EP1973441B1 - Resistance heating element for a hair-styling device and a hair-styling device equipped with said resistance heating element - Google Patents

Abstract

A resistance heating element 1 for a hair-styling device comprises a resistance heating wire arrangement, which is held by a support body 2, and also a layer which covers and electrically insulates the heating wire. The resistance heating wire arrangement has at least one heating wire 3. The support body 2 is formed solely by a hollow body which is composed of an electrically insulating, heat-resistant material, and the outside of the resistance heating element 1 is formed by the layer which covers the heating wire 3.

Description

The invention relates to a resistance heating element for a hair styling device with a resistance heating wire arrangement held by a support body, comprising at least one heating wire, and a layer that covers the at least one heating wire, this electrically insulating layer.

Hair styling devices, such as crimpers or curling irons, have hair styling tools to which hair may be formed. With a crimper, these are the hair styling plates arranged on one arm each. In a curling iron is used as a hair-styling tool, the heated rod around which the hair is wound to form a curl. Heat is needed to form the hair. For this reason, the hair styling tools of such hair styling devices are heated. In addition to hair styling devices in which the heat is provided by means of a stream of hot air, such hair styling devices are known in which one or more resistance heating elements are integrated into the respective hair styling tool. These resistance heating elements may be so-called PTC heating elements or those in which the required heat is generated by a Widerstandsheizdraht. PTC heating elements are so-called flat heating elements, which are arranged in an aluminum jacket. The aluminum jacket surrounding the actual heating element serves to distribute the heat across the required surface and transport the heat away from the heating element to the inside of the hair styling tool. Resistance heating elements with a heating wire are used in a similar manner as described above for the PTC heating element. As a heating cartridge or tubular heater such heating elements are typically integrated in an aluminum jacket to distribute the heat generated and transported to the inside of the heated surfaces or the hair-styling tool.

Hair styling devices equipped with such resistance heating elements require a certain time until the heat generated by the heating element is applied to the surface of the hair styling tool to be heated has been transferred or passed. This is due to the aluminum sheath, which is necessary, however, for transferring the heat of the heating element to the hair-styling tool, and must be miterwärmt for this purpose. As a result of the mass heated after reaching the operating temperature, the hair styling tool cools down relatively slowly after switching off the resistance heating element. As a heat-transporting and heat-distributing jacket such is used made of aluminum, not only because of the good heat-conducting properties, but also because of the relatively low specific gravity of aluminum. Finally, the hair styling tool and thus the entire hair styling device should be as light as possible.

Out EP 0 218 797 A2 a hairdressing bar with an electric heater is known. As a resistance heating of this styling a foil heating element is provided. The resistance heating foil is disposed in direct contact with the inside of the tube of the styling bar described in this document. To fix the film heater is a slotted tubular spring element. By the spring element, the outside of the film heating is biased on the inside of the tube of the styling bar. Such an arrangement is required so that the heat generated by the Widerstandsheizdraht the film heating heat dissipated, otherwise there is a risk that the film heater is destroyed. The film heater itself is a planar, flexible component which is to be applied by means of a mounting to the inside of the tube of the styling bar before the desired surface pressure is applied by means of the spring element. Therefore, the assembly of such a resistance heating foil at least, if this is to be used in a serving as a hair-shaping tube, to perform with particular care.

From the GB 2 167 953 A a resistance heating element according to the preamble of claim 1 is known.

Based on the above-discussed prior art, the present invention seeks to further develop such a resistance heating element that in a device, in particular a hair styling device, in which one or more of these resistance heating elements are integrated, not only a faster reaction time with respect to heating and given a cooling but in principle is easy to assemble.

This object is achieved by an aforementioned, generic resistance heating, in which the support body is formed solely by a hollow body consisting of an electrically insulating, heat-resistant material and the outside of the Widerstandsheizelementes by the heating wire covering layer and in which on the outside of the Widerstandsheizelementes a temperature sensor is arranged with respect to the support body internal electrical connection contacts.

This resistance heating element essentially has only the material electrically insulating the heating wires. Therefore, the supporting body carrying the resistance heating wire is formed of such a material. Expediently, this material is a mineral-based material, wherein mica is preferably used as the base material. A metal cladding does not generally have this resistance heating element. It can be provided that the outside of the heating wire-covering electrically insulating layer, which typically also consists of such an aforementioned material, is additionally covered by one or more polyimide film layers, if improved electrical insulation between the Widerstandsheizdraht and the hair styling tool to be heated of the action device is necessary. A polyimide layer may be provided in the form of a thin coating or as a film coating.

