KR20120031094A - Toothbrush having improved tuft retention and anchor wire - Google Patents

Abstract

Handheld instruments, in particular toothbrushes 200, have staples 100 for improved tuft retention and use. Staples have a specially designed terrain that provides reliable anchoring and manufacturing from cost effective materials. In one embodiment, the invention provides a head 210 having a handle 220, at least one hole 215 connected to the handle and extending from the surface 211 to the head, and at least one disposed in the hole. And a staple disposed in the hole and anchoring the cleaning element to the tuft hole, the staple having a longitudinal axis AA and a first major surface 20, the staple being spaced apart from each other. A plurality of grooves 30 are formed on the first major surface, each groove extending along the straight axis BB from the bottom edge 111 of the staple toward the upper edge 10 of the staple, the straight axis 40 It is a device with a handle that intersects the longitudinal axis at an acute angle θ of between 70 ° and 70 °.

Description

Toothbrush with improved tuft retention and anchor wires {TOOTHBRUSH HAVING IMPROVED TUFT RETENTION AND ANCHOR WIRE}

The present invention relates to a brush, in particular a toothbrush, and more particularly to an improved anchor or staple design for securing a tuft of bristles in the head of a brush.

In a conventional manufacturing method for a brush, in particular a toothbrush, the brush is injection molded into an empty tuft hole in the toothbrush head. The tuft holes are initially formed in the head at the same time as the injection molding or drilled after the injection molding. In the second process, the U-shaped tufts of bristles are inserted into the holes in the head. Each tuft of bristles is held in place by plate-shaped staples wider than the tuft holes so that when staples are used to insert U-shaped bristle tufts into the tuft holes, the edges of the staples finely shave and deform the sides of the holes. do. The pressure of the surrounding plastic on the staples and the resulting static friction contribute to the force that holds the staples in place. However, there are problems associated with brushes made in this way. In particular, the individual bristles or the entire tufts of bristles may come out of the tuft holes accidentally during brushing by the consumer. Staple or anchor techniques address these problems in a number of ways. However, properly securing the tufts of bristles in the tuft holes should be balanced against other considerations such as material cost and mass production capacity.

For many years, at least one of its major surfaces is separated from its tuft hole rather than a staple with a smooth surface by having parallel horizontal grooves (ie, grooves extending parallel to the longitudinal axis of the staple). Toothbrush staples in the form of rectangles that are formed into staples that have been found to be more resistant have become useful.

Staples have also been developed to have rounded edges that eliminate and / or minimize the problems of weakening the tufts and the possibility of rupture of filaments or bristles at the bends of U. By this round structure, the contact area or contact area between the lower staple edge and the bristle filament is closely matched with the U shape at the bend of each tuft. In other words, this allows the staples to go deep into the head, thus allowing larger and more stable forces to be applied to each U-shaped tuft without shaving or damaging the filaments.

Recently, staples with special groove patterns on the major surface of the staples have been introduced in the art for improved retention, including the inclined shape of parallel grooves.

Staples made of materials with oligodynamic actions have also been introduced in the art. These trace staples have a smooth major surface; It is composed of materials with trace amounts of action such as cadmium, silver, brass, copper, stainless steel, titanium, mercury.

Typically, toothbrush staples are made of a nickel-silver alloy. Due to the costs associated with nickel-silver alloys, the manufacture of staples from cheap metals such as brass has long been eager. Although the general concept of using brass staples has been published, testing and experimentation has demonstrated that simply forming and using a flat surface brass staple cannot be used in the manufacture of a toothbrush to provide effective tuft retention. Moreover, simply applying a known home pattern has proven ineffective.

In one aspect, the present invention is a staple having a groove pattern optimized for at least one of its major surfaces. The optimized groove pattern allows staples to be made from materials that are more cost effective than nickel-silver alloys such as brass while providing the necessary tuft retention for use in viable toothbrush products.

In one such embodiment, the present invention provides a handle, a head having at least one tuft hole connected to the handle and extending from the surface to the head, at least one tuft of bristles disposed in the tuft hole, A brass staple disposed in the tuft hole to anchor the tuft of bristles to the tuft hole and having a longitudinal axis and a first major surface; A plurality of parallel grooves are formed on the first major surface, each groove extending along the straight axis from the bottom edge of the brass staple to the top edge of the brass staple, wherein the straight axis is between 40 ° and 70 ° in the longitudinal axis. It can be crossed toothbrush at an acute angle of °.

