A team of five IIT students from Madras came up with technology that fights against germs and cleans the toilet automatically. Yes, it is an all hands-free process! They developed a mechanical device that leads to a safer use of public toilets.
A survey shows that over 30% of Indian women in the age group of 25 to 50 years suffer from urinary tract infection (UTI) at some point in time. To avoid these, the team from IIT Madras developed a prototype that comprises a simple foot pedal at the base of the commode that lifts, sanitizes and also wipes the seat automatically.
When different people sit on the same toilet seat, there are higher chances of contamination. The team’s objective was to develop a mechanism which will sanitize the seat after each use. By a push of a foot pedal, cleaning and sanitizing of the toilet seat takes place.
According to a research published in the International Journal of Cell Science and Biotechnology, Urinary Tract Infections are the second most common infections prevailing in the world.
Three major techniques are involved in this:
Lifting: A foot pedal lifts the seat, similar to that in dustbins.
Spraying: When the seat opens, five nozzles spray sanitizing liquid onto the seat to ensure that the seat is sterilized.
Wiping: A wiper rod is attached with a removable sponge.
On the whole, this mechanism ensures lifting, spraying and wiping and one doesn’t have to use their hands.
It almost took five months to construct this device and interestingly, this can be fitted to the existing toilet structure as an add-on.
The team of boys from IIT Madras said that the development cost was around Rs 5,000. However, they can be marketed at Rs 750 if they are mass manufactured.
Well, isn’t it a great innovation? Share in the comments section if you have any!