JP2023037272A - Oral care tool and oral care method - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide an oral care tool and an oral care method capable of simultaneously cleaning the front face and the rear face of a tooth.SOLUTION: The oral care tool according to an invention comprises an oral care tool body wearable on a plurality of fingers of a user, and the oral care tool body comprises a plurality of finger-housing parts with a bottomed-cylindrical shape whose one end is closed while the other end is open.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to an oral care device and an oral care method.

Conventionally, as an oral care tool for cleaning teeth, there is known an oral care tool that has a single finger receiving portion that can accommodate one or more fingers of a user (Patent Document 1).

Japanese Patent Publication No. 2017-500074

However, since conventional oral care tools are provided with only one finger receiving portion, when teeth are cleaned, only either the front surface or the back surface of the teeth can be brushed. Therefore, it is necessary to keep the mouth open for a long time until the teeth cleaning is completed, and it is not suitable for elderly people and infants who find it difficult to keep the mouth open for a long time.

The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object thereof is to provide an oral care tool and an oral care method capable of simultaneously cleaning the front and back surfaces of teeth.

In order to achieve the above object, an oral care device according to the present invention comprises an oral care device body that can be worn on a plurality of fingers of a user, the oral care device body having a closing part at one end and a closing part at the other end. It is characterized by comprising a plurality of bottomed tubular finger housing portions having openings at the ends.

In the oral care tool according to the present invention, it is preferable that the plurality of finger accommodating portions are formed separately on the closing portion side and integrally formed on the opening portion side.

In the oral care device according to the present invention, the oral care device main body may further include a clamping piece provided on the opening side of the finger housing portion and clamped between the user's fingers and palm.

In the oral care tool according to the present invention, it is preferable that the thickness of the portion of the finger accommodating portion covering the palm side of the finger is thinner than the thickness of the portion covering the back side of the finger.

The oral care tool according to the present invention is sandwiched between the upper teeth and lower teeth to be cleaned, and is capable of opening the mouth of the cleaning target to the extent that the user's finger can be inserted into the oral cavity. Auxiliary tools may be further provided.

An oral care method according to the present invention is an oral care method using the above-described oral care device, and includes a step of mounting the oral care device main body on a plurality of fingers of a user, and a cleaning target with the plurality of fingers. and a cleaning step of cleaning the teeth by moving a user's hand in a direction along the teeth while sandwiching the front and back surfaces of the teeth.

The oral cavity care method according to the present invention may further include, before the cleaning step, a cleaning assisting step of sandwiching the above-described cleaning assisting tool between the upper teeth and lower teeth to be cleaned.

Effect of the Invention According to the present invention, it is possible to provide an oral care tool and an oral care method capable of simultaneously cleaning the surfaces of teeth and the back surfaces of teeth.

It is a top view which shows the oral-care tool which concerns on this embodiment. It is a top view which shows the oral-care-instrument main body which concerns on this embodiment. It is a low view which shows the oral-care-instrument main body which concerns on this embodiment. It is a figure which shows the state which made the finger|toe wear the oral-care-tool main body which concerns on this embodiment. It is a figure which shows the usage example of the oral cavity care tool which concerns on this embodiment. It is a figure which shows the usage example of the oral cavity care tool which concerns on this embodiment.

Preferred embodiments for carrying out the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In addition, the following embodiments do not limit the invention according to each claim, and not all combinations of features described in the embodiments are essential for the solution of the invention. . Further, in this embodiment, the scale and dimensions of each component may be exaggerated, and some components may be omitted.

[Overall configuration of oral care equipment]
The oral care tool 1 according to the present invention is used, for example, for cleaning teeth to be cleaned at home or in nursing care facilities. Further, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 6, the oral care device 1 is sandwiched between an oral care device main body 10 that can be worn on a plurality of fingers of a user and upper teeth and lower teeth to be cleaned. and a cleaning aid 20 capable of opening the mouth of the object to be cleaned to such an extent that a person's finger can be inserted into the oral cavity.

