JP2006095138A - Electric toothbrush - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an electric toothbrush which can be produced at a low cost, can brush teeth stably even when the brush is pressed during brushing, and can be further miniaturized. <P>SOLUTION: The electric toothbrush comprises a body case 11, a driving direction converting section 13 housed within the body case 11 for converting a rotational movement of a motor 12 to an axial reciprocating movement of a brush driving shaft 14, and a supporting section for supporting the brush driving shaft 14 reciprocatingly. The driving direction converting section 13 has a driving side gear 12a attached to a driving shaft of the motor, a driven side gear 13b meshed with the driving side gear 12a and having a rotating shaft that crosses the driving shaft of the motor orthogonally, a cam 13c fixed to the driven side gear 13b, and a cam follower 13a engaging with the cam 13c and attached to the brush driving shaft 14. The supporting section is composed of a rear side supporting section 16 having a sliding member 17 fixed to the cam follower 13a and a holding member 18 for holding the sliding member 17, and a front side supporting section 15 fixed to a brush attaching end of the body case 11. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an electric toothbrush in which a toothbrush reciprocates in an axial direction and a rolling bearing mainly suitable for an electric toothbrush.

  Electric toothbrushes are not widely affected by knowledge and proficiency in brushing, and cannot be performed by hand.Electric toothbrushes are effective for preventing dental diseases and can be used for brushing gentle on the gums. Yes. There are several types of electric toothbrushes that move the brush part. Among them, electric toothbrushes that reciprocate the brush part in the axial direction are particularly widely used because of their simple structure and low price. Has been.

  FIG. 13 is a partial cross-sectional view showing an example of the structure of a conventional electric toothbrush that reciprocates a brush portion in the axial direction (for example, Patent Document 1). An electric toothbrush disclosed in Patent Document 1 includes a motor 102, a bevel gear 103b that converts a driving force of the motor 102 into an axial reciprocating motion of the driving shaft 104 via a pinion gear 102a, and a bevel gear. The eccentric cam 103c fixed to 103b, and the support member 110 which supports the cam follower 103a and the drive shaft 104 so that reciprocation is possible are comprised, and the drive system is comprised by these members.

  Since the brush portion is pressed against the teeth when brushing teeth, a force in a direction substantially perpendicular to the reciprocating direction is applied to the drive shaft 104 of the electric toothbrush. In order to brush the teeth smoothly, it is necessary to constrain the force acting in the direction perpendicular to the drive shaft 104.

  FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional view showing the structure of the support member 110 used in the electric toothbrush. The support member 110 includes a cylindrical block-shaped support body 114, a receiving cylinder 120 inside the support body 114, a holding body 116 that holds a bearing 117 inserted into the receiving cylinder 120, and the like. The drive shaft 104 is inserted into the through hole inside the bearing 117. Note that the bearings 117 are disposed on both axial ends of the holding body 116 at a predetermined distance in order to effectively restrain the force in the perpendicular direction acting on the drive shaft 104.

  In the case of the electric toothbrush disclosed in Patent Document 1, the force acting in the direction perpendicular to the drive shaft 104 is constrained by the bearings 117 provided at two positions in the axial direction of the support member 110. The portion is stably pressed against the teeth. The support member 110 shown in FIG. 14 is an example in which the bearings 117 provided at two positions in the axial direction are located in the integrally formed support member 110, but such a configuration is not necessarily required. There is no. For example, the bearings can be arranged at two axial positions with a predetermined distance therebetween.

  The conventional support member as described above has a drawback that the structure is complicated and the number of parts is large, so that the manufacturing cost is high. Furthermore, since two sets of bearings are arranged at a predetermined distance between the driving portion configured by the cam 103a and the like and the brush portion mounting side end portion of the case 101, the electric toothbrush main body portion (of the case 101) is arranged. There is a problem that it is difficult to reduce the size).

As means for solving the above problems, an electric toothbrush has been proposed in which the front end side of the drive shaft is supported by a rolling bearing and the rear end side is supported by a slide bearing (Patent Document 2). The sliding bearing on the rear end side of the electric toothbrush disclosed in Patent Document 2 is supported by a sliding surface provided on the outer surface of the bottom of the cam follower (the side opposite to the portion corresponding to the face gear) and a member that supports the sliding surface. It has been configured. Therefore, only the force acting on the surface where the sliding surface of the bottom surface of the cam follower faces is restricted, and the force in the opposite direction is not restricted. Therefore, there is a drawback that only a force acting in one direction can be constrained.
Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 5-37135 JP-A-3-73105

  The present invention has been made in order to solve the above-described problems, and is an electric toothbrush that is low in manufacturing cost, can be stably brushed even when the brush is pressed at the time of brushing, and can be downsized. An object of the present invention is to provide an inexpensive rolling bearing suitable for a toothbrush.

  In order to solve the above-described problems, an electric toothbrush (1) according to the present invention includes a main body case and a drive housed in the main body case for converting the rotational motion of the motor into the axial reciprocating motion of the brush drive shaft. An electric toothbrush comprising a direction changing portion and a support portion for reciprocally supporting the brush drive shaft, wherein the drive direction changing portion is coupled to the drive shaft of the motor, and the motor A driven gear that has a rotation shaft orthogonal to the drive shaft of the drive gear, meshes with the drive gear, a cam fixed to the eccentric position of the driven gear, and engages with the cam and is coupled to the brush drive shaft. A rear end side support portion including a sliding member fixed to the cam follower and a holding member for slidably holding the sliding member, and a brush for the main body case Fixed to the end of the mounting side It is characterized in that it is constituted by the distal end side supporting portion.

  Further, in the electric toothbrush (2) according to the present invention, in the electric toothbrush (1), the sliding member is a protrusion protruding from the cam follower toward the motor, and the protrusion controls the rotation of the motor. A substantially U-shape having a space portion in which the drive-side gear for transmitting to the cam follower is disposed, facing the motor side, and the holding member being slidably inserted into the protrusion. It is characterized by having a sliding member receiving portion having the inner surface shape.

