JPH0440905A - Motor-driven rolling toothbrush - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To have the advantage of a rolling toothbrush, and also, to execute brushing of a scrub method and a bath method by providing a driving mechanism for converting rotary power of a motor to a reciprocating rotary motion and transferring it to a head part, and constituting the head part so that it can be allowed to execute the reciprocating rotary motion by a prescribed rotation angle and at a prescribed speed. CONSTITUTION:A toothbrush is constituted of a head part 10 and a grip part 12, and the head part 10 is constituted so as to be detachable and attachable from and to the grip part 12. The grip part 12 is constituted of an outer cylinder 28 having a conductive part 27 in about the center part, a motor 30 which can rotate forward and backward, a battery 29, a power change/driving mechanism 32 for converting a rotary motion of the motor 30 to a reciprocating rotary motion, and a conductive material, and also, constituted of a supporting shaft 34 protruded and extended from the grip part 12. The toothbrush can switch a rotation angle and a speed of the recipro cating rotary motion, and by setting comparatively small a rotary stroke, a brush hair executes a motion being approximate to a linear reciprocating motion of a small stroke, and when the toothbrush is held roughly vertically, the brush hair executes a horizontal minute stroke reciprocating motion and what is called a bath method and a scrub method are attained.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Industrial Application Field] The present invention relates to an electric toothbrush, and more particularly to an electric rolling toothbrush whose head portion or grip portion can be separated and rotated in a reciprocating manner.

[Prior Art] According to an announcement by the World Health Organization, most people over the age of 40 suffer from periodontal disease. This is likely due to the strong belief that daily tooth brushing is a boring and troublesome task, and people are not learning the correct way to brush their teeth and are not brushing all their teeth properly, or are not brushing for enough time. This is due to being present.

Currently, the most effective way to remove plaque, both theoretically and practically, is to
The best tooth brushing methods for preventing periodontal disease are the so-called suffle method and Hass method. This tooth brushing method is a method in which the tips of the brush bristles are applied perpendicularly to tooth surfaces or so as to pierce the boundaries between teeth, and are moved approximately reciprocatingly in short strokes of about a few millimeters. The disadvantages of this tooth brushing method are that it is difficult for the average person to carry out, it is time consuming, the hand and arm holding the toothbrush gets tired, and there is little sense of accomplishment in brushing the teeth, so if you are not careful, you will reciprocate. The movement stroke becomes larger, and there is a risk of wedge-shaped defects, gingival recession, and hypersensitivity that wear away the tooth roots and gums.

Therefore, in recent years, so-called electric toothbrushes that use electric motors for brushing work have become commercially available, and products have been proposed that allow the brushing methods described above to be performed using the lotus method or the fluff method by simply placing the brush bristles against the teeth. ing. Conventional examples include JP-A-57-166108 and JP-A-5
8-69505, JP-A No. 58-105709, and JP-B No. 42-27372.

[Problem to be solved by the invention] However, there are three problems with these conventional or commercially available electric toothbrushes.
Although the reciprocating stroke of the brush bristles matches the Hass method, it still does not satisfy the sense of accomplishment and does not meet the needs of general consumers who are amateurs in tooth brushing methods. Furthermore, since the rotational power of the motor is converted into approximately reciprocating motion in the axial direction of the head, the structure is complicated and expensive, and this point also does not meet the needs of customers. Since it reciprocates in the axial direction, there is a risk that the tip of the head may collide with teeth, etc. when moving the head within the oral cavity, which is uncomfortable. This is particularly noticeable when the reciprocating speed is increased to satisfy the above sense of accomplishment.

On the other hand, there are conventional electric low-link toothbrushes that swing the bristles by reciprocating the head body around its axis (for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 59-4
No. 0807, JP-A No. 57-69806). Compared to axially reciprocating toothbrushes, this rolling toothbrush does not collide with the head or teeth, gives the user a sense of accomplishment when brushing, has a simple structure, and is less noisy. It has the advantage of being energy efficient, as even a small rotation of the head can sufficiently swing the bristles. However, because the amount of movement of the bristles is generally large, it is not possible to perform the above-mentioned scrub method or lotus tooth brushing method. No dirt removal effect can be expected.

