JP6712577B2 - Handheld appliances - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to handheld appliances, and more particularly to hairdressing appliances such as hot styling equipment.

In conventional hot styling appliances, air is drawn in at the inlet and directed at the outlet by the fan unit. In many cases, one appliance comprises various attachments, each attachment having a different outlet configuration and thus a different function, eg drying, curling or volumizing. The air may or may not be heated, depending on the desired style. The attachment can include bristles to which the hair is wrapped and held for styling.

The appliance has at least one user-operated button, which can be a push button or a slide button. In addition, there is generally a means of exchanging one attachment for another, which can often be achieved by twisting the attachment to the head, but inadvertent separation of the attachment during use. There are locks or fasteners to prevent This lock or fastener is often disengaged by an additional user actuated button, allowing the user to remove the attachment when needed.

The present invention provides a handheld appliance that includes a handle and a user interface that includes at least one user-operated button. Preferably, the handle has an elliptical cross section with a major axis and a minor axis. In the preferred embodiment, the user interface is provided on the first vertex of the long axis. Preferably, the handle further comprises an additional user-operated button, which is provided on the second vertex of the long axis.

The long axis of the handle may be too large for some users to comfortably hold if the handle diameter is circular and the long axis size. The use of an elliptical handle offers the advantage of providing additional space due to the long axis but still providing a handle that can be comfortably held. A balance between ergonomics and the space of internal components.

In a preferred embodiment, the appliance further comprises an attachment that connects to the handle, and an additional user-operated button activates a mechanism that removes the attachment from the handle.

Preferably, the user interface includes three user operation buttons. In the preferred embodiment, the three user operation buttons are arranged in a triangular array. Therefore, the user interface is a triangular array.

Preferably, each of the three user operation buttons is arranged at the apex of the triangle.

In a preferred embodiment, the second of the three user operation buttons comprises an on/off switch. Preferably, the first and third user operation buttons of the three user operation buttons control the temperature and the flow rate through the appliance, respectively.

Preferably, the second button is located at the apex of the triangle. This identifies the on/off function and the user can easily identify this button. Preferably, the on/off button is of a different size and/or shape than the second and third buttons to further facilitate identification.

In the preferred embodiment, the second button is on the apex of the user interface distal from the additional user-operated buttons. When the additional user operated button controls the attachment mechanism of the attachment, the user operated button is located near the handle end to which the attachment is attached. Due to the elliptical shape of the handle, the user naturally orients the long axis in the correct direction in the interdigital membrane between the thumb and index finger. In this orientation, the index finger has a much wider range of motion than the thumb and can be used to access additional user operated buttons, the thumb being used to access three user operated buttons. ..

Preferably, the handle has a first end and a second end. In a preferred embodiment, the attachment is attached to the handle at the first end. Preferably, the additional user operated button is near the first end.

In the preferred embodiment, the user interface is longitudinally spaced from the first end of the handle. Preferably the second button is distal from the first end of the handle.

Preferably, the second and third user operation buttons of the three user operation buttons are radially spaced around the handle.

In the preferred embodiment, the first and third buttons form the base of a triangle.

Preferably, the appliance is a hair care appliance.

In a preferred embodiment, the hair care appliance is a hot styling appliance.

The present invention is exemplarily described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

6 shows an appliance in which a user interface according to the invention can be used. Figure 4 shows a side view of a user interface with buttons. FIG. 6 shows a side view of a user interface without buttons. 3 shows a radially inner surface of an actuator according to the invention. 3 shows a partial cross section of an actuator according to the invention. 3 shows a cross section of another actuator according to the invention. Figure 3 shows an isometric view of an actuator according to the invention. FIG. 7 shows a side view of the user interface with all buttons in the first position. FIG. 6 shows a side view of the user interface with all buttons in the second position. FIG. 6 shows a side view of the user interface with all buttons in a third position. 3 shows a cross section of an electric appliance according to the invention. 3 shows a cross section of one of the buttons of the appliance.

Referring to FIG. 1, an embodiment of a handheld appliance 10 is shown. The electric appliance has a handle 210 and a hairdressing attachment 20. The attachment 20 is removable and can be replaced with another attachment to allow the user to style different and give different functions to the appliance. In addition, the attachment 20 can be removed to facilitate storage of the appliance when not in use. The handle 210 includes a plurality of different user operation buttons 30, 138 to allow the user to select a plurality of different temperature and flow rate settings. The appliance includes a fan unit and a heater (both not shown), in use, the fan unit draws fluid through the fluid inlet 212 and the fluid is optionally heated, after which the fluid outlet 22 in the attachment 20. Emitted from.

