MXPA06001795A

MXPA06001795A - Toothbrush having a uniform, sooth and continuous brush head.

Info

Publication number: MXPA06001795A
Application number: MXPA06001795A
Authority: MX
Inventors: Bruce M Russell
Original assignee: Colgate Palmolive Co
Priority date: 2003-10-02
Filing date: 2004-10-01
Publication date: 2006-05-04
Also published as: BRPI0414474A; CA2536531A1; TW200524556A; RU2006114775A; CN1859859A; AR046685A1; KR20060091309A; US20050071940A1; AU2004277995A1; EP1672993A1; CO5650209A2; WO2005032302A1

Abstract

A toothbrush, either manual or powered, including an elongated member with a head at one end and a handle at the other end. The toothbrush is generally aligned along a central longitudinal axis. The head having a brush face including a brush cavity from which a plurality of bristles extend. The bristles being arranged in a plurality of bristle tufts so as to extend generally perpendicular to the central longitudinal axis. The toothbrush also includes a plurality of lateral support members extending upwardly from a base of the brush cavity. The bristles are attached to the toothbrush by an attachment device provided in the brush cavity. The attachment device engages at least one of the tufts and secures the tuft between adjacent lateral support members. The attachment device includes a bottom edge and a top edge. Each of the lateral support members extend to a predetermined height from the base of the brush cavity so as to reach at least the height of the bottom edge of said attachment device in the brush cavity.

Description

TOOTHBRUSH THAT HAS A UNIFORM, SMOOTH AND CONTINUOUS BRUSH HEAD BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention This invention relates to a toothbrush with bristles attached in a manner such as to create a uniform, smooth and continuous wall thereof, and more particularly to a toothbrush with means for holding the bristles of the toothbrush to achieve a uniform, smooth and continuous bristle wall using conventional basic bristle joining methods. 2. Discussion of Related Art The truly continuous smooth bristle bars are not new to the art (see, for example, US Pat. No. 6,276,021) but have been achieved only by using new, less basic manufacturing technologies. These new manufacturing techniques such as IMT, fusion and AFT, are somewhat complex resulting in a high cost of capital and long lead times. It has therefore been found that it is desirable to create smooth and continuous bristle bars by using conventional basic technology due to their lower overall cost.

Attempts have been made in the past with limited success to achieve smooth bristle bars using conventional basic technology. For example, simulated bristle bars have in the past used individual square bundle holders placed very close to each other, to minimize the space between the bunches. Examples of this manufacturing technique are described in U.S. Patent No. 5,446,940 owned by the same assignee of this application. A similar technique is described in U.S. Patent Publication No. 2001/0023516 with a "transverse wall" located between each bundle.

A disadvantage of the previously noted prior art of U.S. Patent No. 5,446,940 is the "small bridge" of plastic required between each bundle. This bridge runs evenly with the upper surface of the brush face and creates a small gap A (see figure 1) in the bristles at its exit from the bunched holes. As a result, the bundles can not form a uniform, smooth, continuous wall, since the bristles "fuse" from the bundle hole. It has therefore been found that it is desirable to create a uniform bristle bar for the bristles in a toothbrush without spacing by leaving the bristles on the face of the brush.

The "transverse wall" of the manufacturing technique of the United States of America patent application publication No. 2001/0023516 is necessary to keep the bristles in an almost vertical position, so that subsequent bundles can be inserted without clogging his access to his respective bunch hole. As shown in Figure 2, if the transverse walls are simply removed and the bristles are placed in the resulting cavity, the bristles placed in bundles in the cavity will unfavorably tend to fall towards the sides inside the cavity, due to a lack of lateral support. Additional problems occur when subsequent bundles are inserted, because non-vertical bundles block the "holes" for the bundles. Furthermore, by the use of this transverse wall, the aforementioned separation results as to avoid a uniform, continuous and smooth wall of the bristles.

