JP3333827B2 - toothbrush - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a toothbrush suitable for brushing the inside of the mouth.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in a toothbrush in which a flocked pedestal is supported by a grip portion via a neck portion, as described in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 5-15411, the neck portion is elongated and the flocked pedestal is made small, so that the intraoral area is reduced. There has been proposed a device capable of cleaning all corners of the image. This is to reduce the size of the neck and flocked pedestal that enter the mouth when brushing, so that those necks and flocked pedestals are less likely to hit the lips, front teeth, gums, etc., so that they do not feel a foreign object feeling during use. It is.

[0003]

However, in the prior art, if the neck portion is excessively narrowed, the natural frequency of the neck portion and the flocking base become excessively low, resulting in poor responsiveness in use. That is, when the natural frequency of the neck and the flocking base is excessively small, the amplitude magnification of the vibration generated in the neck and the flocking base due to the unevenness of the tooth row at the time of brushing becomes large, and the mouth becomes violent.

That is, according to the research results of the present inventor, at the time of brushing, irregular vibration of the tooth row causes forced vibration at the neck and the flocking base, A: amplitude of forced vibration, Ast: static deflection, A: / Ast: Amplitude magnification ω: Frequency of forced vibration, ωn: Natural frequency of neck and flocking pedestal, ω / ωn: Assuming vibration ratio, amplitude ratio = 1 when vibration ratio = 0, good response Vibration ratio = When it is 1, the amplitude magnification becomes ∞, and the response is the worst (resonance phenomenon). Then, the decrease in ωn → the increase in the vibration ratio → the increase in the amplitude magnification → the violence in the oral cavity (poor responsiveness) The increase in ωn → the decrease in the vibration ratio → the decrease in the amplitude magnification → the suppression of the violence in the oral cavity (good responsiveness) ).

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a toothbrush which does not have a foreign body sensation in the oral cavity, has a good responsiveness of the flocking base to an operation applied to the grip portion, and is excellent in usability.

[0006]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a toothbrush having a bristle supporting base supported by a grip portion via a neck, wherein a neck portion at a position 45 mm from a tip of the flocking base has a width. And the thickness is 5.8 mm or less, and the natural frequencies of the neck and the flocking base are both 120 Hz or more in both the longitudinal vibration in the thickness direction and the transverse vibration in the width direction.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the present invention, the neck portion has a tapered shape tapering toward the flocking base at least in a width dimension. It was made.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the second aspect of the present invention, the width of the neck portion is 5.5 to 6.5 mm at a position 65 to 75 mm from the tip of the flocking base. mm
The width at the connection with the flocking base is 4.0 to 5.0 mm, and the middle between them is tapered, and the thickness of the neck portion is 65 to 75 mm from the tip of the flocking base.
5.0 to 6.0mm, thickness at the connection with flocking pedestal 3.5 to 4.
5 mm, and the middle between them is tapered.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the second or third aspect of the present invention, the flocking base has a length of 20.5 to 21.5 mm, a width of 10.5 to 11.5 mm, and a tip end surface. Width 2.
0 to 3.0 mm plane, from the tip face and the tip face
The area between 4.5 and 5.0 mm is an arc surface.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the fourth aspect of the present invention, the flocking base further has a thickness of 5.5 m.
m or less.

[0011]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the following effects are obtained. The position of 45 mm from the tip of the flocked pedestal at the neck is a portion corresponding to the front teeth when the flocked pedestal is inserted to the back teeth in a general intraoral size of a person. Since the neck portion at this position has a small diameter of 5.8 mm or less in both width and thickness, it does not give a foreign-body sensation when used in the oral cavity.

Since the natural frequency of the neck and the flocking base is set to 120 Hz or more for both the longitudinal vibration in the thickness direction and the transverse vibration in the width direction, the amplitude of the vibration generated in the neck and the flocking pedestal due to the unevenness of the teeth at the time of brushing. Magnification can be kept small, responsiveness is improved, and the oral cavity does not violate.

In the present invention, if the thickness of the neck portion is simply reduced, the natural frequency of the neck portion and the flocking base are reduced and the user feels worse. Therefore, the neck thickness is reduced while the natural frequency is set to 120 Hz or more. The thickness was reduced to 5.8 mm or less.

