Patent Application
20240206901
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The disclosure relates to tongue scraper devices and more particularly pertains to a new tongue scraper device for facilitating oral hygiene to be performed while traveling. The device includes a housing with a slot extending longitudinally into said housing and a tongue scraper pivotally attached to the housing. The tongue scraper is positionable in a stored position or a deployed position. The device includes a closure pivotally attached to the housing for opening or closing the slot.
The prior art relates to tongue scraper devices including a dental apparatus that includes a toothbrush that is attachable to a cylindrical housing. The prior art discloses a tongue scraper device that includes a tongue scraper being disposed on a toothbrush. The prior art discloses a tongue scraper that includes a head and a plurality of bristles attached to the head. The prior art discloses a tongue scraper that includes a member having a pair of textured lateral edges for scraping a tongue. The prior art discloses a tongue scraper that includes a plurality of curved members arranged to form a bulb on a handle.
An embodiment of the disclosure meets the needs presented above by generally comprising a housing that has a slot extending into an interior of the housing. A tongue scraper is pivotally disposed in the housing and the tongue scraper is positionable in a deployed position having the tongue scraper extending upwardly from the housing. The tongue scraper is positionable in a stored position having the tongue scraper being stored within the housing. A closure is pivotally disposed on the housing. The closure is positionable in a closed position when the tongue scraper is in the stored position having the closure closing the slot for enclosing the tongue scraper. The closure is positionable in an open position having the slot being exposed thereby facilitating the tongue scraper to be positioned in the deployed position.
There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, the more important features of the disclosure in order that the detailed description thereof that follows may be better understood, and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated. There are additional features of the disclosure that will be described hereinafter and which will form the subject matter of the claims appended hereto.
The objects of the disclosure, along with the various features of novelty which characterize the disclosure, are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part of this disclosure.
The disclosure will be better understood and objects other than those set forth above will become apparent when consideration is given to the following detailed description thereof. Such description makes reference to the annexed drawings wherein:
With reference now to the drawings, and in particular to
As best illustrated in
A tongue scraper 28 is pivotally disposed in the housing 12 and the tongue scraper 28 is positionable in a deployed position having the tongue scraper 28 extending upwardly from the housing 12. Conversely, the tongue scraper 28 is positionable in a stored position having the tongue scraper 28 stored within the housing 12. The tongue scraper 28 is pivoted through the slot 14 in the housing 12 when the tongue scraper 28 is moved between the stored position and the deployed position. The tongue scraper 28 has a stem 30 and a head 32 and the stem 30 has a distal end 34 with respect to the head 32. The stem 30 extends outwardly through the slot 14 in the top side 22 of the outer wall 20 of the housing 12 when the tongue scraper 28 is in the deployed position such that the head 32 of the tongue scraper 28 is exposed. Conversely, the stem 30 and the head 32 are concealed within the housing 12 when the tongue scraper 28 is in the stored position.
The head 32 has a first sidelong side 36, a second sidelong side 38 and an upper side 40 and each of the first sidelong side 36 and the second sidelong side 38 angles outwardly between the stem 30 and the upper side 40 such that the head 32 has a trapezoidal shape. The head 32 has a scraping pad 42 that is applied to a forward surface 44 of the head 32. The scraping pad 42 has a perimeter edge 46 which follows the shape defined by the first sidelong side 36 and the second sidelong side 38 and the upper side 40 of the head 32. Additionally, the scraping pad 42 may be comprised of a textured and resiliently compressible material such as textured rubber or the like.
A first pin 48 extends through each of the front wall 16 and the back wall 18 of the housing 12 and the stem 30 of the tongue scraper 28 for pivotally attaching the tongue scraper 28 to the housing 12. Additionally, the first pin 48 engages the stem 30 at a point located adjacent to the distal end 34 of the stem 30. A closure 50 is provided and the closure 50 is pivotally disposed on the housing 12. The closure 50 is positionable in a closed position when the tongue scraper 28 is in the stored position having the closure 50 closing the slot 14 for enclosing the tongue scraper 28. Conversely, the closure 50 is positionable in an open position having the slot 14 being exposed thereby facilitating the tongue scraper 28 to be positioned in the deployed position.
The closure 50 has an upper end 52 and a lower end 54 and the closure 50 has a leg 56 extending away from the lower end 54 and a foot 58 extending upwardly from the leg 56 having the foot 58 being oriented parallel with the closure 50. The closure 50 has a tab 60 extending laterally away from the upper end 52 having the tab 60 being oriented parallel with the leg 56. The tab 60 has a lobe 62 extending upwardly from the tab 60 adjacent to a distal end 34 of the tab 60. Furthermore, the tab 60 extends into the slot 14 in the top side 22 of the outer wall 20 of the housing 12 when the closure 50 is in the closed position having the closure 50 extending along the slot 14 in the first lateral side 26 of the outer wall 20 of the housing 12 when the closure 50 is in the closed position. The tab 60 is displaced from the slot 14 in the top side 22 having the closure 50 being displaced from the slot 14 in the first lateral side 26 when the closure 50 is in the open position.
The lobe 62 extends upwardly from the top side 22 of the outer wall 20 when the closure 50 is in the closed position thereby facilitating the lobe 62 to be gripped for urging the closure 50 into the open position. An upper edge 64 of the leg 56 is concavely arcuate between the closure 50 and the foot 58 thereby conforming to the upper side 40 of the head 32 when the tongue scraper 28 is in the stored position and the closure 50 is in the closed position. Moreover, the foot 58 urges the head 32 outwardly through the slot 14 when the closure 50 is urged into the open position thereby facilitating the tongue scraper 28 to be gripped for fully positioning the tongue scraper 28 in the deployed position. A second pin 66 extends through the front wall 16 and the back wall 18 and the closure 50 at an intersection between the leg 56 and the closure 50 for pivotally attaching the closure 50 to the housing 12.
As is most clearly shown in
In an alternative embodiment 68 as is most clearly shown in
In use, the lobe 62 is gripped to urge the closure 50 into the open position thereby urging the head 32 of the tongue scraper 28 outwardly from the housing 12. The tongue scraper 28 is pivoted into the deployed position and the closure 50 is positioned in the closed position. In this way the tongue scraper 28 can be employed for oral hygiene purposes. The lobe 62 is gripped to urge the closure 50 into the open position, the tongue scraper 28 is pivoted into the stored position and the closure 50 is urged into the closed position. In this way the tongue scraper 28 is stored within the housing 12 when the tongue scraper 28 is not being employed.
With respect to the above description then, it is to be realized that the optimum dimensional relationships for the parts of an embodiment enabled by the disclosure, to include variations in size, materials, shape, form, function and manner of operation, assembly and use, are deemed readily apparent and obvious to one skilled in the art, and all equivalent relationships to those illustrated in the drawings and described in the specification are intended to be encompassed by an embodiment of the disclosure.
Therefore, the foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the disclosure. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the disclosure to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the disclosure. In this patent document, the word “comprising” is used in its non-limiting sense to mean that items following the word are included, but items not specifically mentioned are not excluded. A reference to an element by the indefinite article “a” does not exclude the possibility that more than one of the element is present, unless the context clearly requires that there be only one of the elements.
