GB2172196A

GB2172196A - Improvements relating to hair-brushes

Info

Publication number: GB2172196A
Application number: GB08506248A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Bernard Berning
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1985-03-11
Filing date: 1985-03-11
Publication date: 1986-09-17
Also published as: GB2172196B; GB8506248D0; FR2578406A1; FR2578406B1

Abstract

A hair-brush comprises a rigid head 1 provided with bristles 2 and connected by an elongated resilient member 4 to a rigid first handle portion 3. Resistance of the hair to brushing encountered as the bristles 2 engage the hair causes the elongate member 4 to deflect until its deflection is limited by engaging the wall of a flared extension 8 of the handle portion 3, from which the resilient member 4 rebounds. The effective free length 7 of the resilient member 4 can be varied by adjusting means 5, 6 provided in the handle portion 3. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Improvements relating to hair-brushes This invention relates to hair-brushes.

In GB-A-1 158 936 there is disclosed a hair-brush which comprises a substantially rigid head containing bristles, a substantially rigid first handle portion for grasping in the hand and an elongated resilient second handle portion interconnecting the head and the first handle portion, the second portion being capable of resilient deflection relative to the first portion transverse to its length so that in use of the hair-brush the resistance to brushing encountered as the bristles engage the hair causes the second portion to deflect until sufficient energy is stored therein to overcome such resistance whereupon the head swings through an arc centred upon the first handle portion under the influence of energy stored in the resilient second portion.

The swinging action of the head of the above brush has in use been found highly advantageous in the styling of ladies' hair facilitating the dressing and styling of the hair, and the creation in a simple way of loose and casual hair styles of attractive, soft appearance as well as the setting of the hair in attractive waves of enhanced natural appearance. The action of the brush makes it possible for relatively inexperienced persons to obtain hair styles which previously have required the knowledge of a well trained professional.

In use for brushing of the hair, the handle is grasped in the hand and the bristles applied to the hair. As the bristles are drawn through the hair forwards or backwards against the natural lie of the hair as desired they encounter a resistance or drag and continuing movement of the handle thus causes the resilient handle portion to deflect. Because of the resilient characteristics of the portion, such deflection stores up energy therein. When the energy stored in the resilient handle portion is sufficient to overcome the resistance to motion of the bristles through the hair, the head will swing through an arc centred upon the handle sweeping the bristles through the hair rapidly until at the end of the swing the bristles release the hair which then settles softly.

Because the structure of hair differs from person to person, from fine to coarse, different amounts of resistance to deflection of the resilient second handle portion are encountered by different users. It has been found that the resilient handle portion of the above hair-brush tends to lose its resilience over a period of use and also tends to become overstretched by excessive deflection, sometimes as much as 90 , if the hair is brushed too vigorously or if resistance to brushing is encountered. A brush which regularly deflects through an angle approaching 90" renders the brush stroke useless for styling.In addition the hair-brush has been found to appeal to children as a toy, the swinging action thereof being found especially appealing, and the same result of overstretching of the resilient handle portion has been noted when children have succeeded in obtaining access to the hair-brush for use as a plaything.

The present invention concerns an improvement to the above known hair-brush wherein the brush includes a means for limiting the angle of deflection of the resilient second handle portion relative to the substantially rigid first handle portion. Such means may be consituted by a flared extension of the first handle portion which surrounds but is spaced from the resilient handle portion in the normal at rest position, and which provides a wall against which the second handle portion bears after deflection thereof through an angle predetermined by the flare angle of the extension, thereby to limit the deflection of the second handle portion and prevent overstretching thereof.

The above construction may also be reversed i.e. the flared extension may be provided on the head.

Other forms of overstretch prevention means are also possible. One such other form may comprise an extension of the head which overlaps the first handle portion with clearance and abuts against the first handle portion to act as a stop and limit deflection of the resilient second handle portion to a predetermined desired angle. This form amy also be reversed. Another form may comprise a rigid extension from the first handle portion or from the rigid head, which extension is received with clearance in a cavity in the respective other member and functions as a stop by engaging the wall of the cavity to prevent deflection of the resilient second handle portion over a predetermined limit. The extension may have a resilient tip to reduce shock, and may be located inside the resilient second handle portion.

Moreover, it has been found necessary for persons using the known hair-brush to be given initial instruction in its use if the best results are to be achieved. Because of the aforementioned difference in hair structure varying from fine to coarse, each type of hair would normally need a different degree of resilience for the elongated resilient second handle portion; that is, a resilient second handle portion deflecting or bending at a different tension.

