EP1063906A4 - Brosse a dents - Google Patents

Brosse a dents

Info

Publication number
EP1063906A4
EP1063906A4 EP99909829A EP99909829A EP1063906A4 EP 1063906 A4 EP1063906 A4 EP 1063906A4 EP 99909829 A EP99909829 A EP 99909829A EP 99909829 A EP99909829 A EP 99909829A EP 1063906 A4 EP1063906 A4 EP 1063906A4
Authority
EP
European Patent Office
Prior art keywords
toothbrush
color
head
liquid
certain
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.)
Withdrawn
Application number
EP99909829A
Other languages
German (de)
English (en)
Other versions
EP1063906A1 (fr
Inventor
Thomas Craig Masterman
William A Bredall
Frank Klaus Stoeckel
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Gillette Canada Inc
Original Assignee
Gillette Canada Inc
Priority date (The priority date 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 date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Gillette Canada Inc filed Critical Gillette Canada Inc
Publication of EP1063906A1 publication Critical patent/EP1063906A1/fr
Publication of EP1063906A4 publication Critical patent/EP1063906A4/fr
Withdrawn legal-status Critical Current

Links

Classifications

    • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
    • A46—BRUSHWARE
    • A46B—BRUSHES
    • A46B15/00—Other brushes; Brushes with additional arrangements
    • A46B15/0002—Arrangements for enhancing monitoring or controlling the brushing process
    • A46B15/0004—Arrangements for enhancing monitoring or controlling the brushing process with a controlling means
    • A46B15/0008—Arrangements for enhancing monitoring or controlling the brushing process with a controlling means with means for controlling duration, e.g. time of brushing
    • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
    • A46—BRUSHWARE
    • A46B—BRUSHES
    • A46B15/00—Other brushes; Brushes with additional arrangements
    • A46B15/0002—Arrangements for enhancing monitoring or controlling the brushing process
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B29—WORKING OF PLASTICS; WORKING OF SUBSTANCES IN A PLASTIC STATE IN GENERAL
    • B29L—INDEXING SCHEME ASSOCIATED WITH SUBCLASS B29C, RELATING TO PARTICULAR ARTICLES
    • B29L2031/00—Other particular articles
    • B29L2031/42—Brushes
    • B29L2031/425—Toothbrush

