DEVICE FOR OPENING AND CLOSING TOILET COVER AND TOILET SEAT
The present invention relates to a device for opening and closing a toilet cover and a toilet seat and, more specifically, to a device for opening and closing a toilet cover and a toilet seat, enabling a user to open the toilet cover without touching the toilet cover. The device for opening and closing the toilet cover and the toilet seat, according to the present invention, can comprise: a toilet body provided with a water tank; fixing parts coupled and fixed to the toilet body; a housing coupled and fixed to one side of the fixing part and provided with a fixing shaft therein; a first rotating part positioned inside the housing, connected to one side of a rotating body shaft-coupled between the fixing parts, and coupled and fixed to the toilet cover, which is positioned on the toilet body, so as to rotate the toilet cover; a first lever rotatably shaft-coupled to the fixing shaft, connected to the peripheral surface of the first rotating part, and rotating the first rotating part by means of an external force; a second rotating part of which one end is rotatably shaft-fixed to one side surface of the rotating body by passing through the inside of the first rotating part, coupled and fixed to the toilet seat positioned under the toilet cover, and rotating the toilet seat; and a second lever shaft-coupled to the fixing shaft to be spaced from the first lever, connected to the peripheral surface of the second rotating part, and rotating the second rotating part by means of the external force.
This patent application is a national-stage application of International Patent Application No. PCT/KR2015/005321 filed on May 27, 2015, which claims priority under 35 U.S.C. §119 to Korean Patent Application No. 10-2014-0134551, filed on Oct. 6, 2014, in the Korean Intellectual Property Office, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.
TECHNICAL FIELDThe present invention relates to a device for opening and closing a toilet cover and a toilet seat, and more specifically, to a device for opening and closing a toilet cover and a toilet seat, enabling a user to open the toilet cover without touching the toilet cover and the toilet seat.
DISCUSSION OF RELATED ARTThere is wide use of flush toilets which have a function to wash using water after use.
Such flush toilets are classified as seating toilets and urinals. Common flush toilets allow a user to release both urine and feces while the user is seated. Such flush toilet is provided with a toilet body in which suitable-height water is contained, dealing with urine and feces, a water tank supplying water to wash the inside of the toilet body, a toilet seat attached to the toilet body, being seated by a user, and a toilet cover covering the toilet body when the toilet is not used.
Such seating toilets are installed in a wide variety of places ranging from general households to public area commonly used by a plurality of people, including, e.g., a company, a park, a service station, a school, a department store, a station, and a terminal. In the restrooms without extra urinals, the toilets are often used for coping with both feces and urine. When the restrooms are used, a user should lift up the toilet seat upon using the toilet.
However, since covers for the conventional seating toilets do not include a separate device for lifting the covers when using the toilet, there is an inconvenience in that the user should lean toward and lift the seating toilet's cover using his or her hand, which is located at the height of the user's knee. When the cover is lifted, the user often touches the body of the seating toilet where the urine is on, causing unhygienic and discomfort. Items carried by the user may fall into the body of the seating toilet upon bending the waist.
SUMMARYThe present invention provides a device for opening and closing a toilet cover and a toilet seat, which allows a user to easily open and close the toilet cover and the toilet seat without touching his or her hand using a lever, is easily installed in, e.g., a public place as well as home dues to a simple structure, and may more conveniently and hygienically be used.
The various issues to be addressed by the present invention are not limited to the issues as described above. Other issues not mentioned above can be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the following descriptions.
