Classifications

• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A46—BRUSHWARE
  • A46B—BRUSHES
  • A46B17/00—Accessories for brushes
  • A46B17/06—Devices for cleaning brushes after use
  • A46B17/065—Sterilising brushes; products integral with the brush for sterilising, e.g. tablets, rinse, disinfectant
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A46—BRUSHWARE
  • A46B—BRUSHES
  • A46B15/00—Other brushes; Brushes with additional arrangements
  • A46B15/0095—Brushes with a feature for storage after use
• • 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
  • A61—MEDICAL OR VETERINARY SCIENCE; HYGIENE
  • A61L—METHODS OR APPARATUS FOR STERILISING MATERIALS OR OBJECTS IN GENERAL; DISINFECTION, STERILISATION OR DEODORISATION OF AIR; CHEMICAL ASPECTS OF BANDAGES, DRESSINGS, ABSORBENT PADS OR SURGICAL ARTICLES; MATERIALS FOR BANDAGES, DRESSINGS, ABSORBENT PADS OR SURGICAL ARTICLES
  • A61L2/00—Methods or apparatus for disinfecting or sterilising materials or objects other than foodstuffs or contact lenses; Accessories therefor
  • A61L2/02—Methods or apparatus for disinfecting or sterilising materials or objects other than foodstuffs or contact lenses; Accessories therefor using physical phenomena
  • A61L2/08—Radiation
  • A61L2/10—Ultraviolet radiation
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A61—MEDICAL OR VETERINARY SCIENCE; HYGIENE
  • A61L—METHODS OR APPARATUS FOR STERILISING MATERIALS OR OBJECTS IN GENERAL; DISINFECTION, STERILISATION OR DEODORISATION OF AIR; CHEMICAL ASPECTS OF BANDAGES, DRESSINGS, ABSORBENT PADS OR SURGICAL ARTICLES; MATERIALS FOR BANDAGES, DRESSINGS, ABSORBENT PADS OR SURGICAL ARTICLES
  • A61L9/00—Disinfection, sterilisation or deodorisation of air
  • A61L9/16—Disinfection, sterilisation or deodorisation of air using physical phenomena
  • A61L9/18—Radiation
  • A61L9/20—Ultraviolet radiation
• • 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

• Toothbrushes are proven to be important for the general health and dental health of an individual. Because of the intimacy that the user shares with this particular product, the toothbrush can be a factor which promotes or extends illnesses. Because of their frequent wet nature, the portion of the brush that the user places in his/her mouth may harbor pathogens. Even a brush used exclusively by a healthy individual may have an unhealthy germ build-up over a period of time. Such germs may come from the user's own mouth and/or from the environment in which the toothbrush is kept between uses.
• Table 1 The table below lists several inventions that are typical of various sterilization means.
• Hecker US6,123,477 teaches a sterilizer that does not include a chamber.
• a second brush is used to wipe down the bristles of the toothbrush. This has the obvious shortcoming that the toothbrush is exposed to the ambient environment between sterilizations instead of being protected in a chamber.
• the efficacy seems highly dependent on user technique. It also is only focused on sterilization of the bristles as opposed to conditioning of all the surfaces that will enter the user's mouth.
• Table 4 The table below lists inventions that teach self-contained toothbrush sterilization and have the shortcomings described above.
• Some of the inventions allow for the presence of a dryer in order to drive water from the chamber (e.g. Choi US5,487,877). Even if the water is driven from the chamber, the particles contained within the water will remain behind. At best, this will lead to a buildup of particulates in the chamber requiring frequent cleanings. At worst, it may become a breeding ground for germs exposing the brush to a more adverse environment than if it had never entered the chamber. Many of the prior inventions rely on a completely closed chamber to ensure the sterilization means does not leak into the surrounding environment (e.g., Hurley US 1,364,557, Eckhardt US 6,461,568, and Barham US 6,966,441).
