KR20110087702A

KR20110087702A - Toothbrush being used to bend part of brush's head

Info

Publication number: KR20110087702A
Application number: KR1020100007255A
Authority: KR
Inventors: 김지우
Original assignee: 김지우
Priority date: 2010-01-27
Filing date: 2010-01-27
Publication date: 2011-08-03

Abstract

PURPOSE: A toothbrush with a bendable toothbrush head is provided to enable a user to efficiently brush teeth by broadening washing range of teeth. CONSTITUTION: A toothbrush with a bendable toothbrush head comprises: a handle(12); and a section(14) including a first section and a second section. A part or the whole of the handle and the first and second sections are made of the same material. The first section includes a plurality of first bundle of bristles. The second section includes a plurality of second bundle of bristles. A plurality of first bundle of bristles are extended in the vertical direction of the first section. A plurality of second bundle of bristles are extended in the vertical direction of the second section.

Description

Toothbrush being used to bend part of brush's head}

The present invention relates to a toothbrush having a toothbrush head portion which consists of a toothbrush face conforming to a curved face of a tooth and which is bent to conform to a straight face of a tooth.

Pivot sections incorporating various elastic strips of metal or the like, or

Conventional toothbrushes with toothbrush head portions with segmented sections have also provided a pivoted or hinged segmented section to provide a curved bristle structure. The curved / angular bristle face is designed to allow more bristles to be in contact with the outer face of the front teeth, improving access to hard-to-reach areas such as the tongue of the front teeth and the back of the molar. Many toothbrushes currently on the market with rigidly planted bristles and rigid curved / angular bristles faces exhibit structural defects when brushing both flat surfaces as well as concave tooth surfaces. Positioning the curved / angular bristle face on a flat tooth face will result in only a few bristles touching the tooth. Thus, a small number of bristles in contact with the teeth undergoes a brushing force transmitted through the handle, resulting in premature flaking of the bristles. Some toothbrushes currently in use provide a "power tip" construction (tightly mounted tip bristles in the longitudinal direction) to improve access benefits.

Unlike other toothbrushes on the market, the toothbrush can be used for more efficient brushing.

At least one thin crosslinked portion made of the same resin as the toothbrush formed by the casting method according to the present invention

There is provided an integrated toothbrush which forms a segmented toothbrush head with two head sections joined by thin bridges. The thin bridge is flexible, allowing limited flexibility between the two head sections, and the two sections are formed relatively bent at small angles. In one embodiment, a portion of the head between the two head sections is formed into a T-shaped slot of general form that crosses the top surface of the head from one end of the head to the other end, and the groove is suitably made of elastomeric material. Charging is to perform the elastic motion. The shape is such that the head section remote from the handle is inclined with respect to the head section near the handle, and the head section near the handle is disposed at one end of the handle. In the second embodiment, the head section is formed of a narrow cylindrical portion, and in the third embodiment, two thin crosslinking portions are used, all of which are made of elastomer. In order to achieve the above-mentioned flexibility, the cross section of the elastomeric structure is made into a undulating shape having one or more undulating portions. The elastomer may be inserted into one or more grooves at both ends of the elastic portion so as to assist the fixing of the elastomer to the toothbrush head section. A plastic (resin) bridge is preferably provided between the tip and the handle portion as close as possible to the bristle tip so that the gap between bristle tufts is minimized when the head is bent into a flat plate structure. The cross section has the property of becoming straight during the bending operation and directly controls the gap between the bristle bundles on each side of the bending zone.

An advantage of the flexible structure of the present invention is the inherent flexibility of the gums in addition to the above-described advantages of the curved structure. Brushing along the gums with the power tip structure causes a lot of force to collect at the rising tip through the focused area. Using the structure of the invention, the forces are evenly distributed. The use of the elastomer agent used in the present invention in an elastic part made of the same plastic material as the material used as the material of the gripping portion constituting the handle portion can significantly improve manufacturing efficiency. Therefore, a structure made of a material suitable for use in a grip portion that receives and flexes the loads generally encountered during brushing is preferred.

