JP2004341071A - Chopsticks holding trainer - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a chopsticks holding trainer by which a correct holding of a pair of chopsticks is properly learned. <P>SOLUTION: The trainer is provided with a pair of chopsticks bodies 10 which have chopsticks tip sections 11 that are used to hold food and a holding section 12 which is held by a hand, guiding sections which are formed to the folding section 12 to guide fingers and a spring member 20 which connects the main bodies 10 and energizes the tip sections 11 to opening directions. The tip sections 11 are formed by wood. Inner sides of the tip sections 11 are formed by flat surfaces and the inner side surfaces of the tip sections 11 are made into projecting and recessing shapes and the outer side surfaces of the tip sections 11 are made flat. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a holding practice chopstick for practicing holding.
[0002]
[Prior art]
The use of chopsticks is very different from the use of spoons and forks, so it is extremely difficult for infants and foreigners who used only spoons and forks to use chopsticks and learn how to hold chopsticks correctly Not easy. In addition, although some people have already used chopsticks on a daily basis, it is not easy for such people to learn how to hold chopsticks correctly.
[0003]
Accordingly, various holding chopsticks have been devised for practicing how to hold the chopsticks correctly. Some of them have a pair of chopsticks which are urged in the opening direction. In such holding practice chopsticks, since the pair of chopsticks is urged in the opening direction, if the force applied to the chopsticks is reduced, the food sandwiched by the chopsticks can be released. Therefore, even a person who is unfamiliar with how to hold chopsticks can first practice the operation of pinching food with chopsticks, which is suitable for practicing how to hold chopsticks correctly.
[0004]
[Patent Document 1]
JP-A-8-146868 [0005]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, the holding practice chopsticks as described above function similarly to tongs and tweezers because the pair of chopsticks are urged in the opening direction. Therefore, if you are unfamiliar with how to hold chopsticks, especially for infants who are going to learn how to hold chopsticks, you will use the same way as tongs, etc. There is a risk of disappearing. In addition, there is a possibility that the user does not know how to hold the chopsticks correctly and learns how to hold the wrong chopsticks.
[0006]
The present invention has been made in view of the above-described circumstances, and has as its object to provide a holding practice chopstick that can satisfactorily learn how to hold a correct chopstick.
[0007]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
The holding practice chopsticks according to the present invention,
"A pair of chopstick bodies having a chopstick tip for sandwiching food and a holding part held by hand,
A guide portion formed on the holding portion for guiding a finger,
And an urging member for connecting the chopstick bodies and urging the chopstick tips in the opening direction. "
Is the main means for solving the above-mentioned problem.
[0008]
Here, the chopstick tip portion and the holding portion constituting the chopstick body may each be formed by separate members, or may be formed integrally by a single member. Good. Further, the guide portion may be any one that guides a finger as a proper way of holding chopsticks, and may be formed by, for example, a concave portion or a convex portion provided on an outer surface of the holding portion. Further, the urging member may be any member that connects the pair of chopstick bodies and urges each chopstick tip in the opening direction, and is formed of an appropriate material such as spring steel, resin, rubber, and wood such as bamboo. do it. The urging member is not limited to being formed of a member separate from the chopstick main body. For example, when the holding portion is formed of resin, the urging member may be integrally formed with a pair of holding portions.
[0009]
In the holding practice chopsticks according to the present invention, if the holding method is such as a tongue or the wrong way of holding the chopsticks, the guide portion that comes into contact with the finger will feel uncomfortable and difficult to use. On the other hand, when used in a correct manner, the finger is guided by the guide portion, so that no discomfort occurs. In addition, the finger imitates the correct holding method by the guide unit. Therefore, the user naturally operates the holding practice chopsticks in a correct manner, and can properly learn the correct manner of holding the chopsticks.
[0010]
The holding practice chopsticks according to the present invention,
"The chopstick tip is formed of wood."
It may be something.
[0011]
Here, as the wood, willow, cedar, bamboo and the like can be adopted. Further, the entire chopstick body including the chopstick tip is not limited to being formed of wood, and at least the chopstick tip of the parts constituting the chopstick body may be formed of wood.
[0012]
Since the chopstick tip is a part that enters the mouth, the mouthfeel can be improved by forming the chopstick tip from wood, which is a natural material. In particular, for infants who practice how to use chopsticks for the first time, if the palatability is poor, they may abandon the practice of chopsticks themselves, so they are suitable as holding practice chopsticks for infants. In addition, in infants, the chopstick tip may be strongly chewed, but by forming the chopstick tip from wood, the chopstick tip can have an appropriate degree of vulnerability, and still damages weak teeth and gums It is also suitable as a practice chopstick for infants to hold because it can prevent such a situation.
