From smart faucets to smart toilets (like the one announced this week at CES 2023) smart restroom capabilities already are looking like one of the major technology trends of 2023. IoT connectivity provider MachineQ has staked a claim on the market through a partnership with smart restroom product company TOTO.
The two firms announced a collaboration this week under which MachineQ, which is owned by Comcast, will provide Long Range Wide Area Network (LoRaWAN) connectivity to TOTO smart sensors on water faucets, soap dispensers, and toilet and urinal flush valves within a smart restroom environment.
“MachineQ would be the network to connect to all LoRaWAN endpoints within the restroom,” said Russ Richardson, executive director of sales at MachineQ, via email. “Multiple companies in this space see value in working with MachineQ to ensure the wireless management of their solutions, at scale – from device to network to cloud, including onsite deployment and support.”
Hidemi Ishikawa, CEO of TOTO USA, a plumbing products company that started in Japan more than a century ago, added in a statement "Utilizing MachineQ's fully integrated device-to-cloud platform enables TOTO to further increase the value our IoT smart restroom products provide to facilities managers. With MachineQ's LoRaWAN network, which interoperates easily with other networks, TOTO's IoT-enabled products easily integrate with facilities' smart restroom monitoring systems or building automation systems across the U.S."
These facilities are likely to be in airports, stadiums, hotels, or office buildings, where facility managers are looking to reduce the need for frequent restroom audits that involve human workers having to potentially close access to restrooms while the audits are conducted. IoT sensors and connectivity could significantly decrease restroom downtime, and increase employee efficiency while managing costs, according to TOTO, which added that consumers’ satisfaction with their public restroom experiences also would increase.
MachineQ’s Richardson stated, “This alliance allows TOTO to concentrate on their core competencies, while MachineQ focuses on the complexities of managing their connected solution at scale. It will also allow enterprises to easily deploy additional use cases leveraging the same network connectivity platform for a speedier time to market and lower total cost of ownership.”
He added that it is a non-exclusive arrangement for both parties, meaning that MachineQ potentially could provide IoT connectivity to others in the growing smart restroom products market. Globally, smart bathroom products could become a market worth more than $10 billion by 2030, according to Allied Market Research, although it is not clear how much of the market public restrooms represent.
TOTO offers several smart restroom products, including:
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IoT-Enabled ECOPOWER Smart-Sensor Flush Valves for Toilets,
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IoT-Enabled ECOPOWER Smart-Sensor Flush Valves for Urinals,
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IoT-Enabled ECOPOWER Smart-Sensor Faucets, and
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IoT-Enabled Auto Soap Smart-Sensor Dispensers.
TOTO’s ECOPOWER products generate their own power every time water spins a small internal turbine, so they don’t need batteries that require replacing and don’t require hard-wiring to a building’s electrical system. For that reason, they also continue to operate in the event of a restroom or building power outage.
The company’s IoT-enabled products are designed to connect seamlessly with GP PRO's KOLO Smart Monitoring System, a facility's smart restroom monitoring platform, or building automation system to provide real-time updates on their status to a dashboard that facility managers monitor via phone, tablet, or computer. For example, facility managers and their custodial staff will receive real-time updates or alerts on:
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the number of toilet and faucet activations and their water consumption,
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operational abnormalities such as leaks or product malfunction,
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user safety, alerting staff to check a toilet stall when an occupant has remained in it for more than 30 minutes, and
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consumer traffic to determine optimal periods for cleaning and repairs.