WO2008004775A1

WO2008004775A1 - The tool for nail, toenail and hardened skins cleaning and its manufacturing method

Info

Publication number: WO2008004775A1
Application number: PCT/KR2007/003030
Authority: WO
Inventors: Jae Young Kim
Original assignee: Jae Young Kim
Priority date: 2006-07-21
Filing date: 2007-06-22
Publication date: 2008-01-10
Also published as: JP2009505717A; JP4290758B2

Abstract

Provided is a tool for cleaning fingernails, toenails, and hardened skins. The tool includes a recessed portion formed on a metal or nonmetal plate type board in a continuous pattern, and a flat portion formed around the recessed portion, wherein the recessed portion and the flat portion have concave-convex patterns alternately arranged in length and width directions of the board. A cut blade is defined by a boundary between the recessed portion and the flat portion. Accordingly, the tool has an excellent cutting performance and a separate fine grinding is unnecessary. Further, the tool can be reused by its cleaning.

Description

TOOL FOR CLEANING NAILS, TOENAILS, AND HARDENED SKINS, AND METHOD OF MANUFACTURING THE SAME

Technical Field

[1] The present invention relates to a beauty instrument, and more particularly, to a tool for cleaning fingernails, toenails, and hardened skins on heels, and a manufacturing method thereof. Background Art

[2] Among beauty instruments that can be frequently seen in the surrounding, a fingernail/toenail tool called a nail file is used to grind surfaces or edges of fingernails and toenails and polish fingernails and toenails. The fingernail/toenail tool may be classified into a concave type fingernail/toenail tool and a bar type fingernail/toenail tool depending on its shape or structure. The bar type fingernail/toenail tool is widely used.

[3] Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a conventional bar type fingernail/toenail tool.

[4] Referring to Fig. 1, the bar type fingernail/toenail tool 10 includes cushion members, such as sponges, attached to front and rear surfaces of a base 80. Further, a grinding surface 20 having different grain sizes is formed on the outer surfaces of the cushion members.

[5] In cleaning surfaces and edges of the fingernail and the toenail using the fingernail/ toenail tool 10, users grind them while changing the position of the grinding surface 20 from a portion having a large grinding grain size to a portion having a small grinding particle size.

Disclosure of Invention Technical Problem

[6] In the conventional fingernail/toenail tool 10, the grinding surface has simply rough irregular patterns. When the grinding is performed through the grind surface 20, the target, i.e., the fingernail or toenail, is not uniformly grinded. Therefore, unskilled persons have difficulty in prettily trimming fingernails and toenails using the fingernail/toenail tool 10.

[7] Further, since the grinding surface has the rough irregular patterns, fine particles remain between the patterns even though the fingernail/toenail tool 10 is cleaned for reuse. Therefore, the fingernail/toenail tool 10 is not hygienic. Since water is permeated into the sponge-like cushion member, it takes much time to dry the cushion member. For this reason, most beauty salons or nail art shops use cheap fingernail/ toenail tools made of plastic, sponge or metal. Such fingernail/toenail tools are mostly discarded after one-time use. Therefore, it is very uneconomic in view of resource saving.

[8] Furthermore, various kinds of fingernail/toenail tools having different grain sizes must be provided for obtaining a polishing effect through fine grinding after the fingernail and toenail are grinded using the conventional fingernail/toenail tool. Moreover, multi-step grinding must be performed using a separate polishing tool called a nail buffer. Therefore, the operation is so slow that the operation efficiency is significantly reduced.

[9] An advantage of the present invention is that it provides a tool for cleaning fingernails, toenails, and hardened skins, which can grind fingernails or toenails more evenly because of its excellent grinding performance and can be used several times because it is easily washed and sterilized, and a method for manufacturing the same.

[10] Another advantage of the present invention is that it provides a tool for cleaning fingernails, toenails, and hardened skins, which does not need to perform a plurality of grinding operations until a polishing operation is performed after grinding the fingernails and the toenails because of its excellent cutting/grinding performance, and a method for manufacturing the same. Technical Solution

[11] According to an aspect of the invention, a tool for cleaning fingernails, toenails, and hardened skins includes: a recessed portion formed on a metal or nonmetal plate type board in a continuous pattern; and a flat portion formed around the recessed portion, wherein the recessed portion and the flat portion are alternately arranged in length and width directions of the board so as to form concave-convex patterns, a cut blade being defined by a boundary between the recessed portion and the flat portion.