The present invention has been made in order to eliminate the disadvantages of the conventional electric toothbrush that reciprocates in the axial direction, and its purpose is to alleviate the advantages of the electric rolling toothbrush described above,
To provide an electric rolling toothbrush which is also capable of scrubbing and bath brushing.

[Means for Solving the Problems] In order to achieve the above object, the present invention includes a gripping portion having a motor, and a head portion which is removably connected to the gripping portion and has brush bristles or bristles implanted therein. and a drive mechanism that converts the rotational power of the motor into reciprocating rotational motion and transmits it to the head section, and is configured to rotate the head section back and forth at a predetermined rotation angle and speed. be.

[Operations] When an electric low-link toothbrush with this structure is held approximately horizontally and operated, the bristles exhibit a so-called rolling behavior, which is effective for brushing the surfaces of teeth, etc., and also reduces the user's need for flushing. It can give you a satisfying sense of accomplishment.

If the rotation angle of the reciprocating rotation of the head section is set to a relatively small value or is selected by switching, the brush bristles exhibit a movement similar to a linear reciprocating motion with a short stroke talk. Therefore, by holding the water jar brush almost vertically and operating it, the brush bristles exhibit a watery reciprocating motion with short strokes, allowing them to reach fine areas without damaging the gums or causing the flage bristles to move wildly. It becomes possible to achieve flushing similar to the lotus method. In addition, regarding the gaps that exist above and below the interdental area, even when this toothbrush is held approximately horizontally, the flange bristles exhibit an almost vertical reciprocating motion with a short stroke, so to speak, by rotating the lotus method 90 degrees. This results in a clean flushing process that effectively removes the plaque in the gap.

[Example] Hereinafter, the present invention will be explained based on embodiments shown in the drawings.

1 and 2 show an embodiment of the electric rolling toothbrush of the present invention. In particular, this embodiment can switch the rotation angle and speed of the reciprocating rotary motion, and also has the function of a so-called electronic toothbrush. It is a toothbrush.

First, this toothbrush is mainly composed of a head portion 10 and a gripping portion 12, and the head portion 10 is configured to be detachable from the gripping portion 12. The head portion 10 is made of, for example, synthetic resin, and has brush bristles 14 on its head.
From the base of the bristles to the vicinity of the root base of the bristles 14, the supporting shaft support (to be described later) has an insertion hole 16 as a structure.
is formed. Reference numeral 18 denotes a communication hole as a part of a liquid path that forms a conductive path using liquid as a medium, and this communication hole 18 allows communication between the head surface 19 near the root base of the brush bristles 14 and the inside of the insertion hole 16. It is now possible to do so. The proximal end side of the head portion IO is formed into a bifurcated shape, thereby forming a head-side locking portion 20 . The head-side locking portion 20 has a shape complementary to a grip-side locking portion to be described later, and has a pair of recesses 22 . Note that the reference numeral 26 is a slit.

On the other hand, the gripping part 12 mainly includes an outer cylinder 28 having a conductive part 27 formed by coating a conductive metal on the front and back surfaces of a synthetic resin cylinder, for example, in the substantially central part, and a main body contained in the outer cylinder 28. A reversible motor 30 and this motor 3
0 as a power source, and a power exchange/drive mechanism 32 (third
(see figure), and a support shaft 34 that is made of a conductive material and that protrudes and extends from the grip portion 12. In this embodiment, a rechargeable battery 29 is used, and a coil (secondary coil) 31 for charging the battery 29 is housed in the base end of the outer tube 28, and the grip part 12 is placed on the mounting table 33. When inserted and placed in the holder, it faces the primary coil 35.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the rotational power of the motor 3o is first transferred to the pinion 36 in the power conversion/drive mechanism 32.
and is transmitted to the gear 38. This gear 38 has the ninth and first gears.
As shown in FIG. 0, an eccentric cam 42 eccentrically rotated from a fixed shaft 40 supporting the gear 38. Eccentric cam 4
2 is integral with the gear 38. A pair of stepped retaining portions 61A and 61B are formed on a part of the outer periphery of the eccentric cam 42.