U.S. Patent Publication No. 2001/023516 further describes a method for using extra parts in the construction of brushes to create the "transverse walls", suggesting the use of metal bars or metal staples. It has therefore been found desirable to provide a toothbrush which utilizes a single molded portion for the construction of a bundle slot hole. Such construction results in a stronger assembly, which is faster and less expensive to produce.

Based on the foregoing, it has been found desirable to provide a toothbrush having a uniform, smooth and continuous bristle wall, which uses traditional low cost staple techniques and ensures that once inserted, the bristles remain in an orientation essentially vertical and upright with respect to the longitudinal axis of the toothbrush to allow timely insertion of additional bristles.

OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a toothbrush which overcomes the disadvantages of the prior art mentioned above.

It is also an object of the present invention to provide a toothbrush which is manufactured to achieve a uniform, smooth and continuous bristle wall using traditional staple technology.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a method for making a toothbrush with a uniform, smooth and continuous wall of bristles which has lower production costs.

It is yet another object of this invention to provide a toothbrush which has a suitable lateral support for the bristles placed in bundles within the bristle cavity.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a toothbrush having a uniform, smooth and continuous bristle wall, which employs traditional low cost staple techniques and ensures that once inserted, the bristles remain essentially vertical with respect to the brush. of teeth to allow the insertion of additional bristles.

It is a further object of this invention to create a uniform bristle bar for bristles in a toothbrush which minimizes the spacings by leaving the bristles on the face of the brush.

It is yet another object of this invention to provide a toothbrush which utilizes a unique molded portion for the construction of the bundle slot hole.

Various other objects, advantages and features of the present invention will become readily apparent from the detailed description that follows and the novel features will be particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

SYNTHESIS OF THE INVENTION In accordance with the present invention, a toothbrush having a uniform, smooth and continuous wall of bristles is provided. The toothbrush of the present invention has a handle portion at one end thereof and a head portion at the other end thereof. The head part includes a brush face and a brush cavity with a plurality of lateral support members cgue extending upwardly from the brush cavity as to provide a lateral support for the plurality of upwardly extending bristles arranged in a plurality of bunches. In the applicant's toothbrush, at least one clip engages at least one of the plurality of bundles and fixes at least one of the plurality of bundles between at least two of the lateral support members. In order to avoid separations between the bristles as they leave the bristle cavity, one leg of the lateral support member extends from a base of the cavity in the direction of the brush face to at least one bottom edge of the brush. the staple This arrangement of the bunches on the side support member engaged by a staple allows the bristles of the bunches to engage one another at a point in the cavity below the face of the brush. As a result, the plurality of bundles thus joined together form an essentially uniform and continuous bristle wall extending from the face of the brush.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a toothbrush having an elongated member that includes a head at one end and a handle at the other end, generally aligned along a central longitudinal axis, said head having a brush face including a cavity from which a plurality of bristles extend, said plurality of bristles being arranged in a plurality of bunches so as to extend generally perpendicular to the central longitudinal axis; a plurality of lateral support members extend upwardly from a base of the brush cavity; the fastening means provided in said brush cavity for engaging at least one of the plurality of bundles and for securing said bundle between the adjacent lateral support members, the fastening means having a bottom edge and an upper edge; and wherein each of the lateral support members extends from the base of the cavity so as to reach a predetermined height in the cavity which is between the height of the bottom edge of the fastening means and the face of the brush.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, there is provided an electric toothbrush having an elongated member having a head at one end and a handle at the other end, generally aligned along a central longitudinal axis, said head has a brush face including a cavity from which a plurality of bristles extend, said plurality of bristles being arranged in a plurality of bunches so as to extend them generally perpendicular to the central longitudinal axis; a plurality of lateral support members extending upwardly from the base of the brush cavity; fastening means provided in said cavity at least for engaging one of the plurality of bundles and for securing said bundle between the adjacent lateral support members, said fastening means having a bottom edge and an upper edge, and in wherein each of the lateral support members extends at a predetermined height from the base of the cavity to the brush so as to reach at least the height of the bottom edge of the fastening means in said brush cavity.