  In the electric toothbrush (3) according to the present invention, in the electric toothbrush (1), the sliding member is one or more protrusions extending from the cam follower to the motor side, and the periphery of the protrusion or 2 A holding portion for holding the sliding member has a groove portion for slidably holding the plate-like protrusion, and a space portion in which the driving gear is disposed between two or more of the protrusions. It is characterized by.

  In addition, an electric toothbrush (4) according to the present invention includes a main body case, a drive unit including a power unit, a brush drive shaft that is reciprocated at least in the axial direction by the drive unit, and the brush. An electric toothbrush comprising a support portion that reciprocally supports the drive shaft, wherein the support portion is fixed to the main body case with the drive portion interposed therebetween, and a front end side support portion and a rear end side support portion. And the power unit is a vibration motor in which an eccentric weight is coupled to a rotating body, and the vibration motor is fixed to the brush drive shaft via a fixing member so that the rotation surface is along the brush drive shaft. It is characterized by having.

  The electric toothbrush (5) according to the present invention is characterized in that, in the electric toothbrush (4), the vibration motor is a brushless flat vibration motor.

  Further, in the electric toothbrush (6) according to the present invention, in the electric toothbrush (4) or (5), the brush mounting portion of the brush drive shaft includes a hair tip direction of the brush portion and a rotation surface of the vibration motor. It is configured that the brush portion can be mounted by selecting any of the matching relationship and the relationship between the bristle tip direction of the brush portion and the rotation surface of the vibration motor being 90 degrees. .

Further, the rolling bearing (1) according to the present invention is formed of a molded product in which an outer ring of the rolling bearing and a plurality of axially extending retainers formed on the inner side of the outer ring are integrally formed. It is characterized by.
Further, the rolling bearing (2) according to the present invention is the rolling bearing (1), wherein a ball contact portion is provided in a part of an axial direction of the ball loading portion inside the retainer, and the ball contact portions are provided on both sides of the ball contact portion. Is configured to be loaded.

  Further, in the rolling bearing (3) according to the present invention, in the rolling bearing (1), the ball loading portion constituted by the retainer is constituted by two groups of one end side and the other end side in the axial direction, The arrangement angle of the ball loading portion viewed from the center of the rolling bearing is such that the central axis of each ball loading portion belonging to the one end side group and the central axis of each ball loading portion belonging to the other end side group are The one end side group and the other end side group are shifted from each other.

  Moreover, the electric toothbrush (7) which concerns on this invention is comprised in either of the said electric toothbrushes (1)-(3), and the said front end side support part is comprised in either of the said rolling bearings (1)-(3). It is characterized by being.

  Moreover, the electric toothbrush (8) according to the present invention is the electric toothbrush (4) to (6), wherein the front end side support portion and the rear end side support portion are the rolling bearings (1) to ( 3) It is characterized by being comprised by either.

  The “drive side gear coupled to the drive shaft of the motor” described in the electric toothbrush (1) according to the present invention means a pinion gear such as a spur gear or a bevel gear, and the “motor drive shaft” The “driven gear that has a rotation axis orthogonal to the gear and meshes with the driving gear” mainly means a face gear or a bevel gear.

  According to the electric toothbrush (1), the support portion that supports the reciprocating motion of the brush drive shaft includes the sliding member fixed to the cam follower and the holding member that holds the sliding member. And the front end side support portion fixed to the main body case, when the length of the conventional electric toothbrush and the main body case is the same, the front end side support portion and the rear end side support portion The interval can be increased. Further, even if a force opposite to the brush portion acts on the rear end side support portion with the front end side support portion as a fulcrum by the pressing force acting on the brush portion, the action can be reliably restrained. Therefore, the reciprocating motion of the brush portion becomes extremely smooth. Furthermore, since the force received by each support portion is reduced, the reciprocating motion is stably performed and the wear of the sliding portion is reduced. Further, since the structure of the bearing is simple and easy to manufacture as compared with the conventional bearing as shown in FIG. 14, the cost required for manufacturing the support portion can be reduced. Furthermore, the electric toothbrush can be reduced in size by setting the distance between the front end side support portion and the rear end side support portion to the same distance as the conventional electric toothbrush.

  According to the electric toothbrush (2), the sliding member is a protrusion provided on the motor side of the cam follower, and the protrusion includes a space portion in which the driving side gear (pinion gear) is disposed, and the motor In the surface perpendicular to the axis, the holding member is provided with a sliding member receiving portion having a substantially U-shaped inner surface into which the protrusion is slidably inserted. The forces in all directions, which are applied to the sliding member in all directions, can be reliably restrained by the holding member. Therefore, even when force is applied to the brush portion in various directions during brushing, the movement of the brush portion hardly fluctuates. Therefore, the movement of the brush portion becomes even smoother, and a comfortable feeling can be given to the user. Further, since the sliding member is substantially U-shaped, the portion is structurally stable and excellent in strength against a force perpendicular to the drive shaft direction. Further, since the drive side gear (pinion gear) is disposed in the space provided in the sliding member and the holding member, the positional relationship between the drive side gear (pinion gear) and the driven side gear (face gear, etc.) is This is the same as the conventional toothbrush in which the rear end side support portion is not provided. That is, by providing the rear end side support portion, the main body portion of the electric toothbrush is not lengthened.

