KR20160115585A

KR20160115585A - Steam sterilizer for toothbrush

Info

Publication number: KR20160115585A
Application number: KR1020150043549A
Authority: KR
Inventors: 노응석; 김종길
Original assignee: (주)워피온
Priority date: 2015-03-27
Filing date: 2015-03-27
Publication date: 2016-10-06

Abstract

The present invention relates to a case having a cradle in which a toothbrush is received; A water tank for supplying water into the case; Heating means for heating the water in the bucket to generate steam; A pump operable to supply water in said bucket to said heating means; And a nozzle for supplying steam generated in the heating means to the cradle. The user can visually confirm that the steam is sprayed, so that the sterilizing effect of the toothbrush can be sensed.

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to a steam sterilizer for toothbrush,

The present invention relates to an apparatus for sterilizing a toothbrush using steam, and more particularly, to a steam sterilizing apparatus for a toothbrush capable of visually confirming that the steam is sprayed by a user, so that the sterilizing effect of the toothbrush can be sensed.

Generally, the toothbrush is placed in an open container after being used, or it is kept by hanging it in a toothbrush holder. Most of such toothbrush storage places are indoor such as a bathroom or a washroom, Therefore, various bacteria transferred from the mouth to the toothbrush exist in the toothbrush as they are, and other external bacteria can be contaminated with the toothbrush, which is unsanitary. To solve this problem, various toothbrush disinfection devices have been proposed.

Korean Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 10-2002-0067068 (prior art document 1) generates ozone by generating a high voltage and irradiates the ozone to the toothbrush, whereby various bacteria (staphylococcus, streptococcus, meningitis, etc.) Disclosed is a toothbrush sterilizing apparatus using an ozone generating apparatus for sterilizing a toothbrush.

In addition, Korean Utility Model Registration No. 20-0377996 (Prior Art Document 2) discloses a sterilizing lamp formed in a U shape so as to double the sterilizing power, a control unit connected to a positive / negative terminal provided at one end and the other end of the sterilizing lamp, Disclosed is a portable toothbrush sterilizer incorporating a U-shaped cold cathode ultraviolet lamp capable of doubling the emission amount of ultraviolet rays to obtain a strong sterilizing effect to cleanly manage the toothbrush.

However, in the above prior art documents 1 and 2, since the toothbrush is sterilized by using ozone and ultraviolet rays which can not be visually recognized, the user has difficulty in sensing the germicidal effect of the actual toothbrush.

On the other hand, in Korean Utility Model Registration No. 20-0408391 (Prior Art 3), a heater is provided at the bottom center of a support housing for storing a toothbrush, and an upper cover having a water supply groove for free- And a hygienic toothbrush is provided by drying the moisture by maintaining the heat at the time of humid heat, thereby providing a toothbrush steam sterilizer.

However, since the toothbrush is housed in the support housing and the upper cover, sterilization is progressed by the humid heat, so that it is difficult for the user to experience the germicidal effect of the toothbrush with the naked eye. Further, it is disadvantageous that the user must directly supply the water into the housing and it takes a long time until the steam is generated by the humid heat.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a steam sterilizer for a toothbrush which enables a user to experience a germicidal effect of a toothbrush visually.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a steam sterilizer for a toothbrush which can generate steam immediately before use of the toothbrush to sterilize the toothbrush immediately before use.

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a toothbrush comprising: a case having a holder for receiving a toothbrush; A water tank for supplying water into the case; Heating means for heating the water in the bucket to generate steam; A pump operable to supply water in said bucket to said heating means; And a nozzle for supplying steam generated in the heating means to the stand.

Preferably, the apparatus further comprises a drying heater installed inside the case to dry the toothbrush mounted on the cradle.

Preferably, the case is mounted on the front surface of the cradle, and the cradle includes at least one receiving groove in which the head portion of the toothbrush is mounted, and the nozzle is provided in the case to spray steam toward the receiving groove. .

Here, the case may include a cover rotatably mounted on the case so as to open and close the receiving groove of the cradle.

The heating means is a ceramic heater having a water inlet and a water outlet, and a flow passage formed therein.

Preferably, a silicon tube is connected between the outlet of the ceramic heater and the nozzle, and steam generated through the ceramic heater is injected into the receiving groove of the holder via the nozzle through the silicon tube by the pressure of the silicon tube. .

In addition, the case has a circular detachable member at a lower portion thereof, and the water bottle has a protrusion which is engaged with the detachable member.

