Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
CA 02363744 2001-11-26
SYSTEM FOR REMOTE OPERATION OF A
PERSONAL HYGIENE OR SANITARY APPLIANCE
THE FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a system for the remote operation of one or
more sanitary appliances normally found in a public washroom. Such appliances
may include
a urinal flush valve, a water closet flush valve, a faucet, a shower head, a
soap dispenser, a
paper towel dispenser, a hand dryer, or any other appliance which may be found
in such an
environment. Typically, such appliances are operated by an individual through
a sensor or a
manual switch which is located at the appliance and wired to the appliance
electric operator.
There are environments in which it is not possible or desirable to have a hard-
wired connection between the triggering device, which will cause operation of
the appliance,
and the appliance itself. For example, in a water closet the electric operator
for a flush valve
may be behind a partition and it is not practical to have the triggering
device hard-wired to the
flush valve. Similarly, there may be instances in which the flush valve for a
urinal is behind a
wall and it is not cost effective to have a hard-wire connection between the
device instituting
operation of the flush valve and the flush valve itself. The present invention
provides a radio
link which replaces the hard-wire connection. The invention further includes
the ability to
acknowledge receipt of an operational message so that at the triggering
device, whether it be an
infrared sensor or a pushbutton, the individual will have visual evidence that
the message to
cause operation of the appliance has been received and acknowledged.
Further, in some washroom environments, for example in institutions, it may be
desirable to have a master control which monitors the use and operation of all
of the sanitary
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appliances within a certain area. Again, it is desirable in such instance to
eliminate the hard-
wire connections and to replace them with a radio communication link. The use
of hard-wire
connections may be difficult in such an environment and may subject the wiring
to vandalism,
corrosion and malfunction. Replacement of the hard-wire connection with a
radio link has
many advantages, including cost, security and reliability.
The present invention provides a radio communication link between a single
personal hygiene or sanitary appliance of the type described and the
triggering device,
whether it be a sensor or a mechanically-operated switch, as well as a control
system for
multiple such devices within a predetermined area. All of the connections
between the
appliance itself and the means for causing its operation are by a radio link.
Similarly, in the
instance of multiple such devices, and a computer controlled or microprocessor
which
determines when and for how long any such appliance will be operated, the
communication
links are also by radio.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
A system according to the present invention, provides for remote operation of
a
personal hygiene appliance which is one of a toilet flush valve, a urinal
flush valve, a faucet, a
shower head, a soap dispenser, a hand dryer, and a paper towel dispenser
(appliance). The
system includes the appliance, an electric operator for controlling operation
of the appliance,
an appliance radio receiver connected electrically to the operator to provide
an activating
signal thereto, and an appliance radio transmitter connected to the appliance
radio receiver.
The system also includes means remote from the appliance for signaling an
intent to cause
operation of the appliance, a remote radio transmitter connected to the means
for signaling an
intent and operable thereby, an indicator located at the means for signaling
an intent, and a
remote radio receiver connected to the indicator to provide an operating
signal therefore.
The remote radio transmitter is programmed to transmit a message unique to the
means for
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signaling an intent (intent message), upon being activated by the means for
signaling an
intent. The appliance receiver is programmed to receive the intent message and
upon receipt
thereof to cause operation of the electric operator and to cause the appliance
transmitter to
send a message unique to the appliance (acknowledge message) to the remote
receiver to
acknowledge receipt of the intent message. The remote receiver, upon receipt
of the
acknowledge message, causes activation of the indicator.
The present invention relates to a system for operating appliances such as
flush
valves, faucets and the like, and more specifically to the use of a radio
communication link
between the triggering device for such an appliance and the electric operator
that causes it to
function.
A primary purpose of the invention is to provide an operating system for
personal hygiene and/or sanitary appliances in which hard-wiring between the
sensor or
activating device and the appliance itself is eliminated and replaced by a
radio communication
link.
