Patent Application
20170318953
The present invention relates to a toothpaste discharging toothbrush, and more particularly, to a toothpaste discharging toothbrush in which toothpaste is stored in a handgrip portion, and the toothpaste of the handgrip portion is discharged to toothbrush bristles only when a user brushes their teeth.
In general, a toothbrush is used to brush teeth, and includes a handgrip portion provided with an implantation portion at the front end thereof and toothbrush bristles implanted in the implantation portion. A user puts a small amount of toothpaste on the top of the toothbrush bristles, puts the toothbrush bristles into their mouth, and brushes their teeth while moving the toothbrush bristles from side to side and from top to bottom. Since such a toothbrush is necessarily provided together with the toothpaste in order to brush the teeth, there is an inconvenience that the user needs to pack the toothbrush together with the toothpaste when the user goes out, particularly, when the user goes on a trip, as well as when the user stays at home. If the user does not pack the toothpaste, there is a problem that the user needs to newly purchase the toothpaste.
In order to solve the problems, the present applicant has invented Korean Patent Publication No. 10-2012-0039140 (toothpaste discharging toothbrush).
As shown in
Meanwhile, as shown in
However, when a predetermined magnitude or more of pressure is applied to the cut portion 522 of the nipple 500 of the related art by a pumping operation of a pumping ball 320, the cut portion is opened by even a small internal pressure, and toothpaste is discharged to the outside. Accordingly, it is difficult to control the discharging of the toothpaste.
In addition, when the toothpaste is pumped using the pumping device 300, the toothpaste is continuously discharged through the cut portion 522. When the user presses the pumping device 300 several times through their carelessness, the toothpaste is discharged with an amount greater than a single usage amount, and thus, consumers have complaints.
Ideally, even though the toothpaste is pressed into through the transfer path 222, the nipple 300 needs to store the toothpaste as much as possible, and needs to discharge the toothpaste toward an implantation portion 230 little by little only when the cut portion 522 is deviated through the shaking, as shown in (c) and (d) of
Therefore, there is a need for the development of a toothpaste discharging toothbrush in which when the pressure of the nipple reaches the critical pressure (the maximum pressure at which the cut portion of the nipple is maintained without being opened at the internal toothpaste pressure of the nipple), the toothpaste is not discharged anymore even though air is injected by the pumping device 300. In addition, there is a need for the improvement of a structure capable of allowing the nipple 500 to endure the internal pressure to the maximum.
An object of the present invention is to provide a toothpaste discharging toothbrush in which when an internal pressure of the nipple reaches a critical pressure, since internal air of a handgrip is not compressed, toothpaste is not discharged to the outside anymore even though the nipple is pumped.
An object of the present invention is also to provide a nipple of which a cut portion is easily not opened even though the internal pressure is increased, and a toothpaste discharging toothbrush using the same.
An object of the present invention is also to provide a nipple that maintains so as to be firmly coupled to a discharge port even though the internal pressure is increased, and a toothpaste discharging toothbrush using the same.
An object of the present invention is also to provide a nipple that is provided with a protrusion ring so as to allow a cut portion not to be cut anymore in a cut direction, and a toothpaste discharging toothbrush using the same.
An object of the present invention is also to provide a toothpaste discharging toothbrush in which an extended portion and a handgrip portion are coupled so as to allow toothpaste to serve as a sealing member without a separate sealing member.
According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a toothpaste discharging toothbrush including:
a hollow handgrip portion;
a piston that is provided in the handgrip portion;
a pumping device that is coupled to the rear of the handgrip portion, and pushes the piston forward;
an extended portion that is coupled to a front end of the handgrip portion, and includes a transfer path which is communicatively connected to the handgrip portion;
an implantation portion that is coupled to an end of the extended portion, and is provided with a discharge port which is communicatively connected to the transfer path;
toothbrush bristles that are coupled to the implantation portion; and
a nipple that is coupled to the discharge port.
The nipple includes:
a nipple body portion that includes an open bottom, is hollow inside, and is made of a flexible material;
an upper plate member that is positioned on an upper part of the nipple body portion, covers the upper part of the nipple body portion, and is made of a flexible material; and
a cut portion that is formed on the upper plate member.
The pumping device may include a pumping ball that is made of a flexible material.
A deformation pressure of the pumping ball may be less than a critical pressure at which the cut portion is opened by a pressure of toothpaste inside the toothbrush.