[0013]
The holding practice chopsticks according to the present invention,
"The inside of each of the chopstick tips is characterized by being formed by a flat surface."
It may be something.
[0014]
For those who want to learn how to hold the chopsticks correctly, if they do not pinch the food as expected, they may feel irritated and abandon their practice. Such problems are particularly pronounced in infants. Therefore, by forming the inside of the chopstick tip with a flat surface, food can be easily sandwiched, and the above-described problem can be less likely to occur. In addition, for infants, the pleasure of sandwiching food as desired is great, and by making it easier to sandwich food, there is an additional effect such that the practice of holding correct chopsticks can be made to proceed with will.
[0015]
The holding practice chopsticks according to the present invention,
"The inner surface of the chopstick tip is uneven, and the outer surface of the chopstick tip is smooth."
It may be something.
[0016]
Here, in order to make the inner side surface of the chopstick tip uneven, in order to make the shape uneven by providing a ridge, to make the shape uneven by providing a groove, etc., but not limited to this, The surface may be made uneven by providing fine uneven portions such as a file or the like, or may be made uneven by applying a coating material containing fine particles. Further, in order to make the outer surface of the chopstick tip smooth, it is sufficient that the outer surface of the chopstick tip is smooth so as not to cause a great discomfort in the tongue and mouth.
[0017]
By making the inner side surface of the chopstick tip uneven, food can be easily sandwiched, and the same effect as the above-described configuration in which the inside of the chopstick tip is flat can be obtained.
[0018]
By the way, in order to make it easier to sandwich food, the entire surface of the chopstick tip may be uneven, but in this case, the outer face of the chopstick tip is also uneven, so that the tongue when It gives a strange feeling to the touch. In this way, if the tongue or mouth feel is uncomfortable, the infant dislikes the use and cannot actively practice how to hold correct chopsticks. Therefore, while the inner side surface of the chopstick tip portion is made uneven, the outer side surface of the chopstick tip portion is made smooth, so that food can be easily sandwiched, and the tongue and mouth feel are less likely to be uncomfortable. can do.
[0019]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
An embodiment of the holding practice chopsticks according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
[0020]
As shown in FIG. 1 (a), the holding practice chopsticks 1 of the present example includes a pair of chopstick bodies 10, each of which has a chopstick tip 11 for holding food and a holding unit that is held by hand. And a part 12. Further, each holding portion 12 is provided with a guide portion 30 (see FIG. 4) for guiding a finger in a proper way of holding chopsticks. The details of the guide section 30 will be described later. FIG. 1B shows a state in which the holding practice chopstick 1 of this example is held in a hand, and the chopstick tip 11 is slightly closed by applying force to a fingertip.
[0021]
Each chopstick main body 10 is connected by an urging member 20 attached to an end, and the chopstick tip 11 of each chopstick main body 10 is urged in the opening direction by the urging member 20. Here, the biasing member 20 is formed by bending a narrow width spring steel material or the like into a substantially U-shape, and as shown in FIG. In the opening direction, urge to open sufficiently wide at least parallel. Thus, if the force applied to the holding portion 12 is reduced, the food sandwiched between the chopstick tips 11 is reliably released. The urging member 20 is not limited to a narrow spring steel material, but may be a coil spring, a torsion spring, an elastic body made of rubber, resin, or the like.
[0022]
The chopstick tip 11 is made of wood such as bamboo, and has a flat inside surface and a substantially semicircular curved outside surface. As shown in FIG. 2, a plurality of grooves 40 are recessed at appropriate intervals in the inner plane, and the inner surface of the chopstick tip 11 is made uneven by the grooves 40. In addition, as shown in FIG. 3, a fine uneven portion 41 may be provided in a file shape, so that the inner side surface of the chopstick tip 11 may have an uneven shape.
