The present invention relates generally to dry shavers, and more particularly to improvements in the internal construction and assembly of such shavers for reducing components and simplifying assembly.
As is well known in the art, dry shavers include a motorized housing that drives a pair of laterally reciprocating drive fingers. Each drive finger engages a linearly-extending cutting blade element, that reciprocates against a perforated foil for cutting hairs extending through the foil perforations. Dry shavers typically have a shaver head component that includes the foils and a supporting body.
Users of conventional dry shavers are accustomed to periodically removing and/or partially disassembling the shaver head for cleaning foils and blade elements. In some cases, the shaver housing is exposed to liquids, e.g. water, cleaning solutions and sanitizing liquids during this cleaning process. Designers of shavers accordingly have been faced with including seals for preventing the entry of unwanted fluids and debris into the shaver interior which houses the electric motor and other electronic components. Conventional shavers often include designated plates and associated threaded fasteners for securing such seals in place.
Another design aspect of conventional dry shavers is that the drive fingers are incompletely or loosely retained in the shaver housing, such that unwanted vibration, noise and inconsistent performance have been experienced. Further, during periodic disassembly, the drive fingers readily separate from each other and are cumbersome to reassemble. This separation is also problematic during the initial assembly of the shaver, requiring the assembler to carefully hold the drive fingers tightly together while inserting them into the housing as a unit.
Still another design aspect of conventional dry shavers is the construction of the shaver head. Although the users periodically disassemble these components, conventional foil cartridges are cumbersome to disassemble and reassemble, and the perforated foil is subject to damage during disassembly or reassembly.
Lastly, designers of dry shavers are constantly striving for reducing operational vibration and noise, as well as simplifying the assembly for reducing manufacturing costs.
Thus, there is a need for an improved dry shaver that addresses the above-listed design factors.
The above-listed need is met or exceeded by the present dry shaver, which, among other things, features an improved drive finger seal construction, including a molded seal frame or basket, and specialized recesses in the shaver housing that compress the seal and frame for enhanced assembly and liquid repellant properties as the shaver housing halves are fastened together. As such, the seal is retained in operational position in the housing without the need for specialized brackets and threaded fasteners. In addition, the shaver drive fingers are secured in designated cavities in the shaver housing that accommodates multiple contact points of the fingers for more secure retention. Also, the drive fingers are engageable with each other for assembly into, as well as disassembly from, the shaver housing as a unit.
Another feature of the present shaver is a foil cartridge having spring clips at each end that are releasably accommodated in associated tracks in the shaver head body. As such, the foil cartridge is relatively easily disassembled from the shaver head for periodic cleaning. The tracks are also configured for facilitating location of the foil cartridge upon reassembly.
Still another feature of the present shaver is an improved motor retention system. A resilient motor cover is constructed and arranged for holding the motor in a fixed position in the shaver housing interior. Included on the cover are formations that engage at least one of the housing halves and transmit a compressive force on the motor without the use of designated threaded fasteners. The motor cover includes formations that also exert holding pressure on a circuit board located between the motor and one of the housing halves.
More specifically, a shaver is provided, including a housing including first and second housing halves defining an interior chamber, the housing having an operational end and an opposite, bottom end, the housing interior containing a motor acting through a transmission and configured for reciprocally driving a pair of laterally reciprocating drive fingers. Each drive finger includes an elongate finger drive element extending from the operational end. A resilient seal having slits accommodating the finger drive elements is captured in corresponding seal cavities in each of the housing halves. The seal and the housing halves are configured for placing the seal in at least one of radial and axial compression upon assembly of the housing halves together.
In an embodiment, the seal is provided with a supporting frame or basket, and the basket is accommodated in the seal cavities in the first and second housing halves for enhancing the at least one of radial and axial compression exerted upon the seal upon the assembly of the housing. More preferably, the housing halves each have an inclined basket engagement rib in the basket cavity constructed and arranged so that as the housing halves are joined, increasing compressive force is exerted on the basket. Once the seal and the basket are in compressed position in the assembled shaver housing, liquids and other debris such as hair clippings are prevented from infiltrating into the housing interior.
In an embodiment, the pair of drive fingers includes a short drive finger and a long drive finger, each finger having a foot including at least one integrally formed spring element having an attachment end, referred to as an attachment box, each attachment box being secured in at least one of the housing halves. Preferably, at least one of the attachment boxes has multiple attachment points for operationally retaining the drive finger in the housing upon housing assembly, while permitting lateral reciprocation of the drive finger relative to the operational end.
In a further embodiment, the multiple attachment points include a domed rib with a pair of elongate sides located on an upper surface of the finger attachment box, and a pair of laterally-spaced ribs depending from a lower surface of the attachment box. Also preferred is that the short drive finger and the long drive finger are attachable to each other for common assembly into the housing. Further, each drive finger has a pair of integrally-formed spring elements, one located at each of a forward end and a rear end, and each spring element has a finger attachment box at the attachment end. The attachment boxes of the short drive finger are engageable with the attachment boxes of the long drive finger for assembly of the fingers into or out of the shaver as a unit.
More specifically, in an embodiment, one of the drive fingers has at least one male engagement formation, and the other of the drive fingers has at least one female engagement formation matingly engaging the male engagement formation for retaining the two drive fingers together for assembly as a unit into the shaver. In an embodiment, one male engagement formation is a tab, and the female engagement formation is a slot.