Further,
the upper plate member may have a structure in which a central portion of a lower surface is convex downward, and
a thickness of a central portion of the upper plate member is greater than a thickness of a peripheral region thereof.
Furthermore,
a protruding ring may be formed in a peripheral region of an upper surface of the upper plate member.
Moreover,
a lower wall of the nipple body portion may be thicker than an upper wall.
In addition,
the front end of the handgrip portion may be inserted into the extended portion,
a first protrusion ring, and a second protrusion ring that is positioned outside the first protrusion ring may be formed at the extended portion,
a third protrusion ring, and a fourth protrusion ring that is positioned in front of the third protrusion ring may be formed at the front end of the handgrip portion,
the first protrusion ring and the fourth protrusion ring may be firmly coupled, and the second protrusion ring and the third protrusion ring may be loosely coupled.
As described above, the present invention provides a toothpaste discharging toothbrush in which when an internal pressure of the nipple reaches a critical pressure, since internal air of a handgrip is not compressed, toothpaste is not discharged to the outside anymore even though the nipple is pumped.
The present invention provides a nipple of which a cut portion is easily not opened even though the internal pressure is increased, and a toothpaste discharging toothbrush using the same.
The present invention provides a nipple that maintains so as to be firmly coupled to a discharge port even though the internal pressure is increased, and a toothpaste discharging toothbrush using the same.
The present invention provides a nipple that is provided with a protrusion ring so as to allow a cut portion not to be cut anymore in a cut direction, and a toothpaste discharging toothbrush using the same.
The present invention provides a toothpaste discharging toothbrush in which an extended portion and a handgrip portion are coupled so as to allow toothpaste to serve as a sealing member without a separate sealing member.
“(a) of
“(a)” to “(d)” of
“(a)” of
“(a)” to “(d)” of
According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a toothpaste discharging toothbrush including:
a hollow handgrip portion;
a piston that is provided in the handgrip portion;
a pumping device that is coupled to the rear of the handgrip portion, and pushes the piston forward;
an extended portion that is coupled to a front end of the handgrip portion, and includes a transfer path which is communicatively connected to the handgrip portion;
an implantation portion that is coupled to an end of the extended portion, and is provided with a discharge port which is communicatively connected to the transfer path;
toothbrush bristles that are coupled to the implantation portion; and
a nipple that is coupled to the discharge port.
The nipple includes:
a nipple body portion that includes an open bottom, is hollow inside, and is made of a flexible material;
an upper plate member that is positioned on an upper part of the nipple body portion, covers the upper part of the nipple body portion, and is made of a flexible material; and
a cut portion that is formed on the upper plate member.
The pumping device may include a pumping ball that is made of a flexible material.
A deformation pressure of the pumping ball may be less than a critical pressure at which the cut portion is opened by a pressure of toothpaste inside the toothbrush.
Hereinafter, a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, and are provided to specifically describe the present invention so as to allow those skilled in the art to which the present invention belongs to easily implement the present invention, but are not intended to limit the spirit and scope of the present invention.
A “deformation pressure” mentioned herein refers to a pressure at which a pumping ball of a flexible material is deformed by itself without proceeding with a pumping operation anymore when the pumping ball is pressed.
A “critical pressure” refers to a pressure at which a cut portion of a nipple can endure a pressure of toothpaste inside a toothbrush, and refers to a maximum pressure at which the cut portion can endure the pressure of the toothbrush without the cut portion being opened.
A toothpaste discharging toothbrush 1000 includes a hollow handgrip portion 1210; a piston 1400 that is provided in the handgrip portion 1210; a pumping device 1300 that is coupled to the rear of the handgrip portion 1210, and pushes the piston 1400 forward using a pneumatic pressure; an extended portion 1220 that is coupled to the front end of the handgrip portion 1210, and includes a transfer path 1222 communicatively connected to the handgrip portion 1210; an implantation portion 1230 that is coupled to the end of the extended portion 1220, and is provided with a discharge port 1232 communicatively connected to the transfer path 1222; toothbrush bristles 1231 that are coupled to the implantation portion 1230; and a nipple 1500 that is coupled to the discharge port 1232 (see
The handgrip portion 1210, the extended portion 1220, and the implantation portion 1230 may be collectively referred to as a body portion 1200. The body portion 1200 may be divided into several portions, or may be formed as a single portion.
