Oral care device

Abstract

The present invention provides an oral cleaning mouthpiece device 10 having a dedicated mechanical structure 24 for fixing a non-movable part of a mouthpiece to a reference frame of the jaw, and for providing a support part by which a user can hold the jaw. As a result, a movable part of the mouthpiece carrying a cleaning element moves in a substantially predictable manner with respect to the upper and lower tooth rows.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of oral care devices, and more particularly to powered mouthpiece devices.

Background Art

[0002] Powered dental cleaning mouthpiece devices are known, which have a mouthpiece portion received within a user's oral cavity, which carries cleaning elements driven to simultaneously polish the user's teeth around all or part of the dental arch.

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0003] The various elements of such dental cleaning mouthpieces are designed to move the cleaning elements against the teeth during operation. In practice, the elements move relative to the most rigid point in the device-mouth system during operation. For example, an element designed to move up and down in the mouth along an axis extending from the lower jaw to the upper jaw, if fixed to the lower jaw, cannot move downward, and as a result all movement will only occur upward.

[0004] This problem is fully illustrated by FIGS. 1(a)-(d), which show four exemplary scenarios. Each example shows the use of a schematically illustrated mouthpiece device. The device has a handle portion 14 and a mouthpiece portion 12. The mouthpiece portion has an upper part 12a and a lower part 12b including channels designed to receive the upper and lower rows of teeth 42. Inside each channel there is a tuft of cleaning elements 20, such as bristles, which project towards the tooth surfaces received in the upper part 12a and the lower part 12b. An actuating mechanism 22 is provided which acts to drive the vertical movement of the upper and lower channels 12a, 12b relative to the mouthpiece body, which is intended to effect the vertical movement of the cleaning elements against the surfaces of the teeth 42. In this example, the actuating mechanism 22 has a hydraulic bladder system with expansion / contraction bladders for driving the up / down movement.

[0005] Figure 1(a) shows the first scenario. In this case, the user (not shown) holds the handle 14 of the device steadily and firmly, without biting on the mouthpiece portion (generally indicated by arrow 12). Therefore, the mouthpieces 12a, 12b, 22 are "floating" between the upper and lower jaws. In this case, the vertical movement of the bladder 22 occurs in both directions (up and down) with respect to the device body 14.

[0006] In principle, this scenario enables proper brushing action to be performed on the jaws. However, in practice, it is difficult for the user to keep the device sufficiently stable and avoid contact with one of the jaws.

[0007] Figure 1(b) shows the second scenario. In this case, the user places the mouthpiece against the lower jaw, and in particular, the lower row of teeth can be made to contact the bottom of the lower channel 12b. In this case, the bladder 22 can only expand upwards (because it is blocked from below), and thus only the upper jaw teeth are exposed to the movement of the cleaning element 20, and the lower jaw teeth are not.

[0008] Figure 1(c) shows the third scenario. Here, the user enables the mouthpiece to contact the upper jaw teeth. Now, the bladder 22 can only expand downwards (because it is blocked from above), and thus only the lower jaw teeth are exposed to the movement of the cleaning element, and the upper jaw teeth are not.

[0009] Figure 1(d) shows the fourth scenario. In this case, the user bites on the mouthpiece from above and below, which either blocks the movement of the actuating mechanism 22 (if the actuating mechanism lacks sufficient force to resist the biting force, for example, in this case, the hydraulic pump cannot supply sufficient pressure to the bladder), or causes the upper and lower jaws to be induced to move by the bladder 22. However, in the latter case, there is no relative movement between the cleaning element 20 and the teeth.

[0010] As can be seen from the above scenario, a consistent movement evenly applied to the upper and lower jaws is difficult to actually achieve using a handheld mouthpiece.

[0011] Development in the field of powered oral care mouthpiece devices that can address one or more of the above problems would be valuable.

Means for Solving the Problem

[0012] The inventors recognized that although the user's handling may affect the anchoring point of the brushing device, design choices can be made to induce anchoring in a manner that does not burden the user's arm while achieving the correct relative movement at the same time. The inventors propose a solution motivated by this purpose here.