According to still another embodiment of the present invention, a lateral support member is provided for holding the bristles in a toothbrush having an essentially U-shaped formation formed in a toothbrush cavity, at least one leg of the ü-shaped formation extends to a point between a bottom edge of a staple that secures the bristles to the toothbrush and the face of the brush.

The bundle according to the present invention can be engaged by arranging the staple between a single lateral support member and said lateral edge of the cavity.

In addition, the lateral support members can extend to a point between the brush face and the bottom edge of the staple.

Given the outward forces created by the presence of a staple, it is preferred to have the height of the side support wall raised above the bottom of the staple. However, to ensure that the bristles between the adjacent bundles are in full contact (without spacing) before leaving the bundle hole, the side support wall must stop just short of the upper surface of the brush face. The final point of convergence of these bristles is controlled by the most superior width of the lateral support wall, the distance between the upper part of the wall and the face of the brush, and the angle of the sides of the wall.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The following detailed description is given by way of example, but it is not intended to limit the invention only to the specific embodiments described, and it may be better understood in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is a cross-sectional view of a prior art method for securing the bristles in a bristle cavity as taught in the United States of America patent publication of application No. 2001/0123516.

Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view of a prior art method for securing the bristles in a bristle cavity without any support members.

Figure 3 is a front perspective view of a preferred embodiment of a toothbrush according to the teachings of the present invention.

Figure 4 is an enlarged top view of the head portion of the toothbrush shown in Figure 3 with the bristles removed.

Figure 5 is a cross-sectional view of a first preferred embodiment of an assembly and process for providing a uniform, smooth and continuous bristle wall in the brush cavity of said toothbrush of Figure 3.

Figure 6 is a cross-sectional view of another preferred embodiment of an assembly and process according to the teachings of this invention to provide a uniform, smooth and continuous bristle wall in the brush cavity of said toothbrush of the figure 3.

Figure 7 is a cross-sectional view of another preferred embodiment of an assembly and process according to the teachings of this invention to provide a uniform, smooth and continuous bristle wall in the brush cavity of said toothbrush of the figure 3.

Figure 8 is a cross-sectional view of another preferred embodiment of the assembly and process according to the teachings of this invention to provide a uniform, smooth and continuous bristle wall in the brush cavity of said toothbrush of Figure 3 .

Figure 9 is a top view of another preferred embodiment of an assembly and process according to the teachings of this invention to provide a uniform, smooth and continuous bristle wall in the brush cavity of a toothbrush having a support wall curved lateral DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF CERTAIN PREFERRED INCORPORATIONS OF THE PRESENT INVENTION Referring now to the drawings, wherein like reference numerals represent like features in the various views, the preferred embodiments of a toothbrush according to the teachings of the present invention are shown in Figures 3-6, Figures 3 -6 refer to a toothbrush having a uniform, smooth and continuous bristle wall. However, designs other than those specifically set forth herein are also contemplated which may similarly provide a toothbrush by tending a uniform, smooth and continuous bristle wall and still be in accordance with the teachings of the present invention.

Referring now to Figure 3 there is provided a manual toothbrush 1 which includes an elongate handle 2 at one end and a head 10 on the other end. The handle 2 can be conventional in shape and include features such as ergonomic design, grip characteristics, curves, and a color as desired by the designer. The head 10 in Figure 3 is shown in an octagonal form, however, other shapes including round, oval, square, etc., may be used without departing from the scope of this invention. Extending from the head 10, essentially perpendicular to the longitudinal arm 3 of the toothbrush 1 are a plurality of bristles 18 which will be described in greater detail below formed as a uniform, smooth and continuous wall.

Figure 4 shows a top view of the head 10. The head 10 includes a cavity 12. The cavity 12 has a plurality of lateral support members 14 formed there, and is defined by a bank 26 that forms the outer perimeter of the cavity. 12. Lateral support members 14 are preferably U-shaped, but other forms may be used without departing from the scope of the invention.