In the present embodiment, the oral care tool 1 is described as being used for cleaning teeth, but it is not limited to this, and can be used for purposes other than cleaning teeth, for example, cleaning the oral cavity such as gums and tongue. can also be used. Further, in the present embodiment, the side of the oral care instrument main body 10 on which the closing portion 11a described below is formed is defined as the front side, and the side on which the opening portion 11b described below is formed is defined as the rear side. Furthermore, in the present embodiment, cleaning targets include both the user wearing the oral care device body 10 and the person whose teeth are cleaned by the user.

[Configuration of oral care device body]
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the oral care device main body 10 includes a plurality of finger accommodation portions 11 each capable of accommodating a plurality of fingers of the user, and a pinching piece portion 12 held between the fingers and palm of the user. and The oral care instrument body 10 also includes a first sheet portion 10a covering the back side (upper side) of the user's fingers and a second sheet portion 10b covering the palm side (lower side) of the fingers. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the first sheet portion 10a and the second sheet portion 10b are formed in an elongated shape, and the second sheet portion 10b is longer than the first sheet portion 10a in the longitudinal direction. formed in long lengths. The first sheet portion 10a and the second sheet portion 10b have the same shape and size, except that the second sheet portion 10b is longer than the first sheet portion 10a in the longitudinal direction. .

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the plurality of finger housing portions 11 are formed in a bottomed cylindrical shape having a closing portion 11a at one end and an opening portion 11b at the other end. Specifically, in a state in which the first sheet portion 10a is superimposed on the second sheet portion 10b, the plurality of finger accommodating portions 11 are configured to accommodate the fingers of the user by mutually connecting the peripheral edge portions excluding the opening portion 11b. It is configured to form a hollow space that can be accommodated.

As means for joining the first sheet portion 10a and the second sheet portion 10b, various joining means such as sewing, adhesion, and crimping can be adopted. The portions 10b are joined together by being sutured. Instead of joining the first sheet portion 10a and the second sheet portion 10b together, the first sheet portion 10a and the second sheet portion 10b may be integrally formed from the beginning.

The first sheet portion 10a and the second sheet portion 10b are made of fiber sheets such as gauze. However, the material forming the first sheet portion 10a and the second sheet portion 10b removes dirt and plaque from the teeth between the front or back surface of the tooth and the first sheet portion 10a or the second sheet portion 10b. The type is limited as long as it is a material that can generate sufficient friction and is flexible enough to bend the user's finger attached to the oral care device main body 10. not. For example, natural rubber or synthetic rubber can be used as the material.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the plurality of finger housing portions 11 are formed in a rounded shape from the side edge of the finger housing portion 11 to the closing portion 11a. By forming the finger housing portion 11 in this way, when the finger housing portion 11 is inserted into the oral cavity and comes into contact with the back side of the lips or the mucous membrane, it is possible to prevent pain and discomfort from being given to the object to be cleaned. can do.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the plurality of finger accommodating portions 11 are formed separately on the closing portion 11a side and integrally formed on the opening portion 11b side. Specifically, the plurality of finger accommodating portions 11 are separated on the closing portion 11a side by connecting the first sheet portion 10a and the second sheet portion 10b, which have separated portions and connected portions, to each other. , and the opening 11b side are integrally formed.

In this embodiment, the plurality of finger housing portions 11 are described as being integrally formed on the side of the opening portion 11b. However, the present invention is not limited to this. may be connected at the opening 11b side by means of stitching, adhesion, or the like.

The plurality of finger housing portions 11 are formed so that the thickness of the portion covering the palm side of the fingers is thinner than the thickness of the portion covering the back side of the fingers. Specifically, the thickness of the second sheet portion 10b that covers the palm side of the fingers is formed to be thinner than the thickness of the first sheet portion 10a that covers the back side of the fingers.