• our sterilization means is a
• UV-C lamp This selection has advantages over the other sterilizations means. Some of them are: no spilling of fluids (vs. liquid and spray sterilization), no leakage of dangerous substances into the atmosphere (vs. gas blanket sterilization), no hot surfaces (vs.
• UV sterilization has with respect to some of the other solutions is that it utilizes light, and light is usually associated with inherent shadows. That is, if a portion of the brush head intended for sterilization is in a shadow, the efficacy of the sterilization will be greatly reduced.
• Some of the prior art e.g. Pinsky US7,213,603 mention multiple UV lamps as a solution to get greater coverage. This, of course, directly increases manufacturing cost and would require a significant number of bulbs in order to achieve uniform coverage.
• Other prior art address this shortcoming by introducing reflective surfaces on the inside of the chamber. This also increases manufacturing costs. A typical method to create surfaces such as this is to sputter metal onto molded plastic surfaces. While effective, composite parts like this are difficult to recycle.
• Fig. 1 is for one embodiment of our device, as an example, for a view of the chamber with a toothbrush nearby.
• Fig. 2 is for one embodiment of our device, as an example, for a view of the chamber with a toothbrush in it.
• Fig. 3 is for one embodiment of our device, as an example, for a view of the chamber with a toothbrush in the process of being inserted or extracted from it.
• Fig. 4 is for one embodiment of our device, as an example, for a view of the chamber residing on a countertop with a toothbrush in it.
• Fig. 5 is for one embodiment of our device, as an example, for a view of the bottom of the chamber.
• Fig. 6 is for one embodiment of our device, as an example, for a view of the chamber with a toothbrush in it, as a partial cross section.
• Fig. 7 is for one embodiment of our device, as an example, for a view of the cross section of the chamber with a toothbrush in it.
• Fig. 8 is for one embodiment of our device, as an example, for a view of the chamber with a toothbrush in it.
• Fig. 9 is for one embodiment of our device, as an example, for a view of the chamber with a toothbrush in it.
• Fig. 10 is for one embodiment of our device, as an example, for a view of the chamber with a toothbrush in it.
• Fig. 11 is for one embodiment of our device, as an example, for a view of the toothbrush.
• Fig. 12 is for one embodiment of our system, as an example, for a view of the components of our system.
• the attached invention describes an electronic toothbrush sterilization system that is used by consumers.
• This invention introduces many new features that allow for improved cleanliness, convenience, and robustness. Toothbrush sterilization systems are known in the industry and have been available for quite some time.
• toothbrushes were manual, just comprised of a handle and bristles.
• the sterilization source has changed over the years.
• Electronic toothbrushes can be categorized into two groups depending on the motion the bristles are driven.
• One group employs vibration.
• the majority of these vibration toothbrushes today are called ultrasonic toothbrushes, since the vibration of the bristles is above 20kHz (which is the upper limit of human hearing) (Fig. 5, Appendix 1).
• the second major category of electronic toothbrushes is rotational. With these, the bristles rotate continuously or oscillate in a rotating manner about an axis (Fig. 6, Appendix 1).
• the sterilization chamber has a closed bottom with one opening where the brush head is inserted and removed.
• this chamber often has many acute internal angles within and between various parts (i.e., nooks and crannies). Bristles that are placed in this environment are wet (having just been used). This water can and does drip off the bristles and stays behind in the chamber. These pools of water, if not in direct line of sight to the UVC light source can fester and grow a community of pathogens.
• the light source in the existing sterilization chamber is either a point light source or a line light source (Fig. 9, Appendix 1). This invariably creates shadows in the bristle area, where the light is not as effective as it is not bathing the entirety of the bristles.
• the user can inadvertently touch the light source with his/her hand or with the brush head. This could add contaminants (e.g., oil or particulate matter) to the surface of the light, thereby reducing its emission and efficacy.
• contaminants e.g., oil or particulate matter
• One embodiment of the current invention incorporates an integrated charging station and sterilization chamber (Fig. 10, Appendix 1).
• This base station is either corded to AC power or runs on its own internal batteries.