The appliance 10 has two different button configurations (structures) that control the appliance. In this embodiment, both configurations have three different set positions, one configuration controls a single switch, while the other configuration controls two switches. The first button arrangement (structure) 30 is better suited to control appliance parameters such as temperature or flow rate, this button type controlling a single switch. The second button arrangement (structure) 130 is suitable for controlling two different aspects such as turning on the appliance and providing a cold shot function. Alternatively, the two different aspects could be temperature or flow rate with the cold shot function, but cold shot can only be used with the highest or lowest of these functions and is not always appropriate. , These options are more restrictive.

The first button arrangement 30 will now be described with particular reference to FIGS. 2a-7c. The first button arrangement 30 has a single switch 32 with a lever 36 movable between a first position 36a, a second position 36b and a third position 36c. An actuator 40 extends between the button 38 and the switch 32, the actuator 40 having a protrusion 42 that engages the button 38, the protrusion 42 being attached to an arm 44 extending to the switch 32. The protrusion 42 is housed in the housing 46. The housing 46 has an opening 48 through which the protrusion 42 extends. Housing 46 includes three detents 50, each detent defining the position of button 38, protrusion 42, arm 44, and lever 36. The ball 52 is adapted to move between the three detents 50, and the spring 54 biases the ball 52 against one of the three detents 50 until further movement of the button 38 occurs. Since the spring 54 is at least partially housed in the recess 42 a provided inside the protrusion 42, the ball 52 also moves between the detents 50 when the button 38 moves.

A recess 56 is provided at or near the distal end 44a of the arm 44 from the housing. The recess 56 is substantially V-shaped and is adapted to house and hold the lever 36. In the first position 36a, the lever engages the inner surface 58 of the recess 56. The lever second position 36b corresponds to the neutral position of the lever 36, the lever being in the recess 56 without being pushed or pulled, which is the central button position. In the third position 36c, the lever engages the second surface 60 of the recess 56. In the first and third positions, the lever 36 is held in that position by the force exerted by the spring 54 biasing the ball 52 against the detent 50.

The button arrangement 30 further includes a button plate 62 located between the button 38 and the protrusion 42. The handle 210 has an outer wall 214, and an opening 216 corresponding to sliding between the three positions is formed in the outer wall 214 for the button 38 to move or slide between the respective positions. Is larger than the button 38. The button plate 62 is located inside the outer wall 214 and is sized to completely cover the opening 216 regardless of the position of the button 38. The button plate 62 prevents debris from entering the handle 210 directly.

The second button configuration 130 will now be described. In this embodiment, the components illustrated and described above in relation to the first button arrangement 30 have similar reference numbers. The second button structure 130 has a first switch 132 and a second switch 150. In this example, the first switch 132 provides an off-on function and the second switch 150 provides a cold shot. When the second button 138 is in the off position, as shown in FIG. 7a, the first switch 132 and the second switch 150 are not active. As shown in FIGS. 2a and 7b, when the second button 138 is moved to one position, the push button 134 provided on the surface of the first switch 132 is engaged to turn on the power of the appliance. become.

The second actuator 140 extends between the second button 138 and the first switch 132. The second actuator 140 has a protrusion 42 that engages the second button 138. The protrusion 42 is housed in the second housing 146. The second housing 146 has an opening 48 through which the protrusion 42 extends. The second housing 146 includes two detents 50, each detent defining the position of the second button 138 and the second arm 144. The ball 52 is adapted to move between the two detents 50 and the spring 54 biases the ball 52 against one of the two detents 50 until further movement of the second button 138 occurs. It is provided for. Since the spring 54 is at least partially housed in the recess 42a provided inside the protrusion 42, when the second button 138 moves, the ball 52 also moves between the detents 50.

The second actuator 140 has a surface 158 that engages the push button 134, and when the user moves the second button 138 from the off position to the on position, the second arm 144 moves and the surface 158 moves. , The push button 134 is engaged and the push button 134 is pushed down.

The second button 138 can be moved to a third position, but this third position is not defined by the detent; instead, the third position is the second button 138 has a second position. When the position is set, the user only applies pressure to the second button 138. The distal end 140b of the actuator 140 from the first switch 132 is shaped to receive the spring 152. When the user pushes the second button 138 and the protrusion 42 from the second position to the third position, the ball 52 moves out of the central detent 50b and opposes the action of the spring 152. The second arm 144 has a second surface 160 formed near the arm end 144a distal from the second housing 146, which second surface 160 allows the second button 138 to spring. Engages the second switch 150 when pushed against 152. The second switch 150 has a second lever 154 that is pushed from a neutral or free position when engaged with the second surface 160, as long as the second lever 154 is outside of this neutral position. , The heater (not shown) is stopped and a cold shot is brought about.

