CA1036888A - Hair styling appliance - Google Patents

Abstract

HAIR STYLING APPLIANCE

Abstract of the Disclosure An appliance for simultaneously applying a spray and hot air stream to hair to aid in styling as it is combed or brushed.
The hot air stream is generated by a blower and heater assembly contained within the head of the appliance for maximum efficiency, and the spray is generated by a pump and reservoir assembly con-tained within the handle of the appliance for maximum user convenience. The reservoir comprises a removable semi-cylindrical bottle adapted to fit within a complimentarily shaped compartment with the handle for ease in removal and replacement. An in-line pressure relief valve provides protection against undesirable leakage from the spray nozzle, and a multiple-mode electrical circuit provides two different blower outputs at two different heat levels.

Description

, . 103 SPECrFICATION
~ackground of the Invention This application relates in general to hair styling appliances, and more particularly to a halr 6tyllng appliance which simultaneously applies a spray and hot air stream to hair as it i8 being combed or brushed.
Appliances for styling m-n~s and women's hair have gen-erally consisted of a comb or brush combined with a blower and heater assembly to direct a hot air ~tream over the hair as it is combed or brushed. While such appliances provide generally satis-factory results, far better results are obtained when the hair is wetted ~ust prior to applying heat. To thi~ end, atomizers of variou6 types have been incorporated in hair styling appliances to lntroduce a spray into the air stream prior to lts application to the hair.
Unfortunately, previous attempts at lncorporating atom-izers into hair styling appllances have presented certaln dis-advantages. For example, those prlor-art deslgns which incor~o-rated the atomizer together with lts water reservoir in the head o~ the appliance located the blower, blower motor and electrical heating elements in the handle of the appliance. As a result, the handle had to be undesirably large to accommodate air flow to the head and had a tendency to become uncomfortably hot from the electrical heating coils during extended use. When the handle was reduced to a convenient, manageable size, the air passageway -through the handle to the head was severely restrlcted and a motor and blower assembly Or marginal capacity were accommodated only with great difficulty. This had the effect of reducing alr flow and heat output, and hence reducing the effectiveness of the hair styling appliance. Furthermore, because of space limitations the actuator for the water ~pray could not be conveniently located in the handle of these prior-art units, making their use with one hand inconvenient.