  According to the electric toothbrush (3), the sliding member fixed to the cam follower is one or more protrusions extending from the cam follower to the motor side, and is driven around the one protrusion or between the two or more protrusions. A space member in which a side gear (pinion gear) is arranged is provided, and the holding member that holds the sliding member has a groove portion that holds the plate-like protrusion so as to be slidable. On the other side, the forces in all directions, which are applied to the sliding member in all directions, are restrained reliably by the holding member. Therefore, even when force in various directions acts on the brush portion during brushing, the movement of the brush portion hardly fluctuates. Therefore, the movement of the brush portion becomes even smoother, and a comfortable feeling can be given to the user. In addition, since the sliding member is one or more protrusions, the sliding member can be lightened, and the sliding operation can be made smoother by reducing the sliding contact area, and the sliding operation can be performed. A space in which the moving member and the holding member are arranged can be more easily secured. Furthermore, since the drive side gear (pinion gear) is located in the space provided in the sliding member and the holding member, the positional relationship between the pinion gear and the driven side gear (face gear) is determined by the rear end side support portion. This is similar to a conventional toothbrush that is not provided. That is, by providing the rear end side support portion, the main body portion of the electric toothbrush is not lengthened. Moreover, in the electric toothbrushes (1) to (3) according to the present invention, the configuration of the rear end side support portion and the holding member can be driven more smoothly by interposing a ball.

  According to the electric toothbrush (4), the vibration motor is fixed to the brush drive shaft, and the support portion includes the front end side support portion and the rear end side support portion fixed to the main body case with the drive portion interposed therebetween. Therefore, a sufficient distance can be ensured between the support portions of both. Furthermore, since the rolling bearing which supports a brush drive shaft can be used for a front end side support part and a rear end side support part, the reciprocating motion of a brush drive shaft can be supported smoothly. Further, the brush drive shaft is stably supported even when the brush portion is pressed and a force in the vertical and horizontal directions perpendicular to the axial direction acts on the rear end side support portion with the front end side support portion as a fulcrum. be able to. That is, an electric toothbrush having a stable operation during brushing can be obtained. Moreover, the electric toothbrush (4) does not require a drive direction conversion unit. Therefore, the front end side support part and the rear end side support part can be disposed in the vicinity of the drive unit. In that case, since the length of the main body can be shortened, the electric toothbrush can be downsized. Furthermore, a mechanism such as a driving direction conversion unit composed of a driven gear (such as a face gear) or a cam is not required. Therefore, the electric toothbrush (4) has the advantages that the structure is simplified and troubles such as failure are less likely to occur, and that the number of parts is small, so that the manufacture is easy and the cost can be reduced. .

  According to the electric toothbrush (5), since the vibration motor is a flat vibration motor, the electric toothbrush can be further downsized. Furthermore, the vibration motor is preferably a brushless flat vibration motor, and in that case, the life of the electric toothbrush can be extended.

  According to the electric toothbrush (6), since the bristles direction of the brush part and the rotation surface of the vibration motor can be selected to be either the same or 90 degrees, the reciprocating motion in the axial direction is applied to the bristles. In addition, lateral movement or vertical movement can be applied. This lateral movement of the hair tip, for example, exhibits a brushing effect that reciprocates between the teeth and gums, and the vertical movement is a depressed part in the oral cavity that is a risk site for dental diseases, interdental part (Corner), plaque removal effect at the cervical part and the pit and fissure part of the occlusal surface is improved, and a massage effect on the gums is also exhibited.

  According to the rolling bearing (1), since the outer ring of the rolling bearing and a plurality of axially extending retainers formed on the inner side of the outer ring are integrally formed, the rolling bearing is Manufacturing cost is low. Therefore, the price of products such as an electric toothbrush using the rolling bearing can be reduced.

  According to the rolling bearing (2), since the ball contact portion is provided in a part in the axial direction of the ball loading portion inside the retainer and the balls are loaded on both sides of the ball contact portion, The length supported by the bearing is increased. Therefore, the drive shaft and the like are stably supported at predetermined intervals in the axial direction, and the reciprocating motion of the drive shaft and the like can be further smoothed.

  According to the rolling bearing (3), the ball loading portion is composed of two groups, one end side and the other end side in the axial direction, and the central axes of the ball loading portions belonging to each group are shifted from each other. The drive shaft and the like can be supported more smoothly and stably.

  According to the electric toothbrush (7) or (8), the front end side support portion or the rear end side support portion in which the rolling bearing is used is a rolling bearing constituted by a molded product in which an outer ring and a retainer are integrally formed. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the cost of the bearing and, in turn, the price of the electric toothbrush.

  Hereinafter, an electric toothbrush according to an embodiment of the present invention will be specifically described with reference to the drawings. In addition, in each drawing, the same code | symbol may be attached | subjected to the part same or the same kind, and the overlapping description may be abbreviate | omitted. In the following description, the drive side gear is described as a pinion gear and the driven side gear is described as a face gear. The face gear described in this specification can be replaced with a bevel gear, and a bevel gear is used as the pinion gear in that case.

  FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing the configuration of the electric toothbrush 10 according to the first embodiment. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing a configuration of a main part on a plane perpendicular to the paper surface of the cross-sectional view shown in FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the configuration of the electric toothbrush 10 shown in FIG. 1 in a plane perpendicular to the axial direction, where (a) is a cross-section taken along line IIIa-IIIa ′ and (b) is a cross-section taken along line IIIb-IIIb ′. FIG. Furthermore, FIG. 4 is a perspective view which shows each member which comprises a drive direction conversion part and a rear-end side support member separately.

  The electric toothbrush 10 includes a main body case 11, a drive direction conversion unit 13 that is housed in the main body case 11 and converts the rotational motion of the motor 12 into reciprocating motion in the axial direction, and reciprocates in the axial direction. A brush drive shaft (hereinafter abbreviated as a drive shaft) 14 to which the portion 19 is mounted, and support portions 15 and 16 that support the drive shaft 14 so as to be capable of reciprocating are provided. The drive direction conversion unit 13 includes a face gear 13b, a cam 13c fixed to the face gear 13b, and a cam follower 13a that converts the rotational movement of the cam 13c into a reciprocating movement of the drive shaft 14. The support portions 15 and 16 include a front end side support portion 15 fixed to the brush mounting side end portion of the main body case 11 shown in FIG. 1, a sliding member 17 provided on the motor 12 side of the cam follower 13a, and The rear end support portion 16 includes a holding member 18 that holds the sliding member 17.

