GB2440593A

GB2440593A - 360ì bristle head toothbrush

Info

Publication number: GB2440593A
Application number: GB0613443A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Denise Williams; Timothy Nicholas Moor; Tim Moor
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2006-07-06
Filing date: 2006-07-06
Publication date: 2008-02-06
Also published as: GB0613443D0

Abstract

A toothbrush has bristles arranged over all the cleaning surface of a toothbrush head. The toothbrush may comprise a head and neck and a handle and the head and neck may be detachable from the handle. There may be a cavity in the neck and/or handle which may be filled with toothpaste. The toothbrush may incorporate a weight which is contained within the cavity. The brush head may be rotatable and the toothbrush may have means to vibrate the toothbrush body and/or to play music or a tune. The toothbrush may be suitable for adults, children or any animal.

Description

360 bristle head toothbrush systems This invention relates to

toothbrushes for use specifically but not exclusively with people and in particular infants, toddlers and children.

Teeth can be deaned' through a combination of processes stimulated by the use of a toothbrush and toothpastes preferably containing fluoride. Whilst the process is globally understood, typically, the user introduces the toothbrush with a measured quantity of toothpaste into the mouth, the action of the bristle head moving around the inside of the mouth including teeth, gums and tongue stimulates the saliva glands to produce saliva which mixes with the toothpaste. Once mixed, the liquid is brushed or passed around the various surfaces of the teeth and mouth and at the same time gets into all the crevasses and gaps between the teeth and gums. The motion of the bristle head additionally aids in this process of removing plaque and debris etc. Existing toothbrush designs become functional and use is only optimised when the user has been trained in the art of toothbrushing. As anyone who has tried to introduce infants and young children to the art of toothbrushing or teeth deaning knows that they typically either suck at the toothbrush or bite down via a chewing motion on the toothbrush head. Furthermore, parents trying to share in the art by holding the toothbrush handle are frequently repelled and consequently it is hard to maintain a consistently good standard of oral hygiene.

Therefore, there is a large gap or period in a person's life when the existing toothbrushes are unable maximise cleaning performance. Typically between the ages of the first primary tooth appearing through the gum and about 7 years of age.

To ad in this development stage, part of the present invention provides for a 360 bristle head which will provide all the advantages the existing toothbrushes can offer but in addition allows for a double brushing or all round brushing effect. This effect is particularly useful when trying to dean the hard to reach places such as molar teeth. We have since discovered that patent pending US2005/0177966A1 supports this and descnbes a 360 toothbrush as being a comfortable and child friendly method of brushing. Although this document has omitted to explain the materials used and how a person skilled in the art could make such a toothbrush, it does dearly describe the shape options of the neck, handle and head of the toothbrush. Because of this, it is dear there has been no consideration towards hygiene and bacterial issues. For such a design, 360 bristle head, one would need an improved form i) either by making the toothbrush or part of the toothbrush a single use or limited use item to prevent contamination and bacterial build up. In which case a clearly defined method of manufacture and assembly with material selection is cntical to make this a commercially viable option.

ii) and/or to incorporate a specific shape and/or weight in the neck and/or handle for re usable toothbrush options to prevent the bristle head from touching any solid surface outside of the mouth when resting in between use.

The invention described in US200510177966A1 does not provide for this.

According to the present invention there is provided means for a 360 bristle head and bacterial build up and contamination prevention to the bristles. Whilst it is possible and this invention does not exdude use of a toothbrush bristle head with the standard flat bristle head formation or the bnstfe head covering from 1 up to and including 360, we prefer to use 360.

The 360 bristle head comprises a collection of bristles preferably in dusters secured to the neck/head of the toothbrush in such a way that a 360 form or pattern is created. The depth or quantity of bristles going down the neck/head may vary as may the height and the resulting shape the bristles form; but we prefer whatever the shape and size of the bristle head to fit comfortably inside the mouth of the user which may also indude animals.

A specific embodiment of the invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1. shows a diagram of a 360 bristle head.

Figure 2a shows a diagram of a neck and head without bristles and 2b shows a diagram of a 360 bristle head and neck Figure 3 shows a diagram of a toothbrush handle that can be attached! dipped! connected to a neck and 360 bristle head of Figure 2.

Figure 4 shows an illustration of a complete re usable toothbrush Figure 5a illustrates the cavity of the handle demonstrating available space to house power and electronics for example and shows how the handle can be assembled and opened to replace the contents such as a battery. For this version, a button can also be positioned within the oval hoop to operate the electronics. Figure 5b illustrates the hygiene benefits of the cavity being filled with a weight and how the weight can provide a fun element with a wibble wobble' effect before resting.