Since the thick first sheet portion 10a can reduce the force applied from the finger to the teeth, it is possible to prevent the teeth from being carelessly damaged, and the portions of the teeth to which stains are not adhered can be cleaned. Suitable for From this point of view, the thickness of the first sheet portion 10a is preferably 1 mm or more.

Further, since the thin second sheet portion 10b can transmit the force of the finger to the teeth almost as it is, it is suitable for removing strong stains and plaque adhering to the teeth. On the other hand, the second sheet portion 10b needs to have a sufficient thickness (hardness) to remove hard stains and plaque adhering to the teeth. From this point of view, the thickness of the second sheet portion 10b is preferably 0.5 mm or more and 1 mm or less.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the plurality of finger accommodating portions 11 are formed with different lengths in the longitudinal direction. Further, the plurality of finger accommodation portions 11 are provided adjacently and configured to accommodate adjacent fingers among the fingers of the user. Specifically, two of the plurality of finger housing portions 11 are provided adjacent to each other, and are configured to accommodate two adjacent fingers among the fingers of the user. More specifically, the finger accommodation portion 11 includes an index finger accommodation portion 13 capable of accommodating an index finger and a middle finger accommodation portion 14 capable of accommodating a middle finger.

In the present embodiment, the plurality of finger accommodation portions 11 are configured to accommodate adjacent fingers among the fingers of the user. (For example, a thumb and a middle finger) may be accommodated. Further, in the present embodiment, the plurality of finger housing portions 11 are configured to accommodate two fingers among the fingers of the user. It may be configured to accommodate more than one finger (for example, five fingers). Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the finger housing portion 11 is the index finger housing portion 13 capable of housing the index finger and the middle finger housing portion 14 capable of housing the middle finger. It may be a thumb accommodating portion that can accommodate the thumb, or a ring finger accommodating portion that can accommodate the ring finger. Moreover, the little finger accommodation part which can accommodate a little finger may be used.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the index finger accommodating portion 13 is formed with a length shorter than that of the middle finger accommodating portion 14 in the longitudinal direction. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 2 , the longitudinal length L1 of the index finger accommodation portion 13 (the length from the top portion of the closing portion 11 a to the rear edge of the first sheet portion 10 a ) is equal to the middle finger accommodation portion 14 . It is preferably 90% or less of the longitudinal length L2 (the length from the vertex of the closing portion 11a to the trailing edge of the first sheet portion 10a).

In addition, the longitudinal length L1 of the index finger accommodating portion 13 is long enough to cover the index finger of the user. Specifically, the length L1 in the longitudinal direction of the index finger housing part 13 is preferably 8 cm or more from the viewpoint of covering at least the tip to the base of the index finger so that the finger is not stained by adhesion of saliva or the like. From the viewpoint of further preventing the adhesion of saliva and the like, it is more preferably 10 cm or more.

Furthermore, the length L1 in the longitudinal direction of the index finger accommodation portion 13 is equal to the length L3 in the width direction of the index finger accommodation portion 13 (from the linearly formed portion of one side edge of the index finger accommodation portion 13 to the other side). It is preferably 300% or more of the length up to the straight portion of the side edge).

The length L3 in the width direction of the index finger accommodating portion 13 is preferably 2 cm or more from the viewpoint of increasing the area of the tooth cleaning portion, and is preferably 3 cm or more from the viewpoint of enabling cleaning of a wider range of teeth. It is more preferable to have

The longitudinal length L2 of the middle finger housing portion 14 is long enough to cover the middle finger of the user. Specifically, the length L2 in the longitudinal direction of the middle finger housing portion 14 is preferably 9 cm or more from the viewpoint of covering at least the tip to the base of the middle finger so that the finger does not get dirty due to adhesion of saliva or the like. From the viewpoint of further preventing adhesion of saliva and the like, the length is more preferably 11 cm or more.