  In addition, the electric toothbrush 10 includes a battery chamber, a switch, a waterproof rubber cover on the front end side of the main body case 11, and the like, and has the same configuration and function as those employed in a general electric toothbrush. Since there are, detailed description is omitted. In the following description, the brush mounting side of the main body case 11 is referred to as the front end side, and the motor 12 side is referred to as the rear end side.

  The movement direction conversion unit 13 includes a cam follower 13a fixed to the rear end of the drive shaft 14, a face gear 13b, and a cam 13c fixed to the face gear 13b. In the conversion of the movement direction, the rotation of the motor 12 perpendicular to the axial direction of the drive shaft 14 is converted into a rotational movement parallel to the axial direction by the pinion gear 12a and the face gear 13b, and the cam fixed to the face gear 13b. 13c and the cam follower 13a are converted into a reciprocating motion in the axial direction. Since the structure of this movement direction conversion part 13 is the same as the mechanism employ | adopted as the conventional electric toothbrush shown in FIG. 13, detailed description is abbreviate | omitted.

  In the electric toothbrush 10 according to the embodiment, the support portion that supports the drive shaft 14 is fixed to the tip end support portion 15 that is fixed to the brush mounting side end portion (front end portion) of the main body case 11 as described above. The rear end side support part 16 provided with the holding member 18 which hold | maintains the sliding member 17 and the sliding member 17 which were provided in the motor 12 side of the outer peripheral part of the cam follower 13a. A rolling bearing used in a conventional electric toothbrush can be used for the front end side support portion 15 fixed to the front side end portion of the main body case 11 among the support portions. For fixing to the main body case 11, a conventionally used method such as a method of fitting and fixing in the bearing holding groove of the main body case 11 can be employed.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the bearing used for the tip side support portion 15 is a guide for the ball 15 a so that the ball 15 a moves and rolls in accordance with the reciprocating motion of the drive shaft 14. A space 15c is preferably provided in the portion (retainer) 15b.

  Of the rear end side support portion 16 provided on the rear side of the main body case 11, the sliding member 17 fixed to the outer peripheral portion of the cam follower 13a is, as shown in FIGS. 1, 2, and 4, the cam follower 13a. Is provided on the outer peripheral surface of the motor 12 side, and has a projection-like form protruding toward the motor 12 side. The protruding portion includes a space portion 17a in which a pinion gear is disposed on the inner side, and has a generally U-shaped shape facing the motor 12 as a whole. The U-shaped outer peripheral surface is provided with an upper groove 17b and a lower groove 17c in which balls are arranged.

  On the other hand, the holding member 18 has a substantially U-shaped inner surface shape so that the sliding member receiving portion 18a is slidably inserted into the substantially U-shaped protruding sliding member 17. In addition, a groove 18c in which the ball 16b is disposed is formed at the bottom. The holding member 18 has a double structure of an inner resin portion 18d and an outer metal portion 18e, and a bent portion 18f that is bent inward is formed at the upper end portion of the metal portion 18e.

  FIG. 3B shows a state where the sliding member 17 is inserted into the holding member 18. The sliding member 17 is fitted to the holding member 18, the ball 16 a is disposed in the upper groove 17 b of the sliding member 17, and the ball 16 b is disposed between the lower groove 17 c and the groove 18 c of the holding member 18. The ball 16a is restrained from moving upward from the upper groove 17b of the sliding member 17 by the bent portion 18f of the holding member 18. That is, the upward force acting on the rear end portion of the drive shaft 14 is suppressed by the bent portion 18f.

  Further, the upper grooves 17b and the lower grooves 17c of the sliding member 17 in which the balls 16a and 16b are arranged and the grooves 18c of the holding member 18 can be moved in the axial direction as in the case of the support member 15. It is preferable that a space is provided in the axial direction so as to allow rolling and sliding.

  For example, the holding member 18 may be formed by integral molding as a part of the internal frame 11a, or may be assembled and fixed to the internal frame 11a.

  The material of the resin portion 18d of the sliding member 17 and the holding member 18 includes polyamide resin such as POM (polyacetal) and nylon, polyester resin such as PBT (polybutylene terephthalate), and polycarbonate resin, which are used for the cam follower 13a. Resins excellent in moldability, wear resistance, impact resistance, mechanical strength, etc., such as phenol resin, ABS resin, and PEEK (polyether ether ketone) are suitable. Moreover, when the sliding member 17 and the cam follower 13a are made of the same material, both can be formed integrally. In addition, you may form the sliding member 17 and the holding member 18 with a metal material. When forming with a metal material, the metal powder injection molding (Metal Injection Molding: MIM) method, the molten metal injection molding method, the powder sintering method, etc. can be used. According to these manufacturing methods, it is possible to form a metal material suitable for a bearing such as stainless steel, iron-nickel alloy, phosphor bronze, brass or the like. Further, by using different combinations of materials for the sliding member 17 and the holding member 18, friction can be reduced and seizure can be prevented.

  As apparent from FIGS. 1, 2, and 3, the pinion gear 12 a is disposed in the space portion 17 a provided in the sliding member 17, and a part of the pinion gear 12 a is interposed between the pair of bent portions 18 f of the holding member 18. The part is at the top. Therefore, the positional relationship between the pinion gear 12a and the face gear 13b is the same as that of a conventional toothbrush in which the rear end side support portion 16 is not provided. That is, by providing the rear end side support part 16, the main body part of the electric toothbrush is not lengthened.

  Regarding the rear end side support portion 16 in the electric toothbrush 10 according to the first embodiment, the example in which the balls 16a and 16b are interposed between the sliding member 17 and the holding member 18 is shown. You may comprise so that a sliding member and a holding member may contact and slide directly, without using 16b. In that case, the grooves 17b, 17c and 18c for accommodating the balls 16a and 16b are omitted, and linear protrusions are provided so as to reduce the friction coefficient, and the sliding member 17 and the holding member 18 It is better to reduce the friction between the two.

