JP6511229B2 - toothbrush - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a toothbrush.

  Tooth decay and alveolar pyorrhea are diseases caused by bacteria, and cleaning of the oral cavity, specifically, removal of plaque by brushing using a toothbrush is effective as a countermeasure. With regard to alveolar pyorrhea, there is a need for a toothbrush that is not irritating to the gums and has a massage effect. It is considered to increase the flocking density of

JP 2012-34845 A

  However, with this toothbrush, when it was moved in the direction of insertion into the mouth and pulled out from the inside of the mouth, the flocking on the outside fell too much, so a massage effect could not be sufficiently obtained. In addition, since this toothbrush has less flocking with low flocking density at the front of the head, it has been difficult to obtain a sufficient cleaning effect on the back teeth. Furthermore, in such a toothbrush, it has been tried to increase the cleaning effect by increasing the flocked area of thick hair, but the stiffness of the hair bundle becomes strong and it becomes difficult to insert it into the back teeth, and the massage effect is compatible There was a problem that it was impossible.

  The inventor who was trying to improve the toothbrush in such a background, in the conventional design concept of adjusting the flocking density on the outside and the inside, balances mutually contradictory elements of the cleaning effect and the massage effect. In addition to this, it was also found that there would be a limit to ensuring insertability into the posterior teeth.

  The present invention has been made on the basis of such findings, and the object thereof is to achieve both the cleaning effect and the massage effect at a high level by an approach different from the conventional one, and to be excellent in the insertability into the posterior teeth. It is to provide a toothbrush.

  In order to achieve the above object, the toothbrush of the present invention comprises a cleaning bristle bundle formed by bundling a plurality of cleaning bristles in a head portion provided at the front end of a handle, and a plurality of massage bristles having a smaller cross-sectional area than the cleaning bristles. And a plurality of massage hair bundles are arranged at least in a row on the outer left and right sides of the head portion, and the plurality of cleaning hair bundles are The head portion is disposed at the front, the rear, and the central portion between them, and at least at the central portion of the head portion, the inner side than the outermost left and right row of massage hair bundles, and the head portion The front portion of the head portion is disposed so as to extend outside the central portion of the head portion.

According to the present invention, since the cleaning hair has a larger cross-sectional area than the massage hair, the cleaning hair bundle has a higher waist than the massage hair bundle. By setting the massage hair bundle and the cleaning hair bundle in the above-mentioned characteristic arrangement, first, when the toothbrush is moved in the direction of pulling out the toothbrush from the mouth, the cleaning hair bundle of the front of the head part Can be suppressed. Thereby, the massage effect on the gums can be sufficiently sustained.
In addition, when the toothbrush is moved in the mouth, the cleaning bristles on the front of the head can brush the teeth widely. Thereby, a higher cleaning effect can be obtained as compared with a toothbrush in which the arrangement mode of the cleaning bristles is the same at the front and center of the head portion. In particular, when the toothbrush is moved in the direction to be inserted into the mouth, a wide range of brushing can be performed, and since the cleaning bristles can be widely applied to the back teeth, the back teeth can be sufficiently cleaned.
In addition, as compared with a toothbrush without massage hair, when the toothbrush is moved in the direction of inserting the toothbrush into the mouth, the cleaning hair bundle at the front of the head portion is more likely to fall down by the massage hair bundle. Thereby, also about the insertability of the toothbrush to a back tooth, it is securable in coexistence of the cleaning effect and the massage effect.

  According to a preferred aspect of the present invention, the plurality of cleaning bristle tufts may be arranged to extend outward beyond the central portion of the head portion also at the rear of the head portion.

  According to such an arrangement, the massage effect on the gums can be sufficiently sustained even when the toothbrush is moved in the direction to be inserted into the mouth as described above, and the toothbrush is moved in the direction to be pulled out from the mouth Also in this case, a wide range of brushing is possible, and a cleaning effect can be obtained. In addition, when the toothbrush is moved in the direction in which the toothbrush is pulled out from the mouth, the massage hair bundle ensures ease of falling of the cleaning hair bundle at the rear of the head portion. Therefore, by arranging the plurality of cleaning bristle tufts to extend outward beyond the central portion both at the front and the rear of the head portion, the massage effect and the cleaning effect and the operability can be totally and synergistically Can be improved.