Another purpose is a control system for appliances such as described in which
a
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multiple of such appliances are controlled by a single microprocessor through
a radio
communication link.
Other purposes will appear in the ensuing specification, drawings and claims.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The invention is illustrated diagrammatically in the following drawings
wherein:
Figs. 1A, 1B and 1C illustrate several individual sanitary appliances with
individual triggering devices therefor; and
Fig. 2 illustrates a control system for multiple appliances of the type
described
in Fig. 1.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIlVIENT
It is the present practice in most public washrooms, including those found in
institutions, for the various sanitary appliances and/or water flow control
plumbing devices to
be hard-wired to the triggering device which causes their operation. More
specifically, in such
an environment, and using a toilet flush valve as an example, there is a hard-
wire connection
between the electric operator of the valve and the triggering device whether
it be a sensor, such
as an infrared sensor, or a pushbutton in which the user of the device
manually operates the
pushbutton to ensure its operation. The flush valve may be associated with a
urinal or it may
be associated with a water closet. Similarly, there are hard-wire connections
to operate other
appliances such as faucets, shower heads, soap dispensers, paper towel
dispensers, and hand
dryers. The present invention is applicable to any personal hygiene and/or
sanitary appliance
of the above type and the triggering device, whether it be a sensor, such as
an infrared sensor,
or a switch which is manually operated by the individual who intends the
appliance to be
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utilized. Specifically, the present invention replaces a hard
wire connection with a radio communication link. FIGS. 1A, 1B,
1C, and 1D show several appliances of this type and the use of
two distinct type of triggering devices, one an infrared
sensor and the other a pushbutton. Either triggering device
may be used with any appliance and there are also instances in
which both triggering devices may be utilized with such an
appliance, with the manual device being used as an override or
for maintenance purposes.
FIG. lA shows a flush valve 10 which may be
associated with either a urinal or a water closet and which
may be either battery operated or connected to a local power
source. The flush valve may be of the type shown in U.S. Pat.
Nos. 5,169,118 and 5,244,179, both owned by the assignee of
the present application, Sloan Valve Company of Franklin Park,
Illinois. The flush valve 10 will include an electric
operator, such as a solenoid, powered either by battery or by
connection to local power which, upon actuation, will cause
the flush valve to pass a measured amount of water to either a
water closet or a urinal. The flush valve 10 is
diagrammatically shown FIG. 1A and in the preferred embodiment
of the invention will include, within the unit itself, the
described electric actuator, battery power if desired, and in
addition, a radio frequency transmitter 11 and a radio
frequency receiver 13. Typically, these devices will operate
in the 400 MHz range and the normal maximum power that would
be used at the transmitter is 200 milliwatts. What is
necessary is that there be a range of approximately 100 ft.
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Associated with the flush valve 10 and the described
radio frequency transmitter 11 and receiver 13 is an infrared
sensor 12 which is shown as a part of the flush valve
apparatus in the '118 and '179 patents, but herein is
disclosed at a location separate and apart from the flush
valve. The sensor 12 will also include a radio frequency
transmitter 15 and a radio frequency receiver 17 operating in
the described frequency range and with the described power
requirements. These may be battery operated or they may be
connected to local power.
There is also a pushbutton actuator 14 which again
will have associated with it a radio frequency transmitter 19
and a radio frequency receiver 21, as described. Both the
infrared sensor 12 and the pushbutton 14, with the associated
RF radio equipment, further have a light emitting diode
indicator shown at 14a, as associated with the pushbutton, and
at 12a, as associated with the infrared sensor 12.
In operation, if the sensor 12 detects an individual
at either a urinal or a water closet, the sensor is programmed
to operate the flush valve a predetermined time after the
sensor no longer detects an individual at the particular
toilet appliance. In the present instance, the sensor will
send a radio frequency signal to the flush valve 10 and this
signal will have a unique address, an address peculiar to the
particular flush valve which is to be operated. As an example,
the transmitter associated with the sensor 12 may have an
activation address of 100 and this may be in either digital or
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analog form, with the number 100 being purely for illustrative
purposes. The receiver at the flush valve 10 is set to receive
that specific address. Upon receipt of the address the flush
valve electric operator will begin its operating cycle.
