Mouthpiece-type toothbrush

Abstract

To provide a mouthpiece-type toothbrush capable of effectively removing dental plaque or the like by using a high-density brush.SOLUTION: A mouthpiece-type toothbrush 1 is provided with two inner and outer brush mounting members 2, 2 whose bottom portions are connected at appropriate positions so as to face the row of teeth with a space therebetween and which are curved in a substantially U-shape in plan view along the row of teeth, sheet base materials 3, 3 which are respectively attached to the facing surfaces of the two brush mounting members 2, and high-density raised brushes 4, 4 which are connected at one end to the respective sheet base materials 3 so that the tips thereof face each other and which are formed of a large number of flexible brush bristles formed by weaving.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a mouthpiece-type toothbrush that is placed in the mouth to brush the dentition. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventional toothbrushes have many bristles attached to a brush base at the tip of the handle, and toothpaste is applied to the brush, and the brush is moved up and down and back and forth and side to side to brush both the upper and lower rows of teeth. However, such toothbrushes are difficult for children and elderly people with hand disabilities to use to brush their teeth properly.

[0003] To address this issue, a mouthpiece-type toothbrush has been proposed that can be placed over the teeth of the upper or lower jaw to brush teeth (see, for example, Patent Document 1). This mouthpiece-type toothbrush is equipped with a main body that curves to fit the shape of the teeth and has a recess that opens toward the teeth, and a brush member that is connected to and faces the inner surface of the recess, so that the brush member can be placed over the teeth to brush. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] JP 2022-63101 A (page 4, Figure 1) Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] However, in the mouthpiece-type toothbrush described in Patent Document 1, the entire toothbrush, consisting of the main body and brush member, is formed using a 3D printer, making it difficult to form a high-density brush member. As a result, there is a risk that the bristles of the brush member will not efficiently penetrate between teeth or into periodontal pockets, resulting in ineffective removal of plaque. It is also possible to form the brush member by bristle implantation instead of using a 3D printer, but there are limitations to forming a high-density brush member even with bristle implantation.

[0006] The present invention was made in response to these problems, and aims to provide a mouthpiece-type toothbrush that uses high-density bristles to effectively remove plaque and other debris. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] In order to solve the above problems, the mouthpiece-type toothbrush of the present invention comprises: This mouthpiece-type toothbrush is used by placing it over the teeth of the upper or lower jaw, and is characterized by comprising two brush attachment members, inner and outer, whose bottoms are connected at appropriate locations so as to face the teeth at a distance and curve in an approximately U-shape in a plan view to follow the teeth; sheet substrates attached to the opposing surfaces of the two brush attachment members; and a high-density brush consisting of a large number of flexible brush bristles formed by weaving, one end of which is connected to each of the sheet substrates so that the bristles face each other. According to this feature, when the mouthpiece-type toothbrush is repeatedly bitten on the upper and lower teeth or moved up and down and left and right, the high-density brush, made up of many flexible bristles formed by weaving, bends and efficiently brushes the teeth, and the high-density bristles reach between the teeth and into periodontal pockets, effectively removing plaque and other debris from the teeth.

[0008] The two brush mounting members are elastically deformable inward and outward directions, and the connecting portion of the two brush mounting members is located near the top of the U-shaped curve. According to this feature, when the rear tooth row enters the high-density brush, the two inner and outer brush attachment members elastically deform in a direction away from each other, centered on the connecting part near the top of the U-shaped curve, so that the brush does not come into strong contact with the gums, etc., causing discomfort to the user.

[0009] The brush attachment members are characterized in that a plurality of support pieces are provided at the bottoms thereof, extending alternately from one side to the other. According to this feature, the sheet substrate and the bottom of the brush are supported by multiple support pieces and maintained in a shape that follows the tooth row, allowing the brush to more effectively remove plaque, etc. Furthermore, since the support pieces simply extend alternately from one side to the other of the two brush attachment members and the inner and outer brush attachment members are not connected by support pieces, elastic deformation of the inner and outer brush attachment members in the direction away from each other is not hindered.

[0010] The facing surfaces of the inner and outer brush mounting members are formed with continuous longitudinal grooves, and the facing surface of the sheet base material facing the brush mounting members is formed with protrusions that can be detachably fitted into the grooves. According to this feature, the raised brush can be easily attached to the opposing surfaces of the inner and outer brush mounting members by fitting the ridges of the sheet substrate into the recessed grooves of the inner and outer brush mounting members. Also, since only the raised brush can be removed and replaced together with the sheet substrate from the brush mounting member, replacement costs are low.

