RU2776124C1 - Mono-bunch nozzle for electric toothbrush - Google Patents

Abstract

FIELD: oral care.

SUBSTANCE: invention relates to oral hygiene means, in particular to nozzles for electric toothbrushes; it can be used in the industry in the production of toothbrushes. A nozzle for an electric toothbrush consists of an elongated case, one end of which is equipped with an attachment for the connection to a toothbrush handle, a head attached to the second part of the case, and a working part, which is a mono-bundle of elastic fibers, cylindrical at the base and narrowing to the end. The mono-bundle is formed by concentrical rings of fibers, the length of which in each separate ring is the same or different from the length of fibers in neighboring rings. The narrowing of the working part has a form of a truncated cone, the side surface of which forms an angle of 45 degrees with the base, so that the length of fibers gradually increases from 4 mm on the periphery to 7 mm at the center, and the upper base of the cone has a diameter of 1 mm. An additional feature of the nozzle is that fibers of the working part have variable rigidity increasing from the edge to the center.

EFFECT: simplification of the toothbrush design, and reduction in the risk of gum injury, while maintaining high quality of cleaning of hard-to-reach gaps and gingival pockets.

9 cl, 4 dwg

Description

Technical field

The invention relates to oral hygiene products, in particular to electric toothbrushes and monopunch nozzles for them, and can be used in the industry in the manufacture of toothbrushes.

State of the art

A number of mono-bundle toothbrushes, as well as electric toothbrushes with mono-bundle nozzles, are known in the prior art.

In particular, from document KR 101520075 B1, an electric toothbrush with a mono-bundle nozzle is known, consisting of a neck, a head and a working part that has the form of an inverted truncated cone at the base and a sharp cone at the free edge of the fibers.

The closest analogue is the electric toothbrush disclosed in US 20170099940 A1. The cleaning surface of this brush is formed by fibers of variable length, minimum at the edges and maximum in the center. The tufts of bristles are arranged in concentric rings. The fibers of an individual ring have a single length different from the length of the fibers in adjacent rings, so that the increase in length is gradual and the result is a conical, truncated or sharp bristle. The design of the brush suggests the possibility of reciprocating movements of the bristles. In the extended state, the length of the bristle in the center is about 1 cm, in the retracted state - about 5 mm.

The disadvantage of analog is the complexity of its design, in particular, the need to manufacture a mechanism for reciprocating bristle movements. While the proposed mono-beam nozzle allows you to thoroughly clean the interdental spaces and gum pockets due to the shape and variable stiffness of the bristles, without the need for additional complexity of the brush design. The variable bristle stiffness of the inventive brush head also reduces the risk of gum injury, making it suitable for use by people with gum disease and/or tooth sensitivity. At the same time, the hard bristles in the center of the brush head provide a high-quality brushing experience that is not possible with soft brushes.

Thus, the objective of the present invention is to create a mono-beam nozzle for an electric toothbrush, which, due to the conical shape and variable stiffness of the bristles, allows complete cleaning of teeth, gum pockets and interdental spaces, including those inaccessible to standard-shaped brushes and requiring cleaning with an irrigator with minimal risk of gum injury.

The technical result of the claimed invention is to simplify the design of the brush and reduce the risk of injury to the gums while maintaining a high quality of cleaning hard-to-reach spaces and gum pockets.

Disclosure of invention

The set goal, the technical result required and obtained by using the invention are achieved by the fact that the nozzle for an electric toothbrush includes an elongated body, one end of which is equipped with a fastener for connection with the handle of the toothbrush, a head attached to the second part of the body, and a working part, which is monobundle of elastic fibers, cylindrical at the base and tapering towards the end. The monobeam is formed by concentric rings of fibers, the length of which in each individual ring is the same and different from the length of the fibers in neighboring rings. The narrowing of the working part has the form of a truncated cone, the side surface of which forms an angle of 45 degrees with the base, so that the length of the fibers smoothly increases from 4 mm at the periphery to 7 mm in the center, and the upper base of the cone has a diameter of 1 mm. The fibers of the working part of the nozzle have a variable stiffness, increasing from the edge to the center.

In one embodiment, the body is made straight.

In another embodiment, the housing has one or more bends.

