CN1719994A

CN1719994A - Toothbrush package

Info

Publication number: CN1719994A
Application number: CNA2003801052179A
Authority: CN
Inventors: J·P·鲁施; M·H·克利; R·C·皮尔彻; J·坎普; A·C·陈
Original assignee: Colgate Palmolive Co
Current assignee: Colgate Palmolive Co
Priority date: 2002-10-11
Filing date: 2003-10-09
Publication date: 2006-01-11
Also published as: US20050229345A1; WO2004033316A9; EP1558112A2; WO2004033316A3; KR20050062607A; CA2502241A1; RU2005114014A; EP1558112A4; RU2316243C2; WO2004033316A2; BR0315224A; MXPA05003764A; AU2003282767A1

Abstract

Attractiveness of consumer products is enhanced by use of scintillating fluorescent light collecting fibers (10) contained in those products. The fibers (10) collect ambient light of various wavelengths, some not visible, along their length which is collected within the fiber (10) and emitted as visible light at the ends (14) of the fibers (10). The emitted light can be used to enhance the consumer appeal of the product or promote its use. Specific consumer products disclosed include toothbrushes (16) and liquid soap dispensers (32).

Description

A kind of toothbrush assembly

Background technology

The consumer research demonstrates buys normally a kind of Impulse Buy of toothbrush.Therefore toothbrush outward appearance and/or its packing have important effect to making purchase decision.For the purpose of market sale, it is very beneficial that the toothbrush on the shelf or its packing have the outward appearance that attracts eyeball.In addition, if toothbrush has the use that attracting novel appearance can promote toothbrush, especially promote the teenager to use toothbrush.The toothbrush and/or its packing that have adopted the whole bag of tricks to form to have visual attraction.

The U.S. Patent No. 4,779 that a kind of method was authorized on December 24th, 1986,173 provide.This patent disclosure be arranged in the battery-driven bulb of toothbrush handle.The light that bulb sends is delivered to the head (see hurdle 4, row 64 arrives hurdle 5, row 24) of toothbrush by a plurality of plastic filaments.Another U.S. Patent No. 5,030,090 discloses from light source, and as light emitting diode or laser instrument, the light that sends is delivered to toothbrush head by transmitting fiber tow.

U.S. Patent No. 5,121,462 disclose a kind of technology of making flash fiber.U.S. Patent No. 5,588,084 other details that the flicker fortifying fibre are provided and evenly dissolve in the wavelength conversion dyestuff of described fiber core material, and be used to protect core to make fiber become the multiple layer of " light pipe ".Multiple layer has refractive index, but refractive index is less than the refractive index of core, so light remains on the core of fiber, the length transmission along fiber makes fiber end demonstrate visible light.For scintillating fiber, the surround lighting of only collecting that enters the fiber side that send its end is so no longer need light emitting diode and battery to produce the light that sends from fiber end.Another patent that relates to scintillating fiber is laid-open U.S. Patents No.6 on June 20th, 2000,078,052.

U.S. Patent No. 5,813,855 disclose a kind of luminous toothbrush, and the light source that wherein is positioned at toothbrush handle is luminous to the cleaning device or the bristle of toothbrush head.The light that light source in the handle sends arrives head by toothbrush handle makes bristle luminous, and collision embeds the rough surface of the bristle of head.The end of bristle is luminous then.U.S. Patent No. 5,160,194 disclose another kind of luminous toothbrush, and wherein the light of battery generation directly illuminates user's tooth.

Summary of the invention

The present invention has used blinking to collect the packing that fiber illuminates the various consumer goods and the consumer goods.The light that sends from the end of these fibers is used for attracting the attention of consumer to the product that is arranged in packing.For the consumer, the visible end of fiber is luminous, and is luminous as battery-driven bulb.But these fibers do not use any electrically driven (operated) light source to obtain this effect.Surround lighting around the fiber is collected by the side of fiber, and by fiber, as light pipe, transmission is sent from the end of brighter fiber optics.

Shown embodiments of the invention are toothbrushes, have transparent or translucent handle.Embed a series of blinking in the handle and collect fiber, it ends near the root of the cleaning device of toothbrush head or bristle.End at the root of bristle as fruit fiber, can be distributed in whole bristle, make bristle shinny from the light of fiber.If like accurately putting light, blinking is collected fiber and can be arranged in the bristle, make its working surface that extends to bristle or near.Can demonstrate light in the bristle like this, attract the potential consumer's of observation shop toothbrush attention.