[0011] A plurality of recesses are formed along the longitudinal direction on the opposing surfaces of the inner and outer brush mounting members, and a plurality of protrusions are formed on the surface of the sheet base material facing the brush mounting members, which are removably fitted into the recesses. According to this feature, the napped brush can be easily attached to the opposing surfaces of the inner and outer brush mounting members by fitting the multiple protrusions of the sheet substrate into the multiple recesses of the sheet substrate. Also, as described above, the napped brush can be easily removed and replaced together with the sheet substrate from the brush mounting member, which reduces replacement costs.

[0012] The density of the napped brush is characterized by 2000 to 5000 fibers per square inch. According to this feature, the density of the bristle brush is much higher than that of a typical bristle toothbrush, so that plaque and the like can be effectively removed. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0013] [Figure 1] 1 is a perspective view of a mouthpiece-type toothbrush according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] FIG. [Figure 3] FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. 3 is an enlarged view of part A in FIG. 2. [Figure 5] FIG. 3 is a partial perspective view showing a first example of attachment of a sheet substrate to a brush attachment member. [Figure 6] FIG. 10 is a partial perspective view showing a second example of attachment of a sheet substrate to a brush attachment member. [Figure 7] FIG. 10 is a partial perspective view showing a third example of attachment of a sheet substrate to a brush attachment member. [Figure 8] 1 is a schematic explanatory diagram illustrating how to manufacture a raised brush by pile weaving. [Figure 9] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the mouthpiece-type toothbrush before it is attached to the vibration generator. [Figure 10] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a state in which a mouthpiece-type toothbrush is attached to a vibration generator to form an electric toothbrush. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0014] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A mouthpiece-type toothbrush according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the following examples. [Example]

[0015] A mouthpiece-type toothbrush (hereinafter simply referred to as toothbrush) according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to Figures 1 to 8. Note that toothbrush 1 is shown below facing upwards in a form for brushing the upper jaw dentition, but toothbrush 1 is used upside down when brushing the lower jaw dentition.

[0016] The toothbrush 1 comprises two inner and outer brush attachment members 2, 2 made of polypropylene, polyester resin or the like, which are curved in an approximately U-shape in a planar view to fit the upper and lower tooth rows (not shown), flexible sheet base materials 3, 3 made of polyester or the like attached to the opposing surfaces of the brush attachment members 2, 2, and high-density brushes 4, 4 made of a large number of flexible brush bristles made of nylon, polypropylene or the like, with one end connected to each sheet base material 3 so that the bristles face each other.

[0017] The vertical dimensions (height) of the sheet substrate 3 and the bristle brush 4 are set to be a predetermined dimension larger than the vertical dimension of the brush mounting member 2, and the sheet substrate 3 is fixed to the inner surface of the brush mounting member 2 with adhesive or double-sided adhesive tape, etc. The tips of the inner and outer bristle brushes 4, 4 are spaced a predetermined distance apart so that they fit into the tooth row. In this embodiment, the thickness (diameter) of the bristles constituting the bristle brush 4 is, for example, 0.05 mm to 0.1 mm, and the density of the bristle brush 4 is, for example, 2,000 to 5,000 per square inch. The length of the bristle brush 4 is, for example, 4 mm to 6 mm, and the distance between the tips of the inner and outer bristle brushes 4, 4 is, for example, 2 mm to 3 mm.

[0018] The brush attachment members 2, 2 are formed in the shape of plates that can elastically deform in the inward and outward directions (thickness direction), and are spaced apart so as to sandwich the tooth row from the inside and outside with a sufficient clearance. The distance between the opposing surfaces of the brush attachment members 2, 2 is set to a dimension that allows an adult's molars to fit through, for example, approximately 10 to 12 mm. As shown in the bottom view of Figure 3, the brush attachment members 2, 2 are connected to each other by a connecting piece 2a near the top of the U-shaped curve at their bottoms, so that the brush attachment members 2, 2 can elastically deform inward and outward directions around the connecting part.

[0019] Additionally, a plurality of support pieces 2b are connected to the bottom of the brush attachment members 2, 2, extending alternately from one side to the other, and the undersides of the sheet substrates 3, 3 and the napped brushes 4, 4 are supported by the plurality of support pieces 2b. Furthermore, at the top of the U-shaped curve of the outer brush attachment member 2, a gripping piece 2c for holding the toothbrush 1 is integrally provided and protrudes forward so as to be continuous with the connecting piece.

