KR102553640B1 - An oral care apparatus using near-infrared light - Google Patents

Abstract

Near-infrared light oral care device according to an embodiment of the present invention, the main body including a head portion formed of a transparent material and a handle portion extending from one side of the head portion; a light emitting module accommodated inside the head unit and generating near-infrared light; a control module accommodated inside the handle and controlling the light emitting module; and a bristle head including a head housing formed to be coupled with the head unit and a plurality of bristles implanted on one side of the head housing, wherein the near-infrared light emitted from the light emitting module is transmitted to the bristles of the bristles. is formed of a transparent material.

Description

Near-infrared light oral care device {AN ORAL CARE APPARATUS USING NEAR-INFRARED LIGHT}

The present invention relates to an oral care device, and specifically, to a near-infrared light oral care device capable of preventing and treating various diseases in the oral cavity, such as periodontal disease, using near-infrared light.

Patients with periodontal diseases such as gingivitis and periodontitis caused by plaque caused by food and bacteria in the oral cavity totaled 16.73 million people for three years from 2017 to 2019, and the total cost of medical care benefit was 1.5321 trillion won, which is the number of patients It ranks first in terms of the total cost of medical care benefits.

Therefore, it is important for public health and the stability of the medical insurance system to be able to perform oral care so that periodontal diseases such as gingivitis and periodontitis can be prevented on a daily basis.

However, plaque exposed from the gums, which is the cause of periodontal disease, can be removed by proper brushing, but plaque generated in the space between the gums and teeth, that is, in periodontal pockets, is not effectively removed even by proper brushing. Due to this, gingivitis and periodontitis are frequently occurring.

In order to prevent the above-mentioned periodontal disease, a toothbrush that removes foreign substances and plaque attached to the teeth using toothpaste has been generally used, but recently, a sonic electric toothbrush using high frequency and high-pressure water spray are used to more effectively manage the oral cavity. An interdental irrigator has been developed.

However, although the above-described sonic electric toothbrush and interdental cleaner can effectively remove foreign substances and plaque compared to conventional toothbrushes, there is a problem in that plaque cannot be effectively suppressed in spaces between gums and teeth, such as periodontal pockets.

Therefore, it is necessary to develop an oral care device capable of effectively preventing and suppressing oral diseases at the same time.

On the other hand, the following prior art documents only disclose contents related to a sterilizing toothbrush using an ultraviolet light emitting diode capable of sterilizing and disinfecting the bristles of the toothbrush, but do not disclose the technical gist of the present invention.

Republic of Korea Patent Registration No. 10-0904477

Near-infrared light oral care device according to an embodiment of the present invention is aimed at the following problems in order to solve the above problems.

It is to provide an oral care device that can prevent and treat oral diseases of users by using near-infrared light that penetrates up to 6 mm in the subcutaneous layer and has excellent heat transfer and generates ATP and nitric oxide.

In addition, it is configured to detach the bristle head to provide an oral care device configured to easily replace consumable bristles.

The problems of the present invention are not limited to those mentioned above, and other problems not mentioned will be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the following description.

Near-infrared light oral care device according to an embodiment of the present invention, the main body including a head portion formed of a transparent material and a handle portion extending from one side of the head portion; a light emitting module accommodated inside the head unit and generating near-infrared light; a control module accommodated inside the handle and controlling the light emitting module; and a bristle head including a head housing formed to be coupled with the head unit and a plurality of bristles implanted on one side of the head housing, wherein the near-infrared light emitted from the light emitting module is transmitted to the bristles of the bristles. is formed of a transparent material.

The main body preferably includes an upper housing, a lower housing coupled to the upper housing, and an operating member coupled to outer circumferential surfaces of handles of the upper housing and the lower housing.

The light emitting module may include a first printed circuit board; It is preferable to include; at least one near infrared light generating unit mounted on the first printed circuit board.

The control module may include a second printed circuit board electrically connected to the first printed circuit board; a switch mounted on the second printed circuit board; It is preferable to include; a control unit mounted on the second printed circuit board to control driving of the near-infrared light generating unit and a battery supplying power to at least one of the control module and the light emitting module.

Preferably, a condensing groove for guiding the near-infrared light generated by the near-infrared light generation unit to the bristles is formed in an area corresponding to a position where the bristles are placed in an inner circumferential surface of one side of the head housing.

Preferably, an upper portion of the light collecting groove is convex downward, and a reflector is coated on a sidewall of the light collecting groove.

