CA1307882C - Toothbrush - Google Patents
ToothbrushInfo
- Publication number
- CA1307882C CA1307882C CA000548536A CA548536A CA1307882C CA 1307882 C CA1307882 C CA 1307882C CA 000548536 A CA000548536 A CA 000548536A CA 548536 A CA548536 A CA 548536A CA 1307882 C CA1307882 C CA 1307882C
- Authority
- CA
- Canada
- Prior art keywords
- brush
- container
- toothbrush according
- chamber
- reservoir
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Expired - Lifetime
Links
Classifications
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A46—BRUSHWARE
- A46B—BRUSHES
- A46B5/00—Brush bodies; Handles integral with brushware
- A46B5/002—Brush bodies; Handles integral with brushware having articulations, joints or flexible portions
- A46B5/0033—Brush bodies; Handles integral with brushware having articulations, joints or flexible portions bending or stretching or collapsing
- A46B5/0041—Mechanical joint or hinge, made up of several components
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A45—HAND OR TRAVELLING ARTICLES
- A45D—HAIRDRESSING OR SHAVING EQUIPMENT; EQUIPMENT FOR COSMETICS OR COSMETIC TREATMENTS, e.g. FOR MANICURING OR PEDICURING
- A45D44/00—Other cosmetic or toiletry articles, e.g. for hairdressers' rooms
- A45D44/18—Receptacles for hair brushes or tooth brushes as travelling equipment
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A46—BRUSHWARE
- A46B—BRUSHES
- A46B11/00—Brushes with reservoir or other means for applying substances, e.g. paints, pastes, water
- A46B11/001—Brushes with reservoir or other means for applying substances, e.g. paints, pastes, water with integral reservoirs
- A46B11/0013—Brushes with reservoir or other means for applying substances, e.g. paints, pastes, water with integral reservoirs dispensing by gravity or by shaking
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A46—BRUSHWARE
- A46B—BRUSHES
- A46B11/00—Brushes with reservoir or other means for applying substances, e.g. paints, pastes, water
- A46B11/0072—Details
- A46B11/0079—Arrangements for preventing undesired leakage or dispensing
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A46—BRUSHWARE
- A46B—BRUSHES
- A46B5/00—Brush bodies; Handles integral with brushware
- A46B5/002—Brush bodies; Handles integral with brushware having articulations, joints or flexible portions
- A46B5/0033—Brush bodies; Handles integral with brushware having articulations, joints or flexible portions bending or stretching or collapsing
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A46—BRUSHWARE
- A46B—BRUSHES
- A46B7/00—Bristle carriers arranged in the brush body
- A46B7/02—Bristle carriers arranged in the brush body in an expanding or articulating manner
- A46B7/023—Bristle carriers arranged in the brush body in an expanding or articulating manner where the bristle carrier retracts or collapses, i.e. for storage
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A46—BRUSHWARE
- A46B—BRUSHES
- A46B2200/00—Brushes characterized by their functions, uses or applications
- A46B2200/10—For human or animal care
- A46B2200/1066—Toothbrush for cleaning the teeth or dentures
Abstract
ABSTRACT
A pocket or purse toothbrush has a reservoir of liquid dentifrice in the handle of the brush. The brush per se has an absorbent pad extending along the back, from a position near the reservoir to adjacent the brush bristles. A valve between the reservior and the absor-bent pad may be opened to saturate the pad with denti-frice, allowing tooth brushing without a supply of water and, if desired, in private even if away from home.
A pocket or purse toothbrush has a reservoir of liquid dentifrice in the handle of the brush. The brush per se has an absorbent pad extending along the back, from a position near the reservoir to adjacent the brush bristles. A valve between the reservior and the absor-bent pad may be opened to saturate the pad with denti-frice, allowing tooth brushing without a supply of water and, if desired, in private even if away from home.
Description
~ 3 0 7,!~32 FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to toothbrushes and more particularly to toothbrushes suitable to be carried in a pocket or purse.
