Oral irrigation device

Abstract

To provide oral cavity washing equipment capable of changing a liquid current of a cleaning fluid without increasing the number of components.SOLUTION: Oral cavity washing equipment comprises an equipment body that has a pump for discharging a cleaning fluid, and a nozzle 7 that is provided in the equipment body and that outward discharges the cleaning fluid discharged by the pump. The nozzle 7 has a throttle part 23, the inside diameter of which is set smaller than inside diameters of other parts of the nozzle 7 and which can change the inside diameter.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

Technical Field

[0006] ,

[0001] The present disclosure relates to an oral cavity cleaning device.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, as an oral cavity cleaning device, there is known a device including a device body having a pump for discharging a cleaning liquid, and a nozzle provided on the device body for discharging the cleaning liquid discharged by the pump to the outside (see Patent Document 1). In this oral cavity cleaning device, for example, a cleaning liquid such as water or water mixed with a drug is discharged from the nozzle toward the oral cavity to remove food residues and dental plaque in the oral cavity.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] By the way, in an oral cavity cleaning device such as the above Patent Document 1, a constriction portion having an inner diameter set smaller than other portions may be provided for the nozzle. By providing a constriction portion in the nozzle, the liquid flow caused by, for example, the discharge amount, discharge load, flow rate, etc. of the cleaning liquid discharged from the nozzle can be changed, and the removal performance of food residues and dental plaque can be improved. However, in order to change the liquid flow of the cleaning liquid, it is necessary to use a plurality of nozzles provided with constriction portions having different inner diameters, which increases the number of parts.

[0005] The present disclosure has been made in view of such problems of the prior art. And an object of the present disclosure is to provide an oral cavity cleaning device capable of changing the liquid flow of the cleaning liquid without increasing the number of parts.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] An oral cleaning device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure comprises a device body having a pump for discharging a cleaning solution, and a nozzle provided on the device body for discharging the cleaning solution discharged by the pump to the outside, wherein the nozzle has a constricted portion whose inner diameter is set to be smaller than the rest of the nozzle and whose inner diameter can be changed. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] According to this disclosure, it is possible to provide an oral cleaning device that can change the flow of the cleaning solution without increasing the number of parts. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0008] [Figure 1] This is a schematic diagram of an oral cleaning device according to the first embodiment. [Figure 2] This is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a key part showing an example of a case where an external force is applied to the nozzle of an oral irrigation device according to the first embodiment to form a constricted portion. [Figure 3] This is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a key part showing another example where an external force is applied to the nozzle of the oral irrigation device according to the first embodiment to form a constricted portion. [Figure 4] This is an enlarged perspective view of the main part of the nozzle of the oral irrigation device according to the second embodiment. [Figure 5] This is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the main part of the nozzle of the oral irrigation device according to the second embodiment. [Figure 6] This is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the main part of the nozzle of the oral irrigation device according to the third embodiment. [Figure 7] Figure 6 is a front view. [Figure 8] This is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the main part of the nozzle of the oral irrigation device according to the third embodiment. [Figure 9] This is a front view of Figure 8. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0009] The embodiments will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. However, unnecessary details may be omitted. For example, detailed explanations of already well-known matters or redundant explanations of substantially identical configurations may be omitted.

[0010] The attached drawings and the following description are provided to enable those skilled in the art to fully understand this disclosure and are not intended to limit the subject matter described in the claims.

[0011] (First Embodiment) The first embodiment will be described using Figures 1 to 3.

[0012] The oral irrigation device 1 according to this embodiment comprises a tank 3, a device body 5, and a nozzle 7.

[0013] Tank 3 stores, for example, water or a cleaning solution mixed with a chemical agent. Tank 3 is detachably attached to the main body of the device 5. When Tank 3 is detached from the main body of the device 5, cleaning solution is supplied to its interior. Alternatively, Tank 3 may be provided with a supply port that allows cleaning solution to be supplied to its interior when it is attached to the main body of the device 5. When Tank 3 is attached to the main body of the device 5, it supplies the cleaning solution stored inside to the main body of the device 5.

[0014] The main body of the device 5 is formed in a housing shape larger than the tank 3 so that the tank 3 can be attached to it. The main body of the device 5 is provided with a suction passage 9 to which the cleaning liquid stored inside the tank 3 is supplied. The suction passage 9 is also provided with a filter (not shown) to remove foreign matter mixed in with the cleaning liquid. The suction passage 9 is connected to a pump 11 built inside the main body of the device 5, and the cleaning liquid stored in the tank 3 is supplied to the pump 11 when the pump 11 is driven.

