EP0467126B1 - Brush, particularly mascara brush - Google Patents

Description

The invention is directed to a brush, in particular a mascara brush, a plurality of bristles being fixed between twisted wire sections and extending in all directions from these twisted wire sections, the bristles having different cross-sectional dimensions in the longitudinal direction.

Such brushes, in particular mascara brushes are e.g. known from EP-A-0 343 075 and known for many years. While such brushes, originally with natural bristles, e.g. Goat bristles, equipped with such a stock due to the non-circular cross-section of the natural hair and the tubular structure of these natural hair, had an even tip distribution, later gave brushes made using synthetic fibers with a round, full cross-section the twisting configuration of the wires in the form of helical turns during the distribution of the Bristle tips again.

This structuring was initially welcomed for mascara brushes. In the course of further development, attempts were made again, in particular for mascara products of a certain composition and consistency, that had already been realized with natural hair to achieve even tip distribution of the bristles over the outer surface of the brush.

For this purpose, according to EP-A-o 25o 68o it is provided that synthetic fibers with a non-circular, e.g. cruciform, or with a tubular hollow cross-section can be used in this way, the non-circular configuration of animal hair, such as Goat hair, to empathize.

For some applications, however, bristles made of hollow fibers or with a cross-shaped cross-section are not suitable, in particular because these fibers tend to absorb mascara liquid due to a certain capillary action, but on the other hand the release behavior is not satisfactory at certain mascara viscosities.

Proceeding from this, the object of the invention is to design a brush, in particular a mascara brush of the type mentioned at the outset, in such a way that advantageous application properties and as uniform a tip distribution as possible are achieved without, if this does not appear desirable, a capillary effect being accepted have to.

This object is achieved by the features of the characterizing part of claim 1.

The use of such fibers leads to very voluminous, evenly distributed brushes, which is due to the fact that the twisted wires on the bristles attack statistically distributed once in areas of larger and once in areas of smaller diameter and accordingly a statistical distribution of the geometrical attack conditions of the wires arises on the bristles, which in turn is reflected in a statistical distribution of the tips of the bristles.

A similar effect of statistically distributed attack conditions with regard to the retention of the bristles is achieved in that the wires have a non-circular cross section, it being possible in particular to provide that the wire sections have a rectangular cross section, e.g. are square.

Wires of this type are commercially available in the qualities required for the production of brushes and accordingly enable rational producibility. With such wires the effect achieved with such fibers is further enhanced when using stretched fibers, however, using such wires can also achieve a more or less statistical distribution of the tips with conventional fibers having a uniform thickness in the longitudinal direction.

A further modification of the basic idea of the invention to achieve a statistical distribution of the force interaction between bristles and wire sections consists in that wire sections with a structured surface are used. With such a surface structure, each individual bristle fixed between the wire sections encounters differently directed holding forces, which in turn leads to a largely uniform tip distribution.

Furthermore, it can be provided in the context of the invention that the wire sections are provided with a relatively soft plastic coating. This also resolves the defined geometric relationships, which lead to the formation of a screw configuration between uniformly round fibers on the one hand and uniformly round wire cross sections on the other hand, which in turn leads to a change in appearance in the sense of a more uniform tip distribution.

The use of plastic-coated wire sections is known per se from dental brushes, the plastic coating serving there to avoid electrical potentials perceived as painful between the wire and amalgam fillings during tooth cleaning. In addition, cleaning brushes, for example for furniture, with such plastic-coated wire sections have also become known, the plastic there essentially serving to contact a motor vehicle or furniture part to be cleaned Avoid damaging these parts due to the bare wire surface.

In particular in the case of mascara brushes, in addition to its influence on the tip distribution, the plastic coating can also achieve a further advantageous effect by selecting it in such a way that it has surface properties that repel mascara carrier liquid. This ensures that the mascara liquid, which is often observed in known mascara brushes, does not attach to the surface of the wires between adjacent bristles, which leads to clumping, which in turn can settle on the eyelashes.