Further, the length L2 in the longitudinal direction of the middle finger housing portion 14 is equal to the length L4 in the width direction of the middle finger housing portion 14 (from the linearly formed portion of one side edge of the middle finger housing portion 14 to the other side edge). It is preferably 333% or more of the length of the side edge up to the linearly formed portion).

The length L4 in the width direction of the middle finger housing portion 14 is preferably 2 cm or more from the viewpoint of increasing the area of the tooth cleaning portion, and is preferably 3 cm or more from the viewpoint of enabling cleaning of a wider range of teeth. It is more preferable to have

In the present embodiment, the index finger housing portion 13 is formed with a length shorter than that of the middle finger housing portion 14 from the viewpoint of conforming to the shape of the user's finger. may be formed with a length longer than that of the middle finger housing portion 14, or the index finger housing portion 13 and the middle finger housing portion 14 may be formed with the same length. In addition, the longitudinal length L1 and the widthwise length L3 of the index finger accommodating portion 13 and the longitudinal length L2 and the widthwise length L4 of the middle finger accommodating portion 14 are appropriately determined according to the length of the finger. good to be changed. That is, the oral care instrument main body 10 may be formed with finger accommodating portions 11 of different sizes according to different finger lengths, such as for children, women, and men.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the clamping piece portion 12 is a portion of the second sheet portion 10b that is longer than the first sheet portion 10a in the longitudinal direction. Specifically, the clamping piece portion 12 is a portion of the second sheet portion 10b from a position facing the rear edge of the first sheet portion 10a to the rear edge of the second sheet portion 10b. Moreover, as shown in FIG. 3, the clamping piece portion 12 is a part of the second sheet portion 10b.

The sandwiching piece 12 is formed in a substantially inverted trapezoidal shape narrowed from a position facing the rear edge of the first sheet portion 10a to the rear edge of the second sheet portion 10b in the second sheet portion 10b. Also, the clamping piece portion 12 has a size sufficient for the user to clamp it between the user's thumb and palm.

Specifically, the length L5 in the longitudinal direction of the clamping piece portion 12 (the length from the position facing the rear edge of the first sheet portion 10a to the rear edge of the second sheet portion 10b in the second sheet portion 10b) ) is preferably 3 cm or more from the viewpoint of being held by the user, and more preferably 5 cm or more from the viewpoint of being held more easily.

In addition, the widthwise length L6 (length of the straight line) of the rear edge of the clamping piece 12 is preferably 6 cm or more from the viewpoint of enlarging the surface to be clamped by the user. From the viewpoint of sandwiching, it is more preferably 8 cm or more. The length L6 in the width direction of the rear edge of the clamping piece portion 12 may be the same as the length of the portion of the second sheet portion 10b that faces the rear edge of the first sheet portion 10a.

The outer edge of the holding piece portion 12 is formed thicker than the thickness of the other portions. By being formed in this manner, the thick portion functions as a stopper when the pinching piece portion 12 is pinched by the user, so that it is more effective to prevent the oral care device main body 10 from falling off from the user's fingers. can be effectively prevented.

[Composition of cleaning aid]
The cleaning aid 20 is formed in a substantially columnar shape, and is used for the purpose of making the object to be cleaned bite the peripheral surface portion of the cleaning aid 20 to automatically open the mouth. Therefore, the longer the diameter of the cleaning aid 20, the wider the mouth can be opened. The cleaning aid 20 has a size sufficient to open the mouth to be cleaned by a gap necessary for inserting the user's finger into the oral cavity. Specifically, the length of the diameter of the cleaning aid 20 is preferably 2 cm or more.

From the viewpoint of keeping the mouth wide open, it is preferable that the cleaning aid 20 has such rigidity that it does not deform due to the meshing of the upper teeth and the lower teeth. Moreover, from the viewpoint of repeated use, it is preferable that the cleaning aid 20 has enough durability to withstand multiple uses. Further, the cleaning aid 20 is preferably made of a highly absorbent material (eg, gauze, etc.) from the viewpoint of absorbing saliva secreted from the mouth of the object to be cleaned during cleaning.