The head 10 also includes a brush face 16, which forms the uppermost surface of the head 10. Typically, the bristles 18 extend essentially perpendicular to the longitudinal axis 3 of the toothbrush 1 from the bottom 34 of the cavity 12 to a point above the face of the tooth. brush 16 as shown in figure 5.

In a preferred embodiment of Figure 5, a staple 22 is used to secure the bristles 18. Preferably a plurality of individual bristles 18 are combined to form a bundle 20. The bundle 20 is inserted into the cavity 12, arranged between a pair of legs 23 and 25 of the adjacent lateral support members 14 or between a leg and the edge 26 of the cavity 12, and fixed to the brush head 10 by the staple 22. The staple includes an upper edge 30 and an edge of 28 background of it. It is preferable that the bristles are bent in half essentially at their center point from each of the bristles and arranged so that the bent part is inserted into the lateral support member 14. Preferably still, the number of bristles 18 grouped together for forming a bundle 20 is sufficient to form a narrow or closed notch in the lateral support member 14. As such, the outer bristles 18 of a bundle 20 will have a radius of curvature essentially similar to the radius of the lateral support member 14.

The bottom edge 28 of the retaining clip 22 forms the center of the curve radius of the bristles 18 as shown in Figure 5. Given the outward forces created by the presence of the clip 22, it is preferred to have the height of the side support member 14 raised above the bottom edge 28 of the clip 22. However, to ensure that the bristles between the neighboring bunches 20 are in full contact before leaving the cavity 12, the legs 23, 25 of the lateral support members 14 must stop just before the face of the brush 16. However, the edge 26 which can form a part of the lateral support member can still rise to the level of the face of the brush 16. There is no point of convergence on the edge side 26 of the lateral support member 14, therefore the edge 26 preferably extends from the bottom 34 to the face of the brush 16.

The final point of convergence of the bristles 18 is controlled by the uppermost width of the lateral support member 14, and more specifically the width of the legs 23 and 25, the distance between the upper leg of the lateral support member 14 and the face of brush 16, and the angle T of the legs 23 or 25 of the lateral support member 14 with respect to the bottom 34.

As shown in Figure 5, the legs 23 or 25 of the lateral support member 14 are relatively thick and maintain an essentially constant thickness. In this embodiment, the height of the lateral support member 14 is considerably less than the surface height of the face of the brush 16, and does not extend as close to the face of the brush 16, as in the embodiment shown in Figure 6. As a result, the point of convergence 32 of the bristles 18 is lower in the cavity 12 for the incorporation of Figure 5.

Figure 6 shows another embodiment wherein a plurality of lateral support members 14 are formed along the bottom 34 of the cavity 12. The lateral support members 14 are formed of at least one leg 23a and an essentially concave base 24a . The side support members may include a second leg 25a, or alternatively, the edge 26 of the cavity 12. As shown in Figure 6, the legs 23a and 25a extend to a point about the same height as an upper edge 30 of a staple 22.

As shown in Figure 6, when the side support member is tapered so that the legs 23a or 25a are relatively thick at their base and become thinner and thinner as they continue towards the face surface of the brush 16a, the lateral support member 14 rises much closer to the surface of the brush face 16a than the lateral support member of figure 5. This results in the convergence point 32 being higher from the cavity 12. In this embodiment , however, the point of convergence 32 remains below the surface of the face of the brush 16a.

Figure 7 shows a further embodiment of the present invention wherein the lateral support member 14 extends toward the face of the brush 16 to a point beyond the upper surface 30 of the staple 22, but below the level of the face of the brush 16. As with the example shown in figure 6, the point of convergence is higher, in cavity 12.

Another aspect of the present invention is shown in Figure 8. The upper surface of the lateral support member can be formed in a non-planar orientation. This results in a greater overall stability for the bristles 18 caused by the height of the legs 23. This non-planar orientation also increases the uniformity and smoothness of the toothbrush since the bristles extend beyond the face of the brush 16 in comparison to the straight side support members 14 having the legs extending to essentially the same height as those of Figure 8. This effect is caused by the drop of the convergence point 32 for the bristles between the legs 23 in the non-planar section of the side support member 1.