[12] According to another aspect of the present invention, a tool for cleaning fingernails, toenails, and hardened skins includes: a perforated portion formed by perforating a hole in a metal or nonmetal plate type board in a continuous pattern; and a flat portion formed around the perforated portion, wherein the perforated portion and the flat portion have patterns alternately arranged in length and width directions of the board, a cut blade being defined by a boundary between the perforated portion and the flat portion.

[13] According to a further aspect of the present invention, a method of manufacturing a tool for cleaning fingernails, toenails, and hardened skins includes: coating the surface of the plate type board with chromium; coating the chromium-coated surface of the plate type board with a photosensitive film; adhering a film having a predetermined pattern to the photosensitive-film-coated surface of the plate type board; exposing a necessary portion of the plate type board by irradiating light onto the board to which the film is attached; eroding an unexposed portion to form a concave-convex pattern, whereby a cutting blade is formed along a boundary between a recessed portion and a flat portion; finely grinding the recessed portion and the flat portion; performing a chemical thermal process for reinforcing the strength and hardening of the grinded board; and forming the thermally processed board in a predetermined shape.

Advantageous Effects

[14] According to the present invention, a lot of fine cutting blades are formed on a metal or nonmetal board by a recessing process of a recessed portion. Compared with the conventional tool, the tool of the present invention has an excellent grinding performance, which makes it possible to expect that fingernails and toenails are more evenly grinded.

[15] Further, because the cutting blades are regularly arranged, the tool can be easily cleaned compared with the conventional tool having irregular concave-convex patterns. That is, the tool can be immediately reused by cleaning it with water or alcohol. Because the tool can be used several times, it is very advantageous in view of cost reduction and resource saving.

[16] Furthermore, because the cutting blades are arranged on the board in a continuous pattern, the tool has an excellent cutting performance when trimming the surface of the target workpiece. After the grinding, the processed surface is very smooth. Therefore, a separate fine grinding procedure is unnecessary. Consequently, the number of work processes is significantly reduced compared with the conventional tool.

[17] Moreover, the tool can properly cut or shape the workpiece depending on its shape and material of the workpiece. Therefore, there is no limitation in usage environment. That is, the tool can be commonly used. Brief Description of the Drawings

[18] These and/or other aspects and advantages of the present general inventive concept will become apparent and more readily appreciated from the following description of the embodiments, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings of which:

[19] Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a conventional bar type tool for cleaning fingernails, toenails, and hardened skins;

[20] Fig. 2 is a perspective view of a tool for cleaning fingernails, toenails, and hardened skins according to a first embodiment of the present invention;

[21] Fig. 3 is a plan view of the tool illustrated in Fig. 2;

[22] Fig. 4 is cross-sectional view of the tool illustrated in Fig. 2;

[23] Fig. 5 is a diagram showing a state where the tool according to the first embodiment of the present invention is used;

[24] Fig. 6 is a perspective view of a tool for cleaning fingernails, toenails, hardened skins according to a second embodiment of the present invention;

[25] Figs. 7 and 8 are cross-sectional views of the tool illustrated in Fig. 6; and

[26] Fig. 9 is a flowchart illustrating a method for manufacturing the tool for cleaning fingernails, toenails, and hardened skins according to an embodiment of the present invention. Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[27] Reference will now be made in detail to the embodiments of the present general inventive concept, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein like reference numerals refer to the like elements throughout. The embodiments are described below in order to explain the present general inventive concept by referring to the figures. In the drawings, the thicknesses of layers and regions are exaggerated for clarity.

[28] Embodiment 1

[29] Fig. 2 is a perspective view of a tool for cleaning fingernails, toenails, and hardened skins according to a first embodiment of the present invention, Fig. 3 is a plan view of the tool illustrated in Fig. 2, Fig. 4 is cross-sectional view of the tool illustrated in Fig. 2, and Fig. 5 is a diagram showing a state where the tool according to the first embodiment of the present invention is used.

