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Toilet is one of the necessities in our daily lives. However, most of the toilets today are imperfect because they make unpleasant noise when flushed. Especially in hotels, hospitals, and apartments where quietness is crucial, this noise often disturbs others and wakes up sleepers.

Can we get ride of this annoying noise? After careful observation, I noticed that this noise comes from two parts of the toilet system: the toilet tank and the toilet bowl. Since most toilets are made of plastic material and china, a little gap is always formed between the toilet tank and its cover, where water refilling noise escapes (Fig 1 ). However, the gaps formed by the toilet cover, seat, and bowl are much bigger and wider, which are caused by either two or four supports at the bottom of the cover (Fig 2) and seat (Fig 3 ). Therefore louder noise escapes from the toilet bowl. These problems are caused by an imperfect design, which needs to be improved.

Recently, I was inspired by the system of car doors. I noticed that car doors are well sealed by a surrounding elastic rubber, and outside noise is barely heard when the doors are closed. For the same theory, I invented The Noiseless Toilet, which is simple yet practical. First, glue about 1.5/8 inch tall by 3.5/8 inch wide elastic rubber inside edge of the tank cover (keep the little hole open to allow air passage)( Fig 4). Second, glue about a half inch tall by one inch wide ring-like rubber on both bottoms of the seat cover (Fig 5) and the seat itself (Fig 6). The water noise will be greatly reduced when the toilet is flushed after the seat is covered. This way, no noise can be heard outside of the restroom at all. The reason is simple. The elastic rubber fills every gap of the toilet system, so that all the water noises are blocked inside of the toilet bowl and the tank. However, the amount of the blocked noise depends on the weight of the seat cover, softness and density of the rubber material. The heavier the cover, softer and denser the rubber is, the less noise escapes from the bowl. In addition to blocking water noise, the elastic rubber

eliminates banging noise caused by any part of the toilet, and also it prevents some unpleasant smell from the toilet bowl, (compare Fig 7 and Fig 8).

The Noiseless Toilet is easy, inexpensive, and simple to make. It is practical, has no by- effect and it doesn't affect the comfort of the original design. The Noiseless Toilet will improve our environment and ameliorate the comfort of our daily lives. It is beneficial to every serene ambiance.

AU, Danny Kwok Leung