JP2009000266A - Toilet seat device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent ground connection from being forgotten in setting, and to improve safety for a user. <P>SOLUTION: The toilet seat device comprises a toilet seat 400, part of which is made of a metal material 413, a toilet seat heater 450 set on the rear surface of the toilet seat 400 via an insulator 414, and a ground connection means 473 for connecting the metal material 413 to the ground. The toilet seat heater 450 has a linear heater 460 with an electric insulation layer 463 disposed in metal foil 451. By detecting the connection of the ground connection means 473 based on the potential between the metal foil 451 of the toilet heater 460 and the metal material 413 of the toilet seat 400, unconnection of the ground connection means 473 is announced when the toilet seat device is set, so that the user is prevented from receiving an accidental electric shock. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to prevention of electric shock to a human body in a toilet seat apparatus.

Conventionally, as a method of preventing electric shock of the human body in this type of toilet seat device, a power source such as a toilet seat that comes into contact with the user's body is configured by configuring a power supply circuit that conducts from a commercial power source to an electric rigging toilet seat through an insulating transformer. Is used as a non-earth ground power source to prevent electric shock to a human body sitting on the toilet seat (see, for example, Patent Document 1).
Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 63-125738

  However, the conventional configuration requires an expensive and heavy insulating transformer, and has the problems of increasing the cost and increasing the size and weight of the product.

  The invention of the present application solves the above-mentioned conventional problems, and provides a ground terminal on the toilet seat to prevent electric shock by grounding, and whether or not the ground connection is always performed when the toilet seat device is installed. The purpose is to ensure safety by detecting and notifying.

  In order to solve the above-described problems, a toilet seat device according to the present invention includes a toilet seat partially formed of a metal material, a toilet seat heater installed on the back surface of the toilet seat via an insulator, and a ground connection for grounding the metal material. The toilet seat heater has a configuration in which a linear heater having an electrically insulating layer is disposed on a metal foil, detects a potential difference between the metal foil of the toilet seat heater and the metal material of the toilet seat, and connects the ground connection means. It is configured to detect the presence or absence.

  With this configuration, when the metal material of the toilet seat is grounded, the voltage between the metal foil and the metal material of the toilet seat is approximately 100 V or more, which is the voltage of the AC power supply, and when the ground connection is not made, A current flows to the AC power supply through a capacitor that is a capacitance formed between the metal foil and the toilet seat metal material, and this current generates a voltage in the capacitor, and the voltage between the metal foil and the toilet seat metal material is Therefore, by detecting the voltage between the metal foil and the metal material of the toilet seat with the detection means, it is possible to detect and notify whether or not the metal material of the toilet seat portion is connected to the ground.

  According to the toilet seat device of the present invention, when the ground connection is not performed, it is possible to warn the execution of the ground connection work by notifying, so it is possible to prevent an electric shock accident of the user and improve safety. Can be planned.

  According to a first aspect of the present invention, a toilet seat in which at least a part of a seating portion is formed of a metal material, a toilet seat heater installed via an insulator on at least a back surface of the seating portion, and a metal material of the toilet seat are connected to ground. The toilet seat heater has a configuration in which a linear heater having an electrically insulating layer is provided on a metal foil with a space between the metal foil and the seating of the toilet seat heater installed via the insulator. Detection means for detecting a potential difference with the metal material of the part is provided, and the presence or absence of connection of the ground connection means is detected by the detection means.

  As a result, it is possible to detect that the potential difference between the capacitor poles, which is the capacitance formed between the metal foil of the toilet seat heater and the toilet seat metal material installed via the insulator, varies greatly depending on the presence or absence of ground connection. It becomes possible to detect and notify, and an electric shock accident of the toilet seat device can be prevented.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, particularly in the first aspect, a lead wire electrically connected to the metal foil of the toilet seat heater is connected to one end of the AC power source via a diode, and one end of the first capacitor is connected to one end of the AC power source. One end of the second capacitor is connected to the other end of the AC power supply, the other end of the first capacitor, the other end of the second capacitor, and one end of the third capacitor are connected. The end was connected to the metal material of the toilet seat, and a detection means was provided between the metal foil and the metal material of the toilet seat.

