Stimulant

Description

[0001] The invention relates to a stimulation device with locally limited shape change, which can be used, for example, as a sexual or therapeutic aid, such as a massage device or an exercise device.

[0002] Massage devices are typically used to mechanically influence the skin, connective tissue, and muscles through stretching, pulling, and pressure. The massage effect extends from the treated area of ​​the body throughout the entire organism, including the psyche.

[0003] Massage devices that change their external shape are known from practice. For example, there are massage devices that can be pneumatically inflated, thus changing their volume and thus their shape. Massage devices that can increase their body volume using a mechanical rotating and sliding mechanism are also known.

[0004] A vibrator with a housing and a silicone sleeve connected to the housing as well as a vibration-generating electric motor is known from DE 10 2012 109 409 A1.

[0005] Furthermore, according to DE 10 2006 005 358 A1, a dildo is known whose dildo body consists of a cylindrical part and a front end and has electrical heating means and connecting elements for connection to a power source, wherein the heating means are a heating foil arranged in a tubular manner in the cylindrical part.

[0006] According to US 6,599,236 B1, a dildo has a heating coil as a heating element, which can be controlled via a thermostat in order to adjust the dildo to a desired temperature.

[0007] Such massage devices or dildos are often made of a rubber-elastic material or have a casing made of a rubber-elastic material.

[0008] According to DE 10 2012 019 842 A1, a massage device is known with at least one rubber-elastic deformable wall, with at least one actuator which is arranged to act on a partial area of ​​the elastically deformable wall, deforming it, wherein the actuator is formed with an electroactive polymer and the actuator is electrically connected to a control unit arranged in or directly on the massage device and can be actuated by means of this control unit.

[0009] The massage function is achieved by a deformation element inside a rubber-elastic outer wall, which deforms the outer wall outward in certain areas. This requires a continuous application of force, which, along with the friction effects that also occur inside the device, leads to very high energy consumption.

[0010] From WO 2016 / 038028 A1, a stimulation device is known which comprises a base body and a rubber-elastic sheath attached to or in the base body, intended for contact with a body part of a user, which has at least one reversibly deformable contact surface region, wherein at least one shaping element designed to generate a local deformation of the sheath without deformation of the base body is arranged on or in the base body so as to be movable relative to the base body, and at least one actuating device operatively connected to the shaping element for generating a movement of the at least one shaping element is arranged on or in the base body, which actuating device comprises at least one shape memory element deformable by applying an electric current and / or a magnetic field and / or by temperature change,which is connected on the one hand to the base body and on the other hand to the shaping element and causes a movement of the at least one shaping element by deformation.

[0011] It has been found that the use of a shape memory element as a drive for such a stimulation device is subject to very high technological requirements.

[0012] Document CN102716005 A discloses a stimulation device with a rubber-elastic sheath for contact with a body part of a user, with an actuating device with an electric motor having a rotor shaft on which an eccentric is fastened, wherein the shaping element comprises a pivotably mounted lever with two free ends, wherein a first end of the lever is operatively connected to the eccentric of the actuating device for converting a rotary movement of the rotor shaft into a pivoting movement of the lever and a second end of the lever acts in a deforming manner on the contact surface region.

[0013] The object of the present invention is to provide a stimulation device that overcomes the disadvantages of known stimulation devices. This object is achieved by the invention specified in the claims. Advantageous embodiments are the subject of the dependent claims.

[0014] The present invention provides a stimulation device according to claim 1.

[0015] The proposed stimulation device can, in a specific case, be designed as a vibrator, dildo, penis ring, masturbator, artificial vagina, anal plug, penis sleeve, love balls, stretching tube, and the like. The stimulation device is advantageously suitable for use as a sexual or therapeutic aid for stimulating erogenous zones and / or muscles, such as the vaginal and anal muscles.

[0016] An outer surface of the stimulation device, i.e. surface accessible to a user, is formed by a rubber-elastic sheath intended for contact with a body part of a user, which forms either the entire surface of the stimulation device or the majority of the surface of the stimulation device or only a relatively small part of the surface of the stimulation device. This sheath has at least one partial area that is reversibly deformable and is referred to below as the contact surface area. The sheath can be made, for example, from a rubber-elastic material such as silicone, latex, thermoplastic elastomers or the like. The sheath can be attached to the base body in such a way that the surface of the stimulation device accessible to the user is formed partly by the base body and partly by the sheath. However, the sheath can also enclose the base body completely or for the most part.