[30] As illustrated in Figs. 2 to 5, the tool for cleaning fingernails, toenails, and hardened skins includes a recessed portion 4 formed on a board 1 in a predetermined continuous pattern. A cutting blade 6 is formed along a boundary between the recessed portion 4 and an adjacent flat portion 5. The fine cutting blade 6 is repetitively arranged on the board 1 in a continuous pattern. The structure of the tool will be described below in more detail.

[31] Referring to Figs. 2 to 4, the tool according to the invention includes the metal or nonmetal plane board 1, the recessed portion 4 formed on the board 1 in a continuous pattern having a predetermined shape, and the flat portion 5 formed around the recessed portion 4. The recessed portion 4 and the flat portion 5 have concave-convex patterns alternately arranged in length and width directions of the board 1. The cutting blade 6 is formed by the recessed portion 4 and the flat portion 5.

[32] More specifically, the cutting blade 6 is formed along the boundary between the recessed portion 4 and the flat portion 5, that is, along the edge between a vertical surface (or an inclined surface) of the recessed portion 4 and a horizontal surface of the flat portion 5. The cutting blade 6 may be formed by processing the surface of the board 1 to have a circular or polygonal (triangular or more) groove and a continuous concave-convex pattern around the groove. That is, the surface of the board 1 may be processed to have the continuous concave-convex pattern such that the cutting blade 6 may be formed with two layers having a different height.

[33] For example, in case where the cutting blade 6 has a rectangular concave-convex pattern as illustrated in Figs. 2 to 4, the grooves are formed on the surface of the board 1 such that the recessed portion 4 and the flat portion 5 are alternately repeated in the length and width directions of the board 1. In this way, the cutting blade 6 is formed align the boundary between the recessed portion 4 and the flat portion 6.

[34] In case where the cutting blade 6 is repetitively arranged on the surface of the board 1 in the continuous pattern, when the tool is pushed in a front, rear, left or right direction in such a state that it is closely contacted with an uneven surface or protrusion 100 on the fingernail or toenail illustrated in Fig. 5, the cutting blade 6 cuts and grinds the scratch or protrusion 100 of the fingernail or toenail.

[35] A grinded amount of the fingernail and toenail may be determined by various factors, e.g., the gap (or width) and depth of the unit recessed portion (or flat portion), which forms the continuous concacve-convex pattern, and the angle of the cutting blade 6. As the gap (or width) and depth of the unit recessed portion (or flat portion) is large, the grinded amount and the grinding area increase. As the gap (or width) and depth of the unit recessed portion is small, it is advantageous for fine processing. The grinding result is different depending on the angle of the cutting blade 6.

[36] It is preferable that the width dl of the recessed portion 4 or the gap between the recessed portion 4 and another adjacent recessed portion is set in the range from 0.001 mm to 1 mm, in order to clean and polish the fingernail and the toenail. When the width dl of the recessed portion 4 or the gap between the recessed portion 4 and another adjacent recessed portion is less than 0.001 mm, the cutting blades 6 are arranged too narrowly on the board 1 and thus the cutting or grinding cannot be performed. When the width dl of the recessed portion 4 or the gap between the recessed portion 4 and another adjacent recessed portion exceeds 1 mm, the cut amount with respect to the curved workpiece increases, causing scratches on the surfaces of the fingernail and toenail.

[37] Further, it is preferable that the width dl of the recessed portion 4 or the gap between the recessed portion 4 and another adjacent recessed portion is set in the range from 0.05 mm to 4 mm in order to clean the hardened skins. When the width dl of the recessed portion 4 or the gap between the recessed portion 4 and another adjacent recessed portion is less than 0.05 mm, the cutting blades 6 are arranged too narrowly on the board 1 and thus the cutting is difficult to perform. When the width dl of the recessed portion 4 or the gap between the recessed portion 4 and another adjacent recessed portion exceeds 4 mm, users may be abraded due to carelessness during handling the tool having the cutting blades 6.

[38] Furthermore, it is preferable that the height hi of the recessed portion 4 is set in the range of at least 0.01 mm or more. When the height hi of the recessed portion 4 is less than 0.01 mm, the cutting efficiency in cutting or grinding the target workpiece is reduced, and the cleaning must be frequently performed for removing particles accumulated within the recessed portion during the grinding.

