KR100232785B1 - Tooth brush - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to a toothbrush consisting of a handle (22) whose neck (28) has a coupling end (30), and of a brush head (24) with a coupling end (32), it being possible for the brush head (24) to be firmly but releasably connected to the handle (22) by engagement of their coupling ends (30, 32). An actuating member (46) is secured movably on the handle (22). A gearing (68, 74) is arranged inside the handle (22). A driving gear (54) is firmly connected to the actuating member (46) and has a driving gear (70). A spindle (76) is mounted axially movably and rotatably in the handle (22). One end of the spindle (76) is connected with rotary movement to the driving gear (70) of the gearing (68, 74) inside the handle (22), and the other end of the spindle (76) is mounted in the coupling end (30) of the handle (22) and has a first part of the device for the releasable connection of the handle (22) to the brush head (24). A second part of the device in the coupling end (32) of the brush head (24) serves for the releasable connection to the first part of the device at the other end of the spindle (76). The brush head can be assembled quickly and clamped firmly, thus providing a hygienically satisfactory connection. <IMAGE>

Description

toothbrush

1 is a side view partially cut away of a toothbrush having a brush head mounted, a transmission with internal gears, and an actuating member coupled thereto.

2 is a side view of a toothbrush, similar to that of FIG. 1, with the brush head separated from the handle and the actuating member shown in a non-engaged position.

3 is a partial cutaway view of a second embodiment of a toothbrush similar to that of FIG. 1 provided with a transmission in an external gear.

4 is a partial cutaway side view of the toothbrush similar to FIG. 3 with the brush head removed from the handle.

5 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line V-V of FIG.

FIG. 6 is a sectional view of the brush head according to FIGS. 1 and 2 in a plug-on position; FIG.

7 (a) to 7 (c) are other centering devices for centering the brush head on the handle of a toothbrush and are schematic cross-sectional views taken along the line of FIG. 4 in an enlarged size.

* Explanation of symbols for main parts of the drawings

20: toothbrush 22: handle

24 brush head 30 coupling end handle

32 coupling end brush head 48 lever

60: sliding bearing 70: internal gear

72: pinion 76: spindle

98: socket 106: screw

The present invention relates to a toothbrush comprising a handle having a coupling end and a brush head having a coupling end, the brush head being detachably firmly coupled to the handle by engagement of the coupling end.

Toothbrushes of this type are known from EP 0,326,363 A1. In this toothbrush, the brush handle is conical in its front end, and the rear end of the brush head in contact with the brush handle has a recess corresponding to the brush handle and the conical end. The cone on the brush handle is provided with an annular bead that engages the annular groove in the recess of the brush head and forms a snap-in support for securing the brush head on the brush handle in the axial direction. do. The longitudinal ribs provided on the cone fit coincident with the longitudinal grooves in the recesses of the brush head to form a fixed connection by rotation.

It is an object of the present invention to improve a toothbrush of the general type known in the art as a method of firmly fixing the brush head to the brush handle in the axial direction at its connection. As a result, a hygienic satisfactory coupling between the brush head and the handle is achieved.

Moreover, when placing the bristle of the brush head on the teeth at the position to brush, a corresponding fixed gripping force is applied by the user in the hand supporting the brush. In this case, the toothbrush is easy for the user to operate and can be assembled quickly.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides an actuating member movably fixed on a handle, a drive gear arranged on the handle side and securely coupled to the actuating member and another drive gear, and an axial direction in the handle. Is rotatably mounted and rotatably mounted, one end of which is coupled to the drive gear of the transmission on the side of the handle for rotational movement, the other end of which is mounted to the coupling end of the handle, and detachably coupled to the handle brush head. A spindle having a first device portion and a second device portion at the coupling end of the brush head for releasably engaging the first device portion at the other end of the spindle.

