CH713312A2 - Retractable toothbrush. - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to a toothbrush (1) comprising a rollable sleeve (2), filled with bristles (3), and can be unrolled on a finger, so as to allow the brushing of the teeth. The toothbrush is packaged in a coiled position, so as to occupy a minimum of space, and can be part of a kit comprising several other elements.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD [0001] The present invention relates to a flexible and retractable or collapsible breaststroke. The object is in particular a toothbrush that can be unrolled on a finger. The invention includes a kit comprising a retractable toothbrush, in this case a travel kit, wherein the toothbrush is bagged in a case having a minimal bulk.

State of the art [0002] Out of home, it is often impractical to brush your teeth. However, when traveling or planning important appointments, it may be necessary to brush your teeth or simply refresh your mouth. This requires having a toiletry kit, including a toothbrush and a toothpaste tube, which is cumbersome and embarrassing.

Retractable or collapsible toothbrushes are described, in particular in the document WO 1994 002 048. It is a question of a brush unrollable on a finger, thanks to a latex sleeve, the end portion comprises elements of brush shape. However, since these brush elements are made of the same material as the sleeve, their properties may not be optimal for brushing the teeth. In this case, the elements forming the brush being latex, they may lack rigidity, or consistency in their implementation, and therefore lack effectiveness in their use.

A retractable toothbrush for better brushing therefore appears necessary.

Description of the Invention [0005] An object of the invention is to overcome the disadvantages discussed above. To this end, the invention is directed to a toothbrush comprising a roll-up sleeve, having an open end and a closed end lined with bristles.

As part of this description, the bristles refer to the fibers implanted on the roll-up sleeve for brushing purposes. The bristles are also referred to as hairs or even fibers, and may be of varied nature, as discussed below.

The sleeve can take a rolled storage position, or unwound position of use, where it is disposed on the finger of the user. In its wound position, the toothbrush has a circular bead and a break surface intended to come into contact with the fingertip of the user. The pausing surface may be in the plane of the circular bead, or external to the plane of the circular bead, so as to form a concave space defined by the circular bead, where the bristles can be housed without being damaged.

According to one mode of use, the bristles are stitched through the sleeve and held by knots or blisters on the side of the inner surface of the sleeve, or molded directly into the material constituting the sleeve.

According to another mode of use, the bristles are fixed on an independent support, affixed to the closed end of the sleeve. The support thus allows a better maintenance of bristles.

Advantageously, the sleeve is made of a material having elastic properties, thus allowing the proper positioning of the toothbrush on the finger of the user.

The bristles of the toothbrush according to the present invention are preferably arranged in groups. They are also preferably oriented so as to form an angle with the longitudinal axis of the sleeve, once unwound, between 25 ° and 70 °.

The sleeve of the toothbrush according to the present invention may optionally include a lip on its open end.

The present invention also relates to a kit comprising the toothbrush and a bag containing the toothbrush. The kit may further contain an additive.

Brief description of the drawings [0014]

Fig. 1: Toothbrush according to the present invention in its wound state, ready to be placed on the finger of the user.

Fig. 2: Toothbrush according to the present invention in its unwound state.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [0015] The toothbrush (1) according to the present invention comprises a flexible sleeve (2), bristles (3), and optionally a bristle support (4) making it possible to maintain the bristles (3). ) on the sleeve (2).

The bristles (3) may be made of natural or synthetic fibers.

Natural fibers include silk and vegetable fibers, as well as their mixture.

Synthetic fibers include nylon, polyester, and other polymers, as well as their blends.

The bristles (3) may be of a homogeneous nature, or of a varied nature. They may comprise a first type of bristles (3a) and a second type of bristles (3b) which are of a different nature. One of the first (3a) and second (3b) types of bristles may for example be based on natural fibers, and the other based on synthetic fibers. Whether of a homogeneous or varied nature, the bristles may be evenly distributed over the surface provided with the toothbrush, where the inter-silk distance is constant between all the bristles, or substantially constant.

Alternatively, the bristles can be distributed in a non-homogeneous arrangement. They can be implanted in groups, where the inter-silk distance within a group is less than the inter-silk distance that separates the groups of bristles. The groups may be of variable size or of uniform or substantially uniform size. A group may contain a number of bristles between 5 and 40, or 5 and 30 or 5 and 10 bristles.

Each group may represent a particular geometric shape such as a circle, or a straight line or a curved line.

The groups of bristles, can be randomly distributed on the surface to be garnished. In this case, the groups of bristles form clusters spaced from each other by a variable or constant distance. Alternatively, the groups can be distributed in an ordered arrangement. For example, the bristle groups may be implanted to form parallel straight lines, or concentric curved lines.

The length of the bristles (3) may be uniform or substantially uniform, between 0.1 cm and 2 cm. The length of the bristles is preferably between 0.2 and 1 cm. Alternatively, the bristles (3) may have a different length depending on their category. A first category of bristles (3c) may have a relatively short length and a second category (3d) may have a relatively longer length. If necessary, a first category (3c) may have a length of between 0.1 and 0.8 cm, and a second category of bristles (3d) may have a length of between 0.9 and 2 cm. Other arrangements are possible depending on the desired effects.