[How to use oral care equipment]
Next, an oral care method (teeth cleaning method) using the oral care tool 1 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 4 to 6. FIG. As shown in FIG. 4, the user attaches the oral care instrument body 10 to a plurality of fingers of the user (attachment step). Specifically, the user inserts the index finger into the index finger housing portion 13 through the opening portion 11b, and inserts the middle finger into the middle finger housing portion 14 through the opening portion 11b, thereby allowing the user's index finger and middle finger to move. They are accommodated in the index finger accommodating portion 13 and the middle finger accommodating portion 14, respectively. Also, the pinching piece 12 is pinched between the user's thumb and palm (holding step). As shown in FIG. 5, when the user's index finger and middle finger are accommodated in the index finger accommodation portion 13 and the middle finger accommodation portion 14, respectively, the second sheet portion 10b side of the index finger accommodation portion 13 is positioned on the surface side of the teeth, The teeth are sandwiched so that the first sheet portion 10a side of the middle finger accommodating portion 14 is positioned on the back surface side of the teeth. In this state, by moving the user's hand in the direction along the tooth to be cleaned (in the direction of the arrow shown in FIG. 5), the front and back surfaces of the tooth can be cleaned at the same time (cleaning step). The teeth on the lower side can also be cleaned by a similar operation. The second sheet portion 10b side of the middle finger housing portion 14 may be positioned on the front side of the tooth, and the first sheet portion 10a side of the index finger housing portion 13 may be positioned on the back side of the tooth. Further, the angle of the hand may be appropriately changed in order to clean even the back teeth accurately, or only one of the index finger accommodating portion 13 and the middle finger accommodating portion 14 may be used. The oral care device 1 can be used repeatedly by washing.

Further, a tooth cleaning method using the cleaning aid 20 will be described with reference to FIG. The method of attaching the user's finger to the oral care device main body 10 is as described above. The cleaning aid 20 according to the present embodiment is more effective when used by people who find it difficult to open their mouth for a long time and clean their teeth by themselves, such as the elderly and young children. In addition, by using the cleaning aid 20, it is possible to avoid a situation where the finger inserted into the oral cavity is bitten by an elderly person, a small child, or the like. As shown in FIG. 6, the cleaning aid 20 can be sandwiched (bited) between the upper and lower teeth of the object to be cleaned so that the mouth of the object to be cleaned can be opened wide (cleaning auxiliary step). Then, by inserting the user's finger into the gap created by biting the cleaning aid 20 on the object to be cleaned and moving the user's hand by the method described above, the tooth can be cleaned. The auxiliary cleaning process may be performed before the cleaning process, the auxiliary cleaning process may be performed before the mounting process, or the auxiliary cleaning process may be performed after the mounting process.

[Advantages of oral care equipment according to the present embodiment]
As described above, the oral care device 1 according to this embodiment includes the oral care device main body 10 that can be worn on a plurality of fingers of the user, and the oral care device main body 10 has the closing portion 11a at one end. and a plurality of bottomed cylindrical finger accommodation portions 11 having an opening portion 11b at the other end.

According to such an oral care tool 1, since it has a plurality of finger housings 11, it is possible to simultaneously clean the front surface and the back surface of the teeth. It can greatly reduce the time of tooth cleaning.

In addition, in the oral care tool 1 according to the present embodiment, the closed portion 11a side of the plurality of finger accommodating portions 11 is formed separately, and the opening portion 11b side is integrally formed. According to such an oral care tool 1, since the closed portion 11a side of the plurality of finger accommodating portions 11 is formed separately, it is possible to improve the operability during tooth cleaning.

