Patent Publication Number: US-2004040081-A1

Title: Toilet block

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
       [0001] The present invention relates to a toilet block for at least one composting toilet of the type which comprises a toilet bowl and, situated below the latter, a holder for receiving night-soil delivered via the toilet bowl and for removing completely or partially broken down night-soil. The invention relates in particular to such a toilet block which can be prefabricated and easily transported to and assembled at the intended place of use.  
       BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION  
       [0002] Composting toilets of the type indicated above have been known for a long time and, from the environmental point of view, represent a much better alternative for dealing with night-soil than the water-flushing systems commonly used today, which pose a serious and increasing risk to the environment.  
       [0003] When setting up such a composting arrangement for use, a starting bed made up of compost earth containing the necessary microorganisms and worms is expediently spread out on the bottom of the holder, which can comprise one or more weakly inclined surfaces. The main purpose of the inclined surfaces is to lead liquid, especially urine, which is separated from the night-soil, to an outlet opening provided with a screen. The bottom of the holder can also be completely flat, in which case, if so desired, the entire holder can be inclined.  
       [0004] The holder can be designed and arranged in such a way that night-soil can drop in different heaps onto the bottom by means of the holder being displaced and/or turned to different positions. The toilet block can also be provided with several toilet bowls for delivering night-soil in different heaps into the holder.  
       [0005] In my earlier international patent applications WO 98/57908 and WO 99/26899, composting toilets are described in which the night-soil is collected in sealable plastic sacks, which are expediently drained. This means that the night-soil can be dealt with completely sealed off from the environment and placed in a depot for subsequent composting. The holder can also be designed in the form of a thin-walled plastic holder which is supported by an outer support structure and can be provided with a cover during periods when it is not in use and during transport to a depot. Alternatively, it is possible to use a stationary holder, for example made of plastic or stainless steel, from which ready-mixed compost earth can be removed at certain intervals.  
       [0006] On account of their high level of hygiene and the environmentally friendly nature of the management of the night-soil which can be obtained using composting toilets according to the above, and since they additionally do not require any water supply, apart possibly from wash water, they are very well suited not only for use in fixed installations in public places and in individual houses, but also for temporary use, for example in refugee camps, in areas threatened by natural disaster, on temporary work sites, in connection with military operations, at various sports events, etc.  
       [0007] A common requirement of toilet installations for use in the situations mentioned above is that they must be able to be set up easily and quickly on site without specially trained work forces and that they must be easy to transport to the intended place of use. Moreover, they must be able to be stored with effective use of the available space.  
       OBJECT OF THE INVENTION  
       [0008] A main object of the present invention is to make available a toilet block which is intended especially for composting toilets, is very easy to assemble and can be stored and transported in a manner which saves space.  
       [0009] The basis of the invention is the realization that the abovementioned aims can be achieved by prefabricating a toilet block in the form of two parts which can be arranged one inside the other during storage and transport, enclosing a free space in which the components necessary for a functioning toilet can be stored, and which housing parts can form the final toilet block by being placed one on the other.  
       [0010] The particular characteristic of a first embodiment of a toilet block of the type mentioned in the opening paragraph is that the toilet block is prefabricated and designed in two parts in the form of an upper part, which is intended to accommodate at least one toilet bowl and possibly wash-basins and showers, and which is provided with a roof, external walls and at least one access door, and a lower part which is intended to accommodate a holder for receiving and composting night-soil delivered via a toilet bowl in the upper part, and possibly a water heater and a water pump, and which is designed with external walls with at least one port opening for removing and introducing the composting holder in the lower part, and a flat ceiling, that the upper part has no floor and has dimensions which are such that it can be lowered over the lower part in a position for transport and storage, and that, when the toilet block is being installed at the intended place of use, the upper part can be lifted up and secured relative to the lower part in a raised position in which the ceiling of the lower part becomes the floor of the upper part.  
       [0011] In another embodiment, the upper house part is intended, in the position for transport and storage, to be lowered into the lower part, which in this case has no ceiling, and the upper part is provided with a floor which, when the upper part is in the raised position, forms a ceiling for the lower part.  
