JPH0357786B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION (Field of Industrial Application) The present invention relates to an oral appliance that emits far-infrared rays directly to affected areas in the oral cavity.

(Prior art) Far-infrared rays, which have a long wavelength among infrared rays, have a good absorption effect on the human body and have the property of exciting molecules by thermal vibration and heating them from within. Instruments are being developed. Furthermore, in the field of dental treatment, far infrared rays have attracted attention for their ability to promote blood circulation and have a remarkable anti-inflammatory effect on alveolar pyorrhea, gingivitis, etc., and these treatment instruments that utilize far infrared rays are It has been put into practical use.

These conventionally known treatment instruments are installed in clinics, hospitals, etc., and irradiate far-infrared rays from the outside to affected areas within the oral cavity.

(Problems to be Solved by the Invention) Since the conventional treatment instruments do not insert a radiator into the oral cavity, the far infrared rays are absorbed in the cheek area, and the far infrared rays whose main wavelength is 8 to 10 μm are efficiently transmitted to the affected area. It was difficult to radiate light. Furthermore, the device itself is large and inconvenient to carry, and can only be used in hospitals etc. where the device is equipped, making it impossible to easily emit far-infrared rays anywhere.

The purpose of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned problems and to be able to directly irradiate far-infrared rays to affected areas in the oral cavity.
The aim is to provide an oral appliance that is small and can be used anywhere.

(Means for Solving the Problems) The oral appliance of the present invention includes a far-infrared radiator that emits far-infrared rays, a support that supports the far-infrared radiator, and a heating device that heats the far-infrared radiator to a predetermined temperature. This device is characterized by comprising a heat storage body as an energy supply body, and irradiating far infrared rays from the inside of the oral cavity to the affected area.

(Function) In the above-mentioned configuration, by inserting the oral appliance into the oral cavity and directly irradiating far-infrared rays from the far-infrared radiator to the affected area, far-infrared rays are effectively irradiated to the affected area without attenuation of the far-infrared rays. It becomes possible. Furthermore, when a far-infrared radiator is heated to a temperature at which it is safe to insert it into the oral cavity, such as 50 degrees Celsius, with an energy supply body such as a heat storage body, far-infrared rays with a main wavelength of 8 to 10 μm depending on the temperature will be emitted. Occur.

(Example) Embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings.

1 and 2 are diagrams showing one embodiment of the oral appliance of the present invention. In this embodiment, reference numeral 1 designates the handle of the toothbrush, which is made hollow inside as shown in the figure and manufactured by plastic injection molding.
4 is a heating element installed in the hollow inner end of the handle, which is made by mixing barium titanate ceramics with PCT effect using a doctor blade method, etc., and firing it into a predetermined shape. The temperature can be controlled at 60-70℃. Therefore, in this embodiment, when the temperature of the heat storage body (described later) rises to, for example, 60° C., the current is automatically cut off. A power terminal 3 protruding from the end of the handle is fixed to one end of the heating element 4, and a heat transfer terminal 7 for transferring heat to the heat storage element 6 is provided at the other end. and,
The heating element 4 is configured to prevent electrical leakage to the heat storage element.
It is explosion-proof. The heat storage body 6 is made of a compound that absorbs or radiates heat when hardening or softening at a constant temperature, such as phosphate, camphor, mirabilite, ammonium nitrate, viscous oil lipid, solid oil, or fluid propylene glycol. Furthermore, any material that has a heat storage effect, such as water, may be used. The other end of the handle part 1 in which the heat storage body 6 is housed is provided with a socket 8 into which a heating end of a brush part, which will be described later, is fitted to form a joint part.

Reference numeral 2 denotes a brush portion, and a heating plate 11 such as an aluminum plate or a copper plate having good thermal conductivity is buried in the brush portion to heat a far-infrared radiator to be described later from the heat storage body 6. One side of the end of the heating plate 11 is coated with a known compound obtained by converting the fluororesin constituting the far-infrared radiator 10 into a far-infrared radiating element by a method such as thermal spraying or baking using an epoxy resin adhesive or the like. It is coated by.