  With this configuration, when the metal material of the toilet seat is grounded, the voltage between the metal foil and the metal material of the toilet seat is approximately 100 V or more, which is the voltage of the AC power supply, and when the ground connection is not made, A current flows to the AC power supply through a capacitor that is a capacitance formed between the metal foil and the toilet seat metal material, and this current generates a voltage in the capacitor, and the voltage between the metal foil and the toilet seat metal material is Since the voltage between the metal foil and the metal material of the toilet seat is detected by the detecting means, it becomes possible to detect and notify whether or not the metal material of the toilet seat portion is connected to the earth, and thus the toilet seat device. Can prevent electric shock accidents.

  In the third aspect of the invention, in particular, in the second aspect of the invention, a diode is added from the other end of the AC power supply in addition to one end of the AC power supply and connected to the lead wire electrically connected to the metal foil.

  With this configuration, a diode is added not only from one end of the AC power supply but also from the other end and connected to the lead wire, and it is plugged into a commercial AC power supply outlet without worrying about the orientation of the power plug of the toilet seat device be able to.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in particular, in any one of the first to third aspects, the neon lamp is turned on when grounded by using a neon lamp as the detecting means, and the neon lamp is turned on when not grounded. Since the light is extinguished and one neon lamp can be used as both the detection means and the notification means, the circuit can be simplified and the cost can be reduced.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments.

(Embodiment 1)
FIG. 1 shows a sanitary washing apparatus incorporating a toilet seat heater for an electric toilet seat according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is an external appearance perspective view which shows a toilet apparatus provided with it. The toilet apparatus 1000 is installed in a toilet room. In the toilet apparatus 1000, the sanitary washing apparatus 100 is attached to the toilet bowl 700. The sanitary washing device 100 includes a main body 200, a remote control device 300, a toilet seat 400 and a lid 500. Each component of the sanitary washing device 100 excluding the lid 500 constitutes a toilet seat device 110 described later. A toilet seat 400 and a lid 500 are attached to the main body 200 so as to be openable and closable. Further, the main body 200 is provided with a cleaning water supply mechanism (not shown) and a control unit 90 is incorporated. In FIG. 1, a seating sensor 610 provided in the upper front portion of the main body 200 is shown.

The seating sensor 610 is, for example, a reflective infrared sensor. In this case, the seating sensor 610 detects the presence of a user on the toilet seat 400 by detecting infrared rays reflected from the human body. Further, FIG. 1 shows a state in which the toilet nozzle 40 provided in the lower front portion of the main body 200 protrudes inside the toilet 700. The toilet nozzle 40 is connected to the above-described washing water supply mechanism. The washing water supply mechanism is connected to a water pipe (not shown). Accordingly, the cleaning water supply mechanism supplies the cleaning water supplied from the water pipe to the toilet nozzle 40. Thereby, washing water is ejected from the toilet nozzle 40 to a wide area on the inner surface of the toilet 700 (toilet bowl pre-washing). Alternatively, washing water is ejected from the toilet nozzle 40 to the back side of the inner surface of the toilet 700 (toilet rear cleaning). The cleaning water supply mechanism is connected to a local cleaning nozzle unit (not shown). Thus, the cleaning water supply mechanism supplies the cleaning water supplied from the water pipe to the local cleaning nozzle unit. Thereby, washing water is jetted from the local washing nozzle part to the user's local part, and the local part is washed.

  The remote operation device 300 is provided with a plurality of switches. The remote control device 300 is attached to a place where a user sitting on the toilet seat 400 can operate, for example.

  The entrance detection sensor 600 is attached to an entrance of a toilet room or the like. The entrance detection sensor 600 is, for example, a reflective infrared sensor. In this case, the entrance detection sensor 600 detects that the user has entered the toilet room when detecting infrared rays reflected from the human body.

  The control unit 90 of the main body 200 controls the operation of each part of the sanitary washing device 100 based on signals transmitted from the remote operation device 300, the room entry detection sensor 600, and the seating sensor 610.

  FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram illustrating the configuration of the toilet seat device 110. As described above, the toilet seat device 110 includes the main body 200, the remote control device 300, the toilet seat 400, and the entrance detection sensor 600.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the main body 200 includes a control unit 90, a temperature measurement unit 401, a heater driving unit 402, a ground presence / absence detection unit 480, a toilet seat temperature adjustment lamp RA <b> 1, and a seating sensor 610. The toilet seat 400 includes a toilet seat heater 450 and a thermistor 401a.