Definitions

  • the invention relates generally to the field of oral care, and in particular to toothbrushes. More specifically, the invention relates to a toothbrush, a portion of which changes color when exposed to liquid. Toothbrushes are known which include a wear indicating portion that changes color when the toothbrush is at or near the end of its useful life.
  • a wear indicating toothbrush includes toothbrush filaments (bristles) having a colorant and being adapted to provide a color intensity which can change in response to increased use of the bristle to provide a signal indicative of bristle wear.
  • a line of toothbrushes having such a bristle has been successfully marketed by Oral-B Laboratories, Belmont, CA, under the Indicator ® brand.
  • U.S. Patent No. 5,340,581 to Tseng et al. discloses a wear-indicator oral brush that includes a matrix containing a colorant (e.g., a dye) and a water- leachable substance that is released from the matrix when the oral brush is used to cause the matrix to change color after repeated (at least 5) typical uses.
  • a colorant e.g., a dye
  • water- leachable substance that is released from the matrix when the oral brush is used to cause the matrix to change color after repeated (at least 5) typical uses.
  • Toothbrushes in which a part of the brush changes color to indicate wear take a relatively long period of time to change color.
  • a person was brushing three times a day, it would take two days of brushing to effect a visible color change. If the person were brushing twice a day it would take three days of brushing to effect a visible color change.
  • Such a relatively long period of time for the color to change can be a problem where the color change is intended to accomplish something other than to indicate wear.
  • a faster color change would be preferable to indicate the winner of a contest in which one toothbrush would change color to indicate the winner of the contest.
  • a toothbrush made by Jordan and distributed by DEP Professional Oral Care includes a thermochromic material in the handle of the toothbrush. At room temperature and below the handle is green in color. When the handle is exposed to hot water or a human hand, thus elevating the temperature of the handle above room temperature, the handle turns from green to an off-white/yellow color. - 2 -
  • a toothbrush includes a handle, a head extending from the handle, and a multiplicity of bristles extending from the head. At least a portion of the toothbrush is a first color prior to the portion being exposed to liquid for the first time. The portion changes to a second color after the portion has been exposed to liquid for a period of time which is less than the accumulated time which passes during five typical uses of the toothbrush to brush a person's teeth. The change in color is caused by removal from the toothbrush of at least part of the portion by the liquid. The change in color is perceivable by the unaided human eye.
  • FIG. 1 is a top view of a toothbrush
  • FIG. 2 is a perspective exploded view of a logo on the toothbrush in
  • FIG. 1 A first figure.
  • FIG. 3 is a top view of another toothbrush; and FIG. 4 is a top view of the toothbrush of FIG. 3 after the toothbrush has changed colors.
  • a toothbrush 10 includes a handle 12 and a head 14 extending from the handle.
  • a multiplicity of tufts of bristles 16 are secured to the head with metal fasteners (not shown).
  • the tufts can be hot tufted (insert molded) into head 14.
  • the tufts extend away from head 14 in a direction perpendicular to the top surface of the head.
  • a logo 18 is affixed to handle 12 at an end of the handle opposite head 14.
  • a series of thumb grips 20 are provided on handle 12.
  • Toothbrush 10 is made by the following process.
  • Unitary handle 12 and head 14 are formed of a plastic, such as polypropylene or a polyurethane (e.g. Isoplast), in an injection molding machine.
  • the plastic handle/head is made of a transparent blue plastic.
  • the handle/head may optionally then be moved to an additional injection molding machine for application of rubber (e.g. Kraton) to portions of the handle.
  • thumb grips 20 can be made of rubber.
  • logo 18 is applied to handle 12 by a hot-stamp process.
  • a solvent based dry ink on a donor tape is positioned against the handle with the ink facing the handle.
  • a die in the shape of the logo and held at a temperature of about 500 degrees Fahrenheit is pressed onto the tape and thus onto the handle at about 90 psi to brand the ink onto the handle in the shape of logo 18.
  • the die is held against the tape for about 0.5 seconds, thereby transferring the ink, but not the tape, to handle 18.
  • the die also softens the plastic on the handle, causing logo 18 to also be physically pressed into the handle slightly. In other words, logo 18 is slightly concave into handle 12.
  • the ink is water-proof and will adhere to handle 12 even after exposure to water for extended periods of time.
  • tufts of bristles 16 are secured to head 14.
  • a metal fastener staple
  • the fastener is driven into a precored blind hole in the head, formed during injection molding, to anchor the staple and thus the tuft to head 14.
  • an alternative way to secure the tufts to the head is with a hot tufting (insert molding process).
  • Standard fasteners are made of an alloy of zinc, copper and nickel.
  • Such a fastener is corrosion resistant. It may be desirable to be able to identify a certain toothbrush from one or more other toothbrushes which appear substantially - 4 - identical to the certain toothbrush when viewed with the unaided human eye.