BACKGROUND
For many people it would be convenient to have readily available in a pocket or purse a toothbrush that could be used to freshen the mouth when away from home, for example after dining out or smoking. While pocket and purse type toothbrushes are known, their use requires a separate supply of water and usually a separate supply of dentifrice. While some toothbrushes do carry their own dentifrice supply, they do require a water supply and are either difficulk to handle after use or are single use, disposable brushes. The requirement for a water supply with any of these brushes is often inconvenient and can cause significant discom-Eiture for denture wearers who are often reluctant to clean their dentures in a public washroom.
SUMMARY
According to the present invention there is provided a toothbrush comprising a container, a reservoir in said container, a liquid dentiErice in said reservoir, 1 3n7~82 a toothbrush normally housed within the container, said brush having a brushback, a liquid absorbent pad on one side of the back and bris-tles projecting from said one side of the back adjacent at least part of the pad, fluid passage means leading from the reservoir to a position adjacent the absorbent pad, and valve means in said fluid passage means, normally closing said fluid passage means and selectively operable to open the fluid passage me~ns to allow li~uid dentifrice to run from the reservoir into the absorbent pad.
The use of a liquid dentifrice rather than a paste allows the user to cleanse the teeth or dentures in private, without the need for a water supply. The absor-bent material ensures that the liquid is retained adequ-ately in the brush rather than running off prematurely.
Once the brush has been used, the container can be closed to house the brush securely while it is deposited in a pocket or purse.
Embodiments of the invention may be constructed with the overall appearance of a pen, a lipstick contain-er, a pocket lighter or other article that is normally carried in a pocket or purse, thus rendering the tooth-brush an inobtrusive and possibly attractive accessory.
BRIEF DEscRIprrIoN OF THE DRAWINGS
- In the accompanying drawings, which illustrate exemplary embodimen-ts of the present invention:
Figure 1 is a perspective view of one embodi-ment of the invention in a closed condition;
Figure 2 is a longitudinal cross-section of the embodiment of Figure 1;
Figure 3 is a partial cross-section of the embodiment of Figure 1 showing the valve open;
Figure 4 is a cross-section along line IV - IV
of Figure 3;
Figure 5 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the invention;
Figure 6 is a perspective view of the embodi-ment of Figure 5 with the cap removed;
Figure 7 is a longitudinal cross-section of the embodiment of Figure 5;
Figure 8 is a longitudinal cross-section of the : embodiment of Figure 5 with the cap off and the brush extended;
Figure 9 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the present invention;
Figure 10 is a longitudinal cross-section of the embodiment of Figure 9;
Figure 11 is a longitudinal cross-section of 1 3 ~ 3 2 the embodiment of Figure 9 in an open condition;
Figure 12 is a perspective view of the brush valve assembly of the embodiment of Figure 9;
Figure 13 is a cross-section along line XIII -XIII of Figure 10;
Figure 14 is a perspective view of another embodiment oE the present invention;
Figure 15 is a longitudinal cross-section of the embodiment of Figure 14;
Figure 16 is a longitudinal cross-section of the embodiment of Figure 14 with the brush extended; and Figure 17 is a perspective detail of the embod-iment of Figure 14.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
Referring to the drawings, Figures 1 through 4 illustrate a toothbrush 10 that is constructed to have the overall general appearance of a pen or the like device that may be carried in a pocket. The brush 10 is housed in a container 12 that consists of a cylindrical barrel 14 and a cylindrical cap 16 fitted over the end of the barrel and held in place by threads 15. A clip 17 is fitted to the cap so that it can be carried in a pocket much in the manner of the conventional pen.
As shown most particularly in Figures 2 and 3, :. ' ..
1 3()~3~2 the barrel 14 houses a reservoir 18 Eor liquid dentifrice 19. A brush 20 projects from the end oE the barrel 14 that fits into the cap 16. The brush 20 has a brush back 22 carrying an absorbent pad 24 of foam rubber material.
The pad extends most of the length of the brush back and is seated in a central groove 26 as most clearly illus-trated in Figure 4. The bristles 28 are fitted to the free end of the brush back 22 adjacent to the absorbent pad 24.