• the electronic toothbrush (Fig. 27, Appendix 1) is inserted into the base station with the brush head end down (Fig. 11, Appendix 1). Once it is inserted, the brush head is removed from the environment, which keeps it cleaner and more sterile than being left in the environment between brushings. This helps to solve the issue raised in the current art, mentioned in Section (3) above.
• the toothbrush (Fig. 12, Appendix 1) has an internal charging coil near the brush head end. This creates a non-contact inductive coupling between this coil and a similar coil in the base (Fig. 13, Appendix 1).
• the base detects the presence of the toothbrush, the charging commences and the sterilization cycle begins.
• the sterilization is accomplished by means of a UVC light source within the charging station (Fig. 13, Appendix 1).
• This UVC light source could be a point or a line source similar to the current state of the art. In one embodiment, it is a light source that wraps around the brush head eliminating shadows mentioned in Section (5) above (Fig. 14, Appendix 1).
• This ring light could be a mercury vapor tube light (Fig. 15, Appendix 1).
• a single light source that is brought up to and surrounds the brush head via a light pipe.
• the interior of the sterilization chamber could be made reflective.
• Aluminum coatings have been shown to reflect UVC light very effectively. During the sterilization cycle, the UVC light turns on for a pre-determined amount of time. The amount of time could vary based on the number of brush cycles that the toothbrush has been through since the last cleaning. This addresses problem in Section (6) above.
• the brush handle can keep track of usage and this information can be communicated to the base station via means such as RFID tracking or Bluetooth communication. Once the brush is inserted in the base, the sterilization cycle commences. Since this takes no additional effort to accomplish from the user, it addresses the shortcomings of the current products referenced in Sections (1) and (2) above.
• the chamber of the preferred design is devoid of crevices that could become water traps. If water drips off the brush head, the water falls through the device through an opening in the bottom of the chamber (Fig. 13, Appendix 1). This addresses the current problem stated in Section (4) above. This water could reside on the countertop until it evaporates away.
• a hydrophilic pad that resides below the chamber (Fig. 16, Appendix 1). This pad could wick the water throughout its volume or along its surface. Because the water is spread out, it has more evaporative surface area and is lost to the environment at a significantly accelerated rate. This pad could have other functions in that it could cradle and prevent the unit from tipping over. Because the chamber is open on both ends and is lacking in crevices, it is easy to clean with a device such as a baby bottle cleaner, an attachment to the toothbrush or even a towel (Fig. 17, Appendix 1) addressing the concern of Section (7) above.
• Appendix 1 includes the following "Appendix 1-
• Fig. 10 shows the chamber from different views.
• Fig. 11 shows brush to chamber docking, the placement, and the gap.
• Fig. 12 shows RFID chip and the cross section of the brush.
• Fig. 13 shows the UV light source and inside the chamber.
• Fig. 14 shows inside the chamber with the reflective surface, like mirror, for maximum effect.
• Fig. 15 shows the UV bulb, with curvature, circle shaped.
• FIG. 16 shows the chamber pad, its shape, and its usage, as well as indicator light and/or display options on the chamber's outside surface, for warning or information for the user, e.g., for charged left on the device, and amount of brushing time or frequency, e.g., with multiple lights or diodes, or bar shaped light or indicator, or sliding scale indicator, or colored lights, or light of varying intensity proportional to the value of the indicated parameter, e.g., light intensity proportional to the charge left on the battery, or using red light as warning for low charge indication.
• Fig. 17 shows chamber cleaning brush.
• Fig. 20 shows brush to chamber activation.
• Fig. 22 shows cleaning cycle sequence, for self-cleaning.
• Fig. 23 shows charging cycle sequence.
• Fig. 24 shows the description and advantages of our chamber/ toothbrush system and their designs/ parameters/ components.
• Fig. 25 shows cleaning procedure (Function 1).
• Fig. 26 shows charging procedure (Function 2).
• Fig. 27 shows advanced sonic brush, with components, from different angles.