  According to a preferred aspect of the present invention, the plurality of massage hair bundles may be arranged in at least two rows on the outer left and right of the head portion.

  According to this configuration, since the low-haired hair increases, the toothbrush can be smoothly moved in addition to the increase in the massage effect. For example, when the toothbrush is moved in the direction in which the toothbrush is inserted into the mouth, the cleaning bristle bundle at the front of the head can be more easily fallen down, and therefore the insertability into the back teeth can be further improved.

  Preferably, at least one cleaning bristle bundle is disposed on the extension line of the innermost row of the row of massage bristle bundles or outside the extension line in the cleaning bristle bundle disposed on the front of the head portion Should be included.

  According to this configuration, when the toothbrush is moved in the direction of insertion into the mouth, the cleaning bristle bundle at the front of the head portion is more likely to fall to the rear side, so the insertability to the back teeth is significantly improved. . In addition, the cleaning hair bundle at the front of the head portion also improves the effect of preventing the massage hair from falling too much when the toothbrush is moved in the direction in which the toothbrush is pulled out from the mouth.

  Preferably, the plurality of cleaning bristle tufts may be disposed at the front and rear of the head portion more inside than the outermost left and right row of massage bristle tufts.

  According to this configuration, since all of the cleaning hair bundles are positioned inside the massage hair bundles of the outermost rows on the left and right sides, the massage effect is further improved. In addition, the cleaning property of the back teeth is further improved.

  In order to achieve the above object, the toothbrush according to another aspect of the present invention has a cleaning bristle bundle formed by bundling a plurality of cleaning bristles in a flocked region of a head portion provided at the front end of a handle, and crossing rather than cleaning bristles. A plurality of massage hair bundles each formed by bundling a plurality of massage hairs having a small area are planted respectively, and the plurality of massage hair bundles are arranged at least in a row on the outer left and right sides of the head portion. If the percentage of cleaning bristles is greater than the percentage of massage bristles, and if the flocked region is divided into three in the front-rear direction of the head, the percentage of cleaning bristles is greater than the percentage of massage bristles in the front flocking region In the central flocking area, the proportion of massage hair bundles is equal to or greater than the proportion of cleaning hair bundles.

According to the present invention, similarly to the above, when the toothbrush is moved in the direction of pulling out from the mouth, it is possible to suppress excessive falling of the massage hair with a relatively large number of cleaning hair bundles on the front side of the flocked region. Thereby, the massage effect on the gums can be sufficiently sustained.
Also, when the toothbrush is moved, relatively many cleaning bristles can brush the teeth widely in front of the flocked area. Thereby, a higher cleaning effect can be obtained as compared to a toothbrush in which the ratio of cleaning hair is the same on the front side and the center of the flocked region. In particular, when the toothbrush is moved in the direction to be inserted into the mouth, a wide range of brushing can be performed, and since the cleaning bristles can be widely applied to the back teeth, the back teeth can be sufficiently cleaned.
In addition, compared to a toothbrush without massage hair, when the toothbrush is moved in the direction of inserting the toothbrush into the mouth, the cleaning hair bundle on the front side of the flocked region is more likely to fall down by the massage hair bundle. Thereby, also about the insertability of the toothbrush to a back tooth, it is securable in coexistence of the cleaning effect and the massage effect.

  According to a preferred aspect of the present invention, in the rear flocked region, the ratio of the cleaning hair bundle may be equal to or greater than the ratio of the massage hair bundle.