  The control unit 90 is composed of, for example, a microcomputer, and includes a determination unit that determines the user's entrance and the temperature of the toilet seat 400, a timer unit having a timer function, a storage unit that stores various information, and a heater driving unit 402. Including an energization rate switching circuit for controlling the operation.

  The temperature measuring unit 401 of the main body 200 is connected to the thermistor 401 a of the toilet seat 400. Thereby, the temperature measurement part 401 measures the temperature of the toilet seat part 400 based on the signal output from the thermistor 401a. Hereinafter, the temperature of the toilet seat 400 measured by the temperature measuring unit 401 through the thermistor 401a is referred to as a measured temperature value.

  Further, the heater driving unit 402 of the main body 200 is connected to the toilet seat heater 450 of the toilet seat 400. As a result, the heater driving unit 402 drives the toilet seat heater 450.

  The presence / absence detection unit 480 of the main body 200 is connected to a lead wire 471 extending from the toilet seat heater 450 of the toilet seat 400, and the ground lead wire 472 drawn from the toilet seat 450 is connected to the ground via the ground wire 473. Detects and notifies whether or not it is connected.

  In the present embodiment, toilet seat device 110 operates as follows. At the time of initial setting, the controller 90 controls the heater driving unit 402 so that the temperature of the toilet seat 400 is adjusted to about 18 ° C., for example. The temperature at this time is referred to as a standby temperature.

Here, when the user operates a toilet seat temperature adjustment switch (not shown) of the remote control device 300, the toilet seat set temperature is transmitted to the control unit 90. The control unit 90 is connected to the remote control device 30.
The toilet seat set temperature received from 0 is stored in the storage unit.

  When the user enters the toilet room, the entry detection sensor 600 detects the entry of the user. As a result, a user entry detection signal is transmitted to the control unit 90.

  Next, the operation during normal use will be described. The determination unit of the control unit 90 detects the user's entry into the toylet room based on the entry detection signal from the entry detection sensor 600. Therefore, the determination unit selects a specific heater control pattern related to driving of the toilet seat heater 450 based on the measured temperature value of the toilet seat unit 400 and the toilet seat set temperature stored in the storage unit.

  The energization rate switching circuit controls the operation of the heater driving unit 402 based on the selected heater control pattern and time information obtained by the time measuring unit. Accordingly, the toilet seat heater 450 is driven by the heater driving unit 402, and the temperature of the toilet seat 400 is instantaneously increased to the toilet seat set temperature.

  FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of the toilet seat 400. 4A is a plan view of the toilet seat heater 450 of the toilet seat 400 of the first example, and FIG. 4B is an enlarged view of a region C72 in FIG. 4A. As shown in FIG. 3, the toilet seat 400 includes a substantially oval upper toilet seat casing 410 formed mainly of aluminum, a substantially horseshoe-shaped toilet seat heater 450, and a substantially oval lower toilet seat casing 420 formed of a synthetic resin. Prepare.

  Hereinafter, the front side viewed from the seated user is defined as the front portion of the toilet seat 400, and the rear side viewed from the seated user is defined as the rear of the toilet seat 400.

  As shown in FIGS. 4A and 5, the toilet seat heater 450 according to the present embodiment has a horseshoe shape in which a part of the front portion is cut out in accordance with the shape of the seating portion with which the body of the user who is seated contacts. Formed. The toilet seat heater 450 may have an elliptical shape. The toilet seat heater 450 includes metal foils 451 and 453 made of, for example, aluminum and a linear heater 460.

  The linear heater 460 is disposed in a meandering manner in accordance with the shape of the upper toilet seat casing 410 in the region from the seat center portion SE3 to the seat one end portion SE1 and in the region from the seat center portion SE3 to the seat other end portion SE2. .

  Specifically, the linear heater 460 is formed to have U-shaped portions of about six rows on the left and right. These U-shaped parts are arranged in parallel along the direction of the thigh of the seated user. The interval between the linear heaters 460 in each U-shaped portion is about 5 mm. Moreover, as shown in FIG.4 (b), the some bending part CU used as a thermal-stress buffer part is provided in the path | route of the meandering linear heater 460. As shown in FIG.

