. The extension is located in such a manner that if the user moves further backwards he will come into contact with the seat's or the toilet's rear area, which will again be uncomfortable. He will therefore position himself correctly, so that faeces do not land in the urine outlet, while at the same time as much urine as possible is collected. A variant is illustrated in fig. 2, where the keyhole shape has been abandoned and the seat has retained its oval shape except for two projecting portions 4. These will be located in a position corresponding to the transition between the narrow and wide parts in the keyhole embodiment, and will again result in the ischial tuberosity being naturally located behind the protrusion 4. A disadvantage of this embodiment is that it will be easy for a small child to sit in front of these protrusions.

In fig. 3 an embodiment is illustrated which is based on the incorporation in the seat, at least in its inner edge area, of an area of a yielding or softer material indicated by 5. Here too the ring may have a regular, oval shape but must be narrower in the inner opening than conventional seat rings. A variant of this embodiment is illustrated in fig. 4, where the seat opening is relatively narrow, and where recesses 6 are provided in the seat ring on which it will then be natural to place the user's ischial tuberosities "A".

Figure 5 illustrates three views of an alternative where in addition in the inner edge of the seat ring, which in this case is keyhole-shaped, in the narrower portion there is provided a grooved pattern which is intended to further assist the user in finding the correct position. Such a pattern may also be incorporated in the other embodiments. Instead of grooves the surface portion could, for example, also be given a rough surface.

In all of these embodiments the user will sit in the correct position, thus providing a good separation of urine and faeces.

In many countries it is common for male users to urinate from a standing position. With this kind of use the seat ring is normally raised. During this process, however, the stream of urine will strike the rear part of the toilet where the faeces chamber is located. It will therefore be advantageous to block the faeces chamber and guide the urine towards the urine outlet. According to the invention, for this purpose use is made, for example, of a plate-like or bowl-shaped element. When the seat is lifted, gravity or an arm mechanism, for example, will move the bowl-shaped element from a position above the urine chamber or pushed back in the rear of the toilet, with the result that it is rotated over the faeces chamber and blocks it while at the same time the element guides the urine over towards the urine outlet. An alternative to gravity for this purpose may be the use of an arm mechanism which transfers the rotating mechanism due to rotating the seat ring to a rotating motion for its bowl- shaped or plate-shaped part and the possibility for such movements is described in WO 01/25555. A rotating mechanism is therefore not described in greater detail herein. Examples of the design of such an element, bowl-shaped and plate-shaped respectively, are illustrated in figures 6.

In fig. 7 an alternative embodiment is illustrated, where a bowl-shaped part is mounted on the toilet bowl by means of pivots. The figure illustrates three different positions. In the figure on the right the bowl part 10 is shown hanging down and covering or shielding the faeces chamber 8 with its outlet. The seat ring is raised to an approximately perpendicular position. In the middle figure the seat ring is lowered and abuts against a cam 11 on the bowl part 10 on the opposite side of the main bowl. When the seat ring is completely lowered the cam 11 will be pushed all the way down and the bowl 10 will be located over the urine chamber with the urine outlet. The bowl is shaped so that urine will run towards the outlet.

Figure 8 illustrates the same as figure 7, but viewed from above, thus making the bowl's position easier to see. Figures 9-11 illustrate another modification. As illustrated in figure 9 a bowl- shaped shield hangs down into the toilet, shielding the faeces part when the toilet is used in a standing position with the seat ring raised. Here the cam element 11 has a different shape, with the result that when the seat ring is lowered the bowl element will be pushed backwards towards the rear wall of the toilet. The whole bowl will thereby be available. This is illustrated in figures 10 and 11 with views corresponding to figures 7 and 8.

Figure 12 illustrates a modification related to that in figures 9-11. A spring 13 holds the element blocking the faeces chamber 12 in position. When the sitting surfaces 15 are lowered, a projection 14 presses the element into a position at the rear edge of the faeces area, thereby releasing the faeces outlet 16.