  FIG. 5 is a partial cross-sectional view illustrating a configuration of a main part including a drive direction conversion unit of the electric toothbrush 20 according to the second embodiment. 6 is a cross-sectional view in a plane perpendicular to the paper surface of the partial cross-sectional view shown in FIG. 5, and is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view showing the configuration of the main part including the drive direction conversion portion and the rear end side support portion. . Further, FIG. 7 is a perspective view individually showing members constituting the drive direction conversion section and the rear end side support section shown in FIG.

  The electric toothbrush 20 includes a main body case 11, a drive direction conversion unit 13 that is housed in the main body case 11 and converts the rotational movement of the motor 12 into a reciprocating movement in the axial direction, and a driving shaft 14 that reciprocates in the axial direction. , And support portions 15 and 26 that support the drive shaft 14 so as to freely reciprocate. The drive direction conversion unit 13 includes a face gear 13b, a cam 13c fixed to the face gear 13b, and a cam follower 13a that converts the rotational movement of the cam 13c into a reciprocating movement of the drive shaft 14. Further, the support portions 15 and 26 are provided on the front end side support portion 15 fixed to the brush mounting side end portion of the main body case 11 shown in FIG. 1 and the motor 12 side of the outer peripheral portion of the cam follower 13a. The sliding member 27 and the rear end side support portion 26 provided with a holding member 28 for holding the sliding member 27 are configured. 5 shows a cross section passing through the central axis in FIG. 6 and perpendicular to the paper surface, the rear end support portion 26 shown in FIG. 6 is not displayed in FIG.

  Except for the rear end side support portion 26, the overall configuration of the electric toothbrush 20 and the configuration, mechanism, and the like of the movement direction conversion portion 13 are the same as those of the electric toothbrush 10 according to the first embodiment. Is omitted.

  Of the rear end side support portion 26 provided on the rear side of the main body case 11, the sliding members 27 fixed to the outer peripheral portion of the cam follower 13a are arranged at both end portions of the cam follower 13a as shown in FIGS. A plate-like protrusion 27a is attached to the edge, and this protrusion 27a extends from the cam follower 13a to the motor 12 side. The pinion gear 12a of the motor 12 is positioned in the space 27b between the two protrusions 27a.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, the holding member 28 that holds the sliding member 27 is formed with a groove 28 a that holds the protrusion 27 a of the sliding member 27, and further, the pinion of the motor 12. A space 28b where the gear 12a is located is provided. For example, as shown in FIG. 6, the holding member 28 may be formed by integral molding as a part of the inner frame 11a, or may be a structure fixed by being assembled to the inner frame 11a. In addition, the holding member 28 can be assembled together with the inner frame 11a or the holding member 28 alone so that the plate-like protrusions 27a of the sliding member 27 are sandwiched from above and below. Also good. Furthermore, it is preferable that a linear protrusion or the like is provided between the sliding member 27 and the holding member 28 so that the friction coefficient between the sliding member 27 and the holding member 28 is reduced.

  The materials of the sliding member 27 and the holding member 28 include POM (polyacetal) used for the cam follower 13a and the like, polyamide resin such as nylon, polyester resin such as PBT (polybutylene terephthalate), polycarbonate resin, phenol resin, and ABS. Resins excellent in moldability, wear resistance, impact resistance, mechanical strength and the like such as resin and PEEK (polyetheretherketone) are suitable. When the cam follower 13a and the sliding member 27 are made of the same material, they can be formed integrally. Note that the sliding member 27 and the holding member 28 may be formed of a metal material. When forming with a metal material, the metal powder injection molding (Metal Injection Molding: MIM) method, the molten metal injection molding method, the powder sintering method, etc. can be used. According to these manufacturing methods, it is possible to form a metal material suitable for a bearing such as stainless steel, iron-nickel alloy, phosphor bronze, brass or the like. Further, by using different combinations of materials for the sliding member 27 and the holding member 28, friction can be reduced and seizure can be prevented.

  FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing an example in which the sliding member 27 and the holding member 28 are configured by rolling sliding. As shown in FIG. 8, an upper groove 27c and a lower groove (not shown) that are long in the axial direction are formed on the upper and lower sides of the protrusion 27a of the sliding member 27, respectively. By arranging the upper ball 27d and the lower ball (not shown), the reciprocating motion between the sliding member 27 and the holding member 28 can be rolling. In order to reduce wear of the contact surface and improve durability, a plurality of balls may be incorporated in one groove. However, the method of using the ball is not limited to the above method, and other configurations may be adopted as long as the effect of rolling and sliding is obtained.

  6 to 8 show an example in which the sliding member 27 includes a pair of plate-like protrusions 27a. However, the protrusions do not necessarily have to be a pair and are plate-like. There is no need. As long as it can reciprocate between the holding member 28, the shape may be a rod shape, a column shape, a cylindrical shape, or other shapes, and the number may be one or three or more. However, in that case, the groove portion 28a of the holding member 28 also needs to have a shape and number that match the sliding member. Further, when there is one protrusion, it is necessary to provide a space portion 28b around which the pinion gear 12a of the motor 12 is located.

  FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view showing the configuration of the electric toothbrush 30 according to the third embodiment. FIG. 9 (a) is a cross-sectional view in a plane including the central axis, and FIG. 9 (b) is shown in FIG. It is sectional drawing in the IXb-IXb 'line.

  The main part of the electric toothbrush 30 supports the drive unit 33 including the power unit, the drive shaft 34 that reciprocates in the axial direction, and the drive shaft 34 that are accommodated in the main body case 31 and the main body case 31 so as to freely reciprocate. A support portion, that is, a front end side support portion 35 and a rear end side support portion 36 are configured. The support portions 35 and 36 are fixed to the main body case 31 with the drive portion 33 interposed therebetween, the front end side support portion 35 is the brush mounting portion side end portion of the main body case 31, and the rear end side support portion 36 is the power supply portion. 39 is arranged in the vicinity of the boundary with 39.

  FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing a state in which the drive unit 33 is fixed to the drive shaft 34. As shown in FIG. 10, the drive unit 33 includes a vibration motor 37 as a power unit and a vibration motor fixing member (hereinafter abbreviated as a fixing member) 38 that holds the vibration motor 37 and fixes it to the drive shaft 34. The vibration motor 37 is configured so that the rotation surface of the vibration motor 37 (hereinafter, “rotation surface of the vibration motor 37” is abbreviated as “rotation surface”) along the drive shaft 34. It is attached to the drive shaft 34 via. The fixing member 38 includes a gripping portion 38a of the vibration motor 37 and a driving shaft fixing portion 38b. A through hole 38c is formed in the driving shaft fixing portion 38b, and the driving shaft 34 is fitted into the through hole 38c. The drive shaft 34 and the drive unit 33 are fixed. Further, the fixing member 38 and the drive shaft 34 may be fixed by embedded integral molding (insert molding). The material of the fixing member 38 includes POM (polyacetal), polyamide resin such as nylon, polyester resin such as PBT (polybutylene terephthalate), polycarbonate resin, phenol resin, ABS resin, PEEK (polyether ether ketone), etc. Resins excellent in moldability, wear resistance, impact resistance, mechanical strength, etc. are suitable.

  A vibration motor 37 in which an eccentric weight used in the drive unit 33 is coupled to a rotating body is commercially available in a small size and a large amount of vibration. Such a vibration motor is used as a power device for the electric toothbrush 30. be able to. As the vibration motor 37, a motor with an eccentric weight such as a cylindrical case can be used.

  The relationship between the vibration motor 37 and the movement of the drive shaft 34 is as follows. As described above, the drive unit 33 is fixed to the drive shaft 34, and is not directly fixed to the main body case 31, and the energization lead wire for driving is wired so as to move freely. Therefore, the rotational motion of the vibration motor 37 of the drive unit 33 is directly transmitted to the drive shaft 34. Since the vibration of the vibration motor 37 mainly occurs in the rotation direction of the motor, the drive shaft 34 is vibrated in a direction parallel to the flat surface (rotation surface) of the vibration motor 37 in the direction in which the drive shaft 34 is rotated. . The vibration in the direction in which the drive shaft 34 is rotated mainly includes vibration that causes the drive shaft 34 to reciprocate (vibration in the left-right direction in FIGS. 9 and 10) and the entire main body stored in the main body case 31. On the other hand, it is converted into vibration in a direction perpendicular to the plane (vibration parallel to the flat surface of the vibration motor in FIGS. 9 and 10 and perpendicular to the axis).

  Of these two motions, the reciprocating motion in the axial direction is supported by the support portions 35 and 36 so as to be freely reciprocated, and thus is transmitted to the brush portion 19 as it is. On the other hand, vibration in a direction perpendicular to the axis is transmitted to the entire main body having a large mass, so that it appears to be constrained. Therefore, the reciprocating motion in the axial direction appears as a larger motion. These two directions of motion are transmitted to the brush part 19, and the brushing effect is exhibited. The protrusion 31b provided on the inner frame 31a shown in FIG. 9 is a stopper that prevents the drive unit 33 from moving forward, and the protrusion 31b is a stopper that prevents the drive unit 33 from moving backward. It is. With these stoppers, the drive unit 33, that is, the flocked portion 19a of the brush portion 19 can be reciprocated within a predetermined range. The fixing member 38 also has a function of preventing rotation around the drive shaft 34 when a part of the fixing member 38 hits the inner frame 31a.

  Here, depending on the relationship between the direction of the hair tip 19a of the brush portion 19 and the rotation surface of the vibration motor 37, the movement generated in the hair transplant portion 19a is as follows. When the hair tip direction is perpendicular to the rotation surface, the replanted portion 19a undergoes two reciprocating motions in the axial direction and two motions perpendicular to the hair tip direction and perpendicular to the shaft (lateral direction). On the other hand, when the hair tip direction is parallel to the rotation surface, two movements in the axial direction and the hair tip direction (longitudinal direction) are generated in the flocked portion 19a. The lateral movement of the hair tip, for example, exhibits a brushing effect that reciprocates between the teeth and gums, and the vertical movement is a depressed part in the oral cavity that is a risk site for dental diseases, interdental part ( (Corner corner), tooth neck, occlusal crevicular groove removal effect on plaque is improved and massage effect on gums is exhibited.

  As described above, a different brushing effect can be obtained depending on the relationship between the direction of the hair tips of the flocked portion 19a and the rotation surface. Therefore, it is preferable that the brush portion 19 is configured so that it can be mounted by changing the angle by 90 degrees and either direction can be selected and used. For that purpose, the notch portion provided in the brush mounting portion of the drive shaft 34 has two surfaces that are in an angle relationship of 90 degrees with each other, or the mounting portion on the brush portion 19 side can be mounted by changing 90 degrees. Any one of them may be used. In addition, instead of changing the orientation of mounting the brush portion 19 as described above, the electric toothbrush in which the bristles direction and the rotation surface are in a 90-degree relationship, and the electric toothbrush in which the bristles direction and the rotation surface are in a parallel relationship It is good also as these two types.

  9 and 10 illustrate an example of a rolling bearing as the rear end side support portion 36, the rear end side support portion 36 does not necessarily need to be a rolling bearing. It is good also as a sliding-type support part comprised by the sliding member and holding member which were illustrated to Embodiment 1 and 2. FIG.

  FIG. 11 is a view showing a rolling bearing 40 according to an embodiment, which is mainly suitable for the electric toothbrushes 10, 20, and 30 according to the first to third embodiments and can be used for a more general mechanical device. (A) is a front view seen from the axial direction, (b) is a cross-sectional view taken along line XIb-XIb ′ shown in (a), and (c) shows a molded product 44 in which an outer ring and a retainer are integrally molded. It is a perspective view.