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Another drawback of prlor art hair stylers was that they operated with only one degree of heat output. From a users stand-- point thls was not ~atisfactory since varying conditions Or use, such as hair length, thickness and style, as well a~ the uEers personal preference, called for widely divergent degrees of heat.
Another problem with certain of the prlor-art designs wa~ thelr use of integral water reservoirs, which caused the blower and heater mechanisms of these hair stylers to be exposed to water o~ch time their reservoirs were filled under a runnlng faucet.
Furthermore, when the ~pray mechanlsms o~ such stylerg became clogged from lmpuritles ln the water, thelr sltus within the styler made repalr or replacement unnecessarily difficult and expensive.
Accordingly, it is a general ob~ect of the present invention to provide a new and improved spray-type hair styllng appliance which provides hlgh air rlow ~nd heating capabllity.
It ls a stlll more ~peclflc ob~ect of the present inven-tion to provide a spray~type hair styling appliance having a con-venlent handle-mounted trigger-like actuator for actuation of lts Bpray mechanlsm.
It ls ctill another specific ob~ect of the present inven-tion to provide a halr styllng appllance which has a removable water spray reservoir contained within the handle of the appliance.
It ls a 5tlll more speclfic ob~ect of the present inven-tion to provide a hand-held spray-type halr 6tyling appllance wherein the blower for providing the air stream is in the head portion, and the motor and spray reservoir are ln the handle portion ror greater operating eff~ciency and user convenience.
It i8 a ~tlll more speclfic o~ect of the present inven-tion to provide a new and improved hand-held hair styling appliance which provides multiple heat levels to accommodate varying con-ditions of use.
The invention relates to a hair styling appliance of the type which simultaneously applies a spray and hot air stream to so~
hair as it is combed and brushed. The appliance includes a housing comprising a grip-like handle portion and an enlarged head portion having a hair arranging attachment, a fan and heater assembly disposed within the head portion for providing a heated air stream onto the hair arranging attachment, and a nozzle dis-posed within the head portion for injecting a mist into the air ~tream. A motor disposed within the handle portion is provided for driving the fan. A liquid pump and reservoir are disposed within the handle, and lever means are provided in the handle portion for actuating the pump. Means extending between the reservoir and pump and the nozzle supply liquid from the pump to the nozzle.
The invention as claimed herein is a hair styling appliance for simultaneously applying a liquid spray and hot air ~tream to hair as it is combed or brushed, comprising, in combi-nation a housing; a nozzle for injecting a mist into the hot air stream; a liquid reservoir; means comprising a manually actuable liquid pump communication with the reservoir for drawing liquid thererom; pump actuator means for actuating the pump; means c~mprising a liquid passageway extending between the pump and the nozzle for supplying liquid under pressure to the nozzle; and means comprising a pressure relief valve disposed within the liquid passageway adjacent the discharge end thereof for inhibiting the flow of the liquid through the passageway when the pump is not being actuated to prevent the unintentional discharge of liquid into the air stream.
The flow inhibiting means may comprise a pressure relief valve serially disposed in the passageway which opens only in response to a predetermined minimum pressure in the passageway, and the pump when actuated may produce a pressure in the passage-way equal to or greater than the predetermined minimum pressure.The pressure relief valve may comprise a plurality of resilient valve sections hinged about one end of a hollow cylindrical body .~, ~ _ 3 _ 10~8 member coaxially disposed within the passageway, which coact in the absence of the predetermined pressure to block the passageway.
The features of the present invention, which are believed to be novel, are set forth with particularity in the appended claims. The invention, together with the further objects and advantages thereof, may best be understood by reference to the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in the several figures of which like reference numerals identify like elements, and in which:
Figure 1 is a perspective view of a spray-type hair styling appliance constructed in accordance with the invention.
Figure 2 is a bottom elevational view of the hair styling appliance of Figure 1.
Figure 3 is a perspective view, partially fragmentary, of a comb attachment for the hair styling appliance of Figure 2.
Figure 3A is a cross-sectional view taken along lines ; 3A-3A of Figure 3.
Figure 4 is a perspective view of a brush attachm llt for the hair styling appliance of Figures 1 and 2.
Figure 4A is a cross-sectional view taken along lines 4A-4A of Figure 4.
Figure 5 is a side view, partially fragmentary and partially in cross-section, of the hair styling appliance of Figure 1.
Figure 6 is a top view, partially fragmentary and partially in crGss section, along lines 6-6 of Figure 5.