  According to this configuration, the massage effect on the gums can be sufficiently sustained even when the toothbrush is moved in the direction in which the toothbrush is inserted into the mouth, as described above, and when the toothbrush is moved in the direction of pulling out the mouth Also, a wide range of brushing is possible and a cleaning effect can be obtained. In addition, when the toothbrush is moved in the direction in which the toothbrush is pulled out from the mouth, the ease of falling of the cleaning bristle bundle on the rear side of the flocked region is ensured by the massage bristle bundle.

It is a top view of the toothbrush concerning an embodiment. It is an enlarged plan view of the head part of the toothbrush of FIG. It is the end elevation cut by the III-III line of FIG. It is a figure for demonstrating the ratio of the hair bundle in the head part of the toothbrush of FIG. 1, (a) is the same figure as FIG. 2, (b) is an enlarged view of the cleaning hair bundle shown to (a). .

A toothbrush according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
In the following description, the positional relationship such as front, rear, left, and right used in relation to each part of the toothbrush is the upper side and the lower side of the paper surface of FIG. It is assumed that the right side of the drawing is a left side and a right side, respectively. Therefore, in terms of the head portion, the head portion is positioned on the front side with respect to the handle. Further, the longitudinal direction of the head portion means the longitudinal direction of the head portion, and the lateral direction of the head portion means the lateral direction or the width direction of the head portion.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the toothbrush 1 includes a handle 2 and a head 3 provided at the front end of the handle 2. The handle 2 is a portion used by the user to hold the toothbrush 1 and is formed longer in the front-rear direction than the head portion 3. The handle 2 and the head 3 are integrally formed of polypropylene resin as a material. However, both may be formed of another synthetic resin, or may be formed separately.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the head portion 3 has a flat plate shape in which the four corners of a rectangular shape are gently cut off in a plan view, and the front end is slightly curved outward. The head portion 3 has a flocked surface 10 on the surface. A plurality of bottomed cylindrical flocked holes 12 are formed in the flocked surface 10 (see: FIG. 3), and the plurality of flocked holes 12 are all formed in the same size.

  As shown in FIG. 2, a plurality of massage hair bundles 14 formed by bundling a plurality of massage hairs and a plurality of cleaning hair bundles 16 formed by bundling a plurality of cleaning hairs are implanted in each of the plurality of flocked holes 12. There is. The massage hair bundle 14 has a softer contact with the tooth surface and gums than the cleaning hair bundle 16 and the massage effect is high, while the cleaning hair bundle 16 has the effect of removing plaque by brushing than the massage hair bundle 14 (cleaning effect) Is configured high. Although the massage hair and the cleaning hair are made of the same material, the massage hair has a smaller cross-sectional area (thickness) than the cleaning hair. For this reason, the massaging hair bundle 14 has a lower hair waist than the cleaning hair bundle 16.

  The massage hair bundles 14 are shown by white circles in FIG. 2 and are arranged in two rows on the left and right sides of the head portion 3 and one is arranged on an extension line between the two rows. More specifically, the massage hair bundle 14 is disposed in line symmetry with the axis passing through the center of the head portion 3, and in the outermost row, along the straight side edge of the head portion 3 in the front-rear direction 5 In the inner row, four are arranged in the back and forth direction, and one is arranged on the rear side of the last one in each row so as to be positioned between these rows.

  The cleaning bristle tuft 16 is shown by a black circle in FIG. 2 and is disposed inside the outermost one row of massage bristle tufts 14. Further, the cleaning bristle tufts 16 are disposed in line symmetry with respect to an axis passing through the center of the head portion 3 and disposed in the front-rear direction of the head portion 3. Specifically, a total of 15 cleaning bristle tufts 16 are provided at the front 3a of the head portion 3, a total of six at the rear 3c, and a total of eight are provided at the central portion 3b between them. The front portion 3a of the head portion 3 is a portion including a mountain-like front end portion having a slightly outwardly curved front end, and the rear portion 3c of the head portion 3 has a substantially inverted base whose upper base is longer than the lower base The central portion 3b of the head portion 3 is a portion including the rear end portion of the shape, and is a rectangular portion having a linear pair of left and right side ends.