Light in the bristle also provides attracting and novel outward appearance, can attractive use toothbrush, especially teenager.Because regularly use is the most important to oral hygiene, the novelty of light emitting toothbrush provides a kind of important inducement, reminds the teenager to use toothbrush.Because flicker/collection fiber is collected surround lighting continuously and by the fiber end display light, as long as have surround lighting around the toothbrush, the novelty outward appearance of bristle can show user or potential consumer.

Toothbrush assembly preferably has transparent or translucent part, generally contains the toothbrush zone that blinking is collected fiber corresponding to toothbrush.Can make the surround lighting around the assembly enter fiber like this, make fiber luminous in its end.The light that the transparent or semitransparent part of assembly is sent attracts potential customer's attention, makes it may buy toothbrush.

In additional embodiments of the present invention, the end of blinking collection fiber can be arranged on the difference (except that head) along brush length, to form novel luminous point on toothbrush body.This light-emitting mode also is used to attract potential customer or user.

In another embodiment, blinking is collected fiber can embed various consumer goods, as liquid soap dispenser device or shampoo bottle, packing in.If packaging material are transparent or translucent at zone of fiber, surround lighting will arrive fiber, make its end luminous.The luminous figure that appends on the packing, thereby attract the consumer, the use behind the boost.

In these all embodiment, can form the light of different colours by the fiber of different colours, for example, can use green, amber and red fiber.

The information of more relevant fiber can obtain from a website of making the manufacturer of these fibers, as the Poly-optical Products company (network address is www.poly-optical.com) of California, USA Irvine.

Description of drawings

Fig. 1 has shown the toothbrush 2 of prior art, and it uses battery-operated light source 4, and light can be delivered to the bristle of embedding by optical fiber 6, and wherein optical fiber is not optical fiber of the present invention;

Fig. 2 is the side view that blinking of the present invention is collected fiber;

Fig. 3 is the side view of toothbrush, and toothbrush contains the fiber of embedding to illuminate toothbrush bristle;

Fig. 4 is the top view of toothbrush assembly, and it contains the toothbrush of fiber illuminated;

Fig. 5 is the sectional view that shows the blinking collection fiber that embeds in the toothbrush bristle;

The light that Fig. 6 has in the handle is collected the top view of the electric toothbrush of fiber;

Fig. 7 is the side view of liquid soap dispenser bottle, and it has blinking and collects fiber, can illuminate the decorative characteristics on the bottle.

The specific embodiment

Fig. 2 has schematically shown general blinking collection fiber 10 (" scintillating fiber ").Scintillating fiber 10 is along the light of the many wavelength of its length 12 collections, and is macroscopic and sightless, sends the light in the visible-range in each end 14 of fiber.Therefore, always do not need light source, as light emitting diode and the battery and U.S. Patent No. 5,813, the 855 disclosed device (see figure 1)s of prior art use at luminous this fiber.

Fig. 3 has shown the scintillating fiber 10 that embeds toothbrush 16.Fiber extends to the head 20 of toothbrush from handle 18.Toothbrush 16 to small part is transparent or translucent, allows surround lighting to arrive the outer surface 12 of fiber 10.As shown in the figure, an end 14 of fiber 10 end at the cleaning device of the head 20 that is fixed to toothbrush 16 or bristle 22 near.Cleaning device 22 can be installed to or be fixed to the head 20 of toothbrush 16, and the light that sends from an end 14 of fiber 10 makes the potential consumer of toothbrush 16 be easy to see light through the toothbrush sales region time by cleaning device 22 transmission.By similar mode, luminous bristle 22 can form attracting light pattern, encourages the use of toothbrush, has therefore improved potential user's oral hygiene, especially teenager.As previously discussed, fiber 10 can be used various chemical treatments, and 14 send versicolor light from the end.Provide extra attraction to consumer and user.

Can use the cleaning device of any appropriate format, the cleaning device 22 of the embodiment of the invention as shown in Figure 3.

Fig. 5 has shown alternate embodiments, is used to the light that shows that scintillating fiber 10 is collected.In this embodiment, scintillating fiber 10 is crooked in head 20, makes surface that the end 14 of fiber 10 extends to head 20 more than 21, ends near the work end 23 of cleaning device 22 or its.Therefore, the surround lighting that fiber 10 is collected sends from the end 14 of scintillating fiber 10 as visible light, and the position can make potential consumer or user directly see light.This embodiment provides the brighter and more direct light in cleaning device 22.In this embodiment, cleaning device itself needs not be transparent or semitransparent, because it does not transmit light.