Accordingly, when using such mascara brushes for water-based mascara liquids, it is preferred to use a plastic which either has hydrophobic surface properties from the outset or whose surface is subsequently treated accordingly in order to achieve such properties.

The plastic-coated wire sections can be advantageously implemented by applying the plastic coating to the wire by extrusion.

In particular in the case of such an application by extrusion, it is also possible, by using appropriate extrusion nozzles, to form and structure the surface of the plastic coating in a structured manner in this way to reinforce the "statistical" intervention properties described above.

In all the embodiments described above, it is possible to cut the bristles after twisting the wires to produce an asymmetrical brush cross-section, so that e.g. depending on the desired application properties, the side with shorter and accordingly stiffer bristles or the side with longer and accordingly softer bristles can be used.

In a further embodiment, the bristles are formed from two plastic components, the inner component forming a kind of soft core and surrounded by a harder plastic like a jacket. Such a configuration mimics the build-up of natural hair and accordingly achieves a comparable effect to that of natural hair.

Furthermore, it can be provided that the bristles are designed as hollow fibers which are interrupted by a plurality of inner webs. For example, the inner webs can be arranged approximately in a cross shape, so that the hollow fiber cavity is divided into four very small cross-section capillaries. This avoids an undesirable capillary action in the case of larger cross sections.

Another embodiment provides that the bristles are S-shaped in cross section, wherein the S-bends extend almost completely in a circle and form the longitudinal channels.

Another embodiment provides that the fibers used are undulated or undulated or that they run in a jagged manner, which e.g. can be achieved by treatment with a gear combination after extrusion, or that they are even bent, which also leads to a statistical, uneven tip distribution.

Ultimately, it can also be provided that the wire sections used are designed as hollow tubular pipe sections on the inside, in order to create different holding conditions when twisting them from place to place.

Fig. 1

eine perspektivische Ansicht einer erfindungsgemäßen Bürste, welche als Mascara-Bürste ausgebildet ist,

Fig. 2

eine Darstellung der Drahtabschnitte mit den eingelegten Borsten vor dem Verdrillen,

Fig. 3

eine schematische perspektivische Darstellung eines Abschnitts der verdrillten Drähte mit dazwischen festgelegten Borsten mit unterschiedlichem Durchmesser,

Fig. 4

einen Schnitt durch Drahtabschnitte mit rundem Außenquerschnitt und rauher Oberfläche,

Fig. 5

einen Schnitt durch Drahtabschnitte mit rechteckigem Querschnitt und

Fig. 6

eine Ausführungsform, bei der im Querschnitt runde Drahtabschnitte mit einem Kunststoffmantel versehen sind.

The invention is described in more detail below on the basis of preferred exemplary embodiments in conjunction with the drawing. Show

Fig. 1

2 shows a perspective view of a brush according to the invention, which is designed as a mascara brush,

Fig. 2

a representation of the wire sections with the inserted bristles before twisting,

Fig. 3

1 shows a schematic perspective illustration of a section of the twisted wires with bristles of different diameters fixed in between,

Fig. 4

a section through wire sections with a round outer cross section and a rough surface,

Fig. 5

a section through wire sections with a rectangular cross section and

Fig. 6

an embodiment in which round wire sections are provided with a plastic sheath in cross section.

A mascara brush shown in the drawing comprises two wire sections 1, 2, which are created by bending a continuous piece of wire 3. A plurality of bristles 4 is inserted between these wire sections 1, 2 in a manner known per se, twisting of the wire sections ensuring that the tips 5 of the bristles 4 protrude from the wire sections 1, 2 on all sides, as shown in FIG. 1, with FIG. 1 also showing that the wire sections 1, 2 are fixed in a handle 6 at the end.

