WO2007082353A1

WO2007082353A1 - A swab

Info

Publication number: WO2007082353A1
Application number: PCT/AU2007/000056
Authority: WO
Inventors: Lois Yaghoubpour
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2006-01-20
Filing date: 2007-01-22
Publication date: 2007-07-26
Anticipated expiration: 2008-07-20
Also published as: AU2006100537A4; AU2006100537B4

Abstract

A swab including: a stem having a first end and a second end; a first member disposed at the first end of the stem and including a gauze-like material which is pre-moistened with a first substance adapted to release a fragrance; a second member disposed at the second end of the stem and including a substantially dry gauze-like material adapted for absorbing at least the first substance; and a releasably sealable envelope adapted for sealing at least the first member to alleviate loss of moisture in the first member when not in use.

Description

A SWAB

Technical field

The present invention relates to swabs, and in particular, cotton swabs adapted for cleaning or otherwise applying substances to for instance, the skin of an person or animal.

Background of the Invention

Cotton swabs typically consist of a small stem of cardboard or plastic with a wad of cotton disposed at one or both ends of the stem.

A common use of the cotton swab is to clean out a person's ears by inserting one end of the swab into the ear-hole, and gently rubbing the cotton against the inner- ear surface so as to collect ear-wax, oil, dirt, and other unwanted matter. In other instances, cotton swabs are commonly used to apply substances to a person's skin either for cosmetic or medical purposes.

It is perceived that problems exist in relation to the use of cotton swabs. Firstly, in order to more effectively use a cotton swab, it is generally desirable to at least partially moisten the swab end with water, or any suitable solution to ensure that the unwanted matter may adhere to the cotton swab. Moreover, by moistening the cotton swab, it also alleviates the abrasiveness of the cotton swab when it rubs against the skin. Unfortunately it is often inconvenient and/or impractical for a person to be able to moisten the cotton swab with a suitable substance. For instance, if the person is a passenger travelling in a car it may not be possible to readily obtain water with which to moisten the cotton swab. Typically, the person may resort to dipping the cotton swab in his or her saliva which is unhygienic. In other respects, the wadded cotton end of the cotton swab is prone to unravelling when it is rubbed up against the person's skin resulting in the undesirable dispersion of cotton fibres. When cleaning a person's ears, the dispersion of these fibres can actually contribute to, rather than help reduce, the build up of unwanted matter in the ear.

Summary of the Invention

The present invention seeks to alleviate at least one of the problems described above in relation to the prior art.

The present invention involves several different broad forms. Embodiments of the invention may include one or any combination of the different broad forms herein described.

In a first broad form, the present invention provides a swab including: a stem having a first end and a second end; a first member disposed at the first end of the stem and including a gauze- like material which is pre-moistened with a first substance adapted to release a fragrance; a second member disposed at the second end of the stem and including a substantially dry gauze-like material adapted for absorbing at least the first substance; and a releasably sealable envelope adapted for sealing at least the first member to alleviate loss of moisture in the first member when not in use.

Advantageously, the fragrance released by the first substance may provide a sweet and/or otherwise pleasantly soothing smell to calm or otherwise relax a user of the cotton swab. Typically, the present invention may be convenient for use in the practice of aromatherapy or where fragrant substances may be used to treat people therapeutically. Advantageously, fragrant substances may be conveniently and easily deposited on the person's skin using the swab.

Preferably, the first substance includes an essential oil adapted to release the fragrance.

Alternatively, the first substance may include a synthetic substance adapted to release the fragrance.

Typically, the fragrance may substantially resemble at least one of the following fragrances: tea tree; jasmine; eucalyptus; lavender; citrus; peppermint; rose; almond; camomile; lindseed oil.

Prior art swabs have been known to be pre-moistened with substances. However, these moistening substances have tended to include substances which do not release pleasant or sweet smelling fragrances, but rather, either unsavoury odours, or no odour at all.

Typically, the first member may be pre-moistened with a second substance including a sterilising substance. For instance, the first member may be pre- moistened with an alcohol-based substance. Advantageously, the inclusion of an alcohol-based substance may aid in the evaporation of water and other - A -

substances on a person's skin - for instance, so that the user is not left with the feeling of "wet ears".

Alternatively, the cleaning member may be pre-moistened with a saline solution.

Typically, the first member may be pre-moistened with a third substance including an anaesthetic substance.

Typically, the first member may be pre-moistened with a fourth substance including a therapeutic and/or medicinal substance.

