JPH09140456A - Toothbrush - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To deform bristles with less deflection and with high rigidity in rolling brushing and to put them between teeth by making the rigidity of the bristles in the same direction as the axial line of a handle be lower than the one in the direction orthogonally crossing the axial line. SOLUTION: The bristles 2 are formed integrally with a base 4 by molding by a high molecular compound such as silicon rubber for instance. The bristles 2 are composed by forming the shape so as to turn a cross section roughly to a rectangle, to a planar shape for instance, and making the rigidity in the same direction as the axial line of the handle 3 be lower than the one in the direction orthogonally crossing the axial line. The handle 3 is formed by being provided with the base 4 integrally formed with the handle 3 for instance on one end and an attachment part 5 which is an attachment part to a motor-driven toothbrush on the other end part. In bus brushing at the time of driving in the same direction as the axial line of the handle 3, the bristles 2 are flexibly deformed, the surface of a long length with a large contact area is abutted to a tooth surface and the plaque of the tooth surface is removed. In the rolling brushing at the time of the driving in the direction orthogonally crossing the axial line, the bristles are deformed with less deflection and with the high regidity and enter between the teeth and the plaque or the like between the teeth is efficiently brushed.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a toothbrush, and more particularly to a toothbrush having bristles most suitable for removing dental plaque and the like with an electric toothbrush.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Recently, the rotation of a small motor is changed to reciprocating motion to reciprocate in the same direction as the shaft axis of the handle or in the direction orthogonal to the shaft line of the handle to brush the teeth with a bristle provided at the end of the handle. The electric toothbrush shown in FIG. 5 is becoming popular.
The bristle of this electric toothbrush is the same as that of a manually brushed toothbrush, and is formed by bundling dozens of bristle elements having a diameter of about 0.2 mm and implanting them on a base. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 6, for bristle bristle bodies of substantially cylindrical thread pieces formed by extrusion of a polyamide resin material or the like are bundled, and for flocking of a base 4 integrally formed with the handle 3. It is configured to be locked in the prepared hole 4a by a stopper 4b. The toothbrush 1 having the bristle 2 has a hole 5 a in the mounting portion 5.
The electric toothbrush body 6 is attached to and driven by the drive portion 6a of the electric toothbrush body 6.

Generally, an electric toothbrush has an arrow A,
Polishing by reciprocating motion of about 3 mm in the same direction as the axis of the handle of (a) (hereinafter referred to as bath polishing), indicated by B;
The reciprocating motion in a direction orthogonal to the axis of (1), that is, polishing by reciprocal rolling motion of about 30 degrees (hereinafter referred to as rolling polishing) is appropriately combined to reliably remove plaque and the like in a short time. However, in both reciprocating motions of the bus polishing and the rolling polishing, the bristles are
In the case of rolling polishing, the tip follows very little. Therefore, the effect of removing plaque may not be sufficiently exerted, and the user may not feel a sufficiently polished feeling in use. as a result,
There have been cases in which plaque does not drop off reliably even after brushing teeth, or when bristles are pressed against the surface of teeth with excessive force to be used and the gums of the user are hurt.

[0004]

By the way, in the case of manually brushing the teeth, the pressing of the bristles to the tooth surface is required.
By reciprocally moving the toothbrush while changing it little by little, the plaque can be reliably removed. However, when brushing teeth with an electric toothbrush, it can be said that it is preferable to brush the tooth surface with a constant force by the bristles so as not to damage the gums. However, in the toothbrush using the bristles described above, it is impossible to apply different pressures to the bristles depending on the direction of polishing. Therefore, in order to enhance the effect of removing plaque in rolling polishing of an electric toothbrush, it is necessary to have a bristle in which the reciprocating force of the shaft by a small motor acts more strongly on the tip of the bristle. In view of the above, an object thereof is to provide a toothbrush having a high effect of removing plaque by bristles in an electric toothbrush.