In order to achieve the uniform distribution of the tips 5 which can be seen in FIG. 1, there are various possibilities illustrated in connection with FIGS. 3 to 6, which have the basic idea that one tries to attack the wire sections 1, 2 from bristle to bristle to create, so that the screw structure resulting from the twisting of the wire sections 1, 2 is dissolved and is no longer reflected in the distribution of the tips 5.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 3, the wire sections 1, 2 are formed from a round wire 3. The bristles 4 are formed by sections of fibers which, viewed in the longitudinal direction, have different diameters D1, D2, but the cross-sectional configuration is round over the entire length.

As enlarged and exaggerated in Fig. 3, there are statistically distributed between the wire sections 1,2 once bristle sections with the maximum diameter D1 and once bristle sections with the minimum diameter D2 and continuously intermediate diameters, so that 4 different holding conditions for each bristle arise and accordingly the individual bristles extend at different angles from the wire sections 1, 2 in relation to their longitudinal axes at the stopping point. This leads to the uniform distribution of the tips 5 shown in FIG. 1.

In an alternative embodiment, as shown in Fig. 4, the round wire sections 1 ', 2' have a rough surface 7, so that this also means that there are no defined angular relationships at the holding point of the bristle 4 and a uniform tip distribution is achieved.

In the embodiment according to FIG. 5, the wire 3 and accordingly the wire sections 1 ″, 2 ″ have a square cross section. The tips of the bristles 4 extend radially outwards depending of where the edges 8 attack the bristle in each individual case.

In the embodiment according to FIG. 6, the wire sections 1 ″ ″, 2 ″ ″ are surrounded by a plastic sheath 9 made of soft plastic, which is pressed together at the bristles 4 in the area of engagement. When using a mascara brush for water-based mascara products, the plastic sheath 9 or the surface of the plastic sheath 10 is adjusted so that the surface is water-repellent, so that the mascara product is prevented from sticking to the surface of the wires.

Claims (13)

1. A brush, in particular a mascara brush, in which a plurality of bristles is secured between twisted wire segments and extends on all sides away from these twisted wire segments, the bristles having varying cross-sectional dimensions viewed longitudinally, characterized in that the bristles (4) are embodied as plastic fibers with an essentially round cross section drawn upon extrusion with varying removal forces, the diameter (D1 or D2) of the fibers essentially being alternatingly larger and smaller, viewed longitudinally.
2. A brush, in particular a mascara brush, in which a plurality of bristles is secured between twisted segments of fibers and extends on all sides away from these twisted wire segments, characterized in that the wire segments (1', 2') have a textured surface (7).
3. The brush, in particular of claim 1, characterized in that the wire segments (1''', 2''') are provided with a relatively soft plastic coating (9).
4. The brush of claim 3, characterized in that the plastic coating (9) has surface properties that repel mascara-carrying fluid.
5. The brush of claim 4, characterized in that the plastic coating (9) has hydrophobic surface properties.
6. The brush of claim 3, characterized in that the wire (3) is coated with the plastic coating (9) by extrusion.
7. The brush of claim 3, characterized in that the surface (10) of the plastic coating (9) is textured.
8. The brush of one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that the brushes (4), after the twisting of the wire segments (1, 2) are cut, creating an asymmetrical brush cross section.
9. The brush, in particular of claim 1, characterized in that the bristles comprise two plastic components, the softer component of which is located on the inside and is surrounded by the other, harder component in jacket-like fashion.
10. The brush, in particular of claim 1, characterized in that the bristles are embodied by fibers that have a plurality of hollow conduits extending longitudinally, which are separated from one another by transverse ribs.
11. The brush of claim 10, characterized in that the bristles have an S configuration in cross section, the longitudinal conduits being formed by the inside of the S curves.
12. The brush, in particular of claim 1, characterized in that the bristles are embodied as extending in zig-zagged, undulating or curved fashion longitudinally.
13. The brush, in particular of claim 1, characterized in that the wire segments are embodied as tubular wire segments having an internal hollow space.

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