[39] Although not shown, it is preferable that the sizes and gaps of the recessed portions

(or the flat portions) formed on the board 1 are different for each region on one board. In this case, various kinds of the cutting blades having various sizes and gaps can be formed on the single board. If various kinds of the cutting blades are formed on the single board, the operation from the cutting to the fine grinding can be performed through the single grinding tool. Therefore, various kinds of tools having various sizes of particle sizes do not need to be provided for grinding the fingernail and toenail. Consequently, the work efficiency can be improved and the cost for the tools can be reduced because of the exception of grinding tools having various grain sizes.

[40] According to the first embodiment of the present invention, the fine cutting blades 6 are formed on the metal or nonmetal board through the process of forming the recessed portions 4 on the board. Therefore, the tool has excellent cutting property and durability, compared with the conventional tool. The tool can be reused through a simple cleaning using a cleaning solution, e.g., water. The tool can be hygienically cleaned using ultraviolet, alcohol and hot water heating method. That is, the tool can be continuously used.

[41] When the tool is formed of a metal, the board can be appropriately curved according to the shape of the workpiece. Therefore, the tool can be used in any circumstance.

[42] Embodiment 2

[43] Fig. 6 is a perspective view of a grinding tool according to a second embodiment of the present invention, and Figs. 7 and 8 are cross-sectional views of the grinding tool illustrated in Fig. 6.

[44] As illustrated in Figs. 6, 7 and 8, the grinding tool has a plurality of perforated portions 7 formed on a board in a predetermined continuous pattern. The tool of Fig. 6 differs from the tool of Fig. 2 in that a plurality of cutting blades 6 are formed along boundaries between the perforated portions 7 and adjacent flat portions 5. Therefore, like reference numerals are used to refer to the same elements, and the duplicate descriptions thereof will be omitted for conciseness.

[45] Referring to Figs. 6, 7 and 8, the grinding tool includes a metal or nonmetal plate board 1, a plurality of perforated portions 7 formed by perforating the board 1 in a continuous pattern, and a flat portion 5 formed around the perforated portions 7. The perforated portion 7 and the flat portion 5 have patterns alternately arranged in length and width directions of the board 1. The cutting blade 6 is formed along the boundary between the perforated portion 7 and the flat portion 5, i.e., the edge between the internal vertical surface (or an inclined surface) of the perforated portion 7 and the horizontal surface of the flat portion 5.

[46] The cutting blades 6 may be formed by perforating the board 1 to have a plurality of circular, elliptical, or polygonal (triangular or more) holes and a pluralitiy of protrusions around the holes in a continuous pattern. For example, as illustrated in Fig. 6, the cutting blade 6 may be formed at the boundary between the perforated portion 7 and the flat portion 5 by perforating the board 1 such that the circular perforated portion 7 and the flat portion 5 are alternately arranged in the length and width directions of the board 1.

[47] In this embodiment, the width d2 of the perforated portion 7 or the gap between the perforated portion 7 and another adjacent perforated portion 7 are equal to the width dl of the recessed portion 4 or the gap between the recessed portion 4 and another adjacent recessed portion. Since the reason for the numerical limitation is equal in the two cases, its detailed description will be omitted.

[48] However, unlike the first embodiment of the present invention, it is preferable that the depth of the perforated portion 7, i.e., the thickness of the board, is limited within the range of 0.1 mm to 10 mm. When the thickness of the board 1 is less than 0.1 mm, the board 1 is so thin that a sufficient stiffness cannot be obtained. When the thickness of the board 1 exceeds 10 mm, the board 1 is so thick that it is very difficult to process the perforated portion 7.

[49] Like the first embodiment of the present invention, various kinds of cutting blades having various sizes and gaps are formed on a single board by forming the perforated portions 7 having different sizes and gaps in each region.

[50] According to the second embodiment of the present invention, the fine cutting blades 6 are formed by processing the perforated portions 7 on the metal or nonmetal board. In addition, the tool has excellent cutting property and durability. Further, the tool can be reused by cleaning it using the cleaning solution, e.g., water. That is, the tool can be continuously used.

[51] Moreover, a pair of cutting blades 6 can be formed in parallel on both sides of the board 1 by processing a single perforated portion 7. That is, both sides of the board 1 can be used as the grinding tool. Although both sides of the board can be used in the first embodiment of the present invention, the front surface and the rear surface of the board 1 must be separately processed.

