US20250325094A1 - Toothbrush - Google Patents

Toothbrush

Info

Publication number
US20250325094A1
US20250325094A1 US18/861,659 US202318861659A US2025325094A1 US 20250325094 A1 US20250325094 A1 US 20250325094A1 US 202318861659 A US202318861659 A US 202318861659A US 2025325094 A1 US2025325094 A1 US 2025325094A1
Authority
US
United States
Prior art keywords
hole
section
longitudinal axis
grooves
anchor plate
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Pending
Application number
US18/861,659
Other languages
English (en)
Inventor
Marco Zavalloni
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
CURADEN AG
Original Assignee
CURADEN AG
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by CURADEN AG filed Critical CURADEN AG
Publication of US20250325094A1 publication Critical patent/US20250325094A1/en
Pending legal-status Critical Current

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Classifications

    • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
    • A46—BRUSHWARE
    • A46B—BRUSHES
    • A46B3/00—Brushes characterised by the way in which the bristles are fixed or joined in or on the brush body or carrier
    • A46B3/16—Brushes characterised by the way in which the bristles are fixed or joined in or on the brush body or carrier by wires or other anchoring means, specially for U-shaped bristle tufts
    • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
    • A46—BRUSHWARE
    • A46B—BRUSHES
    • A46B9/00—Arrangements of the bristles in the brush body
    • A46B9/02—Position or arrangement of bristles in relation to surface of the brush body, e.g. inclined, in rows, in groups
    • A46B9/04—Arranged like in or for toothbrushes
    • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
    • A46—BRUSHWARE
    • A46D—MANUFACTURE OF BRUSHES
    • A46D3/00—Preparing, i.e. Manufacturing brush bodies
    • A46D3/04—Machines for inserting or fixing bristles in bodies
    • A46D3/042—Machines for inserting or fixing bristles in bodies for fixing bristles using an anchor or staple
    • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
    • A46—BRUSHWARE
    • A46B—BRUSHES
    • A46B2200/00—Brushes characterized by their functions, uses or applications
    • A46B2200/10—For human or animal care
    • A46B2200/1066—Toothbrush for cleaning the teeth or dentures

