Toothbrush

Abstract

To provide a toothbrush obtained by a bristle-planting method using a flat wire and being capable of more effectively cleaning teeth and gums in narrow places by further improving operability in narrow places.SOLUTION: In a toothbrush 10 on which each of a plurality of bristle bundles 16 is planted using a flat wire 18, a bristle-planting base 13 is formed by using a resin having a flexural modulus of 2,000 MPa or more and a tensile yield stress of 50 MPa or more, and has a thickness of 1.5-2.5 mm. The flat wire 18 is a flat wire with grooves including grooves 18a extending in a lengthwise direction crossing a driving direction Z of the flat wire 18 on lateral faces at both sides. When a hole depth of a bristle-planting hole 15 is D, a hole diameter is W, a thickness of the flat wire is T, and a height of the flat wire is H, a value obtained by formula D-(W-T) / 2-H is 0 or more and 0.2 or less with respect to all of the bristle-planting holes.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a toothbrush, and more particularly to a toothbrush in which tufts formed by bundling a plurality of bristles are respectively implanted into a plurality of implant holes formed in an implant base of a toothbrush body using a flat wire.

Background Art

[0002] In a toothbrush, a tuft (bristle bundle) formed by bundling a plurality of bristles is implanted and fixed in a plurality of implant holes formed in an implant surface of an implant base, preferably by driving a flat wire. By doing so, compared with other methods such as fusion implanting, it can be formed efficiently and stably. In addition, the toothbrush can efficiently perform appropriate brushing according to the type of teeth such as front teeth and back teeth, and the parts of teeth such as the interdental area, the tooth surface area, the tooth neck area, and the tooth back area, so as to effectively remove dental plaque and the like, and a good feel can be obtained during brushing. Various improvements have been made in the arrangement of the tufts and the shape of the bristle tips of the bristles.

[0003] For example, it is considered possible to obtain a toothbrush that can more effectively clean teeth and gums in narrow places by making the thickness of the implant base of the toothbrush body as thin as possible and improving the operability in narrow places in the oral cavity. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a toothbrush having a thickness of the implant base of 2 mm or more and 4.5 mm or less.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] In the toothbrush described in Cited Document 1, a tufting method using a flat wire is adopted, which can achieve an improvement in the cleaning effect in the oral cavity and the durability of tuft opening without causing an increase in cost and a decrease in productivity. However, due to the increasing interest in the oral hygiene environment in recent years, it is desired to develop a technology that can further reduce the thickness of the tufting base of the toothbrush body to further improve the operability in narrow areas in the oral cavity.

[0006] The present invention relates to a toothbrush that can further improve the operability in narrow areas in the oral cavity and more effectively clean teeth and gums in narrow areas by using a tufting method with a flat wire while avoiding an increase in cost and a decrease in productivity.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0007] The present invention is a toothbrush in which tufts formed by bundling a plurality of bristles are each implanted into a plurality of tufting holes formed in a tufting base of a toothbrush body using a flat wire. The tufting base is formed using a resin having a flexural modulus of elasticity of 2000 MPa or more and a tensile yield stress of 50 MPa or more, and has a thickness of 1.5 to 2.5 mm. The flat wire is a flat wire with a groove provided on a side surface extending in a length direction intersecting the driving direction of the flat wire. When the hole depth of the tufting hole is D, the hole diameter is W, the thickness of the flat wire is T, and the height of the flat wire is H, the value obtained by the calculation formula D - (W - T) / 2 - H is 0 or more and 0.2 or less for all the tufting holes.