The transmission is preferably a speed conversion transmission in which the drive gear is coupled to the actuating member and the output gear meshes with the pinion and the cogwheel formed by the inner end of the spindle. The drive gear of the speed change transmission may be an internal gear. In this case, the drive gear is conveniently mounted to the cylindrical circumferential surface and the slide bearing by the handle so that it is rotatable and does not move axially. However, the drive gear of the speed change transmission may be an external gear. In this case, the drive gear may have a shaft end that is rotatably mounted but fixed axially to a bracket formed in the handle parallel to the pinion of the spindle.

The coupling of the actuating member of the speed converting transmission is preferably a bevel transmission in which the driving bevel gear is firmly coupled to the actuating member and the output bevel gear forms a unit with the drive gear of the speed converting transmission. The drive bevel gear is provided with a shaft end that is laterally rotatably mounted to the longitudinal axis of the handle at its side wall. The ring gear can be located in the space opposite the coaxial to the drive bevel gear, the shaft end being rotatably coupled to the sliding bearing of the second side wall of the handle positioned opposite the first side wall on the end side facing away from the drive bevel gear. Is provided. In this case, the drive bevel gear is preferably formed as an integral component of the actuating member.

The actuating member may be a lever whose axis of rotation is formed by the shaft end of the drive bevel gear and the ring gear. In this case, in the position to engage the brush head, the lever can fill the opening in the inner wall of the handle so that the outside of the lever contacts the outer surface of the handle on its inner or lower side.

The end of the lever abutting away from the neck of the handle preferably has a lever arm on the inside of the lever, the split free end being formed by a drive level gear and a ring gear. Together with the lever, the lever arm forms an acute angle open toward the handle neck.

The spindle is conveniently provided with a guide spindle mounted in screw motion in a screw bearing inside the neck of the handle. In this case the guide spindle may be arranged on the central meridion part. Moreover, at the two ends of the spindle, the meridion part is smooth on its outer surface and axially rotated and removable in each case in the sliding bearing of the neck of the handle. The end of the spindle mounted to the neck is provided with a screw corresponding to the screw in the insertion opening at the coupling portion of the brush head, which screw is arranged below the insertion opening of the brush head.

The neck of the handle is provided with a socket, the length and cross section of the socket being approximately coincident with the depth and cross section of the insertion opening in the brush head. In this case, the plug-in coupling of the brush head and the handle coupling portion is provided with a centering device. The centering device consists of an uncurved cross section and a corresponding cross section of the insertion end on the handle. Moreover, it is useful to form a plug-in engagement between the insertion opening in the brush head and the socket on the handle as an easy engagement engagement. As a result, the axial plug-in engagement can be sensed by the user to form a good engagement, which is a requirement for continuous axial engagement of the handle and the brush head by rotating the spindle.

The invention is described in detail below with reference to the schematic drawings of the examples.

1 shows a plastic toothbrush 20 composed of a brush head 24 and a handle 22 with bristle regions 26. The neck 28 of the handle 22 has a coupling end 30. The brush head 24 has a coupling end 32. The brush head 24 and the handle 22 are firmly but detachably joined to each other by the engagement of the two coupling ends 30, 32.

According to FIGS. 1 to 5, the handle 22 and its neck 28 have an outer wall 36, an inner wall 38, a side wall 40 on the left side in FIG. 5 and a side wall 40 on the right side in FIG. 5. It has a hollow box profile 34 with 42). The front meridion portion of the side wall 38 extending above the handle neck 28 is an opening 44 filled by an actuating member 46 which can be formed as a lever 48 (FIGS. 1, 2 and 5). ) The end portion of the lever 48, which faces away from the handle neck 28, has a lever arm 50 on its side which forms an acute angle open in the direction of the handle neck 28 together with the longitudinal axis of the lever 48. .

The inner end of the lever arm 50 protruding into the hollow space of the box profile 34 is branched. According to FIG. 5 the branch consists of a ring gear 52 and a driving bevel gear 54 of the bevel bearing 68. The ring gear 52 and the drive bevel gear 54 are arranged far apart on the common virtual axis 56 extending at the center height along the side walls 40, 42 of the box profile 34 at right angles.