Furthermore, the oral care device 1 according to the present embodiment further includes a pinching piece portion 12 in which the oral care device main body 10 is provided on the side of the opening 11b of the finger housing portion 11 and held between the user's fingers and palm. there is According to such an oral care device 1, since the holding piece 12 is held between the user's fingers and the palm of the hand, the oral care device main body 10 is fixed to the user's fingers. It is possible to prevent the oral care instrument main body 10 from falling off from the user's finger.

In addition, in the oral cavity care tool 1 according to the present embodiment, the thickness of the portion covering the palm side of the fingers of the finger housing portion 11 is thinner than the thickness of the portion covering the back side of the fingers. According to such an oral care tool 1, it is possible to selectively use thin portions and thick portions depending on the degree of contamination of the teeth, thereby improving convenience during cleaning.

Furthermore, the oral care tool 1 according to the present embodiment is sandwiched between the upper teeth and lower teeth to be cleaned, and can open the mouth to be cleaned to such an extent that the user's finger can be inserted into the oral cavity. is further provided with a cleaning aid 20 capable of According to such an oral care tool 1, it is possible to reduce the burden on the elderly and infants when opening their mouths, and prevent the elderly and infants from biting their fingers inserted into the oral cavity. can do.

[Modification]
In the above-described embodiment, the plurality of finger accommodating portions 11 are formed separately on the closing portion 11a side, and are integrally formed on the opening portion 11b side. Both the portion 11a side and the opening portion 11b side may be integrally formed.

In the above-described embodiment, the oral care instrument main body 10 is provided on the side of the opening 11b of the finger housing portion 11, and is provided with the pinching piece portion 12 that is pinched between the user's fingers and palm. However, it is not limited to this, and a configuration without the holding piece portion 12 may be employed.

Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, the finger housing portion 11 has been described as having a portion covering the palm side of the finger that is thinner than the portion covering the back side of the finger. The thickness of the part covering the back side may be formed thinner than the thickness of the part covering the palm side of the finger, or the thickness of the part covering the palm side of the finger and the thickness of the part covering the back side of the finger may be the same. It may be formed.

In addition, in the above-described embodiment, the cleaning aid 20 has been described as having a substantially cylindrical shape, but it is not limited to this, and may have, for example, a rectangular parallelepiped shape, and the shape is not particularly limited. It's nothing.

It is clear from the description of the scope of claims that modifications such as those described above are included in the scope of the present invention.

1: Oral care tool 10: Oral care tool main body 10a: First sheet part 10b: Second sheet part 11: Finger accommodation part 11a: Closing part 11b: Opening part 12: Clamping piece part 13: Finger accommodation part 14: Middle finger accommodation Part 20: Cleaning aid

Claims (7)

Equipped with an oral care device body that can be worn on multiple fingers of the user,
An oral care device, wherein the oral care device main body includes a plurality of bottomed cylindrical finger housing portions having a closing portion at one end and an opening portion at the other end. The oral care tool according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of finger accommodating portions are formed separately on the closing portion side and integrally formed on the opening portion side. The oral cavity according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the oral cavity care device main body further comprises a clamping piece portion provided on the opening side of the finger accommodating portion and clamped between the user's fingers and palm. care tools. The oral care device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the finger housing part has a thickness of a portion covering the palm side of the finger thinner than a thickness of a portion covering the back side of the finger. The cleaning aid is sandwiched between the upper teeth and lower teeth to be cleaned, and is capable of opening the mouth of the cleaning target to such an extent that the user's finger can be inserted into the oral cavity. The oral care device according to any one of claims 1 to 4. An oral care method using the oral care device according to claim 1,
A mounting step of mounting the oral care device main body on a plurality of fingers of a user;
and a cleaning step of cleaning the teeth by moving a user's hand in a direction along the teeth while holding the front and back surfaces of the teeth to be cleaned between the plurality of fingers. care method. 7. The oral care method according to claim 6, further comprising, before the cleaning step, a cleaning auxiliary step of sandwiching the cleaning aid according to claim 5 between upper teeth and lower teeth to be cleaned.

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