[0020] The piled brush 4 can be manufactured, for example, by pile weaving as shown in Fig. 8. That is, pile yarns 7 of nylon or the like with a diameter of 0.05 mm to 0.1 mm, which will become the brush bristles, are tightly looped around a large number of weft yarns 6 of base fabrics 5, 5 made of polyester or the like (corresponding to the sheet substrate 3 of the present invention) that are spaced apart from each other and face each other, and then the middle portions of all of the looped pile yarns 7 are cut 8 to produce two high-density piled brushes 4, 4 in which one end of the large number of pile yarns 7 is connected to the base fabric 5. The manufactured piled brush 4 is then cut together with the base fabric 5 to a predetermined width and length, and the base fabric 5 is attached to the brush mounting member 2 to form the toothbrush 1 of this embodiment.

[0021] In the above-described embodiment, the sheet substrate 3 is attached to the brush mounting member 2 using adhesive or double-sided adhesive tape, but it can also be attached using the methods shown in Figures 5 to 7. In the first attachment example shown in Figure 5, a groove 9 consisting of an inward-opening slit 9a and a C-shaped groove 9b continuing from the inner end of the slit 9a is formed continuously in the longitudinal direction on the opposing surfaces of the brush mounting members 2, 2 (only the outer brush mounting member 2 is shown because the inner and outer structures are identical). Meanwhile, a ridge 10 made of an elastically deformable elastomer or rubber and having a shape complementary to the cross-sectional shape of the groove 9 is fixed to the outer surface of the sheet substrate 3 using adhesive or the like. By fitting the ridge 10 from the longitudinal opening end of the groove 9, the sheet substrate 3 can be detachably attached to the brush mounting member 2 together with the nap brush 4.

[0022] 6, a plurality of recesses 11 are formed along the longitudinal direction on the inner surface of the brush attachment member 2, and protrusions 12 made of synthetic resin or the like that can be detachably fitted into the recesses 11 are fixed by adhesive or the like to the outer surface of the sheet substrate 3 that faces each recess 11. By fitting the protrusions 12 into the plurality of recesses 11, the sheet substrate 3 can be detachably attached to the brush attachment member 2 together with the nap brush 4.

[0023] In the third attachment example of Figure 7, an upwardly rising piece 13 is integrally attached to the bottom of the brush attachment member 2 side so as to form a gap 14 between it and the inner surface of the brush attachment member 2, and a downward piece 15 attached to the lower end of the sheet substrate 3 is fitted into the gap 14, thereby making it possible to detachably attach the sheet substrate 3 together with the napped brush 4 to the brush attachment member 2. By adopting these first to third attachment examples, the napped brush 4 can be easily attached together with the sheet substrate 3 to the opposing surface of the brush attachment member 2. Furthermore, because only the sheet substrate 3 and napped brush 4 can be removed from the brush attachment member 2 and replaced, replacement costs are low.

[0024] When brushing teeth using the toothbrush 1 according to the embodiment, toothpaste is applied to the bristle brush 4 (though toothpaste may not be used), the inner and outer brush attachment members 2, 2 are placed over the upper or lower jaw dentition (when placing over the lower jaw dentition, the attachment members should be placed upside down), and the toothbrush 1 is either repeatedly bitten down on the upper and lower jaw dentition, or the gripping piece 2c is held in the hand and moved up, down, left and right. As a result, the inner and outer high-density bristle brushes 4, 4 flex to efficiently brush the teeth, and the high-density bristles reach between the teeth and into periodontal pockets, effectively removing plaque and other debris from the teeth.

[0025] The toothbrush 1 of the embodiment can also be mounted on a vibration imparting device 16 as shown in Figures 9 and 10 to create an electric toothbrush. The vibration imparting device 16 has a handle 16a that is long in the front-to-rear direction and has a hollow, U-shaped toothbrush attachment part 16b that is connected to the tip of the handle and has substantially the same shape as the toothbrush 1. An on / off switch 16c is attached to the top surface of the handle 16a, and the interior contains a printed circuit board, a battery, a non-contact charging coil for the battery, and the like (all not shown). The toothbrush attachment part 16b also contains multiple coin-type vibration generating motors (not shown) that are powered by a battery.

[0026] The top surface of the handle portion 16a has a recess 17 at the center, into which the gripping piece 2c of the toothbrush 1 fits, and the top surface of the center of the toothbrush attachment portion 16b has a protrusion 18 protruding upward, into which a longitudinally elongated hole 2d (see FIG. 3) formed in the connecting piece 2a at the bottom of the toothbrush 1 fits. To attach the toothbrush 1 to the vibration imparting device 16, simply tightly fit the gripping piece 2c of the toothbrush 1 into the recess 17 of the handle portion 16a and the protrusion 18 of the toothbrush attachment portion 16b, respectively. This allows the toothbrush 1 to be an electric toothbrush. By micro-vibrating the entire toothbrush 1 using multiple coin-shaped vibration-generating motors, the high-density bristle brush 4 can effectively remove plaque and other debris from the dentition. The toothbrush 1 can also be removed from the vibration imparting device 16 for cleaning or replacement.