Effects of the Invention

[0008] According to the toothbrush of the present invention, by using a tufting method with a flat wire, it is possible to avoid an increase in cost and a decrease in productivity, further improve the operability in narrow areas in the oral cavity, and more effectively clean teeth and gums in narrow areas.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0009]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5

Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention

[0010] As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, a toothbrush 10 according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention is formed by planting tufts (tufts) 16 formed by bundling a plurality of bristles 17 into a plurality of planting holes 15 formed in a tufting base 13 of a toothbrush body 11 including a gripping portion 12, a tufting base 13, and a neck portion 14 connecting them, using flat wires 18 (see FIGS. 4(a) and 4(b)). The toothbrush 10 of the present embodiment has a function of further improving the operability in narrow places in the oral cavity and more effectively cleaning the teeth and gums in narrow places by using a tufting method using flat wires 18 without causing an increase in cost and a decrease in productivity, and by suppressing the thickness of the tufting base 13.

[0011] Then, as shown in FIGS. 4(a) and 4(b), the toothbrush 10 of the present embodiment is a toothbrush in which tufts 16 formed by bundling a plurality of bristles 17 are respectively implanted into a plurality of implant holes 15 formed in the implant base 13 of the toothbrush body 11 using flat wires 18. The implant base 13 is formed using a resin having a flexural modulus of 2000 MPa or more and a tensile yield stress of 50 MPa or more, and has a thickness of 1.5 to 2.5 mm. The flat wire 18 is a grooved flat wire having grooves 18a extending in the length direction intersecting the driving direction Z (see FIG. 5) of the flat wire 18 on both side surfaces. When the hole depth of the implant hole 15 is D, the hole diameter is W, the thickness of the flat wire is T, and the flat wire height is H, the value obtained by the calculation formula D-(W-T) / 2-H is 0 or more and 0.2 or less for all the implant holes.

[0012] In the present embodiment, the toothbrush body 11 can be formed using a generally used synthetic resin without any particular limitation. The toothbrush body 11 is preferably formed by integrally molding the toothbrush body 11 composed of the grip portion 12, the implant base 13, and the neck portion 14 using, for example, a polybutylene terephthalate resin or a polyacetal resin as a resin having a flexural modulus of 2000 MPa or more and a tensile yield stress of 50 MPa or more. As a result, the implant base 13 of the toothbrush body 11 is also formed using a resin having a flexural modulus of 2000 MPa or more and a tensile yield stress of 50 MPa or more. The toothbrush body 11 can also be formed, for example, by two-color molding, using a resin other than a resin having a flexural modulus of 2000 MPa or more and a tensile yield stress of 50 MPa or more for the portions other than the implant base 13. The grip portion 12 is a portion that the user grips when operating the toothbrush 10, and the neck portion 14 is a portion that connects the grip portion 12 and the implant base 13.

[0013] In addition, in the present embodiment, one surface in the thickness direction of the tufting table 13 is a tufting surface 13a. A plurality of tufting holes 15 having a preferably circular cross-sectional shape are formed in the tufting surface 13a, and a tuft (bundle) 16 formed by bundling a plurality of bristles 17 is implanted into each tufting hole 15 by flat-line tufting using a flat line 18 (see FIGS. 4(a) and 4(b)). In FIGS. 1 and 3, the illustration of the tuft 16 is omitted.

[0014] In the present embodiment, it is preferable that the inner diameter W (see FIG. 4(a)) of each tufting hole 15 is 0.8 mm or more, more preferably 1.0 mm or more, and particularly preferably 1.2 mm or more. Also, it is preferable that the inner diameter W of each tufting hole 15 is 2.0 mm or less, more preferably 1.8 mm or less, and particularly preferably 1.6 mm or less. From the viewpoint of forming the thickness of the tufting table 13 as thin as possible while maintaining a sufficient tufting density, it is preferable that the inner diameter W of each tufting hole 15 is 0.8 to 2.0 mm, more preferably 1.0 to 1.8 mm, and particularly preferably 1.2 to 1.6 mm.

