Claims
- 1. A oral brush comprisinga body having a head that is shaped for insertion into the oral cavity, tooth cleansing elements extending from a top surface of the head, and a rotatable element, mounted on the head to rotate about an axis of rotation, including a central portion ad a plurality of tapered members extending radially from the central portion, each tapered member comprising a unitary body tapering from a relatively wide base to a relatively narrow tip, the tip defining linear surfaces that are generally parallel to each other and defining a distal edge that is generally parallel to the axis of rotation, the tip being constructed to penetrate the interproximal region.
- 2. The oral brush of claim 1 wherein the rotatable element is mounted to rotate about an axis of rotation that is substantially parallel to the top surface of the head.
- 3. The oral brush of claim 1 wherein the head includes a slot positioned to allow the rotatable element to rotate freely.
- 4. The oral brush of claim 1 wherein the rotatable element includes a web extending axially from an outer edge of the rotatable element, to contact the gums during rotation of the rotatable element.
- 5. The oral brush of claim 1 wherein the dimensions of the rotatable element and the number of tapered members are selected so that the tips are circumferentially spaced at intervals that correspond approximately to the average spacing of human teeth.
- 6. The oral brush of claim 1 wherein the ends of said tips define a circle or a hemisphere.
- 7. The oral brush of claim 1 wherein the tips are shaped to penetrate the interproximal and subgingival regions of the oral cavity.
- 8. The oral brush of claim 1 wherein the tips have a thickness of less than 0.07 inch.
- 9. The oral brush of claim 1 wherein the tips have a thickness of from about 0.005 to 0.025 inch.
- 10. The oral brush of claim 1 wherein the tips have a length of from about 0.1 to 0.4 inch.
- 11. The oral brush of claim 1 wherein the tips are formed of a material having a durometer reading of from about 25 to 85 Shore A.
- 12. The oral brush of claim 1 wherein the tips are formed of a material having a durometer reading of from about 55 to 75 Shore A.
- 13. The oral brush of claim 1 wherein the tips are formed of a thermoplastic elastomer.
- 14. The oral brush of claim 1 wherein the rotatable element is a single, integral part.
- 15. The oral brush of claim 14 wherein the rotatable element is formed of a thermoplastic elastomer.
- 16. The oral brush of claim 1 wherein the tooth cleansing elements are selected from bristles, fins and elongated elastomeric members.
- 17. The oral brush of claim 1 further comprising a second rotatable element.
- 18. The oral brush of claim 17 wherein each rotatable element is mounted to rotate about an axis of rotation that is substantially parallel to the top surface of the head.
- 19. The oral brush of claim 17 wherein the axes of rotation of the rotatable elements are not collinear.
- 20. The oral brush of claim 19 wherein the axes of rotation of the rotatable elements define an angle of from about 5 to 45 degrees.
- 21. The oral brush of claim 17 wherein the rotatable elements are positioned at the end of the head.
- 22. The oral brush of claim 17, wherein the body of the head further comprises:a first well extending into to a first portion of the body; and a second well extending into a second portion of the head, the first wheel being mounted to extend into the area defined by the first well, and the second wheel being mounted to extend into the area defined by the second well.
- 23. The oral brush of claim 1 wherein the body of the head includes an opening extending from a first surface of the body to a second surface of the body, and the rotatable element extends into the opening.
- 24. The oral brush of claim 1 wherein the tips are formed of a material having a durometer reading of from about 55 Shore A to about 85 Shore A.
- 25. The oral brush of claim 1 wherein the tips are formed of a material having a durometer reading of from about 65 Shore A to about 80 Shore A.
- 26. The oral brush of claim 1, wherein the rotatable element has a pitch of about 0.3 in.
- 27. The oral brush of claim 1 wherein the tapered members are integrally formed of an elastomeric material having a durometer reading of from about 55 to about 85 Shore A.
- 28. The oral brush of claim 1 wherein the tapered members are integrally formed of an elastomeric material having a durometer reading of from about 65 to about 80 Shore A.
- 29. The oral brush of claim 1 wherein the tapered members are integrally formed of an elastomeric material having a durometer reading of from about 70 to about 75 Shore A.
- 30. An oral brush comprisinga body having a head that is shaped for insertion into the oral cavity, tooth cleansing elements extending from a top surface of the head, and a rotatable element, mounted on the head to rotate about an axis of rotation, including a central portion and a plurality of tapered members extending radially from the central portion, the tapered members comprised of unitary bodies including tips, each tip defining linear surfaces that are generally parallel to each other and defining a distal edge that is generally parallel to the axis of rotation, and having a tip thickness at the distal edge of less than 0.03 inch.
- 31. The oral brush of claim 30 wherein said rotatable element is substantially star-shaped.
- 32. The oral brush of claim 31 wherein said rotatable element comprises an integral elastomeric member.
- 33. An oral care device that includes a body having a head shaped for insertion into the oral cavity, and a rotatable element mounted on the head to rotate about an axis of rotation, including a central portion and a plurality of tapered members extending radially from the central portion, each tapered member comprising a unitary body tapering from a relatively wide base to a relatively narrow tip, the tip defining linear surfaces that are generally parallel to each other and defining a distal edge that is generally parallel to the axis of rotation, the tip being constructed to penetrate the interproximal region.
- 34. The oral care device of claim 33 further comprising a second rotatable element wherein the rotatable elements are mounted so that their axes of rotation are not colinear.
- 35. An oral brush comprisinga body having a head that is shaped for insertion into the oral cavity, tooth cleansing elements extending from a top surface of the head, and a rotatable element, mounted on the head to rotate about an axis of rotation, the rotatable element including a central portion and a plurality of tapered members extending radially from the central portion, each tapered member tapering from a relatively wide base to a relatively narrow tip and being integrally formed of an elastomeric material, and each tip defining a distal edge that is generally parallel to the axis of rotation, and having a tip thickness at the distal edge of less than 0.07 inch.
Parent Case Info
This application Ser. No. 09/421,747, filed Oct. 20, 1999, is a continuation-in-part of application Ser. No. 09/199,122, filed Nov. 24, 1998, abandoned.
US Referenced Citations (38)
Foreign Referenced Citations (4)
Number |
Date |
Country |
1112966 |
Aug 1961 |
DE |
520 985 |
Jan 1993 |
EP |
1.300.138 |
Jun 1962 |
FR |
989953 |
Apr 1965 |
GB |
Continuation in Parts (1)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
09/199122 |
Nov 1998 |
US |
Child |
09/421747 |
|
US |