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Figure 7 ls a cross-sectional view taken along l~nes 7-7 Or Figure 6.
Flgure 7A is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the ~pray-nozzle and associated pressure relief valve assembly shown in Figure 7.
Figure 7B is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the pressure relief valve shown in Flgure 7A.
Figure 7 C is a cross-sectional view taken along lines 7C-7C of Figure 7B.
Flgure 8 1~ a perspective ~iew of the fan shroud and blower duct assembly of the hair styling appliance of Flgure 1.
Flgure 9 is a cross-sectional view taken along lines 9-9 Or Flgure 5.
FigNre 10 is a perspective view, partially fragmentary, of the lower part of the handle Or the hair styling appliance 6howlng the water reservoir partially removed.
FigNre 11 is ~n enlarged cross-sectional view, partially rragmentary, of the spray pump and actuator assembly contained wlthin the hair styling appliance of Figure 1.
Figure 12 is a schematic diagram o~ the electrical circuit o~ the hair styling appllance of Figure 1.
DescrlPtion of the Preferred Embodiment ~eferring to Figure 1, the hair styling appliance 20 of Figure 1 is seen to comprise upper and lower housing sections 21 and 22, respectively, which narrow into a grip-like handle portion at one end and widen into a head portion adapted to receive a removable comb 23 at the other end. An air lntake 24 comprising a plurality of slots in sections 21 and 22 is provided to take in air for discharge over comb 23 in a manner to be presently de-~cribed. A three position high-off-low function switch 25 is provided to facilitate operator control of the hair styler, and a power cord 26 is provided for connection to the AC line. An operator-actuable trigger-like lever 27 is provided for causing a 1~8 mist or spray to be ad~ed to the a~r stream as it passes across comb 23, the manner in whlch this is accompllshed to be cover~d presently.
Reference is now made to Figure 2, which shows the bottom of the appliance with comb 23 removed. A grated air outlet 28 ls ~een to overly comb 23 for the purpose of dlrecting air from a blower within the hair styler across the comb. At the bottom-cen-ter of thls outlet a nozzle 29 is provided for introducing a spray lnto the air stream. A machlne screw 30 ex~ends through lower ~ection 22 and is threaded lnto upper sectlon 21 to secure the two ~ectlons in tight engagement.
Comb attachment 23, as shown in Figures 3 and 3A, con-sists of a generally channular molded body portlon, oper. at one end and having a pair of opposed guide slots 31 molded along two op-posed walls. mese slots engage a pair of guide rails 32 on either ~ide of outlet 28 to slidably secure the comb attachment in posi-tion over the port. A plurality of parallel spaced teeth 33 extend downwardly from the bottom of the channel or body portion to form the comb work area. A plurality of apertures 34 on either side of the comb body axis are provided to allow the air stream from outlet 28 to freely pass to the comb work area.
A brush attachment 35 is also available for use over outlet 28. As seen in Figures 4 and 4A this brush attachment, like comb attachment 23, comprises a generally channular body portion, open at one end and having a pair of opposed guide slots 36 for engaging rails 32. me bottom of the channular body portion is outwardly curved, and has a plurality of brush clusters 3? depend-ing perpendicularly in transverse rows therefrom. A plurality of transverse slots 38 disposed between the brush cluster rows pro-vide for free air circulation between outlet 28 and the brush work~rea. It will be appreciated that comb attachment 23 and brush attachment 35 can assume other forms depending on the specific requirements of the application. For example, multiple rows of ~036~
comb teeth could be employed instead of a slngle row of comb teeth on the comb attachment, and alternate brush arran~ements with a flat bottom surface could be employed on the brush attachment.
' Referring now to Figures 5 and 6, hair styler 20 i8 ~een to include in its head portion a blower assembly comprising a cylindrical transverse-flow fan 40. The fan ls rotatably coupled to a-coaxial low voltage commutator type drive motor 41 in the handle portion of the appliance by means of an axial drive shaft 42 at one end, and is supported at its other end by means of a ~haft 43. me fan and motor are within body section 22 by means of a plurality of rubber grommets 44 fitted over annular abutments on either end of the motor and over a sleeve bearing 45 on shaft 43.
Appropriate support ribs are molded into housing sections 21 and 22 for the purpose of engaging the,grommets and thereby maintaining the fan and motor in proper alignment.
Fan 40, as seen ln Figure 7, includes a plurality of longltudinal forwardly curved vanes 46 which coact with'the over-lylng vortex ~tabilizing wall 47 to direct air from inlet 24 to outlet 28. As the fan rotates clockwise it draws'air radially lnward in the vicinity of lnlet 24, and discharges air radially outward through a different section of the fan periphery, in the vicinity of outlet 28. m is occurs because the rotating vanes set up a cylindrical vortex of air ~ust inside the rim of the fan ad~acent the vortex stabilizing wall. This vortex has an axis parallel to the rotor shaft, and as it is rotated by the vanes it provides the necessary seal between the suction and pressure æides of the fan. A rectangular duct 4~ leads from the discharge side of the fan to outlet port 28, the vortex stabilizing wall 47 being an extension of one of the side walls thereof. m is can be better - 30 ~een in Figure 8, which shows duct 48 and the stabilizing wall in perspective.
While the transverse fan is ideally ~uited for this application because of the high static pressure it provides with lO~B ', low-speed small-diameter fans, and the particularly well-suited form factor such fans provide in conjunction with a handle-located motor, it will be appreciated that other types of fans could be used by appropriate modification of the appliance housing.
As seen in Figures 7 and 8, a pair of flat rectangular heating elements 50 and Sl are contained within duct 48 for the purpose of heating the air stream discharged through outlet 28.
These heating elements are preferably aligned edgewise to the air flow, each preferably has a least one tap for the purpose of controlling the temperature in the air stream in a manner to be presently described.
In accordance with one aspect of the invention, hair styling appliance 20 incorporates a water spray s~stem for conven-iently injecting a water spray or mist into the air stream as it ls discharged through outlet 28. Referring to Figures 10 and 11, water for this system is stored in a semi-cylindrical water reservoir bottle 60. A screw-t~pe cap 61 is threaded onto the mouth of the bottle. A single stroke liquid pump 62, which may be conventional in design and construction, extends through the cap and into the bottle. An additional length of tubing 63 is pro-vided between the intake end of this pump to insure that substan-tially the entire contents of the bottle will be available to the pump. As pump 62 extends outside the bottle it abuts against one end of a pump actuator lever 64.
As shown in Figure 11, the end of pump actuator lever 64 - which abuts pump 62 contains a cup-shaped recess 65 for achieving a liquid-tight engagement with a pump. A gasket 66 of rubber or other pliable material forms a seal between the pump and the recess to prevent leakage. The recess necks down as it extends through the lever, exiting at the opposite end by way of a tubular protuberance 67. Pump actuator lever 64 is pivotally mounted between housing sections 21 and 22 by means of integral opposed pins 68 on the lever which engage complimentarily shaped sockets on the two housing sections. The other end of lever 64 extends '''` . 10~6~