Adjacent to the end of the absorbent pad 24, the end of the barrel 14 has a groove 30 that accommo-dates a sliding valve element 32. As illustrated in Figure 4, the valve element 32 has pins 34 projecting from its opposite sides to seat in guides 36 in the bar-rel 14. The valve element 32 has a sloping sealing face 38 that, in the closed position, engages a matching seal-ing face 40 on the end of the brush back. The barrel is relieved to provide a thumb catch 42 so that the valve element can be engaged by the thumb or the finger of the user to move the valve element from the closed condition illustrated in Figure 2 to the open condition illustrated in Figure 3. In the open condition, there is a fluid pas-sage 44 Eormed between the sealing faces 38 and 40 of the valve element and the brush back leading from the reser-voir 18 to the pad of absorbent material 24. This allowsliquid dentifrice to saturate the pad 24 down to the bristles so that the brush can be used without wetting from a separate water supply.
Referring to Figures 5 through 8, there is illustrated another too-thbrush embodiment 50 constructed to have the over general appearance of a tube of lip-stick. The brush 50 is housed within a container 52 with a relatively short cylindrical base 54 and an elongated cylindrical cap 56. The base 5~ is integral with an elon-gated barrel 58 that is screwed into the inside of the cap 56 by means of threads 60. ~n 0-ring seal 62 is seated in the cap 56 to seal against the end of the bar-rel.
Within the barrel and extending from end to end therein is a reservoir 64 for liquid dentifrice and a brush chamber 66. The brush chamber 66 is cylindrical and projects from the side wall of the barrel into the reservoir 64. A port 6~ adjacent to the cap end of the barrel leads from the reservoir to the brush chamber 66.
It is normally closed by a cylindrical valve element 70 ;~ seated within the end of the brush chamber. A valve operator 72 projects radially from the valve element 70 through a circumferential slot 73 in the barrel so that .~
-1 3n7~32 the valve element may be rotated between a valve closed condition with a port 74 in the wall of the valve element out of line with the port 68 between the reservoir and the brush chamber and a valve open condition where the two ports are in alignmentO A circumferential rib 75 on the valve element engages in a mating groove in the bar-rel to keep the parts in appropriate alignment.
Housed within the brush chamber 66 is a brush 76 that consists of a brush back 78 secured to and pro-jecting from a plunger 80 that slides along the brush chamber 66. A pair of lugs 82 project radially from the plunger 80 and engage in grooves 84 extending along the inside of the brush chamber to act as guides for the plunger and the brush. The brush back is equipped with bristles 86 adjacent to an absorben-t pad 83 that extends from the plunger to adjacent the free end of the brush.
The end of the barrel remote from the base 54 is equipped with a cover 90 that has a cylindrical wall 92 and an end wall 94 having a relatively large eccentric opening 96 therein. The cover 90 is retained in place on the end of the barrel by circumferential rib 98 on the barrel and the mating circumferential groove 100 on the inside of the cover. A coil spring 104 is located between the base of the brush chamber and the plunger 80 1 3n7832 to drive the plunger and the brush along the brush cham-ber when the cover 90 is rotated to align the eccentric opening 96 with the end of the brush chamber so that the brush can be projected from the end of the barrel. To limit this movement, the grooves 84 end short of the end of the barrel at stops 102. These engage -the lugs 82 on the plunger to limit its travel.
In operation of this embodiment, the cap is removed, the valve operator is deflected momentarily to allow liquid dentifrice to run from the reservoir into the brush chamber to be absorbed by the absorbent pad 88 of the brush and then the cover 90 is rotated to allow the brush to project from the end of the barrel under the influence of spring 104. In the open condition illustrated in Figure 8, the plunger 80 covers the port 74 to prevent any inadvertent discharge of dentifrice.
After the brush has been used, it can be pressed back into the brush chamber and the cover 90 rotated once more to hold it in place.
Referring now to Figures 9 through 13, there is illustrated a brush 110 that is configured generally to resemble a disposable cigarette lighter in overall appearance and to function generally in the manner of a pocket knife. The brush consists of a gen~rally rectangu-.
