KR20090023646A - Toothbrush - Google Patents

Abstract

An oral hygiene implement, typically a toothbrush, having an oral hygiene element made of a thermoplastic elastomer material having a hardness in the range ShoreA 20-50 and a composition comprising 100-200 parts of a thermoplastic elastomer base material and 10-100 parts of a plasticiser comprising a mixture of a plasticising oil and a lipophilic flavouring substance which comprises menthol and/or derivatives thereof, the lipophilic flavouring substance being 5-15 wt% of the mixture.

Description

Toothbrush {Toothbrush}

The present invention relates to an oral care device. Specifically, the present invention relates to toothbrushes of the type in which an elastomeric lamellae is added to the surface of their heads opposite the surface on which the protrusions are raised. These wrinkles are provided primarily for the purpose of gently removing deposits from the tongue that may cause bad breath.

Toothbrushes of this type are known (for example, toothbrushes with heads extending from one surface of their heads, thermoplastic elastic folds extending from the opposite surface, and which can add flavor to these elastic folds are known. GB-A-2 391 462). This toothbrush was sold by the applicant under the trademark, for example, Dr.BEST ™ Duo Protekt, although no flavor was added in its elastic folds.

There remains a need for providing improved forms of such toothbrushes, and an object of the present invention is to provide such an improvement. According to the present invention, a thermoplastic elastomer having a hardness within the range of ShoreA 20-50, and a thermoplastic elastomer comprising 100-200 parts of thermoplastic elastomer base material and plasticizing oil and menthol and / or derivative thereof Provided is an oral hygiene tool having at least one elastic oral hygiene element made from a composition comprising 10-100 parts of a plasticizer, comprising a mixture of oily flavor materials and wherein the lipophilic flavor material is 5-15 weight percent of the mixture. .

An improvement provided by the present invention is the enhanced oral experience provided by the good flavor due to the presence of lipophilic flavoring materials.

Preferred oral hygiene tools include plastic material handle portions having one or more oral hygiene elements installed. Suitable plastic materials include the plastic material from which the toothbrush is made, generally polypropylene.

The oral care tool is preferably a toothbrush comprising a grip handle and an integral or replaceable head having a bristles extending from one surface of the head. Preferably the at least one elastic oral hygiene element comprises thermoplastic elastic pleats extending from the opposite surface of the head. Such wrinkles may be of known shape. For example, the folds may be in the form of tire strips having a longitudinal direction perpendicular to the head-handle longitudinal direction of the toothbrush, a width direction perpendicular to the opposite surface, and a thickness direction parallel to the head-handle direction. Can be. Typical forms of such wrinkles are those of the known Dr.BEST ™ Duo Protekt toothbrush.

Alternatively, the oral care tool may be a tongue cleaning device in addition to the toothbrush. Examples of such devices are known, for example, from PCT / EP06 / 000181 and DE-G-202 005 004291.9 relating to the "Zungen Reiniger" tongue cleaning device sold under the trade name "DrBEST ™".

Thermoplastic elastic materials are well known materials which combine the characteristics of elastic on the one hand with thermoplastic on the one hand. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The use of numerous types of thermoplastic elastic base materials in the oral care tools of the present invention, such as styrene block copolymers, is known. Suitable base materials are those used as base thermoplastic elastomers used in the tongue-cleaning wrinkles of AQUAFRESH DUO CLEAN ™ toothbrushes sold by the applicant. Examples of such materials are Gumiberg Krieburg GmbH. Thermolast K ™ family of thermoplastic elastomers, such as the material TF 3 AAH, available from Gummiwerk Kraiburg GmbH & Co. KG, Germany. These are based on hydrogenated styrene block copolymers.

The thermoplastic elastic material preferably has a hardness in the range of ShoreA 30 +/- 3.

Preferably the thermoplastic elastomer comprises 20-80 parts of plasticizer. It has been shown that 5-15% by weight of the lipophilic flavoring material in the composition range of the plasticizer, ie, the plasticizer mixture, is important for the optimization of the taste as perceived by the user of the oral hygiene tool of the present invention. Preferred ratio is 10 +/- 2%. For example, it has been found that less than 5% of the taste may be experienced in general and less than 15% may be experienced, and if more than 15% of the taste is used it may be unpleasant.