toward the head of the hair styler and into operatlve enga~ement with trigger 27. Trigger 27 extends through a slot provided be-tween the two sections of the housing, the end ln engagement with pump actuator lever 64 being transversely enlarged by means of opposed pins 69 to preclude that end of the lever from passing through the slot. m e other end of the lever 18 pivotally mounted to the body sections by means of an opposed pin and socket arrange-ment similar to that of lever 64.
Pump 62 can be conventional in design and construction, comprising a housing 70 havlng an enlarged portlon containing a helical compression spring 71 and a slidable plunger 72. A slld-able casing 73, coaxial with plunger 72, is ritted over the plunger between the inner wall of housing 70 and the outer wall of the plunger. This casing is flared outwardly against valve housing 60 at its inner end and necks down to an aperture 74 at its outside end to provide a seal with gasket 66 and to position the plunger within the valve housing. A check valve is formed at the intake end of the pump chamber by means of ball valve member 75 which 6eats against a narrowed portion of the valve housing 70 during down strokes of the pump. Another check valve is formed at the discharge end of the pump by a wall valve member 76, which fits against the inwardly tapered discharge end Or the plunger to pre-vent fluid from reentering the pump chamber during upstrokes.
Casing 73 is loosely fitted within pump housing 70 to provide an air passageway between the interior of reservoir bottle 60 and the surrounding atmosphere. m is is necesæary for opera-tion of the pump, since otherwlse no pressure relief would exist and a vacuum would be developed above the liquid remaining in the reservoir. m e passageway is formed by means of an aperture 77 contained in the pump housing and positioned so that the inside flared end of casing 73 will be between the aperture and the cap while the plunger is at rest in its fully extended position. This prevents the bottle from leaking, slnce the outwardly tapered edge of cssing 73 coacts with valve1~o ~ 0 to form an effective llquid seal between aperture 72 and the outside of the bottle.
~en the pump is actuated the tapered end moves to a position below ;~perture 77, allowing free movement of air between the inside of the bottle and the atmosphere.
As shown in Figure 10, the reservoir bottle 60 ls re-movable from a compartment within the hair styler by means of a door 78 located at the bottom end of the handle portion of the housing. mls arrangement ls particularly advantageous, since the re~ervoir can be removed from the appliance without interference to the hair arranging attachments of the head, and without exposing any of the lnternal electrical or mechanical elements of the appliance. For maximum utilization of space within the handle, re~ervoir bottle 60 is shaped ln the form of a half cylinder, one slde wall of its body being arcuate to conform to the inside arcuate surface of housing section 21, and the other side wall being f}at to provide space wlthin the handle for receiving electrical power cord 26 and its associated anchor block, as illustrated in Figure 9. The arcuate wall of the reservoir bottle may be provided with a plurality of indentions 79 for the purpose o~ facilitating the removal of the bottle. Access door 78 is pivotally mounted to housing ~ection 22 by means of opposed out-wardly extending integral pins which coact with complimentarily spaced slots on the housing.
It will be appreciated that when reservoir bottle 60 is removed from the appliance cap 61 can be conveniently removed for the purpose of filling the bottle. The bottle can be positioned under a running water faucet in performing the refilling operation, without fear of damaging the internal mechanism o~ the hair styling appliance. Furthermore, should the pump become clogged from minerals or other impurities in the spray solution~ ~t can be readily cleaned while thus removed. Also, should the pump become defective,it can be replaced by merely fastening a new pump and ~ 036~
cap asse~ly to the moùth of the reser~oir bottle.
A flexible hose 80 is force fit over the protuberance 67 on the pump actuator lever 64 to carry liquid from the pump to ~pray head 19. m is hose extends from the handle portion of the ha~r styler to the head portion, and ls attached to the spray head - - by means of a force fit over a protuberance provided at the rear of ~pray head 29. Referring to Figure 7A, spray head 29 compri~es a hollow body portion 81 having a protuberance for receiving hose 80 and further having a single aperture 82 for developing a fine ~pray of mist from the liquid forced lnto the head from hose 80.
m e inner chamber 83 of the spray head assembly i8 seen to be annular ln cross section, having a ridge about its inner surface which forms an annular orifice 84 in which the spray is developed.
A pressure relief valve 85 is included in hose 80 near the ~pray head. Referring to Figures 7B and 7C, the pressure relief valve is seen to comprise a bullet-shaped member of neoprene or similar material frictionally positioned within hose 80. me forward or downstream end of this member is-slit into three equal eegments 86-88, as seen ln Figure 7C. Since the neoprene is semi-flexible, the outwardly convex downstream end of member 85 effec-tively comprise a trio of flexlble hlnges. Under pressure, these hinge sections 86-88 expand outwardly, forming an aperture through which fluid can pass. When not under pressure, the natural resil-iency of the neoprene causes the three valve sectlons to return to - thelr closed condition, preventing the flow of fluid through spray apertures 82 unless a positive force is exerted thereon by pump 70. This prevents water trapped within the ho~e from dripplng out between uses.
As mentioned previously, provision is made in the cir-cuitry of hair styling appliance 20 for operating at two differentheat levels. Referring to Figure 12, an AC current source, as represented by AC line cord 26, is connected to the first pole 90 of a three position two-pole mode switch 91. The other side of ` 10~
the AC line is connected by means of a thermal safety switch 92 to one end contact of a resis~ive heating element 93, which comprises four individual sections 94-97. me other end contact of heat~ng element 93 is connected to the remaining pole 98 of mode switch 91 and thence to the low heat mode contact of the first pole of the switch. Resistive heating element 93 includes three taps 99-101 between sections 94 and 95, 95 and 96, and 96 and 97, respectively.
Taps 99 and 101 are connected to the anodes of a pair of rectifiers 102 and 103, respectively, and the cathodes of these rectifiers are connected together and to one terminal of the DC fan motor 41. The remaining terminal of motor 41 is connected dlrectly to tap 100 on heating element 93. Tap 101 is also connected to the high heat mode contact of pole 90, and the high heat mode contact of pole 98 i8 connected directly to the other side of the AC line.
In operation, when mode switch 91 is positioned for high heat operation, one side of the AC line is connected to both end terminals of the resistive heating element 93. me other side of the AC line is connected to tap 101, thus connecting segment 97 in parallel with the series combination of segments 94-96, and devel-oping a voltage across segments 95 and 96 for application to motor 41. Dlodes 102 and 103 rectify the alternating current developed across segments 95 and 96 for the purpose of supplying a direct current to the motor. It will be appreciated that the hair styler could employ other types of motors, including AC type motors by appropriate modification of the circuit components. Thus, the low heat mode allows full line current to be applied across section 97 of heating element 93, and allows sections 94-96 to operate in ~eries while developing a suitable alternatlng current for motor 41.
When mode switch 91 i6 positioned for ~ow heat operation, the AC line is connected across all four sections of heating ele-ment 93. Since the line is not connected to any one of the taps 99-101, all four sections of the heating element are now in series-~ . . _.... .