[0017] A stimulating effect is achieved in that a shaping element is movably arranged on the inner side of the sleeve facing away from the user in such a way that a movement of the shaping element causes a local deformation of the sleeve, more precisely of the reversibly deformable contact surface area. The shaping element comprises a pivotally mounted lever with two free ends, i.e. the lever is articulated in its middle region, i.e. between the two free ends, whereby a pivoting movement transmitted to one free end inevitably causes a pivoting movement of the other free end of the lever in the same direction. The pivoting movement is generated in that a first free end of the lever is operatively connected to the eccentric of the actuating device for converting a rotary movement of the rotor shaft into a pivoting movement of the lever.The second free end of the lever, opposite the first free end, then deforms the contact surface area of ​​the rubber-elastic sheath, causing the outer contour of the stimulation device to deform locally, i.e., the remaining surface of the stimulation device remains undeformed. To allow the second free end of the lever to act on the sheath, the base body has an opening in the area of ​​the deformable contact surface area.

[0018] The actuating device, which generates a pivoting movement of the lever and thus the local deformation of the stimulation device, comprises an electric motor with a rotor shaft to which an eccentric is attached, which acts on the first free end of the lever. The eccentric converts the rotary movement of the rotor shaft of the electric motor into a pivoting movement of the lever.

[0019] The proposed stimulation device enables very localized, targeted stimulation. By controlling the electric motor accordingly, very low-frequency stimulation is possible, as will be explained in more detail below using advantageous embodiments of the proposed stimulation device.

[0020] According to a first embodiment of the stimulation device, the deformable contact surface area is formed by a protrusion of the rubber-elastic sleeve, which is connected to the second end of the lever. The connection between the second free end of the lever and the sleeve very precisely defines the local deformation of the sleeve in the reversibly deformable contact surface area. In a specific embodiment, it can further be provided that the second end of the lever has a thickened portion, the protrusion of the rubber-elastic sleeve has a recess with an undercut, and the thickened portion is inserted into the recess, engaging with the undercut.This design, on the one hand, creates a three-dimensional stimulation element through the protrusion, which can be moved from a retracted position to an extended position and back by the pivoting movement of the lever in order to achieve the greatest possible intensity of stimulation, and on the other hand, enables a force transmission from the lever to the deformable contact surface area not only during its outward movement, but also during its inward movement, i.e. bidirectionally.

[0021] In order to make the conversion of the rotary movement of the rotor shaft of the electric motor into a pivoting movement of the lever structurally simple and low-maintenance, and therefore reliable, another embodiment provides that in the proposed stimulation device, the first end of the lever has at least one sliding surface oriented transversely to a pivoting direction of the lever, with which the eccentric of the actuating device cooperates to convert a rotary movement of the rotor shaft into a pivoting movement. Specifically, in an advantageous embodiment, it can be provided that the first end of the lever has a groove oriented transversely to a pivoting direction of the lever, the two groove flanks of which each form a sliding surface, and the eccentric of the actuating device has a pin that projects into the groove, between the groove flanks.

[0022] The pin of the eccentric is arranged eccentrically relative to the rotational axis of the electric motor, so that it describes a circular path. In this way, the movement component of this circular movement running in the pivoting direction of the lever is converted into a pivoting movement of the lever, while the pin moves back and forth in the groove perpendicular to the pivoting direction of the lever. To minimize friction between the pin and lever as much as possible, the pin can be provided with a spherical thickening that is in contact with the groove flanks. A spherical thickening, for example a spherical thickening, ensures that the contact surface between the pin and lever is only point-like, so that friction losses and wear are extremely low.

[0023] Unlike conventional vibrators, the proposed stimulation device is intended to be capable of very low-frequency stimulation, much closer to manual stimulation than the otherwise common high-frequency stimulation based on the imbalance of a fast-running electric motor. To achieve this, a further embodiment provides for a control device with an operating element for influencing the speed of the electric motor to be arranged on or in the base body. The control device can, for example, be an electronic circuit controlling the electric motor, which can be operated by an operating element such as a microswitch or the like, so that the device can be switched on and off, and one of several available speeds of the electric motor can be selected, which is reflected in a corresponding stimulation frequency.For example, the control device can be designed to control the electric motor at a speed of 5 s -1< or less, preferably 3 s -1< or less, in particular 1 s -1< or less.

[0024] Conventional stimulation devices vibrate at frequencies many times higher than these values. The stimulating effect of such stimulation devices is based on the high-frequency, solid-state movement of the device, which stimulates the body parts that come into contact with it. It has been shown that stimulation based on periodic, low-frequency, targeted force applied to treated body parts achieves a significantly more pleasant and intense stimulating effect. This type of stimulation is perceived as particularly pleasant at the specified frequencies, as is the targeted application of force to treated body parts by the user.