[0013] The present invention is defined by the claims.

[0014] According to an example of one aspect of the present invention, an oral care device is provided. The device has a mouthpiece portion for at least partial reception in the user's mouth. The body of the mouthpiece portion depicts an arcuate contour so as to substantially follow the contour of the user's dental arch. The mouthpiece portion carries a set of oral cleaning elements that mechanically engage the teeth during use. The device has an actuating mechanism for actuating a periodic movement of the cleaning elements relative to the teeth when the mouthpiece portion is received in the oral cavity. The device further has an anchoring member engageable by a part of the user's mouth so as to be held in a predetermined position relative to the jaw when the mouthpiece portion is received in the mouth for normal use, and when held in this way, the cleaning elements are movable relative to the anchoring member, and the actuating mechanism is operable such that when the anchoring member is held by the above-mentioned part of the user's mouth in normal operation, the cleaning elements move simultaneously with respect to both the upper and lower jaws.

[0015] The inventors have recognized that the above problems can be solved by providing an anchor point that is designed to be fixedly held against the jaw by the user during operation. This anchor point provides a reference point that functions substantially as a common fixed ground for both the cleaning element and the jaw, such that the cleaning element can be caused to move relative to both jaws. One simple example, which will be described in detail below, is a bite block. Engagement with the anchoring member, such as biting on the bite block, stabilizes the position of the device without the user having to hold the device steady relative to the head.

[0016] There are various ways of defining the anchoring member, and each way affects the movement of the brushing element.

[0017] In some embodiments, the anchoring member is part of the mouthpiece portion. For example, it can be an integral part of the mouthpiece portion or fixedly attached as a section of the mouthpiece portion. This design ensures that there is no relative movement between the anchoring member and the mouthpiece portion body. For example, the cleaning element can be carried by a drive surface or substrate that is movable relative to a stationary section of the mouthpiece portion. Thus, the cleaning element can move relative to the fixed point of the anchoring member.

[0018] However, in other cases, the anchoring member may be attached to another part of the oral care device, but still in a manner that allows the movement of the cleaning element as described above.

[0019] In some embodiments, the actuation mechanism can be configured to induce an up / down cyclic movement of the cleaning element along an up / down vertical axis that extends between the upper and lower jaws when the mouthpiece portion is received in the oral cavity for normal use.

[0020] In some embodiments, the cleaning element extends from one or more surfaces that are adapted to move (e.g., relative to a stationary section of the body of the mouthpiece portion) by an actuation mechanism for inducing movement of the cleaning element, the actuation mechanism moving the surface up and down between a top position and a bottom position. The anchoring member has a height along the vertical axis, which is greater than the height of the mouthpiece body when the one or more surfaces are in the bottom position. This enables the user to grip, e.g., bite on, the anchoring member while allowing vertical clearance for the cleaning element to move up and down relative to the teeth.

[0021] The anchoring member can project in the height direction from the device.

[0022] In some embodiments, the actuation mechanism is configured to induce in-plane periodic movement of the cleaning element along a horizontal axis, the horizontal axis extending perpendicular to a vertical axis that extends between the upper and lower jaws when the mouthpiece portion is received in the mouth for normal use. Accordingly, different movement directions and patterns are possible and the concepts of the present invention are not limited to up / down movement of the cleaning element.

[0023] In some embodiments, the anchoring member is for the user to pinch between the upper and lower parts of the mouth at the position of the mouth.

[0024] For example, in one set of examples, the anchoring member is for the user to bite on. In this case, the anchoring member may also be referred to as a bite block.

[0025] In another set of examples, the anchoring member may be for pinching between the lips. In some cases, the anchoring member can be configured to allow both pinching between the lips and biting. Both involve firm contact of the upper and lower jaws against the anchoring member and are thus related in that the anchoring member is held stationary relative to the entire jaw.