Attempts at solving this problem hitherto have required the demonstration to each individual user of the best technique for using the brush on their own hair. The technique consists mainly of brushing coarse hair in the straightforward way, or with finer hair of giving the brush-when in engagement with the hair-a turn or twist in order to anchor the hair within the bristles. This creates more re sistance and makes the brush deflect.

It would therefore be desirable to provide a hair-brush capable of adjustment to allow a far larger range of hair structures to be brushed successfully and which would substantially eliminate the need for demonstration to each individual user.

A further feature of the present invention provides means for adjusting the amount of energy stored in the resilient second handle portion in use of the hair-brush. Such means may be constituted by an adjustable mounting for the resilient second handle portion in the rigid first handle portion whereby the free length of the second handle portion which extends between the rigid first handle portion and the head of the hair brush can be varied.

Increasing the effective length of the second handle portion in this manner increases the flexibility of the resilient portion thus affording the possibility of fine-tuning the action of the brush to different types of hair.

The invention will be further described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a perspective view of a hairbrush in accordance with this invention, partly in section, Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view taken on the line ll-ll in Figure 1, Figure 3 is a diagrammatic partly cross-sectional side elevation of a portion of a further embodiment of hair-brush in accordance with the present invention, Figure 4 is a diagrammatic partly cross-sectional side elevation of a portion of a still further embodiment of a hair-brush in accordance with the present invention, and Figure 5 is a view similar to Figure 4 but showing the second portion deflected.

The hair-brush illustrated in Figures 1 and 2 of the drawings comprises a head 1 consisting of rigid one-piece base in which bristles 2 are mounted in any desired manner. The bristles 2 may be mounted directly in the base or may be secured in a resilient pad which is itself mounted on the base, all as is well known in the art. This invention does not limit the arrangement of the head 1 to any one particular form. For example, the bristles 2 may be natural bristles or synthetic plastic bristles as are nowadays commonly employed in styling brushes for ladies' hair.

A rigid handle 3, separate from the head 1, is provided and may be shaped as will be found convenient to enable it to be grasped comfortably in the hand. An elongated resilient member 4 fixedly connects the handle 3 with the head 1, being suitably secured to the head and the handle.

The elongated resilient member 4 is constituted by a steel spring of open coil formation.

For appearance sake, and to avoid trapping the hair between the coils of the spring as the member 4 deflects, the spring is enclosed within a flexible plastics sleeve 5. Alternatively the handle 3 and head 1 may be connected by a soft rubber or plastics bellows (not shown) which serves the same purpose of enclosing the member 4.

The elongated resilient member may alternatively take any of the other forms shown in GBA-1 158 936.

The rigid handle 3 is hollow, and the resilient member 4 is connected therein by means of adjustable mounting consisting of a nut 5 longitudinally movable but non-rotatable within the handle 3, and to which nut the resilient member 4 is permanently rigidly secured. The nut 5 is mounted on a screw 6 captive within the handle 3, whereby upon rotation of the screw 6 in the appropriate direction the nut 5 is caused to move longitudinally up or down within the handle 3, thus increasing or decreasing the effective or free length 7 of the resilient member between the distal end 8 of the handle 3 and the head 1 of the hair-brush.

The distal end 8 of the handle 3 is flared outwardly into a bell shape surrounding the resilient member 4 so that the wall of the handle 3 within the flared end acts as a stop limiting the angular deflection of the resilient member 4 in all directions transverse to its length. The flare of the distal end of the handle 3 may follow any desired curve, for example conical, parabolic or hyperbolic, etc.

The flared end 8 of the handle 3 also acts as an accelerator, allowing a relatively soft-set resilient member 4 to bounce back on coarse hair. When the effective length 7 of the resilient member 4- is increased, the head 1 is enabled to deflect over a greater arc and so needs less energy. Suitable adjustment of the resilient member 4 prevents overstretching of the resilient member when the brush is used on coarser hair.

Of course, the screw and nut adjusting means disclosed may be replaced by any other equivalent mechanism. Furthermore the flared extension 8 may be provided on the head 1 rather than on the rigid handle 3; this alternative embodiment is not shown. In addition, the flared extension 8 need not be integral with either the head 1 or the handle 3 but can be a separate member attached thereto. Such a separate extension 8 may for example be of moulded plastics or rubber, or of basketware or wire construction.

An alternative embodiment of hair-brush showing a different form of the overstretch prevention means is shown in Figure 3. The entire hair-brush is not illustrated, only sufficient thereof to indicate the features whereby this embodiment differs from that already described in connection with Figures 1 and 2.

As shown in Figure 3, the head 31 is extended rearwardly to overlap the handle 33 with clearance. The elongated resilient member 34 in this embodiment is shortened and is substantially concealed from view and masked by the rearward extension 38 of the head 31.