Although the above examples have been discussed with respect to the lateral support members having an essentially straight formation and placed essentially longitudinally on the axis 3, other orientations are considered within the scope of the present invention. For example, Figure 9 shows a part of a toothbrush head 10 having the side support members 14 formed in an arcuate orientation.

It should be understood that the previously achieved objective can also be achieved by a construction involving an increase in the thickness of the head 10 perpendicular to the longitudinal axis 3 of the toothbrush 1. This results in an increase in the depth of the cavity 12, which in turn provides an increase in the height of the bank 26 around the cavity 12. This increase in height effectively ensures that the convergence point of the bristles remains below the face of the brush, thereby eliminating separation A which is produced when the methods shown in the prior art of Figure 1 are used. In this embodiment, the edge 26 extends from the bottom 34 to a point minimally as high as the point of convergence 32 of the neighboring bristles 20. lateral support members 14 can extend beyond the upper edge 30 of the staple 22, but not as much as the face of the brush 16. This results in a toothbrush having and a uniform, smooth and continuous wall of bristles 18 on the face of the brush 16.

However, even when this method is contemplated, in the preferred embodiment the thickness of the head 10 is not increased since it has a more desirable toothbrush that requires less material and results in a more compact toothbrush for easier use .

The preferred materials for the construction of the toothbrush 1 of the present invention include a wide variety of moldable or injectable plastics such as thermoplastics. It is preferable that the toothbrush and the head are molded as a single thermoplastic component. Alternatively, multiple plastic components can be formed and joined after forming. It is also preferred that the lateral support members 14 are formed during the molding of the head 10 and are integrated therewith.

Alternatively, the side support members 14 can be formed as part of the handle 2 and integrated into the head 10 when the components are assembled. Still further, the lateral support members 14 can be formed separately and then added to the toothbrush as a component.

It is a further embodiment of the present invention that the head 10 be arranged on an electric toothbrush (not shown). The result is an electric toothbrush having a head 10 with a uniform, smooth and continuous bristle wall attached to one end and a handle placed on the other end of the electric toothbrush. Typically, the handle comprises electrical means for driving the head 10 of the electric toothbrush. The performance can be oscillating, rotating, reciprocating, or simple vibration or a combination of movements. The head 10 can be removable from the handle providing power or formed from a single integrated unit as desired.

The desired objects of the present invention have been achieved by providing a toothbrush having a uniform, smooth and continuous bristle wall while using a traditional low cost staple technology. This is achieved by controlling the height of the legs 23 or 25 of the lateral support members 14. Limiting the height of the legs to a point below the edge 26 of the cavity effectively eliminates the gaps between the bristles as they extend. beyond the face of the brush. In addition, sufficient lateral support for the bristles is provided to ensure that the bristles extend essentially perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the toothbrush, and allow for easier insertion of the bunches of subsequent bristles when stapling methods are used traditional Although the invention has been particularly shown and described with reference to certain preferred embodiments it will be readily appreciated by those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

Claims

R E I V I N D I C A C I O N S

1. A toothbrush comprising: an elongated member having a head at one end and a handle at the other end, generally aligned along a central longitudinal axis, said head having a brush face including a cavity from which a plurality of bristles extend, said plurality of bristles are arranged in a plurality of bunches so as to extend them generally perpendicular to the central longitudinal axis; a plurality of lateral support members extending upwardly from a base of the brush cavity; fastening means provided in said brush cavity for engaging at least one of the plurality of bundles and for securing said bundle between the lateral support members, said fastening means having a bottom edge and an upper edge; Y wherein each of the lateral support members extends at a predetermined height from the base of the brush cavity so as to reach at least the height of the bottom edge of said fastening means in said brush cavity.