Alternatively, the length of the bristles may be adapted so that the surface formed by all the vertices of the bristles is flat, thus compensating for the rounding of the sleeve of the toothbrush (1) where the bristles are implanted. It is conceivable that the bristles of the center of the surface to be lined be shorter than the bristles located at the periphery of the surface to be lined, and being implanted on the edges of the sleeve.

The bristles may be distributed over the surface to be trimmed independently according to one or more of their type (3a) (3b) and their category (3c), (3d). Thus the silks of the first (3a) type and the second (3b) type can independently belong to a short category (3c) or long (3b). Alternatively, it is conceivable that the bristles of a given type belong to one or the other of the categories.

The bristles (3) can be implanted directly into the sleeve (2) of the toothbrush. To do this, they can be stapled by perforation of the sleeve, so as to pass through the useful part of the bristles to the outer surface of the sleeve (2), the base of the bristles remaining on the inner face of the sleeve (2).

It should be understood that the inner surface of the sleeve (2) corresponds to the surface in contact with the user's finger once the brush in the use position, and that the outer surface is therefore the opposite face. . The bristles may be retained by a knot or blister in contact with the inner surface of the sleeve. Alternatively, two or more bristles (3) can be connected to each other on the side of the inner face of the sleeve to hold them in position.

Alternatively, the bristles (3) may be molded directly into the sleeve (2) during its manufacture, especially if the manufacture of the sleeve comprises a step of curing a liquid or fluid material. This can be the case when cooling a heated material, or during the chemical curing of a polymer, for example by crosslinking.

The sleeve (2) may have a different thickness at the level of the bristled surface relative to the rest of its surface. The thickness of the sleeve at the surface lined with bristles (3) may in this case be greater than that of the rest of the sleeve (2). This allows a better maintenance of bristles (3).

The sleeve (2) is preferably made of an elastic material or a mixture of elastic materials, including for example latex, rubber, silicone or other natural or synthetic polymers. The sleeve (2) may alternatively consist of a textile more or less elastic and able to provide good support once unrolled on the finger. It may in this case contain an elastomer or a mixture of textile fibers of different kinds. Among the possible textiles can be chosen acrylic, nylon, cotton.

The sleeve (2) may also contain a mixture of natural material, such as rubber, and one or more kinds of synthetic textile fibers.

The thickness and elasticity of the sleeve (2) are chosen to satisfy one or more criteria, such as the ease of implementation on the finger and the removal of the finger, the comfort of use, the maintenance in position during use and resistance. Thus it may be advantageous to introduce textile fibers so that the sleeve (2), for example, does not adhere to the skin to facilitate its removal after use.

It should be noted that the sleeve (2) may be transparent or opaque, and may if necessary serve as an information carrier. For this purpose the material used must allow the registration of logos, or advertising slogans.

The bristles may alternatively be fixed by one or the other of the methods mentioned above on an intermediate support (4). The support (4) may be of the same nature as the sleeve (2) or of a different nature. Thus, the same natural or synthetic materials can be used for making the support (4).

Alternatively, the support (4) may require greater rigidity, especially for better maintenance bristles. The support (4) may then consist of a rubber harder and / or thicker than the sleeve (2), or of one or more polymers such as polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene, polyamide. The support (4), once filled with the bristles, can be affixed to the end portion of the sleeve (2).

The support (4) may be centered on the longitudinal axis of the sleeve (2), so as to be positioned on the dome of the sleeve once unwound. Preferably, the support (4) is eccentric with respect to the longitudinal axis of the sleeve (2), so that the bristles are adequately oriented for brushing the teeth, taking into account the action to be performed by the 'user. Thus, the support (4) is preferably placed on the end portion of the sleeve so that the bristles are oriented at an angle of between 25 ° and 70 ° relative to the longitudinal axis of the sleeve once unwound, and preferably between 35 ° and 50 °, or about 45 °.

It should be noted that the same orientation of the bristles with respect to the longitudinal axis of the sleeve (2) is targeted when the bristles are directly implanted on the sleeve (2).

The support (4) can be fixed on the sleeve (2) by known means such as glue, welding, an adhesive film, or other means of assembly.

Alternatively, the support (4), once lined with its bristles, may be molded into the material of the sleeve (2).

The support (4) can take different forms and different geometries. It can in this case take the appearance of a disc of a given thickness, comprising an external useful surface, from which emerge the bristles (3), and a contact surface, by which the support (4) is maintained. on the sleeve (2). The thickness of the support (4) can be regular or non-regular. The support (4) may for example be beveled or rounded on the contour. Regardless of the thickness of the support (4), one or the other of its useful and contact surfaces may be concave or convex. A concave contact surface allows for example a better contact with the rounding of the sleeve (2), and therefore a better adhesion.