[0026] In certain embodiments, the mouthpiece body is shaped to extend so as to surround only a portion of the user's dental arch. For example, the mouthpiece may be J-shaped. This type of mouthpiece is designed to be manually movable by the user to different positions during a cleaning session in order to cover the entire oral cavity. For example, some designs are configured to be turned inside out during a cleaning session to cover one side of the mouth and then the other side.

[0027] In some examples of this set of embodiments, when the mouthpiece portion is received in the oral cavity for normal use, the arcuate contour of the mouthpiece portion body is aligned with the contour of the user's dental arch, and the anchoring member can be configured to be positioned such that it engages with the user's teeth or lips at a position along the dental arch towards the front of the oral cavity, offset from the center of symmetry of the dental arch / oral cavity.

[0028] This has the effect that when the user turns the mouthpiece portion inside out, for example to clean the other side of the mouth, the position of the anchoring member does not become the same as before, which means that the location where the anchoring member was previously an obstruction / obstacle is freely cleaned during the second cleaning operation.

[0029] In some embodiments, the mouthpiece body may be shaped to extend more than half but less than the entire length of the user's dental arch when received in the oral cavity for normal use.

[0030] The user can turn the mouthpiece body inside out to clean one side and the opposite side of the mouth. This design enables cleaning of the oral cavity in two operations. By offsetting the anchoring member symmetrically from the center position of the front of the mouth, it is meant that the specific mouth positions where the anchoring member engages to clean each side of the mouth are not the same. This means that all teeth are cleaned over the course of two cleaning intervals because the anchoring member does not cover the same teeth throughout the cleaning session.

[0031] In some embodiments, the cleaning element has a field of cleaning elements that extends along an arcuate contour described by the mouthpiece body, the field having a first end and a second end, and the anchoring member is disposed at a position along the cleaning element field inserted from one end of the cleaning element field.

[0032] Thus, there are cleaning elements on both sides of the anchoring member. This is to clean different sub-sections of the oral cavity. When the user changes the position of the mouthpiece part in the oral cavity, the specific tooth with which the anchoring member is aligned changes with each change in position, ensuring that there is an overlap in the coverage area of the cleaning element field between any two positions of the mouthpiece part.

[0033] In some further embodiments, when the mouthpiece part is received in the oral cavity, the arcuate contour of the mouthpiece part body is aligned with the contour of the user's dental arch, and the anchoring member is substantially positioned for engagement by the user between the upper and lower incisors at the front of the mouth, or the mouthpiece is configured such that the anchoring member is substantially positioned for engagement by the user between the upper and lower canines on the left or right front of the mouth. In some embodiments, when the mouthpiece part is received in the oral cavity, the arcuate contour of the mouthpiece part body is aligned with the contour of the user's dental arch, and the mouthpiece is configured such that the anchoring member is substantially positioned for engagement by the user between the upper and lower molars at the back of the mouth. Thus, the position of the anchoring member can be chosen to be disposed at any position within the oral cavity.

[0034] In some embodiments, the mouthpiece body can be formed from a plurality of joined sections that are pivotably movable relative to each other by a hinge joint, and the anchoring member is disposed at the position of the hinge joint.

[0035] This design ensures that there is still good freedom of movement between the two joining segments on either side of the anchoring member.

[0036] In some embodiments, the device includes a hollow member located on the outer periphery of the mouthpiece portion that defines an internal conduit providing passage to the internal cavity of the mouthpiece portion through the wall of the mouthpiece portion, the internal cavity housing the operating element of the operating mechanism, the hollow member having at least a section exposed outside the mouthpiece portion, the section providing the anchoring member.

[0037] This combines the function of an entry member already present in the device with the anchoring member, and thus this design increases additional structural efficiency.

[0038] In some embodiments, the operating mechanism is a pneumatic system having a bellows inside the mouthpiece portion configured to induce movement of the cleaning element in opposite directions of bellows expansion and contraction.