The device for opening and closing a toilet cover and a toilet seat according to the present invention, comprises a toilet body provided with a water tank, a fixing part fittingly coupled with the toilet body, a housing fittingly coupled with one side of the fixing part and provided with a fixing shaft therein, a first rotating part positioned inside the housing, coupled with one side of a rotating body shaft-coupled between two the fixing part, and fittingly coupled with the toilet cover positioned on the toilet body to enable the toilet cover to be rotated, a first lever rotatably shaft-coupled with the fixing shaft, connected with an outer circumferential surface of the first rotating part, and enabling the first rotating part to be rotated by external force, a second rotating part of which one end is rotatably shaft-fixed to one side surface of the rotating body by penetrating inside the first rotating part, fittingly coupled with the toilet seat positioned under the toilet cover, and rotating the toilet seat, and a second lever shaft-coupled with the fixing shaft to be spaced apart from the first lever, coupled with the outer circumferential surface of the second rotating part, and rotating the second rotating part by the external force.
The device for opening and closing a toilet cover and a toilet seat according to the present invention, further comprises a first guiding part fittingly coupled with an inner circumferential surface of the housing and into which a guiding projection formed on one side surface of the first lever is fittingly inserted, and a second guiding part fittingly coupled with an inner circumferential surface of an outer wall of the housing and into which a guiding projection formed on one side surface of the second lever is fittingly inserted. The first guiding part maintains downward rotating speed caused by a load of the toilet cover to be constant, and the second guiding part maintains downward rotating speed caused by a load of the toilet seat to be constant.
The first rotating part comprises a first pipe fittingly coupled with one side of the rotating body and positioned inside the housing and a first gear fittingly coupled with an outer circumferential surface of one side of the first pipe and enabling the first pipe to be rotated by external force. The first lever comprises a second gear fittingly coupled with the fitting shaft provided inside the housing and engaging with the first gear to be rotated and a first handle fittingly coupled with an outer circumferential surface of the second gear and enabling the second gear to be by external force.
The second rotating part comprises a second pipe comprising one end inserted inside a first pipe to be fittingly coupled with the toilet seat and the other end positioned inside the housing and a third gear fittingly coupled with an outer circumferential surface of one side of the second pipe and enabling the second pipe to be rotated by external force. The second lever comprises a fourth gear positioned to be space apart from and fittingly coupled with a second gear and engaging with the third gear to be rotated and a second handle fittingly coupled with an outer circumferential surface of the fourth gear and enabling the fourth gear to be rotated by external force.
The first lever comprises a first support fixed to a lower end of a first handle, fittingly coupled with each first long hole formed on both sides of a second gear and moving along with the first long hole, a first stopper fittingly coupled with one side of the first support, fittingly inserted into an inserting hole penetrating an inner circumferential surface of the housing, fastening and supporting the first handle, and a first coil spring vertically fixed to a circumference of the second gear, inserted inside the first support, and maintaining the first stopper to be fittingly coupled with the inserting hole.
The second lever comprises a second support fixed to a lower end of a second handle, fittingly coupled with each second long hole formed on both sides of a fourth gear and moving along with the second long hole; a second stopper fittingly coupled with one side of the second support, fittingly inserted into an inserting hole penetrating an inner circumferential surface of the housing, fastening and supporting a first handle and a second coil spring vertically fixed to a circumference of the fourth gear, inserted inside the second support, and maintaining the second stopper to be fittingly coupled with the inserting hole.
The specific content of other embodiments is included in the detailed description and drawings.
The present invention provides a device for opening and closing a toilet cover and a toilet seat, which allows a user to easily open and close the toilet cover and the toilet seat without touching his or her hand using a lever, is easily installed in, e.g., public place as well as home dues to a simple structure, and may more conveniently and hygienically be used.
It will be appreciated that the various embodiments of the present invention may provide various effects not specifically mentioned.
The advantages and features of the present invention, and methods for accomplishing them will be apparent from the embodiments described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described herein, but may be embodied in other forms. Rather, the embodiments disclosed herein are provided so that these disclosures will be thorough and complete, and those skilled in the art will fully understand the concept of the present invention. In the drawings, the thicknesses of layers and regions may be exaggerated for clarity.
The term, e.g., “first,” or “second,” may be used for description of various components, but the components are not limited to the terms. Such terms are used only for the purpose of distinguishing one component from another. For example, a first component may be referred to as a second component without departing from the scope of the present invention, and similarly, the second component may be referred to as a first component.