  • the fasteners used in making the certain toothbrush can be made of only zinc and copper (brass). Although the zinc and copper fastener appears the same as the zinc, copper and nickel fastener to the unaided human eye, the difference between these two fasteners can be identified by scientific analysis (e.g.
  • the certain toothbrush can be identified from one or more other toothbrushes which appear substantially identical to the certain toothbrush when viewed with the unaided human eye.
  • the fasteners of the certain toothbrush can be micro-engraved and/or etched. Further, the fasteners of the certain toothbrush can be driven into head 14 at a different angle and/orientation than the staples of the other toothbrushes.
  • a first layer 22 of the logo is applied to handle 12 by the hot-stamp process described above.
  • layer 22 is formed of white ink.
  • a second layer 24 is a Super Brass Spray ZY0175 paint available from ICI Paints.
  • the second layer can also be made of Zynolyte 500 Series Gold Epoxy Paint by Zynolyte Products.
  • This paint is gold in color and is applied over aligning a mask with a cut-out in the shape of logo 18 over layer 22.
  • Such a mask can be made by scanning the logo into a digital format and then using a computer to drive a printer to print out the mask. The paint is then sprayed through the mask on top of layer 22. After this paint dries, it is water proof.
  • Gold layer 24 can alternatively be applied by vacuum metalizing or sputtering.
  • a third layer 26 of the logo is applied over second layer 24 in the same manner described above (i.e. applying layer 26 through a mask).
  • Third layer 26 is PRO WHITE paint available from Daler Rowney, Ltd. This paint is water based, white in color, and not a health risk if ingested in small quantities. Even after the third layer dries, it is not liquid proof. The third layer will dissolve and wash away in the presence of liquid (e.g. water and/or human saliva).
  • Various tests e.g. ultra-violet light exposure, thermal variations, simulated shipment, shaking and humidity) were conducted on logo 18 and verified that layer 26 would remain intact prior to being exposed to liquid.
  • Middle gold layer 24 should be sandwiched - 5 - between white layers 22 and 26 such that layer 24 is not visible until layer 26 is washed away by liquid.
  • layer 26 can be applied as a decal using an internegative transfer (INT) Decal. Accordingly, the entire logo 18 could be applied to handle 12 as a multilayer hot-stamp or using multilayer pad printing/decals.
  • INT internegative transfer
  • logo 18 can also be used to identify the certain toothbrush described above with reference to the fasteners used to secure tufts of bristles to head 14.
  • logo 18 appears white in color.
  • the material in white layer 26 of the logo dissolves revealing gold layer 24 which does not dissolve, thus effecting a color change to logo 18.
  • Layer 26 preferably dissolves sufficiently to reveal the gold layer to the unaided human eye prior to the amount of time logo 18 would be exposed to liquid during five uses of the toothbrush to brush a person's teeth. This amount of time is estimated to be 15 minutes. How fast layer 26 dissolves is a function of the formulation of layer 26, including the polymer used and the polymer's molecular weight.
  • a special fastener and logo 18 to identify a certain toothbrush can be used in the event a toothbrush distributor wants to hold a contest.
  • one certain toothbrush is provided with logo 18 and with fasteners made of only zinc and copper. All other toothbrushes have a logo which has only layer 22 and not layers 24 and 26, and have fasteners made of zinc, copper and nickel.
  • the distributor advertises that the consumer who finds the "gold" toothbrush will win a prize (e.g. a sum of money). Consumers are told to expose the logo on the toothbrush to water and rub the logo for 10 seconds. Only the certain toothbrush with logo 18 will change from white to gold. All other toothbrushes' logos will remain white in the presence of water when rubbed because these logos only have layer 22.
  • the fasteners of the presented brush are analyzed to make sure they are made of only zinc and copper.
  • the fasteners are a double-check to make sure the consumer presenting the brush is not forging the gold logo.
  • An additional way to further identify the certain toothbrush is to add an ingredient (e.g. barium sulfate) to the plastic from which the certain toothbrush's handle/head are made. - 6 -
  • a three layer logo 18 is used because if a two layer logo were used (only layers 24 and 26) a consumer could view logo 18 through the translucent handle and possibly see the gold layer 24 without having to remove layer 26 with water.
  • a two layer logo could be used if handle 12 were made of an opaque plastic. In this event, layer 24 would be applied directly to the polypropylene handle. Plastic additives can be included in the gold paint to make layer 24 more adhesive to the plastic. As such, the handle can be treated with Loctite 7701 by Loctite Corp., a polyolefin primer or Tantec EST Spot Generator to enhance adhesion of layer 24 to the handle.
  • Toothbrush 30 is made of an opaque plastic of a first color (e.g. green) in a manner similar to how brush 10 was made.
  • the handle 32 and head 34 are covered with the PRO WHITE paint described above by spray painting the handle and head prior to securing tufts of bristles to the head.
  • the white paint will dissolve to reveal a green toothbrush.
  • the color change is represented by the shading change of the handle/head between Figures 3 and 4.