As described above, a toothbrush which does not have a foreign body sensation in the mouth, has a good responsiveness of the flocking base to the operation applied to the grip portion, and has an excellent usability is easy to brush.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, the following operations are provided. By making the neck part taper toward the flocking base, it is possible to make it harder to hit the front teeth when brushing the back teeth. In addition, the neck is most likely to hit the front teeth when polishing the inner surface of the back teeth, and the toothbrush posture when polishing the inner surfaces of the back teeth is directed to the width direction in the vertical direction in the oral cavity. It is particularly meaningful to adopt it in the width dimension.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, the following effects are obtained. 65-75 from the tip of the flocking base as the width of the neck thickness
The width at the position of mm is 5.5 to 6.5 mm, the width at the connection with the flocking base is 4.0 to 5.0 mm, and the middle between them is tapered. In addition, the thickness of the neck part shall be 5.0 to 6.0 mm at a position 65 to 75 mm from the tip of the flocking pedestal, 3.5 to 4.5 mm at the connection with the flocking pedestal, and the middle between them shall be tapered. State. Thus, (a) the neck hardly touches the teeth when brushing the inside of the teeth, and (b) the neck hardly hits the lips when brushing any part of the teeth.

According to the present invention, there is provided the following operation. Flocked pedestal, length 20.5-21.5mm, width 10.5-11.5mm
When the tip surface is a flat surface having a width of 2.0 to 3.0 mm and the arc surface between the tip surface and a position 4.5 to 5.0 mm from the tip surface at the side surface, the tip surface of the flocking base is polished at the time of polishing the side surface of the back tooth. The circumference hardly hits the gums and does not give a feeling of foreign matter during use.

According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, the following operations are provided. By setting the thickness of the flocking base to 5.5 mm or less, (a)
The opening of the chin can be reduced when polishing the occlusal surface of the posterior teeth, and (b) the pressure on the cheeks can be reduced when polishing the outer surface of the posterior teeth, so that a foreign body sensation during use is not felt.

[0019]

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG.
1 is a side view of FIG. 1, FIG. 3 is a schematic view showing a flocking base, FIG. 4 is a schematic view showing a natural frequency measuring device, FIG. 5 is an explanatory view showing an example of the present invention and a comparative example, and FIG. FIG. 7 is an explanatory view showing a natural frequency measurement result of the toothbrush neck, FIG. 7 is an explanatory view showing foreign-body sensation evaluation, FIG. 8 is an explanatory view showing responsiveness evaluation, FIG. 9 is an explanatory view showing easiness of polishing, and FIG. It is a chart which shows the comprehensive evaluation of this invention example and a comparative example.

The toothbrush 10 is made of a synthetic resin such as polypropylene, nylon 6, or the like, and supports the flocking base 13 on the grip 11 via the neck 12. Bristle (not shown) is implanted in the flocking pedestal 13. The gripper 11 is attached to the neck 12
Is provided on the side of the connecting portion with the thumb.

However, the toothbrush 10 determines the dimensions of the neck portion 12 and the flocking base 13 and the natural frequencies of the neck portion 12 and the flocking base 13 as follows. (A) Dimensions of Neck 12 (FIGS. 1 to 3) The thickness of the neck 12 at a position 45 mm from the tip end surface 13A of the flocking base 13 is 5.8 mm or less for both the width A0 and the thickness B0 (more preferably 5.5 mm or less). ).

Further, the thickness of the neck portion 12 is tapered in at least the width dimension toward the flocking base 13 side.

More specifically, the width of the neck portion 12 is set such that the distance L from the tip end surface 13A of the flocking base 13 is 65.
The width A1 at a position of about 75 mm (69.03 mm in this embodiment) is 5.
5 to 6.5 mm (most preferably 6.28 mm), and the width A2 at the connection with the flocking base 13 is 4.0 to 5.0 mm (most preferably 4.62 m).
m), and the middle between them is preferably tapered.

Further, specifically, the thickness of the neck portion 12 is set such that the distance L from the tip end surface 13A of the flocking base 13 is 65 mm.
The thickness D1 at a position of about 75 mm (69.03 mm in this embodiment) is
5.0 to 6.0 mm (most preferably 5.44 mm) and the thickness B2 at the connection with the flocking base 13 is 3.5 to 4.5 mm (most preferably 3.9 mm).
7 mm), and the middle between them is preferably tapered.

(B) Dimensions of the flocking base 13 (FIGS. 1 to 3) The length C of the flocking base 13 is 20.5 to 21.5 mm (most preferably 20.5 to 21.5 mm).
1.17mm), width D is 10.5-11.5mm (most preferably 11.2m)
m), the tip surface 13A is a flat surface having a width of E2.0 to 3.0 mm, and the distance K from the tip surface to the tip surface and the side surface is 4.5 to 5.5 mm.
(Most preferably 5.0mm) between the position of R3mm and R15m
The arc surface is formed by connecting arcs having three radii of curvature of m and R5 mm.