The terms, e.g., upper end, lower end, upper surface, lower surface, upper part, or lower part, are used to distinguish relative positions between the components. For example, in the case of denoting an upper side of a figure as an upper part and a lower side as a lower part in the drawing for convenience, an upper part may be referred to as a lower part and a lower part may be referred as an upper part without departing from the scope of right of the present invention.
The terms used herein are for the purpose of only describing particular embodiments, but are not intended to limit the present invention. The singular forms include plural forms unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. In this specification, the terms, e.g., “comprise” and “have,” are intended to indicate the presence of the features, numbers, steps, acts, elements, parts or combinations thereof as disclosed in the specification, and it should be construed not to preclude the presence or addition of one or more features, integers, steps, operations, components, parts, or combinations thereof.
Unless defined otherwise, all terms used herein, including technical or scientific terms, have the same meaning as is commonly understood by those of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention pertains. Terms, such as those defined in commonly used dictionaries, should be construed as meaning consistent with the context of the related art and be not interpreted as ideal or overly formal in meaning unless explicitly defined in the present specification.
Hereinafter, preferable embodiments of a device for opening and closing a toilet cover and a toilet seat according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.
Referring to
The first rotating part 100 is coupled with a toilet cover 30 positioned on a toilet body 10 to enable the toilet cover 30 to be rotated within a predetermined range. The first rotating part 100 may comprise a rotating body 110, a first pipe 120, and a first gear 130.
A pair of the rotation bodies 110 may be fittingly coupled with one side of the toilet cover 30 to be spaced apart from each other with a predetermined distance. The rotating body 110 may be rotatably shaft-fixed to the fixing part 50 fastened on the toilet body 10. The rotating body 110 may be provided to rotate the toilet cover 30 within a predetermined range using the external power.
The first pipe 120 is formed in the shape of a hollow cylindrical pipe. The first pipe 120 is located inside the housing 500 and has an end thereof fittingly coupled with the rotating body 110 to transmit power to the rotating body 110.
The first gear 130 has a plurality of teeth along a circumferential direction thereof and is fittingly coupled with an outer circumferential surface of the opposite side of the first pipe 120 with which the rotating body 110 is coupled. Operation of the first lever 200 may lead to power transmission so that the first pipe 120 can be rotated.
The first lever 200 may be provided to rotate the toilet cover 30 within a predetermined range. In other words, when the first lever 200 is pulled toward a user's body, the toilet cover 30 is rotated to be opened, and when the first lever 200 is pushed in the opposite direction, the toilet cover 30 is rotated to be closed. The first lever 200 may include a second gear 210 and a first handle 220.
The second gear 210 may be rotatably coupled with a fixing shaft 510 provided inside the housing 500 and engage with the first gear 130 to transmit rotational power to the first gear 130. The second gear 210 may be formed to be larger than the first gear 130. For example, when the second gear 210 is rotated at 20 degrees, the first gear 130 may be formed at a gear ratio rotated by 90 degrees or more.
The first handle 220 is formed in a long rod shape. One end of the first handle 220 may be provided to be fittingly coupled with the second gear 210 to enable the second gear 210 to be rotated. In other words, when the first handle 220 is pulled from the vertical position toward where the user is standing, the second gear 210 rotates on the fixing shaft 510 to rotate the first gear 130. When the first gear 130 is rotated, the first pipe 120 is rotated. Then, the first pipe 120 rotates the rotating body 110 to rotate the toilet cover 30 coupled with the rotating body 110.
