CN1108125C - Resiliently flexible bristle bearing head toothbrush - Google Patents

Abstract

A toothbrush having a handle (2) and a resiliently flexible bristle-bearing head (1) wherein, when the toothbrush is in its normal stress-free configuration, the free ends of bristles lying along a longitudinal and/or transverse axis of the brush form a generally concave profile (9) adapted to suit the buccal surface of the teeth (10). The toothbrush head (1) can flexibly conform to a convex profile to suit the labial surface (12) of the teeth (10) or to avoid damage to the gums (18).

Description

Toothbrush with resiliently flexible bristle support head

technical field

The present invention relates to toothbrushes, in particular to toothbrushes having a flexible toothbrush head with a generally concave bristle surface (ie, the surface formed by the free ends of the bristles) to conform to the curvature of human teeth.

Background technique

The profile of human teeth requires that a toothbrush for scrubbing the buccal or outer surface of the teeth ideally have a quadrilateral bristle profile, and a toothbrush for scrubbing the tongue or inner surface of the teeth should ideally have a convex bristle profile. Most toothbrushes have a one-piece brush head, which is about the same thickness as the handle and is therefore relatively stiff and has no curvature or shape. However, there are also toothbrushes with a device for making the head bendable relative to the handle, as exemplified in EP-A-371,293. Even so, the effect of this toothbrush is not very ideal. Still other toothbrushes can be adjusted into several different forms, but the shape remains immutable. Adjustable toothbrushes are often difficult to use and unreliable.

A further disadvantage of existing toothbrushes is that the toothbrush is pressed very strongly against the teeth to obtain a good cleaning effect while causing damage or discomfort to the soft tissues of the gums nearby. This defect can be solved to a certain extent by changing the shape of the toothbrush, or by changing the hardness or length of the bristles, but then again, a toothbrush of overall shape cannot be suitable for all situations.

US-A-4,712,267 to Cheng discloses a convertible toothbrush comprising an S-shaped elongated handle of non-deformable material having curved ends at opposite curved portions, a A flexible mass carrying bristles and a means for mounting the flexible mass on the handle for longitudinal movement along the length of the handle. The curved part of the brush handle bends the flexible block together with the bristles into a concave or convex shape, which corresponds to the curved shape of the brush handle.

In European Patent EP-A-454,625, assigned to the Warner-Lambert Company, an adjustable curvature toothbrush is disclosed, the head of which is ring-shaped. A cam or sliding mechanism changes the curvature of the toothbrush head between the mouth and convex shapes. In another embodiment, the head is an integral part of the handle which is in the shape of a compressible closed ring, the bristle surface being concave when the handle is in its uncompressed state, and the bristle surface is concave when the handle is compressed. It has a convex shape.

In the European patent EP-A-577,656 belonging to Lingner & Fischer Co., Ltd., a toothbrush with a handle and a bristle support head at one end is disclosed, wherein the toothbrush head is in the form of two or more flexible and The segments are resiliently connected to each other and/or to the handle, one or more of which becomes the bristle support. In one embodiment, this is accomplished by the use of transverse and optionally longitudinal grooves on opposing surfaces of the toothbrush head. A convex shape can be used when there is pressure during use. In another embodiment, the handle extends into a frame to which the toothbrush head is elastically attached. When pressure is applied to the center of the toothbrush head, it can adopt a concave shape.

While the toothbrushes described above allow for some flexibility in the toothbrush head, none of them is entirely satisfactory, in particular it either does not provide both concave and convex profiles in one embodiment , or it is a technology that requires the user to have a particularly skilled operation.

Contents of the invention

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a toothbrush which has a toothbrush head which flexibly conforms to the convex or concave surface of the teeth and which provides good cleaning and which is easy to manufacture and use.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a toothbrush that effectively cleans teeth with minimal damage to adjacent gum tissue.

According to one aspect of the present invention there is provided a toothbrush with an elongated handle and an elastically flexible plastic bristle support head, the bristle support head has a pair of opposite surfaces, on one of which the bristles are mounted, the One or more rectilinear or non-rectilinear transverse grooves on the face of the bristles and on the opposite face thereof to form a thin hinge for the flexibility of the support head, wherein said plurality of grooves are filled with a resilient material which, when the toothbrush is in its In the normal uncompressed state, the free ends of the bristles on the longitudinal axis of the toothbrush form a concave profile to match the cheek facing surface of the teeth, and the support head can be curved into a convex shape to adapt to the tongue facing tooth surface. .

