Cleana, a startup founded by Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) alumni, is transforming bathroom hygiene with its innovative, self-lifting toilet seat.
The seat, which automatically raises itself after a predetermined time, has already been installed in over 1,000 locations, including Gillette Stadium, the YMCA, and MIT itself.
The Boston-based startup emphasizes, “Cleana will be launching its products to hundreds of commercial and residential customers across the US in the near future.”
Origin of the toilet revolution
Cleana’s CTO, Richard Li, embarked on this toilet revolution while he was a master’s student in MIT’s Department of Mechanical Engineering during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The increased awareness of germs during this time spurred him to collaborate with co-founders from Boston University to develop a solution to the common problem of messy toilet seats.
“This is meaningful to me and how I spent my time the past four years at MIT, and we now have the best solution available for solving this big problem,” said Li.
Notably, the Cleana founders conducted a survey of 1,500 respondents to gauge concerns regarding public bathrooms. “It wasn’t a pleasant experience, but it did get us the data we needed,” Li expressed.
The results were eye-opening: 81% of respondents expressed worry about dirty toilet seats, and a staggering 31% admitted they would not return to a business after using a dirty seat. Furthermore, the survey revealed that 75% of men did not lift the toilet seat before urinating, exacerbating the issue.
“Everyone who’s had to use a dirty toilet before knows how big a problem they are. Everyone is aware of it, but nobody has been able to address it in a simple, elegant way,” Li added.
Addressing a universal problem
After extensive research, which included late-night bathroom tours and disassembling hundreds of toilet seats, and prototyping at MIT’s Sidney-Pacific dormitory and D-Lab, the team created a battery-free, mechanical seat.
Cleana’s creation is a self-lifting toilet seat that automatically raises and lowers, featuring a patented time-delay mechanism that resets after each use.
This innovative design effectively prevents nearly 95% of common toilet seat messes, as demonstrated in a months-long study across several sites. The seat also incorporates antimicrobial agents to reduce the spread of germs and features a special handle to avoid direct contact with the seat.
Greg Blonder, a professor of mechanical engineering at BU and an advisor for Cleana, commended the team’s focus on a “purely mechanical solution,” bypassing the “nightmare of batteries , which have to be charged and maintained.”
Positive feedback and new model
Feedback from customers, including businesses and homeowners, has been overwhelmingly positive. The seat has been reported to significantly reduce toilet seat messes and maintenance time while also enhancing hygiene.
“Sometimes, businesses had to send cleaning staff into their bathrooms multiple times a day to check on the toilet seat to make sure it’s clean. Now they’re finding that every time they go in, it’s already clean,” Li explained.
Cleana’s innovation is poised to revolutionize not only public restrooms but also the dynamics of shared bathrooms at home.
Their upcoming premium model for residential use features a self-lowering seat and lid, effectively eliminating the perennial “seat up or down” dispute that has plagued cohabitating couples for generations.
Additionally, this design offers a crucial layer of protection for curious toddlers, pets, and easily-dropped items from the risks of an open toilet bowl.
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