Then, on the surface of the far-infrared radiator 10,
A brush 12 is provided, which is made of nylon 66 fibers or hollow nylon fibers having a double structure with carbon fibers in the center, which constitute the affected area contacting body, and are made by perforating the heating plate 11 and the far-infrared radiator 10 and flocking them. There is. The brush part 2 has the brush 12 protruding and the other end of the heating plate 11 connected to the handle part 1.
leaving the insertion end 13 to be inserted into the socket 8 of the
The exterior part is integrally covered with plastic.

The handle part 1 and the brush part 2 constructed as described above are assembled and used integrally by inserting the insertion end 13 of the brush part 2 into the socket 8 of the handle part 1 which is a joint part. When in use, the power supply terminal 3 is connected to an external power source to heat the heating element 4, and the heat storage element 6 is heated.
to store heat. When the heat storage element 6 reaches a certain temperature, the heating element 4 shuts off electricity due to the PTC effect, thereby preventing further temperature rise. In this example,
The temperature rise of the heat storage body was set at 60°C.

The heat from the heat storage body 6 is radiated to the heating plate 11 via the joint portion, and the heating plate 11 is heated.
As a result, far-infrared rays are emitted from the surface of the far-infrared radiator 10. The far infrared rays emitted from the far infrared radiator 10 are transmitted to the radiator element surface and the brush 12.
The affected area can be effectively irradiated through the .
Note that if the brush 12 is made of hollow nylon fibers having carbon fibers inside as described above, the radiation effect can be further enhanced. Alternatively, it may be composed only of carbon fiber.

When the heat storage body 6 reaches a predetermined temperature, the toothbrush is disconnected from the power source, the brush 12 is inserted into the oral cavity, and the affected area, such as the gums, is rubbed with the brush 12 while far infrared rays are irradiated to the affected area. If the affected area contacting body is composed of such a brush 12, a synergistic effect of pine surge by the brush can be expected at the same time as far infrared radiation. Further, in this embodiment, since the brush part can be replaced arbitrarily, the brush part can be replaced depending on the place of use in the oral cavity, and a shape of a suitable size can be used. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing another embodiment of the brush section, in which an elastic body 19 made of rubber or the like is provided in place of the brush 12.

4 and 5 are diagrams showing other embodiments of the invention. In this embodiment, a power supply side agupter 15 having PTC characteristics is used, and when the heating element of the toothbrush reaches a certain temperature,
It is designed to cut off electricity. Further, tungsten, mica, or the like 16 is used as a heating element to heat the heat storage body 14 and transfer the heat to the heating plate 17. Furthermore, an elastic body 18 made of rubber or the like is used as the affected part contacting body instead of the brush of the previous embodiment. In this embodiment, the brush portion and handle portion are not separated but are integrally molded from plastic.

Further, in each of the above embodiments, a heating element is provided in the handle, but unlike in each of the above embodiments, the heat storage element 22 is heated by an external heating element instead of providing a heating element in the handle 20. Also good. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 6, the handle 20 is provided with a heat absorbing disc 21 that is in contact with the internal heat storage body 22 and a portion of which is exposed on the outer surface of the handle. The other configurations are the same as in each of the embodiments described above.

When using the toothbrush of this embodiment, a water heater 26 as shown in FIG.
Then, the handle of the toothbrush is immersed in water 27 heated to a constant temperature for a certain period of time, and as a result, the heat absorption disc 21 of the handle 20 absorbs heat from the hot water and heats the heat storage body 22. , heat is stored in the heat storage body 22. Thereafter, it is used in the same manner as in each of the above embodiments.