Typically, the first member may be pre-moistened with a fifth substance including a substance adapted for moisturising skin. For instance, moisturising substance may include an oil such as sweet almond oil, olive oil or the like. Each particular, oil may have specific beneficial properties. For instance the sweet almond oil is known to be particularly beneficial in relieving skin itch and dryness. Advantageously, the moisturising substance may assist in moisturising a person's skin when the cleaning member is rubbed against the skin so as to allow the act of cleaning the skin to be less abrasive. Where the swab is used for cleaning particularly sensitive skin, such as that of a baby, it is readily apparent to a person skilled in the art that the ability to simultaneously moisturise the skin whilst cleaning it may be extremely beneficial.

Alternatively, the first member may be pre-moistened with at least one of the following substances:

(a) Vegetable Glycerine oil which is water soluble and assists in loosening up and dissolving ear wax; and

(b) Eucalyptus oil which may assist in providing antiseptic and decongestion properties. Typically, the first member may be pre-moistened with a sixth substance including a cleaning agent.

Typically, the first member may include an absorbent core disposed beneath the gauze like material of the first member, the absorbent core being adapted for absorbently retaining at least one of the first, second, third, fourth and fifth substances. Also typically, the core may includes an absorbent foam material.

Preferably, the swab may include a biodegradable material. For instance, the stem and/or the first and second members may be made from a material which is adapted to naturally decompose when exposed to the environment so as to alleviate problems with pollution.

Preferably, the first and/or second members may include a cotton material. It would be appreciated by a person skilled in the art that in certain embodiments, alternative materials may used which may not be cotton and which may for instance include synthetic materials.

The indented surface of the gauze-like material may advantageously assist in collecting undesirable matter such as dirt particles when the cleaning member is used to clean a person's skin. In contrast, existing wadded-cotton swab ends tend to have substantially flat surfaces which rely on matter to simply adhere to the wadded cotton surface. The inter-connected structure of the gauze also may also alleviate the tendency for fibres to be dispersed from the cleaning member.

It would be appreciated by a person skilled in the art that numerous other advantages may be readily evident from the present invention. For instance, the availability of pre-moistened cleaning swabs may alleviate the time wasted ordinarily when dipping the swab into the moistening substance before use. For instance, if a person uses many swabs during a session, the person does not need to moisten each swab before use which would otherwise be unduly time- consuming. Additionally, the availability of pre-moistened swabs provides added convenience where it would otherwise be difficult for a user to access a saline solution, alcohol, or even water. Rather than having to resort to applying saliva to the cleaning member as is often the case, the cleaning member may already be conveniently pre-moistened and ready to use.

Typically, the releasably sealable envelope may include a foil material. However plastic or other material deemed suitable by a person skilled in the art may also be used. Typically the releasably sealable envelope may include a pair of front and

- back rectangular-shaped sheets wherein the edges are heat-sealed together to enclose the entire swab therein. In certain embodiments, it may be further envisaged that the releasably sealable envelope only seals in first member of the swab whilst the stem may protrude from the releasably sealable envelope. Typically the releasably sealable envelope may be torn open so as to release the first member for use. Typically the releasably sealable envelope may include a weakened tear line to assist a user in tearing open the releasably sealable envelope.

Alternatively, the releasably sealable envelope may include a rigid container including a storage compartment for storing a plurality of swabs in accordance with at least one of the above-described broad forms, and, a dispensing means for controllably dispensing the at least one swab from the rigid container.

In a second broad form, the present invention provides a method of performing aromatherapy, the method including the steps of applying a fragrant substance to a person's skin using a swab as described in accordance with the first broad form of the present invention. Brief Description the Drawings

The present invention will become more fully understood from the following detailed description of a preferred but non-limiting embodiment thereof, described in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

- Figure 1 depicts a first embodiment of a swab releasably sealed in an envelope, wherein the releasably sealable envelope is depicted transparently to allow viewing of the swab sealed therein.

Modes for Carrying out the Invention

In a first embodiment of the present invention, a swab (1) is provided which will be described herein by reference to Fig. 1. The swab (1) includes a tubular stem (2) made from a rigid plastic material. The stem (2) may typically be around 50 mm in length.

First and second members (3a, 3b) are disposed at opposite ends of the stem (2) and each include an oval or otherwise bulb-like configurations. The members (3a, 3b) also include a cotton gauze-like material having an indented surface. The members (3a, 3b) are mounted to the respective ends of the stem (2) by a suitable adhesive. The members (3a, 3b) each also include absorbent foam cores around which the gauze material is layered wherein the absorbent foam cores allow for greater absorption of substances by the respective first and second members in use.

The first member (3a) of the swab is pre-moistened with at least a first substance including an essential oil. The essential oil is adapted to release a fragrance such as lavender, rose or any other sweet and/or pleasant smell. In alternative embodiments, the first member (3a) is pre-moistened with saline solution, or any other suitable substance which may assist in moisturising a person's skin in use and/or which provides a pleasant fragrance. In yet further embodiments, the first member (3a) is pre-moistened with an alcoholic substance or iodine where the swab is designed to sterilise or clean a wound on a person's skin for instance.