[0023]
On the other hand, as shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, the holding portion 12 has a substantially circular cross section, but is formed in a complicated shape provided with an appropriately shaped guide portion 30. . Therefore, it is preferable that the holding part 12 is injection-molded with resin. In this case, not only the holding portion 12, but also the chopstick tip 11 and the biasing member 20, the entire holding practice chopsticks 1 may be integrally molded of resin, or the chopstick tip 11 and the biasing member 20 may be prepared in advance as a member separate from the holding portion 12, and the holding portion 12 may be injection-molded with resin so that the chopstick tip 11 and the urging member 20 are integrated with the holding portion 12. . Further, when the holding practice chopsticks of the present invention are used for infants, the holding portion 12 is provided at a substantially middle portion of the entire length of each chopstick main body 10 so that food can be securely sandwiched by the force of the infant's hands and fingers. It is preferred to have. In the following, the holding portion 12 of the chopstick main body 10 will be distinguished and described, and for convenience, the holding portion 12 of the chopstick main body 10 located outside for the user will be referred to as an outer holding portion 12a, and the chopstick main body located inside will be described. The ten holding parts 12 are referred to as inner holding parts 12b.
[0024]
Each holding part 12 is provided with a guide part 30 for guiding a finger so that the finger can be attached to the chopstick body 10 in a correct manner. More specifically, as shown in FIG. 4, a guide portion 30a for guiding the index finger, a guide portion 30b for guiding the thumb, and a guide portion 30c for guiding the middle finger are formed in the outer holding portion 12a. ing. The inner holding portion 12b is provided with a guide portion 30d for guiding the middle finger, a guide portion 30e for guiding the thumb, and a guide portion 30f for guiding the ring finger, respectively. Accordingly, as shown in FIG. 1B, if the user holds the holding practice chopsticks 1 of the present example and places his / her finger along the guide section 30, the chopsticks can be held in a correct manner. Although the holding practice chopsticks 1 in this example are for right-handed use, the holding practice chopsticks 1 for left-handed use may be formed by inverting the respective guide portions 30.
[0025]
FIG. 5 shows another example of the holding practice chopsticks 1 of the present invention.
[0026]
In the holding practice chopsticks of this example, the chopstick tip 11 and the holding portion 12 of the chopstick body 10 are integrally formed by a single member. The chopstick body 10 has a substantially rectangular cross section. The outer surface of the chopstick tip is smooth. Each of the chopstick bodies 10 is provided with a guide unit 30 for guiding a finger in a proper way of holding the chopsticks. The configuration of the guide portion 30 is the same as that of the above-described example, and the details are omitted by attaching the same reference numerals.
[0027]
In addition, the pair of chopstick bodies 10 are connected by an urging member 20 attached to the inner surface of the chopstick body 10, and the urging members 20 as shown in FIG. The chopstick tip is urged to open wide enough in the opening direction, parallel or more. Here, in this example, the biasing member 20 is formed of a torsion spring, and both end portions thereof are attached to the inner side surface of the chopstick main body 10 behind the guide portion 30. As described above, the mounting position of the urging member 20 may be on the inner surface of the chopstick main body 10, but is not limited thereto, and may be on the outer surface.
[0028]
In the chopstick main body 10 shown in FIG. 5, although not shown, the inner side surface of the chopstick tip 11 is formed in an uneven shape as in the above-described example.
[0029]
【The invention's effect】
As described in detail above, the holding practice chopsticks according to the present invention include the guide portion, and the guide portion allows the finger to follow the correct holding method. Therefore, the user naturally operates the holding practice chopsticks in a correct manner, and can properly learn the correct manner of holding the chopsticks.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1A is a perspective view showing an open state of a holding practice chopstick according to the present invention, and FIG. 1B is a perspective view showing a state held by a hand.
FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a chopstick tip.
FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing another example of a chopstick tip.
FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a holding portion.
FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing another example of a holding practice chopstick according to the present invention.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF REFERENCE NUMERALS 1 holding chopsticks 10 chopsticks main body 11 chopstick body 11 chopstick tip 12 holding portion 12a outer holding portion 12b inner holding portion 20 urging member 30 guide portion 40 groove 41 uneven portion

Claims (4)

A pair of chopstick bodies having a chopstick tip for sandwiching food, and a holding part held by hand,
A guide portion formed on the holding portion for guiding a finger,
A holding exercise chopstick, comprising: an urging member connecting the chopstick bodies and urging the chopstick tips in an opening direction. The holding chopstick according to claim 1, wherein the chopstick tip is formed of wood. The holding practice chopstick according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the inside of each of the chopstick tips is formed by a flat surface. The holding exercise according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein an inner side surface of the chopstick tip portion has an uneven shape, and an outer side surface of the chopstick tip portion has a smooth shape. chopsticks.

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