The ring gear 52 is integrally formed with the shaft end 58 abutting from the drive bevel gear 54 on its side. Inside of the side wall 42 of the box profile 34 located opposite the shaft end 58 is provided to the sliding bearing 60 which forms a cylindrical depression in which the shaft end 58 of the ring gear 52 is rotatably coupled. do.

Similarly, the driving bevel gear 54 is integrally formed with the shaft end 62 abutting away from the ring gear 52 on the side.

The shaft end 62 has a slide bearing 64 formed coaxially opposite and coincident with the slide bearing 60 in the left side wall 40 of the oppositely positioned box profile 34. The shaft end 62 of the drive bevel gear 54 is rotatably engaged in the slide bearing 64. Subsequently, the two shaft ends 58, 62 of the ring gear 52 and the driving bevel gear 54 form a rotation axis for the lever 48, which is coaxial with the virtual axis 56, and the ring gear ( 52 and drive bevel gear 54 perform a rotational motion when lever 48 is rotated.

According to FIGS. 1 and 2, the bevel bearing 68 is formed by the drive bevel gear 54 together with the output bevel gear 66. The output bevel gear 66 is arranged on the end side of the internal gear 70 abutting away from the handle neck 28 and is formed of a plastic part together with the internal gear. The internal gear 70 is a drive gear for the pinion 72 and together with the pinion forms the speed change transmission 74 for the spindle 76. The internal gear 70 has a smooth cylindrical outer circumferential surface 71 and is rotationally axially fixedly mounted to the slide bearing 78, and the virtual shaft 80 of the slide bearing is approximately parallel to the longitudinal axis of the handle 22. Move. The slide bearing 78 is arranged in the area of the front end of the handle 22 behind the handle neck 28 and surrounds the internal gear 70 by a bracket or a ring. The slide bearing 78 is integrally formed of a plastic material together with the handle 22. The internal gear 70 has a cup shape, a cylindrical cutout 82 coaxial with the virtual shaft 80 of the internal gear abuts the handle neck 28, and an internal toothed transmission on the cylindrical wall of the cutout 82. 84 is provided.

The pinion 72 forms the inner end of the spindle 76 and has only a length portion which is a dimension slightly larger than the axial depth of the cutout 82 of the internal gear 70 with the internal gear transmission 84. Is extended. The front end of the pinion 70 forming the inner end of the spindle 76 is a cutout of the internal gear 70 depending on whether the spindle 76 is in a retracted position into the handle 22 or moved out of the handle. It is arranged at an interval larger or smaller from the lower portion of the 82.

The meridian portion 86 of the smooth wall of the spindle 76 is provided in front of the pinion 72 in the direction of the brush head 24. Along with the warp portion 86 whose diameter approximately corresponds to the diameter of the pinion 72, the spindle 76 supports axial movement and rotation in a slide bearing 88 made integrally with the handle 22 in plastic material. do. The sliding bearing 88 is arranged close to the inner side of the outer wall 36 of the handle 22 so that the meridians 86 and the pinion 72 are slightly spaced apart from the inner side of the outer wall 36 parallel to the pinion 72. do. At the same time, the sliding bearing 88 is inscribed with the internal gear 70 at a position where the internal gear 70 is estimated to be the smallest spaced apart from the outer wall 36 as a result of the mentioned position of the rear end of the spindle 76. A joining point for the pinion 72 to be engaged with the gear transmission 84 is formed. Of course, the meridian portion 86 with smooth walls is dimensioned such that the length of the spindle 76 can be satisfactorily mounted at any of its end positions. Since the sliding bearing 88 has a bearing surface with a convex cross section as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the warp portion 86 having a smooth wall is supported on at least one line in frictional contact.