Definitions

  • the invention relates to a toothbrush with a plastic brush head with at least one folded bristle bundle and at least one plastic anchor plate.
  • the bristle bundles are attached to the brush body with metal anchor plates.
  • These anchor plates are, for example, 3/10 mm wider than the hole diameter.
  • the anchor plates are stuffed together with folded bristle bundles into the bristle bundle holes, whereby they dig into the brush body material with opposite outer edges and are thus held.
  • the known anchoring techniques are complex to produce and are not reliable enough in securing the bristle bundles.
  • the object of the invention is to create a toothbrush that can be more easily produced and ensures that the bristles are more reliably anchored, which belongs to the technical field mentioned at the beginning.
  • the solution to the object is defined by the characteristics of claim 1 .
  • the toothbrush according to the invention has a plastic brush head, at least one folded bristle bundle and at least one plastic anchor plate.
  • the brush head comprises a hole with a longitudinal axis and a hole cross-section with a basic shape for receiving the folded bristle bundle for the at least one bristle bundle.
  • An anchor plate is fixed in the hole to anchor the respective bristle bundle in the free hole cross-section.
  • two grooves are held parallel to the longitudinal axis of the hole, which (viewed perpendicular to the longitudinal axis) extend beyond the base shape of the hole cross-section and which are formed by injection molding.
  • the grooves form a U-shaped profile.
  • the anchor plate is fixed in the two grooves in the U-shaped profile by welding.
  • the grooves have a combination section with centering and tapering section adjacent to one entrance of the hole, which, when viewed in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal axis, has a depth and a width that successively decrease with increasing distance from one entrance of the hole.
  • the invention is based on the finding that without the combination section according to the invention, it is not possible to anchor the plastic anchors sufficiently firmly (i.e. with a sufficiently high pull-out force) and sufficiently reliably (i.e. with sufficient consistency for each weld).
  • the tests have shown that if the feed is not sufficiently symmetrical (e.g. due to a slight production-related offset between the grooves and the anchor plates) when the plates are inserted into the holes, either deformed and thus only partially welded, or that the welding only occurs at individual points because the contact between the edge of the anchor plate and three sides of the U-profile is insufficient at other points.
  • Anchoring plates made of synthetic materials have the advantage over those made of steel that the toothbrush can be disposed of in an environmentally friendly manner, because it is not necessary to separate the materials (metal/synthetic material).
  • the longitudinal axis of the hole is perpendicular to a surface of the brush head.
  • several parallel rows of holes can be provided at a short distance from each other.
  • the hole (viewed transversely to its longitudinal axis) has a geometrically simple basic shape such as a circle, a rectangle or an ellipse.
  • the grooves are recessed into the wall of the hole, i.e. they extend beyond the basic shape of the hole cross-section and into the bulk material of the brush head.
  • the grooves are already present in the hole when the bristles and anchor plates are inserted. They are applied by injection molding, i.e. when the brush head is produced by injection molding.
  • the wall is therefore preferably essentially the inner surface of a hollow cylinder or a rectangular or elliptical hollow profile defined by the hole.
  • the wall is therefore essentially parallel to the longitudinal axis of the hole.
  • the grooves have a cross-section (viewed perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the hole) that is U-shaped. Because the grooves are recessed in the wall and are not placed, for example, on a rib that extends into the (free) hole cross-section, the three wall sides of the U-profile are surrounded by the bulk material of the brush head. The unavoidable heating and softening of the material that occurs in the U-profile during welding cannot cause the plastic material to yield. The anchor plate is thus reliably fixed to both the front side (bottom of the U-profile) and the sides of the U-profile.
  • the basic shape of the holes is circular or elliptical and the alignment defined by the opposing grooves of a hole is offset by an angle greater than zero, in particular 30°-45°, to the direction of the row of holes (hole row direction of directly neighboring holes).
  • the basic shape is simple (circular, elliptical, rectangular or similar), that is, convex (i.e. has no indentations, such as ribs or inward projections), and the grooves are recessed into the wall, means that the hole cross-section can be optimally adapted to the tuft of bristles to be inserted.
  • the combination section forms on the one hand a centering section of the U-shaped profile. This tapers, in relation to the longitudinal axis of the hole, radially the insertion area or insertion path for the anchor plate.
  • the anchor plate is thus centered (e.g. with respect to the longitudinal axis of the hole) and on the other hand, the anchor plate is gradually inserted into the area (further below referred to as the “constant section), in which the anchor plate is finally fixed, whereby the anchor plate is welded there with the artificial section of the U-profile of the grooves over essentially the entire surface.
  • the grooves in the combination section each also have a tapering section, which, when viewed in the direction perpendicular to the longitudinal axis, has a width that successively decreases with increasing distance from the entrance of the hole. This ensures that the anchor plate is fed symmetrically onto the two side walls of the U-profile in the constant section.
  • the grooves have a constant section adjacent to the combination section, which, when viewed in the direction perpendicular to the longitudinal axis, has a width and a depth that are constant along the longitudinal axis.
  • the width and depth of the U-profile in the constant section is adapted to the width and thickness of the anchor plate.
  • the combination section is designed to serve simultaneously as a centering section and as a tapering section. This has the advantage that the centering and alignment of the anchor plate is achieved over the shortest possible distance.
  • the combination section is followed by the constant section.
  • the depth decreases in two or more stages.
  • the centering section can comprise two or more linear or curved subsections whose angle with the longitudinal axis successively decreases with increasing distance from an entrance to the hole.
  • the width decreases in two or more stages.
