WO2016039710A1

WO2016039710A1 - A toothbrush head for electric toothbrushes

Info

Publication number: WO2016039710A1
Application number: PCT/TR2015/050096
Authority: WO
Inventors: Ali KIREÇCI
Original assignee: Kireçci Ali
Priority date: 2014-09-09
Filing date: 2015-09-08
Publication date: 2016-03-17

Abstract

The invention is a toothbrush head (3) for electric toothbrushes (1). In the major embodiment, it comprises a neck (4) to be connected to a stem (2) part of an electric toothbrush (1), a cleaning component housing (9) found on the neck (4) at the distal end to the stem (2), and a cleaning component (5) mounted to said cleaning component housing (9). When the cleaning component (5) is started, it makes a continuous rotating (360°, complete circle) motion about an axis that is parallel to the stem (2) axis, in order to brush the teeth starting from the gum towards the crown of the teeth

Description

DESCRIPTION

A TOOTHBRUSH HEAD FOR ELECTRIC TOOTHBRUSHES

The Related Art

The invention relates to an electric toothbrush head developed for brushing teeth with a motion from above the gum towards the teeth and making a rotational motion in an axis in parallel to the brush axis.

State of the Art

In the recommended brushing action, the toothbrush starts its movement from the gum and moves towards the crown of the tooth in a straight manner and after this point, the contact of the toothbrush and the tooth ends. Afterwards, the toothbrush repeats the same motion, again starting from the gum.

In the known status of the art, the cleaning components of some of the known electric toothbrushes or electric toothbrush heads make a rotational motion in an axis that is perpendicular to the stem axis of the toothbrush. This causes an irregular rubbing between the toothbrush and the tooth surface. Such a brushing motion might cause small food particles enter between the tooth and the gum and also abrasion of the tooth.

In another kind of known electric toothbrush, the cleaning component performs the cleaning operation on the teeth by means of an oscillating (vibrating) motion. During oscillation, the cleaning component starts its movement from the gum and moves towards the crown of the tooth; however, the recommended brushing motion can not be performed, since it then moves back from the crown of the tooth to the gum. As an example to the known status of the art, European Patent No. EP 1 499 259 Bl can be given. Said patent relates to an electric toothbrush, wherein said toothbrush head structure comprises a rotating or oscillating brush holder and brush hair, and additionally, a second, movable brush holder and brush hair attached to the brush head. The rotation and oscillation axes of said brushes are substantially perpendicular to the toothbrush axis.

As another example, the European Patent Application No. EP 2 295 006 A2, relates to a toothbrush structure, wherein two separate rotatable components are found on the toothbrush head. The rotatable components perpendicular to the brush axis are cylindrical brushes and one of them rotates in clockwise direction, while the other one rotates in counterclockwise direction .

In the American Patent No. US 5 088 145, a toothbrush head is disclosed, which comprises cleaning tufts (hair) mounted on the cleaning head for continuous rotation about its central axis in a single direction. The rotation axis of the cleaning tufts disclosed in this document is perpendicular to the brush axis .

Another example for the known status of the art is the brush disclosed in the international application No. WO 01/43586 Al, which makes an oscillating motion about an axis that is parallel to the stem axis. In its main embodiment, it comprises two elongated reciprocal brush sections and the brush parts make a rotational oscillating motion either towards each other or in opposite direction to each other. The radius of action of the brushes is less than 360° and even less than 180°. Although the brush hair moves the small food particles from the gum towards the crown of the tooth during upwards oscillation; it has the same drawback with the other electric toothbrushes, since it would also move the food particles back to the bottom of the tooth during downwards oscillation.

Technical Problems Aimed to be Solved with the Invention

The operation of brushing teeth in the recommended direction can not be achieved with the brushes according to the above given prior art documents. With the present invention, it is aimed to provide an attachable and detachable toothbrush head for electric toothbrushes having motor within their stem part, which would provide friction from the gum surface towards the crown of the teeth via its improved mobility. The toothbrush head developed for achieving the purpose of the present invention is shown in the below given figures.

Detailed Description of the Invention

The invention relates to a toothbrush head (3) for electric toothbrushes (1) . The structure of the toothbrush head (3) according to the present invention basically comprises a neck (4), a cleaning component housing (9) and a cleaning component (5) .

Toothbrush head (3) has a stem (2), wherein this stem (2) part can be attached to the electric toothbrush (1) comprising a motor. In the preferred embodiments of the invention, the attachable toothbrush head (3) can also be detached.

The cleaning component housing (9) is found at the distal end of the neck (4) with regard to the stem (2) and comprises the cleaning component (5) . The cleaning component (5) connected to the neck (4) makes rotational motion with the drive given by the motor found within the electric toothbrush (1) structure. The rotating axis of the cleaning component (5) is in parallel with the stem (2) axis of the electric toothbrush (1) .