  Here, in the central portion 3b, the cleaning bristle tufts 16 are arranged in four vertical rows in two vertical rows. On the other hand, in the rear portion 3c, the cleaning bristle bundles 16 are arranged in two rows in three vertical rows, and two vertical rows of the cleaning bristle bundles 16 in the central portion 3b are arranged between the three rows. There is an extension of. Therefore, the cleaning bristle tuft 16 is disposed so as to extend outside the central portion 3b at the rear portion 3c.

  On the other hand, in the front part 3a, the cleaning bristle tufts 16 are arranged in four rows and two, four, five, four pieces in order from the front row, and are arranged in a staggered manner except for the front row There is. Also, in the front part 3a, a total of four cleaning bristle bundles 16 are arranged on the extension line of the vertical two rows of cleaning bristle bundles 16 in the central portion 3b and one piece inside thereof, while the other eight are central It is arrange | positioned outside the extension line of the vertical 2 rows of the cleaning hair bundle 16 in the part 3b. Therefore, the cleaning bristle tuft 16 is also arranged to extend outside the central portion 3b also in the front portion 3a.

  Further, in the front part 3a, the left and right two cleaning hair bundles 16 are disposed in the front and rear on the extension line of the right and left two rows in the innermost row of the massage hair bundles 14, and further outside the left and right Each one of the cleaning bristles 16 is disposed. The outer left and right one cleaning bristles 16 are located on the line in the front-rear direction passing through the massaging bristles 14 at the end. Moreover, although the cleaning hair bundle 16 is arrange | positioned along the mountain-like outer edge in the above-mentioned mountain-like front end part in the head part 3, the massage hair bundle 14 is not arrange | positioned.

  Thus, the cleaning bristle tufts 16 are arranged in the form of an arrow on the flocked surface 10 of the head portion 3 in plan view as a whole. In addition, a shape like this arrow is a shape where the arrowhead and arrowhead are extended outside the part of the handle between these. Moreover, the massage hair bundle 14 is arrange | positioned on the both sides so that some (15 pieces in total here) of the some cleaning hair bundle 16 may be pinched | interposed.

  Here, when the viewpoint of the ratio of the hair bundle in the head part 3 is considered using FIG. 4, it is as follows. First, since the number of massage hair bundles 14 is 20 and the number of cleaning bristle bundles 16 is 29, in the head portion 3, the ratio of the cleaning bristle bundles 16 is larger than the ratio of the massage bristle bundles 14. Next, paying attention to the flocked area 20 of the head unit 3 and dividing the flocked area 20 into three in the front-rear direction of the head unit 3, the ratio of the cleaning hair bundle 16 is the ratio of the massage hair bundle 14 In the center flocked area 20b, the ratio of the massage hair bundle 14 is not less than the ratio of the cleaning hair bundle 16, and in the rear flocked region 20c, the ratio of the cleaning hair bundle 16 is more than the ratio of the massage hair bundle 14 It has become. Here, the flocked region 20 refers to a region surrounded by an annular line connecting the outer edge of the flocked holes 12 located on the outermost periphery formed on the flocked surface 10. The boundary on the front side of the flocked region 20 is tangent to the front edge of the two flocked holes 12 on the front end side, and the boundary on the rear side of the flocked region 20 is the back edge of the three flocked holes 12 on the back side It becomes a tangent line passing through. For the hair bundle on the third line 22 and 24, for example, as shown in FIG. 4 (b), of the cleaning hair bundle 16 on the line 22, the portion 16a on the front side of the line 22 is the front side. The portion 16b which is in the flocked area 20a and behind the line 22 may be calculated as being in the center flocked area 20b. The areas of the plurality of flocked holes 12 are all the same size, and the cross-sectional area of the massage hair bundle 14 (the diameter of the hair bundle) and the cross-sectional area of the cleaning hair bundle 16 are mutually equal It can be considered to be the same as the area of the flocking holes 12.