The flexible toothbrush head of the present invention bends while brushing to allow itself to compensate for the different contours of the user's teeth. Specifically, the flexible toothbrush head of the toothbrush of the present invention, in its uncompressed shape, has a bristle profile that conforms to the buccal surface of the teeth and, at least in preferred embodiments, can be continuously bent from a flat position to a convex position. Shaped to fit the tongue-facing surfaces of the teeth, thereby generally outperforming existing hard toothbrushes. The toothbrush head is used in such a way that the outer row of bristles bends away from the center to limit the pressure on the gums when the toothbrush head is pressed against the teeth. In all cases the toothbrush head is resilient so that when the force is removed the toothbrush head returns to its original shape.

Description of drawings

The present invention is illustrated below in conjunction with accompanying drawing, wherein:

Figure 1 is a partial side view of a first embodiment of the present invention showing a toothbrush head having transverse grooves. Although the toothbrush head is flat in its uncompressed state, the bristles are cut to different lengths so that the bristle surface is longitudinally concave.

Figure 2 is a similar view of a second embodiment of the present invention showing the first portion of the toothbrush head consisting of a single extension integrally formed with the handle and surrounded by elastomer. The toothbrush head is pre-formed so that it naturally assumes a concave shape when uncompressed.

Figure 3 is a partial side view of a third embodiment of the present invention showing a slotted toothbrush head whose surface is concave in its uncompressed state and how the toothbrush head can be moved from the concave Convex to fit the cheek and lip facing surfaces of the teeth. (shown in plan view)

Figure 4 is a plan view of a toothbrush head according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention, comprising three thin longitudinal segments surrounded by elastomer. The toothbrush head is bendable about a longitudinal axis and a transverse axis.

Fig. 5 is a transverse sectional view along line AA' in Fig. 4 . The bristles are cut so that their surface is naturally concave along the transverse axis.

Figure 6 is a plan view of a fifth embodiment of the present invention wherein the toothbrush head has transverse and longitudinal grooves. These slots are filled with elastomer.

Figure 7 is a cross-sectional view of a toothbrush head according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention, having two longitudinal grooves on each face. The toothbrush head is prefabricated such that its surface is naturally concave in the direction of the transverse axis. The slots are filled with elastomer.

Figure 8 shows how the longitudinal outer row of the toothbrush head of Figure 7 bends out of the gums due to the force of brushing.

9 and 10 are plan views of yet another embodiment of the toothbrush head of the present invention having herringbone and undulating transverse elastomer-filled grooves.

Figure 11 is a partial plan view of another embodiment of the present invention having transverse slots along the centerline in the toothbrush head, the slots occupying the full depth of the head, thus forming two rows of nearly parallel hinges.

Figure 12 is a partial side view of yet another embodiment of the present invention showing the side of a toothbrush head with grooves of varying depths, with greater flexibility near the neck of the toothbrush.

Detailed ways

Referring to FIG. 1 , a toothbrush head 1 is integrally formed at one end of a handle 2 . The toothbrush head 1 has two substantially parallel surfaces on which are mounted bristles distributed in tufts 3 . Above and below with a number of generally parallel transverse grooves 4, leaving a thin flexible head hinge 5. The bristles are cut such that their surface 6 is concave when the toothbrush is in its inherently uncompressed state.

In FIG. 2 , the first part of the toothbrush head is formed by the single thinned extension 7 of the handle 2 . The extension is surrounded by an elastic body 8, so that the thickness of the entire brush head is similar to that of existing toothbrushes. The toothbrush head is preformed into a naturally concave shape and is sufficiently flexible so that it can be bent into a convex shape under normal forces during brushing. The bristle tufts 3 are in this case approximately equal in length and are fused in one piece with the elastic material.

In FIG. 3, the toothbrush head is preformed with a natural concave shape 9 which fits perfectly to clean the cheek facing surface of teeth 10. The transverse slots 4 impart flexibility to the head so that under normal brushing forces the head can be bent back into a more convex shape 11 which is more suitable for the tongue-shaped surface 12 of the teeth. The slots are additionally filled with elastomer. A material of a different color than the toothbrush head material is preferred to provide a distinctive appearance.