[0015] The pump 11 includes a motor 13, a cam 15, a piston 17, and a pump chamber 19. The motor 13 is driven by power supplied from a rechargeable battery (not shown) housed inside the apparatus main body 5. The cam 15 converts the rotation of the motor 13 into an axial operating force. The piston 17 is reciprocated along the height direction of the apparatus main body 5 by the axial operating force converted by the cam 15. The pump chamber 19 is where the end of the piston 17 is disposed, and its volume changes due to the reciprocating motion of the piston 17. The pump chamber 19 is respectively connected to a suction passage 9 and a discharge passage 21 provided inside the apparatus main body 5. A suction valve (not shown) is provided between the pump chamber 19 and the suction passage 9, and a discharge valve (not shown) is provided between the pump chamber 19 and the discharge passage 21.

[0016] When the pump 11 is driven by the motor 13 and the piston 17 moves in a direction to increase the volume of the pump chamber 19, the cleaning liquid in the tank 3 flows into the pump chamber 19 through the suction passage 9. The cleaning liquid that has flowed into the pump chamber 19 is discharged to the nozzle 7 through the discharge passage 21 when the piston 17 moves in a direction to decrease the volume of the pump chamber 19 due to the driving of the motor 13.

[0017] Although not shown, a power switch for turning on / off the oral cavity cleaning device 1 is provided on the outer surface of the apparatus main body 5. Also, on the outer surface of the apparatus main body 5, adjustment buttons for adjusting the liquid flow of the cleaning liquid discharged from the nozzle, such as the discharge amount, discharge load, and flow rate, are provided.

[0018] The nozzle 7 is formed in a hollow elongated shape and is detachable from the apparatus main body 5. When the nozzle 7 is attached to the apparatus main body 5, the end on the apparatus main body 5 side is connected to the discharge passage 21. The nozzle 7 injects the cleaning liquid flowing out from the discharge passage 21 from the tip. The cleaning liquid injected from the nozzle 7 removes food residues and dental plaque in the oral cavity.

[0019] Such a nozzle 7 is provided with a constricted section 23 inside, which has a smaller inner diameter than the rest of the nozzle. By providing the constricted section 23 in the nozzle 7, it is possible to change the liquid flow of the discharged cleaning solution, such as the discharge volume, discharge load, and flow velocity. By changing the liquid flow of the cleaning solution, the performance of removing food debris and plaque from the oral cavity can be improved.

[0020] To remove food debris from the oral cavity, it is necessary to increase the discharge volume and discharge load of the cleaning solution. On the other hand, to remove dental plaque from the oral cavity, it is necessary to increase the flow velocity of the cleaning solution in order to utilize cavitation. However, if the inner diameter of the constricted section 23 is narrowed to increase the flow velocity of the cleaning solution, the discharge volume of the cleaning solution decreases. Therefore, it is difficult to achieve both the removal of food debris and dental plaque.

[0021] To achieve both food debris removal and plaque removal, it would be possible to use multiple nozzles 7 with different inner diameters of the constricted portion 23, replacing them each time. However, this would increase the number of parts. Therefore, in the oral irrigation device 1, the inner diameter of the constricted portion 23 can be changed within a single nozzle 7.

[0022] The nozzle 7 is made of a material whose shape changes when an external force is applied, such as a plastically deformable resin, a plastically deformable metal, an ultraviolet-curing resin, or a shape memory alloy. The constricted portion 23 is formed, for example, as shown in Figure 2, by mechanically applying an external force from the outside to the inside of the nozzle 7 using a jig or the like, as indicated by the arrow, thereby reducing its inner diameter compared to other parts. Alternatively, the constricted portion 23 is formed, as shown in Figure 3, by mechanically applying an external force to both sides in the longitudinal direction of the nozzle 7 using a jig or the like, as indicated by the arrow, thereby reducing its inner diameter compared to other parts. Note that the constricted portion 23 may be formed not only by mechanical external force, but also by applying chemical external force, such as heat or ultraviolet light, depending on the material used for the nozzle 7, to reduce its inner diameter compared to other parts.

[0023] By applying an external force to the nozzle 7 in this way to form a constricted portion 23, the inner diameter of the constricted portion 23 can be changed to adjust the flow of the cleaning solution for a single nozzle 7. Therefore, without increasing the number of parts, it becomes possible to adjust the flow of the cleaning solution to achieve, for example, the removal of food debris and plaque simultaneously. If it is necessary to increase the inner diameter of the constricted portion 23, for example, a jig may be inserted into the inside of the nozzle 7 and an external force may be mechanically applied from the inside to the outside of the nozzle 7. Alternatively, a chemical external force such as heat or ultraviolet light may be applied depending on the material used for the nozzle 7.