In another aspect, the present invention is a staple having an inclined pattern of grooves on both major surfaces of the staple. The slope of the inclined pattern of the groove for each major surface is selected such that the patterns on both major surfaces work in a complementary and cooperative manner to improve tuft retention.

In one such embodiment, the present invention provides a handle, a head having at least one tuft hole connected to the handle and extending from the surface to the head, at least one tuft of bristles disposed in the tuft hole, A parallel set of staples disposed in the tuft holes and anchoring tufts of bristles to the tuft holes, the staples having a longitudinal axis, a first major surface and a second major surface, and a first set of staples formed on the first major surface; A groove and a second set of parallel grooves formed in the second major surface of the staples; Each groove of the first set extends along the straight axis from the bottom edge of the staple to the top edge of the staple and inclines upward from the transverse first edge of the staple to the transverse second edge of the staple, the first The straight axes of the grooves of the set intersect the longitudinal axis at a first acute angle, and each groove of the second set extends from the bottom edge of the staples to the top edge of the staples along the straight axis and staples from the second transverse edge of the staples. It is inclined upwardly to the first edge in the transverse direction of, wherein the straight axis of the second set of grooves is a toothbrush crossing the longitudinal axis at a second acute angle.

In another aspect, the present invention provides a handle, a head having at least one tuft hole connected to the handle and extending from the surface to the head, at least one tuft of bristles disposed in the tuft hole, A staple disposed in the tuft hole to anchor the tuft of bristle to the tuft hole and having a longitudinal axis and a first major surface; A plurality of parallel grooves are formed on the first major surface, each groove extending along the linear axis from the bottom edge of the staple to the upper edge of the staple, the linear axis crossing the longitudinal axis at an acute angle, each groove being Toothbrushes having a width and adjacent grooves spaced apart from each other, and the ratio of distance to width is from 3.0 to 4.0.

In another aspect, the invention provides a head having a handle, at least one hole connected to the handle and extending from the surface to the head, at least one cleaning element disposed in the hole, and a cleaning element disposed in the hole. Anchoring the tuft hole and including a staple having a longitudinal axis and a first major surface; The first major surface is provided with a plurality of distant grooves, each groove extending along the linear axis from the bottom edge of the staple to the upper edge of the staple, the linear axis at an acute angle of 40 ° to 70 ° along the longitudinal axis. It can be a cross toothbrush.

In another aspect, the invention may be a staple for securing a cleaning element in an ansate apparatus, comprising a flat wire having a longitudinal axis and a first major surface, wherein the first major surface is a plurality of staples. Grooves are formed, each groove extending from the bottom edge of the flat wire along the straight axis toward the top edge of the flat wire, the straight axis intersecting the longitudinal axis at an acute angle of 40 ° to 70 °.

1 is a front perspective view of a staple according to a first embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 2 is a front view of the staple of Figure 1;
3 is a plan view of the staple of FIG.
4 is a front view of the head of the toothbrush engaged with the staple of FIG. 1 to anchor the cleaning element in the form of a tuft of bristles.
FIG. 5 is a cross sectional view of the toothbrush along line V-V of FIG. 4; FIG.
Figure 6 is a cross sectional view of the toothbrush along line VI-VI of Figure 4;
7 is a front perspective view of a staple according to a second embodiment of the present invention.
8 is a front view of the staple of FIG.
9 is a rear view of the staple of FIG.
FIG. 10A is a table of experimental data for tuft retention for a first toothbrush type using Ag-Ni staples with longitudinal grooves. FIG.
10B is a graph of experimental data of the table of FIG. 10A.
11A is a table of experimental data for tuft retention for a first toothbrush type using brass staples having angled grooves in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.
11B is a graph of experimental data in the table of FIG. 11A.
12A is a table of experimental data for tuft retention for a second toothbrush type using Ag-Ni staples with longitudinal grooves.
12B is a graph of experimental data in the table of FIG. 12A.
FIG. 13A is a table of experimental data for tuft retention for a second toothbrush type using an angled grooved brass staple in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. FIG.
13B is a graph of experimental data in the table of FIG. 13A.
FIG. 14A is a table of experimental data for tuft retention for a third toothbrush type using Ag-Ni staples with longitudinal grooves. FIG.
14B is a graph of experimental data in the table of FIG. 14A.
FIG. 15A is a table of experimental data for tuft retention for a third toothbrush type using an angled grooved brass staple in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. FIG.
15B is a graph of experimental data in the table of FIG. 15A.