[52] A method of manufacturing the fingernail/toenail tool will be described below in detail.

[53] Fig. 9 is a flowchart illustrating a method of manufacturing the grinding tool according to an embodiment of the present invention. [54] Referring to Fig. 9, the grinding tool can be manufactured by a photo etching process using a photosensitive etching method.

[55] In operation S 100, in order to project a predetermined pattern on a metal or nonmetal plate type board, chromium is coated on the surface of the plate type board, and a photosensitive film (UV adhesive) is coated on the board. Then, a film having a predetermined pattern is attached to the board coated with the photosensitive film.

[56] In operation S200, the board is etched according to the predetermined pattern of the film, thereby forming the cutting blade along the boundary between a recessed portion and a flat portion. More specifically, a predetermined portion is exposed by irradiating light onto the board to which the film is attached. An unexposed portion is eroded to form a concacve-convex pattern.

[57] In operation S300, the recessed portion and the flat portion are finely grinded to trim the cutting blades. When the cutting blade is formed by the recessed portion through the photo etching, this operation may be omitted depending on the state of the cutting blade.

[58] In operation S400, a chemical thermal process is performed on the grinded board to reinforce the strength and hardness of the board. In the case of glass and ceramic, the reinforcing process must be performed. In addition, the reinforcing process must be performed on a metal when the metal has a thickness of less than 5 mm and a sufficient stiffness is not obtained, or it is severally bent because of its sufficient ductility.

[59] In operation S500, the board having the reinforced strength and hardness through the thermal process is cut in a predetermined shape according to its use purpose. In this way, the grinding tool is completed.

[60] Although a few embodiments of the present general inventive concept have been shown and described, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that changes may be made in these embodiments without departing from the principles and spirit of the general inventive concept, the scope of which is defined in the appended claims and their equivalents.

Claims

[1] A tool for cleaning fingernails, toenails, and hardened skins, comprising: a recessed portion formed on a metal or nonmetal plate type board in a continuous pattern; and a flat portion formed around the recessed portion, wherein the recessed portion and the flat portion are alternately arranged in length and width directions of the board so as to form concave-convex patterns, a cut blade being defined by a boundary between the recessed portion and the flat portion.

[2] The tool according to claim 1, wherein the recessed portion is recessed from the board in a circular or triangular or more polygonal shape.

[3] The tool according to claim 2, wherein cutting blades having various sizes and gaps are implemented on a single board by changing the size and gap of the recessed portion or the flat portion.

[4] A tool for cleaning fingernails, toenails, and hardened skins, comprising: a perforated portion formed by perforating a hole in a metal or nonmetal plate type board in a continuous pattern; and a flat portion formed around the perforated portion, wherein the perforated portion and the flat portion have patterns alternately arranged in length and width directions of the board, a cut blade being defined by a boundary between the perforated portion and the flat portion.

[5] The tool according to claim 1, wherein the perforated portion is formed by perforating the board in a circular or triangular or more polygonal shape.

[6] The tool according to claim 5, wherein cutting blades having various sizes and gaps are implemented on a single board by changing the size and gap of the perforated portion or the flat portion.

[7] A method of manufacturing a tool for cleaning fingernails, toenails, and hardened skins, comprising: projecting a predetermined pattern onto a surface of a metal or nonmetal plate type board; processing the surface of the board in a concave-convex form along the predetermined pattern, thereby forming a cutting blade along a boundary between a recessed portion and a flat portion; finely grinding the recessed portion and the flat portion; performing a chemical thermal process to reinforce the strength and stiffness of the grinded board; and cutting the thermally treated board in a predetermined shape to complete a grinding tool.

[8] The method of claim 7, wherein the projecting of the predetermined pattern comprises: coating the surface of the plate type board with chromium; coating the chromium-coated surface of the plate type board with a photosensitive film; and adhering a film having a predetermined pattern to the photosensitive-film-coated surface of the plate type board, and the processing of the surface of the plate type board comprises: exposing a necessary portion of the plate type board by irradiating light onto the board to which the film is attached; and eroding an unexposed portion to form a concave-convex pattern.