Simultaneously, the transmitter associated with flush valve 10
will transmit a message having an address represented by the
number 105. The receiver at the sensor 12 is set to receive
only the unique message having the address 105 and when this
message is received, characterized as an acknowledgment
message, it will cause the LED 12a to be illuminated. Thus,
the sensor operates to send an intent message to the flush
valve by an RF signal. The flush valve receiver is set to
receive only that message and when such message is received,
it responds with an acknowledgment message which is sent back
to the sensor, indicating that the instruction has been
received.
The equipment at the pushbutton 14 is the same as at
the sensor 12 and the addresses are the same for both the
transmitter and receiver. Thus, the pushbutton 14 may be used
as an alternate to the sensor and would be particularly useful
as an override device or if for maintenance purposes it was
desired to operate the flush valve.
What is important is that there is a unique message
for a particular appliance, both for sending an intent
instruction and for sending and receiving an acknowledgment
instruction. Thus, the entire communication between the
triggering device and the appliance is at an RF frequency of
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approximately of 400 MHz.
FIG. 1B shows a similar arrangement for operation of a
soap dispenser and a faucet. There is a sink 16 beneath which
is an electric operator unit 18 to control operation of a
faucet 20 and a transmitter 39 and receiver 41 included within
the same enclosure as operator unit 18. There is a soap
dispenser 22 also associated with the sink 16, which dispenser
will have an electric operator as well as a transmitter and
receiver. A sensor is indicated at 24 for the faucet, and as
described in connection with FIG. 1A, will have both a
transmitter 23 and receiver 25 included within the same
enclosure. Similarly, there is a sensor 26 which is suitable
for use with the soap dispenser 22 and again will have a
transmitter 27 and receiver 29 associated with it. There are
indicators 24a associated with the faucet sensor and an
indicator 26a associated with the soap dispenser sensor.
Again using the same number sequence as representative
of address, the faucet sensor 24 may have a transmitter
address of 110 and a receiver address of 115. The receiver at
the faucet control 18 will have its address set at 110 and its
transmitter address set at 115. Thus, there is only
communication between these two elements, the sensor and the
faucet control, and with addresses unique to two-way
communication therebetween. The same is true with the soap
dispenser and its associated sensor 26. Communication between
these two elements will be at an address peculiar to the soap
dispenser and to its sensor so that there is no possibility of
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any other appliance within the washroom being operated when it
is desired to operate particular soap dispenser.
Similarly, there is a hand dryer 30 and the hand dryer
30 will have a sensor 32, again with a transmitter 31 and
receiver 33, just as the hand dryer 30 has a transmitter 35
and receiver 37. These particular radio communication elements
will again have addresses peculiar to the appliance and its
sensor so that operation of the hand dryer only results when
its electric operator is activated by the receiver which
receives a signal from the sensor 30 and again there will be
an answer back or acknowledgment message sent to the sensor so
that its indicator 32a will be operated.
Although the appliances in FIGS. 1B and 1D only show
operation by an infrared sensor, it should be understood that
there may also be pushbutton or other manually operated
devices associated with any one or all of a faucet, soap
dispenser, hand dryer or paper towel dispenser.
FIG. 1C shows a shower head 40 having an electric
operator 42, and a transmitter 43 and receiver 45 associated
therewith. A sensor is shown at 44 with an indicator 44a. The
appliance and its associated sensor in FIG. 1C operate in the
same manner as in FIGS. 1A and 1B. In each instance when the
sensor is activated, an intent message having an address
peculiar to the shower head 40 will be sent by transmitter 47
to the receiver 45 at the shower head. Its associated
transmitter 43 will send an acknowledge or answerback message
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to the receiver 49 associated with sensor so that the
indicator 44a will be illuminated. The messages have an
address which is unique to that specific appliance and that
specific sensor so as to avoid operation of unwanted
appliances and confusion in the answerback system. In this
connection, although an LED is shown as the indicator, it is
equally within the scope of the invention to have an audible
answerback or acknowledgment.