The actual support for this resistance heating element forms the tool to be heated itself, for example, the hair styling tool. If this is a curling iron, the resistance heating element is integrated into the tubular curling iron and with its outer side directly adjacent to the inside of the curling iron. Both elements - resistance heating element and curling iron - can be connected to each other, for example by gluing. Thus, this resistance heating element is ultimately carried by the tool to be heated. The typically flexible properties of a mineral based electrically insulating material, especially if it has a mica base, allow the resistance heating element to be readily adapted to the inner contour of a hair styling tool. It is therefore not necessary in principle that the resistance heating element with its outside a fixed predefined and in particular to the Heizelementaufnahme of Tool has adapted contour. Only the circumference of the resistance heating element should correspond to the circumference of the inner circumferential surface of the hair styling tool. The arrangement of the resistance heating element and in particular the Widerstandsheizdrahtes in close proximity to the surface to be heated hair styling tool has the advantage that the heat is generated where it is actually needed and therefore basically heat-distributing and heat-transporting moldings are not needed. This results in a very rapid reaction time, with the desired heat already being available on the hair styling tool almost immediately after the resistance heating element has been switched on. The low heated mass, which is essentially only the mass formed by the heated surface of the hair styling tool, also cools the tool more rapidly. The faster reaction time of the hair styling tool with respect to its heating and cooling not only brings advantages in handling the hair styling device, but also in terms of energy consumption.

The support body for supporting the at least one heating wire of the Widerstandsheizdrahtanordnung is dimensionally stable, in contrast to a film. The support body may have different shapes, for example, be designed as a cylinder tube piece. This has the advantage that the support body or the resistance heating element can simultaneously be carriers for other components, which are then arranged in a defined arrangement to the support body and in particular its Widerstandsheizdrahtanordnung. This concerns, for example, arranging a thermal fuse, which remains due to the dimensionally stable properties of the support body in the same arrangement to a temperature detection, even after the resistance heating element is used on a tool, for example in the tube of a curling iron.

The heating wire can be arranged on the support body in different ways. In particular, if the support body is a ring body, for example a ring cylinder section, the heating wire will be wound around the cylindrical support body.

The formation of the support body as a hollow body further has to Advantage that the required connections for the heating wire and possibly other elements, such as a thermal fuse and / or a sensor element, can be arranged on the inside. Due to the internal contacts, the entire outside of the resistance heating element can be used as a heating surface.

Fig. 1:

eine schematisierte perspektivische Ansicht eines Wider- stands heizelementes für einen Lockenstab als Haarformge- rät,

Fig. 2:

ein schematisierter Längsschnitt durch das in einen Locken- stab integrierte Widerstandheizelement der Figur 1 und

Fig. 3:

einen vergrößerten Ausschnitt der Figur 2.

The invention is described below with reference to an embodiment with reference to the accompanying figures. Show it:

Fig. 1:

1 is a schematic perspective view of a resistance heating element for a hair curling iron as a hair styling appliance;

Fig. 2:

a schematic longitudinal section through the integrated into a curling iron resistance heating of FIG. 1 and

3:

an enlarged section of the FIG. 2 ,

A resistance heating element 1 comprises a support body 2, on which a resistance heating wire 3 is wound in several turns. The resistance heating wire 3 wound around the support body 2 in a plurality of turns represents the resistance heating wire arrangement in the exemplary embodiment shown. The heating wire 3 is covered on the outside by a heat-distributing, electrically insulating layer 4 in the manner of a jacket. The turns of the heating wire 3 on the support body 2 can be seen through the elevations in the layer 4 therethrough. The support body 2 and the outer layer forming layer 4 is a mica-based material, as known for example under the name micanite. The support body 2 consists in the illustrated embodiment of a thin micanite plate in the in FIG. 1 recognizable annular cylindrical shape has been brought before the heating wire 3 has been wound on the outside of the support body 2. The support body 2 thus has a dimensional stability corresponding to the requirements.

The necessary for contacting the heating wire 3 connections are located within the support body 2. For this purpose, the two Ends of the Widerstandsheizdrahtes 3 out through an opening in the interior of the support body 2. The reference numeral 5 is one of the two openings in FIG. 1 characterized by which one end of the resistance heating wire 3 is passed through the support body 2.

On the outside of the resistance heating element 1 is a known temperature sensor 6. The two connecting legs 7, 7 'of the temperature sensor 6 pass through the layer 4 and the support body 2 and are also guided in the interior of the support body 2. Thus, located directly on the outside of the resistance heating element 1, the temperature sensor 6, which then abuts when using the resistance heating element 1 in a tubular object to be heated, such as a curling iron on the inside of the tool to be heated. It is therefore not necessary in the resistance heating element 1 to provide a temperature sensor as its own objective unit and independently of the heating element 1 and to connect electrically. Due to the intended immediate arrangement of the outside of the resistance heating element 1 on the inside of the tool to be heated, the resistance heating element itself can serve as a support for the temperature sensor 6. The contact legs 7, 7 'of the temperature sensor 6 are connected to electrical plug contacts 8, 8'. The plug contacts 8, 8 'protrude in the longitudinal direction of the support body 2 of this and are contacted for connecting the temperature sensor 6 with a complementary mating connector. In the illustrated embodiment, the plug contacts 8, 8 'are fixed to the inner circumferential surface 9 of the support body 2.