• Fig. 28 shows the inside chamber with details.
• Fig. 29 shows the inside chamber with UV light source ring.
• Fig. 30 shows the brush placement, in motion.
• Fig. 31 shows the light pipe inside chamber.
• Fig. 32 shows the retractable cable or wire for our system, for compact and clean setup, with optional spring to retract the wire, e.g., located at the inside bottom of the chamber, with optional hook to release the spring for retraction process.
• Fig. 25 shows cleaning procedure (Function 1).
• Fig. 26 shows charging procedure (Function 2).
• Fig. 27 shows advanced sonic brush, with components, from different angles.
• Fig. 28 shows the inside chamber with details.
• drying procedure/ sequence (Function 3), with gaps for drying process, with thermal energy or radiant energy, as options, with convection, conduction, or radiation mechanism, with increased airflow, with some air coming from the gaps around the chamber's legs or feet.
• the units or devices for thermal energy or radiant energy can be inserted into the middle of the chamber cavity, as moveable parts, or they can be stationary, on the walls or in the middle of the chamber.
• Appendix 2 pages 1-11, show different views of the chamber and toothbrush with more details and cross-sectional views.
• the multiple rings for the UV light sources are in parallel to each other.
• Bluetooth devices for short range communications, one being installed on toothbrush and/or chamber.
• the source of the UV is inside the chamber. In one embodiment, the source of the UV is outside the chamber, e.g., coming from the fiber optics or waveguides to the chamber. In one embodiment, the light gets split to multiple rays by a splitter on its way, for a better coverage of the object to be cleaned. (See, e.g., Fig. 31, Appendix 1) In one embodiment, there is a mirror or sets of mirror or reflection surface or curved reflective surface inside the chamber, focusing the light or directing the light on the toothbrush for cleaning, e.g. spherical or cylindrical or conical shape, as concave mirror or surface, e.g., using metal coating. (See, e.g., Fig. 13, Appendix 1)
• the focus area is on focal point of the mirror.
• the source can be a ring or thick ring or multiple rings or parallel rings or horizontal rings or array of rings or rings with various wavelengths in UV range (or diodes or lasers or other light sources). (See, e.g., Fig. 14, Appendix 1)
• the chamber cleaning brush with multiple brush heads, exchangeable on the device or on the toothbrush body or on a separate rod or stick, is used to clean the chamber by the user.
• Fig. 17, Appendix 1 See, e.g., Fig. 17, Appendix 1
• It can have multiple brushes on the same stick or bar or rod, with different shapes, for better cleaning.
• the chamber light, menu, or display can give choices to the user for functionalities, e.g., inputting data by user, or give information or warning to user, e.g., using color lights or diodes, to indicate the charging stages for the toothbrush, or malfunction of a component, using a warning red light.
• a warning red light See, e.g., Fig. 20, Appendix 1.
• Fig. 21, Appendix 1 shows cleaning cycle sequence.
• the selective cleaning intensity is based on the frequency of the brush insertion, e.g.: The higher the frequency, the higher the intensity.
• This intensity (I) can be linear proportional (with k as coefficient) or non-linear proportional to the frequency value (f), for different embodiments.
• I k*f
• I the intensity of the light
• f the frequency or number of brushing or length of time of brushing per unit time, e.g., per week or month or day (or average value, or running-average, or cumulative average), wherein * denotes the multiplication operation.
• the intensity can be based on: Radiant intensity, measured in watts per steradian (W/sr), or Luminous intensity, measured in lumens per steradian (lm/sr), or candela (cd), or Irradiance or Intensity, measured in Watts per meter squared (W/m2), or Radiance, measured in (W-sr-1 -m-2).
• the charging is done by direct metal contact and wiring, with backup battery or rechargeable battery. In one embodiment, the charging is done by inductive coil, remotely, with no direct or metal contact.
• the material of the chamber can be any synthetic or natural material, as in the prior art, e.g., plastic. In one embodiment, the brush and contour of the inside chamber are designed such that they do not touch or cross-contaminate. (See, e.g., Fig. 30, Appendix 1)
• Figs. 1-11 correspond to pages 1-1 1 (Figs. 1-11) of Appendix 2.