[0027] As explained above, in the toothbrush 1 according to the embodiment, high-density bristle brushes 4, 4 made of a large number of flexible brush bristles formed by pile weaving are arranged opposite each other on the opposing surfaces of the two inner and outer brush attachment members 2, 2 that are curved to fit the shape of the tooth row. When the toothbrush 1 is repeatedly bitten along the upper and lower tooth rows, or moved up and down and left and right, the high-density bristle brush 4 flexes to efficiently brush the tooth row, and the high-density bristles reach between the teeth and into periodontal pockets, effectively removing plaque and the like from the tooth row.

[0028] Furthermore, the brush attachment members 2, 2 are elastically deformable inward and outward directions, and are connected at their bottoms near the tops of the U-shaped curves. Therefore, when the rear row of teeth enters the high-density brush, the brush attachment members 2, 2 elastically deform in the direction of moving away from the connecting part, and therefore the brush 4 does not come into strong contact with the gums, etc., causing discomfort to the user.

[0029] Furthermore, by providing a plurality of support pieces 2b extending alternately from one side to the other at the bottom of the brush mounting members 2, 2, the bottom of the sheet substrate 3 and the bristle brush 4 are supported by the plurality of support pieces 2b and are maintained in a shape that follows the tooth row, allowing plaque and the like to be more effectively removed by the bristle brush 4. Moreover, since the support pieces simply extend alternately from one side to the other of the brush mounting members 2, 2 and the inner and outer brush mounting members 2 are not connected to each other by the support pieces 2b, elastic deformation of the inner and outer brush mounting members 2 in the direction away from each other is not hindered.

[0030] Furthermore, the density of the bristle brush 4 is set at 2000 to 5000 per square inch, which is significantly higher than the density of a typical bristle toothbrush, so that plaque and the like can be removed effectively.

[0031] Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above with reference to the drawings, the specific configurations are not limited to these embodiments, and additions and modifications within the scope of the present invention are also included in the present invention.

[0032] For example, in the above embodiment, the inner and outer brush mounting members 2, 2 are elastically deformable in the inner and outer directions (thickness direction), but they may not be elastically deformable.

[0033] In addition, in the above embodiment, the inner and outer brush mounting members 2, 2 are opposed to each other and connected at the bottom near the top of the U-shape by a connecting piece 2a, but the entire brush mounting member may also have a concave cross section. [Explanation of symbols]

[0034] 1. Mouthpiece-type toothbrush 2 Brush mounting member 2a Connecting piece 2b Support piece 2c grip piece 2d long hole 3 Sheet substrate 4. Brush 5 Base fabric 6 Weft 7 Pile yarn 9 Groove 10 Convex strips 11 Hole 12 Convex part 13 Upward piece 14 Gap 15 Downward piece 16 Vibration device 16a Handle 16b Toothbrush attachment part 17 Recess 18 protrusion

Claims

1. A mouthpiece-type toothbrush that is used by covering the upper or lower jaw dentition, two brush attachment members, inner and outer, whose bottoms are connected at appropriate positions so as to face the tooth row at a distance from the tooth row and which are curved in a substantially U-shape in a plan view so as to follow the tooth row; a sheet substrate attached to each of the opposing surfaces of the two brush attachment members; a high-density brush having a large number of flexible bristles formed by weaving, one end of which is connected to each of the sheet substrates so that the bristles face each other; A mouthpiece-type toothbrush comprising:

2. 2. The mouthpiece-type toothbrush according to claim 1, wherein the two brush attachment members are elastically deformable inward and outward directions, and the connecting portion of the bottoms of the two brush attachment members is near the top of the U-shaped curve.

3. 2. The mouthpiece-type toothbrush according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of support pieces are provided on the bottoms of the two brush attachment members, the support pieces extending alternately from one side to the other.

4. The mouthpiece-type toothbrush of claim 1, characterized in that a continuous longitudinal groove is formed on the opposing inner and outer surfaces of the brush attachment member, and a protrusion that can be detachably fitted into the groove is formed on the surface of the sheet base material that faces the brush attachment member.

5. The mouthpiece-type toothbrush according to claim 1, characterized in that a plurality of recesses are formed along the longitudinal direction on the inner and outer opposing surfaces of the brush attachment member, and a plurality of protrusions that can be detachably fitted into the recesses are formed on the surface of the sheet substrate that faces the brush attachment member.

6. 6. The mouthpiece-type toothbrush according to claim 1, wherein the density of the bristles of the brush is 2,000 to 5,000 per square inch.

Images