       [0012] By virtue of the fact that the upper part and lower part of the toilet block are situated one inside the other in the position for storage and transport, the available storage and transport capacity is doubled. The toilet block can be set up on site in a very simple way, by the upper part being lifted up, for example by means of jacks which are included with it, and being placed on the lower part. Included toilet bowls, dividing walls, and possibly wash-basins and showers can then be fitted in the upper part.  
       [0013] It is preferable that at least that toilet block part which is located on the outside in the position for transport and storage is made of profiled steel plate and has the form of a freight container of standard dimensions. In the recessed position for transport and storage, the two toilet block parts are expediently locked together and are provided with lifting means which allow the toilet block parts to be lifted and maneuvered as a single unit. This means that the toilet block can be handled as a standard freight container during storage, which considerably reduces transport costs.  
       [0014] To make it easier to assemble the toilet block at the intended place of use, the lower part can comprise a number of lifting means, preferably screw jacks, by means of which the upper part can be lifted in relation to the lower part, in order thereafter to be locked in the lifted position by suitable locking means.  
       [0015] Further features of the invention are set out in the attached patent claims.  
       [0016] The invention will be described in more detail below with reference to the embodiment shown by way of example in the attached drawings. 
     
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES  
     [0017]FIG. 1 illustrates the two prefabricated toilet block parts separate from each other.  
     [0018]FIG. 2 shows the toilet block parts according to FIG. 1 in the position for storage and transport.  
     [0019]FIG. 3 illustrates a toilet block according to the invention in the assembled state.  
     [0020]FIG. 4 is a horizontal section through the upper toilet block part according to FIG. 3.  
     [0021]FIG. 5 is a vertical section through the assembled toilet block according to FIG. 3. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT  
     [0022] In FIG. 1, reference number  1  designates an upper toilet block part and reference number  2  designates a lower toilet block part of a toilet block according to the invention. The two toilet block parts are preferably made of profiled steel plate in the form of freight containers with standard dimensions.  
     [0023] The upper part is designed with a roof  3 , which can be substantially plane, inclined or, for example, in the form of a saddle roof, and also external walls  4 . The long sides are provided with doors  5  for access to the toilet cubicles lying inside. In this embodiment, the upper part  1  has no floor.  
     [0024] The lower part  2  is designed with a flat ceiling  6  with openings  7  for connection of toilet bowls, which are subsequently placed in the upper part  1 , and external walls  8  of which, in this embodiment, an end wall is provided with a port  9  which permits introduction and removal of a composting holder  10  which is arranged in the lower part and receives and composts night-soil delivered via toilet bowls in the upper part. The holder  10  is provided with wheels  1 l to make it easier to introduce and remove the holder, and to change its position in the lower part  2  in order to vary the drop location of night-soil from the different toilet bowls in the upper part.  
     [0025] The dimensions of the upper part  1  correspond to the standard dimensions of a freight container, while the dimensions of the lower part  2  are slightly smaller, so that in a position for storage and transport the upper part  1  can be lowered like a hood over the lower part  2 , which is thus accommodated in the upper part  1 , see FIG. 2. The upper part  1  is provided with holes  12  at its lower corners, and the lower part  2  is designed with corresponding holes  13  and  14  at its lower and upper corners. In the transport position shown in FIG. 2, cotters  15  are inserted through the opposite lower holes  12  and  13  in the upper part  1  and lower part  2 , respectively, in order to lock these parts together so that during storage and transport they can be lifted and maneuvered as a single conventional freight container. The upper part is in this case expediently provided with lifting eye bolts (not shown) or the like. This type of freight container can be carried very economically by lorry, train, boat or airplane.  