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1 ~07~2 lar container 112 housing a reservoir 114 for liquiddentifrice. A brush chamber 116 extends along one side of the reservoir from a generally cylindrical recess adja-cent one end of the container. The recess houses a cylin-drical valve chamber 118 with a cylindrical wall 120 and circular end walls 122. Each of the end walls 122 is equipped with a central stud 124 that serves as a pivot for the valve chamber, fitting into an appropriate open-ing in the side wall of the container 112. A brush back 126 projects tangentially from the cylindrical wall 120 of the valve chamber. It is e~uipped with bristles 128 surrounding an absorbent pad 130. The absorbent pad extends along the brush back from adjacent an outlet port 132 in the cylindrical wall 120 of the valve chamber.
Housed within the valve chamber 118 is a valv-ing element 134 in the front of a solid cylindrical plug with a segment removed. The missing segment defines a txansfer chamber 136. On one side of the valving ele-ment, there is a shaft 142 that projects through an axial bore 144 in one end of the valve chamber 118. The bore 144 and the shaft 142 extend completely through the pivot 124 on the end wall and a handle 146 is attached to the end of the shaft 142 outside of the container 112. As is seen most readily in Figures 10 and 11, the reservoir has 1 3~78~2 an outlet port 150 in a cylindrical wall 152 thereof that mates with the cylindrical wall 120 of the valve chamber 118. The cylindrical wall 120 in the valve chamber is equipped with an inlet port 154 angularly spaced Erom the outlet port 132 so that it is out of line with the outlet port 150 when the brush is fully seated in the brush chamber as shown in Figure 10, but comes into registry with the outlet port 150 once the brush has been wit-h-drawn from the chamber by a few degrees.
To facilitate the withdrawal of the brush from its chamber, the sides of the container 112 have appro-priate finger notches 148.
In use, the brush is pivoted out of the brush chamber until the ports 150 and 152 come into registry.
This can be signalled to the user by engagement of a de-tent between the valve chamber 118 and the container 112. The valve element is then placed in the position illustrated in Figure 10 so that liquid from the reser-voir will fill the transfer chamber 136. The brush is then rotated to the extended position illustrated in Figure 11, thus closing the outlet port 150 from the reservoir. The valving element 134 may then be rotated to the discharge position illustrated in Figure 11 so that the liquid in the transfer chamber will run out of 1 307~82 the outlet port 132 from the valve chamber 118 to be absorbed in the absorbent pad 130 of the brush.
Turning now to Figures 14 through 16, there is illustrated a toothbrush 160 that is housed in a contain-er 162 configured generally as an elongated rectangular prism somewhat like certain cigarette lighters. At one end of the container is a latch mechanism 164. The latch mechanism includes an internal peripheral groove 168 just inside the end of the container and a rectangular cover 170 that slides in the groove between a closed position shown in figures 14 and 15 and an open position shown in Figure 16. As shown in Figure 15, the cover normally closes the end of a brush chamber 172 housing a brush consisting of a brush back 174 mounted on a rectangular plungex 176 shaped and sized to slide in the brush cham-ber 172 without rotation. The brush back 174 is also equipped with bristles 178 and an absorbent pad 180. A
coil spring 182 is located in the brush chamber between the plunger 176 and the closed end of the chamber.
A reser~oir 184 for li~uid dentifrice is sepa-rated from the brush chamber by a longitudinal wall 185.
Near the cover 170, the wall 185 has a through port 186 normally closed by a valve plate 188. The plate slides in : ` ~
~ a pair of grooves 190 (Figure 17) in the side walls of ~ . .
~ ~07~82 the container. With the cover 170 in the closed condition as illustrated in Figure 15, the valve slide is retained between the cover and the ends of the grooves so that the valve is kept closed. When the cover 170 is retracted to allow the brush to project from the container, the valve may be moved to the open position illustrated in Figure 16, through the use of a stud 192 fixed to the valve plate 1~8 and projecting through an elongated slot 196-in the side wall of the container. In the open position, valve plate 188 extends across groove 168 to keep the cover 170 in its open position. When the brush is fully extended as shown in Figure 16, the plunger 176 acts as a valve closing the port 186.
While certain embodiments of the invention have been described in the foregoing, it is to be understood ~ that the invention is not limited to those embodiments.
