Classifications

• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A46—BRUSHWARE
  • A46B—BRUSHES
  • A46B9/00—Arrangements of the bristles in the brush body
  • A46B9/02—Position or arrangement of bristles in relation to surface of the brush body, e.g. inclined, in rows, in groups
  • A46B9/04—Arranged like in or for toothbrushes
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A46—BRUSHWARE
  • A46B—BRUSHES
  • A46B9/00—Arrangements of the bristles in the brush body
  • A46B9/02—Position or arrangement of bristles in relation to surface of the brush body, e.g. inclined, in rows, in groups
  • A46B9/028—Bristle profile, the end of the bristle defining a surface other than a single plane or deviating from a simple geometric form, e.g. cylinder, sphere or cone
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A46—BRUSHWARE
  • A46B—BRUSHES
  • A46B9/00—Arrangements of the bristles in the brush body
  • A46B9/06—Arrangement of mixed bristles or tufts of bristles, e.g. wire, fibre, rubber
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A46—BRUSHWARE
  • A46D—MANUFACTURE OF BRUSHES
  • A46D1/00—Bristles; Selection of materials for bristles
• • 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

Definitions

• the present invention relates to toothbrushes, and, more particularly, to toothbrushes having a combination of bristle types.
• Toothbrushes utilizing various types of bristles are known. However, there is continued desire to provide improved cleaning, whitening, polishing, mouth feel, and/or other benefits.
• Fig. 1 is a side elevational view of a toothbrush made in accordance with the present invention.
• Fig. 2 is a top plan view of a tuft pattern for the head of the toothbrush of Fig. 1.
• Fig. 3 is a top plan view of another tuft pattern for the head of the toothbrush of Fig. 1.
• Fig. 4 is a top plan view of another tuft pattern for the head of the toothbrush of Fig. 1.
• Fig. 5 is a side elevational view of another bristle tuft profile suitable for use with the toothbrush of Fig. 1.
• Fig. 6 is a top plan view of another tuft pattern for the head of the toothbrush of Fig. 1. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
• the toothbrush 20 comprises a handle 22 and a head 24.
• the head has a plurality of bristle tufts.
• the bristle tufts 26 disposed adjacent the free end 28 of the head 24 comprise bristles that comprise a slip agent which reduces the coefficient of friction of the bristle.
• slip agents which can be used are a fluorinated olefin polymer (e.g., poly(tetrafluoroethylene)), boron nitride, molybdenum disulfide, graphites, fullerene and talc.
• the slip agent can be a admixed with the bristle material or can form part of a coating on the bristle.
• the tufts 26 of bristles are arranged in a group 28 at the free end 28 of the head 24.
• An example of one bristle suitable for use in the tufts 26 is described in USPN 2002/0120995.
• Bristle tufts 32 are disposed along the inner portion of the head 24 and can extend from the group of tufts 28 to end of the head 24 that is connected to the handle 22.
• the tufts 28 can be formed from bristles that have a micro or macro non-linear shape or texture associated with the bristles. Examples include crimped bristles, embossed bristles, flagged bristles, and bristles having scales, serrations, projections, pockets, dimples, or ridges about their outer surface.
• Bristle tufts 34 are disposed adjacent the side edges 36 of the toothbrush head 24 and can extend from adjacent tufts 26 substantially along the length of the group of tufts 32. Tufts 34 thus form one or more outer rows of tufts. Tufts 34 can be formed from non- textured bristles as are know in the art. An example of some non-textured bristles are illustrated in USPNs 6,151,745 and 5,926,897. The bristles of tufts 34 can be formed from a thermoplastic elastomer (e.g., natural or artificial rubber) or traditional polymeric materials such as NYLON.
• a thermoplastic elastomer e.g., natural or artificial rubber
• traditional polymeric materials such as NYLON.
• the bristle tufts 34 can also be provided in the form of upstanding elastomeric elements such as described in USPN 6,371,294 and WO 00/76369. It is contemplated that bristle tufts 32 and 34 can be exchanged so that non-textured bristle tufts 34 are disposed along the interior of the head 24 and textured bristle tufts 32 form the outer tuft rows of head 24. It is also contemplated that the bristle tufts 32 and 34 and be intermixed so that both disposed along the interior of the head 24 or both form the outer tuft rows of head 24. As shown in Figs. 3 and 4, the non-textured bristle tufts 34 may wholly or partially encircle the textured tufts 32.
• the textured bristle tufts 32 may extend above the non-textured bristle tufts 34, as seen in Fig. 5, in order to improve the effectiveness of the textured bristle tufts 32.
• the bristle tufts 26 comprising bristles incorporating a slip agent may extend above both the textured bristle tufts 32 and the non- textured tufts 34 as seen in Figs. 1 and 5 for better cleaning.
• the bristle tufts 26 comprising bristles incorporating a slip agent may be provided along the interior of the head 24, as seen in Fig. 6.
• the bristle tufts 26 may wholly or partially fill the interior of the head 26.
• the bristle tufts 26 are shown alternating with rows of non-textured bristle tufts 34.

Landscapes

• Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
• Geometry (AREA)
• Brushes (AREA)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Publications (1)

Family

ID=35709354

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (10)

Families Citing this family (41)

Family Cites Families (12)

• 2005
  • 2005-10-19 JP JP2007535923A patent/JP2008515569A/ja active Pending
  • 2005-10-19 AU AU2005295267A patent/AU2005295267A1/en not_active Abandoned
  • 2005-10-19 BR BRPI0517312-4A patent/BRPI0517312A/pt not_active IP Right Cessation
  • 2005-10-19 EP EP05813091A patent/EP1809141A1/en not_active Withdrawn
  • 2005-10-19 CA CA002584819A patent/CA2584819A1/en not_active Abandoned
  • 2005-10-19 MX MX2007004837A patent/MX2007004837A/es unknown
  • 2005-10-19 RU RU2007118657/12A patent/RU2370193C2/ru not_active IP Right Cessation
  • 2005-10-19 WO PCT/US2005/037587 patent/WO2006044964A1/en active Application Filing
  • 2005-10-19 CN CNA2005800337103A patent/CN101035449A/zh active Pending
  • 2005-10-20 US US11/254,366 patent/US20060080794A1/en not_active Abandoned
• 2009
  • 2009-03-17 RU RU2009109543/12A patent/RU2009109543A/ru not_active Application Discontinuation

Non-Patent Citations (1)

Also Published As

Similar Documents

Legal Events