[0005]

In order to achieve the above object, the toothbrush according to claim 1 is a toothbrush having a bristle integrally formed with a base of an end portion of the handle, wherein the bristle has a handle. The rigidity in the same direction as the axis is set to be lower than that in the direction orthogonal to the axis. As a result, when the load applied to the bristle is in the direction orthogonal to the axis of the handle, the bristle is deformed with high rigidity.

In the toothbrush according to claim 2, the bristle according to claim 1 is a flat plate having a substantially rectangular cross section. This causes the long surface of the bristle to contact the tooth surface when driven in the same direction as the axis of the handle.

Further, in the toothbrush according to claim 3, the bristle according to claim 2 integrally has, on the upper surface of the flat plate, one or more projecting portions having a cross-section that decreases in a direction away from the upper surface. As a result, when driving in a direction orthogonal to the shaft axis of the handle, the protrusions of the bristles accurately enter into the inner spaces between the teeth.

According to a fourth aspect of the toothbrush, the bristle according to the third aspect has one or more thin-walled protrusions integrally formed on the peripheral wall of the protrusion. Thus, when the bristle is driven in the direction orthogonal to the axis of the handle, the thin-walled protrusions of the bristles come into contact with the side surfaces of the interdental teeth, so that the protrusions penetrate into the interdental spaces.

[0009]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION A first embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIG. 1A is a plan view,
(B) shows the A section sectional view, and (c) shows the B direction arrow view. The toothbrush 1 has a bristle 2, a handle 3, a base 4, and a mounting portion 5 as main constituent portions. The bristles 2 are integrally formed with the base 4 by molding using a polymer compound such as silicon rubber. This bristle 2
Has a substantially rectangular cross section, for example, a flat plate shape, and the rigidity in the same direction as the axis of the handle 3 is lower than that in the direction orthogonal to the axis. The flat plate-shaped portion 2a may have chamfered or smooth curved surfaces at the corners of the elevation and the top. The handle 3 is formed by having a base 4 integrally formed with the handle 3 at one end, and a mounting portion 5 at the other end, which is a mounting portion for the electric toothbrush. Mounting part 5
5 is an attachment portion to an electric toothbrush formed in the same manner as described in the section of the prior art shown in FIG. Hole 5a is formed. At the mounting portion 5, the toothbrush 1 is fitted and connected to the drive portion 6 a of the electric toothbrush 6.

Toothbrush 1 having the above-mentioned bristles 2
Is attached to and driven by the drive unit 6 a of the electric toothbrush body 6. Then, the bristle 2 is flexibly deformed by the bus polishing during driving in the same direction as the axis of the handle 3, and the long surface having a large contact area contacts the tooth surface to remove plaque on the tooth surface. In rolling polishing during driving in the direction orthogonal to the axis, the bristles are highly rigid and deform with little deflection and enter between the teeth, plaque and food waste between the teeth are scraped out, and the bristles can be efficiently polished. The bristle 2 is not limited to a flat plate as a shape in which the rigidity in the same direction as the axis of the handle is lower than that in the direction orthogonal to the axis, but the base shown in FIG. One having a conical shape whose cross section becomes smaller in the direction away from the upper surface of the table 4, and having this thickened portion 21 in the direction orthogonal to the axis of the handle 3,
Alternatively, as shown in (b), the protrusions 2 orthogonal to each other on the upper surface of the base 4 are provided.
2 and 23, the width dimension of the protruding portion 23 orthogonal to the axis of the handle 3 may be increased.

Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. The toothbrush 1 has a bristle shape different from that of the first embodiment. The bristle 2 of this one integrally has one projecting portion 2b on the upper surface of the flat plate-shaped portion 2a having a substantially rectangular cross section, the projecting portion 2b having a smaller cross section in the direction away from the upper surface. This flat plate portion 2a
Is the same as that of the first embodiment, has lower rigidity in the same direction as the axis of the bristle handle than in the direction orthogonal to the axis, and is formed integrally with the base 4. The projecting portion 2b has a conical shape on the upper surface of the flat plate portion 2a, the cross section of which becomes smaller in the direction away from the upper surface of the flat plate portion 2a, and is formed integrally with the flat plate portion 2a.