[0039] In some examples, the internal conduit (if provided) of the hollow member mentioned above can house a pneumatic junction with a pneumatic tube divided in two directions along the contour of the mouthpiece. In other examples, the hollow member can function as an inlet for the drive shaft of a drive train mechanism.

[0040] In some embodiments, the operating mechanism has a drive train mechanism including a motor that drives the movement of one or more drive members that guide the movement of the cleaning element.

[0041] These and other aspects of the invention will become apparent from and will be described with reference to the embodiments set forth below.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0042]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5

Figure 6

Figure 7

Figure 8

Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention

[0043] For a better understanding of the present invention and to more clearly show its implementation method, the accompanying drawings, which are merely illustrative, are referred to.

[0044] The present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0045] The detailed description and specific examples, while indicating exemplary embodiments of the apparatus, system, and method, are for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention. These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the apparatus, system, and method of the present invention will be more preferably understood from the following description, the appended claims, and the accompanying drawings. It should be understood that the figures are merely schematic and not drawn to scale. It should also be understood that the same reference numbers are used throughout the figures to indicate the same or similar parts.

[0046] The present invention provides an oral cleansing mouthpiece device having a dedicated mechanical structure (referred to as an anchoring member) for providing a support portion that allows a user to hold the jaw at high speed in order to fix the non-movable part of the mouthpiece to the reference frame of the jaw. As a result, the movable part of the mouthpiece (which carries the cleaning element) moves in a substantially predictable manner with respect to the upper and lower tooth rows. This avoids inadvertently holding the mouthpiece in a manner where the movable part of the mouthpiece engages one or both of the tooth rows at high speed, and as a result, no movement occurs between the cleaning element and one or both of the tooth rows.

[0047] Figures 2 and 3 show the basic principles in schematic form. Figure 2 shows a diagram of an exemplary mouthpiece device according to one or more embodiments, and Figure 3 shows a cross-sectional view that more particularly explains the effect of the anchoring member on the movement of the cleaning element with respect to the teeth.

[0048] Device 10 is, in summary, an oral care device having a mouthpiece portion 12 for at least partial reception in a user's mouth, where the body 16 of the mouthpiece portion describes an arcuate contour so as to substantially follow the contour of the user's dental arch. Shown in FIG. 2 is an example where the mouthpiece body has a U-shaped contour, has arcuate walls 18a on the outside and 18b on the inside, and a tooth-receiving channel 23 is defined between the walls. The floor of the channel can be formed by a further surface. There may be a pair of channels, one on the upper side (shown in FIG. 2) and one on the lower side, for receiving the user's two rows of teeth simultaneously. Thus, in cross-section, walls 18a, 18b can combine with the floor of the channel to define a substantially H shape.

[0049] In the illustrated example, and in the preferred embodiment, device 10 further has a handle portion 14 attached to the mouthpiece portion 12. The handle portion has a housing that can accommodate various electronic elements of the device.

[0050] The mouthpiece portion 12 carries a set of oral cleaning elements 20 for mechanically engaging the teeth during operation. These can be carried by a movable section or member of the mouthpiece portion, for example, a drive surface or drive frame movable relative to a stationary portion of the mouthpiece portion. For example, the mouthpiece body 16 may be a stationary portion.

[0051] The device further has actuating mechanisms 32, 34, 22 for actuating a periodic movement of the cleaning elements relative to the teeth when the mouthpiece portion is received in the oral cavity.

[0052] In the specific example shown in FIG. 3, this actuating mechanism takes the form of a pneumatic system having a bellows 22 inside the mouthpiece portion configured such that expansion and contraction of the bellows induces movement of the cleaning elements 20 in opposite individual directions. However, other types of actuating mechanisms, such as a drive train mechanism having a motor for driving the movement of one or more drive members that induce movement of the cleaning elements, can clearly be used to obtain a similar effect.