  The rolling bearing 40 includes an outer ring 41, a retainer 42, and a ball 43. As shown in FIG. 11 (b), the ball loading portion 45 has a ball contact for preventing the ball 43 from falling off. A portion 41a is provided. As shown in FIGS. 11A and 11B, the rolling bearing 40 includes an outer ring 41 and a plurality of axially extending retainers 42 formed inside the outer ring 41.

  Further, in this molded product 44, the retainer 42 is formed between both end faces of the outer ring 41 in the central axis direction of the bearing 40, and the ball contact portion 41 a is located inside the end face of the outer ring 41, at an intermediate portion between both end faces. It is possible to arrange so that. By disposing the ball contact portion 41a in this way, the movable distance of the ball 43 can be limited to a predetermined range. In this case, it is also possible to adopt a type in which the balls 43 are loaded on both end sides with the ball contact portion 41a interposed therebetween. In this type, since the length of the drive shafts 14 and 34 supported by the rolling bearing 40 is increased, the drive shafts 14 and 34 are stably supported at predetermined intervals in the axial direction, and the drive shafts 14 and 34 are reciprocated. The movement can be made even smoother.

  In addition, although the example which provided the space part 46 between the adjacent retainers 42 was shown in FIG. 11, the space part 46 is provided as needed and is not necessarily required.

  12A and 12B are diagrams showing a molded product 54 of a rolling bearing 50 according to another embodiment, wherein FIG. 12A is a schematic front view, and FIG. 12B is a schematic view taken along line XIIb-XIIb ′ shown in FIG. FIG. It should be noted that the balls are not shown for easy understanding of the drawings.

  The retainer 52 is composed of two groups, a group of retainers 52a on one end side in the axial direction and a group of retainers 52b on the other end side. A ball loading portion 55a is formed by the retainer 52a, and a ball loading portion 52b is formed by the retainer 52b. Further, the arrangement angle of the ball loading portion 52b viewed from the center of the rolling bearing 50 is such that the central axis of each ball loading portion 55a belonging to the one end side group and the central axis of each ball loading portion 55b belonging to the other end side group. Are shifted from each other between the one end side group and the other end side group.

  In the case of the molded product 54 shown in FIG. 12, as shown in FIG. 12 (a), the number of ball loading portions 55a and 55b in each group is four, and each ball loading in each group. The portions 55a and 55b are arranged at an interval of 90 ° with respect to the central axis of the rolling bearing 50 (the central axis of the molded product 54). Further, the central axis of the ball loading portion 55 a of the one end side group and the central axis of the ball loading portion 55 b of the other end group are offset from each other by 45 ° with respect to the central axis of the rolling bearing 50. The deviation of the central axis is preferably an angle that is ½ of the angle difference between the ball loading portions of the ball loading portions 55a or 55b of the group on one side.

  When the ball loading portions 55a and 55b are divided into two groups in the axial direction as described above, and the ball loading portions 55a and 55b of each group are arranged with their center axes shifted from each other, bearings By 50, the drive shafts 14 and 34 can be supported more stably. When the ball loading units are divided into two groups, the central axes of the ball loading units 55a and 55b are not necessarily shifted from each other. Even in this case, the drive shafts 14 and 34 can be supported sufficiently stably.

  The molded products 44 and 54 according to the above-described embodiment are formed of engineering plastic or a metal material. For the molding of the molded product 44, in the case of engineering plastics, a plastic injection method usually employed, in the case of metal materials, a metal injection molding (MIM) method, a molten metal injection molding method, powder firing A ligation method can be used. Among these, the MIM method is suitable for manufacturing a small part having a complicated shape, and a molded product is manufactured by a method of using metal powder as a raw material and sintering after injection molding.

  In the case of these manufacturing methods, it is possible to form a metal material suitable for a bearing such as stainless steel, iron-nickel alloy, phosphor bronze, brass or the like. In addition, as plastic materials, POM (polyacetal), polyamide resin such as nylon, polyester resin such as PBT (polybutylene terephthalate), polycarbonate resin, phenol resin, ABS resin, PEEK (polyether ether ketone) moldability, Resins with excellent wear resistance, impact resistance, mechanical strength, etc. are suitable.

  A normal rolling bearing is manufactured by a method in which an outer ring and a retainer are manufactured separately and then assembled together with balls. On the other hand, in the case of the rolling bearings 40 and 50, the outer ring 41 and the retainer 42 or the outer ring 51 and the retainer 52 are integrated, so that the bearings 40 and 50 can be manufactured at a low cost. There is.

  The rolling bearings 40 and 50 can be used as bearings for general mechanical devices, but are particularly suitable for the electric toothbrushes 10, 20, and 30, and when mounted on the electric toothbrushes 10, 20, and 30, By providing positioning projections or the like on the end faces of the outer rings 41 and 51 and allowing the rolling bearings 40 and 50 to be mounted at preset installation positions in the main body cases 11 and 31, two pressures caused by brushing can be applied. You can also try to catch it with a ball. In addition, it is preferable to provide a hook (contact) portion for preventing the ball from coming out on the holder side to be mounted. Further, the retainers 42 and 52 may be provided with a small protrusion (undercut portion) in a part of the opening when the ball is mounted, and a function of preventing the drop when the ball is mounted may be added.

  The rolling bearings 40 and 50 are the front end side support portion 15 in the electric toothbrushes 10 and 20 according to the first and second embodiments, and the front end side support portion 35 and the rear end side support portion 36 in the electric toothbrush 30 according to the third embodiment. Can be applied to. In addition, it can be used as a bearing for a generally used electric toothbrush. Further, as described above, it can be used as a bearing for a general mechanical device other than an electric toothbrush.

  The drive mechanism including the bearing according to the present invention can be applied to other oral cleaning devices such as an electric interdental cleaner and tongue coating cleaner.