As shown in the figure, the spindle 76 is curved to obtain the physically relevant desired curve of the handle neck 28. To this end, the spindle 76 may be made of a good flexible material, which is a plastic material or spring steel. The flexibility of the spindle 76 is obtained because the diameter of the circular cross section of the spindle 76 is reduced in actual length with respect to the meridians 86 and the pinion 74. This flexible main rigid portion is indicated by reference numeral 90 and the curved portion of the curve is denoted by 92 and is located slightly axially away from the meridian portion 86 of the smooth wall of the spindle 76. The main meridians 90 are circular in cross section and are configured similar to smooth walls.

On the central meridion area between the two sliding bearings 88, 96, the main meridians 90 of the spindle 76 are provided with a guide spindle 100, with the common thread of the guide spindle 100 being a handle neck 28. Is mounted by screw action in the corresponding internal thread of the screw bearing 102. Normally, screws allow for relatively large axial movement of the spindle 76 and conversely, spindles less than 180 ° allow for relatively small rotations. Once again, the threaded bearing 102 is preferably made of plastic material and integrally with the handle neck 28.

One end 94 of the main meridians 90 of the spindle 76 has a slide bearing 96 formed by the front end of the handle neck 28 and a socket 98 formed identically to the slide bearing 96. In the axial direction and mounted again, the end 94 is forward in the direction of the brush head 24. Thus, the slide bearing 96 extends over the actual length by assuring satisfactory precise guidance of the spindle 76 which is important for attaching or securing the brush head 24 to the handle 22.

The front end 94 of the main meridians 90 of the spindle 76 protrudes out of the socket 98 of the engaging end 30 of the handle neck 28 in the assembled state of the toothbrush 20 of FIG. It has an outer end 104 arranged and protected inside the socket 98 in the detached state of the toothbrush 20 according to FIG. 2. The outer end 104 of the spindle 76 is provided with a screw 106 whose pitch matches the regular thread of the guide spindle 100. The socket 98 is greatly reduced or reduced in cross section compared to the coupling end 30 of the handle neck 28 inclined toward the brush head 24, and an annular shoulder 108 is formed. In front of the shoulder 108, the socket 98 is provided with a coupling groove 110 (FIGS. 2 and 6).

At the rear of the bristle region 26, the coupling end 32 of the brush head 24 has a thick portion 112, and the two longitudinal rows of bristles are shorter than the other bristles in increasing steps towards the rear end of the bristle region. It becomes a dimension. Since short bristles have a high resistance to bending, arranging the insertion openings 114 at the end sides facing the handle neck 28 is particularly easy and a better cleaning effect is achieved by the rear center region of the bristle area over a longer period of time. do. In contrast, the rows of bristles on the two outer sides of the bristle region are constant in length over the entire length of the bristle region. This gently cleans the gums.

An inner wall of the insertion opening 114 is provided with an annular engagement bead 116 in the opening edge region of the insertion opening. The depth of insertion opening 114 is the length of socket 98. The cross sections of the socket 98 and the insertion opening 114 coincide exactly with each other. The insertion opening 114 has a bottom hole 115 with a screw hole 118 similar to a normal screw whose thread coincides with the screw 106 at the outer end 104 of the spindle 76. However, the screw hole 118 is deeper than the length of the screw 106, such that the brush head 24 is axially spindled to the neck 28 of the handle 22 by the screwing of the screw hole 118. It may be firmly coupled to the screw 106 at the outer front end 104 of (76, FIG. 1).

The engagement groove 110 of the socket 98 and the engagement groove 110 of the engagement bead 116 of the insertion opening can be sensed in the use of the toothbrush and the brush head 24 is shown in FIG. 2 when overcoming the insertion resistance. For the purpose of providing a coupling resistance so that the user can see that the screw is screwed to the handle 22 by rotating the lever 48 from the non-engaged position shown in Fig. 1 to the engaged position shown in Fig. 1 (or Fig. 6). Used. The fact that when the screw engagement is released by rotating the lever 18 from the engagement position shown in FIG. 1 to the non-engagement position shown in FIG. 2, the fact that the coupling resistance was overcome was realized from the brush head 24 from the handle 22. Means complete separation.