;` The invention is to be limited solely by the scope of the ~ appended claims.
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The present invention relates to toothbrushes and more particularly to toothbrushes suitable to be carried in a pocket or purse.
BACKGROUND
For many people it would be convenient to have readily available in a pocket or purse a toothbrush that could be used to freshen the mouth when away from home, for example after dining out or smoking. While pocket and purse type toothbrushes are known, their use requires a separate supply of water and usually a separate supply of dentifrice. While some toothbrushes do carry their own dentifrice supply, they do require a water supply and are either difficulk to handle after use or are single use, disposable brushes. The requirement for a water supply with any of these brushes is often inconvenient and can cause significant discom-Eiture for denture wearers who are often reluctant to clean their dentures in a public washroom.
SUMMARY
According to the present invention there is provided a toothbrush comprising a container, a reservoir in said container, a liquid dentiErice in said reservoir, 1 3n7~82 a toothbrush normally housed within the container, said brush having a brushback, a liquid absorbent pad on one side of the back and bris-tles projecting from said one side of the back adjacent at least part of the pad, fluid passage means leading from the reservoir to a position adjacent the absorbent pad, and valve means in said fluid passage means, normally closing said fluid passage means and selectively operable to open the fluid passage me~ns to allow li~uid dentifrice to run from the reservoir into the absorbent pad.
The use of a liquid dentifrice rather than a paste allows the user to cleanse the teeth or dentures in private, without the need for a water supply. The absor-bent material ensures that the liquid is retained adequ-ately in the brush rather than running off prematurely.
Once the brush has been used, the container can be closed to house the brush securely while it is deposited in a pocket or purse.
Embodiments of the invention may be constructed with the overall appearance of a pen, a lipstick contain-er, a pocket lighter or other article that is normally carried in a pocket or purse, thus rendering the tooth-brush an inobtrusive and possibly attractive accessory.
BRIEF DEscRIprrIoN OF THE DRAWINGS
- In the accompanying drawings, which illustrate exemplary embodimen-ts of the present invention:
Figure 1 is a perspective view of one embodi-ment of the invention in a closed condition;
Figure 2 is a longitudinal cross-section of the embodiment of Figure 1;
Figure 3 is a partial cross-section of the embodiment of Figure 1 showing the valve open;
Figure 4 is a cross-section along line IV - IV
of Figure 3;
Figure 5 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the invention;
Figure 6 is a perspective view of the embodi-ment of Figure 5 with the cap removed;
Figure 7 is a longitudinal cross-section of the embodiment of Figure 5;
Figure 8 is a longitudinal cross-section of the : embodiment of Figure 5 with the cap off and the brush extended;
Figure 9 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the present invention;
Figure 10 is a longitudinal cross-section of the embodiment of Figure 9;
Figure 11 is a longitudinal cross-section of 1 3 ~ 3 2 the embodiment of Figure 9 in an open condition;
Figure 12 is a perspective view of the brush valve assembly of the embodiment of Figure 9;
Figure 13 is a cross-section along line XIII -XIII of Figure 10;
Figure 14 is a perspective view of another embodiment oE the present invention;
Figure 15 is a longitudinal cross-section of the embodiment of Figure 14;
Figure 16 is a longitudinal cross-section of the embodiment of Figure 14 with the brush extended; and Figure 17 is a perspective detail of the embod-iment of Figure 14.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
Referring to the drawings, Figures 1 through 4 illustrate a toothbrush 10 that is constructed to have the overall general appearance of a pen or the like device that may be carried in a pocket. The brush 10 is housed in a container 12 that consists of a cylindrical barrel 14 and a cylindrical cap 16 fitted over the end of the barrel and held in place by threads 15. A clip 17 is fitted to the cap so that it can be carried in a pocket much in the manner of the conventional pen.
As shown most particularly in Figures 2 and 3, :. ' ..
1 3()~3~2 the barrel 14 houses a reservoir 18 Eor liquid dentifrice 19. A brush 20 projects from the end oE the barrel 14 that fits into the cap 16. The brush 20 has a brush back 22 carrying an absorbent pad 24 of foam rubber material.