2. The toothbrush as claimed in clause 1, characterized in that the lateral support member extends at a predetermined height between the bottom edge of the fastening means and the face of the brush.

3. The toothbrush as claimed in clause 1, characterized in that at least one of the plurality of bundles is fixed by the clamping means between one of the plurality of lateral support members and a lateral edge of the cavity of the body. brush.

4. The toothbrush as claimed in clause 1, characterized in that the clamping means is a metal clamp.

5. The toothbrush as claimed in clause 1, characterized in that the lateral support members are essentially U-shaped.

6. The toothbrush as claimed in clause 1, characterized in that the lateral support members allow the bristles of the plurality of bundles to make contact with one another at a point in the cavity below the face of the brush.

7. The toothbrush as claimed in clause 1, characterized in that said clamping means form an essentially uniform layer of bristles extending from the face of the brush.

8. The toothbrush as claimed in clause 1, characterized in that the lateral support member has a non-planar top surface.

9. The toothbrush as claimed in clause 1, characterized in that the lateral support walls are arched.

10. An electric toothbrush that includes: an elongated member having a head at one end and a handle at the other end, generally aligned along a central longitudinal axis, said head having a brush face including a cavity from which a plurality of bristles extend, said plurality of bristles are arranged in a plurality of bunches so as to extend generally perpendicular to the central longitudinal axis; a plurality of lateral support members extending upwardly from the base of the brush cavity; fastening means provided in said cavity at least for engaging one of the plurality of bundles and for securing said bundle between the adjacent lateral support members, said fastening means having a bottom edge and an upper edge; Y wherein each of the lateral support members extends at a predetermined height from the base of the brush cavity so as to reach at least the height of the bottom edge of said fastening means in said brush cavity.

11. The toothbrush as claimed in clause 10, characterized in that the lateral support member extends at a predetermined height between the bottom edge of the fastening means and the face of the brush.

12. The toothbrush as claimed in clause 10, characterized in that at least one of the plurality of bundles is fixed by the clamping means between one of the plurality of lateral support members and a lateral edge of the cavity of the body. brush.

13. The feeling brush as claimed in clause 10, characterized in that the clamping means is a metal clamp.

1 . The toothbrush as claimed in clause 10, characterized in that the lateral support members are essentially U-shaped.

15. The toothbrush as claimed in clause 10, characterized in that the lateral support members allow the bristles of the plurality of bundles to make contact with each other at a point in the cavity below the face of the brush.

16. The toothbrush as claimed in clause 10, characterized in that the clamping means form an essentially continuous and uniform layer of bristles extending from the face of the brush.

17. The toothbrush as claimed in clause 10, characterized in that the lateral support member has a non-planar top surface.

18. The toothbrush as claimed in clause 10, characterized in that the lateral support walls are arched.

19. The toothbrush as claimed in clause 10, characterized in that the lateral support member extends at a predetermined height between the upper edge of the fastening means and the upper surface of the face of the brush.

20. A lateral support member for holding the bristles in a toothbrush comprising: an essentially U-shaped formation formed in a toothbrush cavity, at least one leg of the U-shaped formation extends to a point between a bottom edge of a staple and a brush face of the toothbrush securing the bristles to the toothbrush. SUMMARIZES A toothbrush either manual or electric, including an elongated member with a head on one end and a handle on the other end. The toothbrush is generally aligned along a central longitudinal axis. The head has a brush face that includes a brush cavity from which a plurality of bristles extend. The bristles are arranged in a plurality of bunches of bristles so as to extend generally perpendicular to the central longitudinal axis. The toothbrush also includes a plurality of side support members that extend upwardly from the base of the brush cavity. The bristles are attached to the toothbrush by a clamping device provided in the brush cavity. The clamping device engages at least one of the bundles and secures the bundle between the adjacent lateral support members. The clamping device includes a bottom edge and an upper edge. Each of the side support members extends at a predetermined height from the base of the brush cavity so as to reach at least the height of the bottom edge of said clamping device in the brush cavity.