It is preferable that a coupling protrusion is formed on an outer circumferential surface of the head portion corresponding to the light collecting groove.

It is preferable that a condensing protrusion for guiding the near-infrared light generated by the near-infrared light generation unit to the bristles is formed on an inner circumferential surface of one side of the head housing corresponding to a position where the bristles are placed.

It is preferable that a coupling groove is formed in a region corresponding to the light collecting protrusion of the outer circumferential surface of the head unit.

Preferably, a reflective area is formed on the other side of the head housing.

It is preferable that the bristles are formed of an optical fiber in which a path through which near-infrared light can move is formed.

It is preferable that a plurality of internal protrusions are formed on the inner circumferential surface of the bristles to guide the vertical movement of the near-infrared light.

It is preferable that a pair of guide lines facing each other are formed on an outer circumferential surface of the head unit, and a pair of guide grooves corresponding to the guide lines are formed on an inner circumferential surface of the head housing.

Elastic pieces that move inward by lateral pressure are formed in some areas of the guideline, fastening protrusions are formed on the elastic pieces, and fastening holes into which the fastening protrusions can be fastened are formed in some areas of the guide grooves. It is desirable to form

Preferably, the light emitting module further includes a near infrared light detection sensor disposed adjacent to a side surface of a near infrared light generating unit disposed toward the bristle direction of the first printed circuit board.

Preferably, the height of the near infrared light detection sensor is lower than that of the near infrared light generating unit.

When the value detected by the near-infrared light detection sensor is greater than a preset value, the control unit preferably blinks an indicator light provided in the control module.

The near-infrared light oral care device according to an embodiment of the present invention brushes teeth and simultaneously brushes teeth so that plaque such as periodontal pockets can be suppressed without additional effort in oral care, such as an interdental cleaner that needs to be cleaned after brushing teeth. Infrared light can be irradiated on the gums, so that the convenience of consumers and the effect of oral care can be expected at the same time.

In addition, by forming a light collecting structure in the bristle head so that the light can be effectively transferred to the bristles, the effect of maximizing the prevention and treatment of oral diseases can be expected.

Effects of the present invention are not limited to those mentioned above, and other effects not mentioned will be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the description below.

1 and 2 is a perspective view of a near-infrared light oral care device according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 3 is an exploded perspective view of the body configuration of the near-infrared oral care device according to an embodiment of the present invention.
4 and 5 are side views showing several implementations of the light emitting module of the near infrared oral care device according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 6 is a side view showing a control module of the near-infrared light oral care device according to an embodiment of the present invention.
7 and 8 are side views illustrating a light-collecting structure when a main body and a bristle head are coupled in a near-infrared light oral care device according to an embodiment of the present invention.
9 and 10 are perspective and cross-sectional views for explaining the solid coupling structure of the main body and the bristle head in the near-infrared light oral care device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

With reference to the accompanying drawings, a preferred embodiment according to the present invention will be described in detail, but the same or similar components are assigned the same reference numerals regardless of reference numerals, and redundant description thereof will be omitted.

In addition, in describing the present invention, if it is determined that a detailed description of a related known technology may obscure the gist of the present invention, the detailed description will be omitted. In addition, it should be noted that the accompanying drawings are only for easily understanding the spirit of the present invention, and should not be construed as limiting the spirit of the present invention by the accompanying drawings.

Hereinafter, a near-infrared light oral care device according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 10.

The near-infrared light oral care device according to an embodiment of the present invention is configured to include a main body 100, a light emitting module 200, a control module 300, and a bristle head 300 as shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 do.

The main body 100 is configured in a bar shape, and is configured to include a head portion 110 and a handle portion 120, and the head portion 110 is composed of a transparent material and emits light from a light emitting module 200 to be described later. It performs a function of emitting near-infrared light, and the handle part 120 is configured to be gripped by a user.

Meanwhile, the main body 100 may be configured by assembling an upper housing 100a, a lower housing 100b, and an operating member 130 as shown in FIG. 3 .

In particular, a first hollow 140 may be formed in a portion of the upper housing 100a corresponding to the handle portion 120, and a second hollow 150 may be formed in the lower housing 100b. The light emitting module 200 and the control module 300 are accommodated inside the combination of (100a) and the lower housing (100b).