  • the tapering section can comprise two or more linear or curved sub-sections, the angle of which with the longitudinal axis decreases successively with increasing distance from an entrance to the hole.
  • the width of the grooves at the entrance to the combination area can be greater than the thickness of the anchor plate, specifically by at least 5% and at most 100%. Such widening of the groove facilitates insertion and improves the symmetry of the load during friction welding in the constant section.
  • the anchor plate is preferably rectangular. In particular, it can be advantageous if it has no bevels on the narrow sides.
  • the invention also relates to a method for producing a toothbrush with a brush head made of synthetic material and with at least one bristle bundle anchored in the brush head, with the steps:
  • each groove has a constant section which, when viewed in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal axis, has a width and a depth that are each constant along the longitudinal axis.
  • FIG. 1 a perspective view of several rows of holes in a brush head
  • FIG. 2 a perspective view of several rows of holes with an anchor plate inserted
  • FIG. 3 a schematic cross-section of a hole with an anchor plate that is able to insert a bristle bundle into the hole, and a centering section and a constant section of the grooves;
  • FIG. 4 a schematic view of the hole shown in FIG. 3 ;
  • FIG. 5 a schematic cross-section of the hole from FIGS. 3 and 4 with an anchor plate that has folded the bristle bundle and inserted it into the hole;
  • FIG. 6 a schematic view of the hole shown in FIG. 5 ;
  • FIG. 7 a schematic cross-sectional view of a hole comprising grooves having a taper section, a centering section and a constant section;
  • FIG. 8 a schematic view of the hole shown in FIG. 7 .
  • FIG. 1 shows a transparent brush head 1 of an embodiment of the toothbrush according to the invention.
  • the embodiment comprises a plurality of circular cylindrical holes 5 in several rows.
  • the basic shape of the hole in the longitudinal cross-section is thus a circle.
  • Folded bristle bundles (not shown) and a corresponding plurality of anchor plates 3 made of synthetic material are inserted into the holes.
  • the holes are preferably designed as blind holes in the one-piece brush head.
  • the brush head 1 further comprises a hole 5 with a longitudinal axis L 1 for each bristle bundle.
  • all holes 5 are aligned in the same way with their longitudinal axis, namely perpendicular to the upper main surface of the brush head.
  • the small anchor plate 3 is used to anchor the respective bristle bundle and is fixed in the hole 5 .
  • the longitudinal axis L 1 is here exactly perpendicular to a surface 4 of the brush head.
  • the hole 5 as such does not taper or widen, i.e. a cross-section of the wall 6 is constant along the longitudinal axis L 1 of the hole 5 .
  • the wall is essentially parallel to the longitudinal axis L 1 .
  • Each hole now has two grooves 7 and 8 , which are injection molded into the wall 6 of the hole 5 , are aligned opposite each other and parallel to the longitudinal axis L 1 , and are designed to hold the anchor plate 3 .
  • the grooves extend from the entrance of the hole 5 or from the surface 4 of the brush head to a depth in the lower half of the hole 5 .
  • the alignment of the groove pair of a hole is not parallel to the row of holes, but is instead inclined at an angle of approximately 45° to the direction of the row of holes. This has the advantage that the grooves of adjacent holes are at a relatively large distance from one another.
  • FIG. 2 shows the view from FIG. 1 , with the exemplary anchor plate 3 fixed here.
  • the anchor plate is essentially rectangular. Preferably, it has no bevels on the sides. This allows the anchor plate to be welded over a large area in the constant section of the grooves.
  • the anchor plate 3 When pushed in, the anchor plate 3 is clamped between the grooves 7 and 8 , in that the corresponding dimension of the anchor plate 3 is higher by a certain amount than the distance between the bottoms of the grooves 7 and 8 , at least in the end position of the anchor plate shown here.
  • the anchor plate 3 is welded to the U-profiles of the grooves 7 and 8 , e.g. by friction welding or by ultrasonic excitation of at least one of the components involved.
  • FIG. 4 is a view of the hole 12 and FIG. 3 is a section through the hole 12 in the plane S 1 .
  • the groove has a centering section Z 1 , in which the groove base runs at an angle to the longitudinal axis L 2 .
  • the groove has a constant section K 1 , in which the groove base is parallel to the longitudinal axis L 2 .
  • the value of the depth T here ranges from the maximum T 2 at the entrance of the hole to the minimum T 1 at the end of the centering section Z 1 .
  • the depth T of the groove is a distance value in a first plane S 1 /S 2 , which runs through the longitudinal axis L 2 and perpendicularly through the two grooves.
  • the width B 1 is a distance value in a second plane, which runs perpendicular to the first plane.
  • FIGS. 3 to 6 now illustrate how the bristle bundle 2 is anchored by the anchor plate 15 in the hole 12 . Inserting the anchor plate 15 into the grooves 9 and 10 folds the bristle bundle 2 so that, after the anchoring is complete, the bristles protrude upwards out of the hole 12 , see FIGS. 5 and 6 .
  • FIG. 5 is a view of the section S 2 marked in FIG. 6 . It can also be seen how the anchor plate 15 has jammed in the groove.
  • Both parts, bristle head 14 and anchor plate 15 are made of plastic, in particular of the same material, and both parts can be welded.
  • the width B 1 in the combination section of the grooves is wider at the hole edge, in particular at least 5% (e.g. maximum 10%) than the thickness D of the anchor plate 15 . Where the combination section meets the constant section, the width of the combination section is the same as the constant section.
  • FIG. 7 is a view of the section S 3 marked in FIG. 8 .
  • This embodiment is based on the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 . Viewed in the direction of S 3 , the depth decreases successively.
  • the width B of the grooves 16 and 17 decreases successively with increasing distance from the entrance of the hole 20 at the surface 18 of the brush head 19 .
  • This additional tapering has the effect that the anchor plate (not shown here) is loaded biaxially centered symmetrically when it is pushed into the grooves when it is inserted into the constant section by friction welding.
  • the centering section Z 2 and the tapering section V are both designed in two stages, i.e. a first stage from the brush head surface 18 downwards tapers the groove at a first angle and a second stage, which follows on from the first stage, tapers the groove again, but at a second angle, which is smaller than the first angle.
  • a third phase (constant section K 2 ) up to the deposition of the grooves 16 and 17 is then parallel to the longitudinal axis L 3 , as shown, but could also be designed obliquely.
  • the tapering of the depth of the groove could also be carried out in two or more stages.