The sleeve (2) may optionally be provided with a lip (5) at the edge of its opening. The lip (5) may be made of the same material or a different material from that of the sleeve (2). It improves the maintenance of the sleeve (2) on the finger. It also allows better handling when removing the sleeve after use (2).

The toothbrush (1) of the present invention is distributed in the wound state as described in FIG. 1. The sleeve (2) then has a circular bead (6) and a pausing surface (7) for placing the fingertip before unwinding the sleeve (2) of the toothbrush (1). The pausing surface (7) may be in the plane of the circular bead (6) or on a plane distinct from that of the circular bead (6). The pausing surface (7) corresponds to the inner surface of the sleeve opposite the implantation of the bristles (3) disposed on the opposite surface. The pause surface (7) is advantageously located on an external plane to the plane of the circular bead (6), parallel to that of the circular bead (6) or generally parallel, and thus produces a concave space (8), or generally concave, delimited by the circular bead (6) and the pausing surface (7), for housing the bristles (3) without damaging them. This arrangement is particularly advantageous for storing the toothbrush in its wound position, particularly in a bag, insofar as the thickness of the bead (6) makes it possible to avoid or limit the deformation of the bristles (3) or their misalignment. When conditioning the toothbrush (1), the sleeve (2) is wound beyond the base bristles (3).

Ideally, the thickness of the circular bead (6) corresponds to the length of the bristles (3), but it may be less than the length of the bristles (3).

When using the toothbrush (1), the laying surface (7) is then easily accessible because completely disengaged. Once the finger is in contact with the laying surface (7), the user unwinds the sleeve (2) at the same time as it releases the bristles (3) from their concave space (8).

The pausing surface (7) may be rounded or flat, or have a rounded shape having one or more flats. When a support (4) is affixed to the sleeve (2), the pause surface (7) can reflect the shape of the support (4). Thus, if the support (4) has a concave internal shape, the pause surface (7) can follow this concave shape.

Thus wound the toothbrush (1) of the present invention can be packaged in a minimum volume, such as in a flat bag (not shown).

The present invention also covers the toothbrush (1) as described above, in its wound state, associated with the packaging in which it is packaged, thus forming a dental hygiene kit. The packaging can be

Claims (10)

consisting of the usual materials, such as plastic film, and is of substantially flat shape, the thickness of which corresponds to the thickness of the toothbrush (1) in its wound state. The package, or sachet, can take a variable two-dimensional form. The bag may for example be square or rectangle, round or oval, or have a non-geometric shape. The bag may further include a precut, on one or more of its edges, so as to facilitate its opening. It can be transparent or opaque, and can advantageously be used as a written communication medium. In this case, inscriptions of different types and colors may be affixed to the surface of the bag, such as logos or advertising messages. The bag may contain in addition to the toothbrush (1), an additive. The additive advantageously contains one or more dental hygiene products, such as a suitable detergent. The additive may also contain aromas or perfumes, especially to produce a feeling of freshness. The additive may be packaged in a separate bag, incorporated in the bag comprising the toothbrush (1). It can alternatively be dispersed in the bag containing the toothbrush (1). Advantageously, the additive is placed on the bristles and remains localized in the space delimited by the circular bead (6) and the resting surface (7) of the toothbrush (1), when in its wound state. Thus the user can directly use the toothbrush (1) without any other manipulation than its positioning around the finger. The additive may be in the form of powder, gel, paste, or any other form. It can be dry and become operational when using the toothbrush (1) thanks to the moisture of the mouth. It can alternatively contain a variable amount of water. For this purpose, the bag may be provided to be impermeable, so as to avoid drying out the additive. The toothbrush (1) of the present invention is thus usable once and disposable. It has the advantage of occupying a minimum of space and to remain discreet. The bag, flat, can easily be stored in a pocket of clothes or a handbag. claims A toothbrush (1) comprising a roll-up sleeve (2) having an open end and a closed end with bristles (3), said sleeve (2) being in a rolled storage position, or in an unwound position for use, characterized in that in its wound position the toothbrush (1) has a circular bead (6) and a pausing surface (7) defining a concave space (8). 2. A toothbrush according to claim 1, wherein the bristles are stitched through the sleeve (2) and held by knots or blisters on the side of the inner surface of the sleeve (2). 3. The toothbrush according to claim 1, wherein the bristles are molded in the material constituting the sleeve (2). 4. A toothbrush according to claim 1, further comprising a support (4) affixed to the closed end of the sleeve (2), said support (4) for maintaining the bristles (3). A toothbrush according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the sleeve (2) is made of a material having elastic properties. Toothbrush according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the bristles are arranged in groups. A toothbrush according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the bristles are oriented to form an angle with the longitudinal axis of the sleeve (2), once unwound, between 25 ° and 70 °. . 8. Toothbrush according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the sleeve (2) is provided with a lip (5) on its open end. 9. Kit comprising: - the toothbrush (1) as described in any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the toothbrush (1) is in the wound state, - a flat bag containing said toothbrush (1). Kit according to claim 9, further comprising an additive.