3 and 4 illustrate a second embodiment of the toothbrush 220, where two are added to the beginning of the reference numerals of components similar to those of the toothbrush in FIGS. 1 and 2. This second embodiment differs from the first embodiment in FIGS. 1 and 2 only the speed conversion transmission 274 having the external gear 270 and coupled to the bottom of the bevel transmission 268. In this case, the pinion 272 of the spindle 276 is arranged between the side face of the outer wall 236 of the handle 222 and the external gear 270 and engages with its end face cogwheel transmission 284. In this case too, the output bevel gear 266 is firmly mounted as an integral structure of the abduction gear 270 on the front side facing away from the handle neck 228. The front side of the external gear 270 in contact with the handle neck 228 has a shaft end 271, and the free end of the shaft end 271 has a flat wide portion 273. The shaft end 271 extends in the longitudinal direction of the handle 222 and is mounted so as to be rotatable and axially movable in the slide bearing 278. Slide bearing 278 is formed by bracket 275, which is an integral structure of handle 222. At the same time, the bracket 275 is a sliding bearing for the warp portion 288 with the smooth wall of the spindle 276 guided safely along the inner side of the outer wall 236 as shown in FIGS. 286).

7 (a) to 7 (c) illustrate another possibility of centering the brush head 224 on the handle 222. According to FIG. 7 (a), the cross section of the socket 298 and the engaging groove 210 of the socket has a rectangular shape 120 with corners curved and acute angles whose side edges 122, 124 open upwards. Has In contrast, the upper and lower edges 126 and 128 are only slightly curved upwards.

In FIG. 7 (b), the cross section of the socket 298 has a horizontal upper side edge 130, and two opposing side edges 132, 134 are coupled to the edge 130 at a right angle. Once again, the corners of the cross-sectional shape are curved.

7 (c) shows a circular cross section 138 of the socket 298 with an axial center shoulder 140. Conversely, in FIG. 4 the insertion opening 214 receives an axial cut that receives the central shoulder when the coupling ends 230, 232 are fitted together and secures the brush head 224 on the handle 222 so that it is not rotated. It is provided on its front side with a portion (not shown). Thus, in all the cases described above, attachment of the brush head 24 or 224 to the handle 22 or 222 is achieved by securing against rotation and axial movement of the brush head.

As mentioned, all parts of the toothbrush 20, 220 are made of plastic material. The handle 22 or 222 is made by spray molding into two isotropic half shells joined together by bonding or welding to the region of the longitudinal center plane of the handle.

The toothbrush according to the present invention can quickly and reliably fix and replace the brush head on the handle, so that it can be clearly seen from the above that a satisfactory fixing arrangement of the brush head on the handle is achieved. An essential condition for this purpose is a relatively large change in the rotational movement of the lever, in which fast threading of the spindle is usually achieved by means of a screw.

Claims (23)