Landscapes

  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Manufacturing & Machinery (AREA)
  • Brushes (AREA)
US18/861,659 2022-05-04 2023-05-04 Toothbrush Pending US20250325094A1 (en)

Applications Claiming Priority (3)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
CH000524/2022A CH719663A1 (de) 2022-05-04 2022-05-04 Zahnbürste.
CH000524/2022 2022-05-04
PCT/EP2023/061873 WO2023213981A1 (de) 2022-05-04 2023-05-04 Zahnbürste

Publications (1)

Publication Number Publication Date
US20250325094A1 true US20250325094A1 (en) 2025-10-23

Family

ID=82849988

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
US18/861,659 Pending US20250325094A1 (en) 2022-05-04 2023-05-04 Toothbrush

Country Status (6)

Country Link
US (1) US20250325094A1 (enExample)
EP (1) EP4518720B1 (enExample)
JP (1) JP2025514458A (enExample)
CN (1) CN119212587A (enExample)
CH (1) CH719663A1 (enExample)
WO (1) WO2023213981A1 (enExample)

Families Citing this family (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
DE102024112486B3 (de) * 2024-05-03 2025-04-24 Zahoransky Ag Verfahren zur Herstellung von Borstenwaren, Borstenwarenherstellungsmaschine, Borstenware und Verwendung eines Befestigungsankers aus Kunststoff

Family Cites Families (5)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US5590438A (en) * 1991-11-21 1997-01-07 Johnson & Johnson Consumer Products, Inc. Bristled article
DE19519291A1 (de) * 1995-05-26 1996-11-28 Zahoransky Anton Gmbh & Co Bürste
JP2009125084A (ja) * 2007-11-19 2009-06-11 Kao Corp ブラシ及びその製造方法
GB2476282A (en) * 2009-12-18 2011-06-22 Dyson Technology Ltd A brush bar for a surface treating appliance
CN206896059U (zh) * 2017-06-20 2018-01-19 贝尔纳塑料制品（苏州）有限公司 一种儿童牙刷

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
CN119212587A (zh) 2024-12-27
JP2025514458A (ja) 2025-05-02
EP4518720A1 (de) 2025-03-12
EP4518720C0 (de) 2026-03-04
CH719663A1 (de) 2023-11-15
WO2023213981A1 (de) 2023-11-09
EP4518720B1 (de) 2026-03-04

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