GB2301769A - Toothbrush - Google Patents

Abstract

A toothbrush has bristle tufts 6 seperately moveable, upon brushing, against single, resilient rubber membrane 8 whose peripheral rim 9 is held in groove 4, surrounding head recess 3, by resilient plastics retainer 10. The handle is of rigid plastics material, e.g. cellulose acetate proprionate, and the head, which is of reduced thickness to accomodate the membrane, is triangular in shape.

Description

TOOTHBRUSHES This invention relates to toothbrushes and more particularly to an improved mounting for the toothbrush bristles.

A disadvantage of existing toothbrushes is that excessive brushing of the teeth can lead to gum damage with the risk of tooth loss. To avoid such a disadvantage, various toothbrushes have been designed to minimise gum trauma due to excessively hard brushing. The most effective of these incorporates bristle tufts or filaments that are mounted in the brushhead and move on a rubber membrane or steel spring.

The problem with these existing designs is that, to accommodate sufficient movement of the tufts or filaments, the depth of the brush head is excessively thick, which is not only aesthetically unacceptable but can also inflict gum damage.

An aim of the present invention is to provide a toothbrush with an improved bristle mounting with no increase in head thickness.

According to the present invention there is provided a toothbrush comprising a plurality of individually mounted bristle or filament tufts to slide in a toothbrush head, wherein the bases of the tufts are resiliently supported on an elastic membrane without increasing the thickness of the toothbrush head.

Conveniently, the elastic membrane is made of rubber with a peripheral rib which engages in a groove in the toothbrush head. A retaining member may be provided to engage the peripheral rib to hold it in the groove.

An embodiment of the toothbrush will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the back and one end of the toothbrush; and Fig. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary cross-section of the improved toothbrush head.

The toothbrush comprises a handle 1 and a head 2 made of a rigid plastics material, i.e. C.A.P. (Cellulose Acetate Proprionate).

The head 2 is of a generally triangular shape and is moulded with a recess 3 surrounded by a groove 4. The recessed portion 3 has a plurality of drilled holes 5 for receiving tufts 6 of bristles or plastics filaments with bases 7 to retain them in the recess 3.

The back of the toothbrush head is fitted with a rubber membrane 8 with a peripheral rim 9 which seats in the groove 4 and is locked therein by a resilient plastics retaining member 10. The member 10 engages the rim 9 and frictionally engages the inner wall of the recess and the outer wall of the membrane 8 securing it in position.

The thickness 't' of the toothbrush head is of a reduced dimension compared to conventional toothbrush heads and when fitted with the membrane 8 is of a thickness 't+m', which corresponds to that of a conventional toothbrush.

In use, the bristle tufts, on engaging the teeth, are individually displaced so that their bases 7 engage the rubber membrane 8, displacing it to provide a resilient movement of the bristle tufts preventing any injury to the user's gums.

The individual bristle tufts are also displaced to enable adjacent tufts to clean the spaces between the teeth, removing or preventing plaque forming between the teeth.

The reduced size of the toothbrush head prevents injury to the gums while having an aesthetic appearance.

Claims (5)

CLAIMS:

1. A toothbrush comprising a plurality of individually mounted bristle or filament tufts to slide in a toothbrush head, wherein the bases of the tufts are resiliently supported on an elastic membrane without increasing the thickness of the toothbrush head.

2. A toothbrush as claimed in Claim 1, wherein the elastic membrane is made of rubber with a peripheral rib which engages in a groove in the toothbrush head.

3. A toothbrush as claimed in Claim 2, wherein a retaining member is provided to engage the peripheral rib to hold it in the groove.

4. A toothbrush as claimed in Claim 3, wherein the retaining member is made of a resilient plastics material.

5. A toothbrush substantially as hereinbefore described, with reference to and as shown in the accompanying drawings.

5. A toothbrush substantially as hereinbefore described, with reference to and as shown in the accompanying drawings.

Amendments to the claims have been filed as follows CLAIMS: 1. A toothbrush comprising a plurality of individually mounted bristle or filament tufts to slide in a toothbrush head, wherein the bases of the tufts are resiliently supported on a single elastic membrane without increasing the thickness of the toothbrush head.

2. A toothbrush as claimed in Claim 1, wherein the elastic membrane is made of rubber with a peripheral rib which engages in a groove in the toothbrush head.

3. A toothbrush as claimed in Claim 2, wherein a retaining member is provided to engage the peripheral rib to hold it in the groove.

4. A toothbrush as claimed in Claim 3, wherein the retaining member is made of a resilient plastics material.