Landscapes

  • Brushes (AREA)

Abstract

L'invention concerne une brosse à dents (10) qui comporte un manche (12), une tête (14) s'étendant à partir du manche, et de multiples poils (16) s'étendant à partir de la tête. Au moins une partie de la brosse à dents est d'une première couleur jusqu'à la première exposition de cette partie à un liquide. La partie change de couleur (deuxième couleur) après qu'elle a été exposée à un liquide pendant une durée inférieure au temps cumulé représentant cinq utilisations caractéristiques de la brosse à dents à des fins de brossage de dents. Le changement de couleur est provoqué par le retrait du liquide de cette partie au moins de la brosse à dents. Le changement de couleur est perceptible à l'oeil humain non assisté. De plus, il est possible de distinguer la brosse à dents parmi une ou plusieurs autres brosses à dents qui paraissent sensiblement identiques à celle-ci, à l'oeil humain non assisté, grâce à l'utilisation d'éléments de fixation de poils de différentes matières.
EP99909829A 1998-03-16 1999-03-04 Brosse a dents Withdrawn EP1063906A4 (fr)

Applications Claiming Priority (3)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
US3958198A 1998-03-16 1998-03-16
US39581 1998-03-16
PCT/US1999/004790 WO1999047020A1 (fr) 1998-03-16 1999-03-04 Brosse a dents

Publications (2)

Publication Number Publication Date
EP1063906A1 EP1063906A1 (fr) 2001-01-03
EP1063906A4 true EP1063906A4 (fr) 2004-12-29

Family

ID=21906233

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
EP99909829A Withdrawn EP1063906A4 (fr) 1998-03-16 1999-03-04 Brosse a dents

Country Status (6)

Country Link
EP (1) EP1063906A4 (fr)
CN (1) CN1293547A (fr)
AR (1) AR018756A1 (fr)
AU (1) AU2894799A (fr)
BR (1) BR9908774A (fr)
WO (1) WO1999047020A1 (fr)

Families Citing this family (12)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
DE102004014230A1 (de) * 2004-03-23 2005-10-06 Niels Raeder Zahnbürste mit Informationsträger
US8092110B2 (en) 2005-08-26 2012-01-10 Colgate-Palmolive Company Oral care instrument including an oral care agent
US7785299B2 (en) 2006-05-08 2010-08-31 Becton, Dickinson And Company Vascular access device time sensitive status indication
US8163237B2 (en) 2006-05-08 2012-04-24 Becton, Dickinson And Company Vascular access device pathogenic status indication
US8510893B2 (en) 2008-06-20 2013-08-20 Colgate-Palmolive Company Toothbrush with visual and/or other sensory effects
CN102907888B (zh) * 2012-11-06 2014-09-17 大连民族学院 一种牙刷
CN106426820A (zh) * 2016-10-21 2017-02-22 重庆夫日用品有限责任公司 一种制作牙刷标记的方法及带标记的牙刷和标记模具
US11361672B2 (en) 2016-11-14 2022-06-14 Colgate-Palmolive Company Oral care system and method
US11043141B2 (en) 2016-11-14 2021-06-22 Colgate-Palmolive Company Oral care system and method
US11213120B2 (en) 2016-11-14 2022-01-04 Colgate-Palmolive Company Oral care system and method
US10582764B2 (en) 2016-11-14 2020-03-10 Colgate-Palmolive Company Oral care system and method
US10835028B2 (en) 2016-11-14 2020-11-17 Colgate-Palmolive Company Oral care system and method

Citations (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US5340581A (en) * 1991-08-23 1994-08-23 Gillette Canada, Inc. Sustained-release matrices for dental application

Family Cites Families (3)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US123064A (en) * 1872-01-23 Improvement in the manufacture of brushes
US2358464A (en) * 1942-10-08 1944-09-19 Hughes Autograf Brush Company Bristle holder for brushes
US5846607A (en) * 1997-06-30 1998-12-08 Basf Corporation Process for producing customized thermoplastic resins

Patent Citations (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US5340581A (en) * 1991-08-23 1994-08-23 Gillette Canada, Inc. Sustained-release matrices for dental application

Non-Patent Citations (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Title
See also references of WO9947020A1 *

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
AU2894799A (en) 1999-10-11
CN1293547A (zh) 2001-05-02
BR9908774A (pt) 2001-10-02
EP1063906A1 (fr) 2001-01-03
AR018756A1 (es) 2001-12-12
WO1999047020A1 (fr) 1999-09-23

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