The term "plastic oil" as used herein is intended to include all oils capable of plasticizing thermoplastic elastomeric materials. The term "oil" as used herein is intended to include all organic liquids having a plasticizing function, including paraffins, hydrocarbons and ester-based oils. The viscosity of these oils can vary between the flowable liquid and the wax. The oil for use in the head of the toothbrush should be of non-toxic and acceptable type in the oral cavity, and a suitable plastic oil is so-called medical white oil. Medical white oils are known and preferred as plastic oils for thermoplastic elastomers. Medical white oils generally include highly refined mineral oils that meet the qualitative requirements of the British and American pharmacopoeia. Such oils are generally described in “Mineral Hydrocarbons in Food Regulations” 1996; (S.I.No. 1073), and United States F & D. A Regulations No. 178.3620 (a) and 172.878]. In general, these oils have the following characteristics:

ISO 15ISO 68

Relative Density @ 6O ℉ 0.850 0.880

Viscosity @ 20 ° C (cS) 25.0 235

Viscosity @ 40 ° C (cS) 15.0 69.0

Suitable lipophilic flavor materials include at least 70% by weight, preferably at least 80% by weight of menthol and / or derivatives thereof. Derivatives for use in the head of a toothbrush should be non-toxic and acceptable in the oral cavity. Many such compounds are known that are acceptable in the oral cavity with nontoxicity derived from the menthol nucleus. Suitable derivatives include esters of the derivative menthol, for example C _1-5 alkanoic acid esters, ethers in which the hydroxyl group of the menthol nucleus is substituted with a carbonyl moiety or cyclic into an ether such as an furan moiety and Ketone derivatives. Preferably the lipophilic flavor material is 40-60% by weight of menthol, preferably 20-35% by weight of mentone in the mixture, preferably 5-8% by weight of one or more menthyl esters, in particular menthyl acetate, preferably in the mixture 1-5% by weight mentorfuran. An example of such a substance is peppermint oil. Peppermint oil generally comprises the following compositions:

Min max

Total Menthol 52 wt% 56 wt%

Menton 22 wt% 30 wt%

Menthyl Ester 5.8 wt% 7.8 wt%

Mentofuran 1.7 wt% 3.7 wt%

In general peppermint oil is a mentorfuran (R)-(+)-isomer. An additional component of peppermint oil is (R)-(+)-plegon, a menthol derivative.

In addition to the pleasant feeling, the flavor of menthol and menthol derivatives can also convey a refreshing feeling to the oral cavity and help to overcome the problem of bad breath.

The lipophilic flavoring material may be mixed with the plasticizing oil to form a plasticizer, which mixture is then blended with the thermoplastic elastomer. Alternatively the lipophilic flavoring material and the plastic oil can be blended separately with the thermoplastic elastomeric material.

Oral hygiene tools with oral hygiene elements can be made according to any known method of making such tools. Typical manufacturing methods include co-molding of tools from plastic materials and thermoplastic elastomers. The thermoplastic elastomeric material previously defined for use in the present invention in this process may be co-molded by a molding method similar to that for use in conventional materials. Examples of such co-molding methods are known from WO-A-2005 / 084487.

The present invention thus comprises in a further aspect a plastic material handle portion, a thermoplastic elastomer material having a hardness within the ShoreA 20-50 range, and 100-200 parts of a thermoplastic elastomer base material and a plastic oil and menthol and / or derivatives thereof. A plastic comprising a mixture of lipophilic flavoring material and comprising co-molding an oral hygiene element made of a composition comprising 10-100 parts of plasticizer, wherein the lipophilic flavoring material is 5-15% by weight of the mixture. A method of making an oral hygiene tool comprising a material handle portion and an oral hygiene element is provided.

The method may be generally conventional in other respects. Generally, this method first prepares the plastic material portion of the toothbrush in the first injection mold, and then puts the manufactured plastic material portion in the second injection mold having a mold cavity defining the shape of the elastic oral hygiene element, and then the plastic. Injecting the thermoplastic elastomeric material into the second mold under conditions to achieve a bond between the material and the thermoplastic elastomeric material. Plastic material portions of typical plastic materials, such as the Dr.BEST ™ Duo Protekt toothbrush, are made and plastic materials comprising polypropylene are known in the toothbrush manufacturing industry.