The nipple 1500 includes a nipple body portion 1510 that has an open bottom, is hollow inside, and is made of a flexible material; an upper plate member 1520 that is positioned on the top of the nipple body portion 1510, covers the top of the nipple body portion 1510, and is made of a flexible material; and a cut portion 1522 formed in the upper plate member 1520 (see
A pumping ball 1320 made of a flexible material is coupled to a pumping device 1300. The deformation pressure of the pumping ball 1320 is smaller than the critical pressure at which the cur portion 1522 is opened by the pressure of toothpaste inside the tooth brush. Accordingly, the pumping ball 1320 is deformed before the deformation pressure reaches the critical pressure.
The upper plate member 1520 has a structure in which a lower surface 1521 is convex downward. A thickness t1 of the central portion of the upper plate member 1520 is greater than a thickness t2 of the peripheral region thereof.
A protruding rim 1530 is formed in the peripheral region of an upper surface 1523 of the upper plate member 1520.
A lower wall 1511 of the nipple body portion 1510 is thicker than an upper wall 1512.
The handgrip portion 1210 is hollow inside. The handgrip portion 1210 may be formed through plastic injection.
A piston 1400 is guided and coupled to the inside of the handgrip portion 1210. A part of the handgrip portion 1210 which is positioned on the front side from the piston 1400 serves as a toothpaste storage 1212, and a part thereof which is positioned on the rear side serves as an air compressive room 1211. The piston 1400 presses the toothpaste stored in the toothpaste storage 1212, and thus, the toothpaste is moved toward the front side of the handgrip portion 1210 (see
The pumping device 1300 is coupled to the rear side of the handgrip portion 1210. Air is pushed into the air compressive room 1211 by using the pumping device 1300, and thus, it is possible to increase the pneumatic pressure. The piston 1400 is pushed forward by using the pneumatic pressure.
The pumping device 1300 includes a housing 1310 coupled to the handgrip portion 1210, the pumping ball 1320 which is coupled to the housing 1310 and is made of a flexible material, and a valve 1330 which is coupled to the pumping ball 1320 and is positioned within the handgrip portion 1210. A pumping hole 1322 is formed in the pumping ball 1320. When the pumping hole 1322 is blocked and the pumping ball 1320 is pressed, the internal air of the pumping ball 1320 is introduced into the air compressive room 1211 through the valve 1330. The valve 1330 blocks the air from flowing backward. Accordingly, when the pumping ball 1320 is pressed, the pneumatic pressure of the air compressive room 1211 is increased, and the piston 1400 is moved forward. A thickness of a part of the pumping ball 1320 which is exposed to the outside is less than a thickness of a part thereof which is coupled to the handgrip portion 1210. Accordingly, the part of the pumping ball 1320 exposed to the outside is deformed (see
When the pumping ball 1320 is continuously pressed, the pneumatic pressure of the air compressive room 1211 is increased. Thus, the piston 1400 presses the toothpaste storage 1212. However, when the pressure of the pumping ball 1320 reaches the deformation pressure, the air is not pushed into the air compressive room 1211 anymore. That is, when the pressure thereof reaches the deformation pressure, the air is not pushed into the air compressive room 1211, and the deformation of the pumping ball 1320 is caused by the pneumatic pressure, as shown in
The extended portion 1220 is coupled to the front end of the handgrip portion 1210. The transfer path 1222 is formed within the extended portion 1220, and the transfer path 1222 is communicatively connected to the inside of the handgrip portion 1210. Accordingly, the toothpaste of the toothpaste storage 1212 can be moved through the transfer path 1222.