1 is an elevational view illustrating a toothbrush head in a side view according to a first embodiment of the present invention;
Figure 2 is a plan view of the top of the toothbrush head shown in Figure 1;
Fig. 3 is an elevational view showing the head and bristle bundle as brushing the inner side of the lower teeth.
Fig. 4 is a view showing the second embodiment, similar to the drawing in Fig. 1;
FIG. 5 is a view similar to that shown in FIG. 1, showing a third embodiment;
6 is an elevation view showing the fourth embodiment in a side view;
Fig. 7 is an elevation view showing the fifth embodiment in a side view;
Fig. 8 is an elevational view showing the sixth embodiment in side view.

1 is an elevational view of the side of a toothbrush showing the features and construction of the present invention, with a handle 12

A portion of is shown in the longitudinal direction. Although not completely shown, the handle extends downward and has a transverse axis. The head portion that is collinear near the handle is represented by section 14 and the head portion remote from the handle is represented by section 16. Elastomer sections or connections between the facing ends of sections 14 and 16 are indicated by '18'. The bundle bristles 20 extend perpendicular to the section 14, while similar bundle bristles 22 extend perpendicular to the section 16. The bundle bristles 22 are thus orthogonal to the lower face 24 of the head section 16 while the bundle bristles 20 are orthogonal to the lower or bottom face 26 of the head section 14.