The extended portion 38 of the head 31 acts as a stop to limit deflection of the resilient member 34 to a predetermined desired angle by abutting against the rigid handle 33 upon deflection of the head 31 relative to the handle 33 by a predetermined amount. This embodiment may also be formed in reverse, i.e. the extension 38 may be provided on the handle 33 instead of on the head 31.

A still further embodiment is shown in Figures 4 and 5. This embodiment of hair-brush has a substantially smooth external appearance obtained by giving the rigid handle 43, the resilient handle portion 44 and the head 41 a matching transverse configuration. The handle 43 has a forwardly directed rigid extension 48 which extends within the resilient portion 43 into a cavity 50 within the head 41. The extension 48 functions as a stop by engaging the wall of the head 41 within the cavity 50 upon deflection of the resilient handle portion 44 through a predetermined angle, see Figure 5. Deflection of the resilient handle portion 44 over a predetermined limit is thereby prevented. The extension 48 may have a resilient tip 49 by which the extension engages the wall of the cavity 50 in order to cushion the contact and reduce shock.

In the embodiments described above, the second handle portion is capable of resilient deflection relative to the first handle portion in all directions transverse to its length. This, however, is not always necessary. The resilient portion can be such that it deflects in one or two selected directions only. The overstretch prevention and deflection limiting means can be correspondingly adapted.

Claims

1. A hair-brush comprising a substantially rigid head containing bristles, a substantially rigid first handle portion for grasping in the hand and an elongated resilient second handle portion interconnecting the head and the first handle portion, the second portion being capable of resilient deflection relative to the first portion transverse to its length so that in use of the hair-brush the resistance to brushing encountered as the bristles engage the hair causes the second portion to deflect until sufficient energy is stored therein to overcome such resistance whereupon the head swings through arc centred upon the first handle portion under the influence of energy stored in the resilient second portion, characterised by means for limiting the angle of deflection of the resilient second handle portion relative to the substantially rigid first handle portion.

2. A hair-brush according to Claim 1, wherein the limiting means comprises a flared extension of the first handle portion which surrounds but is spaced from the resilient handle portion in the normal at rest position, and which provides a wall against which the second handle portion bears after deflection thereof through an angle predetermined by the flare angle of the extension, thereby to limit the deflection of the second handle portion and prevent overstretching thereof.

3. A hair-brush according to Claim 1, wherein the limiting means comprises a flared extension of the substantially rigid head which surrounds but is spaced from the resilient handle portion in the normal at rest position, and which provides a wall against which the second handle portion bears after deflection thereof through an angle predetermined by the flare angle of the extension, thereby to limit the deflection of the second handle portion and prevent overstretching thereof.

4. A hair-brush according to Claim 2 or Claim 3, wherein the flared extension is integral with the first handle portion or the head respectively.

5. A hair-brush according to Claim 2 or Claim 3, wherein the flared extension is a separate member.

6. A hair-brush according to Claim 1, wherein the limiting means comprises an extension of the head which overlaps the first handle portion with clearance and abuts against the first handle portion after deflection of the second handle portion through a predetermined desired angle thereby to act as a stop and limit deflection of the second handle portion to said predetermined desired angle.

7. A hair-brush according to Claim 1, wherein the limiting means comprises an extension of the first handle portion which overlaps the head with clearance and abuts against the head after deflection of the resilient second handle portion through a predetermined angle thereby to act as a stop and limit deflection of the second handle portion to said predetermined angle.

8. A hair-brush according to Claim 1, wherein the limiting means comprises a rigid extension from the first handle portion or from the rigid head, which extension is received with clearance in a cavity in the respective other member and functions as a stop by engaging the wall of the cavity to prevent deflection of the resilient second handle portion over a predetermined limit.

9. A hair-brush according to Claim 8, wherein the extension has a resilient tip to reduce shock upon engaging the wall of said cavity.

10. A hair-brush according to any one of the preceding claims, including means for adjusting the amount of energy stored in the resilient second handle portion in use of the hair-brush.

11. A hair-brush according to Claim 10, wherein the adjusting means comprises an adjustable mounting for the resilient second handle portion in the rigid first handle portion whereby the free length of the second handle portion which extends between the rigid first handle portion and the head of the hair brush can be varied.

12. A hair-brush according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein a flexible bellows is provided connected between the sub stantially rigid head and the first handle portion for enclosing the resilient second handle portion.

13. A hair-brush according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein said resilient second handle portion is capable of resilient deflection relative to the first portion transverse to its length in one or two selected directions only.

14. A hair-brush substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.