In Fig. 4 and 5, the toothbrush head 1 comprises a plurality of extensions 13 of the handle, and is surrounded by the elastic body 8, so that the overall shape of the toothbrush head is still a traditional style, but it is possible in both longitudinal and transverse directions. flexed. The bristle tufts 3 are shown fused together with the elastomer and cut so that the bristle surface 6 is generally concave.

In FIG. 6 the bristle head 1 has transverse grooves 4 and longitudinal grooves 14 . These slots are filled with elastomer. Holes 15 are drilled in one face of the toothbrush head at the region of normal thickness between the grooves 16 for engaging the bristle tufts which are secured like fastening nails by conventional means.

In Figures 7 and 8, the toothbrush head 1 is preformed so that it naturally assumes a concave shape along the transverse axis. The longitudinal axis 14 imparts flexibility to the upper and lower sides of the toothbrush head. In this case, the outer row of bristles 17 bends away from the gums 18 when brushing the teeth 19, so that damage to the gums is avoided.

Figures 9 and 10 show a toothbrush head with non-linear, transverse elastomer-filled grooves. These grooves are herringbone 20 or undulating 21 all. In both cases, the grooves give the toothbrush a distinctive appearance and help compensate for shrinkage stresses in the elastic material within the grooves when the toothbrush is bent. Also shown is the back of the toothbrush head, which is compressed when the head is bent toward the convex shape.

In Fig. 11, the toothbrush head has transverse grooves 4 filled with elastomer. Elastomers are not shown for clarity. Just pass toothbrush head 22 around toothbrush BB ' central axis slot, and leave a row of hinges 5 on each limit of toothbrush head. The bristle tufts 3 are fixed to the thicker part of the toothbrush head in a conventional nail-like manner.

In Figure 12, the grooves 4 are shown increasing in depth towards the handle 2, with the deepest grooves being closest to the end of the brush head closest to the handle. This allows the part of the head closest to the handle 2 to flex more easily than the end of the head furthest from the handle by virtue of having a thinner hinge. These slots are filled with elastomer.

In general, the toothbrush of the present invention has an elongated handle and, as an essential component, an elastically flexible bristle support head. At least a first portion of the head is formed as an integral extension of the handle. At least one region of the portion of the head is sufficiently thin so that the head tends to flex under normal brushing forces. Preferably, the toothbrush head also includes one or more second parts of elastic material formed on or around its first part, so that the whole toothbrush head is a traditional substantially planar shape, but unlike a conventional toothbrush. Than can also be deformed. In this context, flexible means that when normal brushing force (2-4 Newtons) is applied to one end of the toothbrush head, the other end remains fixed, and the end where the force is applied will bend at least 1° (bend angle ). In a preferred embodiment, the bending angle is at least 5°, more preferably at least 10°, and can be 45° or greater. In a particularly preferred embodiment, the bending angle is such that the toothbrush head can be bent into a convex shape. The toothbrush head is provided with bristles on at least one side.

The toothbrush handle of the present invention and the part of the toothbrush head which is part of the handle can be made of materials conventionally used for toothbrush manufacture, especially plastic materials. Suitable plastic materials include, for example, polyamide and polypropylene. A suitable polypropylene material is "Polypropylene PM 1600" (sold by Shell) with a modulus of elasticity (ISO 178) of 1500 MPa and a Shore hardness (ISO 868) of 75A. The handle itself is generally rigid and can be a conventionally shaped toothbrush. Preferably, the handle may include a neck that is more easily deformed than the rest of the handle, as is well known in the art, as long as it is sufficiently stiff when force is applied to the toothbrush head during use, but when brushing teeth , the toothbrush head can also be flexed to the aforementioned extent in the manner described above.

In a preferred aspect of the invention, the toothbrush head has one or more bristle-supporting surfaces and at least one of the bristle-supporting surfaces exhibits a generally concave shape when the toothbrush is in a normal, uncompressed condition. The toothbrush head surface may exhibit a concave shape in either or both of the transverse and longitudinal axes of the toothbrush head. The radius of curvature of the surface that is concave along the longitudinal axis may vary along the length of the toothbrush head. The radius of curvature is preferably from 10-500mm, more preferably from 15-250mm, most preferably from 25-150mm.

