The present invention relates generally to personal grooming devices and, more particularly, to an adapter for powered brush accessories which enables removable attachment of such brush accessories to a powered brush.
Personal grooming devices used for, for example, skin cleansing, have become increasingly common in recent years. Most of these personal grooming devices include a hand-held appliance housing one or more electric motors, with the electric motor(s) configured to rotate or oscillate at least a portion of an attached brush head so as to provide a cleansing action on the user’s skin. Some brush heads rotate 360° in one direction continuously, while others oscillate through a selected angle. The higher frequency skin brushes are often referred to as sonic or sonic frequency brushes. Typically, the frequency range of such brushes is 120-300 Hz. Due to the need for frequent cleaning and/or replacement of the brush heads, the brush heads are typically configured to be removable from the hand-held appliance.
An example of such an appliance and brush head is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 7,386,906, which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in its entirety. In some arrangements, the attached brush head includes two separate portions: a first, stationary portion having a first plurality of bristles, and a second, movable portion, having a second plurality of bristles. In most configurations, the stationary portion annularly surrounds the movable portion, with the movable portion being couplable to a drive member of the hand-held appliance such that the movable portion may oscillate and/or rotate relative to the stationary portion.
Such an arrangement, however, requires that any brush head to be used with the hand-held appliance include an integral base or socket specifically configured to mate with the hub / drive member of the hand-held appliance, which limits the diversity of heads or other accessories available for use with the hand-held appliance.
In view of the above, there is a need for an adapter that facilitates the use of various aftermarket brush heads and accessories with an existing powered personal grooming device.
It is an object of the present invention to provide an adapter for accessories for use with a personal grooming device.
It is another object of the present invention to provide an adapter for accessories for use with a powered brush.
These and other objects are achieved by the present invention.
According to an embodiment of the present invention, an adapter for a powered brush includes a body portion, a plurality of leg members extending from the body portion and being configured to releasably retain the adapter on a drive hub of a powered brush, and an attachment hub on the body portion, the attachment hub being configured to releasably receive an accessory. The adapter is configured to transmit rotation and/or oscillation from the drive hub of the powered brush to the accessory.
According to another embodiment of the present invention, a powered brush includes a housing containing a motor, a drive hub driven by the motor in rotational and/or oscillatory fashion, and an adapter configured for releasable attachment to the drive hub, the adapter being configured to facilitate attachment of an accessory to the powered brush.
According to yet another embodiment of the present invention, a method of operating a powered brush includes the steps of attaching an adapter to a drive hub of a powered brush in a manner such that rotational and/or oscillatory motion of the drive hub is transferred to the adapter, and attaching a brush head to the adapter in a manner such that rotational and/or oscillatory motion of the adapter is transferred to the brush head.
The present invention will be better understood from reading the following description of non-limiting embodiments, with reference to the attached drawings, wherein below:
With reference to
As further shown in
The adapter 10 further includes a second trio of spaced drive legs 32. Drive legs 32 alternate with sets of depending legs 14, 16, 18 around the periphery of adapter 10 and are also separated by intervals of approximately 120°. Drive legs 32 taper slightly from their base (where they are attached to the body portion 12) to their free ends, which are rounded, and are designed to provide a close tolerance fit between them and the drive hub of the powered brush.
With further reference to
Importantly, the body portion 12 is formed with clearance slots 42 intermediate the drive legs 32 and the attachment hub 40, which are spaced 120° from one another. As best shown in
Turning now to
The configuration of the projections on the drive hub 102 in association with the configuration of the depending legs 14, 16, 18 and drive legs 32 of the adapter 10 provide a reliable and secure attachment between drive hub 102 of the powered brush 100 and the adapter, such that there is little or no lost motion between drive hub action and the adapter action. The depending legs 14, 16, 18 and drive legs 32 perform distinctly different functions as described herein, with the depending legs 14, 16, 18 primarily latching the adapter 10 to the drive hub 102 of the powered brush 100, and the drive legs 32 transferring the rotational energy of the hub 102 to the adapter 10.
Each drive leg 32 contacts the maximum width points of two adjacent projections on the drive hub 102, providing efficient transfer of rotational movement, with an interference fit or press fit therebetween. As indicated above, each leg member 20, 22 of the depending legs 14, 16, 18 include bulge portions 26 at the tips thereof which move slightly outwardly with the leg members 20, 22 after they pass maximum width points of the projection. This arrangement also helps to provide a reliable connection between drive hub 102 and the adapter 10.
As indicated above, the outer wall of the drive hub 102 is tapered relative to all the depending legs of the adapter 10, so that the legs tend to be forced outwardly as the adapter 10 is moved downwardly onto the drive hub 102, again ensuring a snug, reliable fit between drive hub 102 and the adapter 10. The combination of the diamond or triangular configuration of projections, the tapered wall of the drive hub 102, and the configuration of the two sets of legs 14, 16, 18 and 32 of the adapter 10 provide a reliable, tight, interference fit between the adapter 19 and the drive hub 102, so that both an efficient transfer of rotational motion and secure retention of adapter 10 is provided.
The brush head 120 is thus connected to the adapter 10 by aligning the central recess of the brush head 120 with the attachment hub 40 of the adapter 10, and aligning the resilient retention legs 122 of the brush head 120 with the clearance slots 42 in adapter 10. When properly aligned, the brush head 120 can be urged axially onto the adapter 10 such that the retention legs 122 of the brush head 120 are received in the clearance slots 42 of the adapter 10, which releasably retain the brush head 120 on the adapter 10. Engagement of the retention legs 122 of the brush head 120 within the clearance slots 42 also functions to transfer rotation or oscillatory movement of the adapter 10 to the brush head 120.
Importantly, the adapter 10 of the present invention allows a variety of aftermarket and/or more varied or diverse brush heads or other accessories to be utilized with existing powered brush or other personal grooming devices. Moreover, it is contemplated that the configuration of the adapter 10 may be varied to accommodate a variety of different brush heads or accessories (e.g., the slots and hub on the adapter may be designed so as to mate with the retention legs and recess/hub of the brush head).
While the embodiments described herein involve using the adapter to attach a brush head to the hub of a powered brush, the present invention is not so limited in this regard. In particular, it is contemplated that the adapter of the present invention can be utilized to releasably attached a variety of different accessories such as, for example, brush heads, massagers, and the like, to a powered brush (e.g., powered brushes sold by Clarisonic, such as the Clarisonic Mia Smart) or other personal grooming device.
Although this invention has been shown and described with respect to the detailed embodiments thereof, it will be understood by those of skill in the art that various changes may be made and equivalents may be substituted for elements thereof without departing from the scope of the invention. In addition, modifications may be made to adapt a particular situation or material to the teachings of the invention without departing from the essential scope thereof. Therefore, it is intended that the invention not be limited to the particular embodiments disclosed in the above detailed description, but that the invention will include all embodiments falling within the scope of this disclosure.
This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application Serial No. 63/270,112 filed on Oct. 21, 2021, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.
Number | Date | Country | |
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63270112 | Oct 2021 | US |