The eccentric cam 42 is fitted into a bore 43A of a second eccentric cam 43 having the structure shown in FIGS. 7 and 8. Reference numeral 62 denotes an engaging protrusion that projects integrally from the second eccentric cam 43, and when the eccentric cam 42 rotates in either the forward or reverse direction, the engaging protrusion 62 or the retaining portion of the eccentric cam 42 Both eccentric cams 42 and 43 can rotate together in a state where they are engaged with either one of 61A and 61B. An eccentric protrusion 63 is protrudingly provided on the other end surface of the second eccentric cam 43, and the amount of eccentricity of the eccentric protrusion 63 from the fixed shaft 40 is such that the eccentric protrusion 63 engages with the engaging protrusion 62 or the retaining part 61A. The case is different depending on the case and the case where the engagement part 61B is engaged. That is, by switching the rotation direction of the motor 30, the amount of eccentricity of the eccentric protrusion 63 can be switched.

This eccentric protrusion 63 engages with the elongated hole 46 of the swinging member 44,
The swinging member 44 is fitted at its upper portion onto a support shaft 34 extending inside the outer cylinder 28 . The support shaft 34 is rotatably supported by a support member 48 at the distal end portion of the outer cylinder 28. Therefore, due to the rotation of the motor 30, the eccentric protrusion 63 rotates eccentrically around the fixed shaft 40 together with the eccentric cam 42 by an eccentric amount corresponding to the rotation direction of the eccentric protrusion 63, thereby sliding in the elongated hole 46 of the swinging member 44. As a result, the swinging member 44 and, in turn, the support shaft 34 reciprocate and rotate at a rotation angle corresponding to the amount of eccentricity.

The support shaft 34 protrudes from the tip opening of the outer cylinder 28, and the protruding portion is provided with a grip-side locking portion having a shape corresponding to the head-side locking portion 20 of the head portion 10, as shown in FIG. 5
5 is formed. This gripping part side locking part 55 is a protrusion 5 that fits into the forked part of the head side locking part 20.
6, and this protrusion 56 is integrally formed with a protrusion 57 for matching with the recess 22.

Next, a description will be given of an effect in which the swing angle of the swing member 44, that is, the rotation angle of the support shaft 34, is switched by switching the rotation direction of the motor 30 between forward and reverse directions.

As shown in FIGS. 6A and 6B, the center of the shaft 40 supporting the gear 38 is the center of the eccentric cam 42 integral with the C1 gear 38, and the second
Let A be the center of the eccentric protrusion 63 of the eccentric cam 43.

Now, when the eccentric cam 42 integrated with the gear 38 rotates forward, that is, counterclockwise in the direction of the arrow in the state shown in FIG. Therefore, the second eccentric cam 43 also rotates around the shaft 40 while maintaining the relative relationship shown in FIG. 6A. That is, the eccentric protrusion 63 of the second eccentric cam 43 rotates eccentrically while being eccentric by the distance □ from the center C of the shaft 40 to the center A of the eccentric protrusion 63. As a result, the eccentric protrusion 63 slides along the length of the swinging member 44 as shown by the imaginary line, and swings the swinging member 44 around the center of the support shaft 34 by one rotation angle 2θ.

Conversely, when the eccentric cam 42 rotates clockwise around the shaft 4o, in? From the IA state, only the eccentric cam 42 rotates and the engaging portion 61B comes into contact with the engaging protrusion 62 of the second eccentric cam 43, and then the second eccentric cam 43 also rotates together. The situation is shown in FIG. 6B. Here, the center A of the eccentric protrusion 63 is located closer to the center C than the center B of the eccentric cam 42. That is, the eccentric protrusion 63 has an eccentric amount f
It rotates eccentrically with L2. As a result, the swinging member 44
oscillates at a rotation angle of 2θ2.