  The heater start end portion 460 a and the heater end portion 460 b of the linear heater 460 are respectively connected to lead wires 470 drawn from one side of the rear portion of the toilet seat 400. The lead wire 470 is provided with a waterproof insulation coating, and the connection portion between the heater start end portion 460a and the heater end portion 460b is sandwiched between metal foils 451 and 453, and has a waterproof structure that prevents water from entering from the outside. It has become.

  In addition, in order to detect whether or not the earth lead wire 472 drawn out of the toilet seat 450 is connected to the earth 34 via the earth wire 473 as the earth connecting means, the lead wires 471 are connected to the metal foils 451 and 453. Are electrically connected.

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view showing an example of the structure of the toilet seat heater 450 attached to the upper toilet seat casing 410. As shown in FIG. 5, the upper toilet seat casing 410 is formed of, for example, an aluminum plate 413 having a thickness of 1 mm. An alumite layer 412 and a surface decorative layer 411 are formed on the upper surface of the aluminum plate 413. The upper surface of the surface decorative layer 411 becomes the seating surface 410U. A coating film 414 is formed as an insulator on the lower surface of the aluminum plate 413. The coating film 414 is a polyester powder coating film having a film thickness of 40 μm and heat resistance of 150 ° C., for example. Instead of the aluminum plate 413, one or more of a copper plate, a stainless plate, an aluminum plated steel plate, and a zinc aluminum plated steel plate may be used.

  A metal foil 451 made of, for example, aluminum is attached to the lower surface of the coating film 414 via an adhesive layer 452a. The film thickness of the metal foil 451 is, for example, 50 μm.

  The linear heater 460 includes a heating wire 463a having a circular cross section, an enamel layer 463b, and an insulating coating layer 462. The outer peripheral surface of the heating wire 463a having a circular cross section is sequentially covered with the enamel layer 463b and the insulating coating layer 462. The enamel wire 463 is constituted by the heating wire 463a and the enamel layer 463b.

  The heating wire 463a has a diameter of 0.16 to 0.25 mm, for example, and is made of copper or a copper alloy. In this example, a high tensile strength heater wire made of 4% Ag—Cu alloy having a diameter of 0.176 mm is used as the heating wire 463a. The resistance value is 0.833 Ω / m.

  The enamel layer 463b is made of, for example, polyesterimide (PEI) having heat resistance of 180 to 300 ° C. The film thickness of the enamel layer 463b is 20 μm or less, and is 12 to 13 μm in this example.

  Such an enameled wire 463 sufficiently secures an electrical withstand voltage performance of 1 minute or more at 1000 V, which is an electrical equipment technical standard, even if the enamel layer 463b has a very thin film thickness of about 0.01 to 0.02 mm. be able to. Alternatively, polyimide (PI) or polyamideimide (PAI) may be used as the material for the enamel layer 463b.

  The insulating coating layer 462 is made of a fluororesin such as a perfluoroalkoxy mixture (hereinafter referred to as PFA) having heat resistance of 260 ° C., for example. The thickness of the insulating coating layer 462 is, for example, 0.1 to 0.15 mm. The insulating coating layer 462 made of PFA can be formed by extrusion. In this case, even if the thickness of the insulating coating layer 462 is as thin as 0.05 to 0.1 mm, it is possible to ensure electrical withstand voltage performance that can withstand lightning surge.

  Note that polyimide (PI) or polyamideimide (PAI) may be used as the material of the insulating coating layer 462.

  The outer diameter of the linear heater 460 is, for example, 0.46 to 0.50 mm. The power density of the linear heater 460 is, for example, 0.95 W / cm 2.

  The linear heater 460 is attached to the metal foil 451 so as to be covered with an adhesive layer 452b and a metal foil 453 made of, for example, aluminum. The film thickness of the metal foil 453 is, for example, 50 μm.

  In this manner, a double insulation structure can be ensured by forming the insulating coating layer 462 on the single enamel wire 463.

Further, sufficient insulation can be obtained even if the insulating coating layer 462 is relatively thin. Therefore, the thickness of the insulating coating layer 462 can be reduced. In the above example, the resin layers (enamel layer 463b and insulating coating layer 462) of the linear heater 460 are as thin as about 0.12 mm. In this case, heat conduction from the heating wire 463a to the metal foil 451 and the toilet seat casing 410 can be performed very agile.