Figures 13 and 14 illustrate an alternative method of locating the separation bowl 10 in the toilet. The illustrations correspond to those depicted in figures 7 and 8, with three views illustrating different positions, in a side view and viewed from above respectively. The bowl 10 has two side wings 17, the interior area of which is equipped with a pivot 19 rigidly connected to the seat part 1. At the upper edge of the bowl's side wings 17, approximately in the middle of the bowl's or the side wing surfaces' longitudinal direction, there is provided a laterally projecting part in the form of a surface, protuberance or pin 20, abutting against the toilet's lateral edges. When the seat 1 is raised, the bowl 10 will be pulled backwards while sliding on the surface, the pin or the protuberance 20, thereby changing position and angle, with the result that when the seat is completely raised, the actual bowl surface will shield the faeces outlet 8 and guide urine towards the urine outlet. The bowl has a hole or an opening 18 for discharge of urine to the urine outlet 9 when the seat is folded down. When the seat is lowered, the bowl part will only cover the front part of the interior of the toilet and guide urine from the front part towards the urine outlet through holes in the bowl's lowest point. Faeces will drop down between the wing parts.

Many modifications are possible within the scope of the invention. The fundamental feature is that the faeces chamber is blocked when urination is performed in a standing position. The figures illustrate only some of many possible embodiments both of the design of the seat and possibilities of placing a bowl- or plate-shaped element in the toilet. Combinations of such embodiments will naturally also lie within the scope of the invention. A favourable embodiment may hereby be that the toilet, especially the seat, has a downwardly curved form at the front, which will be favourable in that it provides a small contact surface as well as making the toilet seat more "attractive" to children.

It will be entirely possible to give the bowl with suspension an opposite orientation. A different connection may also be employed for the seat, with the result that when it is lifted the bowl is moved and it is also possible to perform the movement manually by means of a handle. The shape will be dependent on position and method of operation. Such modifications can be performed by a person skilled in the art.

Claims

1. A toilet of the type where urine and faeces are separated and conveyed to separate outlets, comprising a toilet bowl with chambers for urine and faeces respectively, possibly with a partition between the chambers and with an annular seat of a relatively firm material with an inner, rounded edge which forms support surfaces for a sitting toilet user, and preferably a raisable lid for the toilet, characterised in that in its edge area where the user will normally sit with the ischial tuberosities on his pelvic girdle, the seat ring is provided with a portion which is designed so as to avoid the discomfort which is normally experienced on contact of the ischial tuberosities with the hard portions of the remaining part of the seat, where this portion is provided either with a protrusion made of a hard material in the front edge and/or rear edge of the portion, such as a recess or a yielding portion, and that the positioning of the user thereby achieved will promote the desired separation of urine and faeces, and/or that the toilet is equipped with an element, for example in the form of a bowl, a funnel, a channel, a bag, a ball or a plate for placing in the toilet bowl, which element, on rotation of the lid or loading of the seat, can be moved between a position which blocks the faeces chamber and a position which does not block the faeces chamber.

2. A toilet according to claim 1, characterised in that the seat's inner edge area is keyhole-shaped, the portion for the ischial tuberosities being located in the entrance to the extended area of the seat ring.

3. A toilet according to claim 1 or 2, characterised in that the seat's abutment surface is provided with a grooved pattern or a rough surface in the area outside the said portion.

4. A toilet according to claim 1, characterised in that the seat is provided with an inwardly facing projection in the inner edge areas.

5. A toilet according to claim 1, characterised in that the seat, at least in the inner edge area, is provided with a portion made of a soft material, possibly with a recess.

6. A toilet according to claim 1, characterised in that the element that blocks the faeces chamber guides the urine to a urine outlet.

7. A toilet according to claim 1, characterised in that the, for example, bowl- or plate-shaped element is rotatably attached to the toilet bowl at the lower edge of the seat by means of two spindles.

8. A toilet according to claim 1, characterised in that the, for example, bowl-or plate-shaped element is rotatably attached to the underside of the raisable seat and has an abutment against the toilet bowl's lower edge.

9. A toilet according to claim 1, characterised in that the, for example, bowl- or plate-shaped element is located above the bottom of the urine chamber, and when the seat is lifted via gravity, spring or an arm mechanism, the element can be moved to a position that blocks the faeces chamber.

10. A toilet according to claim 1, characterised in that the bowl- or plate-shaped element is located above the faeces chamber and has a curved surface which abuts against the underside of the seat and when the seat is loaded the element can be rotated into a position above the urine chamber.

11. A toilet according to claim 1 , characterised in that the, for example, bowl- or plate-shaped element blocks the faeces chamber when the sitting surface or the lid is lowered and moves to a position where it does not block the faeces chamber, for example in the rear edge of the faeces chamber.