The pad extends most of the length of the brush back and is seated in a central groove 26 as most clearly illus-trated in Figure 4. The bristles 28 are fitted to the free end of the brush back 22 adjacent to the absorbent pad 24.
Adjacent to the end of the absorbent pad 24, the end of the barrel 14 has a groove 30 that accommo-dates a sliding valve element 32. As illustrated in Figure 4, the valve element 32 has pins 34 projecting from its opposite sides to seat in guides 36 in the bar-rel 14. The valve element 32 has a sloping sealing face 38 that, in the closed position, engages a matching seal-ing face 40 on the end of the brush back. The barrel is relieved to provide a thumb catch 42 so that the valve element can be engaged by the thumb or the finger of the user to move the valve element from the closed condition illustrated in Figure 2 to the open condition illustrated in Figure 3. In the open condition, there is a fluid pas-sage 44 Eormed between the sealing faces 38 and 40 of the valve element and the brush back leading from the reser-voir 18 to the pad of absorbent material 24. This allowsliquid dentifrice to saturate the pad 24 down to the bristles so that the brush can be used without wetting from a separate water supply.
Referring to Figures 5 through 8, there is illustrated another too-thbrush embodiment 50 constructed to have the over general appearance of a tube of lip-stick. The brush 50 is housed within a container 52 with a relatively short cylindrical base 54 and an elongated cylindrical cap 56. The base 5~ is integral with an elon-gated barrel 58 that is screwed into the inside of the cap 56 by means of threads 60. ~n 0-ring seal 62 is seated in the cap 56 to seal against the end of the bar-rel.
Within the barrel and extending from end to end therein is a reservoir 64 for liquid dentifrice and a brush chamber 66. The brush chamber 66 is cylindrical and projects from the side wall of the barrel into the reservoir 64. A port 6~ adjacent to the cap end of the barrel leads from the reservoir to the brush chamber 66.
It is normally closed by a cylindrical valve element 70 ;~ seated within the end of the brush chamber. A valve operator 72 projects radially from the valve element 70 through a circumferential slot 73 in the barrel so that .~
-1 3n7~32 the valve element may be rotated between a valve closed condition with a port 74 in the wall of the valve element out of line with the port 68 between the reservoir and the brush chamber and a valve open condition where the two ports are in alignmentO A circumferential rib 75 on the valve element engages in a mating groove in the bar-rel to keep the parts in appropriate alignment.
Housed within the brush chamber 66 is a brush 76 that consists of a brush back 78 secured to and pro-jecting from a plunger 80 that slides along the brush chamber 66. A pair of lugs 82 project radially from the plunger 80 and engage in grooves 84 extending along the inside of the brush chamber to act as guides for the plunger and the brush. The brush back is equipped with bristles 86 adjacent to an absorben-t pad 83 that extends from the plunger to adjacent the free end of the brush.
The end of the barrel remote from the base 54 is equipped with a cover 90 that has a cylindrical wall 92 and an end wall 94 having a relatively large eccentric opening 96 therein. The cover 90 is retained in place on the end of the barrel by circumferential rib 98 on the barrel and the mating circumferential groove 100 on the inside of the cover. A coil spring 104 is located between the base of the brush chamber and the plunger 80 1 3n7832 to drive the plunger and the brush along the brush cham-ber when the cover 90 is rotated to align the eccentric opening 96 with the end of the brush chamber so that the brush can be projected from the end of the barrel. To limit this movement, the grooves 84 end short of the end of the barrel at stops 102. These engage -the lugs 82 on the plunger to limit its travel.
In operation of this embodiment, the cap is removed, the valve operator is deflected momentarily to allow liquid dentifrice to run from the reservoir into the brush chamber to be absorbed by the absorbent pad 88 of the brush and then the cover 90 is rotated to allow the brush to project from the end of the barrel under the influence of spring 104. In the open condition illustrated in Figure 8, the plunger 80 covers the port 74 to prevent any inadvertent discharge of dentifrice.
After the brush has been used, it can be pressed back into the brush chamber and the cover 90 rotated once more to hold it in place.