[0015] Also, it is preferable that the depth D (see FIG. 4(b)) of each tufting hole 15 is 1.0 mm or more, more preferably 1.2 mm or more, and particularly preferably 1.4 mm or more. Also, it is preferable that the depth D of each tufting hole 15 is 2.2 mm or less, more preferably 2.1 mm or less, and particularly preferably 2.0 mm or less. From the viewpoint of forming the thickness of the tufting table 13 as thin as possible while maintaining sufficient tufting strength, it is preferable that the depth D of each tufting hole 15 is 1.0 to 2.2 mm, more preferably 1.2 to 2.1 mm, and particularly preferably 1.4 to 2.0 mm.

[0016] In this embodiment, the size and dimensions of the implanting surface 13a of the implanting base 13 can be appropriately determined in consideration of characteristics such as the operability in the oral cavity. The size and dimensions of the implanting surface 13a of the implanting base 13 can be set, for example, such that the length in the axial direction X of the toothbrush 10 is 10 mm or more and 33 mm or less, and the width in the direction Y perpendicular to the axial direction is 5 mm or more and 16 mm or less.

[0017] And in this embodiment, the implanting base 13 of the toothbrush body 11 is formed using a resin having a flexural modulus of 2000 MPa or more and a tensile yield stress of 50 MPa or more. As a result, even if the thickness of the implanting base 13 is reduced, it will not be greatly deformed by implanting and sufficient implanting strength can be maintained. From such a viewpoint, it is more preferable that the resin forming the implanting base 13 has a flexural modulus of 2200 MPa or more, and particularly preferably 2400 MPa or more. From the same viewpoint, it is preferable that the flexural modulus of the resin forming the implanting base 13 is 2000 to 10000 MPa, more preferably 2200 to 8000 MPa, and particularly preferably 2400 to 6000 MPa.

[0018] Also, from the same viewpoint, it is more preferable that the resin forming the implanting base 13 has a tensile yield stress of 55 MPa or more, and particularly preferably 60 MPa or more. From the same viewpoint, it is preferable that the tensile yield stress of the resin forming the implanting base 13 is 50 to 300 MPa, more preferably 55 to 250 MPa, and particularly preferably 60 to 200 MPa.

[0019] Here, the flexural modulus of the resin forming the implanting base 13 of the toothbrush body 11 is the modulus of elasticity measured by the measuring method defined in JIS K7171, and the tensile yield stress is the stress measured by the tensile testing machine defined in JIS K7161.

[0020] In this embodiment, the implant base 13 formed using such a resin has a thickness of 1.5 to 2.5 mm. As a result, even if the thickness of the implant base 13 of the toothbrush 10 in this embodiment is reduced, it will not be greatly deformed by implanting the bristles and can maintain sufficient implanting strength. From such a perspective, it is more preferable that the thickness of the implant base 13 is 1.7 mm or more, and it is particularly preferable that the thickness is 1.9 mm or more. From the same perspective, it is more preferable that the thickness of the implant base 13 is 1.7 to 2.5 mm, and it is particularly preferable that the thickness is 1.9 to 2.5 mm.

[0021] And in this embodiment, the plurality of implant holes 15 formed on the implant surface 13a of the implant base 13 are dispersedly arranged in the length direction (axial direction) X and the width direction (direction perpendicular to the axial direction) Y of the implant surface 13a, for example, as shown in FIG. 3, and are formed and provided with openings at, for example, 40 locations. In each implant hole 15, a tuft 16 formed by bundling a plurality of bristles 17 is implanted by known flat wire implanting using a flat wire 18, as shown in FIGS. 4(a) and (b). That is, a plurality of bristles (toothbrush bristles) 17 constituting each tuft 16 are bundled and folded in half, and with a flat wire 18, which is a retaining member, sandwiched therebetween, the flat wire 18 is driven into the implant hole 15, whereby the tufts 16 can be implanted into the plurality of implant holes 15 on the implant surface 13a, respectively.