Use the toothbrushes of each of the above examples every morning and evening after brushing your teeth.
When the device was inserted into the oral cavity and brought into contact with the affected area for up to 3 minutes and irradiated with far infrared rays, pain relief, anti-inflammatory effects, and promotion of blood flow and blood circulation were observed without any side effects.
Also, the temperature of the body in contact with the affected area at this time is 45°C to 50°C.
Even if it was brought into direct contact with the affected area in the oral cavity, it did not cause any damage to the gums. Furthermore, when used on a daily basis in the same manner as above, it was found that it not only prevented the adhesion of plaque and tartar, but also had a separating effect on removing tobacco tar.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing still another embodiment of the oral appliance of the present invention. In FIG. 8, a handle 31a of a toothbrush 31 made of resin such as plastic is equipped with a circuit board 33 on which a battery 32 and elements such as a DC-DC converter are mounted, and a switch 34 for controlling power ON/OFF. A power supply circuit consisting of the following is provided to heat the far-infrared radiator 35. The portion of the handle 31a that corresponds to the battery 32 has a removable structure so that the battery 32 can be replaced when it is exhausted.

Further, a far-infrared ray emitter 35 is provided on the brush portion 31b of the toothbrush 31, and the far-infrared ray emitter 35
is supplied with current from the power supply circuit. As the material for the far-infrared radiator 35, any ceramic material that emits far-infrared rays can be used, but a semiconductor material that utilizes the PTC effect, such as barium titanate, is suitable in terms of heat generation. Also,
At this time, in order to increase the far-infrared radiation efficiency, it is more preferable to provide a coating of zirconia-based, titanium-based ceramics, or the like on the surface of the far-infrared radiator 35 by a method such as jet deposition. This far infrared ray emitter 35
An elastic coating layer 36 is provided on the surface of the far-infrared radiator 35 to provide a good feel when inserted into the oral cavity and to protect the far-infrared radiator 35 from impact. As the material for the elastic coating layer 36, a material such as rubber or plastic that transmits far infrared rays of 8 to 14 μm or more is used.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example of the power supply circuit, etc. of the present invention. As the battery 32, any battery can be used as long as it is small and can be attached to the handle portion 31a, and any voltage value can be used. The switch 34 is simply a power supply.
It is used for ON/OFF, and its size is also the handle part 31a.
Any size can be used as long as it can be attached to. Further, the circuit board 33 includes a DC-DC converter 33a and the like for boosting the voltage of the battery 32 and supplying the voltage to the far-infrared radiator 35.

Hereinafter, an example will be described in which the oral appliance using far infrared rays of the present invention is used on an affected area of alveolar pyorrhea. First, a toothbrush handle was made by injection molding plastic, and inside the handle was placed a previously prepared battery holder, a DC-DC converter and other elements, and a circuit board with pre-wired circuits.
Additionally, the part of the handle that corresponds to the battery holder is removable, making it possible to replace the battery.

Furthermore, at the end opposite to the end where the battery holder is installed, barium titanate ceramics are prepared in advance by mixing raw materials using the doctor blade method, fired into a predetermined shape, and then radiated with far infrared rays. The body was fixed to the brush part with adhesive or the like, and the electrode terminal and the output terminal of the DC-DC converter were connected. Thereafter, the exposed portion of the far-infrared radiator was covered with rubber to obtain an oral appliance of the present invention.

Use a toothbrush with the structure described above every morning and evening after brushing your teeth.
When inserted into the oral cavity for 10 minutes and brought into contact with the affected area and irradiated with far infrared rays, analgesic and anti-inflammatory effects were observed with no side effects. Further, the temperature of the toothbrush portion 31b at this time was about 45° C. to 50° C., and the toothbrush portion 31b did not damage the gums even when brought into direct contact with the affected area in the oral cavity.