The first lever 200 may comprise a first support 230 fixed to a lower end of the first handle 220, fittingly coupled with each first long hole 211 formed on both sides of the second gear 210 and moving along with the first long hole 211, a first stopper 240 fittingly coupled with one side of the first support 230, fittingly inserted into multiple inserting holes 570 penetrating an inner circumferential surface of the housing 500, fastening and supporting the first handle 220, and a first coil spring 250 vertically fixed to a circumference of the second gear 210, inserted inside the first support 230, and maintaining the first stopper 240 to be fittingly coupled with the inserting holes 570. In other words, the first stopper 240 is fixed to the inserting hole 570 to fasten and support the first handle 220 in order to prevent the toilet cover 30 from being closed by a load of the toilet cover 30 or external impact when the user is urinating while the toilet cover 30 is open.
In order to rotate the first lever 200, the first handle 220 is moved in the vertical direction with respect to the central axis of the second gear 210 so that the first support 230 is moved along the first long hole 211 formed in the second gear 210, and thus the stopper 240 is released from the inserting hole 570. The first stopper 240 is made of a material having elasticity and may be easily released from the inserting hole 570 even with a small force.
When the first handle 220 is pulled downward with respect to the center of the fixing shaft 510 while the first stopper 240 is detached from the inserting hole 570, the first stopper 240 is fittingly coupled with another inserting hole 570 positioned to be spaced apart from the inserting hole 570 with which the first stopper 240 was coupled. The first stopper 240 is fittingly coupled with the inserting hole 570 when the first coil spring 250 is tensioned in a compressed state to push the first handle 220 in the outer axial direction. In this state, the toilet cover 30 is opened upward.
The second rotating part 300 may be provided to be coupled with a toilet seat 20 located under the toilet cover 30 to rotate the toilet seat 20 within a predetermined range. The second rotating part 300 may include a second pipe 310 and a third gear 320.
The second pipe 310 is formed in the shape of a long pipe and has a part of one end thereof inserted into the first pipe 120 and a part of the other end thereof located inside the housing 500. The second pipe 310 may be fittingly coupled with one end of a fixing piece 330 fixed to the toilet seat 20 so that the toilet seat 20 may be rotated.
The third gear 330 has a plurality of teeth along a circumferential direction thereof and is spaced apart from the first gear 130. The third gear 330 may be fittingly coupled with the outer circumferential surface of the second pipe 310. Due to the operation of the second lever 400, the third gear 320 may transmit power to lead the second pipe 310 to be rotated.
The second lever 400 may be provided to rotate the toilet seat 20 within a predetermined range. In other words, when the second lever 400 is pulled toward the body of the user, the toilet seat 20 is rotated to be opened, and when the second lever 400 is again pushed in the opposite direction, the toilet seat 20 is rotated to be closed. The second lever 400 may include a fourth gear 410 and a second handle 420.
The fourth gear 410 may be rotatably coupled with a fixing shaft 510 provided inside the housing 500 and engage with the third gear 320 to transmit rotational power to the third gear 130. The fourth gear 410 may be formed to be larger than the third gear 320. For example, when the fourth gear 410 is rotated at 20 degrees, the third gear 320 may be formed at a gear ratio rotated by 90 degrees or more.
The second handle 420 is formed in a long rod shape. One end of the second handle 420 may be provided to be fittingly coupled with the fourth gear 410 to be rotated. In other words, when the second handle 420 is pulled from the vertical position toward where the user is standing, the fourth gear 410 rotates on the fixing shaft 510 to rotate the third gear 320. When the third gear 320 is rotated, the second pipe 130 is rotated. Then, the second pipe 310 rotates the toilet seat 20.
The second lever 400 may comprise a second support 430 fixed to a lower end of the second handle 420, fittingly coupled with each first long hole 211 formed on both sides of the second gear 210 and moving along with a second long hole 411, a second stopper 440 fittingly coupled with one side of the second support 430, fittingly inserted into multiple inserting holes 570 penetrating an inner circumferential surface of the housing 500, fastening and supporting the second handle 420, and a second coil spring 450 vertically fixed to a circumference of the fourth gear 410, inserted inside the second support 430, and maintaining the second stopper 440 to be fittingly coupled with the inserting holes 570. In other words, the second stopper 440 is fixed to the inserting hole 570 to fasten and support the second handle 420 in order to prevent the toilet seat 20 from being closed by a load of the toilet seat 30 or external impact when the user is urinating while the toilet seat 20 is open.