The operating member 130 is formed with a driving button 131 and a display window 132, and is inserted and coupled to the outer circumferential surface of the combination body of the upper housing 100a and the lower housing 100b, where the driving button 131 is configured to apply an external force to the switch 320 of the control module 300 to be described later, and the display window 132 is configured to diffuse to the outside emitted from the indicator light 350 of the control module 300 it is desirable

The light emitting module 200 is accommodated inside the head part 110 of the main body 100 and performs a function of generating near infrared light, and as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the first printed circuit board 210 and the near infrared light It is configured to include an external light generating unit 220 .

The first printed circuit board 210 mounts a plurality of near-infrared light generating units 220 and at the same time performs a function of receiving power from a control module 300 to be described later and applying it to the near-infrared light generating unit 220.

The near-infrared light generating unit 220 performs a function of generating near-infrared light by applying power, and the near-infrared light generated by the near-infrared light generating unit 220 passes through the transparent head part 110 of the main body 100 to the outside. will be investigated with

As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the near-infrared light generation unit 220 is preferably mounted on both the upper and lower surfaces of the first printed circuit board 210, and as shown in FIG. 5, the first printed circuit board ( 210), that is, the near-infrared light detection sensor 230 may be disposed on the side of the near-infrared light generating unit 220 disposed toward the direction of the bristles, which will be described in detail later.

The control module 300 is accommodated inside the handle part 120 of the main body 100 to control the light emitting module 200, and as shown in FIG. 6, the second printed circuit board 310 and the switch 320 ), a control unit 330, a battery 340, an indicator light 350, and a connector 360.

The second printed circuit board 310 is configured to mount a switch 320, a control unit 330, etc., and is electrically connected to the above-described first printed circuit board 210, and the switch 320 is a light emitting module 200 As a configuration for controlling the on/off of the near infrared light generating unit 220 of the ), when the button 131 of the aforementioned operating member 130 is pressed, the switch 320 is driven. It consists of

The control unit 330 is mounted on the second printed circuit board 310 to perform a function of controlling the near infrared light generating unit 220, and when the light emitting module 200 is configured as the embodiment shown in FIG. 5, A function of controlling the indicator light 350 based on the detection result of the near infrared light detection unit 230 may also be performed, which will be described later.

The battery 340 performs a function of supplying power to the control module 300 and the light emitting module 200, and the battery 340 may be a rechargeable secondary battery. In this case, an external power supply terminal and A connector 360 for connection may be further provided.

The bristle head 400 is configured to be detachable from the main body 100, and includes a head housing 410 formed to be coupled with the head portion 110 of the main body 100 and a plurality of heads installed on one side of the head housing 410. It is configured to include bristles 420 .

On the other hand, the bristle head 400 should be made of a transparent material so that the near-infrared light generated by the light emitting module 200 accommodated in the main body 100 can be transmitted to the outside. Toothpaste and the like may be accumulated on the surface of the head housing 410, and in this case, the external transmittance of near infrared light may be lowered, which may reduce the effectiveness of oral care.

In order to overcome this problem, the near-infrared light oral care device according to an embodiment of the present invention forms the bristles 420 of a transparent material so that the near-infrared light irradiated from the light emitting module 200 can be directly transmitted to the bristles 420. It is characterized by doing.

In particular, the bristles 420 may be made of an optical fiber of a flexible material having a light movement path formed therein, and further guide the movement of the near infrared light in the vertical direction in the movement path inside the bristles 420 and maximize the irradiation amount of the near infrared light. It may also be configured to form a plurality of internal protrusions.

On the other hand, the near-infrared light oral care device according to an embodiment of the present invention may apply a condensing structure that allows the near-infrared light emitted from the light emitting module 200 to condense toward the bristles 420, and FIGS. 7 and 8 An embodiment of the same light collecting structure may be considered.

First, the embodiment of the light collecting structure of FIG. 7 will be described. On the inner circumferential surface of one side of the head housing 410 of the bristle head 400, the area corresponding to the position where the bristles 420 are placed is generated by the near-infrared light generation unit 220. A condensing groove 411 for guiding near-infrared light to the bristles is formed.

As shown in FIG. 7 , the light collecting groove 411 is divided into an upper part 412 convexly formed in a downward direction and two side walls 413 formed downward at both ends of the upper part 412 of the light collecting groove. A reflective paint for reflecting infrared light is applied to the sidewall 413.