• Fig. 5 is for one embodiment of our device, as an example, for a view of the chamber.
• Figs. 1-4, 8-10 are for embodiments of our device, as examples, for views of the chamber with a toothbrush.
• Fig. 6 (or Fig. 7) is for one embodiment of our device, as an example, for a view of the chamber with a toothbrush in it, as a cross section.
• Fig. 11 is for one embodiment of our device, as an example, for a view of the toothbrush.
• Fig. 12 is for one embodiment of our system, as an example, for a view of the components of our system, comprising: menu, manual buttons, and display; RFID, Bluetooth, and antenna; user-interface, indicator lights, and warning lights; frequency of usage, history of usage, averaging module (to average values for comparisons, for baseline values, or for history or performance values, so far), and memory; motor control; UV lamp; brush dryer; mode lights; charging circuit; and external power supply.
• a dental hygiene system comprising of:
• An oral care implement with a handle at one end, a mouth care end effect at the distal end, and a shaft between the two.
• Said chamber contains a sterilization means.
• the oral care implement is electronic and battery powered.
• Said chamber includes a charging circuit to charge the batteries of said oral care implement.
• a dental hygiene system comprising of:
• An oral care implement with a handle at one end, a mouth care end effect at the distal end, and a shaft between the two.
• Said chamber contains a sterilization means.
• Said chamber does not contact said mouth care end effect, nor said shaft, when inserting, removing, or storing within said chamber.
• Said oral care implement can be inserted or removed from said chamber without additional actions taken upon said chamber or said oral care implement.
• Said chamber is open to the environment (gravitationally) below said mouth care end effect and said shaft, during
• the oral care implement is electronic and battery powered.
• Said chamber includes a charging circuit to charge the batteries of said oral care implement.
• a dental hygiene system comprising of:
• Said chamber contains a sterilization means.
• Said sterilization means is comprised of at least one lamp that emits light in the ultraviolet spectrum.
• At least one of said lamps is a singular light source, where the majority of its geometry can be described as a torus.
• DIAGRAM NQ,1 HANDLE PLACEMENT SEQUENCE O!AGRAM No.2 CLOSE UP OF HANDLE AND CHAMBER BASE OfAGRA NQ.3 CLOSE UP OF INNER CHAMB ER DETAIL
• Chamber has no hard edges or acute angles that may accumulate water residue
• Charging circuit is also the sterilizer on/off fO M ⁇ ACTION
• DIA8RAM Mo 1 HANDLE PLACEMENT SEQUENCE DIAGRAM No,2 DRYING WITH THERMAL ENERGY DIAGRAM No 3 DRYING WITH RADIANT ENERGY

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• Health & Medical Sciences (AREA)
• Epidemiology (AREA)
• Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
• Animal Behavior & Ethology (AREA)
• General Health & Medical Sciences (AREA)
• Public Health (AREA)
• Veterinary Medicine (AREA)
• Brushes (AREA)
• Apparatus For Disinfection Or Sterilisation (AREA)

Priority Applications (6)

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Publications (2)

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• 2015
  • 2015-01-25 US US14/604,729 patent/US9756932B2/en active Active
  • 2015-01-25 WO PCT/US2015/012803 patent/WO2015116506A2/en not_active Ceased
  • 2015-01-25 JP JP2016549307A patent/JP6674895B2/ja active Active
  • 2015-01-25 CN CN201580005984.5A patent/CN105960250A/zh active Pending
  • 2015-01-25 KR KR1020167021335A patent/KR102299320B1/ko active Active
  • 2015-01-25 GB GB1613363.9A patent/GB2544141B/en active Active
  • 2015-01-25 CN CN202211474571.XA patent/CN115919060B/zh active Active
  • 2015-01-25 DE DE112015000588.9T patent/DE112015000588B4/de active Active

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