[0022] Here, the material of the bristles 17 constituting each tuft 16 is not particularly limited. For example, resin materials such as polyamide (e.g., 6-12 nylon, 6-10 nylon, 12-nylon, etc.), polyester (e.g., polyethylene terephthalate, polybutylene terephthalate, polytrimethylene terephthalate, etc.), polyolefin (e.g., polypropylene, etc.), elastomer (e.g., olefin-based, styrene-based, etc.), etc., or natural materials can be used, and these can also be used in combination. A plurality of these resin materials can also be used in combination. For example, different resin materials can be used for the core part and the sheath part, such as a core-sheath structure.

[0023] Also, the cross-sectional shape of the bristles 17 is often circular, but it is not particularly limited thereto. For example, it may have a cross-sectional shape such as a triangle, a quadrilateral, or a hexagon. The overall appearance shape may be processed into a wave shape, a twist shape, etc., and these can also be used in combination.

[0024] The bristles 17 preferably have a thickness of about 3 to 12 mil (0.076 to 0.305 mm), and more preferably have a thickness of about 5 to 10 mil (0.127 to 0.254 mm). Also, the tips of the bristles 17 may be rounded, may gradually decrease in diameter toward the tip, and may be tapered bristles with a sharpened tip. In this case, the tip of the bristle can easily penetrate into the gaps between the teeth and the tooth roots, and a soft touch can be realized, so it is suitable for brushing and massaging at the boundary between the teeth and the tooth roots. Also, the tuft 16 made of bristles with rounded tips and the tuft 16 made of tapered bristles can be appropriately selected and used for each implantation hole 15, or these can be mixed and used within the same tuft 16, and can be freely combined.

[0025] The implantation length (bristle length) of the bristles 17 constituting the tuft 16 from the implantation surface 13a is preferably, for example, 6 to 15 mm.

[0026] When implanting the tuft 16 by flat wire implantation into each implantation hole 15, the flat wire 18 used is a known member in the shape of a thin strip as shown in FIGS. 4(a) and 4(b), and can be formed using a metal such as brass, stainless steel, or aluminum, or a hard plastic, biodegradable plastic, etc. In FIG. 4(a), the bristles 17 and the tuft 16 are shown in a state where they are omitted.

[0027] The flat wire 18 preferably has a thickness T (see Fig. 4(a)) of 0.14 mm or more, more preferably 0.16 mm or more, and particularly preferably 0.18 mm or more. Also, the thickness T of the flat wire 18 is preferably 0.26 mm or less, more preferably 0.24 mm or less, and particularly preferably 0.22 mm or less. From the viewpoint of maintaining a sufficient hair implantation density and the rigidity of the flat wire 18, the thickness T of the flat wire 18 is preferably 0.14 to 0.26 mm, more preferably 0.16 to 0.24 mm, and particularly preferably 0.18 to 0.22 mm.

[0028] Also, the flat wire 18 preferably has a height H (see Fig. 4(b)) of 0.6 mm or more, more preferably 0.7 mm or more, and particularly preferably 0.8 mm or more. The height H of the flat wire 18 is preferably 1.4 mm or less, more preferably 1.3 mm or less, and particularly preferably 1.2 mm or less. From the viewpoint of forming the thickness of the hair implantation base 13 as thin as possible while maintaining sufficient hair implantation strength, the height H of the flat wire 18 is preferably 0.6 to 1.4 mm, more preferably 0.7 to 1.3 mm, and particularly preferably 0.8 to 1.2 mm.

[0029] In the present embodiment, as shown in Fig. 5, the flat wire 18 is a known grooved flat wire having one or a plurality of grooves 18a extending in the length direction intersecting the driving direction Z of the flat wire 18 on the side surface. Since the flat wire 18 is a grooved flat wire, it becomes possible to form the thickness of the hair implantation base 13 as thin as possible while maintaining sufficient hair implantation strength.