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circuit relationship and less current flows through the heating elements than did in the high heat operating mode. However, as before fan motor 41 receives lts operating power by means of the voltage drop across sections 95 and 96 of heatlng element 93.
S~nce the current through these sections is less, a lower voltage i~ applied to the blower motor 41 and the motor operates at a reduced speed, typically in the order of 50% of its high heat mode 8peed.
Thus, a hair styling appliance ha8 been shown and de-~cribed which combines maximum utility with minimum weight and size, This is made possible by a unique arrangement of components within the appliance housing. ~ transverse-flow fan and coacting housing are located in the head portion of the housing ~or maximum - performance and efficiency, while the fan motor is located in the handle portion of the housing wherein its relatlvely modest size requirement is easily accommodated within the narrow confines of a conveniently sized handle. Ad~acent the motor within the handle, a unique trigger-actuated pump is provided to force water from a reservoir bottle within the handle to a ~pray nozzle ad~acent the work area of the appliance. An in-line pressure-relief valve is provlded between the pump and the spray nozzle to prevent unde-6irable leaking from the reservoir when the appliance is not in use, ~nd the reservoir of the spray system i8 shaped to slidably ~it within the handle without interference to the electrical cir-cuit components therein. No elements are contained withln the handle which would render it uncomfortably hot to the touch, the heating elements for the air stream being contained entirely with-in the head for maximum separation from the user and maximum efficiency in heating the air stream.
While a particular embodiment of the invention has been shown and described, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that changes and modification~ may be made without departing from the invention in its broader aspects, and, therefore, the aim ---`` 1036~W, ln the aprended claims is to cover all such changes and modifica-tions as fall within the true spirit and æcope of the invention.