FIG. 2 diagrammatically illustrates a control board
for use in a washroom having one or more or all of the
appliances described in FIGS. 1A, 1B and 1C. There may be
multiple flush valves, multiple faucets, multiple soap
dispensers, multiple paper towel dispensers, multiple hand
dryers and one or more shower heads in a single washroom
environment or in the washroom of an institution. Such
appliances are shown at 46. The triggering devices for such
appliances, either sensor or switch, are shown at 48. A
control board is indicated at 50 and it may include a radio
receiver 52 and a radio transmitter 54. There is a
microprocessor 56 within the control board and the
microprocessor may be one of the type shown in U.S. Patents
Nos. 6,038,519 and 5,966,753 owned by Sloan Valve Company of
Franklin Park, Illinois, assignee of the present application.
Specifically, such disclosure provides a hard wired control
system in which there are multiple inputs from multiple
appliances and multiple outputs from the microprocessor hard
wired to various appliances in such a way that a sensor will
provide an indication that there is an intent to operate a
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specific appliance and the microprocessor will determine, upon
the data stored therein, whether it is appropriate to operate
that appliance and, if so, for what period of time. Further,
there may be programmed flushing of various flush valves, as
shown in U.S. Patent 5,235,706, also owned by Sloan Valve
Company, if so, for what period of time. Further, there may
be programmed flushing of various flush valves, as shown in
U.S. Patent 5,235,706, also owned by Sloan Valve Company. The
microprocessor 56 is designed, as described in the above U.S.
patents, to control the operation of multiple personal hygiene
or sanitary appliances within a particular location and the
communication with such appliances is over wiring which
physically connects the sensor, the control board and the
appliance. The system illustrated in Fig. 2 provides radio
control between a sensor 48, the control board and the
appliance 46. Further, it will employ the acknowledgment or
answerback system of Figs. 1A, 1B and 1C. More specifically,
any one or all of the appliances described in those figures,
or multiples of such appliances, may all send radio signals
which will be received by the receiver 52. Since each of
those signals will have a different address, or appliance
designation, that information will be passed to the processor
which in turn will perform its functions relative to operation
of the appliance.
As an example, when a radio signal is received at the
receiver 52, the microprocessor 56 will determine which
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address has made a request. The microprocessor will then
instruct the transmitter 54 to send an acknowledgment to that
particular sensor or pushbutton, as the case may be, at its
predetermined address acknowledging receipt of the specific
request to operate an appliance.
The microprocessor, by the programs stored therein,
will then determine of the appliance should be operated and if
so, for how long. For example, if there is a limit as to the
number of flush valves that can be simultaneously operated, as
disclosed in the 1706 patent, then the microprocessor may
delay operation of one or more flush valves. Further, in an
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institutional environment, in order to avoid problems with vandalism, it may
be desired not to
operate a urinal or a water closet every time there is a demand for its
operation, but to do so in
accordance with a predetermined program.
When it is desired that an appliance be operated, a signal will be sent by the
transmitter 54 to the receiver associated with that appliance. The receiver
will provide an
answerback, just as described in connection with Figs. 1A, 1B and 1C. The
particular
appliance, soap dispenser, shower head, paper towel dispenser, faucet or flush
valve, will then
be operated for the predetermined time which has been programmed for its
operation by the
microprocessor 56.
Each appliance will have a specific address, which address will be recognized
by the microprocessor. Each answerback signal will be specific to an appliance
and the
answerback initially given to the sensor will have a different address than
the answerback sent
from the appliance back to the control board 50.
Whereas the preferred form of the invention has been shown and described
herein, it should be realized that there may be many modifications,
substitutions and alterations
thereto.