1-3 show a staple 100 according to one embodiment of the invention. Staple 100 is a flat wire member used as an anchor in a brush, in particular a toothbrush, to secure a U-shaped tuft of bristles in a tuft hole formed in the head of a hand held instrument such as a toothbrush. The staple 100 has a substantially rectangular cross section (lengthwise and transverse directions) and is elongated along the longitudinal axis A-A. Of course, other shapes can also be used to form staples.

The staple 100 is limited by an outer circumference including an upper edge 10, a bottom edge 11, a first edge 12 in a lateral direction, and a second edge 13 in a lateral direction. The staple 100 has a length L, a height H, and a thickness t. The length L of the staple 100 depends on the size of the tuft hole to be inserted, but is preferably in the range of 2.09 to 2.13 mm, most preferably 2.11 mm for the 1.70 mm tuft hole. The height H of the staple 100 depends on the dimensions of its end use, but is preferably in the range of 1.49 to 1.51 mm, most preferably 1.50 mm for 1.70 mm tuft holes. Similarly, the thickness t of staple 100 also depends on its end use, but a range of 0.24 to 0.26 mm is preferred, with 0.25 mm being most preferred. However, the present invention is not limited to all embodiments, and other dimensions may be used. The exact dimensions of the final product depend on the size of the tuft holes, the type and size of the bristle tufts, and the type of brush on which staples are used. In addition, although staple 100 is shown as having an overall uniform thickness t, height H and length L, one or more of these dimensions may be inclined and / or irregular.

In the illustrated embodiment, the edges 10-13 of the staple 100 are flat. However, in other embodiments, one or more of the edges 10-13 may be formed to provide additional tuft retention and / or reduce pressure at the bends of the bristle tufts. For example, the lateral edges 12-13 may be serrated, sharp, or barb shaped, and the bottom edge 11 may be rounded.

The staple 100 further includes a first major surface 20 and a second major surface 21. The second major surface 21 is on the opposite side of the first major surface 20 so that the staple 100 has a flat rectangular plate-like structure. The first major surface 20 includes a first set of grooves 30 formed on the first major surface 20 and covering substantially all of the first major surface 20. All grooves 30 are parallel to each other and are equidistant from each other. However, in some embodiments, all the grooves 30 may not be parallel to each other and the distance between adjacent grooves may vary irregularly or as a function of the distance from one or two of the lateral edges 12-13.

Due to the grooves 30 being spaced apart from each other, a continuous ridge 31 is formed between the adjacent grooves 30. This ridge 31 is an elongated strip, preferably not formed into segments. In other words, it is preferable that the first major surface 20 does not include grooves that cross each other. In short, it is preferable that the groove pattern on the first major surface 20 is free of intersecting grooves.

The grooves 30 are straight in the preferred embodiment shown and extend along the groove axis B-B, respectively. However, in other embodiments, the groove 30 may be curved, zigzag, or irregular in shape.

The grooves 30 are preferably spaced apart from each other at a distance D of 0.29 to 0.31 mm, most preferably about 0.30 mm. Most preferably, the groove 30 has a width W of 0.09 to 0.11 mm, in particular about 0.10 mm. In one embodiment, the ratio of the distance D to the width W is in the range of 3.0 to 4.0, especially 3.0. The groove 30 has a depth of 0.09 to 0.11 mm, about 0.11 mm. However, the exact dimensions of the grooves and their patterns may vary considerably and are not considered to limit the invention unless specifically stated in the claims. However, in one embodiment, the depth of the groove 30 is preferably 1/3 or less of the thickness t of the staple 100. It has been found that fabricating the groove 30 with a depth greater than one third of the thickness t results in unwanted distortion of the wire / staple 100.

The groove 30 extends to the entire height H of the staple 100 and extends from the top edge 10 to the bottom edge 11. The groove 30 is disposed on the first major surface 20 of the staple 100 so as to be inclined with respect to the longitudinal axis A-A. Alternatively, the groove axis B-B of each groove 30 forms an angle that is not perpendicular to the longitudinal axis A-A of the staple 100. In particular, the groove axis B of the groove 30 is longitudinally at an acute angle θ which is specially selected to provide proper tuft retention when inserted into the toothbrush and to maintain structural integrity of the staple 100 when inserted into the toothbrush. Intersect with axis AA. The acute angle θ plays a decisive role in achieving the desired purpose of increased tuft retention, depending on the constituent metal. It has also been found that the angle of the groove pattern allows cheap and / or soft metals to be used without unwanted deformation and / or curling of the wire. However, the metal selected should not be soft so that imprinting of the groove pattern causes unwanted deformation and curling. For example, in most cases aluminum has been found to be inadequate. In one preferred embodiment, for staple 100 a metal having a lower nickel-silver and a Brinell hardness higher than aluminum is selected.