The flocking base 13 has a thickness F of 5.5 mm or less. Specifically, the thickness F1 on the tip end side of the flocking base 13 is 5 mm, and the thickness F2 on the connection side with the neck 12 is 4 mm.
And

(C) Natural frequency of the neck portion 12 and the flocking base 13 In the toothbrush 10, when the mass of the flocking base 13 is m1, the mass of the neck portion 12 is m2, and the stiffness of the neck portion is k, the neck portion 12 and the flocking base are provided. The natural frequency f of 13 is as shown in the following equation (1).

(Equation 1)

In the toothbrush 10, the neck 1
2 and the natural frequency of the flocking pedestal 13 are set such that both the longitudinal vibration (f1) in the thickness direction and the transverse vibration (f2) in the width direction are 120 Hz or more,
More preferably, the frequency is 150 Hz or more.

The natural frequencies of the neck 12 and the flocking pedestal 13 were measured using the measuring device shown in FIG. 4 according to the following (1) to (4).

(1) The bristles are removed from the flocking base 13 of the toothbrush 10, and a ferromagnetic plate 20 having the same weight is attached to the bristle.

(2) The thumb rest 14 of the grip 11 is fixed to the chuck device 21.

(3) Ferromagnetic plate 20 provided on flocking base 13
When a sine wave of a constant voltage is input from the function generator 23, the solenoid 22 generates a magnetic field of the same sine wave, and accordingly, the ferromagnetic plate 20 attached to the flocking base 13 is generated. By the magnetic force, and the flocking base 13 moves up and down.

(4) Detection head 24 of laser displacement meter 24
The vertical vibration of the flocking base 13 is measured by A and displayed on the oscilloscope 25. At this time, the displacement of the vibration rapidly increases at a certain frequency of the input waveform, and this frequency becomes the natural frequency f. If the neck portion 12 of the toothbrush 10 is fixed to the chuck device 21 so as to swing in the thickness direction, a natural frequency f1 of longitudinal vibration is obtained, and the neck portion 12 is fixed to the chuck device 21 so as to swing in the width direction. Then, the natural frequency f2 of the lateral vibration can be obtained.

The relationship between the thickness of the neck and the natural frequency of the neck and the flocking pedestal is as follows. The thickness in the length direction of the neck does not change, for example, for an elliptic columnar neck of width A, thickness B, under the condition that the length of the neck is constant, the Young's modulus of the neck and the flocking base, the specific gravity is constant,

(Equation 2) Becomes When these relationships are applied to equation (1), when the width A and the thickness B of the neck are reduced, the natural frequencies of the neck and the flocking base are reduced. That is, when the thickness of the neck portion is reduced, the natural frequencies of the neck portion and the flocking base are reduced. This tendency also applies to a case where the thickness of the entire neck portion is simply reduced, even for a neck portion whose thickness in the length direction changes.

The operation of this embodiment will be described below. In the neck portion 12, the tip surface 13 A of the flocking base 13 is 45
The position of mm is a portion corresponding to the front teeth when the flocking base 13 is inserted to the back teeth in a general intraoral size of a person. And the width of the neck at this position
Since it has a small diameter of 5.8 mm or less (more preferably 5.5 mm or less), it does not give a foreign body feeling when used in the oral cavity.

The natural frequency of the neck portion 12 and the flocking base 13 is set to 120 Hz or more in both the longitudinal vibration in the thickness direction and the transverse vibration in the width direction. It is possible to reduce the amplitude magnification of the vibrating vibration, thereby improving the responsiveness and avoiding violence in the oral cavity.

In the above embodiment, if the thickness of the neck portion is simply reduced, the natural frequency of the neck portion 12 and the flocking base 13 is reduced to make the user feel uncomfortable.
With the above, the neck thickness is reduced to 5.8 mm or less.

As described above, there is no foreign body sensation in the oral cavity, and the flocking base 13 for the operation applied to the grip portion 11.
Toothbrush 10 with good responsiveness and excellent usability
Becomes

By making the neck portion tapered toward the flocking base 13, it is possible to make the front teeth less likely to hit the back teeth when brushing the back teeth. In addition, the neck portion 12 most easily hits the front teeth when polishing the inner surface of the back teeth, and the toothbrush posture when polishing the inner surfaces of the back teeth is such that the width direction is directed in the vertical direction in the oral cavity. It is particularly meaningful to adopt in the width dimension.