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Claims (3)

The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property or privilege is claimed are defined as follows:

1. A hair styling appliance for simultaneously applying a liquid spray and hot air stream to hair as it is combed or brushed, comprising, in combination:
a housing;
a nozzle for injecting a mist into said hot air stream;
a liquid reservoir;
means comprising a manually actuable liquid pump communi-cation with said reservoir for drawing liquid therefrom;
pump actuator means for actuating said pump;
means comprising a liquid passageway extending between said pump and said nozzle for supplying liquid under pressure to to said nozzle; and means comprising a pressure relief valve disposed within said liquid passageway adjacent the discharge end thereof for inhibiting the flow of said liquid through said passageway when said pump is not being actuated to prevent the unintentional discharge of liquid into said air stream.

2. A hair styling appliance as defined in claim 1 wherein said flow inhibiting means comprise a pressure relief valve serially disposed in said passageway which opens only in response to a predetermined minimum pressure in said passageway, and wherein said pump when actuated produces a pressure in said passageway equal to or greater than said predetermined minimum pressure.

3. A hair styling appliance as defined in claim 2 wherein said pressure relief valve comprises a plurality of resilient valve sections hinged about one end of a hollow cylin-drical body member coaxially disposed within said passageway, which coact in the absence of said predetermined pressure to block said passageway.