The cleaning component (5) is mounted to the cleaning component housing (9) . A direction button (6) is found, which enables turning of the cleaning component (5) right and left or stopping thereof via the electric motor found within the stem (2) . While the direction button (6) is preferably found on the toothbrush head (3); for the electric toothbrushes (1) which comprise a direction button (6) on their own stem (2), toothbrush heads (3) that do not comprise a direction button (6) would be used. When the toothbrush head (3) is taken into the mouth, it can brush the teeth continuously in the same direction starting from the gum towards the crown of the teeth by means of the cleaning component (5) that rotates in an axis in parallel to the stem (2) axis.

In order to perform the recommended brushing operation, the movement direction of the cleaning component (5) is determined according to the position of the tooth surface to be cleaned, using the options found on the direction button (6) . Options are present on the direction button (6) for cleaning of the tooth side surfaces in the recommended manner. When the electric toothbrush (1) is moved by the user back and forth on the side surfaces of the teeth, in the direction of the arrangement of the teeth, the cleaning component (5) brushes the teeth continuously from the gum towards the crown of the teeth. The zero-position found on the direction button (6) is used to stop the motor. In the preferred embodiments of the invention, the cleaning component (5) is cylindrical. During use, the user determines the rotation direction via the direction button (6) in order to enable the cylindrical cleaning component (5) perform cleaning in a direction starting from the gum towards the crown of the teeth, depending on the position of the teeth to be cleaned with regard to the toothbrush head (3) (such as lower right chin outer surface or lower right chin inner surface etc . ) .

The cleaning component (5) structure comprises a hair holder component (11) . In other words, the cleaning component (5) consists of a bundle of hair and/or plastic fiber (7) placed perpendicularly and/or angularly onto the surface of the hair holder component (11) . In the preferred embodiment, the hair holder component (11) is made of plastic. Moreover, its section can be circular, oval, or polygonal.

In another embodiment of the invention, the cleaning component (5) comprises both the hair and/or plastic fiber bundle (7) placed perpendicularly or angularly onto the hair holder component (11) surface and rubber and/or plastic bundles (8), which are thicker than the former bundles. In another embodiment, the cleaning component (5) consists of hair and/or plastic fiber bundles (7) placed perpendicularly or angularly to the hair holder component (11) surface, rubber and/or plastic material bundles (8) thicker than these first bundles, but having a similar structure to them, and at least one rubber and/or plastic disc (10) placed between said hair and/or plastic fiber bundles (7) .

The last one or few hair and/or plastic fiber bundles (7) placed at both ends of the cleaning component (5) in a circular form are gradually shorter than the others in order to prevent formation of sharp corners.

One end of the neck (4) part of the toothbrush head (3) comprises a cleaning component housing (9) used for placing the cleaning component (5) in parallel to the stem (2) axis and preventing the contact of the cleaning component (5) with the mouth surfaces other than the teeth and gum; and its other end has a structure suitable for being mounted to the stem (2) part of a toothbrush. Preferably, it comprises a mounting component .

As a result, the invention, details of which are given above, is a toothbrush head (3) for electric toothbrushes (1), and it comprises a neck (4) connected to the stem (2) part of the electric toothbrush (1), and a cleaning component housing (9) found at the distal end of the neck (4) with regard to the stem (2), and at least one cleaning component (5) positioned in said cleaning component housing (9), and when started, making continuous rotating motion (360°, complete circle) about an axis that is parallel to the stem (2) axis for brushing the teeth starting from the gum towards the crown of the teeth. The cleaning component (5) can be rotated to the right side or to the left side. The direction button (6) enables changing the direction of the cleaning component (5) or stopping its operation. The hair and/or plastic fiber bundles (7) are arranged radially outwards from the hair holder component (11) . Therefore, a brush having a cylindrical structure rotating about a central axis is obtained. The central axis of this cylindrical brush is parallel to the neck (4) axis or the stem axis (2) . In other words, the cylindrical cleaning component (5) rotates about the central axis and this central axis is parallel to the stem (2) axis. The rubber and/or plastic material bundles (8) are also arranged radially outwards from the hair holder component (11) . The rubber and/or plastic disc (10) is perpendicular or close to perpendicular to the hair holder component (11) axis. The toothbrush head (3) according to the invention has a structure that can be attached to and detached from an electric toothbrush (1) comprising a stem (2) and a motor that provides the rotating motion. An electric toothbrush (1) that comprises a toothbrush head (3) as disclosed herein is also considered to be within the scope of the present invention. The electric toothbrush (1) comprises a motor that provides a complete- circle (360°) rotating motion in opposite directions.

The present invention provides a toothbrush head (3), enabling tooth brushing operation in the recommended direction with the above described embodiments in accordance with the principles of the invention, providing friction from the gum surface towards the crown of the tooth via its higher mobility, and attachable to and detachable from electric toothbrushes (1) comprising a motor in their stem (2) parts.

