The Toilet Seat as a Measuring Instrument, and Eight Other Patent Ideas

What is it?

Kohler's patent treats the toilet as a platform for multiple electronically controlled features rather than a fixture with one fixed behavior. It describes variable lighting, speakers, proximity sensing, remote control, and configurable lid and seat movement.

Kohler's current Numi 2.0 also offers lighting, speakers, app and voice control, and automatic lid and seat features. No one-to-one implementation link to US20140373263A1 was verified, so the product is shown only as a related direction.

What is it?

If a toilet is collecting urine for health analysis, the stream will not always strike the same point. This patent scans temperature and looks for a warmer region to estimate where fresh urine is landing.

The aim is to obtain a new sample while reducing contamination from material already on the bowl surface. Instead of asking the user to aim at a fixed collector, the toilet tries to find the sample.

What is it?

The patent integrates a urine collection system and analyzer with the seat assembly. The collected sample can be tested in the fixture and turned into health data.

It also describes associating health output with identification data such as a fingerprint. In a shared household, the system is designed to keep measurements attached to the correct person.

What is it?

Stanford University's patent describes cameras that can observe urine flow and stool, with analysis that can estimate urine flow and classify stool. A fingerprint reader can also be integrated with the flushing interaction.

The disclosure goes further: an upward-facing camera may acquire images of the user's anus to create an 'anal print' and compare that identity with a fingerprint. It is an extreme example of solving the problem of assigning automatically collected health data to the correct user.

What is it?

This patent uses a lid that can seal the toilet bowl into a closed chamber. Analytical hardware can operate inside, and fluid outlets can wash the bowl and internal components afterward.

Once a toilet becomes a laboratory-like instrument, resetting it between measurements matters as much as sensing. The design treats the whole fixture as a chamber that can analyze and then clean itself for the next use.

What is it?

A toilet is a difficult scale because some of the user's weight remains on the floor through the feet. TOTO's patent measures the load carried by the seat and calibrates it against the user's known total weight.

Later measurements can estimate total body weight from the seated load alone. The idea turns weighing from a separate task into something that can happen during a routine bathroom visit.

What is it?

Rather than rotating the entire seat, this patent moves the cleaning device around the seat. The mobile unit can carry a sponge, brush, or wiper and is driven hydraulically.

The result looks less like a self-cleaning material and more like a tiny dedicated machine that patrols one fixed surface after use.

What is it?

This invention uses folding side panels to create a lightweight box-like structure. A bag can sit inside, while a hinged panel can expose or cover the central opening.

The folding structure turns the toilet into portable furniture. The same object can be packed, carried, sat on, used as a surface, or opened for sanitation.

What is it?

The toilet is built around an internal frame with motorized lift mechanisms that can change the position of the seat or bowl. Sensors and stored preferences can be used to determine a suitable motion for an individual user.

Instead of adding an external lift or step around a fixed toilet, the fixture itself becomes the assistive device. One toilet can adapt for shorter users, taller users, children, or people who need more support while standing.