  Incidentally, in the conventional toilet seat device, the thickness of the covering tube made of silicone rubber, vinyl chloride or the like of the linear heater is about 1 mm, which is about 10 times that of the above example. The heat conduction rate of such a coated tube was extremely slow, and the temperature raising rate of the toilet seat could not be increased.

  In the conventional toilet seat device, when a large electric power is supplied to the heater wire in order to forcibly increase the temperature raising rate of the toilet seat, the coated tube is melted and burnt out as in the case where the temperature of the heater wire is increased in the heat insulating state. Therefore, raising the temperature of the toilet seat by such a method has not been practical.

  On the other hand, when the enameled wire 463 having excellent heat resistance as in this example is used as the heater wire, the toilet seat can be heated in a sufficiently short time, and electrical insulation and safety can be secured. Therefore, the structure of this example can be effectively used for various toilet seat devices.

  In the structure of this example, the resin layer composed of the enamel layer 463b and the insulating coating layer 462 can be formed with a thin thickness of about 0.1 to 0.4 mm. Thus, the temperature of the toilet seat can be rapidly raised in a state where the absolute temperature of the heating wire 463a and the resin layer is maintained at a low temperature. As a result, a relatively inexpensive insulating material can be used instead of an expensive heat-resistant insulating material.

  In this example, in order to efficiently transfer the heat of the linear heater 460 to the toilet seat casing 410, the linear heater 460 is sandwiched between metal foils 451 and 453. Here, in the linear heater 460 of this example, since the enamel layer 463b and the insulating coating layer 462 can be thinned, the outer diameter of the linear heater 460 can be reduced (about φ0.2 to φ0.4). In this case, when the metal foil 451 and the metal foil 453 are bonded together, the air layer between the metal foil 451 and the metal foil 453 can be reduced, and wrinkles of the metal foils 451 and 453 can be reduced. it can. Thereby, the local high heat of the enamel wire 463 is suppressed, and the disconnection of the enamel wire 463 and the damage to the electrical insulating layer (enamel layer 463b and the insulating coating layer 462) are prevented. As a result, the service life of the toilet seat device 110 can be extended.

  Further, since the enamel wire 463 can be made thin, the weight of the toilet seat heater 450 can be reduced, and the toilet seat opening / closing torque can be reduced. Thereby, the electric opening / closing unit for opening and closing the toilet seat can be downsized, and the toilet seat device 110 can be downsized.

  In order to ensure the safety of the toilet seat 400, the toilet seat device 110 includes two safety circuits. The first safety circuit is connected between the lead wire 471 that is in electrical contact with the metal foil 451 of the toilet seat heater 450 and the ground lead wire 472 that is in electrical contact with the aluminum plate 413 of the upper toilet seat casing 410. The second safety circuit is connected between both the lead wires 470a and 470b of the toilet seat heater 450 and the toilet seat heater disconnection detection circuit.

  These safety circuits are used for ensuring the safety of the user when the installation work of the toilet seat device 110 is not normally performed or when an abnormality occurs in the toilet seat heater 450.

The ground presence / absence detection circuit reads a change in potential difference between the metal foil 451 of the toilet seat heater 450 and the aluminum plate 413 of the upper toilet seat casing 410 installed through the paint film 414 when the toilet seat device is not grounded. This is detected and notified through the wires 470a, 470b, 471 and the ground lead wire 472.

  The toilet seat heater disconnection detection circuit detects that the voltage waveform generated at both ends of the toilet seat heater 450 is not generated when the toilet seat heater 450 is disconnected. When the toilet seat heater disconnection is detected, the heater driving unit 402 The energization of the toilet seat heater 450 is stopped.

  In particular, details of the safety circuit are described below. As shown in FIG. 4A, the lead wire 471 is electrically connected to the metal foils 451 and 453 of the toilet seat heater 450 and taken out to the outside. The heater wire 460 has a lead wire 470a at the start and a lead wire 470b at the end. It has been taken out.

  FIG. 6A is a circuit diagram of the ground presence / absence detection unit when the toilet seat 400 is not grounded. A portion surrounded by a broken line 20 is an electrical equivalent circuit of the toilet seat 400.