In this way, when the motor 30 rotates forward, the eccentric protrusion 6
The amount of eccentricity with respect to the shaft 40 of 3 is also 2 when rotating in the opposite direction, and in each case, the swinging member 44 and the supporting shaft 34
The rotation angles of the reciprocating rotation are 2θ1 and 2θ2. Here, for example, if sentence □ is 4 mm and sentence 2 is 2 mm,
The respective rotation angles are set to θ1 or 15 degrees, and θ2 or 7.5 degrees. When θ1 or 15 degrees (stroke 30 degrees), the rotation angle is almost the same as that of a conventional electric rolling toothbrush, but when θ2 or 7.5 degrees (stroke 15 degrees), the rotation angle is half, and the brush bristles are exhibits a motion similar to a linear reciprocating motion with a small stroke.

It should be noted that this switching mechanism does not need to be limited to the above-mentioned structure, and in practice, when the motor is switched between the forward and reverse directions, the engaging element of the second eccentric force is selected between the two retaining parts of the eccentric cam. Any type of material may be used as long as it engages with the material and allows the amount of eccentricity of the eccentric protrusion to be switched.

FIG. 11 shows, in this embodiment, a function for charging the battery 29, a function for switching the motor 30 between forward and reverse directions, a support shaft 34 and a conductive part 27 for making the brush function as an electronic toothbrush. An example of an electrical circuit that functions to conduct electricity is shown. As shown in FIG. 2, the main parts of this electric circuit include a substrate 64 fixed to the base end side of the motor 30, lead wires for connecting each element arranged on the substrate 64, and an outer cylinder 28. It is constituted by a switch knob 66 provided on the outer periphery of the switch. The switch knob 66 has a magnet 67, for example (see FIG. 3), and turns on a reed switch (not shown).
Should I configure a non-contact switch to turn it off?

As shown in FIG. 11, diodes D, .
By connecting D and capacitor C as shown in the figure, a so-called half-wave voltage doubler rectifier circuit is constructed, and its output terminal is connected to an appropriate electrode of rechargeable battery 29, and battery 2
9 can be charged. The positive electrode of the battery 29 is connected to one terminal 30 of the motor 30 via a switch S.
A and is also connected to the other terminal 30B of the motor 30 via a switch S2. Also battery 2
The negative electrode of 9 is connected to the terminal 30B of the motor 30 through the switch S,
' and a diode D3 in series with this, and a switch S2 is connected to the terminal 30A of the motor 30.
'Connected via '. The switches S□ and S1' and the switches S2 and S2' are configured to be turned on and off simultaneously by operating the switch knob 66.

Therefore, when the switches SI and S are turned on, the positive electrode of the battery 29 is connected to the terminal 30A of the motor 30, and the terminal 30B is connected to the terminal 30A of the motor 30.
The negative electrode of the battery 29 is connected to the motor 30.
For example, rotates in the forward direction. Conversely, when the switches S2 and S2' are turned on by operating the switch knob 66, the switch S
1 and SI' are in the OFF state, opposite electrodes are connected to the respective terminals of the motor 30, and the motor 30 rotates in the reverse direction. Here, during forward rotation as indicated by the solid line arrow, since the diode D1 is interposed in the middle of the circuit, this diode D3 becomes a resistance, and the motor 30
Reduce the rotation speed of. During the reverse rotation shown by the dotted line in the figure, there is no such resistance, so the motor 30 rotates at a higher speed. Therefore, by switching the switch knob 66, the motor 30 is switched between forward and reverse directions to switch the rotation angle of the reciprocating rotation of the support shaft as described above, and at the same time, the rotation speed of the motor 30 is reduced in either rotation. For example, it may be possible to set the speed at a high speed of 3,500 rpm during forward rotation and the extremely high speed of 4.500 rpm during reverse rotation.