The fibers of the working part of the nozzle can be made of nylon.

In one embodiment, the fibers at the periphery of the monobundle have a diameter of 0.152 to 0.18 mm, i.e. characterized by medium hardness.

In another embodiment, the fibers at the periphery of the monobundle have a diameter of 0.127 to 0.15 mm and are classified as soft.

In the third embodiment, the fibers at the periphery of the monobundle have a diameter of not more than 0.1 to 0.12 mm and are classified as very soft.

In those embodiments where the fibers at the periphery are soft or medium hard, the fibers in the center of the monobundle may have a diameter of 0.18 to 0.2 mm, i.e. be tough.

In embodiments where the fibers at the periphery are soft or very soft, the fibers at the center of the monobundle may be of medium stiffness.

Brief description of the drawings

The essence of the invention is illustrated by drawings.

In FIG. 1. shows a general view of the proposed nozzle for an electric toothbrush. The following designations are introduced in the drawing:

1 - working part of the nozzle (mono-bundle);

2 - nozzle head;

3 - body of the nozzle with a mount for connection with the handle of an electric brush.

In FIG. 2 and 3 are schematic representations of the proposed toothbrush head, indicating the geometrical parameters of the bristle shape.

In FIG. 2 is a side view, FIG. 3 - top view.

Figure 3 also shows the way the fibers are arranged on the nozzle head: the fibers are arranged in concentric rings, the length of the bristles in each of which is constant and different from the length of the fibers in adjacent rings.

In FIG. 4 schematically shows the stepped structure of the rows of fibers.

Implementation of the invention

The distance between the teeth of an adult is on average 0.5-1 mm. Periodontal pockets are about 1 mm wide and deep. Due to their small size, cleaning these areas with standard shaped brushes is difficult and may require the use of additional oral hygiene products such as dental floss and irrigators.

The active working part of the proposed nozzle for an electric toothbrush is a bundle of fibers (mono-bundle) cut at an angle of 45 degrees so that the length of the fibers from the edges to the center smoothly increases from 4 to 7 mm. The fibers are arranged in concentric rings, each of which is formed by threads of the same length, different from the length of the threads in adjacent rings. As a result, the working part of the nozzle has the shape of a truncated cone with a stepped side surface, the upper base of which has a diameter of 1 mm. The fibers under the lower base of the cone form a cylinder 4 mm high.

The maximum fiber height is 7 mm, which coincides with the average height of incisors, canines, first and second premolars of an adult, which allows one-touch cleaning of the lateral surfaces of these types of teeth, avoiding unnecessary impact on the enamel.

The smallest diameter of the working part of the nozzle is 1 mm, which anatomically corresponds to the size of the interdental spaces and gum pockets, allowing you to clean these areas.

The 45 degree cutting angle ensures the correct position of the fibers relative to the dentition. Due to the conical shape of the mono-bundle, the force applied to the side of the tooth during brushing is distributed in such a way that the upper and narrowest part of the beam penetrates into the periodontal pocket, thoroughly cleaning it. As a rule, it is this area that is poorly cleaned when using standard-shaped brushes. The shape of the proposed nozzle allows you to penetrate into periodontal pockets to remove plaque and bacteria at the base of the tooth.

In addition, when located between the teeth, on their lateral or working surface, the narrow part of the beam, due to its small diameter, penetrates deeply into the spaces between them, allowing you to clean gaps of about 1 mm in size.

The nozzle is designed to be attached to the handle of an electric toothbrush. Impulse vibrations of the fibers during the operation of the brush create a significant fluid-dynamic effect due to the foaming of toothpaste, water and saliva, the mixed flow of which is able to clean the gaps between the teeth with a width of 0.5 mm, into which the fibers of the working part of the brush cannot directly penetrate.

The shape of the nozzle body can be either straight or have one or more bends, depending on the purpose of the nozzle (for cleaning teeth with sensitive enamel, for various types of orthodontic structures, for deep cleaning, for whitening, etc.).

The proposed nozzle can also be used to clean orthodontic braces containing a large number of small gaps that cannot be completely cleaned with a standard-shaped brush and require the use of additional hygiene products, such as special brushes and dental floss.