Through experimentation, in order to form a staple 100 that is properly executed from brass, the acute angle θ needs to be 40 ° to 70 °, preferably 55 ° to 65 °, and most preferably about 60 °. . When the acute angle θ is less than 40 ° with respect to brass, the wire tends to deform and wind. However, it is difficult to stamp the angled groove pattern when the angle is greater than 70 ° with respect to brass. In addition, when the acute angle θ of the grooves is within the desired range, experiments using a toothbrush fracture test showed that the tuft retention was greatly increased by 25% compared to other anchors with or without grooves formed.

The groove 30 is inclined upward from the bottom edge 11 to the upper edge 10 so as to go from the first edge 12 in the lateral direction to the second edge 13 in the lateral direction on the first major surface 20. Is placed on. Of course, the grooves 30 are inclined upwards from the bottom edge 11 to the upper edge 10 in the opposite direction, if necessary, from the second edge 13 in the lateral direction to the first edge 12 in the lateral direction. It may be arranged to go. The second major surface 21 of the staple 100 is preferably a smooth surface without grooves or topography. In another embodiment, these second major surfaces are also patterned with grooves (as described below with respect to FIGS. 7-9).

The groove 30 may be formed by roll pressing or stamping a brass sheet into a die, which is then cut into the desired strip and the strip is cut to form staple 100.

4-6 show a toothbrush 200 in which each bristle tuft 50 is anchored to the tuft hole 215 by one staple 100. Although bristle tufts 50 are shown, other cleaning elements may be used, including elastomeric fingers, fibers, and the like. The toothbrush 200 includes a head 210 and a neck 220 extending with an elongated handle. A plurality of tuft holes 215 are formed in the front surface 211 of the head 210. Head 210 is typically made of hard plastic, such as polypropylene.

Each of the plurality of tuft holes 215 in the toothbrush head 210 extends downward along the central axis C-C from the front surface 211 of the head 210. The tuft hole 215 preferably includes a circular bore formed in the head 210. Of course, the tuft holes 215 may be formed in other shapes if necessary.

During manufacture, the bristle tufts 50 are bent in a U shape and secured in the tuft holes 215 by the staples 100. Staples 100 are encased in tuft holes 215 such that each bristle tuft 50 is bent in a U shape and includes a bend 51 and two elongated legs 52, 53. Legs 52, 53 of bristle tuft 50 extend upwards from aperture 215 and above front 211 of head 210. The bend or bend 51 of the bristle tuft 50 is in contact with the bottom edge 11 of the staple 100 while the two legs 52, 53 extend upward and form bristles of the visible toothbrush.

Two transverse edges 12-13 of each staple 10 extend slightly into the opposing side walls of each hole 215. The rotational position of the plane holding each staple 100 is not critical, i.e., the staple 100 is installed by rotating the staples about its central vertical axis differently from the rotational position of about 45 ° before installation. . However, the staple 100 is preferably disposed in the tuft hole 215 such that the longitudinal axis of the staple 100 is perpendicular to the central axis C-C of the tuft hole 215.

7 to 9 show a staple 100A according to a second embodiment of the present invention. The basic structure of the staple 100A is the same as that of the staple 100. Thus, similar reference numerals are used to add the subscript A to indicate corresponding parts and features. In order to avoid duplication, only the features of the staple 100A different from the staple 100 will be described below in recognition that the description as described above may be applied.

The main difference between the staple 100A and the staple 100 is that in addition to the first set of grooves 30A formed in the first major surface 20A, the second major surface of the staple 100A is formed in the second set of grooves ( 40A). The above description of the groove 30 of the staple 100 can generally be applied to the grooves 30A, 40A, and is hereby incorporated by reference. However, it should be appreciated that in this embodiment of the present invention, staple 100A is not limited to the exact range for the acute angle θ. However, the acute angle is preferably 40 ° to 70 °.