The front end of the handgrip portion 1210 is inserted into the extended portion 1220 (see
A first protrusion ring 1223 and a second protrusion ring 1224 that is positioned on the outside of the first protrusion ring 1223 are formed on the outside of the extended portion 1220. A third protrusion ring 1213 and a fourth protrusion ring 1214 that is positioned in front of the third protrusion ring 1213 are formed at the front end of the handgrip portion 1210. When the extended portion 1220 and the handgrip portion 1210 are coupled, the first protrusion ring 1223 and the fourth protrusion ring 1214 are firmly coupled, and the second protrusion ring 1224 and the third protrusion ring 1213 are loosely coupled. Accordingly, the space between the first protrusion ring 1223 and the fourth protrusion ring 1214 is filled with the toothpaste, and is sealed due to the solidification of the toothpaste (see
The implantation portion 1230 is coupled to the end of the extended portion 1220. The discharge port 1232 communicatively connected to the transfer path 1222 is formed in the implantation portion 1230. The toothbrush bristles 1231 are implanted in the implantation portion 1230 (see
The nipple 1500 is coupled to the discharge port 1232. The nipple 1500 includes the nipple body portion 1510 that has an open bottom, is hollow inside, and is made of a flexible material; the upper plate member 1520 that is positioned on the top of the nipple body portion 1510, covers the top of the nipple body portion 1510, and is made of a flexible material; and the cut portion 1522 formed in the upper plate member 1520. The upper plate member 1520 has a structure in which the lower surface is convex downward. The thickness t1 of the central portion of the upper plate member 1520 is greater than the thickness t2 of the peripheral region thereof (see
The toothpaste reaching the discharge port 1232 is ultimately supplied to the toothbrush bristles 1231 through the cut portion 1522 of the nipple 1500. Particularly, the toothpaste is automatically discharged to the cut portion 1522 when the nipple 1550 is stimulated through the brushing of teeth. This process is described by referring to
In the nipple of
In the nipple 1500 of the present invention, the upper plate member 1520 has a structure in which the lower surface is convex downward, as shown in (b) of
Consequently, as the internal pressure becomes higher, the lower surface 1521 of the upper plate member 1520 closes the cut portion 1522, and the toothpaste is not discharged to the outside even at a high internal pressure. The toothpaste that is not discharged is stored in the nipple body portion 1510, and the nipple body portion 1510 is bulging. Since the nipple 1500 is made of a flexible material such as silicones, the nipple is used even though the internal pressure is increased to some extent.
Meanwhile, when the pressure exceeds the critical pressure, the cut portion 1522 of the nipple 1500 is completely opened. That is, when the piston 1400 pushes the toothpaste and the internal pressure of the nipple 1500 is increased, the cut portion 1522 is not opened until the critical pressure. A method of increasing the critical pressure is determined based on a structural shape of the upper plate member 1520, the thickness of the upper plate member 1520, the material of the nipple 1500, or the material of the upper plate member 1520, as in the present embodiment. It is preferable that the cut portion 1522 is closed when there is not external stimulation. The toothpaste is continuously discharged from the cut portion 1522 opened once until the internal pressure disappears. Accordingly, it is preferable that the internal pressure of the nipple 1500 is not increased until the critical pressure.
Since the pumping device of the related art does not have a function of adjusting a pressure, when the user excessively presses the pumping device, the toothpaste is continuously discharged through the cut portion. However, in the present embodiment, since the deformation pressure of the pumping ball 1320 is less than the critical pressure of the cut portion 1522, the pumping ball 1320 is deformed (it's like that when a balloon is pressed, the periphery of the balloon protrudes) as shown in
The toothpaste within the nipple 1500 is discharged only when the nipple 1500 is shaken from side to side. As shown in (c) of
When the nipple 1500 is touched through the brushing of the teeth, the cut portion 1622 is deviated and is opened, as shown in (c) and (d) of
Particularly, since only a small amount of toothpaste 1600 is discharged through the nipple 1500, 2 g of toothpaste is consumed when the user brushes their teeth once. This amount is an international recommended allowance, and is helpful in improving tooth health and saving the toothpaste.
Meanwhile, the lower wall 1511 of the nipple body portion 1510 is thicker than the upper wall 1512. The lower wall 1511 is coupled to the discharge port 1232, and the discharge port 1232 has a short pipe shape. The lower wall 1511 of the nipple body portion 1510 is coupled while covering the outer periphery of the discharge port 1232. When the pressure of the toothpaste 1600 is transferred to the nipple 1500, the upper wall 1512 is thin and is expanded. However, it is preferable that the lower wall 1511 is not expanded in order to be coupled to the discharge port 1232.
The protruding rim 1530 is formed in the peripheral region of the upper surface of the upper plate member 1520 of the nipple 1500. Accordingly, it is possible to prevent the cut portion 1522 from being additionally cut anymore in a cut direction.
The embodiment of the present invention has been described in detail, but is merely one embodiment, and is not intended to limit the claims of the present invention. The scopes equivalent to the present embodiment, and the scopes modified and added by those skilled in the art are incorporated in the scope of the present invention.
The present invention is applicable to the toothbrush industry.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10-2013-0043331 | Apr 2013 | KR | national |
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/KR2014/002869 | 4/3/2014 | WO | 00 |