On the inner circumferential surface 9 of the support body 2, a holder 10 is further riveted for a known thermal fuse 11. The thermal fuse 11 serves as overheating protection. This is enclosed in a glass silicone sleeve 12th

The arrangement of the relative to the support body 2 internal electrical contacting of the heating wire 3 is in FIG. 2 recognizable. The resistance heating element 1 is inserted in a tube 13 of a curling or styling bar, otherwise not shown, wherein in FIG. 2 only a portion of the tube to be heated 13 of the curling iron shown is. To ensure the necessary electrical insulation 'between the resistance heating element 1 and serving in the illustrated embodiment as a hair-shaping tube 13 three layers of a polyimide film are additionally applied to the outside of the resistance heating element 1. This is dimensioned slightly longer in its longitudinal extent than the length of the support body. 2

The in FIG. 3 shown enlarged section of the FIG. 2 shows the arrangement provided in the immediate vicinity of the inner circumferential surface 14 of the tube 13 of the heating wire 3. The support body 2 and serving as an outer sheath layer 4 are, since they are material identical, as a contiguous body in FIG. 3 played. Thus, it is also in the sheath forming layer 4 is a micanite molding. The micanite molding enhances the dimensional stability of the resistance heating element 1. Dashed lines in this figure, the separation surface between the support body 2 and the layer 4 is shown. The heating wires 3 have been wound on the original outer side of the support body 2 and embedded electrically insulated due to the sheath through the layer 4 in this body forming the support body 2 and layer 4. The wound around the support body 2 heating wire 3 is pressed into the support body 2 and in the outer shell forming layer 4.

The resistance heating wire 3 is spaced apart in the illustrated embodiment, solely by the layer 4 forming the outer jacket of the resistance heating element and the layers of the polyimide films 15 from the inner circumferential surface 14 of the tube 13 to be heated. This means that the path to be covered by the heat generated by the heating wire 3 to the outer surface 16 of the tube 13, is applied to the shaping of hair to be formed hair, to a necessary minimum. This illustration further clarifies that essentially only the tube 13 serving as a hair-shaping tool has to be heated by the heating wire 3 so that the desired heat for making the hair-shaping process is available on its outer circumferential surface 16. The tube 13 thus serves not only as an outer rigid support body for the resistance heating element 1, but also a further heat distribution. Due to the heat distributing Characteristics of the tube 13, the resistance heating element 1 need not extend over the entire length of the tube 13 of the curling iron. Due to the annular cylindrical structure of the resistance heating element 1, this lies with its outer side circumferentially on the inside of the tube 13, so that the tube 13 has on the outside a seen over the circumference same heat distribution.

LIST OF REFERENCE NUMBERS

1

resistance

2

support body

3

resistance heating

4

layer

5

opening

6

temperature sensor

7, 7 '

connecting legs

8, 8 '

plug contacts

9

Inner surface of the support body

10

holder

11

thermal fuse

12

Glass silicone sleeve

13

pipe

14

Inner surface of the pipe

15

Polyimide film

16

Outer lateral surface of the pipe

Claims (9)

1. Resistance heating element for a hair-styling device with a resistance heating wire arrangement held by a support body (2) and comprising at least one heating wire (3), and with a layer (4) covering and electrically insulating the at least one heating wire (3), wherein the support body (2) is formed by a hollow body comprising an electrically insulating heat-resistant material and the outside of the resistance heating element (1) is formed by the layer (4) covering the heating wire (3), characterised in that on the outside of the resistance heating element (1) is arranged a temperature sensor (6) with electrical connection contacts (8, 8') on the inside in relation to the support body (2).
2. Resistance heating element according to claim 1, characterised in that the support body (2) is a ring body, in particular a ring cylinder.
3. Resistance heating element according to claim 1 or 2, characterised in that the electrically insulated heat-resistant material of the support body (2) and of the heating wire cover (4) are a mineral-based material.
4. Resistance heating element according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterised in that the electrical connections for contacting the heating wire (3) are arranged on the inside in relation to the heating body (2).
5. Resistance heating element according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterised in that a thermal fuse (11) is allocated to the resistance heating element (1) and arranged on the inside in relation to the support body (2).
6. Resistance heating element according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterised in that the resistance heating element (1) is arranged with its outside in almost direct contact with a tubular tool to be heated, in particular a hair styling tool (13), with at least one intermediate film layer (15) serving for electrical insulation.
7. Resistance heating element according to claim 6, characterised in that for electrical insulation of the resistance heating element (1) in relation to the tool to be heated, several layers of polyimide film (15) are arranged between the outside of the resistance heating element (1) and the surface of the tool to be heated.
8. Hair-styling device with a heated hair-styling tool (13), characterised in that the hair-styling tool (13) comprises a tube (13) on the outer casing surface (16) of which the hair-styling process is performed, one or more resistance heating elements (1) in said tube (13) are arranged according to any one of claims 1 to 7.
9. Hair styling device according to claim 8, characterised in that the hair styling device is curling tongs.

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