Figure 6 illustrates attachment and detachment of a complete toothbrush illustrated in Figure 4 but for single use or very limited use. The mechanism is simple, just dick in or dip in via a pushing motion on the oval hoop part of the neck to attach or a pulling action on the neck and/or bristle head to unclip or detach.

Figure 7 illustrates how a neck with bristle head,Figure 2b, can come packaged in single use or limited use form. Such as travel packs or weekly or monthly packs.

According to the present invention there is provided means for a 360 bnstle head with neck that can attach to a handle. The handle provides means for a cavity and means for the neck and bristle head of the toothbrush to detach. It is preferred that the head of the toothbrush does not detach since it might become a choking hazard for the user. It is also preferred that the neck be shaped in an oval hoop to also prevent any choking issues, but other appropriately shaped necks maybe used. This shape is also comfortable to hold for young children if not attached to the handle part of the toothbrush.

Any appropriate materials maybe used to make such a toothbrush but we prefer to use a soft grade of Nylon for the bristles, Polypropylene or Polyethylene or thermoplastic type material for the neck and for the handle also a thermoplastic and/or thermoelastomer coating which provides a textured surface to hold.

Any appropriate method of manufacture maybe used but we prefer to injection mold the neck and handle parts, insert the Nylon bristles into the neck via the standard technique of the staple method otto insert the bristles into the neck mold and inject the material around the bristles either in two shot or single shot process dependant upon the cure time for the material used.

The weight which can be added, described in Figure 5b, can be any additional material providing it is heavier in the same mass than the casing material. Alternatively, the weight could be the same material as the casing of the handle or as the second shot mold material coating the casing. In this example the material would fill more of the cavity. Either way the shape of the shoulder of the handle will be wider than the bristle head preventing the bristles from touching the surface when resting.

Should a bendy or flexible neck be required, then a less rigid grade of the preferred material can be selected and used. For some versions of this invention, it might be preferred to have a soother or teether at the base of the handle in which case the mold of the handle can be shaped accordingly to allow for the thermoelastomer to coat around the base of the handle to the desired shape.

For the single use or limited use toothbrush, a handle can be provided with a multiple of toothbrush heads comprising the neck which attaches and detaches from the handle as illustrated in Figure 7 by way of example. It is not necessary to attach the neck and head of the toothbrush to the handle in order to clean the teeth. In some situations such as when travelling it may prove useful to just use the neck and bristle head of the toothbrush.

Alternatively, the toothbrush system may be assembled in its complete form as illustrated In Figure 4 prior to purchase.

Furthermore, Figure 5a describes a toothbrush which can be equipped to vibrate but if the bristle head is designed to rotate or osallate, then a shaft is required d,,vn the neck to provide means for a drive shaft connecting the power and motor to the bristle head controlled by an on/off switch probably in the form of a button.

Claims

Claims 1. A toothbrush providing a 360 bristle head
2. A toothbrush

providing a 360 bnstle head and a handle and/or neck which prevents the bristles from touching the surface where the toothbrush rests.
3. A system according to claim I and 2 which further provides a cavity in the neck and/or handle of the toothbrush
4. A toothbrush according to claim 3 in which the cavity contains a weight
5. A toothbrush according to claim 3 in which the cavity contains means to control, power and rotate the 360 bristle head and/or means to vibrate the body of the toothbrush and/or means to play music or a tune.
6. A toothbrush according to claim 3 in which the cavity can be filled by toothpaste which also contains means to dispense this toothpaste in measured quantities
7. A toothbrush according to claims I to 3 providing a 360 bristle head and neck which is for single use and/or limited use only
8. A toothbrush according to daims 3 to 7 in which the cavity is sealed when dosed.
9. A toothbrush according to daim 8 in which the base of the handle is in the form of a teether or soother.
10. A toothbrush system which provides means for a 360 bristle head with neck that can attach to a handle. The handle provides means for a cavity which can be filled and means for the neck and bristle head of the toothbrush to attach/detach.
11. A toothbrush system which provides means for between 1 (flat) up to 360 bristle head with neck that can attach to a handle. The handle provides means for a cavity which can be filled and means for the neck and bristle head of the toothbrush to attach/detach.
12. Parts of the toothbrush or when completely assembled may come in singles or multiples or combinations thereof
13. A toothbrush system according to any of the previous daims made from all or combinations of Nylon, polypropylene, polyethylene, thermopolymers and/or thermoelastomers.
14. A toothbrush system according to any of the previous claims for use with any person, child, infant, toddler etc.
15. A toothbrush system according to any of the previous claims for use with any animal