[0030] The length of the flat wire 18 is larger than the inner diameter of the implant hole 15. Thus, the flat wire 18 is driven in such a manner that both end portions thereof bite into the resin forming the implant base 13 at the peripheral portion of the implant hole 15, and the edge portion on the rear side in the driving direction Z is driven in so as to be disposed inside the opening surface of the implant hole 15 (see FIGS. 4(a) and 4(b)). Thereby, each tuft 16 of bristles can be efficiently implanted into each implant hole 15 while standing the bristles 17 upright from the implanting surface 13a of the implant base 13 and maintaining a desired implanting strength.

[0031] Further, in the present embodiment, when the hole depth of the implant hole 15 is D, the hole diameter is W, the thickness of the flat wire 18 is T, and the height of the flat wire 18 is H (see FIGS. 4(a) and 4(b)), the value obtained by the calculation formula D - (W - T) / 2 - H is 0 or more and 0.2 or less for all the implant holes 15. That is, for all the implant holes 15, the value obtained by subtracting the height H of the flat wire 18 and half of the value obtained by subtracting the thickness T of the flat wire 18 from the hole diameter W from the hole depth D of the implant hole 15 is 0 or more and 0.2 or less. Thereby, the driving depth of the flat wire 18 can be made shallower, and the thickness of the implant base 13 can be made thinner than that of the conventional product. From such a viewpoint, it is more preferable that the value obtained by the calculation formula D - (W - T) / 2 - H is 0.18 or less, and particularly preferably 0.16 or less. From the same viewpoint, it is more preferable that the value obtained by the calculation formula D - (W - T) / 2 - H is 0 to 0.18, and particularly preferably 0 to 0.16.

[0032] According to the toothbrush of the present embodiment having the above-described configuration, by the implanting method using the flat wire, the operability in narrow places in the oral cavity can be further improved without causing an increase in cost and a decrease in productivity, and the cleaning of teeth and gums in narrow places can be performed more effectively.

[0033] That is, according to the toothbrush 10 of the present embodiment, the bristle base 13 is formed using a resin having a flexural modulus of 2000 MPa or more and a tensile yield stress of 50 MPa or more, and has a thickness of 1.5 to 2.5 mm. The flat wire 18 used when implanting the tufts 16 is a grooved flat wire, and the value obtained by the calculation formula D - (W - T) / 2 - H is 0 or more and 0.2 or less. Therefore, while maintaining sufficient implanting strength, the thickness of the bristle base 13 can be made thinner than that of conventional products, which makes it possible to further improve the operability in narrow areas in the oral cavity. Moreover, this makes it possible to more effectively clean the teeth and gums in narrow areas in the oral cavity.

[0034] Note that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications are possible. For example, the implanting holes do not necessarily have to have a circular cross-sectional shape, and may have various other cross-sectional shapes such as polygons, rectangles, trapezoids, etc. In this case, the hole diameter is the hole diameter when the cross-sectional area is converted into the area of a circle.

Example

[0035] Hereinafter, the toothbrush of the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to examples and comparative examples, but the present invention is not limited in any way by the descriptions of the following examples and comparative examples.

[0036] 〔Toothbrushes of Examples 1 to 5, Toothbrushes of Comparative Examples 1 to 3〕 Toothbrushes in which the material of the bristle base, the type of flat wire, the thickness of the bristle base, the hole depth D of the implanting holes, the hole diameter W of the implanting holes, the thickness T of the flat wire, the height H of the flat wire, and the value of the calculation formula D - (W - T) / 2 - H are as shown in Table 1 were used as the toothbrushes of Examples 1 to 5. Similarly, toothbrushes in which the material of the bristle base, the type of flat wire, the thickness of the bristle base, the hole depth D of the implanting holes, the hole diameter W of the implanting holes, the thickness T of the flat wire, the height H of the flat wire, and the value of the calculation formula D - (W - T) / 2 - H are as shown in Table 1 were used as the toothbrushes of Comparative Examples 1 to 3. For the toothbrushes of Examples 1 to 5 and the toothbrushes of Comparative Examples 1 to 3, the implanting strength and the operability in narrow areas were evaluated according to the following evaluation methods. The evaluation results are shown in Table 1.