     [0026] Once the freight container according to FIG. 2 has been transported to the intended place of use, the cotters  15  are removed, after which the upper part  1  is lifted to a position in which the ceiling  6  of the lower part  2  forms a floor in the upper part  1 . The upper part is locked securely in this position with the aid of cotters which are introduced through the holes  12  in the upper part  1  and the upper holes  14  in the lower part  2 . The upper part  1  can be lifted using an external arrangement, for example a lifting crane, or alternatively by means of jacks. In one embodiment, the lower part  2  is provided at its corners with individual screw jacks (not shown) which can be used for lifting the upper part.  
     [0027] Once the upper part  1  has been lifted and secured relative to the lower part, the toilet block is ready to be completed with other fixtures. These have been transported in the lower part  2  serving as freight container. In FIG. 1, only the composting holder  10  is illustrated, and toilet bowls  16  which are fitted in the latter and are to be lifted out and placed over the openings  7  in the ceiling  6  of the lower part, which now forms the floor in the upper part  1 .  
     [0028] The lower part is also used to transport intermediate walls intended for the upper part, said walls preferably being collapsible, and optionally also wash-basins and shower arrangements, if these are to be fitted in the upper part, and also the necessary hoses, couplings and outlet pipes. A water pump and/or pressure tank and a water heater can also be provided, if appropriate.  
     [0029] As an alternative to the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the toilet block parts can be designed in such a way that, in the position for storage and transport, the lower part  2  forms the outer part of the freight container with standard dimensions. The lower part  2  in this case has no ceiling, while the upper part  1  is instead designed with a floor having openings for connection of toilet bowls. The dimensions of the upper part  1  are in this case slightly smaller than those of the lower part, so that the upper part can be lowered into the lower part. Otherwise, the function is the same as that described above.  
     [0030] In FIG. 3, the toilet block is shown in the assembled position on flat ground, with stairs  17  leading up to in front of access doors on decks  18  located on the long sides of the upper part  1 . The stairs  17  can be omitted if the housing is for example placed on sloping terrain, so that the lower part  2  forms a “basement”. In the embodiment according to FIG. 3, the holder  10  is provided with an outlet pipe  19  for excess liquid, which in this case is delivered to a holder  20 . In an installation which is being operated to the optimum extent, the amount of excess liquid can be reduced to a minimum or possibly completely eliminated. This can be achieved if the composting installation is designed and operated as has been described in my Swedish patent application No. 0003057-7.  
     [0031] Waste water from possible wash-basins and showers is conveyed out via separate lines for suitable handling, for example infiltration into the surrounding ground.  
     [0032]FIG. 4 illustrates an example of a solution for the layout of a toilet block according to the invention. In this embodiment, the block is divided into six separate toilet cubicles  24  by means of dividing walls  25  which have been stored in the lower part during transport. The toilet cubicles also have space for wash-basins. If so desired, one or more of the toilet cubicles can be used as shower rooms.  
     [0033]FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view through the toilet block according to FIG. 3. It will be seen that the upper part  1  is secured relative to the lower part  2  with the aid of cotters  21  which are inserted through corresponding holes in the lower corners of the upper part and the upper corners of the lower part. The holder  10  intended to receive night-soil is pressed against the ceiling  6  of the lower Dart with the aid of lifting means  22 . When replacing the holder  10  or changing its position, it is lowered, after which it can be easily maneuvered by means of bearing wheels  11 . As an alternative to lifting and lowering the holder, it is possible to use an inner roof which can be raised and lowered.  
     [0034] In the embodiment shown in FIG. 4 with two rows of toilet bowls, rows of heaps  23  of night-soil are formed in the holder  10 . By means of small displacements of the holder, its volume can be used to the maximum extent, since the night-soil in some heaps comes to rest with continued break-down and reduction of its volume, while fresh night-soil is delivered in other heaps. This is described in my patent applications mentioned above.  
     [0035] The invention has here been described in connection with the embodiment shown in the drawings. However, this can be varied in several respects within the scope of the patent claims. This applies, inter alia, to the detailed design of the two container parts and the use of the space in these. The toilet block can thus be designed both with more or fewer toilet cubicles and for one or more composting holders. The important point is that the toilet block must be easy to assemble and disassemble as it can then be re-used in different places and can be transported and stored in a space-saving manner.