Between the sections 14 and 16, a T-shaped groove in the longitudinal section is formed extending laterally the top surface of the head. At the bottom in the center of the groove, a cross-linking portion 30 connected to the lower portion of the two head sections is formed spaced apart from the lower surface 24 of the composite head. The thickness of the bridge portion 30 is approximately 0.02 to 0.04 inches. The handle and head section are molded from plastic or resin such as polypropylene. T-shaped grooves are elastic and filled with soft thermoplastic elastomers. The T-shaped grooves have two symmetrical wings 32, each extending to an extension 34, with grooves extending towards each group of bristle bundles. An integral ridge 36 is formed in the middle of the T-shaped resin impregnated connection 18, and a base 38 is formed at the bottom thereof. As the thermoplastic elastomer material forming the connecting portion 18, Santoprene (brand) or polypropylene and natural rubber described in US Pat. No. 5,393,796 to Halberstadt et al. There is a thermoplastic vulcanate (TPV) consisting of a mixture of polypropylene and ethylene propylene diene monomers (EPDM) available as Vyram (brand), which is composed of a mixture. Both Santoprene and Biram (brand) are elastomers available from Advanced Elastomer Systems. Other suitable elastomers include Creton, a brand of styrene block copolymers commercially available from the cell, and Dynaplex G2706 (brand), made of creton (brand) polymers from GLOS Corporation's thermoplastic elastomers. . The elastomeric agent generally has about 13 to 94 A (Shore hardness), preferably about 29 A. The groove 40 on the top face of the composite head extends between both sides of the raised rib or ridge 36 and the abutment 32. Fig. 2 is a diagram explaining the above structure. 2 is a view showing a state in which the elastomeric connection portion 18 is formed in the width direction of the head portion. In the head structure in a steady state, the head section 16 is generally inclined with respect to the head section 14 to about 18 degrees. Thus, if the force exerted on the toothbrush during brushing is in nearly complete alignment with the section 14, it is necessary to tilt the section 16. The two head sections are molded into an angled structure as in FIG. 1 with the embedded elastomer. Alternatively, the two head sections are formed by being aligned with each other and then injected with an elastomeric agent in an angular state therebetween. 3 shows that the two head sections 14 and 16 have good access to the inner and rear surfaces of the tooth with effective curvature. Thus, the handle 12 does not need to be inclined differently such that its front section 16 and its bristles 22 contact the inner face of the lower incisors. In straight section brushing of teeth, the deformability of the elastomeric connection 18 allows the section 16 to partially or completely self align with the handle 12 and the section 14. Figure 4 illustrates a second embodiment of the present invention, which is arranged horizontally and is similar to that shown in Figures 1 and 2 except that the structure in which the two head sections are connected to each other is different. The connecting portion 18 is filled with the elastomer 50, and the connecting portion 18 made of elastomer is formed in the same composition as the previous setting and extends across the width of the head, and is disposed between the facing ends of the sections 14 and 16. . The thin, integrally bonded, cross-linked portion 52 in the center between the two sections is cylindrical in cross section. The elastomer is formed by completely surrounding the crosslinking portion 52. The bonded crosslinking portion may form another cross-sectional shape. It is similar to that of Figure 2 except that there is no groove 40 and ridge 36 in the top plane of the head. As shown in Fig. 4, an elastomeric connection formed along the longitudinal axis of the toothbrush is formed shorter than that in Figs. The integral bonded crosslinking portion 52 performs the same function as the crosslinking portion 30 of FIG. 1. That is, the two head sections are integrally connected. Fig. 5 is shown in the transverse direction as the third embodiment. The lower faces 24, 26 of the bristle head sections 14, 16 are connected to an intermediate intervening arc shaped bottom face 27 with bundle bristles 23 running in a direction orthogonal therefrom. The elastomeric connection 18 has a curved portion 60 and a tip or end 62 in a 'C' shape and is disposed in a double groove extending transversely across the head. The elastomeric tip is separated by a central head portion 64, having a crosslinked portion 66 formed of a molding resin that connects the two head sections to the bottom surface of the entire head to form a toothbrush. The C-shaped elastomeric connection surrounds the central head portion 64 across the width of the head. The second and third embodiments achieve the same toothbrush operation as shown in FIG. The thickness of the bridges 52 and 66 is the same as that of the bridge 30 of FIG. The bridging portions 30, 52, 66 of each embodiment prevent longitudinal separation of the two head sections with the tension resistance or other force that results in the separation, and the elastomeric connections also provide for the head section to receive brushing motion when Control the trajectory Therefore, the function of the crosslinking portion is to bind the two head sections together, such as setting them at the starting angle. When the sections operate in a straight line or aligned, each elastomer section is deformed. The deformation is less ranged by the resin (polypropylene) crosslinked portion such that it is subjected to elastomeric resistance and the section recovers to normal angular correlation upon toothbrush force rest at the foremost section 16. Is made of. FIG. 6 is a view for explaining a fourth embodiment different from that shown in FIG. 1 only in the presence of the bridge portion 30 of FIG. Instead of the bridging portion 30, two head sections are joined by a T-shaped elastomer section 39, which sections are identical in shape to the section 38 of FIG. 1 except that they extend to the lower face of the head. Will. FIG. 7 shows a fifth embodiment in which two head sections 14, 16 are normally aligned. The T-shaped elastomer section 41 has two head sections 14 and 16, except for the same cross-linking portion 30 as the cross-linking portion 30 of FIG. 1 in which the two head sections are integrally bound together. The bristle bristle 70 is inclined with respect to the lower head face 24 of the head section 16, the inclination being inclined in the direction towards the handle 12. The picture will. The bundle bristles 70 have a shape that is reduced in length with the longest length near the distal free end or tip of the head section 16. This fact causes the tips of the bundle bristles 70 and 20 to form a generally concave toothbrush face during toothbrush operation that becomes flat upon bending of the connection 18. FIG. 8 shows a sixth embodiment similar to FIG. 7 except that the bundle bristles 72 of the head section 16 extend orthogonally from the surface 24. Bundle bristle 70 is made of a constant different length. The longest length is adjacent to the free end of the head section 16. In addition, the free ends of the bundle bristles 72 and 20 form a generally concave toothbrush face during brushing, which becomes flat when the connection 18 is bent. Many of the various toothbrushes on the market today are of "dual component", which is an elastomeric material with larger or smaller extensions, especially in the finger grip of the toothbrush. Thus, methods of making such dual component toothbrushes by injection molding are well known in the art today. Toothbrushes according to the present invention may also be prepared using conventional binary component techniques. For example, in the method of manufacturing the toothbrush according to the present invention, the elastomeric material is introduced into the head region from the handle grip (if the handle grip is required) via the mold inner channel. Alternatively, the elastomer is introduced into the head portion via an auxiliary inlet or gate disposed in the head, eliminating the need for a channel inside the mold. The head is then planted bristles using the prior art. According to another method of manufacturing the toothbrush according to the invention, the elastomer and the head portion for the handle and the gripping portion are molded using a three-shot molding technique. The elastomer is separated from the handle gripping portion and flows into the head portion. This process is particularly useful if the elastomer for the head section of the toothbrush and the elastomer for the handle grip are other elastomeric materials, such as elastomers having two different Shore hardness values. For example, in some circumstances it may be desirable to use an elastomer that is softer than the elastomer of the grip of the toothbrush handle. As described above, the bristles are planted in the head using conventional manufacturing techniques.