Referring now to Figures 9 through 13, there is illustrated a brush 110 that is configured generally to resemble a disposable cigarette lighter in overall appearance and to function generally in the manner of a pocket knife. The brush consists of a gen~rally rectangu-.
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1 ~07~2 lar container 112 housing a reservoir 114 for liquiddentifrice. A brush chamber 116 extends along one side of the reservoir from a generally cylindrical recess adja-cent one end of the container. The recess houses a cylin-drical valve chamber 118 with a cylindrical wall 120 and circular end walls 122. Each of the end walls 122 is equipped with a central stud 124 that serves as a pivot for the valve chamber, fitting into an appropriate open-ing in the side wall of the container 112. A brush back 126 projects tangentially from the cylindrical wall 120 of the valve chamber. It is e~uipped with bristles 128 surrounding an absorbent pad 130. The absorbent pad extends along the brush back from adjacent an outlet port 132 in the cylindrical wall 120 of the valve chamber.
Housed within the valve chamber 118 is a valv-ing element 134 in the front of a solid cylindrical plug with a segment removed. The missing segment defines a txansfer chamber 136. On one side of the valving ele-ment, there is a shaft 142 that projects through an axial bore 144 in one end of the valve chamber 118. The bore 144 and the shaft 142 extend completely through the pivot 124 on the end wall and a handle 146 is attached to the end of the shaft 142 outside of the container 112. As is seen most readily in Figures 10 and 11, the reservoir has 1 3~78~2 an outlet port 150 in a cylindrical wall 152 thereof that mates with the cylindrical wall 120 of the valve chamber 118. The cylindrical wall 120 in the valve chamber is equipped with an inlet port 154 angularly spaced Erom the outlet port 132 so that it is out of line with the outlet port 150 when the brush is fully seated in the brush chamber as shown in Figure 10, but comes into registry with the outlet port 150 once the brush has been wit-h-drawn from the chamber by a few degrees.
To facilitate the withdrawal of the brush from its chamber, the sides of the container 112 have appro-priate finger notches 148.
In use, the brush is pivoted out of the brush chamber until the ports 150 and 152 come into registry.
This can be signalled to the user by engagement of a de-tent between the valve chamber 118 and the container 112. The valve element is then placed in the position illustrated in Figure 10 so that liquid from the reser-voir will fill the transfer chamber 136. The brush is then rotated to the extended position illustrated in Figure 11, thus closing the outlet port 150 from the reservoir. The valving element 134 may then be rotated to the discharge position illustrated in Figure 11 so that the liquid in the transfer chamber will run out of 1 307~82 the outlet port 132 from the valve chamber 118 to be absorbed in the absorbent pad 130 of the brush.
Turning now to Figures 14 through 16, there is illustrated a toothbrush 160 that is housed in a contain-er 162 configured generally as an elongated rectangular prism somewhat like certain cigarette lighters. At one end of the container is a latch mechanism 164. The latch mechanism includes an internal peripheral groove 168 just inside the end of the container and a rectangular cover 170 that slides in the groove between a closed position shown in figures 14 and 15 and an open position shown in Figure 16. As shown in Figure 15, the cover normally closes the end of a brush chamber 172 housing a brush consisting of a brush back 174 mounted on a rectangular plungex 176 shaped and sized to slide in the brush cham-ber 172 without rotation. The brush back 174 is also equipped with bristles 178 and an absorbent pad 180. A
coil spring 182 is located in the brush chamber between the plunger 176 and the closed end of the chamber.
A reser~oir 184 for li~uid dentifrice is sepa-rated from the brush chamber by a longitudinal wall 185.
Near the cover 170, the wall 185 has a through port 186 normally closed by a valve plate 188. The plate slides in : ` ~
~ a pair of grooves 190 (Figure 17) in the side walls of ~ . .
~ ~07~82 the container. With the cover 170 in the closed condition as illustrated in Figure 15, the valve slide is retained between the cover and the ends of the grooves so that the valve is kept closed. When the cover 170 is retracted to allow the brush to project from the container, the valve may be moved to the open position illustrated in Figure 16, through the use of a stud 192 fixed to the valve plate 1~8 and projecting through an elongated slot 196-in the side wall of the container. In the open position, valve plate 188 extends across groove 168 to keep the cover 170 in its open position. When the brush is fully extended as shown in Figure 16, the plunger 176 acts as a valve closing the port 186.
