Stand-helping Closestool | Accessible Toilet Concept

As the saying goes (family friendly version!) “Do your business or get off the pot”. Well for some people the getting off the pot (toilet) part can be difficult. There are numerous ways to aid the simple motion of standing up from a toilet. Grab bars or floor to ceiling poles mounted next to a toilet are always a good solution. Raised toilet seats can also be installed to raise the overall seat height. Another solution was designed by Prof Zhu Zhongyan and Zhou Jingwen in a Red Dot award winning design concept. The Stand-helping Closestool is a toilet concept where the seat raises to help push the person up.

There are other products that are designed to help a person to stand that use a similar concept to the Stand-helping Closestool. These include a spring like seat cushion and lift chair pictured below. This angled raising motion was applied to a toilet for this design.

The mechanisms that lift the Stand-helping Closestool toilet seat are hydraulics and levers. A hinge at the front of the seat allows for the angled lift motion. Lifting motion will still be a bit like sitting on a spring where there is always a force pushing up when compressed. Standing up will then require less strength and exertion. When not in use, the seat lid can be closed to keep everything sealed. I imagine the lid is connected to the levers or snaps into place to stay closed.

Toilets with lifting seats are available but they are either separate add on parts or bulky contraptions. The Stand-helping Closestool is a sleek all-in one unit. Great for those who want an accessible toilet that doesn’t look medical. Used in conjunction with grab bars or floor to ceiling poles, this toilet concept can make standing even easier. For more on the Stand-helping Closestool, visit their Red Dot website here.