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Metered toilet paper dispenser

kingrahl

I think I could use a toilet paper dispenser.

 

The main outline of my idea is to build a case that holds the roll of paper. This case will dispense a predetermined length of paper that is enough to get the job done based off of preset user profiles. Possibly used for potty training or to keep a toddler from wasting the roll.

 

Additional things such as automatic roll changing, finger print recognition, and an empty roll warning would be great additions to this project.

 

How I thought about doing it: Use a micro controller connected with a keypad for passcode input, using a DC motor that operates until an IR sensor (located lower down the wall) is activated at the required length. But if the person grabs the paper too soon, they could get more than needed before the sensor was activated. I think binding would be an issue, if the paper started winding around the push motor's shaft. Attaching the motor to the roll holder could prevent these problems, but how do you accurately measure rotations equivalent to length? Maybe a sensor that keeps track of the diameter of the roll and can calculate the length on the fly??

 

Message was edited by: Terence King

  • Maybe an optical mouse could monitor the length dispensed.

    An RFID might be a cheap way to make an electronic pass key - if you activate it at the door  it allows 1 dispense when activated at the roll.

  • This is one of the most dystopic ideas I can hope to ken.

     

    You could weigh the person, maybe before/after, to get an estimate.

  • in reply to D_Hersey

    This is starting to sound like planet Bethselamin from 'The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy' by Douglas Adams.  image

    For years, the fabulously beautiful planet of Bethselamin increased its booming tourist industry without any worries at all. Alas, as is often the case, this was an act of utter stupidity, as it led to a colossal cumulative erosion problem. Of course, what else could one expect with ten billion tourists per annum? Thus today the net balance between the amount you eat and the amount you excrete while on the planet is surgically removed from your body weight when you leave; so every time you got to the lavatory there, it is vitally important to get a receipt.

    (The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy)

  • This is about the same as the survey in the bathroom asking comment about your recent business and how it can be improved image.\

    Clem

  • I think that a person can use more or less toilet paper, depending on how he is used. The idea of not having enough toilet paper from the beginning and having to pay for extra, just because you use a little much more and that is a personal matter, is simply stupid. I personally find this idea very imbecilic, no offense.

  • in reply to dougw

    May need to dispense it through a printer in order to be able to print out the 'transaction receipt'...

     

    Perhaps the technology from an old auto loading HP/IBM 9-track tape drive could be used to 'find the end of the roll...'

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PS9QtC7FYiE

  • It's a little hard to tell if most comments are just "Trolling" this idea or they have very personal objections to it (Maybe they themselves have been accused of using too much?).

     

    The motivation behind this is irrelevant. The use is very clear.

     

    If a parent is potty training their child to only use a certain amount, said child wouldn't have access to more than needed. Even before potty training they will be locked out. It's annoying having to buy more just because the entire roll was flushed down the toilet.

     

    Also, if two roommates share a bathroom. Either they can buy their own, or respect the use of it. Having had many different roommates, I've already learned the value of quality TP. When they only buy the thin 4 rolls for a dollar brand, they quickly run out. When you buy the good stuff and share it, they are so used to unrolling a lot from the cheap stuff. This leads to using more than needed of the good. Isn't it fair for them to pay for some of the roll if they are using it? There is no obligation on the part of the person that buys it to share.

     

    Those cartoon bears on the commercial even say so. "It's... more absorbent, so you can use less with every go."

     

    Of course, you could always just lock away your TP in your room. But a desperate person might take up using alternatives, clogging up the plumbing.

  • in reply to kingrahl

    I've heard of some children becoming obsessed with dipping the end of the toilet roll in the toilet bowl and then seeing how much of the roll can be dispensed with each successive flush.

     

    Vandals if given the chance will often take the roll off the holder and stick it in the cistern so it swells up and either cracks the plumbing or jambs the valve open, so that it floods the cubical some time after they have left the premises.

     

    Your idea sounds like it could perhaps help avoid such scenarios.