Preferably, a control unit for controlling the operation of the pump, the heating unit, and the drying heater is installed in the case, and the control unit periodically repeats the operation of the pump, the heating unit, and the drying heater, The toothbrush accommodated in the holder is steam sterilized and dried.

More preferably, an operation button is provided outside the case, and when the operation button is operated, operation of the pump and the heating means is started, and steam is injected from the nozzle within 3 to 10 seconds do.

In the steam sterilizing apparatus for a toothbrush according to the present invention, the user can visually confirm that the steam is sprayed, so that the sterilizing effect of the toothbrush can be sensed.

In addition, the present invention can generate steam immediately before use of the toothbrush, and steam sterilize the toothbrush immediately before use.

In addition, the present invention can restore the bristles that have been worn for a long period of time to an original shape to increase the service life of the toothbrush.

1 is a perspective view showing a steam sterilizer for a toothbrush according to the present invention,
2 is a front view showing a steam sterilizing apparatus for a toothbrush according to the present invention,
3 is a side view showing a steam sterilizing apparatus for a toothbrush according to the present invention,
4 is a side sectional view showing a steam sterilizing apparatus for a toothbrush according to the present invention,
5 is an exploded perspective view showing a steam sterilizer for a toothbrush according to the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, a preferred embodiment of a steam sterilizer for a toothbrush according to the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the following description of the present invention, it is to be understood that the terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the technical scope of the present invention. Will be.

1 to 5, the steam sterilizing apparatus for a toothbrush according to the present invention comprises a case 100 in which parts are built, a water bottle 200 mounted in a lower part of the case 100, heating means for heating water And a nozzle 500 for supplying steam of the pump 400 and the heating means 300 to the space where the toothbrush is mounted.

The case 100 includes a front case 110 and a rear case 120.

The front case 110 has a holder 130 in which a head portion (a portion provided with bristles) of the toothbrush is received. The cradle 130 has at least one receiving groove 131 in which the head portion of the toothbrush is mounted. The receiving groove 131 is provided with locking protrusions 132 on both sides thereof so that only the head portion of the toothbrush can be hooked and fixed. The structure of the receiving groove 131 is advantageous in that the size of the case can be reduced because it is not necessary to accommodate the entire toothbrush.

A cover 140 is rotatably mounted on the front case 110 so as to open and close the receiving groove 131 of the holder 130. The lid 140 is preferably formed of a transparent material so that the user can visually confirm whether or not the steam is generated.

The rear case 120 is coupled to the front case 110 and includes a heating means 300, a pump 400 and other components. A suction pad 121 is provided on a rear surface of the rear case 120 so that the case 100 can be attached to the wall surface.

The water bottle 200 is detachably mounted on the lower portion of the rear case 120 to supply water to the heating means 300 side. The water bottle 200 is mounted on a circular detachable member 150 provided at a lower portion of the rear case 120. Although not shown in the drawing, annular grooves 151 are formed along the inner circumferential surface of the detachable member 150 of the rear case 120, and a plurality of insertion slits (not shown) Respectively. The water bottle 200 has a protrusion 210 which is engaged with the attaching / detaching member 150 of the rear case 120 on the outer circumference of the upper part. The protrusion 210 of the water bottle 200 is inserted into the insertion slit of the detachable member 150 and is then seated in the groove 151 by the rotation of the water bottle 200 so that the water bottle 200 is inserted into the rear case 120 Can be fixed to the detachable member (150). Alternatively, the water bottle 200 may be screwed to the detachable member 150 and fixed.

The heating means 300 is mounted on the inner lower portion of the rear case 120 and heats the water introduced from the water container 200 to generate steam. Specifically, the heating means 300 includes a water inlet (not shown) connected to the water bottle 200 and a water outlet 310 connected to the nozzle 500, and a ceramic heater having a flow path formed between the water inlet and the water outlet 310 Lt; / RTI > The heating means 300 heats the water while the water flowing into the inlet port passes through the flow channel so that steam can be discharged to the outlet port 310.

The pump 400 (see FIG. 5) is mounted inside the rear case 120, and operates so that the water stored in the water bottle 200 flows into the inlet side of the heating means 300.

The nozzle 500 serves to supply the steam generated in the heating means 300 to the receiving groove 131 of the holder 130. The nozzle 500 is disposed between the front case 110 and the rear case 120 so as to be inserted into the rear of the cradle 130 and to inject steam toward the front of the receiving groove 131.

The flexible tube 600 is connected between the outlet 310 of the heating means 300 and the nozzle 500. The flexible tube 600 may be a silicon tube. The silicon tube 600 forms a flow path between the outlet port 310 of the heating means 300 and the nozzle 500 and seals the flow path to prevent steam from leaking into the case 100.