While certain embodiments of the invention have been described in the foregoing, it is to be understood ~ that the invention is not limited to those embodiments.
;` The invention is to be limited solely by the scope of the ~ appended claims.
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Claims (14)
1. A toothbrush comprising a container, a reser-voir in said container, a liquid dentifrice in said reservoir, a toothbrush normally housed within the con-tainer, said brush having a brushback, a liquid absorbent pad on one side of the back and bristles projecting from said one side of the back adjacent at least part of the pad, fluid passage means leading from the reservoir to a position adjacent the absorbent pad, and valve means in said fluid passage means, normally closing said fluid passage means and selectively operable to open the fluid passage means to allow liquid dentifrice to run from the reservoir into the absorbent pad.
2. A toothbrush according to Claim 1 wherein the reservoir is an elongated tube, and the brush projects from one end thereof.
3. A toothbrush according to Claim 2 wherein the container includes a cap positionable over the brush and engageable co-axially with the reservoir.
4. A toothbrush according to Claim 1 wherein the brush is retractably mounted in the container.
5. A toothbrush according to Claim 4 wherein the container includes a brush chamber and the brush is secured to a plunger slideable in the brush chamber for movement between an extended position with the brush extending from the container and a retracted position with the brush housed within the brush chamber.
6. A toothbrush according to Claim 5 including spring means for biasing the plunger towards the extended position.
7. A toothbrush according to Claim 6 including latch means for retaining the brush in the retracted position.
8. A toothbrush according to Claim 7 wherein the container is cylindrical and the latch means comprises a cover rotatably mounted on one end of the container, with an eccentric aperture in an end of the cover such that in one orientation of the cover the brush may project through the eccentric aperture.
9. A toothbrush according to Claim 7 wherein the container is a generally rectangular prism and the latch means comprises a cover slideably mounted on one end of the container for selectively covering and opening an end of the brush chamber.
10. A toothbrush according to Claim 9 wherein the valve means comprises a plate slideably mounted on a wall between the reservoir and the brush chamber, the fluid passage means being an aperture through said wall and the plate normally overlying said aperture, the plate being prevented from moving to a position opening the aperture when the cover extends over the end of the brush cham-ber.
11. A toothbrush according to Claim 4 wherein the brush is pivotally mounted on the container for pivotal movement between a retracted position housed within a brush chamber along one side of the container and an extended position projecting from one end of the con-tainer.
12. A toothbrush according to Claim 11 wherein the valve means include a cylindrical valve chamber secured to the brush back and pivotally mounted on the container, an inlet port in a wall of the valve chamber, an outlet port in a wall of the valve chamber adjacent the absor-bent pad of the brush, a valving element in said valve chamber, rotatable to transfer liquid from the inlet port to the outlet port and having a closed position closing both the inlet and the outlet ports.
13. A toothbrush according to claim 12 including a handle for selectively rotating the valving element.
14. A toothbrush according to claim 7 wherein the container is substantially cylindrical and includes a cylindrical cap which fits over one end thereof.
Priority Applications (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA000548536A CA1307882C (en) | 1987-10-02 | 1987-10-02 | Toothbrush |
Applications Claiming Priority (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA000548536A CA1307882C (en) | 1987-10-02 | 1987-10-02 | Toothbrush |
Publications (1)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| CA1307882C true CA1307882C (en) | 1992-09-29 |
Family
ID=4136576
Family Applications (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA000548536A Expired - Lifetime CA1307882C (en) | 1987-10-02 | 1987-10-02 | Toothbrush |
Country Status (1)
| Country | Link |
|---|---|
| CA (1) | CA1307882C (en) |
-
1987
- 1987-10-02 CA CA000548536A patent/CA1307882C/en not_active Expired - Lifetime
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Legal Events
| Date | Code | Title | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| MKLA | Lapsed |