The groove 30A formed in the first surface 20A of the staple 100A is inclined upwardly from the bottom edge 11A to the upper edge 10A, so that the second edge in the transverse direction is formed from the first edge 12A in the transverse direction. It is arranged to go to 11A. However, the grooves 40A formed in the second surface 21A of the staple 100A are inclined upwardly from the bottom edge 11A to the upper edge 10A, so as to be transverse from the second edge 13A in the lateral direction. It is arrange | positioned on 21 A of 2nd main surfaces so that it may go to one edge 12A. In other words, the grooves 30A and 40A extend in the direction inclined to the opposite side. Of course, the inclination directions of the grooves 30A and 40A may be staggered. The grooves 30A, 40A are preferably arranged such that their openings along the top and bottom edges 10A, 11A are staggered along the length of the staple 100A.

Experiment

Three different types of toothbrushes that are commercially available for determining and comparing typical Ag-Ni staples with longitudinal grooves (ie 0 °) and brass staples with grooves having an angle of 60 ° according to embodiments of the present invention. The experiment was carried out. The three other toothbrushes tested are referred to herein as toothbrush 1, toothbrush 2, and toothbrush 3.

The test on toothbrush 1 will be described with reference to FIGS. 10A-11B. The details of the test parameters and tuft retention data for toothbrush 1 using an Ag-Ni staple with a longitudinal groove as an anchor are shown in the table of FIG. 10A and the graph of FIG. 10B. The details of the test parameters and tuft retention for toothbrush 1 using a brass staple with grooves at an angle of 60 ° as an anchor are shown in the table of FIG. 11A and the graph of FIG. 11B. As can be appreciated, for toothbrush 1, the longitudinally grooved Ag-Ni staples had an average tuft retention of 3.7 kgf and a CPK of 1.5. In comparison, a grooved brass staple with an angle of 60 ° resulted in an average tuft retention of 3.7 kgf and a large CPK of 1.82.

Test data for the toothbrush 2 will be described with reference to Figs. 12A to 13B. Details of the test parameters and tuft retention data for toothbrush 2 using Ag-Ni staples with longitudinal grooves as anchors are shown in the table of FIG. 12A and the graph of FIG. 12B. The details of the test parameters and tuft retention for toothbrush 2 using a grooved brass staple with an angle of 60 ° as an anchor are described in the table of FIG. 13A and the graph of FIG. 13B. As can be appreciated, the longitudinally grooved Ag-Ni staples had an average tuft retention of 3.8 kgf and a CPK of 2.24. By comparison, grooved brass staples with an angle of 60 ° resulted in an average tuft retention of 4.0 kgf and a large CPK of 2.48.

Test data for toothbrush 3 will be described with reference to FIGS. 14A-15B. The details of the test parameters and tuft retention data for toothbrush 3 using Ag-Ni staples with longitudinal grooves as anchors are shown in the table of FIG. 14A and the graph of FIG. 14B. The details of the test parameters and tuft retention for toothbrush 3 using a grooved brass staple with an angle of 60 ° as an anchor are described in the table of FIG. 15A and the graph of FIG. 15B. As can be appreciated, the longitudinally grooved Ag-Ni staples for toothbrush 3 showed an average tuft retention of 2.4 kgf and a CPK of 0.63. By comparison, grooved brass staples with an angle of 60 ° resulted in an average tuft retention of 2.8 kgf and a large CPK of 1.09.

The present invention has been described and described in sufficient detail to enable those skilled in the art to readily prepare and use, and various alternatives, modifications, and improvements will be readily apparent without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention.

10: top edge 11: bottom edge
20: first major surface 21: second major surface
30: home 50: bristle tuft
100: staples

Claims (22)