The width of the neck portion is defined as the flocking base 13.
The width at the position of 65 to 75 mm from the tip of the head is 5.5 to 6.5 mm, the width at the connection portion with the flocking base 13 is 4.0 to 5.0 mm, and the middle between them is tapered. As the thickness of the neck portion, the thickness at the position of 65 to 75 mm from the tip of the flocking base 13 is 5.0 to 6.0 mm, and the thickness at the connection portion with the flocking base 13 is 3.
5 to 4.5 mm, and the middle of them is tapered. Thus, (a) the neck hardly touches the teeth when brushing the inside of the teeth, and (b) the neck hardly hits the lips when brushing any part of the teeth.

The flocking base 13 has a length of 20.5 to 21.5 mm,
The width is 10.5-11.5 mm, and the tip surface 13A is 2.0-3.0 mm wide.
The surface between the front end surface 13A and the side surface between the end surface 13A and a position 4.5 to 5.0 mm from the end surface 13A is formed as an arc surface, so that when polishing the side surface of the back teeth, the circumference of the front end surface of the flocking base 13 hardly hits the gums. Do not make the foreign body feel above.

By setting the thickness of the flocking base 13 to 5.5 mm or less, (a) the opening of the chin can be reduced when polishing the occlusal surface of the posterior teeth, and (b) the pressure on the cheek can be reduced when polishing the outer surface of the posterior teeth. Do not feel the foreign body feeling.

Hereinafter, specific results of the present embodiment will be described. For each of the toothbrushes of Inventive Examples 1, 2, and 3, and Comparative Examples 1 and 2, the natural frequency of the neck and the flocking base, neck thickness, neck taper, material, foreign-body sensation evaluation, responsiveness evaluation, and easiness of polishing were evaluated. The test was performed, and the overall evaluation shown in FIG. 10 was obtained.

(1) The natural frequency of the neck and the flocking base (FIGS. 6 and 10) The natural frequency of the longitudinal vibration (f1) and the natural frequency of the lateral vibration (f2) of each toothbrush are shown in FIG. It measured using the number measuring device and obtained the result of FIG. The natural frequency (f1) of the longitudinal vibration of the toothbrush of Example 1 of the present invention is 159.38 Hz, the natural frequency (f2) of the lateral vibration is 185.00 Hz, and the natural frequency (f1) of the longitudinal vibration of the toothbrush of Example 2 of the present invention is The natural frequency (f2) of the horizontal vibration was 190 Hz, the natural frequency (f1) of the longitudinal vibration of the toothbrush of Example 3 was 120 Hz, and the natural frequency (f2) of the transverse vibration was 120 Hz. Note that Comparative Example 1 is out of the scope of the present invention in terms of the natural frequency of the neck, and Comparative Example 2 is out of the scope of the present invention in this respect.

(2) Neck Thickness (FIGS. 5 and 10) The neck thickness at a position 45 mm from the tip of the flocking pedestal is 5.3 mm wide and 4.4 mm thick in Example 1 of the present invention. mm or less. In Example 2 of the present invention, the width was 4.5 mm and the thickness was 4.5 mm, and both the width and the thickness were 5.8 mm or less. In Example 3 of the present invention, both the width and the thickness were 5.
8 mm. In addition, in the point of the neck thickness, Comparative Example 2
Is within the scope of the present invention, and Comparative Example 1 is outside the scope of the present invention.

(3) Tapered Neck (FIGS. 5 and 10) In Examples 1 and 2 of the present invention, both the width and the thickness of the neck are tapered so as to taper toward the flocking base. I have. In addition, in the point of the neck taper, Comparative Example 2 is within the scope of the present invention, and Comparative Example 1 is outside the scope of the present invention.

(4) Material (FIG. 10) Inventive Examples 1, 3 and Comparative Example 1 are made of polypropylene.
Inventive Example 2 was composed of nylon 6, and Comparative Example 2 was composed of a polycarbonate saturated polyester resin.

(5) Evaluation of Foreign Body Sensation (FIGS. 7 and 10) In the present invention examples 1 and 2, both the neck thickness and the neck taper are within the scope of the present invention. Evaluation score (score) is high. In addition, in Example 3 of the present invention, since the neck thickness was within the range of the present invention,
The evaluation point (score) of the foreign body sensation (whether or not it is disturbed) when used in the oral cavity is high.

In Comparative Example 2, since both the neck thickness and the neck taper were within the scope of the present invention, the evaluation of foreign body sensation during oral use was high.