[0053] As schematically shown in FIG. 3, in the particular example illustrated, the movement induced by the actuating mechanism is the up / down periodic movement of the cleaning element 20 along the up / down vertical axis extending between the upper and lower jaws when the mouthpiece portion is received in the oral cavity for normal use. However, it should be noted that other movement patterns or directions are possible instead of and / or in addition to the up / down movement, and the concept of the present invention provides similar advantageous effects in these cases. For example, the actuating mechanism can be configured to induce an in-plane periodic movement of the cleaning element along a horizontal axis, which horizontal axis extends perpendicular to the vertical axis extending between the upper and lower jaws when the mouthpiece portion is received in the mouth for normal use.

[0054] The actuating mechanism in the illustrated example is shown to have a drive unit 32 and a drive element or line 34 housed in the handle portion. In the case of a pneumatic actuating system, the drive unit can be a pump. In the case of a drive train unit, the drive unit 32 can be a motor. The drive element or line 34 can be a fluid line in the case of a pneumatic system or a drive shaft or member in the case of a drive train mechanism. In either case, the drive element 34 provides the function of transmitting the force or driving force generated by the drive unit 32 to the actuating movable part of the actuating mechanism for directly applying the force to move the cleaning element 20. In the illustrated example, this takes the form of a bellows 22 housed in the body of the mouthpiece portion 12. In the illustrated embodiment, the cleaning element 20 extends from one or more surfaces that are moved by the bellows 22 of the actuating mechanism for inducing the movement of the cleaning element. The actuating mechanism periodically moves the surface up and down between the uppermost position and the lowermost position. This thus results in an up / down brushing stroke operation against the tooth surfaces. The figure shown in FIG. 3 is shown as a cross-section through the channel 23, and the front wall 18a of the channel is cut away.

[0055] The mouthpiece portion 12 further has an anchoring member 24 which is engagable by a part of the user's mouth when the mouthpiece portion is received in the mouth for normal use so as to fixedly hold the anchoring member 24 in a predetermined position relative to the jaw. When held in such a manner, the cleaning element 20 is movable relative to the anchoring member, and when the anchor member is held by a part of the user's mouth during normal operation, the actuating mechanisms 22, 32, 34 are operable to cause the cleaning element 20 to move simultaneously relative to both the upper and lower jaws.

[0056] In the example shown, the anchoring member is shown in the form of a simple bite block. In other words, the anchoring member is for the user to bite on. As will be further described below, other configurations are possible. For example, the anchoring member 24 can be designed to be sandwiched between the lips. As a more general principle, any anchoring member suitable for the user to sandwich between the upper and lower sections of the mouth at the position of the mouth can be provided. For example, in other cases, it can be designed to be sandwiched between the gums in the mouth. However, there are further possibilities, for example, it can even be applied to the outer regions of the upper and / or lower parts of the mouth, applied to the jaw, or held by all or part of the tongue. Therefore, the illustrated bite block is a simple example shown for the purpose of explanation of the concept.

[0057] In the view of Figure 3, two molars are biting on the anchoring member 24 in the form of a small block. The height of the block is greater than that of the collapsed bladder 22. More generally, it is preferred if the anchoring member has a height along the vertical axis between the lower and upper jaws, and this height is greater than the height of the mouthpiece body 16 when one or more surfaces carrying and moving the cleaning element 20 are in the lowest position.

[0058] As shown, when the anchoring member is held between the teeth, the brad 22, which is fixed to the bite block, can expand in both directions relative to the jaw and, thus, can move the cleaning element 20 relative to both the upper and lower teeth 42. Biting on the block 24 stabilizes the position of the mouthpiece portion 12 of the device 10 without the user having to firmly hold the mouthpiece portion 12 against the head.

[0059] This principle is thus simple, but various options are possible from the perspective of the location on the jaw where anchoring occurs and the exact mechanism of the mouthpiece.

[0060] Figure 4 shows different exemplary possible positions 62a - 62d of the anchoring member 24 around the arcuate contour of the mouthpiece body 12. Figure 4 shows an example of a mouthpiece design in which the mouthpiece portion extends so as to enclose only a part of the user's dental arch. It is also referred to as a J - shaped mouthpiece design.