With handles,
A head having at least one tuft hole connected to the handle and extending from the surface to the head,
At least one tuft of bristles disposed in the tuft hole,
A brass staple disposed in the tuft hole to anchor the tuft of bristles to the tuft hole and having a longitudinal axis and a first major surface,
A plurality of parallel grooves are formed on the first major surface, each groove extending along the linear axis from the bottom edge of the brass staple to the upper edge of the brass staple, the linear axis being an acute angle of 40 ° to 70 ° in the longitudinal axis. Toothbrush, characterized in that cross. The tuft of bristles of claim 1, wherein the tufts of bristles are U-shaped with curved and leg portions, wherein the tufts of U-shaped bristles are anchored to the tuft holes by brass staples such that the leg portions extend upwards and protrude from the tuft holes. Toothbrush, characterized in that the brass staple is disposed between the leg portion and the curved portion of the brass staple. The toothbrush of claim 1, wherein the acute angle is about 60 °. 2. The toothbrush of claim 1 wherein said staples have a thickness and said grooves have a depth no greater than one third of the depth of the staple's thickness. The toothbrush of claim 1 wherein said brass staple is a flat wire having a rectangular cross section. 2. The toothbrush of claim 1 wherein said grooves are uniformly spaced apart from each other and cover the entirety of said first major surface. 7. The toothbrush of claim 6, wherein adjacent grooves are spaced apart from each other at a distance of 0.29 mm and 0.31 mm. 7. The toothbrush of claim 6, wherein the groove has a width of 0.09 to 0.10 mm. 7. The toothbrush of claim 6, wherein the groove has a depth of 0.09 to 0.10 mm. 2. The brass staple of claim 1, wherein the brass staple includes a second major surface opposite the first major surface, wherein only the first major surface comprises a groove, and the second major surface is flat and free of grooves. toothbrush. 2. The toothbrush of claim 1, wherein the tuft hole has a central axis and the longitudinal axis of the staple is perpendicular to the central axis of the tuft hole. With handles,
A head having at least one tuft hole connected to the handle and extending from the surface to the head,
At least one tuft of bristles disposed in the tuft hole,
A staple disposed in the tuft hole to anchor the tuft of bristles to the tuft hole and having a longitudinal axis, a first major surface and a second major surface;
A first set of parallel grooves formed on the first major surface of the staples,
A second set of parallel grooves formed in the second major surface of the staples,
Each groove of the first set extends along the straight axis from the bottom edge of the staple to the top edge of the staple and inclines upward from the transverse first edge of the staple to the transverse second edge of the staple, the first The straight axes of the grooves of the set intersect the longitudinal axis at a first acute angle, and each groove of the second set extends from the bottom edge of the staples to the top edge of the staples along the straight axis and staples from the second transverse edge of the staples. Inclined upward to a first edge in the lateral direction of the second set of grooves, wherein the straight axes of the second set of grooves cross the longitudinal axis at a second acute angle. The toothbrush of claim 12, wherein the first acute angle is 40 ° to 70 ° and the second acute angle is 40 ° to 70 °. 14. The toothbrush of claim 13, wherein said first and second acute angles are about 60 degrees. 13. The toothbrush of claim 12 wherein said staple is a flat brass wire. 13. The toothbrush of claim 12 wherein the first and second sets of grooves are uniformly spaced apart from each other and cover the entirety of the first and second major surfaces, respectively. With handles,
A head having at least one tuft hole connected to the handle and extending from the surface to the head,
At least one tuft of bristles disposed in the tuft hole,
A staple disposed in the tuft hole to anchor the tuft of bristles to the tuft hole and having a longitudinal axis and a first major surface,
A plurality of parallel grooves are formed on the first major surface, each groove extending along the linear axis from the bottom edge of the staple to the upper edge of the staple, the linear axis crossing the longitudinal axis at an acute angle, each groove being Toothbrush having a width and adjacent grooves spaced apart from each other, the ratio of the distance to the width is 3.0 to 4.0. 18. The toothbrush of claim 17, wherein the acute angle is between 40 and 70 degrees. 19. The toothbrush of claim 18, wherein the staples are made of brass. With handles,
A head having at least one hole connected to the handle and extending from the surface to the head,
At least one cleaning element disposed in the hole,
A staple disposed in said hole and anchoring a cleaning element to the tuft hole and having a longitudinal axis and a first major surface,
The first major surface is provided with a plurality of spaced apart grooves, each groove extending along the linear axis from the bottom edge of the staple to the upper edge of the staple, the linear axis is acute angle of 40 ° to 70 ° longitudinal axis Apparatus with a handle, characterized in that the cross. 21. The device of claim 20, wherein the plurality of grooves extend parallel to each other. A staple comprising a flat wire having a longitudinal axis and a first major surface for securing a cleaning element in a handheld instrument, the staple comprising:
A plurality of spaced apart grooves are formed on the first major surface, each groove extending from the bottom edge of the flat wire along the straight axis from the bottom edge of the flat wire to the top edge of the flat wire, the straight axis being between 40 ° and 70 ° longitudinal axis. Staples, characterized in that to cross at an acute angle.

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