The first switch 132 and the second switch 150 are separated from each other in the longitudinal direction, and when the second button 138 and the protrusion 42 are moved to the third position, the push button 134 of the first switch 132 is It remains engaged.

The second arm 144 has a first side 156, which includes a surface 158 that engages the push button 134. The second arm has a second side surface 162, which includes a second surface 160. This is advantageous as a force is exerted on both sides of the second arm 144 when both switches are engaged.

In this embodiment, the first button arrangement 30, 30a is used twice, one for temperature setting and the other for flow setting. Optionally, the pair of first button configurations 30, 30a are separated by the second button configuration 130. This means that the user has a small area on the outer wall 214 in which all the controls of the product are located. To assist the user, the second button 138 is larger than the first button 38 and offset along the outer wall 214 to form a triangular UI (user interface) 180 (FIG. 2a). The user can naturally identify the second button 138 by touching, and can change the setting without looking at the UI.

In the illustrated embodiment (see FIG. 8), all switches are mounted on a board 70, eg, a PCB (printed circuit board). Usually such substrates are flat, but in one embodiment the substrate is formed of two elements 70a, 70b and is flexible so that the substrate 70 does not occupy a significant proportion of the interior space of the handle 210. A sex part 72 connects the two elements. This allows the substrate 70 to be slightly bent into a V-shape that more closely conforms to the shape of the outer wall 214 of the handle 210. Since the fluid flow path extends through the interior of the handle 210, bending the substrate 70 results in less constriction to the fluid flowing inside the handle 210. The second arm 144 is located generally centrally of the substrate above the flexible portion 72 and engages a push button 134 on one side corresponding to one element 70a of the substrate 70. The second arm 144 engages a second switch 150 on the other side of the board that corresponds to the other element 70b. The second arm 144 extends away from the second housing 146 in a first direction XX parallel to the longitudinal axis A-A of the handle 210, but the second arm 144 does not. It also extends in a second direction Y-Y which is substantially orthogonal to the direction. This creates an L-shaped profile of the second arm 144 near the distal end 144a from the second housing 146. The second direction Y-Y extends from the outer wall 214 toward the substrate 70. The L-shaped profile allows a single arm 144 to engage the first switch 132 and the second switch 150 across a bend in the substrate 70.

Referring now to FIG. 9, in this embodiment, in addition to the UI with user-operated buttons 38, 138, an additional button 100 is provided. This additional button 100 operates an attachment mechanism (not shown) that holds and releases the attachment 20 relative to the handle 210.

The outer wall 214 of the handle 210 has an elliptical cross section. The handle 210 has a long axis BB and a short axis CC. The major axis is the axis with the larger radius and diameter. The oval handle 210 offers several advantages. That is, the handle 210 is oriented in the user's hand, providing a large space inside the handle 210 as compared to the equivalent circle of the short axis.

It is natural for the user to orient the long axis in the correct direction on the interdigital web between the thumb and index finger. User-operated buttons 38, 138, and 100 are provided close to the long axis and can be easily accessed by the thumb or index finger. In one embodiment, the additional button 100 is in a symmetrical position with the second button 138. This has several advantages, helping the user to orient the appliance in the user's hand in the correct orientation, balance the product, and be visually appealing.

The user interface 180 comprises a first button arrangement 30, 30a and a second button arrangement 130, provided at the first apex 182 of the long axis BB. Specifically, in the illustrated embodiment, the second button arrangement 130 is provided on the first apex 182, and each of the first button arrangements 30, 30 a forms a triangular user interface 180. Further, both sides of the first apex 182 are offset in the radial direction. The second user operation button of the three user operation buttons includes an on/off switch. Conveniently, the pair of first button configurations is referred to as the first and third buttons, which control the temperature and the flow rate through the appliance, respectively. Conveniently, the first and third buttons are longitudinally displaced from the second button, forming the base of the triangular user interface. The second button 138 is arranged at the apex of the triangle.

The additional user operation button 100 is provided on the second vertex 184 of the long axis BB. Therefore, the additional user-operated button 100 is in a symmetrical position with respect to the second button arrangement 130.

A large space inside the handle 210 is achieved without significantly increasing the overall impression of the diameter of the handle 210. The use of ellipses hides the size of the long axis. Also, with handles of circular cross section, the long axis size would be too large for many people to comfortably hold.