FIG. 10 is a diagram showing still another embodiment of the present invention. This embodiment is an example of a toothbrush having a handle portion 41 and a brush portion 42 similar to the structure described above. In this embodiment, the brush portion 43 is made of nylon 6
A brush 43 made of 6-fiber, carbon fiber, etc. is flocked, and a far-infrared radiator 44 is heated by a heat storage material 45 through a metal member 40 such as Al, Cu, etc. with high thermal conductivity, and the handle part 41 and brush part 42 are connected. It has a removable cassette structure. The heat storage material 45 is heated by a heating element 46 made of a rubber heater, a mica heater, barium titanate, etc. In this embodiment, an external power source (not shown) is connected to the heating element 46 through a terminal 46a,
46b to supply power to the heating element 46. Further, as the heat storage material 45, anything can be used as long as it has a heat storage effect, such as phosphate, propylene glycol, and water.

The toothbrush having the above-described structure can be used with the external power source disconnected for a certain period of time after the heat storage material 45 stores heat using the heating element 46 until it cools down, and the bristled brush 43 simultaneously cleans the oral cavity and massages the affected area. be able to.
If you want to focus on the pine surge effect on the affected area, please use the 11th
As an example is shown in FIGS. a and b, it is more preferable to provide a gingiva surgical tool 47 made of an elastic material such as rubber that transmits far infrared rays in place of the brush 43.

Furthermore, as another example of the toothbrush type oral appliance of the present invention, it is also conceivable to form a far-infrared radiator 44 on the back side of the hair-planted head of the brush portion 42, as shown in FIG. 12, for example. In this case, the formation of the radiator 44 becomes simple. Further, as in the embodiment shown in FIG. 13, each brush of the brush 43 is
As shown in the cross-sectional view A′, a radiator 48 such as a metal wire
It is also possible to construct a structure in which far infrared rays can be emitted from the tip of the brush 43 by forming a double structure such as having a core and covering the circumference with nylon 49. Furthermore, as in the embodiment shown in FIG. 14, a far-infrared emitting material 53 such as zirconia, titanium, chromium, etc. is directly applied or baked on the surface of the brush part 42 made of plastic, so that the brush part itself emits far-infrared rays. After forming the body 44, a battery 50 and a heater 5 built into the handle 41 are installed.
1 can be transmitted to the brush portion 42 by a metal member 52 such as Al having high thermal conductivity, thereby generating far-infrared rays. Further, at this time, it is also possible to form a thermally conductive layer on the plastic brush portion 42 by means such as vapor deposition or plating, and coat the far-infrared emitting material thereon. Furthermore, as in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 15a and 15b, the far-infrared radiator 4
4 can be formed on the tail part 53 of the toothbrush and heated by an energy supply body consisting of a built-in battery and a heating element (not shown).

FIG. 16 is a perspective view showing still another embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the shape of the support is configured as a stick structure consisting of a tip 61 and a grip 62 for pressing against the affected area. The far-infrared radiator 63 constituting the tip 61 can be of any type in the embodiments described above, and although in this embodiment the power source is an external power source, it goes without saying that it may be built-in. In the case of the stick shape of this embodiment, far infrared rays can be more effectively radiated to the affected area.

FIG. 17 is a perspective view showing still another embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the shape of the support body is a mouthpiece shape in line with the tooth row, and as is clear from the A-A' cross section, a heater 72 is sandwiched inside a tray body 71 made of urethane, etc. It has a laminated structure in which the radiator 73 is provided throughout. Further, it goes without saying that the power source is an external power source, and that any type of far-infrared radiator 73 in the above-described embodiments can be used. In this example, one for either the upper jaw or the lower jaw is shown, but two mouthpiece-shaped oral appliances are prepared and their backs are glued together, and far infrared rays are applied to both the upper and lower jaws at the same time. It can also be configured to irradiate. In the case of the mouthpiece shape described above, the entire gum can be irradiated with far infrared rays from both sides simultaneously. In addition,
In this example, an example of a mouthpiece shape covering the entire dentition was shown, but as shown in Nos. 18a and 18b,
It is also possible to have the same structure and local shape so that only the third tooth 74 can be irradiated with far infrared rays.

FIG. 19 is a perspective view showing a further embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the support is shaped like a finger peg, and a far infrared ray emitter 82 such as zirconia is integrated into the finger peg 81 made of an elastic material such as rubber by a method such as mixing, coating or vapor deposition, and heating This is achieved by a heater 83 embedded inside the finger rest 81.

