TECHNOLOGY, AI & ROBOTICS
THE CONNECTEDWASHROOM
Washrooms – like everything else – are becoming increasingly connected to the internet. But why? Lee Radzki, from Tork manufacturer Essity, considers the reasons behind this phenomenon and finds out how it is changing the facilities we use in everyday life.
A toilet seat that incorporates a warm water bidet, air dryer, night light and a wireless remote in the form of the user’s own smartphone made its debut at the 2024 Computer Electronics Show.
Manufacturer Bernis reasoned that since most people are now taking their phones into the toilet with them, they might as well be using these devices to customise their washroom experience.
At the same CES event, Japanese toilet manufacturer Kohler announced the launch of the PureWash E930 bidet seat which is said to feature new sprays, app connectivity and a voice control function.
And also on show was Withings’ U-Scan, described by the manufacturers as being a connected urine analysis lab. When placed inside the toilet bowl this device will gather health data from the user’s urine and deliver it back to them via a smartphone app. It will then offer recommendations on hydration and nutrition while also allowing women to track their ovulation cycle.
These are just a few of the ways in which toilets are becoming increasingly connected in today’s society. Central to all these examples is the smartphone.
Visiting the washroom used to be a private experience before everyone started carrying around their own mini- computers. According to recent statistics, around 60% of people now take their phones into the toilet with them and use them for reading the news, playing games, catching up on emails or scrolling through social media.
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This practice has the advantage of allowing the visitor to avoid 'wasted time' in the washroom and enable them to continue to work, connect with friends or entertain themselves in the smallest room.
But there are other benefits to be gained from connected toilets. For example, today’s compulsion for us to ‘share’ everything we do tends to inspire washroom visitors to post images of particularly attractive loos – or conversely, dirty, unpleasant ones - on to social media sites where other web visitors feel free to comment on them.
Websites such as the Toilet Inspector actively encourage people to post pictures of good and bad facilities to inform other users about which ones to use and which to avoid.
Sharing pictures of aesthetically-pleasing washrooms with one’s social media followers can help to create positive publicity for the venue in question. But if people decide to name and shame the substandard washrooms they visit, this will have the opposite effect.
Businesses now have a greater incentive than ever to provide top-class facilities for their customers to avoid being called out on a website. This means ‘connected’ toilets are helping to raise standards of cleanliness and hygiene.
Smart toilets can also be used to improve the visitor’s health and well-being. Previously-mentioned add-ons such as a bidet, air dryer and ambient lighting will all enhance a person’s visit while washroom health checks offer clear benefits to the user.
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