A toothbrush comprising a handle having a coupling end and a brush head having a coupling end, wherein the coupling of the coupling ends causes the brush head to be detachably and firmly coupled to the handle, the toothbrush being moved on the handle 22. A transmission device 68, 74 having a drive member 54 and a drive gear 70 and a drive gear 70, which are arranged on the side of the handle 22, possibly securely fixed, and on the handle 22; Axially moveable and rotatably mounted to the handle 22, one end of which is coupled to the drive gear 70 of the transmission 68, 74 on the side of the handle 22 with respect to the rotational movement and the other end of the handle ( A spindle 76 mounted at the coupling end 30 of 22 and having a first device portion for removably coupling the handle 22 to the brush head 24, and at the other end of the spindle 76. Coupling end 32 of brush head 24 to be detachably coupled to the first device portion. The toothbrush is characterized in that it comprises two parts of which the device. 2. The transmission of claim 1, wherein the transmission (68, 74) has a speed conversion transmission (74), the drive gear (70) of the speed conversion transmission is movably coupled to the actuating member (46), and The other drive gear is a toothbrush wherein the spindle 76 is a pinion 48 forming an inner end. 3. The toothbrush according to claim 2, wherein the drive gear of the speed converter transmission is an internal gear. 4. The internal gear (70) of the speed change transmission (74) has a smooth cylindrical outer circumferential surface (71) and is rotatably secured axially to the sliding bearing (60) with the surface (71). Toothbrush characterized in that it became. 3. The toothbrush of claim 2 wherein the drive gear of the speed change drive device (274) is an external gear (270). 6. A toothbrush as recited in claim 5, wherein the external gear (270) is axially rotatably secured in a bracket (275) parallel to the pinion (272) of the spindle (276). A bevel transmission (68) according to claim 2, wherein the coupling of the actuating member (46) to the speed converting drive (74, 274) is such that its bevel transmission (54) is firmly connected to the actuating member (46). Toothbrush, characterized in that consisting of 368). 8. The toothbrush of claim 7, wherein the drive bevel gear (54) is provided with a shaft end (62) rotatably mounted transversely to the longitudinal axis of the handle (22) in its side wall (40). 9. The ring gear (52) according to claim 8, wherein the ring gear (52) is coaxially spaced apart from the drive bevel gear (54) and is rotatable to the slide bearing (60) on the inside of the other side wall (42) of the handle (22). And a toothbrush provided on the end side facing away from the drive bevel gear (54) together with the engaging shaft end (58). 10. The toothbrush of claim 9, wherein said drive bevel gear (54) and ring gear (52) are integrally structured together with an actuating member (46). 11. The actuating member (46) according to any one of claims 7 to 10, characterized in that the rotating shaft (56) is a lever (48) formed by a drive bevel gear (54) and a ring gear (52). toothbrush. 12. The end according to claim 11, wherein the lever 48 fills the opening 44 in the side wall 38 of the handle 22, in a position to engage the brush head 24, the end facing away from the handle neck 28. Has a lever arm (50) at its side and a drive bevel gear (54) and a ring gear (52) are arranged on the split end of the lever arm. 13. The toothbrush of claim 12, wherein the lever (48) and lever arm (50) form an acute angle open toward the handle neck (28). The toothbrush of claim 1, wherein the spindle (76) is provided with a guide spindle (100) which is screw-mounted in a threaded bearing (102) inside the neck (28) of the handle (22). 15. The toothbrush according to claim 14, wherein the screw (100) is arranged on the central meridian area of the guide spindle (76). 16. The toothbrush of claim 14 or 15, wherein an end of said spindle (76) is mounted to each sliding bearing (78, 88) on the side of the handle (22) and the handle neck (28). 2. The device of claim 1, wherein the device portion is formed with screws 106 at the end of the spindle 76 mounted to the coupling end 30 of the handle 22 for connecting to the brush head 24. Toothbrush. 18. The toothbrush of claim 17 wherein the screw (106) at the end mounted to the coupling end (30) of the handle (22) is a normal screw. The toothbrush of claim 1 wherein the coupling end (30) on the neck (28) of the handle (22) is smaller than the dimensions of the handle neck (28). 20. The toothbrush of claim 19, wherein a part of the centering device for the brush head (24) on the handle is provided in the socket (98). 2. The toothbrush of claim 1 wherein the brush head (24) has an insertion opening (114) whose coupling end (32) has a cross section and depth applied to the cross section and length of the socket (98). 2. The device of claim 1, wherein the device portion is provided at the bottom of the insertion opening 114 at the coupling end 32 of the brush head 24 for coupling to the handle 22 and an internal screw of the socket 98. Toothbrush characterized in that it consists of a screw hole (118) applied to the screw (106). 23. The socket 98 according to any of claims 19 to 22, wherein the socket 98 has an annular engagement bead 110 at the front end, and the insertion opening 114 inserts and receives the socket 98 into the insertion opening 114. Toothbrush, characterized in that an annular engagement bead projecting inwardly radially is provided at its open edge for removal with a possible engagement resistance.