The present invention is not limited only to the embodiments described above, and numerous modifications and changes are possible. For example, in each of the embodiments described above, the power supply method (external power supply or built-in power supply, etc.) and the energy supply body (heating element, heat storage material, etc.) are limited for each embodiment, but each embodiment Even if a power supply method and an energy supply method are used, the effects of the present invention can be exhibited as long as the purpose can be achieved.

In addition, in the above-mentioned embodiment, when using a far-infrared ray emitter that is coated with a far-infrared ray emitting material such as zirconia that emits far-infrared rays better on a metal with good thermal conductivity such as aluminum, Although the shape is shown as a flat plate, the 20th to 22nd
Other shapes of the far-infrared emitting material coating are also possible as shown.

(Effects of the Invention) As is clear from the above detailed explanation, the oral appliance of the present invention can directly irradiate far-infrared rays to the affected area, so it is more efficient to treat alveolar pyorrhea than conventional devices. It can provide analgesic and anti-inflammatory effects for these diseases. Furthermore, the entire device is small and convenient to carry, and can be used at home without having to go to a hospital where a far-infrared device is installed.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Fig. 1 is an exploded perspective view of the oral appliance of the present invention;
3 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the brush portion, FIG. 4 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the heating plate and far-infrared radiator. 6 is a perspective view of still another embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a water heater, FIG. 8 is a line diagram showing an embodiment of the oral appliance of the present invention, and FIG. 9 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the present invention. Diagrams showing an example of the power supply circuit etc. used in the embodiment shown in FIG. 8, FIG. 10, FIG. 11 a, b, FIG. 12 to FIG. 14, FIG. Figure 17,
Figures 18a, b and 19 are diagrams showing still other embodiments of the oral appliance of the present invention, and Figures 20 to 22 are diagrams of far-infrared radiators used in the oral appliance of the present invention. It is a line diagram showing one example. DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1... Handle part, 2... Brush part, 3... Power terminal, 4... Heating element, 6... Heat storage body, 7... Electric heating terminal, 8... Socket, 10... Far-infrared radiator,
11... heating plate, 12... brush, 13... insertion end, 15... adapter, 16... heat storage body (tungsten), 17... heating plate, 18... elastic body,
20...Handle, 21...Heat absorption board, 22...Heat storage body, 25...Heater, 26...Water heater, 31...
Toothbrush, 31a...Handle part, 31b...Toothbrush part, 32...Battery, 33...Circuit board, 33a...
...DC-DC converter, 34...Switch, 35
... Far-infrared radiator, 36 ... Elastic coating layer, 40
... Metal member, 41 ... Handle section, 42 ... Brush section, 43 ... Brush, 44 ... Far-infrared radiator,
45...Heat storage material, 46...Heating element, 47...Gingival pine surge tool, 48...Radiator, 49...Nylon, 50...Battery, 51...Heater, 52...Metal member, 53...Tail part , 61... Tip part, 62...
...Grip portion, 63... Far infrared ray emitter, 71... Tray body, 72... Heater, 73... Far infrared ray emitter, 74... Teeth, 81... Finger rest, 82...
...Far-infrared radiator, 83...Heater.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A far-infrared radiator that emits far-infrared rays with a main wavelength of 8 to 10 μm, a support that supports the far-infrared radiator, and energy for heating the far-infrared radiator to a predetermined temperature. An oral appliance characterized by comprising a heat storage body as a supply body and irradiating far infrared rays from the inside of the oral cavity to an affected area. 2. The oral appliance according to claim 1, wherein the support body has a toothbrush structure consisting of a handle part and a brush part. 3. The oral appliance according to claim 1, wherein the support body has a stick structure consisting of a grip portion. 4. The oral appliance according to claim 1, wherein the support is the whole or part of a mouthpiece structure aligned with the tooth row. 5. The oral appliance according to claim 1, wherein the support has a finger rest structure.