Fig. 4 has shown the assembly 24 that accommodates toothbrush 16.At least the part 26 that covers the packing 24 of the fiber 10 in the toothbrush 16 should be transparent or translucent, allows surround lighting to arrive scintillating fiber 10, and allows to observe the light that sends from the end 14 of fiber 10.For the ease of discussing, Fig. 4 does not show the cleaning device 22 of appropriate location, and fiber end 14 settings of the general relative head 22 of these cleaning devices are similar to Fig. 3 or Fig. 5 is shown.

Term " cleaning device " adopts its general implication, can comprise traditional fiber bristles or massage part or other forms of cleaning device, as resilent finger or wall spare, has the shape that needs of circular section shape or any kind, comprises straight line portion or positive string section.When using bristle, bristle is fixed to the tuft piece or part is extensible by the suitable opening on the tuft piece, makes the bristle root be fixed in the tuft piece or below it.

The cleaning device that should be known in special demonstration only is exemplary.The present invention can implement with identical or different cleaning device structure (as with solid bristle or the in-molded technology bristle of nail) and/or identical bristle or the various combinations of cleaning device structure (as nylon brush hair, spiral bristle, rubber bristles).Similarly, be orthogonal to the surface of head 20 usually although Fig. 3 and Fig. 5 have shown cleaning device, some or all cleaning devices 22 can various angles tilt.Can select the combination of cleaning device structure, material and position, realize specific result, obtain other oral health benefit, as strengthening cleaning, tooth polishing, dental whitening and/or gingival massage.

Fig. 6 has shown toothbrush 16A, and it comprises electronic displacement disc or part 28, is provided with the cleaning device that is positioned at toothbrush 16 heads 20.Movable part 28 uses the shown driving mechanism of U.S. Patent No. 5,625,916, swing rotationally; Perhaps use U.S. Patent No. Re35, the 941 driving mechanism shift-ins that show shift out.The details of these patents is in this article with reference to quoting.Perhaps, the driving mechanism of other types above-mentioned can be otherwise or direction movable part 28.Although Fig. 6 demonstrates the end that movable part 28 is positioned at head 20, movable part 28 also can be positioned at the position that head 20 is taken up an official post and be what is the need for and want.

On-electric cleaning device 22 among Fig. 6 embodiment can be as above-mentioned luminous.Selectively or extraly, scintillating fiber 10 can embed the transparent or translucent part of the handle 18A of electric toothbrush 16A, and is luminous from the end 14 of scintillating fiber 10.Switch 30 is used to regulate the charged situation of toothbrush 16A.

Scintillating fiber 10 of the present invention can be widely used in various consumer products.Wherein a kind of, liquid soap dispenser device 32 is shown in Fig. 7.As shown in the figure, scintillating fiber 10 is embedded into the transparent or translucent part of distributor 32.At least an end 14 of fiber 10 is towards the surface of distributor.The visible light that sends from fiber 10 ends 14 is used to strengthen the decorative pattern on the side of container 32.

Claims

1. luminous consumer goods comprise main body, and its part is enough translucent or transparent, allow surround lighting to enter; The blinking of certain-length is collected fiber, at least be arranged on the described part of described main body, at least one end of described some fibre is towards the outer surface of the main body of the described consumer goods, and the people of the observation or the use consumer goods can see the light that sends from described fiber end.

2. the luminous consumer goods according to claim 1 is characterized in that the described consumer goods comprise toothbrush, and it has the cleaning device that is positioned at head.

3. toothbrush according to claim 2 is characterized in that, at least one end that at least some described blinkings are collected fiber is positioned near the cleaning device of toothbrush head.

4. toothbrush according to claim 2 is characterized in that, the end that at least some blinkings are collected fibers be positioned at the working surface of cleaning device outer or near.

5. consumer goods assembly, the obturator that comprises product, at least a portion of described obturator is enough transparent or semitransparent, allow surround lighting to enter the inside of described assembly, the consumer goods in the described assembly are provided with the blinking of different length and collect fiber, the end of described fiber is positioned at the appropriate location of described product, and the people who observes described assembly can see light.

6. a consumer goods assembly is provided with blinking and collects fiber, and the people who observes described assembly can see fiber end.