[0025] For example, the user may be able to directly influence the frequency. For this purpose, a button may be provided for turning the stimulation device on and off and for adjusting the frequency. The frequency can either be continuously increased or decreased as long as the respective button is pressed, or the frequency can be increased or decreased incrementally each time the corresponding button is pressed. Likewise, a pair of buttons may be provided for adjusting the frequency, one of which increases the frequency and the other decreases it.

[0026] In other embodiments, the user may be able to indirectly influence the frequency. For this purpose, the stimulation device may, for example, have stimulation programs stored in the control unit that generate different frequencies, whereby the frequency can be varied over the course of a program. Alternatively, the programs may also be stored in an app running on a mobile device. Such an app may also be designed as a remote control for the stimulation device.

[0027] In an advantageous embodiment, for example, the control device for controlling the electric motor can be designed to generate an oscillating rotary motion (pendulum motion), in which the electric motor moves alternately in one direction of rotation and then in the other, with each partial movement comprising less than a full revolution. This makes it possible to adjust the intensity of the massage, thus overcoming the previous limitation in adjusting the stroke with purely rotary drives. To prevent premature wear of the bearings, such stimulation programs can also contain programmed patterns that combine the pendulum motion with occasional 360° rotations, which simultaneously allows for even better stimulation with stroke-varied patterns.

[0028] As above, the stored stimulation programs can be called up for user selection of frequency and / or amplitude, for example, via a control element. According to one embodiment, a single button can be provided for this purpose, which, when pressed for the first time, switches on the stimulation device and calls up a first stored stimulation program. If the button is pressed a second time, the next stored stimulation program is called up, and so on, until all stored stimulation programs have been selected once. If the button is pressed again, the stimulation device is switched off. According to another embodiment, one button is used for switching on and off, and another button is used for program selection.Alternatively, a pair of buttons can be provided for program selection, one of which calls up the stored programs in ascending order and the other of which calls up the stored programs in descending order.

[0029] It goes without saying that other control elements can also be used instead of buttons, such as toggle switches, rotary switches, and the like. A particular advantage of buttons is that they can easily be placed under or behind a rubber-elastic cover in a water-protected manner, because the elastic properties of the cover still allow them to be operated without any problems.

[0030] However, solutions are also included in which the control element(s) are part of a remote control, so that no control elements need to be attached to the stimulation device itself. If the remote control is an app running on a mobile device, the control elements can be implemented in the form typical for apps, for example, as touch-operable buttons, sliders, or the like displayed on the screen of the mobile device, whose functions can correspond to those of the buttons described above.

[0031] Particularly advantageously, the electric motor can be a stepper motor, and the control device includes a driver circuit for quasi-continuous drive of the stepper motor. Only with stepper motors is the desired low-frequency stimulation possible without the interposition of an additional, costly and error-prone gear, i.e., via direct drive. However, without further measures, stepper motors generate a characteristic noise that is very disturbing within the scope of the invention. For this reason, a control device should include a driver circuit for quasi-continuous drive of the stepper motor, allowing the stepper motor to operate silently.

[0032] In order to increase the value of the stimulation device, but also to facilitate its insertion and removal, the control device for controlling the electric motor is designed in such a way that the shaping element is always in the same position when the actuating device is switched off. Preferably, this stops the electric motor in such a way that the lever, and thus the deformable contact surface area, remains in the retracted position. Specifically, it can be provided that the eccentric carries a permanent magnet and a Hall sensor is arranged in the base body in the immediate vicinity of the eccentric, which is connected to the

[0033] The control unit is connected to the control device. This allows the control device to switch off the motor precisely when the permanent magnet is positioned opposite the Hall sensor. Alternatively, this switching function can also be integrated into the Hall sensor.

[0034] According to a further embodiment, at least one energy storage device for storing electrical energy can be arranged on or in the base body. Although it is also possible to supply the electrical energy required to operate the stimulation device from outside, for example, by connecting the stimulation device to a power cable, it is advantageous for the stimulation device to be designed to be cordless for ease of use. This can be achieved by arranging an energy storage device directly on or in the stimulation device.

[0035] In one embodiment, the energy storage device comprises at least one rechargeable battery. This avoids the user having to open the stimulation device to replace non-rechargeable batteries once they are exhausted.

[0036] Advantageously, it can further be provided that at least one receiver coil for the contactless supply of electrical energy is arranged on or in the base body. In this way, for example, a rechargeable battery arranged in the stimulation device can be charged contactlessly. Metallic contacts on the exterior of the stimulation device are thus eliminated, making the stimulation device even safer to handle and easily waterproof.

