Abstract:
A system for disposing of bodily waste includes at least one receptacle that includes a receptacle drain outlet. The at least one receptacle is configured to receive and direct a first waste to the receptacle drain outlet. A passageway includes a first passageway inlet that is coupled to the receptacle drain outlet. The first passageway is configured to receive and direct the first waste to an external area. A flushing system includes a source of a second waste and includes an activation device that introduces the second waste into the passageway in response to a signal. The second waste flushes a buildup associated with the first waste from the passageway.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0001]    1. Field of the Invention 
         [0002]    The invention pertains to the field of water conservation and, more particularly, to systems and methods for maintaining a waterless urinal. 
         [0003]    2. Description of Related Art 
         [0004]    People have become increasingly concerned with issues relating to the use of water. In particular, there is a growing concern that humans are using fresh water at a faster rate than it can naturally be replenished. Additionally, processing water for human use consumes large amounts of energy during cleaning, pumping, delivery, and wastewater treatment. Finally, there is a need to conserve water for future generations and for local wildlife. Accordingly, economic interests and concern over damage to the environment have generated interest in ways to reduce consumption of water. 
         [0005]    Demand for water results in part from water consumption in people&#39;s homes. For example, in an average household, water may be used in toilets, sinks, and dishwashing and laundry machines. While many household appliance manufacturers have recently introduced appliances that use less energy and water, there is a substantial need for toilets that use lower amounts of water. Currently, toilets are typically mandated to flush no more than 1.6 gallons of water per flush. 
         [0006]    Conventional waterless urinals typically require bi-weekly maintenance at minimum to prevent buildup inside the drain pipe. This maintenance usually requires a number of systematic steps including: manually removing the urinal&#39;s drain ring, dumping a bucket of water down the drain, pouring an acidic solution down the drain, letting the solution stand for a period of time, dumping another bucket of water and then pouring in a dosage of scented oil for vapor lock. If these procedures are not routinely followed, a problem of solid buildup may occur within the drain pipe. Thus, making and using waterless urinals and toilets is met with various challenges. In particular, the time-consuming cleaning and maintenance of waterless urinals must be balanced against the goal of water conservation. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0007]    In view of the foregoing, embodiments according to aspects of the present invention provide systems and methods for managing water consumption while also minimizing the amount of time and money necessary for cleaning and maintaining the waterless urinal. For example, some embodiments provide flushing of the system with gray (recycled) water in order to remove buildup. 
         [0008]    In an example embodiment, a system for disposing of bodily waste includes at least one receptacle that includes a receptacle drain outlet. The at least one receptacle is configured to receive and direct a first waste to the receptacle drain outlet. A passageway includes a first passageway inlet and a second passageway inlet. The first passageway inlet is coupled to the receptacle drain outlet. The first passageway is configured to receive and direct the first waste to an external area. A flushing system connects the second passageway inlet to a source of a second waste and includes an activation device that introduces the second waste into the passageway via the second passageway inlet in response to a signal. The second waste flushes a buildup associated with the first waste from the passageway. 
         [0009]    In another example embodiment, the at least one receptacle also includes a receptacle inlet to which the flushing system connects the receptacle to the source of the second waste. The second waste then enters the passageway through the receptacle drain outlet. 
         [0010]    In some embodiments, the at least one receptacle includes a urinal and the first waste is urine. The second waste may include gray water. The gray water may come from a source that includes at least one of a laundry machine, a dish washing machine, and a sink. In addition, the flushing system may include a treatment system for treating the second waste before introducing it into the passageway or receptacle. Additionally, the system may further include a signal source for generating the automated signal, wherein the signal source includes at least one of a proximity sensor detecting a presence of a user of the at least one of a receptacle, a heat rate change sensor detecting the first waste received into the passageway, a buildup sensor detecting the buildup associated with the first waste, a timer, and a light switch operated in an area of the at least one receptacle. 
         [0011]    These and other aspects of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments of the present invention when viewed in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0012]      FIG. 1  illustrates an example system for disposing bodily waste according to aspects of the present invention. 
           [0013]      FIG. 2  illustrates another example system for disposing bodily waste according to aspects of the present invention. 
           [0014]      FIG. 3  illustrates a flowchart for an example system for disposing bodily waste according to aspects of the present invention. 
           [0015]      FIG. 4  illustrates a flowchart for an example gray water delivery and treatment system according to aspects of the present invention. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0016]    Referring to  FIG. 1 , an example system  100  for disposing bodily waste according to aspects of the present invention is illustrated. The system  100  includes a receptacle  101 , a drain outlet  102 , a passageway  117 , and an automatic flush activation device  112 . The receptacle  101  is configured to receive and direct a first waste to the drain outlet  102 . Although the receptacle  101  in the example system  100  may be a urinal and the first waste received by the receptacle  101  may be urine, it is understood that the features of the system  100  are applicable to any types and configurations of toilets for the disposal of liquid and/or solid waste, including urinals, sit-down toilets, squat toilets, etc. 
