TOILET DEVICE FOR NON-CONTACT MEASUREMENT OF MICTURITION PARAMETERS

Abstract

The invention relates to a toilet device for the measurement of micturition parameters, the toilet device comprising a housing that has a housing opening for receiving urine and a capacitive sensor for the time-dependent, contactless measurement of micturition parameters. The invention also relates to a method for the contactless measurement of micturition parameters in a toilet device, said method being carried out more particularly using the toilet device according to the invention.

Claims

1. Toilet device for measuring micturition parameters, comprising: a housing having a housing opening for receiving urine; a capacitive sensor for time-dependent measurement of micturition parameters, wherein the capacitive sensor is a capacitive proximity sensor.

2. Toilet device according to claim 1, wherein the toilet device is selected from the group comprising toilet, urinal, bidet, commode chair, squat toilet and chamber pot.

3. Toilet device according to claim 1, wherein the measured micturition parameters are selected from the group comprising urine flow rate, micturition volume, micturition duration, micturition frequency, micturition velocity, bladder pressure, pelvic floor pressure, urethral width and micturition characteristics such as intermittent urination or dribbling.

4. Toilet device according to claim 1, wherein the capacitive sensor is mounted in the toilet device at one or more of the following positions: at the housing inner wall, at the housing outer wall, inside the housing wall, at the housing opening, wherein attachment to the housing outer wall is preferred.

5. Toilet device according to claim 1, wherein capacitive sensor has one or more of the following properties: sensor thickness between 1 nm and 20 mm, the sensor comprises a lower carrier layer, a middle layer comprising the electrode and the lead, and an upper mounting layer for connecting the sensor to the housing or the housing opening, the carrier layer and the mounting layer preferably consisting of an electrically insulating material; the sensor is mounted in an insulating support matrix, such as plastic or a solid gel, the surface of the support matrix having at least partially an adhesive layer; the sensor comprises a connection means for electronic or electrical connection, preferably selected from the group comprising metallic push buttons, adhesive connection, cable and plug part of a connector; the sensor comprises a data transmission module for wired or wireless data transmission; the sensor is designed as a foil; the sensor is directly vapor-deposited on the housing or burned into the housing material; the sensor comprises electrodes made of a thin metal foil deposited on an electrically insulating layer made of, for example, rubber or a flexible plastic such as polyimide foil.

6. Toilet device according to claim 1, wherein several capacitive sensors are mounted in the toilet device in such a way that they allow a two-dimensional or three-dimensional measurement of micturition, and in this case are preferably arranged in or on the housing as a 2D array or 3D array.

7. Toilet device according to claim 1, wherein the capacitive sensor is connected to the housing in a fixed, conditionally detachable or reversibly detachable manner, a reversibly detachable connection being preferred and reversibly detachable connection being particularly preferably selected from the group comprising: suction cup, adhesive connection, adhesive-free adhesion connection, magnetic connection, Velcro fastener, zipper fastener, screw connection, clamp connection, plug connection, snap connection and belt connection.

8. Toilet device according to claim 1, wherein the capacitive sensor allows the measurement of parameters present outside the housing, such as information on the localization of the user of the toilet device and their temporal and spatial variation.

9. Toilet device according to claim 1, wherein it additionally comprises a temperature sensor and/or an acceleration sensor.

10. Toilet device according to claim 1, wherein the temperature sensor is set up for contactless measurement of urine temperature, and preferably has one or more of the following properties: the temperature sensor is arranged to allow measurement of the urine temperature during urination; the temperature sensor is adapted to allow measurement of the surface temperature of the inside of the housing and its variation over time; the temperature sensor is an infrared sensor; the temperature sensor is a 1D, 2D or 3D sensor.

11. Method for measuring micturition parameters in a toilet device comprising a housing having a housing opening and a capacitive proximity sensor, the method comprising the following steps: (a) non-contact measurement of micturition parameters during urination by the capacitive proximity sensor; b) optional measurement of the urine temperature during urination by means of an additional temperature sensor incorporated in the toilet device; c) optional measurement of the user's movement data, vibrations and structure-borne sound during urination via an acceleration sensor additionally incorporated in the toilet device; d) wired or wireless transmission of the measurement data collected in steps a) to c) to an evaluation unit; e) evaluation of the measurement data in the evaluation unit.

12. Method according to claim 11, wherein the method is carried out with a toilet device.

13. Method according to claim 11, wherein the evaluation of the measurement data in the evaluation unit is carried out model-based or via calibration curves, the model-based evaluation preferably being based on a mathematical, physical, physiological or medical model or running via pattern recognition algorithms.

14. Method according to claim 1, wherein the toilet device additionally has a toilet flush, the characteristics of which, such as flush water quantity and/or flush water duration and/or flush water temperature, are used as reference values for the evaluation.

15. Use of a capacitive proximity sensor for measuring micturition parameters in a toilet device.

Description

[0096] In the drawings:

[0097] FIG. 1 shows schematically a first perspective view of a partially shown toilet device according to an embodiment of the invention with a 2D array of capacitive sensors;

[0098] FIG. 2 shows schematically a perspective view of a partially depicted toilet device according to a second embodiment of the invention with a cover of the capacitive sensors mounted on the outside;

[0099] FIG. 3 shows a schematic perspective view of a partially depicted toilet device according to a further embodiment of the invention with a temperature sensor.

[0100] FIG. 1 shows a toilet device 1 with a toilet bowl 2 and a toilet seat 3. The capacitive sensors 4 are glued to the outer wall of the toilet bowl as a 2D array of 5×5 sensors in an almost square arrangement and are each connected by a cable 5 to the power source with evaluation and data transmission unit 6.

[0101] FIG. 2 shows the toilet device 1 according to FIG. 1 with a toilet bowl 2 and a toilet seat 3. The capacitive sensors 4 connected to the power source with evaluation and data transmission unit 6 are completely and waterproof covered here by a cover 7.

[0102] FIG. 3 shows a toilet device 1 with a toilet bowl 2 and its opening 10. By folding up the toilet seat 3 (not shown here), which rests on the edge of the bowl 11, the temperature sensor 12, which is fastened to the wall of the toilet bowl by means of the holding device 14 designed as a clamping device, becomes completely visible. The temperature sensor 12 has a head 13 that includes an infrared sensor, which is oriented towards the measuring point 15 and allows the temperature to be measured there.

[0103] At this point, it should be explicitly pointed out that features of the solutions described above or in the claims and/or figures can also be combined, if necessary, in order to be able to implement or achieve the explained features, effects and advantages in a correspondingly cumulative manner.

[0104] It is understood that the exemplary embodiment explained above is merely a first embodiment of the device according to the invention. Therefore, the embodiment of the invention is not limited to this embodiment.

[0105] All features disclosed in the application documents are claimed to be essential to the invention insofar as they are new, individually or in combination with each other, compared to the prior art.

LIST OF REFERENCE NUMBERS USED

[0106] 1 toilet device [0107] 2 housing (toilet bowl) [0108] 3 toilet seat [0109] 4 capacitive proximity sensors [0110] 5 cable [0111] 6 power source with evaluation and data transmission unit [0112] 7 sensor cover [0113] 10 housing opening [0114] 11 housing edge (edge of toilet bowl) [0115] 12 temperature sensor [0116] 13 head of temperature sensor [0117] 14 holding device for temperature sensor [0118] 15 temperature measuring point