[0024] Such an oral irrigation device 1 comprises a device body 5 having a pump 11 for discharging a cleaning solution, and a nozzle 7 provided on the device body 5 for discharging the cleaning solution discharged by the pump 11 to the outside. The nozzle 7 has a smaller inner diameter than the rest of the nozzle 7 and has a constricted portion 23 whose inner diameter can be changed.

[0025] Since the inner diameter of the throttling section 23 can be changed, even with a single nozzle 7, the flow rate of the cleaning fluid discharged from the nozzle 7 can be changed by changing the inner diameter of the throttling section 23. Therefore, there is no need to use multiple nozzles 7 equipped with throttling sections 23 of different inner diameters, and the number of parts does not increase.

[0026] Therefore, in such an oral irrigation device 1, the flow rate of the irrigating solution can be changed without increasing the number of parts.

[0027] Furthermore, the inner diameter of the constricted section 23 is changed by external force. Therefore, by adjusting the external force, the inner diameter of the constricted section 23 can be adjusted to match the flow of the cleaning fluid.

[0028] (Second Embodiment) A second embodiment will be described using Figures 4 and 5.

[0029] The oral irrigation device according to this embodiment has a selection section 103 formed with multiple different inner diameters in the constricted section 101.

[0030] Note that the same symbols are used for components identical to those in the first embodiment, and the descriptions of their components and functions are omitted, referring to the first embodiment. However, since the components are identical to those in the first embodiment, the effects obtained are the same.

[0031] As shown in Figures 4 and 5, the nozzle 7 is divided into an intake side and a discharge side for the cleaning fluid. A throttling section 101 is positioned between the divided nozzles 7, 7. The throttling section 101 has a selection section 103. The selection section 103 has a base 105 and a communication hole 107.

[0032] The base 105 is formed in an annular shape and positioned between the divided nozzles 7, 7. At the center of the base 105, shafts 109, 109, formed integrally with the base 105, are formed projecting toward the nozzles 7, 7. The shafts 109, 109 are pivotally supported by a support portion (not shown) formed integrally with the nozzles 7, 7. Therefore, the base 105 is rotatably positioned between the nozzles 7, 7. The space between the base 105 and the nozzles 7, 7 is sealed by a sealing member (not shown).

[0033] The communication holes 107 are formed to penetrate the base 105 in the axial direction. The inner diameters of the openings on both sides of the communication holes 107 are set to be the same as the inner diameters of the nozzles 7, 7. Therefore, when the base 105 rotates and the communication holes 107 are positioned between the nozzles 7, 7, the nozzles 7, 7 are connected through the communication holes 107, allowing the cleaning fluid to flow through them. Multiple communication holes 107 are arranged at equal intervals in the circumferential direction of the base 105 (six in this case).

[0034] A constricted portion 101 is provided in the center of the communication hole 107, with an inner diameter smaller than the inner diameter of the openings on both sides. The constricted portions 101 of the multiple communication holes 107 each have different inner diameters. Therefore, by rotating the base portion 105 and positioning the desired communication hole 107 between the nozzles 7, 7, it is possible to obtain desired performance, such as performance specifically for removing dental plaque.

[0035] In such an oral irrigation device, the constriction section 101 has a selection section 103 formed with multiple different inner diameters. Therefore, by selecting a desired inner diameter in the selection section 103, a desired flow of cleaning solution can be obtained with a single nozzle 7.

[0036] (Third embodiment) A third embodiment will be described using Figures 6 to 9.

[0037] In this embodiment, the oral irrigation device has a constriction section 201 which has a variable section 203 that changes the inner diameter from the outside of the nozzle 7.

[0038] Note that the same symbols are used for components identical to those in the first embodiment, and the descriptions of their components and functions are omitted, referring to the first embodiment. However, since the components are identical to those in the first embodiment, the effects obtained are the same.

[0039] As shown in Figures 6 to 9, the nozzle 7 has a suction side and a discharge side for the cleaning liquid, both made of a hard material such as resin or metal. The portion of the nozzle 7 located between the suction side and the discharge side is made of a soft material such as resin or metal. A constricted portion 201 is located in the portion made of the soft material. The constricted portion 201 has a variable portion 203. The variable portion 203 has a cylindrical member 205 and a pressing member 207.

[0040] The cylindrical member 205 has a nozzle 7 inserted through its interior. The cylindrical member 205 is supported radially via a support portion integrally provided on the outer circumference of the nozzle 7 (not shown). The cylindrical member 205 is positioned to be movable along the outer circumference of the nozzle 7 in the longitudinal direction of the nozzle 7 via the support portion.

[0041] The pressing member 207 is formed in a plate shape. Although not shown, one end of the pressing member 207 in the longitudinal direction is pivotally supported via a pivot portion integrally provided on the outer circumference of the nozzle 7. Therefore, the other end of the pressing member 207 in the longitudinal direction moves in a direction away from the outer circumference of the nozzle 7 and in a direction closer to the outer circumference of the nozzle 7.