         [0017]    In one embodiment, the receptacle  101  may include a recessed surface to minimize build-up and retention of waste in the receptacle. The receptacle  101  may further include a coating to minimize odors, discoloration, and adhesion of waste to the receptacle surface and further to maximize the ease of cleaning. The coating may also possess strong hydrophobic properties that cause the urine to easily run down to the passageway  117 . 
         [0018]    The passageway  117  includes a first passageway inlet  103  and a second passageway inlet  104 . The first passageway inlet  103  is coupled to the drain outlet  102 . The passageway  117  is configured to receive and direct the first waste to an external area. The second passageway inlet  104  is connected to a source of second waste. The source of second waste may include gray water, stored in the gray water storage chamber  110 . The gray water may be industrial water generated from domestic processes such as washing dishes, laundry, and bathing. The industrial water collected from a laundry machine  109 , a dishwashing machine  108 , and/or a sink  107  is treated in the treatment system  106  prior to being stored in the storage chamber  110 . After passing through the treatment system  106 , the treated industrial water may be directed to a gray water storage chamber  110 . The gray water storage chamber  110  may include a water level meter  111 , which indicates whether the storage chamber  110  has a sufficient amount of water to flush the build-up in the passageway  117  or receptacle  101 . The gray water storage chamber  110  may also be connected to the second passageway inlet  104 . The second passageway inlet  104  may also be connected to a public water source  113 . 
         [0019]    The waste flowing out of passageway  117  may be recycled via conduit  105  to the treatment system  106 . After passing through the treatment system  106 , the treated waste may be directed to the storage chamber  110 . 
         [0020]    The passageway  117  may further include a build-up sensor  114  which monitors the amount of waste build-up in the passageway  117 . The build-up sensor may be configured to activate the automatic flushing device  112  when the amount of build-up in the passageway  117  exceeds the predetermined threshold level. In another embodiment, the automatic flushing device  112  may be configured to be activated each time the receptacle receives the first waste. In that embodiment, the automatic flushing device  112  may be activated via the sensor  115  which may be a heat sensor, proximity sensor, timer, or any other suitable detection system. In yet another alternative embodiment, the passageway  117  may be flushed manually by the user of the system  100 . The flushing system in that embodiment may be analogous to the flushing systems found in conventional toilets and urinals—the user manually flushes the toilet or urinal after each use. 
         [0021]    Referring to  FIG. 2 , another embodiment of the system  100  for disposing bodily waste is shown. The embodiment includes a receptacle  101 , a drain outlet  102 , a passageway  117 , and an automatic flush activation device  112 . The receptacle  101  is configured to receive and direct a first waste to the drain outlet  102 , and receive and direct a second waste via a receptacle inlet  120  to the drain outlet  102 . 
         [0022]    The passageway  117  includes a first passageway inlet  103 . The first passageway inlet  103  is coupled to the drain outlet  102 . The passageway  117  is configured to receive and direct the first and second wastes to an external area. The source of the second waste may include gray water, stored in the storage chamber  110 . The industrial water collected from a laundry machine  109 , a dishwashing machine  108 , and/or a sink  107  is treated in the treatment system  106  prior to being stored in the storage chamber  110 . The storage chamber  110  may include a water level meter  111 , which indicates whether the storage chamber  110  has a sufficient amount of water to flush the build-up in the passageway  117 . The storage chamber  110  may also be connected to the receptacle inlet  120 . The receptacle inlet  120  may also be connected to a public water source  113  as shown in  FIG. 2 . Alternatively, the gray water and the water from the public water source  113  may be directed to the receptacle  101  by separate conduits. 
         [0023]    In general, it is contemplated that the gray water may be directed to the passageway  117  according to any arrangement of passageways, inlets, etc. from any source. Moreover, it is contemplated that gray water may be directed to any portion of the system for flushing or cleaning. 
         [0024]    Referring to  FIG. 3 , an example process according to aspects of the present invention is shown. The receptacle  101  is configured to receive the first waste in act  202 . The receptacle is further configured to direct the first waste to the drain outlet  102  in act  203 . The passageway  117  is configured to direct the first waste via the first passageway inlet  103  to an external area as shown in act  204 . If the automatic flushing device  112  is not activated, the passageway  117  is not flushed as shown in acts  206  and  207 . If the automatic flushing device  112  is activated, the passageway  117  is flushed. In one embodiment, the passageway  117  is flushed with gray water from the storage chamber  110  as shown in acts  213 - 15 . If the storage chamber  110  does not have an amount of water sufficient to flush the passageway  117 , the passageway  117  is flushed with city water as shown in acts  210 - 12 . 
         [0025]    Referring to  FIG. 4 , an example industrial water collection system is shown. The sink  301 , laundry  302 , and/or dish washing machine  303  is directed via conduits to the treatment system as shown in acts  304  and  305 . Following treatment, the water is directed to the gray water storage chamber as shown in act  306 . Furthermore, in one embodiment, the receptacle waste flowing out of passageway  117  of  FIG. 1  is also directed via conduit  105  to the treatment system as shown in act  307 . In an alternative embodiment, the receptacle waste may be sent to the city sewage system  118  of  FIG. 1 . 
         [0026]    While the present invention has been described in connection with a number of exemplary embodiments and implementations, the present inventions are not so limited, but rather cover various modifications, and equivalent arrangements.