Another feature of the proposed nozzle is the variable stiffness of the working part. Fibers of reduced stiffness at the edges minimize the risk of gum injury by gently massaging the gum itself and the place where the gum meets the tooth bone tissue, which makes it possible to use the tip for people with gum disease and / or increased tooth sensitivity. For example, fibers at the periphery of a monotuft have a diameter of 0.127 to 0.15 mm and are classified as soft bristles. Further, fibers with a diameter of 0.152 to 0.18 mm are already used (bristle of medium hardness). And the center of the monobeam is already using fibers with a diameter of 0.18 to 0.2 mm, that is, hard bristles. It should also be understood that the use of fibers of different diameters may vary and this order is an exemplary implementation to explain the essence of the invention. For example, fibers with a diameter of 0.1 to 0.12 mm can be used at the periphery of the monobundle, that is, very soft bristles are used at the periphery, and further to the center of the monobundle with some pitch, stiffer fibers are used. It has been found that this use of variable stiffness of the monobeam and the unique shape of the monobeam allows thorough cleaning of gum pockets and interdental spaces, thereby providing a high quality of tooth cleaning that cannot be achieved with soft or medium hard brushes.

The working part of the nozzle may be made of nylon or any other resilient elastic material suitable for this purpose.

As follows from the description of the claimed invention, the proposed toothbrush head ensures the achievement of the claimed technical result, namely, it allows to achieve high quality cleaning of interdental spaces and gum pockets solely due to the shape of the working part of the head and the variable stiffness of the cleaning fibers. Reducing the risk of injury to the gums is achieved by reducing the stiffness of the fibers to the periphery of the working part.

The analysis performed shows that all general and particular features of the invention are essential, since each of them is necessary for the industrial implementation of the invention, and together they allow the claimed technical result to be achieved.

Thus, in the sections "Level of technology" and "Disclosure of the invention" it was shown that all the general and particular features of the proposed device are essential and in the aggregate satisfy the criterion of patentability "novelty". In the "Implementation of the invention" section, it was shown that the claimed invention is technically feasible, allows solving the set inventive problems and confidently achieving the required technical result when using it (the invention), which indicates the industrial applicability of the proposed device. Based on the foregoing, we believe that the claimed attachment for an electric toothbrush meets all the requirements for patentability for inventions.

Claims (9)

1. Nozzle for an electric toothbrush, consisting of an elongated body, one end of which is equipped with a mount for connection with a toothbrush handle, a head attached to the second part of the body, and a working part, which is a monobundle of elastic fibers, cylindrical at the base and tapering towards the end , formed by concentric rings of fibers, the length of which in each individual ring is the same and different from the length of the fibers in neighboring rings, characterized in that the narrowing of the working part has the form of a truncated cone, the side surface of which forms an angle of 45 degrees with the base, so that the length of the fibers smoothly increases from 4 mm at the periphery to 7 mm in the center, and the upper base of the cone has a diameter of 1 mm, and also by the fact that the fibers of the working part of the nozzle have a variable stiffness that increases from the edge to the center. 2. Nozzle for an electric toothbrush according to claim 1, characterized in that the body is made straight. 3. Nozzle for an electric toothbrush according to claim 1, characterized in that the body has one or more bends. 4. Nozzle for an electric toothbrush according to paragraphs. 2, 3, characterized in that the fibers are made of nylon. 5. Nozzle for an electric toothbrush according to paragraphs. 2-4, characterized in that the fibers on the periphery of the monobundle have a diameter of 0.152 to 0.18 mm. 6. Nozzle for an electric toothbrush according to paragraphs. 2-4, characterized in that the fibers on the periphery of the monobeam have a diameter of 0.127 to 0.15 mm. 7. Nozzle for an electric toothbrush according to paragraphs. 2-4, characterized in that the fibers on the periphery of the monobeam have a diameter of not more than 0.1 to 0.12 mm. 8. Nozzle for an electric toothbrush according to paragraphs. 5, 6, characterized in that the fibers in the center of the monobundle have a diameter of 0.18 to 0.2 mm. 9. Nozzle for an electric toothbrush according to paragraphs. 6, 7, characterized in that the fibers in the center of the monobundle have a diameter of 0.152 to 0.18 mm.

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