[0061] When the mouthpiece portion 12 is received in the mouth for normal use, when the arcuate contour of the mouthpiece portion body is aligned with the contour of the user's dental arch and the mouthpiece is designed such that the anchoring member 24 is approximately positioned for engagement by the user's teeth or lips at a position along the dental arch towards the front of the mouth, position 62a corresponds. For example, the anchoring member 24 can be approximately positioned for engagement by the user between the upper and lower incisors at the front of the mouth.

[0062] When the mouthpiece portion is received in the mouth, when the arcuate contour of the mouthpiece portion body is aligned with the contour of the user's dental arch and the mouthpiece is designed such that the anchoring member is approximately positioned for engagement by the user between the upper and lower canines at the front left or front right of the mouth, position 62b corresponds.

[0063] When the mouthpiece part is received in the mouth, the arcuate contour of the mouthpiece part body is aligned with the contour of the user's dental arch, and the anchoring member is positioned approximately for engagement by the user between the upper and lower molars at the back of the mouth. When the mouthpiece is designed, position 62d corresponds.

[0064] Position 62c corresponds to an advantageous positioning when the mouthpiece body is formed from a plurality of joined sections that are pivotably movable relative to each other, for example by a hinge joint or other connecting means. In this case, it may be advantageous to position the anchoring member 24 at one position of the joint between the joined sections. This design ensures that there is still good freedom of movement between the two joined segments on either side of the anchoring member. This can actually be at any of various positions around the contour of the mouthpiece part 12.

[0065] A further option of using soft tissue (e.g., the lip) as an anchor point is not shown in the figure.

[0066] One consideration that has become apparent to the inventors is that when teeth are used to hold the anchoring member 24, the teeth in contact with the anchoring member may not be cleaned by the moving cleaning element. This has motivated a set of specific embodiments to try to mitigate this potential problem.

[0067] In particular, according to one set of embodiments, there is provided an apparatus in which the mouthpiece part 12 is shaped to extend around more than half but less than all of the user's dental arch when received in the oral cavity for normal use. In some examples, it can be a J-shaped mouthpiece. The mouthpiece part can be designed so that the entire oral cavity is not brushed at once. The mouthpiece needs to be turned inside out and used twice during a session. This allows for a design with overlap in the teeth being covered.

[0068] This is schematically shown by FIGS. 5 and 6, which illustrate an exemplary mouthpiece portion 12 that is positioned in use to first clean the first half of the mouth (FIG. 5) and then, by inverting the mouthpiece, clean the opposite side of the mouth (FIG. 6). The mouthpiece portion extends beyond the symmetric center point of the front of the mouth (indicated by arrow 63, and the dotted line indicates the line of symmetry), and is shaped to clean one or more teeth on the other side of the mouth beyond this point (e.g., additional incisors in the case of the figure), so that there is an overlap in the teeth being cleaned. The position 62 of the anchoring member can be inserted from one end 64 of the mouthpiece portion. More specifically, it can be inserted relative to a field of cleaning elements that extends along the length of the arcuate contour of the mouthpiece portion. Thus, there are cleaning elements on either side of the anchoring member.

[0069] In use, in the first session (FIG. 5), the left front tooth is used as the anchor point 62. That is, in this case, the user bites on the anchoring member with the left front incisor. As a result, this tooth is not cleaned in the first session. However, during the first session, the right front tooth is cleaned. After the first half of the mouth has been cleaned, the user inverts the mouthpiece portion and cleans the second half of the mouth (FIG. 6). When the J is inverted to polish the other side of the mouth, the anchor point 62 switches to the right front tooth. Thus, in the second session, the left front tooth is cleaned by the cleaning elements and the right front tooth (already cleaned) is obscured by the anchoring member.