1 is a cross-sectional view showing a configuration of an electric toothbrush according to a first embodiment. It is sectional drawing which shows the structure of the principal part in the surface perpendicular | vertical to the paper surface of sectional drawing shown in FIG. It is a figure which shows the structure in the surface orthogonal to the axial direction of the electric toothbrush shown in FIG. 1, (a) is a IIIa-IIIa 'line, (b) is sectional drawing in a IIIb-IIIb' line. It is a perspective view which shows each member which comprises a drive direction conversion part and a rear-end side support member separately. It is sectional drawing which shows the structure of the principal part containing the drive direction conversion part of the electric toothbrush which concerns on Embodiment 2. FIG. FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view taken along a plane perpendicular to the paper surface of the cross-sectional view shown in FIG. It is a perspective view which shows individually the member which comprises the drive direction conversion part and rear-end side support part which were shown in FIG. It is a perspective view which shows the example which uses a ball | bowl for a rear-end side support part. It is sectional drawing which shows the structure of the electric toothbrush which concerns on Embodiment 3, (a) is sectional drawing in the surface containing a central axis, The same figure (b) is sectional drawing in the IXb-IXb 'line shown to (a). FIG. FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing a state in which a drive unit in the electric toothbrush shown in FIG. 9 is fixed to a drive shaft. It is a figure which is suitable for the electric toothbrush mainly concerning Embodiment 1-3, and can be used for a more general mechanical apparatus, and is a figure which shows the rolling bearing which concerns on Embodiment, (a) is the front seen from the axial direction FIG. 4B is a cross-sectional view taken along line XIb-XIb ′ shown in FIG. 4A, and FIG. 4C is a perspective view showing a molded product in which an outer ring and a retainer are integrally formed. It is a figure which shows the molded product of the rolling bearing which concerns on another embodiment, (a) is a typical front view, (b) is typical sectional drawing in the XIIb-XIIb 'line shown to (a). It is a fragmentary sectional view which shows an example of the structure of the conventional electric toothbrush which makes a toothbrush reciprocate to an axial direction. It is sectional drawing which shows the structure of the supporting member used for the electric toothbrush shown in FIG.

Explanation of symbols

10, 20, 30 Electric toothbrush 11, 31 Main body case 12 Motor 12a Pinion gear 13 Movement direction conversion portion 13a Cam follower 13b Face gear 13c Cam 14, 34 Drive shaft 15, 35 Front end support portions 16, 26, 36 Rear end support Parts 17, 27 sliding member 18, 28 holding member 19 brush part 32 driving part 37 vibration motor 38 vibration motor fixing member 40, 50 rolling bearing 41, 51 outer ring 42, 52 retainer 44, 54 molded product

Claims (11)

A main body case, a driving direction conversion portion that is housed in the main body case and converts the rotational motion of the motor into an axial reciprocating motion of the brush driving shaft, and a support portion that supports the brush driving shaft in a freely reciprocating manner. Electric toothbrush,
A drive-side gear coupled to the drive shaft of the motor; a driven-side gear having a rotating shaft orthogonal to the drive shaft of the motor; and the driven-side gear meshing with the drive-side gear; A cam fixed to the eccentric position, and a cam follower engaged with the cam and coupled to the brush drive shaft,
The support portion is fixed to a rear end side support portion provided with a sliding member fixed to the cam follower and a holding member for slidably holding the sliding member, and a brush mounting side end portion of the main body case. An electric toothbrush comprising a distal end side support portion. The sliding member is a protrusion protruding from the cam follower toward the motor;
The protrusion is provided with a space in which the drive side gear for transmitting the rotation of the motor to the cam follower is disposed, and has a substantially U shape facing the motor side.
The electric toothbrush according to claim 1, wherein the holding member includes a sliding member receiving portion having a substantially U-shaped inner surface into which the protrusion is slidably inserted. The sliding member is one or more protrusions extending from the cam follower toward the motor, and includes a space in which the driving side gear is arranged around one protrusion or between two or more protrusions;
2. The electric toothbrush according to claim 1, wherein the holding member that holds the sliding member includes a groove portion that holds the plate-like protrusion in a slidable manner. A main body case, a drive unit including a power unit, a brush drive shaft that reciprocates at least in the axial direction by the drive unit, and a support unit that reciprocally supports the brush drive shaft. An electric toothbrush provided,
The support part includes a front end side support part and a rear end side support part fixed to the main body case with the drive part interposed therebetween,
The power unit is a vibration motor in which an eccentric weight is coupled to a rotating body;
An electric toothbrush characterized in that the vibration motor is fixed to the brush drive shaft via a fixing member so that the rotation surface is along the brush drive shaft.   The electric toothbrush according to claim 4, wherein the vibration motor is a flat vibration motor.   The brush mounting portion of the brush drive shaft has a relationship in which the hair tip direction of the brush portion and the rotation surface of the vibration motor coincide with each other, and the relationship between the hair tip direction of the brush portion and the rotation surface of the vibration motor is 90 degrees. 6. The electric toothbrush according to claim 4, wherein the electric toothbrush is configured so that the brush portion can be mounted by selecting any one of the brushes.   A rolling bearing comprising: an outer ring of the rolling bearing and a plurality of axially formed retainers formed on the inner side of the outer ring, which are integrally formed.   8. The structure according to claim 7, wherein a ball contact portion is provided in a part of an axial direction of the ball loading portion inside the retainer, and the balls are loaded on both sides of the ball contact portion. Rolling bearing.   The ball loading portion constituted by the retainer is composed of two groups of one end side and the other end side in the axial direction, and the arrangement angle of the ball loading portion viewed from the center of the rolling bearing is in the group on the one end side. The center axis of each ball loading unit belonging to the center axis of each ball loading unit belonging to the other end group is shifted from each other between the one end side group and the other end side group. 8. A rolling bearing according to claim 7, wherein   The electric toothbrush according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the tip side support portion is configured by the rolling bearing according to any one of claims 7 to 9.   The said front end side support part and the said rear end side support part are comprised by the rolling bearing as described in any one of Claims 7-9, The claim in any one of Claims 4-6 characterized by the above-mentioned. The electric toothbrush described.

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