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The Australian
17 hours ago
- Health
- The Australian
Japanese smart toilet reveals what your bathroom habits say about you
For decades, Japanese lavatories have been the most advanced in the world, warming and washing the bottoms of users and even playing recorded sounds to mask embarrassing noises. Now they are going a step further with a range that analyses a user's stool and provides health advice via an app. Toto, manufacturer of the pioneering Washlet, is about to launch a 'smart' lavatory in its popular Neorest range, incorporating a scanner that tracks and records the shape, texture and quantity of deposits. 'With the push of a button, the Neorest records the state of daily bowel movements and provides a variety of advice suitable for each individual, such as dietary habits and recommended exercises, via the app,' the company said. 'Daily wellness is something you can continue naturally without any effort. Make the toilet the gateway to your health.' Masashi Kawada, one of the developers of the technology, said: 'To be honest, I have no interest in my own bowel movements and am the type of person who will go to the toilet quickly. But through the development of this product I began to think about my own body and diet.' The faecal scanner uses the same technology as a barcode reader by directing light at its object of scrutiny. 'It reads the stool that falls into the toilet bowl, converts it into numbers and classifies its characteristics,' said Yuuta Saka of Toto. Japan has led the world in toilet design, with the slogan 'even your bottom can be beautiful'. Picture: Getty Images The smartphone app classifies stools into seven categories of shape, texture and colour, including granular, banana-shaped, liquid, ochre, brown and dark brown. Stool volume is categorised as high, medium or low. The app also monitors frequency of bowel movements. The lavatory costs between ¥493,900 and ¥542,300 ($5113 to $5614). Japan has the most sophisticated lavatories in the world. Since the first model appeared in 1980, with the advertising slogan 'Don't let people say behind your back that you have a dirty bottom', automated washing lavatories are now a feature in a majority of Japanese homes. Toto, the world's largest plumbing manufacturer, reported the equivalent of $7.5bn in global sales last year. Its most famous model, the Washlet, is the lavatory that shoots back. By manipulating an elaborate control panel, a nozzle hidden beneath the seat can be extended, aimed and fired to direct jets of cold, warm or hot water. The pressure, temperature and angle of the jets are adjustable, and an inbuilt hot-air fan blow-dries the cleansed posterior. Four out of five Japanese households use a washing lavatory, made by Toto or one of its smaller competitors, each day. Washlets are already sold in China and South Korea, and are making inroads into North America: Toto's sales in the Americas last year were $US491 million ($755 million), 20 per cent higher than the year before. Toto Washlet toilets are also sold in Australia. However, the Washlet is an acquired taste and, despite several attempts over the years, the company has had less success in Europe. In Japan, the device caught on after innovative television advertisements, featuring a female pop singer, and slogans such as 'Even your bottom can be beautiful' and 'Your bottom will like it after only three tries'. The Times
Japan Today
20-07-2025
- Health
- Japan Today
Toto to release next-gen toilet tech that scans and keeps track of your poop
By SoraNews24 Japanese toilets have long been the envy of the world, thanks in no small part to the efforts of Toto and their groundbreaking washlets that use water to clean your nether regions after use, heat up in the winter, and play sounds to cover up any embarrassing sounds that may emerge. ▼ Godspeed, washlet. Image: PR Times They're not ones to rest on their laurels either and have been hard at work, creating the next evolution in toilet technology. This time, they're switching their focus from comfort to health and wellness, and what better window into our physical condition is there than our butts? The new Neorest line of toilets will include a system to monitor fecal matter as it is expelled and record it in a dedicated smartphone app. The scanner is installed next to the washlet water nozzle and works just like a barcode scanner to analyze turds as they move past. The consistency of movements will be classified into seven categories: Clumps (1), Lumpy (2), Cracked (3), Normal (4), Semi-Solid (5), Muddy (6), and Liquid (7). The shade of brown is also measured and given one of three categories. This data is logged for each time on the toilet and can be viewed on a smartphone app, which also offers lifestyle advice on how to have more consistently normal BMs. ▼ Blue lines show quantity, the color of the dot represents the color of the poop, and the position of the dot corresponds to the consistency category on the left. Image: PR Times Reaction to the news online was largely optimistic but also apprehensive. It's understandable since butt scanning and cataloging isn't something one jumps into easily. 'This is amazing. Sure, the technology is easy to copy, but it's good to be the first.' 'I don't like it. I don't want to be scanned.' 'I think it's good to monitor poop, but that will be too rigid. Every time blood is found, it will think there's colon cancer, and it will just give the same advice all the time.' 'The future is here. Imagine if you could get both a urine and stool test every day.' 'I'd be afraid if it scanned me and told me I stink.' 'I think this is great. Sometimes the toilet design makes it hard to check my poops.' 'To think, only decades ago we had toilets that were just holes in the ground. Look how far we've come.' 'What if a superhacker uncovers the color of my poops?' 'I think mine would break the system.' 'They're expensive, but I think it's worth it.' It's true that Neorest toilets do not come cheap. The two models' recommended retail prices are 493,900 yen and 542,300 yen. But many people will consider that an investment in improving their overall health and possibly saving money on medical costs, or even their lives, down the road. One problem is that you'd have to use the same kind of toilet every time for the best results. Neorest toilets may become more widespread in the future, but there's sure to be an awkward phase where you'd have to ask waiters if their restrooms have poop scanners. Hopefully, restaurants will have the decency to put up signs. Source: PR Times, Mainichi Shimbun, Hachima Kiko Read more stories from SoraNews24. -- We explore the evolution of the toilet at Kitakyushu's newly opened TOTO Museum -- Just how clean are Japan's high-tech public restroom bidet-equipped toilets? -- Everything you think you know about your washlet toilet is wrong External Link © SoraNews24