  According to the toothbrush 1 of the present embodiment described above, the massage hair bundles 14 are arranged on the left and right sides, the cleaning hair bundles 16 are arranged inside the row of the massage hair bundles 14 on the outermost side, and the head portion In the front part 3a and the rear part 3c of 3, the cleaning bristle bundle 16 is spread out and arrange | positioned rather than the center part 3b. With such an arrangement, the toothbrush 1 achieves both the cleaning effect and the massage effect at a high level, and is excellent in the insertability into the back teeth.

  Specifically, when the toothbrush 1 is moved in the direction in which the toothbrush 1 is pulled out from the mouth, the cleaning bristles 16 of the front portion 3a can suppress that the massage hairs hitting the gums fall too much forward. On the other hand, when the toothbrush 1 is moved in the direction to be inserted into the mouth, the cleaning bristle bundle 16 of the rear portion 3c can suppress that the massage hair hitting the gums falls too much backward. Therefore, the massage effect on the gums can be sufficiently sustained. That is, the expanded portions on the front side and the rear side of the cleaning bristle bundle 16 do not impair the massage effect on the gums, but rather function to enhance the massage effect by the massage bristles. Furthermore, although the cleaning effect by the massage hair is usually difficult to obtain, by suppressing the massage hair from falling too much during these operations, not only the cleaning hair but also the cleaning effect by the massage hair can be obtained, and a better cleaning effect Is played.

  In addition, when the toothbrush 1 is moved in the direction in which the toothbrush 1 is pulled out from the mouth and inserted in the mouth, the cleaning bristles of the front portion 3a of the head portion 3 can brush the teeth widely. Thereby, for example, an excellent scraping effect is exhibited as compared with a toothbrush in which the arrangement mode of the cleaning hair bundle 16 is the same in the front portion 3a (or the rear portion 3c) and the central portion 3b of the head portion 3, The cleaning effect can be obtained. In particular, since the cleaning bristles 16 are widely distributed in the front part 3a, the cleaning bristles can be widely applied to the back teeth and cleaned sufficiently.

  In addition, the cleaning hair bundle 16 of the front portion 3a of the head portion 3 tends to fall down due to the massage hair bundle 14 when the toothbrush 1 is moved in the direction to insert the toothbrush 1 into the mouth, for example. Therefore, the excellent insertability of the toothbrush 1 into the back teeth can be ensured in the balance of the cleaning effect and the massage effect. Further, when pulling out the toothbrush 1 from the mouth, the cleaning bristle bundle 16 of the rear portion 3c of the head portion 3 is likely to fall down by the massage bristle bundle 14, so that the user feels as a whole that the operability of the toothbrush 1 in the mouth is good. it can.

  In addition, since the massage hair and the cleaning hair alternately contact the tooth surface in the vertical direction near the center of the head portion 3, the toothbrush 1 is also excellent in the cleaning effect when moving in a circle in the mouth Needless to say.

  Further, the cleaning hair bundle 16 is disposed on the front side of the massage hair bundle 14 in the left and right two rows among the rows of the massage hair bundle 14, and the cleaning hair bundle 16 and the massage hair bundle 14 partially overlap in the front and rear direction It is arranged as. Thus, by arranging the massage hair bundle 14 and the cleaning hair bundle 16 so that at least a part thereof overlaps in the front-rear direction, the cleaning hair bundle 16 of the front portion 3 a of the head portion 3 It becomes more prone to fall and the insertability into the back teeth is enhanced. In addition, when the toothbrush 1 is moved in the direction of pulling out from the mouth, the massage hairs 16 can be further suppressed by the cleaning hair bundle 16 of the front portion 3 a of the head portion 3. It can be sustained enough. Furthermore, since it is possible to effectively suppress excessive falling of the massage hair at the time of brushing, the cleaning effect can be made superior.

  The embodiments of the present invention have been described above with reference to specific examples. However, the present invention is not limited to these specific examples. That is, those to which those skilled in the art appropriately modify the design of these specific examples are also included in the scope of the present invention as long as they have the features of the present invention. For example, each element included in each specific example described above and its arrangement, material, conditions, shape, size, number, and the like are not limited to those illustrated, and can be appropriately changed.