[0037] Further advantageously, the control device can comprise a light source, for example one or more LEDs, which indicate to the user of the stimulation device whether the device is switched on and / or which program has been selected and / or what charge level of the energy storage device and / or whether a charging process is currently taking place and / or which enable targeted illumination of certain areas of the stimulation device. For this purpose, it can further advantageously be provided that the base body or a housing part of the stimulation device has at least one optical fiber element. Such a optical fiber element can, for example, be a transparent glass or plastic fiber, which guides the light from the light source to a part of the stimulation device to be illuminated and emits it there.However, such a light guide element can also comprise, for example, a transparent insert in a housing part of the base body, which guides the light generated by an LED through the housing to the outside, for example a light point near the control element, a luminous ring that encloses the control element, etc., wherein the light is strong enough to penetrate through the rubber-elastic sheath to the outside and be perceptible.

[0038] In the following, examples of proposed stimulation devices are explained in more detail using drawings. Fig. 1 a longitudinal section through a stimulation device according to the embodiment, Fig. 2 a functional diagram of the stimulation device according to the embodiment, Fig. 3 a view of the stimulation device with the contact surface element in the retracted position, and Fig. 4a view of the stimulation device with the contact surface element in the retracted position.

[0039] Fig. 1 shows a schematic view of a longitudinal section through an exemplary stimulation device. A rubber-elastic sleeve 2 made of silicone encloses a base body 1 formed from two housing parts 11. A shaping element 3 is movably arranged on the base body 1. The shaping element 3 has a first free end 31 and a second free end 32 and is movably arranged between the first free end 31 and the second free end 32 on the base body 1 by a joint 33. The housing parts 11 together define the basic shape of the stimulation device, which is delimited on the outside by the rubber-elastic sleeve 2.

[0040] The actuating device is located inside the stimulation device and comprises an electric motor 4 with a rotor shaft on which an eccentric 41 is mounted. In the exemplary embodiment, the electric motor 4 is designed as a stepper motor.

[0041] The shaping element is, as already described, a pivotally mounted lever 3 with two free ends 31 and 32. The first end 31 of the lever 3 is operatively connected to the eccentric 41, and the second end 32 of the lever 3 deforms the contact surface area 21. The deformable contact surface area 21 is formed by a protrusion of the rubber-elastic sleeve 2, which has a recess with an undercut. The second end 32 of the lever 3 has a thickened portion 34, which is inserted into the recess and engages the undercut. This design is particularly advantageous for easy cleaning of the stimulation device. The thickened portion 34 of the lever 3 can be easily pulled out of the undercut of the recess of the rubber-elastic sleeve 2 in order to easily clean the rubber-elastic sleeve 2 under running water. The thickening 34 can then simply be snapped back into the recess.

[0042] The first end 31 of the lever 3 has a groove 35 oriented transversely to the pivoting direction of the lever 3, the two groove flanks of which each form a sliding surface, and the eccentric 41 of the actuating device has a pin 43 which projects into the groove 35.

[0043] In Fig. 2 Two variants of the interacting elements of the first free end 31 of the lever 3 and the pin 43 of the eccentric 41 are shown: In the left-hand detailed view, the pin 43 has a spherical thickening 44 that is in contact with the groove flanks. In the right-hand view, the pin 43 does not have such a thickening; however, the two groove flanks of the groove 35 in the first free end 31 of the lever 3 are spherical, so that in both variants the contact area between the pin 43 and the groove 35 is designed to be as small as possible.

[0044] Arranged in the base body 1 is a control device 5 with an operating element 52 for influencing the speed of the electric motor 4. The control device 5 comprises an electronic circuit that includes a driver circuit 51 for the quasi-continuous drive of the stepper motor 4, a microswitch 52 for operating the stimulation device, which can be operated through the rubber-elastic casing 2, and a light source in the form of an LED that indicates the status of the stimulation device. To make the light generated by the LED visible from the outside, the housing part 11 has a light guide element 13 above the light source 54, which is designed as an insert made of transparent plastic into the otherwise opaque housing part 11 of the base body 1. The light is strong enough to penetrate the rubber-elastic casing 2.

[0045] The control device 5 is connected to an energy storage device 6, which in the exemplary embodiment is designed as a rechargeable battery. The control device 5 is also connected to the stepper motor 4 to supply it with energy.