[0037] 〔Evaluation of Implanting Strength〕 Any tuft of bristles was grasped with a dedicated jig, and using a force gauge (FGN-20B) manufactured by Nidec-Shimpo, the maximum tensile stress (N) until the tuft of bristles came out of the implanting hole was measured (tensile speed: 10 mm / min, n = 20). As a result, when both the average value and the minimum value were 15 N or more, it was marked as "○"; when the average value was 15 N or more and the minimum value was less than 15 N, it was marked as "△"; when both the average value and the minimum value were less than 15 N, it was marked as "×".

[0038] 〔Evaluation of Operability in Narrow Spaces〕 As samples of the toothbrushes of Examples 1 to 5 and Comparative Examples 1 and 2, implanting holes with a predetermined hole diameter were evenly arranged on the implanting base so that the area of the implanting range (the range connecting the outer edges of the outermost implanting holes) was 140 mm2 ± 10%, and the prepared toothbrushes with the bristle length after implanting trimmed to 9.5 mm were used. For the evaluation, samples of the toothbrushes of Examples 1 to 5 and Comparative Examples 1 and 2 were actually used by 10 monitors, and the operability when polishing narrow areas in the oral cavity (the back of the molars, the cervical part of the canine teeth) was evaluated by the average score of a five-level evaluation. Specifically, "easy to polish" was rated 5 points, "somewhat easy to polish" was rated 4 points, "neither easy nor difficult to say" was rated 3 points, "not very easy to polish" was rated 2 points, and "difficult to polish" was rated 1 point. When the average score of the 10 monitors was 4.0 or more, it was rated as 〇; when it was 3.0 or more and less than 4.0, it was rated as △; when it was less than 3.0, it was rated as ×.

[0039]

Table 1

[0040] According to the evaluation results shown in Table 1, it was found that the toothbrushes of Examples 1 to 5 according to the present invention are excellent in implanting strength and operability in narrow spaces as compared with the toothbrushes of Comparative Examples 1 to 3.

Explanation of Signs

[0041] 10 Toothbrush 11 Toothbrush Body 12 Gripping Portion 13 Implanting Base 13a Implanting Surface 14 Head 15 Implant pore 16 Hair bundle 17 Bristle 18 Horizontal line 18a Groove Axial direction (length direction) of the X toothbrush Direction perpendicular to the Y-axis direction (width direction) Driving direction of the Z horizontal line

Claims

Claim 1 A toothbrush in which a tuft formed by bundling a plurality of bristles is implanted in each of a plurality of implant holes formed in an implant base of a toothbrush body using a flat wire, The implant base is formed using a polybutylene terephthalate resin having a flexural modulus of 2000 MPa or more and a tensile yield stress of 60 to 200 MPa, and has a thickness of 1.5 to 2.5 mm, The flat wire is a grooved flat wire having a groove on a side surface extending in a length direction intersecting a driving direction of the flat wire, The implant base made of polybutylene terephthalate resin is set such that the axial length of the toothbrush body is 10 mm or more and 33 mm or less, and the lateral width in a direction perpendicular to the axial direction is 5 mm or more and 16 mm or less, In the implant base made of polybutylene terephthalate resin, the value of the hole depth D of the implant hole is 1.0 mm or more and 2.2 mm or less, the value of the hole diameter W of the implant hole is 0.8 mm or more and 2.0 mm or less, the value of the thickness T of the flat wire is 0.14 mm or more and 0.26 mm or less, and the value of the height H of the flat wire is 0.6 mm or more and 1.4 mm or less, A toothbrush in which the value obtained by the calculation formula D - (W - T) / 2 - H is 0 or more and 0.1 mm or less for all of the implant holes.

Images