Therefore, by appropriately setting the voltage of the battery 29, the resistance value of the diode D3, etc., and setting the eccentricity 1 and the angle 2 in the rotation angle switching mechanism to predetermined values, the switching operation of the switch knob 66 can be performed. For example, in one embodiment, when the motor 30 rotates forward, the cycle or speed is 3,500 seconds at a large rotation angle of 30 degrees.
/win, and stroke 15 with a small rotation angle when rotating in reverse.
It is preferred that the cycle time be 4,500 s/layer. In this case, the reciprocating rotational speed of the brush is at least 3,500 s/sin, which is faster than the speed of commercially available electric toothbrushes, giving the user a more satisfying sense of accomplishment during brushing. . For example, if the stroke is 30 degrees and the speed is 3,500 s/win, it is better to brush the tips of the bristles or the surfaces of the teeth that are easy to reach.
If you switch to /win and brush the uneven areas, the boundary between teeth and gums, etc., you will be able to do extremely effective brushing work in a short time, and you will also have a satisfying sense of accomplishment.

Furthermore, in this embodiment, as shown in FIG.
7 are connected, and the support shaft 34 is connected in parallel with the other terminal 30B. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 2, an elastic L-shaped connecting fitting 68 extends from the substrate 64, and this connecting fitting 68 is pressed against the inner surface of the conductive part 27. There is. Since the conductive part 27 is coated with a conductive material such as metal, the conductive part 2
7 is charged with the same polarity as the terminal 30A. On the other hand, the support shaft 3
As shown in FIGS. 3 and 5, the connecting fitting 70 is elastically abutted on the proximal end surface of the connecting member 4. As shown in FIGS. ! 1
The c-connection fitting 70 is connected to the circuit on the board 64 via a lead wire 71. As a result, the support shaft 34 is connected to the motor 30.
It is charged with the same polarity as the terminal 30B.

According to this embodiment, an electric rolling toothbrush and electronic toothbrush can be provided. That is, the user attaches the head part lO to the grip part 12 and turns the switch knob 66 to O.
When the N operation is performed, the power from the battery 29 is supplied to the motor 30 so that the motor 30 can rotate in either direction, causing the head portion 10 to rotate back and forth, and the conductive portion 27 and the support shaft 34 being charged with different polarities. When you grip the grip part 12 with your hand, touch the conductive part 27 with your hand, and insert the brush bristles 14 of the head part 10 into your mouth to brush, the bristles 14 and the communication hole 18 of the head part 10 may be removed by saliva etc. Get wet. As a result, power → hand → body → teeth - plush bristles 14 →
An electrical circuit from liquid such as saliva to the support shaft 34 to the power source is constructed, thereby generating a flow of electrons and making it easier to effectively remove dental plaque from the tooth surface.

Here, in conventional electronic tooth flaps, the electrode on the grip side was usually the positive electrode and the brush bristles side was the negative electrode, and the inventor wondered if the function of the electronic tooth flap was effective even in this polarity or in the opposite case. revealed by research. In other words, dental plaque that exists in the oral cavity is composed of bacteria that are either positively or negatively charged, and if the brush bristles are negatively charged, they are attracted to the surface or positively charged bacteria or brush bristles, and the bristles are attracted to the surface. Bacteria that are negatively charged exhibit behavior that is repelled by repulsive force, and the opposite behavior occurs when the bristles are positively charged.

In the embodiment described above, the rotation angle of the reciprocating rotation of the head portion 10, that is, the stroke, can be switched in two stages, and the speed can be switched in two stages, and two combinations can be selected from these by operating a switch. However, there is no need to limit it to this, for example, two types of strokes and two
It may be possible to arbitrarily select each type of speed,
Alternatively, it may be possible to switch only either the stroke or the speed, or even there may be no switching function for either the stroke or the speed. As a further variant, the stroke or speed may be changed periodically by operation of the switch mechanism, ie, for example, the first 3 seconds of high speed and small strokes, the next 3 seconds of stroke or speed.
A second is a slow speed and a large stroke.