[0042] One end of the pressing member 207 in the longitudinal direction is positioned further from the outer circumference of the nozzle 7 than the other end in the longitudinal direction. A biasing member 209 is positioned between the longitudinal end of the pressing member 207 and the outer circumference of the nozzle 7, biasing the pressing member 207 away from the outer circumference of the nozzle 7. The other end of the pressing member 207 in the longitudinal direction is positioned inside the cylindrical member 205 and is in contact with the portion of the nozzle 7 made of a soft material. Multiple such pressing members 207 are arranged at equal intervals in the circumferential direction around the outer circumference of the nozzle 7 (four in this case).

[0043] As shown in Figures 6 and 7, the variable portion 203, when the cylindrical member 205 comes into contact with the pressing member 207, causes the pressing member 207 to press against the outer circumference of the nozzle 7. The pressure from the pressing member 207 forms a constricted portion 201 in the nozzle 7, which has a smaller inner diameter than the rest of the nozzle 7. As shown in Figures 8 and 9, when the cylindrical member 205 moves toward the pressing member 207, it strengthens its contact with the pressing member 207, causing the pressing member 207 to further press against the outer circumference of the nozzle 7. The further pressure from the pressing member 207 reduces the inner diameter of the constricted portion 201.

[0044] In this way, by moving the cylindrical member 205, the inner diameter of the constricted portion 201 can be changed from the outside of the nozzle 7 via the pressing member 207. Therefore, by adjusting the position of the cylindrical member 205, the inner diameter of the constricted portion 201 can be adjusted to match the flow of the cleaning fluid. To increase the inner diameter of the constricted portion 201, the cylindrical member 205 can be moved, and for example, a jig can be inserted into the inside of the nozzle 7.

[0045] Furthermore, if the portion of the nozzle 7 that is deformed by the variable portion 203 is made of a material that undergoes plastic deformation, the inner diameter of the constricted portion 201 can be maintained, making it possible to attach and detach the variable portion 203 to the nozzle 7. Alternatively, the portion of the nozzle 7 that is deformed by the variable portion 203 may be made of a material that can be restored, such as an elastic body. In this case, the reduced inner diameter of the constricted portion 201 can be increased by moving the cylindrical member 205.

[0046] In such an oral irrigation device, the constriction section 201 has a variable section 203 that changes the inner diameter from the outside of the nozzle 7. Therefore, by adjusting the variable section 203, the inner diameter of the constriction section 201 can be adjusted with a single nozzle 7 to match the flow of the cleaning solution.

[0047] Since the embodiments described above are for illustrative purposes of the technology described herein, various modifications, substitutions, additions, omissions, etc., can be made within the claims or their equivalents. [Industrial applicability]

[0048] This disclosure is applicable to devices that dispense liquid from a nozzle. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0049] 1. Oral irrigation device 3 tanks 5. Main unit of the device 7 nozzles 9 Suction passage 11 pumps 13 Motors 15 Cam 17 Pistons 19 Pump Room 21 Discharge path 23,101,201 Aperture part 103 Selection Section 105 Base 107 Communication hole 109 axis 203 Variable part 205 Cylindrical member 207 Pressing member 209 Biasing member

Claims

1. A device body having a pump for dispensing cleaning solution, The device body includes a nozzle that discharges the cleaning liquid discharged by the pump to the outside, Equipped with, The nozzle has an inner diameter smaller than that of the other parts of the nozzle and has a constricted portion whose inner diameter can be changed. The nozzle is formed with a hard material on both the suction side and the discharge side of the cleaning liquid, and the portion located between the suction side and the discharge side is formed with a softer material than the hard material. The aforementioned constricted portion is located in the portion formed of the soft material in the oral irrigation device.

2. The oral cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein the constricted portion has an inner diameter that is changed by an external force.

3. A device body having a pump for discharging cleaning solution, The device body includes a nozzle that discharges the cleaning liquid discharged by the pump to the outside, Equipped with, The nozzle has an inner diameter smaller than that of the other parts of the nozzle and has a constricted portion whose inner diameter can be changed. The constricted portion has a selection portion formed with a plurality of different inner diameters, The nozzle is divided into two parts. The selection unit is positioned between the two divided nozzles. The selected portion has a plurality of communication holes, Each of the aforementioned multiple communication holes has a different inner diameter. The selection unit is configured such that one communication hole selected from the plurality of communication holes communicates with each of the two divided nozzles.

4. The oral cleaning device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the constricted portion has a variable portion that changes the inner diameter from the outside of the nozzle.

Images