[0070] From this example, a more generally applicable principle can be derived, that is, when the mouthpiece portion 12 is received in the mouth for normal use, the arcuate contour of the mouthpiece portion body is aligned with the contour of the user's dental arch, and the anchoring member 24 is offset from the center of symmetry 63 of the dental arch and is substantially positioned for engagement by the user's teeth or lips at a position along the dental arch facing forward in the mouth, indicating that there are technical advantages in the embodiment in which the mouthpiece is designed. This has the effect that when the user turns the mouthpiece portion inside out, for example, to clean the other side of the mouth, the position of the anchoring member does not become the same as before, which means that the location where the anchoring member was previously an obstruction / barrier is freely cleaned during the second cleaning session.

[0071] In one or more embodiments, the function of the anchoring member can be efficiently performed by an element that also performs another function in the context of the device. FIG. 7 shows an example, for instance. Here, the device includes a hollow member 70 located on the outer periphery of the mouthpiece portion 12 and defining an internal conduit that provides a passage through the wall of the mouthpiece portion into the internal cavity of the mouthpiece portion, and the internal cavity houses the operating element of the operating mechanism (for example, the bellows 22 of a pneumatic system or the drive shaft of a mechanical system). The hollow member has at least a section that is exposed outside the mouthpiece portion. In this set of embodiments, it is proposed to use this section of the hollow member 70 to provide the anchoring member 24. This combines two functions in one element, which enhances structural efficiency.

[0072] For example, the hollow member 70 can be the inlet of the drive train to the mouthpiece body or the inlet of the hydraulic tube to the mouthpiece body. The anchor point is at the front teeth and coincides with this inlet. For example, when the operating mechanism has a pneumatic system with expanding and contracting bellows, the anchor point can be, for example, a block (such as made of plastic) with an integrated pneumatic junction with a pneumatic tube divided in two directions.

[0073] Figure 8 shows this example. Here, the actuating mechanism is a pneumatic system having a bellows 22 inside a mouthpiece portion 12 configured to induce movement of the cleaning element 20 in individual directions opposite to the expansion and contraction of the bellows. The internal conduit of the hollow member 70 houses a pneumatic junction 76 with pneumatic tubes split in two directions along the contour of the mouthpiece. Figure 8 shows the pneumatic tubes entering the anchoring member 24 and the internal cavity of the anchoring member housing the junction.

[0074] In some embodiments, the device can further have a local power source, such as a battery, for powering the actuating mechanism.

[0075] In some embodiments, the device can further have, for example, a controller for controlling the actuating mechanism. The controller can be implemented in various ways using software and / or hardware to perform the various required functions. A processor is an example of a controller that employs one or more microprocessors programmed with software (such as microcode) to perform the required functions. The controller may or may not employ a processor in its implementation and may be implemented as a combination of dedicated hardware for performing some functions and a processor (such as one or more programmed microprocessors and associated circuitry) for performing other functions.

[0076] Examples of controller elements that may be employed in various embodiments of the present application include, but are not limited to, conventional microprocessors, application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), and field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs).

[0077] In various implementations, a processor or controller can be associated with one or more storage media such as volatile and non-volatile computer memories like RAM, PROM, EPROM, and EEPROM. The storage media may be encoded with one or more programs that perform the required functions when executed by one or more processors and / or controllers. The various storage media may be fixed within the processor or controller or may be transportable such that one or more programs stored therein can be loaded into the processor or controller.

[0078] Variations to the disclosed embodiments can be understood and effected by those skilled in the art in light of the drawings, disclosure, and appended claims. In the claims, the term "comprising" does not exclude other elements or steps, and the indefinite article "a" or "an" does not exclude a plurality.

[0079] The mere fact that certain measures are recited in mutually different dependent claims does not indicate that a combination of these measures cannot be used to advantage.

[0080] Note that, where the term "adapted to" is used in the claims or the specification, the term "adapted to" is intended to be equivalent to the term "configured to".

[0081] Any reference signs in the claims should not be construed as limiting the scope of the invention.