  As shown in the figure, a lead wire 470 a is connected to the starting end of the linear heater 460, and a lead wire 470 b is connected to the end of the linear heater 460. Capacitance formed between the linear heater 460 and the metal foil 451 installed through the electrical insulating layer (enamel layer 463b and insulating coating layer 462) is installed through the coating film 414 by the capacitor 24 and the capacitor 25. The capacitance formed between the metal foil 451 thus formed and the aluminum plate 413 of the upper toilet seat casing 410 is represented by a capacitor 26 and a capacitor 27. Capacitors 24 and 25 both have a capacity of 0.75 nF, and capacitors 26 and 27 both have a capacity of 5 nF. Further, a lead wire 471 protrudes from the metal foil 451.

  The lead wire 470a on the start end side of the linear heater 460 is connected to one end of the AC power supply 28, one end of the first capacitor 29 having a capacity of 1 nF, and the anode of the diode 30, and the lead wire 470b is connected to the end side of the linear heater 460. The lead wire 471 connected to the other end of the AC power supply 28 and one end of the second capacitor 31 having a capacity of 1 nF and connected to the metal foil 451 is connected to the cathode of the diode 30, and the aluminum plate 413 of the upper toilet seat casing 410 is The third capacitor 32 is connected to the other end of the third capacitor 32 having a capacity of 1 nF, and one end of the third capacitor 32 is connected to the other end of the first capacitor 29 and the other end of the second capacitor 30. A neon lamp 473 is connected between the lead wire 471 and the aluminum plate 413 of the upper toilet seat casing 410 as detection means for detecting a potential difference. Reference numeral 34 denotes a ground.

  FIG. 7A is an electrical equivalent circuit diagram when the toilet seat 400 in the present embodiment is grounded. A ground lead wire 472 connected to the aluminum plate 413 of the upper toilet seat casing 410 of the toilet seat 400 is connected to the ground 34 via a ground wire 474 serving as a ground connection means. The other parts are the same as in FIG.

  The operation and operation of the ground presence / absence detection circuit configured as described above will be described below.

  In FIG. 6A when the toilet seat 400 is not grounded, an alternating current flows from one end of the alternating current power supply 28 through the diode 30, the capacitor 27, the capacitor 32, and the capacitor 31. At the same time, an alternating current flows from one end of the alternating current power supply 28 via the diode 30 and the capacitor 25. At this time, the potential difference between the metal foil 451 and the aluminum plate 413 of the upper toilet seat casing 410 is the voltage of the capacitor 27. FIG. 6B shows the voltage of the capacitor 27 between the metal foil 451 and the aluminum plate 413 of the upper toilet seat casing 410. The capacity of the capacitor 27 is about 1 nF, and the alternating current is very small. FIG. 6B shows the measured voltage, which is about 4.5V. The neon lamp 473 of the detecting means detects this voltage.

  On the other hand, in FIG. 7A when the toilet seat 400 is grounded, the AC current 3 flows from one end of the AC power supply 28 via the diode 30 and the capacitor 27. At the same time, an alternating current 4 flows from one end of the alternating current power supply 28 via the diode 30 and the capacitor 25. At this time, the potential difference between the metal foil 451 and the aluminum plate 413 of the upper toilet seat casing 410 is the voltage of the capacitor 27. At this time, the aluminum 413 of the upper toilet seat casing 410, which is one end of the capacitor 27, has the same potential as the ground 34. On the other hand, since the AC voltage is directly applied to the metal foil 451 which is the other end of the capacitor 27 via the diode 30, it is applied up to a peak value of 140V of AC100V. In FIG. 7B, the measured voltage of the potential of the metal foil 451 and the aluminum plate 413 of the upper toilet seat casing 410 of the toilet seat is about 120 to 140V. A neon lamp 473 serving as detection means detects this voltage.

  As described above, the potential difference between the metal foil 451 and the aluminum plate 413 of the upper toilet seat casing 410 is about 140 V when the toilet seat 400 is grounded, and is about 5 V when the toilet seat 400 is not grounded.

  In the present embodiment, the neon lamp 473 is used as the detecting means, but generally the neon lamp discrimination level voltage is 65V and the current is about 0.3 mA. That is, the neon lamp 473 is turned on when the voltage is higher than 65V, and the neon lamp 473 is turned off when the voltage is lower than 65V. In the case of the present embodiment in which the neon lamp 473 is used as the detection means, the neon lamp 473 is turned on when the toilet seat device 110 is grounded, and the neon lamp 473 is turned off when the toilet seat device 110 is not grounded. Thus, by adopting the neon lamp 473 as the detecting means, it is possible to simultaneously detect and notify the presence or absence of ground. In addition, since the current flowing through the neon lamp 473 is small, electric energy is not wasted.