  For example, with regard to the rear portion 3c of the head portion 3, it is also possible to arrange the cleaning hair bundle 16 without spreading the cleaning hair bundle 16 further outward than the central portion 3b. However, the arrangement described above can improve the massage effect, the cleaning effect, and the operability of the toothbrush 1 overall and synergistically.

  Moreover, it is also possible to arrange only one row of massage hair bundles 14 on the left and right sides of the head portion 3. However, the arrangement described above not only can enhance the massage effect, but also has many low-haired hairs, so the toothbrush 1 can be moved smoothly and the insertability into the back teeth can be improved. It is advantageous in that it can be done.

  Furthermore, it is also possible to arrange the cleaning bristle bundle 16 on at least one of the front part 3a and the rear part 3c of the head part 3 on the extension line of the row of massage hair bundles 14 on the outermost side. That is, the cleaning bristles 16 in at least one of the front portion 3a and the rear portion 3c of the head portion 3 may be disposed on the same row as or inward of the massage bristles 14 on the left and right in the outermost rows. . However, the arrangement described above (all the cleaning bristle bundles 16 are disposed inside the outermost massage hair bundles 14 in the outermost row) is advantageous in that the massage effect and the cleaning performance of the back teeth can be improved. In addition, the cleaning hair bundle 16 arrange | positioned on the same row as the massage hair bundle 14 of the outermost row in the at least one of the front part 3a of the head part 3 and the back 3c is the said balance with the massage effect by a massage hair bundle. The number is less than the massage hair bundles 14 in the row, and is at most 1-2.

  In addition, when the cross-sectional area (thickness) of the brush hairs constituting the hair bundle is three or more, the hair bundle consisting of brush hairs of the smallest cross-sectional area is a massage hair bundle, and the brush hairs of the largest cross-sectional area The tuft consisting of is a cleaning tuft, and for tufts consisting of brush hairs of a cross-sectional area between them, if it is closer to the smallest cross-sectional area than the largest cross-sectional area, it is a massage tuft and vice versa By classifying as a cleaning hair bundle, it is possible to classify into two types of a massage hair bundle and a cleaning hair bundle as a result.

  1: Toothbrush, 2: Handle, 3: Head, 3a: Front, 3b: Central, 3c: Rear, 14: Massage hair bundle, 16: Cleaning hair bundle, 20: Flocked area

Claims (4)

The flocked surface , which is the surface of the head provided at the front end of the handle,
A plurality of cleaning hair bundles formed by bundling a plurality of cleaning hairs and a massage hair bundle formed by bundling a plurality of massage hairs having a smaller cross-sectional area than the cleaning hairs are planted respectively.
The plurality of massage hair bundles are toothbrushes arranged in at least one row on the left and right sides of the head portion,
The flocked surface is flat,
The cleaning bristle tuft and the massage bristle tuft have the same diameter of the tuft and include the proximal end portion of the side implanted on the flocked surface fused to form an enlarged portion Well,
The plurality of cleaning bristle tufts are disposed at the front and rear of the head portion and at the central portion between them, and at least in the middle portion of the head portion, a row of massage bristle tufts that are outermost in the outermost row A toothbrush, which is arranged more inside and which is spread out outside the central part of the head part at the front and the rear of the head part. The toothbrush according to claim 1 , wherein the plurality of massage hair bundles are arranged in at least two rows on the left and right sides of the head portion.   The cleaning bristle bundle disposed at the front of the head includes at least one cleaning bristle bundle disposed on an extension of the innermost row of the row of massage bristle bundles or outside the extension. A toothbrush according to claim 2, included. The plurality of cleaning bristle tufts according to any one of claims 1 to 3 , wherein the plurality of cleaning bristle tufts are disposed at the front and the rear of the head portion further inward than the outermost one row of massage bristle tufts. Toothbrush.