In addition, coupling protrusions 111 are formed on the outer periphery of the head portion 110 coupled to the bristle head 400 and correspond to the light collecting groove 411, so that the bristle head 400 and the main body 100 are firmly coupled. can guarantee

In the above structure, the near-infrared light generated by the near-infrared light generation unit 220 is primarily refracted and collected while passing through the convex coupling protrusion 111 of the head part 110 of the main body 100, and then the head housing ( 410) Guided to the light collecting groove 411, the near-infrared light introduced into the light collecting groove 411 enters the upper part of the light collecting groove 412, and then is secondarily collected and guided to the bristles 420.

In addition, the near-infrared light entering the light collecting groove 411 via the coupling protrusion 111 fails to enter the upper part of the light collecting groove 412 and the near infrared light irradiated toward the side wall 413 of the light collecting groove It is reflected by the reflective paint applied to and is guided in the direction of the bristles 420.

8, contrary to the light collecting structure of FIG. 7, a region corresponding to the position where the bristles 420 are placed among the inner circumferential surfaces of one side of the head housing 410 of the bristle head 400 contains near-infrared light. A light-collecting protrusion 414 is formed to guide the near-infrared light generated by the generation unit 220 to the bristles, and the light-collecting protrusion 414 may be convex downward.

In addition, a coupling groove 112 is formed in an area corresponding to the light collecting protrusion 414 of the outer circumferential surface of the head portion 110 coupled to the bristle head 400, thereby ensuring a strong coupling between the bristle head 400 and the main body 100. be able to guarantee

In the above structure, the near-infrared light generated by the near-infrared light generation unit 220 is primarily refracted and collected while passing through the end of the coupling groove 112 convexly formed in the downward direction of the head part 110 of the main body 100. After being collected, the light is secondarily collected by the light collecting protrusion 414 of the head housing 410 and guided to the bristles 420.

Furthermore, in the case of the light collecting structure of FIGS. 7 and 8 , in consideration of the fact that near-infrared light should be concentrated in the direction of the bristles, the region of the inner circumferential surface of the head housing 410 that faces the bristle forming position may be coated with a reflective paint.

On the other hand, when the user performs brushing using the oral care device in a situation where the bristle head 400 is coupled to the main body 100, the bristle head 400 is not firmly coupled to the main body 100, so that it is vertically or horizontally It can be shaken in the direction, and there is a problem that can cause inconvenience in use due to this.

In order to prevent this problem, the near-infrared light oral care device according to an embodiment of the present invention proposes a coupling structure of the main body 100 and the bristle head 400 shown in FIGS. 9 and 10.

Specifically, as shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, a pair of guide lines 113 formed to face each other are formed on the outer circumferential surface of the head portion 110 of the main body 100, and the head housing of the bristle head 400 (410) A pair of guide grooves 415 corresponding to the guide lines 113 are formed on the inner circumferential surface, thereby suppressing the movement of the bristle head 400 in the vertical direction.

In addition, an elastic piece 114 having an elastic force in an outward direction is formed in some areas of the guideline 113 formed on the head portion 110, and a fastening protrusion 115 may be formed on the elastic piece 114, It is preferable that a fastening hole 416 into which the fastening protrusion 115 can be fastened is formed in a part of the guide groove 415 .

In the case of the above structure, when the guide groove 415 of the bristle head 400 is inserted into the guide line 113 on the inner circumferential surface of the head portion 110 of the main body 100, and then the bristle head 400 is moved in the longitudinal direction, the head The fastening protrusion 115 formed on the elastic piece 114 of the portion 110 slides along the guide groove 415 while pressing the guide groove 415 of the bristle head 400 .

Then, when the fastening protrusion 115 is caught in the fastening hole 416 of the bristle head 400, the sliding movement of the bristle head 400 is stopped, and through this, the flow of the bristle head 400 in the left and right directions can be suppressed. there will be

On the other hand, in the above-described embodiment, that is, when the bristles 420 are formed of a transparent and flexible material such as an optical fiber, the price of the bristle head 400 having consumable characteristics increases, so that near-infrared light is emitted through the bristles 420 It is possible to consider a method of irradiating near-infrared light through the head housing 410 of the bristle head 400 rather than irradiating the.

However, in the case of this method, opaque components such as toothpaste may accumulate in the bristle head 400 due to long-term use, and due to this, near-infrared light may not be properly irradiated into the user's oral cavity, so the bristle head 400 is suitable It should be replaced at some point.