12: Handle

Claims

A toothbrush having a handle and an articulated head connected to the handle and having at least two sections comprising a first section and a second section, wherein some or all of the handle, the first section and the second section are integrally molded from the same material The first section comprises a plurality of first bristle bundles and the second section comprises a plurality of second bristle bundles, the plurality of first bristle bundles extending orthogonal to the first section and the plurality of second bristle bundles Is extended orthogonal to the second section, the first section is the only one of the sections connected to the handle, the second section is connected to the first section by one or more bridges, and the second section is an articulation Upon normal placement of the head, the toothbrush is angled to the first section, wherein the articulated head contains an elastomeric agent between the first section and the second section.

The toothbrush of claim 1, wherein the second section is angled at an angle of about 18 °.

The toothbrush of claim 1 wherein the handle, the first section and the second section are made of polypropylene.

The toothbrush of claim 1 wherein the elastomer is made of thermoplastic bulkonate.

The toothbrush of claim 1 wherein the elastomer is made of a styrene block copolymer.

The handle of claim 1 wherein the handle has a grip and the elastomer and the grip are molded from the same material.
toothbrush.

The toothbrush of claim 1 wherein the elastomer completely surrounds at least one crosslinking portion.

The mold inner sleeve of claim 1, wherein the handle is configured to introduce the elastomer into the head.
Toothbrush with board.

Having at least two sections having a first section and a second section, the first section being defined by at least one crosslinking portion;
Shaping the toothbrush handle, which is aligned with the articulated head connected in section 2 and integrally connected thereto, from a single material
Aligning the first section with the second section An elastomer is injected between the first section to form an angled connection between the first section and the second section.
Steps to
A plurality of bundles are planted in each of the first and second sections so that the bundles are orthogonal to the first and second sections.
A method of producing a toothbrush comprising the step of extending.

Having at least two sections having a first section and a second section, the first section being defined by at least one crosslinking portion;
Forming a toothbrush handle of one material, the toothbrush handle being aligned with and integrally connected with the articulated head which is connected to two sections and the first and second sections are shaped at an angle with respect to each other;
Injecting an elastomer between the first section and the second section to form an angular connection between the first section and the second section.
Steps to
A plurality of bundles are planted in each of the first and second sections so that the bundles are orthogonal to the first and second sections.
A method of producing a toothbrush comprising the step of extending.

A toothbrush having a handle and an articulated head connected to the handle and having at least two sections comprising a first section and a second section, wherein some or all of the handle, the first section and the second section, are integrally molded from the same material The first section comprises a plurality of first bristle bundles, the second section comprises a plurality of second bristle bundles, the first bristle bundle multiple extends orthogonal to the first section and the second bristle bundle multiple Extends orthogonally to two sections, the first section is connected to the handle, the second section is connected to the first section by one or more bridges, and the second section, in the normal placement of the articulated head, Toothbrush angled to one section, the articulated head having an elastomer between the first and second sections, the elastomer completely surrounding one or more crosslinking portions.

12. The toothbrush of claim 11, wherein the second section is angled at an angle of about 18 degrees.

12. The toothbrush of claim 11 wherein the handle, first section and second section are made of polypropylene.

12. The toothbrush of claim 11, wherein the elastomer is made of thermoplastic bulkonate.

12. The toothbrush of claim 11 wherein the elastomer is made of a styrene block copolymer.

12. The handle of claim 11 wherein the handle has a grip and the elastomer and the grip are molded from the same material.
toothbrush.

12. The toothbrush of claim 11, wherein the first section is collinear with the handle.

12. The toothbrush of claim 11, wherein the second section is substantially aligned with the first section when a force is exerted during brushing.

Handle and
An articulated head having two or more sections comprising a first section and a second section and connected to the handle
As a toothbrush,
Some or all of the handle, the first section and the second section are integrally molded of the same material, and the first section is the first
A plurality of bristle bundles, the second section including a plurality of second bristle bundles, a plurality of first bristle bundles extending orthogonally to the first section, and a plurality of second bristle bundles extending orthogonally to the second section, The section is the only one of the sections that is connected to the handle, the second section is connected to the first section by one or more crosslinking portions, and the second section, in the normal placement of the articulated head, with respect to the first section. Angled, wherein the at least one bridge is near the side of the first section where the bristle bundle extends and the side of the second section where the bristle bundle extends, the articulated head being between the first section and the second section. Toothbrush containing an elastomer.

20. The toothbrush of claim 19, wherein the second section is angled at an angle of about 18 degrees.