In another embodiment, a shaver head releasably is provided that is attachable to the operational end of the shaver housing, and the shaver head includes a shaver head body with a pair of perforated shaver foil cartridges releasably secured thereto. In a preferred embodiment, the shaver head body has opposed ends defining a pair of cartridge tracks, and each foil cartridge has a pair of spring clips, each clip constructed and arranged for releasably engaging a corresponding one of the tracks.
In an embodiment, each spring clip has a dogleg free end, and each track has a landing for releasably receiving the clip in an operational position, and such that user pressure on the cartridge towards the housing releases engagement between the dogleg free end and the landing for releasing the cartridge from the shaver head body. Preferably, the cartridge tracks have flared lower ends for facilitating locating engagement of the clips.
In an embodiment, a motor cover is provided that is constructed and arranged for holding the motor in a fixed position in the housing interior chamber, the motor cover being dimensioned for exerting a compressive force on the motor as the housing halves are secured together. In addition, the motor cover retains the motor in the housing without the use of threaded fasteners.
In an embodiment, a printed circuit board is located in the housing interior chamber between the motor and a closely adjacent one of the housing halves, the motor cover having formations for engaging and restraining the printed circuit board in position as the housing halves are secured together.
In another embodiment, a shaver is provided, including a housing including first and second housing halves defining an interior chamber, the housing having an operational end and an opposite, bottom end, the housing interior chamber containing a motor acting through a transmission and configured for reciprocally driving a pair of laterally reciprocating drive fingers, each finger including an elongate finger drive element extending from the operational end. The pair of drive fingers includes a short drive finger and a long drive finger, each finger is attachable to each other for common assembly into the housing.
In yet another embodiment, a shaver is provided, including, a housing including first and second housing halves defining an interior chamber, the housing has an operational end and an opposite, bottom end, the housing interior containing a motor acting through a transmission and configured for reciprocally driving a pair of laterally reciprocating drive fingers, each finger including an elongate finger drive element extending from the operational end.
A shaver head is releasably attachable to the operational end of the housing, and includes a shaver head body with a pair of perforated shaver foil cartridges releasably secured thereto. The shaver head body has opposed ends defining a pair of cartridge tracks, and each foil cartridge has a pair of spring clips, each clip constructed and arranged for releasably engaging a corresponding one of the tracks.
In still another embodiment, a shaver is provided, including a housing having first and second housing halves defining an interior chamber, the housing having an operational end and an opposite, bottom end, the interior chamber containing a motor acting through a transmission and configured for reciprocally driving a pair of laterally reciprocating drive fingers, each finger including an elongate finger drive element extending from the operational end.
A motor cover is provided that is constructed and arranged for holding the motor in a fixed position in the housing interior chamber, the motor cover being dimensioned for exerting a compressive force on the motor as the housing halves are secured together.
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To prevent the unwanted entry of liquids and other debris such as hair clippings into the housing interior chamber 32, a resilient seal 50 is provided, being made of a water-impermeable, rubber-like material, and preferably having a polygonal, pad-like shape. Included on the seal 50 is a pair of slits 52 dimensioned to slidingly accommodate the finger drive elements 42 along their full reciprocal travel stroke. Also, the seal 50 is retained or captured in a seal cavity 54 defined by each of the housing halves 12a, 12b.
A feature of the present shaver 10 is that the seal 50 and the housing halves 12a, 12b are configured for placing the seal in at least one of radial and axial compression upon assembly of the housing halves together. The desired compression is provided by at least one inclined basket rib 56 in the seal cavity 54 which engage at least one of the seal 50 and a supporting frame or basket 58 which is made of a relatively rigid material such as hard plastic, and overlies the seal 50. As the housing halves 12a, 12b are brought together during shaver assembly, the seal 50 is dimensioned to be oversize in the seal cavity 54, and the basket ribs 56 are configured so that as the housing halves are brought together, increasing compressive force is exerted on at least one of the frame 58 and the seal 50. Upon assembly, the seal 50 prevents the unwanted entry of liquids and other debris such as hair clippings into the interior chamber 32. Such a configuration departs from those prior designs described above which employ a designated plate and fasteners used to compress said plate. Rather, the illustrated embodiment herein advantageously leverages the compressive force created by the act of closing housing halves 12a, 12b together. That compressive force is transferred through frame 58 to seal 50 as described above. As a result, the use of additional fasteners to ensure proper compressive force against seal 50 is not required, thereby reducing both the complexity of manufacture and cost.
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To positively retain the drive fingers 38, 40 in the housing 12, housing half 12b has a pair of attachment box cavities 80 (
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Each of the drive fingers 38, 40 has an elongate drive slot 96 in the foot 60 that accommodates a lobed cam 98 (
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At an opposite end 146, the pillars 138 engage a printed circuit board 148. In this configuration, the pillars 138 transmit the compressive force generated by the assembly of the housing 12 and, while retaining the motor 34 in position, also press the printed circuit board 148 against the other housing half 12b.
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While a particular embodiment of the present shaver has been described herein, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that changes and modifications may be made thereto without departing from the invention in its broader aspects and as set forth in the following claims.