By such a configuration. The heating means 300 and the pump 400 operate so that the water in the bucket 200 flows into the heating means 300 and the water introduced into the heating means 300 is heated The steam generated in the heating means 300 is injected into the receiving groove 131 of the holder 130 through the nozzle 500 through the silicon tube 600 by the pressure of the steam. Therefore, the toothbrush accommodated in the receiving groove 131 of the holder 130 can be steam sterilized. At this time, the user can visually confirm that the toothbrush is sprayed with steam, so that the sterilizing effect can be sensed.

Further, the bristles are slightly worn as they are used for a long period of time. In the steam sterilizing apparatus for a toothbrush according to the present invention, the bristles opened by applying heat to the bristles can be restored to their original shape to some extent. Thus, the service life of the bristles can be increased.

Additionally, the toothbrush steam sterilization apparatus according to the present invention may further include a drying heater 700 for drying the toothbrush received in the receiving groove 131 of the holder 130. The drying heater 700 may be a PTC heater installed adjacent to the receiving groove 131 of the holder 130 in the front side of the case 100.

A control unit 800 for controlling the operation of the pump 400, the heating means 300 and the drying heater 700 is installed in the rear case 120. [ The control unit 800 periodically repeats the operation of the pump 400, the heating unit 300 and the drying heater 700 while the power is supplied to the toothbrush unit 130, Sterilize and dry.

For example, the control unit 800 operates the pump 400 and the heating means 300 so that steam is sprayed to the toothbrush accommodated in the holder 130, and after the steam spraying, the drying heater 700 is operated, A series of sterilization and drying processes to be dried can be repeatedly performed at a predetermined time period.

Preferably, an operation button 160 and a lamp 170 indicative of an operating state are provided outside the rear case 120. Here, the operation button 160 may be composed of a touch-type button or a push-type button. When the user operates the operation button 160, the control unit 800 immediately starts the operation of the pump 400 and the heating means 300. [ Then, the steam is sprayed through the nozzle 500 within 3 to 10 seconds, so that the toothbrush can be sterilized by steam.

With this configuration, the user can steam-sterilize the toothbrush immediately before use of the toothbrush, confirm that the steam is sprayed with the naked eye, and experience a germicidal effect.

The embodiments of the present invention described above are merely illustrative of the technical idea of the present invention, and the scope of protection of the present invention should be interpreted according to the claims. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made in the present invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims. It should be interpreted that it is included in the scope of right.

100: Case 110: Front case
120: rear case 121: suction pad
130: cradle 131: receiving groove
132: latching protrusion 140: cover
150: detachable member 151: groove
160: Operation button 170: Lamp
200: water bottle 210: projection
300: Heating means 310: Outlet
400: pump 500: nozzle
600: Silicon tube 700: Drying heater
800:

Claims

A case having a holder for receiving a toothbrush;
A water tank for supplying water into the case;
Heating means for heating the water in the bucket to generate steam;
A pump operable to supply water in said bucket to said heating means; And
And a nozzle for supplying steam generated in the heating means to the cradle.

The method according to claim 1,
Further comprising: a drying heater installed in an inner front of the case to dry the toothbrush mounted on the cradle.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2,
Wherein the case is mounted on the front surface of the case, and the cradle includes at least one receiving groove on which a head of the toothbrush is mounted, and the nozzle is provided in the case to spray steam toward the receiving groove. The steam sterilizing device for a toothbrush.

The method of claim 3,
Wherein the case includes a lid rotatably mounted on the case so as to open and close the receiving groove of the lid.

The method of claim 3,
Wherein the heating means is a ceramic heater having an inlet and an outlet and a flow passage formed therein.

6. The method of claim 5,
A silicon tube is connected between the outlet of the ceramic heater and the nozzle and the steam generated through the ceramic heater is injected into the receiving groove of the holder through the nozzle through the silicon tube by its own pressure The steam sterilizing device for a toothbrush.

The method of claim 3,
Wherein the case has a circular detachable member at a lower portion thereof, and the water bottle has a protrusion that is engaged with the detachable member.

3. The method of claim 2,
A controller for controlling the operation of the pump, the heating means and the drying heater is installed in the case, and the controller periodically repeats the operation of the pump, the heating means, and the drying heater so that the toothbrush Is steam-sterilized and dried.

9. The method of claim 8,
Wherein an operation button is provided outside the case, and when the operation button is operated, operation of the pump and the heating means is started, and steam is sprayed from the nozzle within 3 to 10 seconds. Device.