Among these various modifications, FIG. 12 shows an embodiment in which the battery 29 rotates in only one direction, only the reciprocating rotation speed of the brush bristles is changed, and the rotation stroke is not changed. The circuit shown in FIG. 12 is different from the circuit shown in FIG. The switch S2 is connected, and the diode D4 for preventing radio noise and stopping the motor is connected in parallel to the motor 30. O of the swift S□ than when the switch S2 is ON.
Since the rotational speed of the motor 30 is reduced by the resistance of the diode D3 in the N state, it is possible to switch the reciprocating speed.

! FIG. 13 shows another embodiment of the structure for constructing an electronic toothbrush. In this embodiment, a conductive member 81 is buried close to the brush bristles 14 in place of the communication hole provided in the head portion. A conductive coil 82 extends from the conductive member 81 toward the proximal end, and is connected to the support shaft 34. Note that a cylindrical conductive rubber or the like may be used instead of the conductive member 81 and the conductive coil 82. Here, if the entire head portion 10 is made of a conductive material, the conductive member 81. coil 8
2 and the communication hole 18 are no longer necessary.

In addition, in FIG. 13, it is also possible to fixedly connect the head part IO to the support shaft 34 at a position where the head part IO is inserted into the grip part 12.

In the above embodiments, an example of an electric toothbrush that also serves as an electronic toothbrush has been shown, but the present invention also includes the case of an electric toothbrush that is an ordinary toothbrush that does not have the function of an electronic toothbrush.

[Effects] As explained above, according to the present invention, since the head part is reciprocated and rotated at a predetermined rotation stroke and speed, it is possible to give the user a sense of accomplishment in brushing, and also to brush all parts in the oral cavity. It is possible to effectively remove plaque from the teeth, and achieve the energy efficiency, simple structure, and noise reduction of an electric rolling toothbrush.

In particular, by setting the rotational stroke relatively small, the brush bristles move in a manner similar to linear reciprocating motion with small strokes. Therefore, for example, if this toothbrush is held approximately vertically, the bristles will move in horizontal micro-stroke reciprocating motions. This is an extremely excellent effect in that it achieves the so-called lotus method or scrub method.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Fig. 1 is a side view of an embodiment of the electric toothbrush according to the present invention, Fig. 2 is a partially cutaway exploded plan view of Fig. 1, and Fig. 3 is an enlarged sectional view of the main part of the grip of the same embodiment. , Figure 4 is m in Figure 3.
5 is a sectional view taken along line V-EV in FIG. 4, and FIGS. 6A and 6B are schematic diagrams showing the operation of the rotation angle switching mechanism of the same embodiment. 7 is a side view of the second eccentric cam of the same embodiment, FIG. 8 is a right side view of FIG. 7, and FIG. 9 is a front view of the gears and members constituting the eccentric cam of the same embodiment. Fig. 10 is a right side view of the same, Fig. 11 is a circuit diagram of the same embodiment, Fig. 12 is a circuit diagram of another embodiment, and Fig. 13 is a circuit diagram of the same embodiment.
The figure is a schematic diagram showing another embodiment of the electronic tooth flange structure. 10--Head part 12--Gripping part 14--Brush bristles 30--Motor 2--Power conversion mechanism 4--Spindle 2.43--Eccentric cam 4--Swinging Member 6...Elongated hole 3...Eccentric protrusion

Claims (1)

[Claims] a gripping portion having a motor; a head portion removably connected to the gripping portion and having brush bristles implanted therein; and a drive mechanism that converts rotational power of the motor into reciprocating rotational motion and transmits the same to the head portion. An electric rolling toothbrush comprising: a head portion configured to reciprocate and rotate at a predetermined rotation angle and speed.