Since the operation of the second lever 400 is the same as that of the first lever 200 described above, a detailed description will be excluded.
The housing 500 is fittingly coupled with one side of the fixing part 50 and has the fixing shaft 510 therein. The hosing 500 may be provided to protect the first gear 130 to the fourth gear 410 from an external impact. The housing 500 may comprise a first opening 550 into which the first handle 220 is inserted and a second opening 560 into which the second handle 420 is inserted and positioned to be spaced apart from the first opening 550.
The first opening 550 and the second opening 560 respectively may be provided to prevent the first handle 220 and the second handle 420 from being rotated beyond a predetermined range.
The housing 500 may include a first guiding part 520 and a second guiding part 530.
The first guiding part 520 may be a hole formed on a partition wall which is fittingly coupled to a middle of an inner circumferential surface of the housing 500, and a guiding protrusion 540 formed on one side surface of the first handle 220 may fittingly be inserted into the hole.
The second guide portion 530 is formed as a hole on an inner side surface of the outer wall of the housing 500 and the guide protrusion 540 formed on one side of the second handle 420 may be fittingly inserted into the hole.
In other words, the first guiding part 520 allows the first lever 200 to be rotated while the downward rotation of the toilet cover 30 by a load of the toilet cover 30 is maintained at a constant speed, and the second guiding part 530 allows the second lever 400 to be rotated while the downward rotation of the toilet seat 20 by a load of the toilet seat 20 is maintained at a constant speed.
The linking part 600 may be provided to close the toilet cover 30 when a user presses an operation lever 41 provided in the water tank 40 in order to flush water stored the water tank 40 after urinating while the toilet cover 30 and the toilet seat 20 are opened. The linking part 600 may include a vertical rod 610 and a pressing part 620.
The vertical rod 610 may be supported by a supporting strip 640 provided on a front surface of the water tank 40. An upper end of the vertical rod 610 may be connected to the operation lever 41. The vertical rod 610 may be vertically moved by the operation of the operation lever 41.
One end of the pressing part 620 may be connected to the other end of the vertical rod 610, and the other end may be inserted into the inserting hole 570 formed on the housing 500 while a part of the other end is bent. In other words, when the vertical rod 610 is moved downwards by the operation lever 41, the bent portion of the other end of the pressing part 620 is inserted into the inserting hole 570 to push the first stopper 240. Herein, when the first stopper 240 escapes from the inserting hole 570, the first handle 220 is rotated toward the water tank 40 by a tension spring 630 fixed to the first handle 220. Then, the first handle 220 is rotated to enable the toilet cover 30 to be closed at the same time.
Hereinafter, referring to
Initially, the toilet seat 20 and the toilet cover 30 are positioned in a closed state, and the first handle 220 and the second handle 420 are positioned in a vertical state. Upon urinating, when a user pulls the first handle 220 toward the user's standing position, the toilet cover is opened, and then the user again pushes the first handle 220 into an initial position after urinating.
Next, the toilet seat 20 and the toilet cover 30 are required to be opened in order for the user's urinating. When the user pulls the second handle 220 toward the user's standing position without the additional opening the toilet cover 30, the toilet seat 20 is rotated to enable the toilet cover 30 to be rotated to be opened at the same time.
Next, the user flushes water after urinating. In this process, contaminated water mixed with urine may be splashed in all directions, and fine particles thereof may be floated into the air, which leads the user uncomfortable. Thus, the operation lever 41 is connected to the linking part 600 so that when the operation lever 41 provided in the water tank 40 is operated, the water stored in the water tank 40 is discharged into the toilet body 10 and the toilet cover 30 is closed at the same time. Here, when the toilet cover 30 is closed, the toilet seat 20 is closed by the toilet cover 30 as well.
The preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the present invention may be performed in other specific forms without departing from the technical concept or essential characteristics of the present invention. It is therefore to be understood that the above-described embodiments are illustrative and non-restrictive in all aspects.
Claims
1. A device for opening and closing a toilet cover and a toilet seat, comprising:
- a toilet body provided with a water tank;
- a fixing part fittingly coupled with the toilet body;
- a housing fittingly coupled with one side of the fixing part and provided with a fixing shaft therein;
- a first rotating part positioned inside the housing, coupled with one side of a rotating body shaft-coupled between two the fixing part, and fittingly coupled with the toilet cover positioned on the toilet body to enable the toilet cover to be rotated;
- a first lever rotatably shaft-coupled with the fixing shaft, connected with an outer circumferential surface of the first rotating part, and enabling the first rotating part to be rotated by external force;
- a second rotating part of which one end is rotatably shaft-fixed to one side surface of the rotating body by penetrating inside the first rotating part, fittingly coupled with the toilet seat positioned under the toilet cover, and rotating the toilet seat; and
- a second lever shaft-coupled with the fixing shaft to be spaced apart from the first lever, coupled with the outer circumferential surface of the second rotating part, and rotating the second rotating part by the external force.
2. The device of claim 1, further comprising:
- a first guiding part fittingly coupled with an inner circumferential surface of the housing and into which a guiding projection formed on one side surface of the first lever is fittingly inserted; and
- a second guiding part fittingly coupled with an inner circumferential surface of an outer wall of the housing and into which a guiding projection formed on one side surface of the second lever is fittingly inserted,
- wherein the first guiding part maintains downward rotating speed caused by a load of the toilet cover to be constant, and the second guiding part maintains downward rotating speed caused by a load of the toilet seat to be constant.
3. The device of claim 1, wherein the first rotating part comprises: a first pipe fittingly coupled with one side of the rotating body and positioned inside the housing; and a first gear fittingly coupled with an outer circumferential surface of one side of the first pipe and enabling the first pipe to be rotated by external force, and wherein the first lever comprises: a second gear fittingly coupled with the fitting shaft provided inside the housing and engaging with the first gear to be rotated; and a first handle fittingly coupled with an outer circumferential surface of the second gear and enabling the second gear to be by external force.
4. The device of claim 1, wherein the second rotating part comprises: a second pipe comprising one end inserted inside a first pipe to be fittingly coupled with the toilet seat and the other end positioned inside the housing; and a third gear fittingly coupled with an outer circumferential surface of one side of the second pipe and enabling the second pipe to be rotated by external force, and wherein the second lever comprises: a fourth gear positioned to be space apart from and fittingly coupled with a second gear and engaging with the third gear to be rotated; and a second handle fittingly coupled with an outer circumferential surface of the fourth gear and enabling the fourth gear to be rotated by external force.
5. The device of claim 1, wherein the first lever comprises: a first support fixed to a lower end of a first handle, fittingly coupled with each first long hole formed on both sides of a second gear and moving along with the first long hole; a first stopper fittingly coupled with one side of the first support, fittingly inserted into an inserting hole penetrating an inner circumferential surface of the housing, fastening and supporting the first handle; and a first coil spring vertically fixed to a circumference of the second gear, inserted inside the first support, and maintaining the first stopper to be fittingly coupled with the inserting hole.
6. The device of claim 1, wherein the second lever comprises: a second support fixed to a lower end of a second handle, fittingly coupled with each second long hole formed on both sides of a fourth gear and moving along with the second long hole; a second stopper fittingly coupled with one side of the second support, fittingly inserted into an inserting hole penetrating an inner circumferential surface of the housing, fastening and supporting a first handle; and a second coil spring vertically fixed to a circumference of the fourth gear, inserted inside the second support, and maintaining the second stopper to be fittingly coupled with the inserting hole.
Type: Application
Filed: May 27, 2015
Publication Date: Oct 26, 2017
Inventor: Seung Jo HONG (Seoul)
Application Number: 15/513,847