The second member (3b) is substantially dry prior to use so that it can be used to absorb moisture from a person's skin.

A releasably sealable envelope (4) encloses the first member (3a) of the swab (1) prior to use. The releasably sealable envelope (4) is substantially rectangular- shaped and selected to snugly accommodate the dimensions of the first member (3a). During manufacture, after the swab (1) has been placed within the envelope (4), heat is typically applied to the edges of the envelope (4) so as to heat seal the first member (3a) therein. In this embodiment, the releasably sealable envelope is a foil envelope (4) which includes a tear line (5) to assist a user in tearing a portion of the envelope (4) so as to effect release of the swab (1) stored therein.

In this embodiment the first member is also pre-moistened with a further substance which includes at least one of the following:

(a) a sterilising substance;

(b) an anaesthetic substance;

(c) a therapeutic and/or medicinal substance; (d) a substance adapted for moisturising skin;

(e) a substance containing a cleaning agent.

The swab can be used for numerous applications. One such application involves using the swab as a means of applying a fragrant substance such as an essential oil to the skin of a person during aromatherapy. The swab can for instance be used to delicately place a drop of a fragrant oil near the person's nose so that he/she may smell the substance and enjoy its relaxing and calming effect.

It is envisaged that several swabs in their foil envelopes can be packaged together in a common container whereby, each of the swabs is pre-moistened with a different substance which releases a different fragrance. This conveniently enables the user to select from a range of possible aromatherapy fragrances depending upon the needs of the user. The foil wrapper would also include indicia describing the fragrance which is released from the swab in question as well as information relating to the soothing effect which is perceived to be obtained from using the swab in aromatherapy.

It will be appreciated by persons skilled in the art that numerous variations and/or modification may be made to the invention as shown in the specific embodiments without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention as broadly described. The present embodiments are, therefore, to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive.

The reference in this specification to any prior publication (or information derived from it), or to any matter which is known, is not, and should not be taken as an acknowledgment or admission or any form of suggestion that that prior publication (or information derived from it) or known matter forms part of the common general knowledge in the field of endeavour to which this specification relates.

Claims

Claims:

1. A swab including: a stem having a first end and a second end; a first member disposed at the first end of the stem and including a gauze- like material which is pre-moistened with a first substance adapted to relesae a fragrance; a second member disposed at the second end of the stem and including a substantially dry gauze-like material adapted for absorbing at least the first substance; and a releasably sealable envelope adapted for sealing at least the first member to alleviate loss of moisture in the first member when not in use.

2. A swab as claimed in claim 1 wherein the first substance includes an essential oil adapted to release the fragrance.

3. A swab as claimed in claims 1 or 2 wherein the first substance includes a synthetic substance adapted to release the fragrance.

4. A swab as claimed in claims 2 or 3 wherein the fragrance is adapted to substantially resembles at least one of the following fragrances: tea tree; jasmine; eucalyptus; lavender; citrus; peppermint; rose; almond; camomile; lindseed oil.

5. A swab as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein the first member is pre-moistened with a second substance including a sterilising substance.

6. A swab as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein the first member is pre-moistened with a third substance including an anaesthetic substance.

7. A swab as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein the first member is pre-moistened with a fourth substance including a therapeutic and/or medicinal substance.

8. A swab as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein the first member is pre-moistened with a fifth substance including a substance adapted for moisturising skin.

9. A swab as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein the first member is pre-moistened with a sixth substance including a substance containing a cleaning agent.

10. A swab as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein the first member includes an absorbent core disposed beneath the gauze like material of the first member, the absorbent core being adapted for absorbently retaining at least one of the first, second, third, fourth and fifth substances.

11. A swab as claimed in claim 10 wherein the core includes an absorbent foam material.

12. A swab as claimed in any one of the preceding claims including a biodegradable material.

13. A method of performing aromatherapy including the steps of applying a fragrant substance to a person's skin using a swab in accordance with any one of claims 1 to 12.

14. A method as claimed in claim 13 including the step of packaging a plurality of swabs together in a common container for purchase by a user, wherein each of the swabs is pre-moistened with a different substance which is adapted to release a different fragrance.

15. A method as claimed in claim 14 wherein each of the different swabs include indicia disposed on their releasably sealable envelopes, the indicia including information relating to at least one of the following:

(a) a description of the fragrance to be released by the swab;

(b) a description of a perceived soothing effect which is to be experienced by the user when the fragrance is smelt by the user.