Therefore, the near-infrared light oral care device according to an embodiment of the present invention is provided with a near-infrared light detection unit 230 in the light emitting module 200 as shown in FIG. 5 to inform the replacement time of the bristle head 400. can

The near-infrared light detection unit 230 is disposed adjacent to the side surface of the near-infrared light generating unit 220 disposed toward the direction of the bristles 420 of the first printed circuit board 210, and the near-infrared light detection sensor 230 It is preferable that the height is lower than that of the near infrared light generating unit 220 .

This is to detect the near infrared light reflected by the inner circumferential surface of the head housing 410 without immediately detecting the near infrared light emitted from the near infrared light generating unit 220 by the near infrared light detection unit 230 .

On the other hand, when the accumulation amount of an opaque component such as toothpaste is small in the head housing 410, since a large amount of near-infrared light is transmitted to the outside of the head housing 410, the amount of near-infrared light reflected into the head housing 410 is relatively small, Conversely, when the accumulated amount of the opaque component is large, a relatively large amount of near-infrared light is not transmitted to the outside of the head housing 410 and is reflected to the inside.

In consideration of this point, in the near-infrared light oral care device according to an embodiment of the present invention, the near-infrared light detected by the near-infrared light detection unit 230, that is, the near-infrared light reflected into the head housing 410 is greater than a preset value. In this case, it may be configured to inform the user that replacement of the bristle head 400 is required.

Specifically, the control unit 330 of the control module 300 obtains the detection value of the near-infrared light detection unit 230, and when it is determined that the detection value is equal to or greater than a preset value, the second printed circuit board 310 By controlling the mounted indicator light 350, it may be configured to notify the user that the replacement time of the bristle head 400 has arrived.

The embodiments described in this specification and the accompanying drawings merely illustrate some of the technical ideas included in the present invention by way of example. Therefore, since the embodiments disclosed herein are intended to explain rather than limit the technical spirit of the present invention, it is obvious that the scope of the technical spirit of the present invention is not limited by these embodiments. All modifications and specific embodiments that can be easily inferred by those skilled in the art within the scope of the technical idea included in the specification and drawings of the present invention are included in the scope of the present invention. will have to be interpreted

100: body
200: light emitting module
300: control module
400: bristle head

Claims (10)

A main body including a head portion formed of a transparent material and a handle portion extending from one side of the head portion;
a light emitting module accommodated inside the head unit and generating near-infrared light;
a control module accommodated inside the handle and controlling the light emitting module; and
a bristle head including a head housing coupled to the head unit and a plurality of bristles installed on one side of the head housing;
including,
The bristles are formed of a transparent material so that the near-infrared light emitted from the light emitting module can be transmitted to the bristles,
A light-collecting groove for guiding the near-infrared light generated by the light emitting module to the bristles is formed on an inner circumferential surface of one side of the head housing corresponding to the position where the bristles are placed, and an area corresponding to the light-collecting groove on the outer circumferential surface of the head part. A coupling protrusion is formed, or
A condensing protrusion for guiding the near-infrared light generated by the light emitting module to the bristle is formed on an inner circumferential surface of one side of the head housing corresponding to the position where the bristles are placed, and in an area corresponding to the condensing protrusion of the outer circumferential surface of the head part. A near-infrared light oral care device in which coupling grooves are formed.
The method according to claim 1, wherein the light emitting module,
a first printed circuit board;
at least one near infrared light generating unit mounted on the first printed circuit board;
Near-infrared light oral care device comprising a.
The method according to claim 2, wherein the control module,
a second printed circuit board electrically connected to the first printed circuit board;
a switch mounted on the second printed circuit board;
A control unit mounted on the second printed circuit board to control driving of the near infrared light generating unit; and
a battery supplying power to at least one of the control module and the light emitting module;
Near-infrared light oral care device comprising a.
delete delete delete delete The method of claim 1,
A pair of guidelines formed to face each other are formed on the outer circumferential surface of the head,
Near-infrared light oral care device in which a pair of guide grooves corresponding to the guide lines are formed on the inner circumferential surface of the head housing.
The method of claim 8,
Elastic pieces that move inward by lateral pressure are formed in some regions of the guideline, and fastening protrusions are formed on the elastic pieces,
A near-infrared light oral care device in which a fastening hole to which the fastening protrusion can be fastened is formed in some areas of the guide groove.
The method according to claim 2, wherein the light emitting module,
Near-infrared light oral care device further comprising; a near-infrared light detection sensor disposed adjacent to the side surface of the near-infrared light generating unit disposed toward the direction of the bristles of the first printed circuit board.

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