  In the present embodiment, the neon lamp is used as the detection means, but the present invention is not limited to this, and a meter such as a voltmeter for detecting a potential difference, a circuit, an element, or the like may be used.

(Embodiment 2)
FIG. 8 shows a circuit of a ground presence / absence detecting unit in the second embodiment.

  In the first embodiment shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, when the anode of the diode 30 is connected to the ground side of the AC power source due to the direction of the power plug of the toilet seat device, no voltage is applied to the capacitor 27 and the detection is performed. The means neon lamp 473 cannot be identified.

  The present embodiment solves the above-described problem. As shown in FIG. 8, a second diode 35 is added, the cathode of the diode 35 is used as the cathode of the diode 30, and the anode of the second diode 35 is used as the lead wire 470b. Connect to.

  With the above configuration, when the anode of the diode 30 is connected to the ground side of the AC power supply, a voltage is applied to the capacitor 27 via the anode of the diode 35, and the neon lamp 473, which is the detection means as described above, It becomes possible to identify, and it becomes possible to operate the detection means regardless of which direction the power plug is inserted.

  Since the toilet seat device according to the present invention can detect and notify the presence or absence of ground connection, the toilet seat device can also be applied to uses such as a heating appliance that is used by directly contacting a metal part with a human body.

The perspective view which shows the external appearance of the toilet apparatus in Embodiment 1 of this invention The schematic diagram which shows the structure of the toilet seat apparatus in Embodiment 1 of this invention. The perspective view which shows the decomposition | disassembly state of the toilet seat in Embodiment 1 of this invention (A) is a top view of the toilet seat heater in Embodiment 1 of this invention (b) is a top view which shows the detail of C72 part of (a) Sectional drawing of the toilet seat heater in Embodiment 1 of this invention (A) is a circuit diagram when the ground connection means is not connected in Embodiment 1 of the present invention (b) is a graph showing a change in voltage between the metal foil and the aluminum plate (A) is a circuit diagram when the earth connection means in Embodiment 1 of the present invention is connected. (B) is a graph showing a change in voltage between the metal foil and the aluminum plate. Circuit diagram when ground connection means is not connected in Embodiment 2 of the present invention

Explanation of symbols

28 AC Power Supply 29 First Capacitor 30 Diode 31 Second Capacitor 32 Third Capacitor 35 Second Diode (Diode)
110 Toilet seat device 400 Toilet seat part (toilet seat)
413 Aluminum plate (metal material)
414 Paint film (insulator)
450 Toilet seat heater 451 Metal foil 453 Metal foil 460 Linear heater 462 Insulation coating layer (electrical insulation layer)
463b Enamel layer (electrical insulation layer)
471 Lead wire 473 Neon lamp (detection means)
474 Ground wire (ground connection means)

Claims (4)

A toilet seat in which at least a part of the seating portion is formed of a metal material; a toilet seat heater installed via an insulator on at least the back surface of the seating portion; and a ground connection means for grounding the metal material of the toilet seat. The toilet seat heater has a configuration in which a linear heater having an electrical insulation layer is provided on a metal foil with a gap between the metal foil of the toilet seat heater installed via the insulator and the metal material of the seating portion. A toilet seat device provided with detection means for detecting a potential difference, wherein the detection means detects whether or not the ground connection means is connected. A lead wire electrically connected to the metal foil of the toilet seat heater is connected to one end of the AC power supply via a diode, one end of the first capacitor is connected to one end of the AC power supply, and the second capacitor is connected to the other end of the AC power supply. One end is connected, the other end of the first capacitor, the other end of the second capacitor, and one end of the third capacitor are connected, and the other end of the third capacitor is connected to the metal material of the toilet seat, and the metal foil The toilet seat device according to claim 1, wherein a detecting means is provided between the metal material of the toilet seat portion. The toilet seat device according to claim 2, wherein a diode is added from the other end of the AC power supply in addition to one end of the AC power supply and connected to a lead wire electrically connected to the metal foil. The toilet seat device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein a neon lamp is used as the detection means.