Toothbrush 1 having the above-mentioned bristles 2
Is a cone-shaped protrusion 2b that precisely enters between the teeth during rolling polishing during driving in a direction orthogonal to the axis of the handle,
The plaque between the teeth can be removed more reliably. In addition,
The number of the protruding portions 2b may be two or more, and they are provided as appropriate.

Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. This toothbrush 1 also has a bristle shape different from that of the first embodiment. As shown in (a), the bristle 2 of this type has a thin projecting portion 2c integrally formed on the peripheral wall of the projecting portion 2b on the upper surface of the flat plate portion 2a of the bristle of the second embodiment. . The thin projecting portion 2c is formed by molding, and the projecting portion 2c
One is provided on the peripheral wall of b, or a plurality of them are provided so as to face each other around the peripheral wall and to be located outside the same line vertically.

In the toothbrush 1 having the bristle 2 having the above-described shape, the conical protrusions 2b are accurately inserted between the teeth during rolling polishing during driving in the direction orthogonal to the axis of the handle, and the thin protrusions are further formed. By 2c, the plaque on the surface between the teeth is removed. In addition, this thin protrusion 2c
Alternatively, as shown in (b), a minute cut 2d may be formed in the peripheral wall of the protruding portion 2b so that the protruding portion 2b is curved when used to become a thin protruding portion.

[0015]

In the toothbrush according to the first aspect of the present invention, when the load applied to the bristle is in the direction orthogonal to the axis of the handle, the bristle is deformed with high rigidity, so that the toothbrush is driven in the direction orthogonal to the axis. In the rolling polishing of bristles, the bristles have high rigidity and are deformed with little deflection and enter into the spaces between the teeth, and plaque and food waste between the teeth are scratched out, and the bristles can be efficiently polished.

In addition to the effect of the first aspect of the invention, the toothbrush according to the second aspect has the advantage that the long surface of the bristles abuts on the tooth surface when driven in the same direction as the axis of the handle. The surface of the shank that has a large contact area efficiently removes plaque on the tooth surface.

In addition to the effect of the second aspect of the invention, the toothbrush according to the third aspect of the invention has the protrusion of the bristles accurately enter into the inner space between the teeth when driven in the direction orthogonal to the axis of the handle. Therefore, the plaque between the teeth can be removed more reliably.

In addition to the effect of the third aspect, the toothbrush according to the fourth aspect is such that, when driven in a direction orthogonal to the axis of the handle, the thin protruding portion of the bristle is located on the side surface of the tooth between the teeth. Since the protrusions come into contact with each other and enter the deep spaces between the teeth, the thin protrusions remove plaque on the surface between the teeth.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1A is a plan view showing a first embodiment of the present invention,
(B) The A section sectional view, (c) The B direction arrow view.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of another two embodiments of the bristles.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a bristle according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of an essential part of a bristle according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view including a conventional electric toothbrush.

6A is a plan view thereof, and FIG. 6B is a detailed explanatory view of a bristle which is a main part.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram of (a) bath brushing and (b) rolling brushing, which are how to brush teeth with an electric toothbrush.

[Explanation of Codes] 1 Toothbrush 2 Bristle 2a Flat plate portion 2b Projecting portion 3 Handle 4 Base 5 Mounting portion

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A toothbrush having a bristle integrally formed with a base of an end of a handle, wherein the bristle has a rigidity in the same direction as an axis of the handle lower than that in a direction orthogonal to the axis. And a toothbrush. 2. The toothbrush according to claim 1, wherein the bristle has a flat plate shape having a substantially rectangular cross section. 3. The toothbrush according to claim 2, wherein the bristles integrally have one or two or more protrusions whose cross section becomes smaller on the upper surface of the flat plate in the direction away from the upper surface. 4. The toothbrush according to claim 3, wherein the bristle has one or more thin-walled protrusions integrally formed on a peripheral wall of the protrusion.