The oral care implements of the present invention are preferably provided in some suitable packaging, for example blister packaging, for sale. It has been found that some lipophilic flavoring materials, especially those containing menthol, can adversely affect pigments used in packaging, in particular blue pigments, and the invention further addresses this problem.

This problem is addressed by the packaging comprising a packaging layer having a surface of the material printed integrally with the pigment, which printed material is covered by a barrier layer comprising one or more layers of polyvinyl alcohol and polyethylene, respectively. The barrier layer is located between the printed material and the oral care tool.

Further encased in a package comprising a packaging layer having a surface of the material printed integrally with the pigment, the printed material covered by a barrier layer comprising one or more layers of polyvinyl alcohol and polyethylene, respectively An article is provided comprising an oral hygiene tool as described above positioned between a printed material and an oral hygiene tool.

The insertion of this barrier layer between the oral hygiene element and the printed material has been found to help prevent the adverse effects of flavor on the typical pigments used in the printed material in packaging.

Suitable packaging layers may include cardboard-aluminum foil laminates with printed materials printed on the surface of the aluminum foil layer. Preferably the barrier layer comprises two layers of polyethylene with a layer of polyvinyl alcohol intermediate sandwiched between these two layers.

Referring to FIG. 1, which is a whole oral hygiene tool 1 comprising a unitary head 3 having a grip handle 2 and a centrial 4 extending from one surface 5 of its head 3. Show the toothbrush. The handle 2 and the head 3 are made of known polypropylene material, for example Moplen EP 548 T ™, used in the toothbrush process.

An elastic oral hygiene element 6 is provided on the thermoplastic elastic corrugated head 3 extending from the opposite surface 7 of the head 3 from which the centimeter 4 is extended. The pleats 6 are identical in structure to those of the known Dr.BEST ™ Duo Protekt toothbrush, ie about 2 mm extending from the surface 7 and about lmm wide at their base where they meet the surface 7. Do. The pleats 6 are integrally formed in one piece with an elastic covering 8 on the head 3.

The pleats 6 and covering 8 are made of thermoplastic elastomeric material having a hardness of ShoreA 30 and comprising 100-200 parts of thermoplastic elastic base material, such as Thermo last K ™ TF 3AAH, and 10-100 parts of plasticizer. . In particular 120 parts of thermoplastic elastic base material and 20 parts of plasticizer; And 200 parts of thermoplastic elastic base material and 100 parts of plasticizer were used.

Plasticizers in the compositions of each of these thermoplastic elastomers are described in “Mineral Hydrocarbons in Food Regulations” 1996; (S.I.No. 1073), and United States F & D. A Regulations No. 178.3620 (a) and 172.878], including mixtures of medical white oils, with the following characteristics:

ISO 15ISO 68

Relative Density @ 6O ℉ 0.850 0.880

Viscosity @ 20 ° C (cS) 25.0 235

Viscosity @ 40 ° C (cS) 15.0 69.0

This oil is mixed with the composition of peppermint oil:

Min max

Total Menthol 52 wt% 56 wt%

Menton 22 wt% 30 wt%

Menthyl Ester 5.8 wt% 7.8 wt%

Mentofuran 1.7 wt% 3.7 wt%

The amount of peppermint oil in the mixture is 10% by weight of the white medical oil-peppermint oil mixture.

The plastic material parts of the toothbrush, namely the handle 2 and the head 3, are manufactured by conventional injection molding methods. This plastic material portion is then placed into an injection mold (not shown) having a mold cavity (not shown) that defines the shape of the pleats 6, and the thermoplastic elastomeric material of the composition forms the pleats 6 To injection mold. The method is exactly the same way as the known elastomeric material composition using the same white medical oil without peppermint oil as the plasticizer, ie the same way as the wrinkle of the known Dr.BEST ™ Duo Protekt toothbrush. This is an advantage that enables 1: 1 substitution of the known thermoplastic elastomeric material of the Dr.BEST ™ Duo Protekt toothbrush with peppermint oil comprising the aforementioned materials. The proportion of 10 wt% peppermint oil in the plasticizer was found to be optimal for achieving a satisfying taste for the consumer.