In one embodiment, the first portion of the toothbrush head includes one or more extensions that are integral with the handle and of a thickness that achieves the desired flexibility while maintaining the toothbrush head in the desired state of use. Structural integrity. The extension is generally substantially thinner than the handle. Preferably there is only one such extension. The toothbrush head can vary in thickness along its length to control the deformed profile when the toothbrush head is flexed by an applied bending force. In this embodiment, the toothbrush head extensions are preferably at least partially, preferably entirely, covered with a resilient material which also fills any gaps between the extensions. The extensions may each have some surface stiffening ribs or members to assist in adhering the elastomer thereto.

In another embodiment, the toothbrush head has a pair of opposing faces on which the bristles are mounted and which and/or the opposing face has one or more linear or non-linear grooves. The slots form the thin hinges which allow the head to flex, and the portion of the head between the slots is preferably of similar thickness to a conventional, flexible toothbrush head.

The grooves may be generally transverse or parallel to the longitudinal axis of the handle and may follow curved or zigzag channels. In particular, the grooves may extend longitudinally along the toothbrush head so that the outer rows of longitudinal bristles bend away from the inner bristles. Preferably, transverse grooves may also be used instead or in addition, so that the toothbrush head can be bent along the longitudinal axis.

The width and depth of the grooves can vary, as can the distance between the grooves. In this case, the flexibility of the toothbrush head along its length and/or width can be varied. Preferably only the transverse grooves can be changed in this manner.

One or more grooves, preferably all grooves may be wholly or partially filled with elastic material. In this case, both the flexibility and/or the elasticity of the toothbrush head can be altered and contamination of the trough by toothpaste deposits can be reduced or completely avoided. The filled elastomeric material may be the same color as the toothbrush head material, or may be a different color to obtain a distinctive striped or other patterned appearance.

These grooves can generally be straight or have curved or zigzag channels. The non-linear slots help to compensate for the compressive stress of the elastomeric material filling the slots as the toothbrush head flexes.

Suitable elastic materials here are thermoplastic elastomers with a Shore hardness of 30-80, such as SantoPrene and Themoflex. A particularly suitable elastomer is "PTS Thermoflex 75" (sold by Plastic Technologie Service, Germany) with a modulus of elasticity (ISO 178) of 100 MPa and a Shore hardness (ISO 868) of 80A. These elastomers may first be mixed with a suitable plasticizer or blowing agent to make them more compressible.

The bristles can be made from any existing material in the art. Suitable materials here are polyester and nylon, such as Dupon Nylon 612. The bristles are preferably of circular cross-section, but may be of other cross-sections, such as, but not limited to, rectangular, hexagonal and trilobal. Moreover, the diameter and length of the bristles can vary within the usual size ranges known to those of ordinary skill in the art, so long as the general purpose of the generally concave shape of the bristle surface is met when the toothbrush is in an unstressed state. Can. The bristles are generally organized into tufts in conventional fashion and can be attached to the toothbrush head by a variety of techniques. The preferred craft here is nailing and fusing. The bristles can be inserted into one or both of the toothbrush head extension and the resilient material. Cutting and rounding the bristles can be done by any method known in the art.

When in use, the toothbrush of the present invention is used to clean teeth in the same way as the traditional brushing action. Preferably, the toothbrush is operated in a manner recommended by a dental hygienist. The toothbrush of the present invention can also be used in electric toothbrushes or children's toothbrushes.

Claims (5)

1. A toothbrush has an elongated brush handle (2) and an elastically flexible plastic bristle support head (1), the bristle support head has a pair of opposite surfaces, and the bristles are installed on one of the surfaces, the device One or more rectilinear or non-rectilinear transverse grooves (4) on the bristled face and on its opposite face to form a thin hinge (5) that makes the support head flexible, characterized in that, The plurality of grooves are filled with an elastic material (8) such that the free ends of the bristles on the longitudinal axis of the toothbrush form a concave profile to fit the cheek facing surface of the teeth when the toothbrush is in its normal uncompressed state, the support head Can be bent into a convex shape to fit the tooth surface facing the tongue. 2. The toothbrush according to claim 1, characterized in that, when the toothbrush is in a normal unstressed state, the surface with the bristles forms a concave shape along the longitudinal axis. 3. A toothbrush according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the grooves have curved or zigzag channels. 4. The toothbrush according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, along the centerline of the support head (1), the transverse grooves (4) occupy the entire depth of the toothbrush head and form two rows of parallel hinges (5). 5. The toothbrush according to claim 3, characterized in that, along the center line of the support head (1), the transverse grooves (4) occupy the entire depth of the toothbrush head and form two rows of parallel hinges (5).

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