Description of the Figures

Figure 1: is the side view of the electric toothbrush and the toothbrush head.

Figure 2: is the top view of the electric toothbrush and the toothbrush head.

Figure 3: is the perspective view of the electric toothbrush and the toothbrush head.

Figure 4: is the side view of the toothbrush head.

Figure 5: is the top view of the toothbrush head.

Figure 6: is the perspective view of the toothbrush head.

Figure 7: is the side view of the toothbrush head neck part. Figure 8: is the perspective view of the toothbrush head neck part . Figure 9: is the side view of the toothbrush head cleaning component .

Figure 10: is the perspective view of the toothbrush head cleaning component.

Re erences

The reference numbers provided for the components found in the figures are as follows:

1 : Electric toothbrush

2 : Stem

3 : Toothbrush head

4 : Neck

5: Cleaning component

6: Direction button

7 : Hair and/or plastic fiber bundle

8 : Rubber and/or plastic material bundle

9: Cleaning component housing

10 : Rubber and/or plastic disc

11 : Hair holder/holder component

Claims

A toothbrush head (3) for electric toothbrushes (1) comprising a stem (2) part and a motor, characterized in that; it comprises:

- a neck (4) connected to the stem (2) part of the electric toothbrush (1), and a cleaning component housing (9) found at the distal end of the neck (4),

- at least one cleaning component (5) positioned in said cleaning component housing (9), and when started, making continuous rotating motion (360°, complete circle) about an axis that is parallel to the stem (2) axis for brushing the teeth starting from the gum towards the crown of the teeth.

The toothbrush head (3) according to Claim 1, characterized in that; it comprises

- a direction button (6) coupled to the neck part (4), which is used for starting the rotating motion of the cleaning component (5), changing the rotating direction of the cleaning component (5) depending on the position of the teeth to be cleaned (such as lower right chin outer surface or lower right chin inner surface etc.), or stopping the rotating motion.

The toothbrush head (3) according to Claims 1 or 2, and it is characterized in that; the cleaning component (5) has a cylindrical structure.

The toothbrush head (3) according to any one of Claims 1 to 3, and it is characterized in that; the cleaning component (5) comprises hair holder component (11) .

5. The toothbrush head (3) according to Claim 4, characterized in that; the hair holder component (11) of the cleaning component (5) is made of plastic material.

6 . The toothbrush head (3) according to any one of Claims 4 or 5, and it is characterized in that; the hair holder component (11) of the cleaning component (5) is cylindrical.

7. The toothbrush head (3) according to any one of Claims 4 to 6, and it is characterized in that; the hair holder component (11) of the cleaning component (5) has a circular, an oval, or a polygonal section.

8. The toothbrush head (3) according to any one of Claims 4 to 7, and it is characterized in that; the hair holder component (11) of the cleaning component (5) comprises hair and/or plastic fiber bundles (7) placed perpendicularly or angularly to its surface.

9. The toothbrush head (3) according to Claim 8, characterized in that; the hair and/or plastic fiber bundles (7) are arranged radially outwards from the hair holder component (11) .

10. The toothbrush head (3) according to any one of Claims 8 or 9, and it is characterized in that; the hair holder component (11) of the cleaning component (5) comprises rubber and/or plastic material bundles (8) that are thicker than the hair and/or plastic fiber bundles (7) placed perpendicularly or angularly to its surface, but have similar structure.

11. The toothbrush head (3) according to Claim 10, characterized in that; the rubber and/or plastic material bundles (8) are arranged radially outwards from the hair holder component (11) .

12. The toothbrush head (3) according to any one of Claims 8 to 11, and it is characterized in that; the last one or few hair and/or plastic fiber bundles (7) placed at both ends of the hair holder component (11) in a circular form are gradually shorter than the others in order to prevent formation of sharp corners.

13. The toothbrush head (3) according to any one of Claims 4 to 12, and it is characterized in that; the hair holder component (11) comprises a rubber and/or plastic disc (10) .

14. The toothbrush head (3) according to any one of Claims 4 to 13, and it is characterized in that; the rubber and/or plastic disc (10) is perpendicular or close to perpendicular with regard to the hair holder component (11) axis.

15. The toothbrush head (3) according to any one of Claims 1 to 14, and it is characterized in that; the neck (4) comprises at its distal end, a cleaning component housing (9) used for placing the cleaning component (5) in parallel to the electric toothbrush (1) stem (2) axis and preventing its contact with the mouth surfaces other than the teeth and gum; and at its other end, a mounting component to the stem

(2) part of the electric toothbrush (1) .

16. An electric toothbrush (1) comprising a toothbrush head

(3) according to any one of the above given claims. An electric toothbrush according to Claim 16, characterized in that; it comprises a motor providing complete-circle (360°) rotating motion in opposite directions and a direction button (6) enabling shutting down or changing the direction of rotation of this motor.