[0046] Furthermore, the control device 5 for controlling the electric motor 4 is designed such that the lever 3 is always in the same position when the actuating device is switched off. The eccentric 41 carries a permanent magnet 42, and a Hall sensor 53 with a switching function is arranged in the base body 1 in the immediate vicinity of the eccentric 41 and is connected to the control device 5. List of reference symbols

[0047] 1 Base body 11 Housing part 12 Opening 13 Light guide element 2 Rubber-elastic sleeve 21 Deformable contact surface area 3 Lever 31 First free end 32 Second free end 33 Joint 34 Thickening 35 Groove 4 Electric motor 41 Eccentric 42 Permanent magnet 43 Pin 44 Thickening 5 Control device 51 Driver circuit 52 Operating element 53 Hall sensor 54 Light source 6 Energy storage device

Claims

1. Stimulation device, comprising • a base body (1) and • a rubber-elastic cover (2) intended for contact with a body part of a user, which envelops the base body (1) and comprises at least one reversibly deformable contact surface region (21), wherein • at least one shaping element designed to produce a locally limited deformation of the cover (2) without deforming the base body (1) is arranged movably on or in the base body (1) relative to the base body (1), and • at least one actuating device which is operatively connected to the at least one shaping element for producing a movement of the at least one shaping element is arranged on or in the base body (1), wherein • the actuating device comprises an electric motor (4) with a rotor shaft to which an eccentric (41) is attached, • the shaping element comprises a pivotably mounted lever (3) with two free ends (31, 32), wherein • a first end (31) of the lever (3) is operatively connected to the eccentric (41) of the actuating device for converting a rotary movement of the rotor shaft into a pivoting movement of the lever (3), and • a second end (32) of the lever (3) acts in a deforming manner on the contact surface area (21), characterized in that the stimulation device comprises a control device (5) arranged on or in the base body (1) for controlling the electric motor (4), which is designed in such a way that the shaping element (3) is always in the same position when the actuating device is switched off.

2. Stimulation device according to claim 1, wherein the deformable contact surface region (21) is formed by a protrusion of the rubber-elastic cover (2), which is connected to the second end (32) of the lever (3).

3. Stimulation device according to claim 2, wherein the second end (32) of the lever (3) comprises a thickening (34), the protrusion of the rubber-elastic cover (2) comprises an indentation with an undercut, and the thickening (34) is inserted into the indentation so as to engage in the undercut.

4. Stimulation device according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the first end (31) of the lever (3) comprises at least one sliding surface which is aligned transversely to a pivoting direction of the lever (3) and with which the eccentric (41) of the actuating device interacts for converting a rotary movement of the rotor shaft into a pivoting movement of the lever (3).

5. Stimulation device according to claim 4, wherein the first end (31) of the lever (3) comprises a groove (35) which is aligned transversely to a pivoting direction of the lever (3) and whose two groove flanks each form a sliding surface, and the eccentric (41) of the actuating device comprises a pin (43) which projects into the groove (35), between the groove flanks.

6. Stimulation device according to claim 5, wherein the pin (43) comprises a spherical thickening (44) which is in contact with the groove flanks.

7. Stimulation device according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the control device (5) is equipped with an operating element (52) for influencing the rotational speed of the electric motor (4).

8. Stimulation device according to claim 7, wherein the control device (5) is designed to control the electric motor (4) at a rotational speed of 5 s-1 or less, preferably 3 s-1 or less, in particular 1 s-1 or less.

9. Stimulation device according to claim 7 or 8, wherein the electric motor (4) is a stepper motor, and the control device (5) comprises a driver circuit (51) for quasi-continuously driving the stepper motor.

10. Stimulation device according to one of claims 7 to 9, wherein the control device (5) for controlling the electric motor (4) is designed to generate an oscillating rotary movement (pendulum movement), in which the electric motor (4) moves alternately in one and then in the other direction of rotation.

11. Stimulation device according to one of claims 1 to 10, wherein the eccentric (41) carries a permanent magnet (42) and a Hall sensor (53) is arranged in the base body (1) in the immediate vicinity of the eccentric (41), which Hall sensor is connected to the control device (5).

12. Stimulation device according to one of claims 1 to 11, wherein the control device (5) comprises at least one light source (54) and the base body (1) or a housing part (11) of the base body (1) comprises at least one light guide element (13).

13. Stimulation device according to one of claims 1 to 12, wherein at least one energy storage device (6) for storing electrical energy is arranged on or in the base body (1).

14. Stimulation device according to claim 13, wherein the energy storage device (6) comprises at least one rechargeable accumulator.

15. Stimulation device according to one of claims 1 to 14, wherein at least one receiver coil for contactless supply of electrical energy is arranged on or in the base body (1).