The Star
18-07-2025
- Business
- The Star
Japanese toilets measuring stool's colour, hardness, amount to sell for US$3,300
A person holding a model stool in a new toilet from TOTO Ltd. that has sensors to measure falling stool, in Fukuoka City. - The Japan News/ANN TOKYO: Toilet maker TOTO Ltd will begin selling on Aug 1 a toilet equipped with a sensor that measures the coloUr, hardness and amount of stool. The company says this is the first such product in Japan for general residential use. Two models of TOTO's high-end 'Neorest' series toilets will be equipped with the function. The suggested retail price, including tax, starts at ¥493,900 (US$3,320). The company aims to sell 7,300 units per year in the third year of the launch. A light-emitting diode (LED) built into the models sheds light on falling stool, and the sensor receives the reflected light to measure the length, contour and surface shape. The colour is recorded in three levels (ochre, brown and dark brown), the hardness in seven levels (including liquid and semi-solid) and the volume in three levels. Up to six users can check the data on their smartphones. The Japan News/ANN
SoraNews24
18-07-2025
- Health
- SoraNews24
Toto to release next-gen Japanese toilet tech that scans and keeps track of your poop
Captain's log… Japanese toilets have long been the envy of the world, thanks in no small part to the efforts of Toto and their groundbreaking washlets that use water to clean your nether regions after use, heat up in the winter, and play sounds to cover up any embarrassing sounds that may emerge. ▼ Godspeed, washlet. They're not ones to rest on their laurels either and have been hard at work, creating the next evolution in toilet technology. This time, they're switching their focus from comfort to health and wellness, and what better window into our physical condition is there than our butts? The new Neorest line of toilets will include a system to monitor fecal matter as it is expelled and record it in a dedicated smartphone app. The scanner is installed next to the washlet water nozzle and works just like a barcode scanner to analyze turds as they move past. The consistency of movements will be classified into seven categories: Clumps (1), Lumpy (2), Cracked (3), Normal (4), Semi-Solid (5), Muddy (6), and Liquid (7). The shade of brown is also measured and given one of three categories. This data is logged for each time on the toilet and can be viewed on a smartphone app, which also offers lifestyle advice on how to have more consistently normal BMs. ▼ Blue lines show quantity, the color of the dot represents the color of the poop, and the position of the dot corresponds to the consistency category on the left. Reaction to the news online was largely optimistic but also apprehensive. It's understandable since butt scanning and cataloging isn't something one jumps into easily. 'This is amazing. Sure, the technology is easy to copy, but it's good to be the first.' 'I don't like it. I don't want to be scanned.' 'I think it's good to monitor poop, but that will be too rigid. Every time blood is found, it will think there's colon cancer, and it will just give the same advice all the time.' 'The future is here. Imagine if you could get both a urine and stool test every day.' 'I'd be afraid if it scanned me and told me I stink.' 'I think this is great. Sometimes the toilet design makes it hard to check my poops.' 'To think, only decades ago we had toilets that were just holes in the ground. Look how far we've come.' 'What if a superhacker uncovers the color of my poops?' 'I think mine would break the system.' 'They're expensive, but I think it's worth it.' It's true that Neorest toilets do not come cheap. The two models' recommended retail prices are 493,900 yen (US$3,300) and 542,300 yen (US$3,600). But many people will consider that an investment in improving their overall health and possibly saving money on medical costs, or even their lives, down the road. One problem is that you'd have to use the same kind of toilet every time for the best results. Neorest toilets may become more widespread in the future, but there's sure to be an awkward phase where you'd have to ask waiters if their restrooms have poop scanners. Hopefully, restaurants will have the decency to put up signs. Source: PR Times, Mainichi Shimbun, Hachima Kiko Images: PR Times ● Want to hear about SoraNews24's latest articles as soon as they're published? Follow us on Facebook and Twitter!
The Mainichi
17-07-2025
- Health
- The Mainichi
Japan's Toto launches smart toilet that scans, analyzes stool
FUKUOKA -- Japanese toilet maker Toto Ltd. is this August releasing a home-use toilet which measures the amount, hardness and other elements of the user's stools. In what's being called a Japan first, a scanner in the toilet bowl measures stools and a dedicated smartphone app can be used to track daily stool conditions. The device was developed in response to the growing number of users who pay attention to their stool's health indicators, as the Kitakyushu-based company aims to expand its reach to health-conscious consumers. A sensor module is installed next to the warm-water cleaning nozzle inside the toilet bowl, operating on a principle similar to barcode scanning. It shines a light onto stool falling into the toilet, allowing the system to measure its properties. When a user sits on the seat, the scanner's cap opens and the unit activates. After the measurement, data is automatically sent to the smartphone app. The system classifies stool into seven shapes and hardness types such as granular, banana-shaped or liquid, along with variations in surface texture, and further assigns one of three color categories: ochre, brown or dark brown. Stool quantity is categorized as high, medium or low. The app displays this data, allowing users to track frequency and condition via a calendar and receive personalized lifestyle advice based on trends in their bowel movements. According to a Toto survey, while 76% of users check their stool condition after defecation, only 6% record the information digitally. Since releasing the first "Washlet" bidet seat in 1980, Toto has continually refined features for cleanliness, comfort and water savings. In recent years, the company has shifted focus toward health, with product development targeting consumer well-being. The new stool analysis function will be included in Toto's high-end "Neorest" models launching Aug. 1: the LS-W, priced from 542,300 yen (some $3,650), and the AS-W, from 493,900 yen (around $3,330). Toto aims to sell 7,300 units annually in the third year after their release. (Japanese original by Hiroshi Hisano, Kyushu Business News Department)