The user interface 180 is a triangle, and there is one user operation button at each vertex of the triangle. Since there are two first button configurations 30, 30a, in one embodiment the triangular user interface 180 is in the form of an isosceles triangle, and the two first button configurations are for each of the bases of the triangle. It is provided at the corner.

In one embodiment, the additional user operation button 100 is longitudinally displaced from the user interface 180. One of the reasons for this is that the additional user-operated button 100 actuates the attachment mechanism, which causes the attachment 20 to be attached to and released from the handle 210 of the appliance 10 and, as a result, the mechanism is added. The typical user-operated button 100 is simplified when it is adjacent to or close to the first end 210a of the handle 210 to which the attachment 20 is attached. The second advantage of this configuration is that the internal mechanism that functions to facilitate the operation of the additional user-operated buttons 100 and the user interface 180 can be separated in the handle 210, and consequently these Some internal reduction in cross-sectional area due to internal features is at longitudinal separation within the handle 210. A third reason is that this configuration provides a triangular user interface 180 with first, second, and third buttons all accessible with the thumb, and in a symmetrical position near the first end 210a of the handle 210. Is to assist the user in orienting the appliance with the additional user-operated buttons 100 of 1. In this embodiment, the second button 138 is on the apex of the user interface 180, distal from the additional user-operated button 100 and the first end 210a of the handle 210.

In the embodiment described above, the first button arrangement 130 has three setting positions, but this is not essential and can be more setting positions or fewer setting positions. In addition, the first and second switches are provided on opposite sides of the arm but are not essential as well, and due to space constraints, the two switches can be provided on the same side of the arm.

The two first button configurations 30, 30a differ slightly in the illustrated embodiment, and the configuration of each recess 60, 60a differs slightly. These differences are due solely to spatial considerations on the substrate 70. Therefore, the two recesses 60, 60a can alternatively be the same.

In each figure, and in particular in Figures 7a-7c, the buttons are shown in the same position at the same time, merely to facilitate the description of the present invention, each combination for each of the three button positions is , Can be used with others. For example, each temperature setting position can be used when the machine is on and cold shot can be used at some flow setting position.

Although the present invention is described in detail in connection with hot styling equipment, it is applicable to any appliance that draws fluid and directs an outflow of fluid from the appliance.

The appliance can be used with or without a heater, and the action of the fast outflow of fluid provides a drying effect.

The fluid passing through the appliance is typically air, but can be various combinations of gases and its products to improve the performance of the appliance or its effect on the object. Can contain additives directed to the hair or its styling.

The invention is not limited to the detailed description given above. Those skilled in the art should understand various modifications.

30 First Button Configuration 30a First Button Configuration 38 Button 100 Additional User Operation Button 130 First Button Configuration 138 Second Button 182 First Apex 184 Second Apex 210 Handle 214 Outer Wall

Claims (9)

A handle extending longitudinally between a first end and a second end, an attachment connecting the handle at the first end along the longitudinal direction, and at least one user-operated button A hair care appliance comprising a user interface including:
The handle has an elliptical cross section with a major axis and a minor axis,
The user interface is provided on the first apex of the long axis,
The user interface includes first, second and third user operation buttons,
In the first, second, and third user operation buttons, the first and third user operation buttons are circumferentially spaced around the handle, and the second user operation button is the first and third user operation buttons. The first, second and third user operated buttons are spaced from each other on the surface of the handle such that they are distal to the first end in the longitudinal direction with respect to the third user operated button. Are arranged in a triangular array,
The handle further includes an additional user operation button, the additional user operation button being provided on a second apex of the major axis that is radially opposite the at least one user operation button. A hair care appliance that is located closer to the first end than the user interface and the additional user-actuated button actuates a mechanism for removing the attachment from the handle. The electric appliance according to claim 1, wherein each of the first, second, and third user operation buttons is arranged at a vertex of a triangle. The electric device according to claim 1, wherein the second user operation button includes an on/off switch. The electric appliance according to claim 1, wherein the second user operation button is arranged at the apex of the triangle. The appliance of claim 4, wherein the second user-operated button is on a vertex of the user interface distal to the additional user-operated button. The electric appliance according to claim 1, wherein the first and third user operation buttons form a base of a triangle. The appliance of claim 1, wherein the user interface is longitudinally spaced from the first end of the handle. The appliance of claim 7, wherein a second user-operated button is distal from the first end of the handle. The appliance of claim 1, wherein the hair care appliance is a hot styling appliance.