On the other hand, in Comparative Example 1, both the neck thickness and the neck taper were outside the scope of the present invention. Therefore, Comparative Example 1
Is low in evaluation of foreign body sensation when used in the oral cavity.

(6) Evaluation of Responsiveness (FIGS. 8 and 10) In Examples 1, 2, and 3 of the present invention, the natural frequencies of the neck (f1, f2)
) Is within the scope of the present invention, and therefore, the evaluation point of the responsiveness of the flocking base to the operation applied to the grip portion is high.

In Comparative Example 1, the natural frequency of the neck (f1, f
Since the point 2) is within the scope of the present invention, the evaluation point of the responsiveness of the flocking base to the operation applied to the grip portion is high.

In Comparative Example 2, the natural frequency of the neck (f1, f2)
) Is out of the scope of the present invention, and the evaluation of responsiveness is low.

(7) Ease of Polishing (FIGS. 9 and 10) Examples 1, 2, and 3 of the present invention are highly evaluated for ease of polishing. The evaluation of the easiness of polishing is medium in Comparative Example 2 and low in Comparative Example 1.

In the evaluation of the easiness of polishing, Example 1 of the present invention and Comparative Example 2 have substantially the same average evaluation points, but have significantly different standard deviations. When thinking as a toothbrush product,
In order to obtain a stable evaluation, the smaller the standard deviation is, the better the evaluation of Inventive Example 1 was made.

The embodiment of the present invention has been described in detail with reference to the drawings. However, the specific configuration of the present invention is not limited to this embodiment, and the design may be changed without departing from the scope of the present invention. Even if present, it is included in the present invention. For example, the material of the toothbrush of the present invention is not limited to polypropylene and nylon, but may be polycarbonate or PET (polyethylene terephthalate) as long as it can realize the natural frequency of the neck defined by the present invention in the shape and dimension defined by the present invention. , PB
T (polybutylene terephthalate), propionate,
The ABS resin, the AS resin, and the saturated polyester resin may be used alone or in combination.

[0057]

As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to obtain a toothbrush which has no sensation of foreign matter in the oral cavity, has a good responsiveness of the flocking base to the operation applied to the grip portion, and has an excellent usability. it can.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a side view of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a schematic view showing a flocking base.

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing a natural frequency measuring device.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the present invention and a comparative example.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory view showing a natural frequency measurement result of each toothbrush neck.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing foreign-body sensation evaluation.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram showing responsiveness evaluation.

FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram showing easiness of polishing.

FIG. 10 is a chart showing the overall evaluation of the present invention and comparative examples.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 10 toothbrush 11 gripper 12 neck 13 flocking base

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (72) Inventor Takayuki Kanada 2606 Kabane-cho, Kaga-cho, Haga-gun, Tochigi Pref. Within the company (72) Inventor Noriko 2606 Kabane-cho, Kaga-cho, Haga-gun, Tochigi Pref. (56) reference Patent Sho 63-24906 (JP, a) JP flat 5-15410 (JP, a) JP flat 5-15411 (JP, a) (58 ) investigated the field (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) A46B 1/00-17/08

Claims (5)

(57) [Claims] 1. A toothbrush having a grip portion supporting a flocked pedestal via a neck portion, wherein a neck portion at a position 45 mm from a tip of the flocked pedestal has a width and a thickness of 5.8 mm or less, and a neck portion and a flocked pedestal. A toothbrush characterized by having a natural frequency of 120 Hz or more in both the longitudinal vibration in the thickness direction and the transverse vibration in the width direction. 2. The toothbrush according to claim 1, wherein the neck portion has a tapered shape tapering toward the flocking base at least in a width dimension. 3. The width of the neck portion is 5.5 to 6.5 mm at a position 65 to 75 mm from the tip of the flocking pedestal, and 4.0 to 5.0 mm at a connecting portion with the flocking pedestal. The middle of the tapered shape, the thickness of the neck thickness is 65 to 75 from the tip of the flocking base
3. The toothbrush according to claim 2, wherein the thickness at the position of mm is 5.0 to 6.0 mm, the thickness at the connection with the flocking base is 3.5 to 4.5 mm, and the middle between them is tapered. 4. The flocking base has a length of 20.5 to 21.5 mm and a width of 10.5 to 11.5 mm, a tip surface having a width of 2.0 to 3.0 mm, and a tip surface and a side surface of 4.5 to 5.0 mm from the tip surface. The toothbrush according to claim 2 or 3, wherein an arc surface is formed between the toothbrush and the position. 5. The toothbrush according to claim 4, wherein the flocking base has a thickness of 5.5 mm or less.