Spanish company Kekatron Desarrollo has responded to this fear by coming up with a high-tech self-cleaning toilet that is designed to reassure the public about washroom safety. The toilet automatically cleans, dries and disinfects itself using ozone gas after each use, and the fact that only two litres of water are required to perform this process is said to make the unit highly sustainable.
Meanwhile in Japan, a company called Mira Robotics is working on a toilet cleaning robot that is said to be able to deftly wield a toilet brush. The robot can work either independently or via remote control, allowing human staff members to operate the process from a safe distance.
China is also introducing toilet technology in a bid to help keep public washrooms COVID-19 safe. The city of Shanghai now offers more than 250 smart toilets featuring integral LCD screens. These display information on which cubicles are in use while also giving out readings on the user’s body temperature and the air quality inside the facility. If a visitor is deemed to have spent an unusually long time in the toilet, an alarm will go off to alert the management.
Keeping washrooms clean, safe and under-occupied are all important considerations during the global pandemic. What is also important is that toilets are kept well stocked with soap and paper at all times to facilitate optimum hand hygiene. Our own Tork EasyCube digital system can help in this regard.
Tork EasyCube enables cleaning and maintenance staff to monitor washroom visitor traffic and assess dispenser refill requirements remotely via a tablet or smartphone. This allows them to stay on top of refill requirements and ensure that supplies are never allowed to run out while keeping them safely outside the populated washroom environment.
Besides featuring connected dispensers, the Tork EasyCube concept also includes people-counters that continually monitor visitor frequency. This enables cleaners to target
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their visits to those washrooms and other areas where their services are likely to be needed most.
Improving the health, safety and efficiency of public washrooms are all highly important uses of technology, but on a lighter level, it can also be used to enhance the washroom visitor’s experience and provide a talking point.
For example, high-tech toilets with a bidet function and heated seats have become fairly common in Japan and can be found in public facilities, hotels and in people’s homes. Some of these ‘smart’ toilets even have sensors that lift the seat for a man and lower it for a woman depending on how the unit is approached. Others also feature LED lighting and mood music to create an ambiance.
Meanwhile, some bars and clubs are installing video screens in the men’s urinals where washroom users can play virtual football, drive a car or operate a tank while using the loo.
Sometimes technology can be used to boost the profits of a commercial facility as well as improving the user’s experience. One shopping centre in China now features augmented reality-powered digital screens in the ladies’ washrooms, for example, which allow women to virtually try on make-up. The screens act as intelligent mirrors that enable female visitors to see how a particular lipstick, blusher, eyeliner or eyeshadow would look on them. This allows them to continue to ‘browse’ while queueing to use the loo.
However, in the current climate, the topics of health and safety have become much more pressing than any issues involving commercial gains. So, it is highly likely that we will see an increasing number of high-tech toilet solutions over the next few years that will be designed to protect us, reassure us – and ensure a safe washroom experience for us all.
www.tork.co.uk/safeatwork TECHNOLOGY | 35
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