2 and 3 show an overall packaging 10 suitable for the toothbrush 1. This package includes a 250 micron thick polyethylene terephthalate blister 11 defined by a common blister cavity 12 suitable for inserting a toothbrush 1. The blister cavity 12 is closed by the packaging layer 13 and includes a cardboard 13A-aluminum foil 13B laminate, and the printed material 14 is printed on the surface of the aluminum foil layer 13B. Have This pavement layer 13 is generally 300-400 microns thick, for example about 350 microns thick. This printed material 14 is covered by a barrier layer 15 comprising two layers 15A, 15B of polyethylene with a layer of polyvinyl alcohol 15C intermediate sandwiched between these two layers 15A, 15B. do. Barrier layer 15 is generally 40-60 microns thick, and generally about 50 microns thick.

The invention will now be described by way of example only with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 shows an overall side view of a toothbrush which is an oral hygiene device of the present invention.

FIG. 2 shows an overall side view of the packaging for the oral hygiene device of FIG. 1.

3 shows an enlarged cross-sectional view of the structure of the packaging part of FIG. 2.

Claims (12)

ShoreA of thermoplastic elastomeric materials having a hardness in the range of 20-50, and lipophilic flavoring materials including 100-200 parts of thermoplastic elastomeric base material and plasticizing oil and menthol and / or derivatives thereof An oral hygiene tool having at least one elastic oral hygiene element comprising a mixture and made from a composition comprising 10-100 parts of a plasticizer, wherein the lipophilic flavor material is from 5 to 15% by weight of the mixture. The toothbrush of claim 1, wherein the toothbrush comprises a unitary or replaceable head having a grip handle and bristles extending from one surface of the head, wherein the at least one elastic oral hygiene element extends from an opposite surface of the head. Oral hygiene tool comprising thermoplastic elastic pleats. 3. The oral care implement of claim 1 or 2, wherein the plasticizing oil comprises medical white oil. The oral hygiene tool according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the lipophilic flavoring substance comprises 10 +/- 2% plasticizer. The oral care implement of claim 1, wherein the lipophilic flavoring material comprises at least 70 percent by weight of menthol and / or one or more derivatives thereof. 6. The lipophilic flavoring material according to claim 5, wherein the lipophilic flavoring material is 40-60 wt% menthol, 20-35 wt% mentone in the mixture, 5-8 wt% one or more menthyl esters, in particular menthyl acetate, and 1-5 wt% Oral hygiene tools containing mentorfuran. 7. The oral care instrument of claim 6, wherein the lipophilic flavoring material comprises the composition: Min max Total Menthol 52 wt% 56 wt% Menton 22 wt% 30 wt% Menthyl Ester 5.8 wt% 7.8 wt% Mentofuran 1.7 wt% 3.7 wt% 8. The oral care implement of any one of the preceding claims, wherein the lipophilic flavoring material comprises peppermint oil. A mixture of a plastic material handle portion and a lipophilic flavor material comprising a thermoplastic elastomer material having a hardness within the range of ShoreA 20-50, and 100-200 parts thermoplastic elastomer base material and a plastic oil and menthol and / or derivatives thereof Plastic material handle portion and oral hygiene, comprising co-molding an oral hygiene element comprising a composition comprising 10-100 parts of a plasticizer, wherein said lipophilic flavor material is 5-15 weight percent of said mixture. Method of manufacturing an oral hygiene tool comprising an element. A package is provided that includes a packaging layer having a surface of a printed material integrally with the pigment, wherein the printed material is covered by a barrier layer comprising one or more layers of polyvinyl alcohol and polyethylene, respectively, the barrier layer being An article comprising the oral care tool according to any one of claims 1 to 8 positioned between the printed material and the oral care tool. The article of claim 10, wherein the barrier layer comprises two layers of polyethylene with a layer of polyvinyl alcohol intermediate sandwiched between these two layers of polyethylene. The article of claim 10, wherein the barrier layer has a thickness of 40-60 microns.

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