Claims

1. Oral care device, A mouthpiece portion for at least partial reception in the user's mouth, The main body of the mouthpiece part has an arc-shaped contour that closely follows the contour of the user's dental arch. The mouthpiece portion comprises a mouthpiece portion that carries a set of oral cleaning elements that mechanically engage with the teeth during use, When the mouthpiece portion is received in the oral cavity, an operating mechanism is provided to activate the periodic movement of the cleaning element against the teeth, Oral care device having an anchoring member that is bitten by the user to fix and hold the mouthpiece portion in a predetermined position relative to the jaw when the mouthpiece portion is received in the mouth for normal use, wherein when held, the cleaning element is movable relative to the anchoring member, and the operating mechanism is operable such that when the anchoring member is bitten by the user in normal operation, the cleaning element moves simultaneously relative to both the upper and lower jaws.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the operating mechanism induces the up / down cyclic movement of the cleaning element along an up / down vertical axis extending between the upper and lower jaws when the mouthpiece portion is received in the mouth for normal use.

3. The cleaning element extends from one or more surfaces which are moved by the operating mechanism that induces the movement of the cleaning element, and the operating mechanism moves the surfaces up and down between the uppermost position and the lowermost position. The apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the anchoring member has a height along the vertical axis, and the height is greater than the height of the mouthpiece body when one or more surfaces are in their lowest position.

4. The operating mechanism induces in-plane periodic motion of the cleaning element along a horizontal axis, the horizontal axis extending perpendicular to a vertical axis extending between the maxilla and the mandible when the mouthpiece is received in the mouth for normal use. The apparatus according to claim 1.

5. The apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the anchoring member is for the user to insert between the upper section and the lower section of the opening at the position of the opening.

6. The apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the mouthpiece body has a shape that extends to surround only a portion of the user's dental arch.

7. The apparatus according to claim 6, wherein when the mouthpiece portion is received in the oral cavity for normal use, the arc-shaped contour of the mouthpiece portion body is aligned with the contour of the user's dental arch, and the anchoring member is substantially positioned for engagement by the user's teeth or lips at a position along the dental arch toward the front of the mouth, offset from the center of symmetry of the dental arch.

8. The apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the mouthpiece body, when received in the oral cavity for normal use, has a shape that extends to surround more than half but less than the entirety of the user's dental arch.

9. The apparatus according to any one of claims 6 to 8, wherein the cleaning element has a field of the cleaning element that extends along an arc-shaped contour drawn by the mouthpiece body, the field has a first end and a second end, and the anchoring member is positioned along the cleaning element field into which one end of the cleaning element field is inserted.

10. When the mouthpiece portion is received in the oral cavity, the arc-shaped contour of the mouthpiece portion body is aligned with the contour of the user's dental arch. The anchoring member is positioned substantially between the upper and lower incisors on the front surface of the opening for engagement by the user, or The apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the anchoring member is substantially positioned between the upper and lower canine teeth on the front left or front right of the mouth for engagement by the user.

11. When the mouthpiece portion is received in the oral cavity, the arc-shaped contour of the mouthpiece portion body is aligned with the contour of the user's dental arch. The apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 10, wherein the anchoring member is substantially positioned between the upper and lower molars at the rear of the mouth for engagement by the user.

12. The apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 11, wherein the mouthpiece body is formed from a plurality of joint sections that are rotatably movable relative to each other by hinge joints, and the anchoring member is positioned at the hinge joints.

13. The device includes a hollow member located on the outer circumference of the mouthpiece portion, which defines an internal conduit that provides a passage through the wall of the mouthpiece portion to the internal cavity of the mouthpiece portion, The internal cavity houses the operating elements of the operating mechanism, The apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 12, wherein the hollow member has a section that is exposed to the outside of the mouthpiece portion, and the section provides the anchoring member.

14. The operating mechanism is a pneumatic system including a bellows inside the mouthpiece portion, and the expansion and contraction of the bellows induces the movement of the cleaning element in opposite, separate directions. The apparatus according to claim 13, wherein the internal conduit of the hollow member houses a pneumatic junction having pneumatic tubes that branch in two directions along the contour of the mouthpiece.

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