Cosmetic applicator

Abstract

This cosmetic applicator comprises a shaft cylinder, inner cotton that is accommodated inside the shaft cylinder and is impregnated with a fluid cosmetic, and an application member that is configured from a fiber bundle made of a synthetic resin and is attached to the distal end of the shaft cylinder. In the application member, a brush tip part positioned on the distal-end side and a relay part that is positioned on the rear-end side and is inserted into a distal-end part of the inner cotton are integrally formed.

Description

Cosmetic applicators

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a cosmetic applicator.

[0002] In applicators that house a batting impregnated with liquid cosmetics inside a barrel and apply this to a target surface, such as the face, it is common for a separate member to be interposed between the brush tip, which comes into contact with the target surface, and the batting (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2010-284927, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2012-101395).

[0003] Cosmetics may contain relatively large particles, such as glitter, depending on the purpose. However, such large particles can clog the interface between the brush tip and the intermediate member, making it difficult for the particles to reach the surface to be coated.

[0004] The present disclosure provides a cosmetic applicator that can reliably guide the cosmetic, including the particles, to the brush tip even when the cosmetic contains relatively large particles, thereby enabling the application liquid to be applied to the surface to be applied in good condition.

[0005] A cosmetic applicator according to an embodiment of the present disclosure comprises a barrel, a batting contained within the barrel and impregnated with a fluid cosmetic, and an applicator member made of a synthetic resin fiber bundle and attached to the tip of the barrel. The applicator member further comprises, integrally, a brush tip located at the tip end and a relay portion located at the rear end and pierced into the tip of the batting.

[0006] In the above-mentioned cosmetic applicator, it is desirable that the outer periphery of the relay portion is melted and solidified.

[0007] It is desirable that the cosmetic applicator further comprises a guide hole that passes through the relay part in the longitudinal direction, and a guide groove that is a longitudinal groove formed around the guide hole.

[0008] According to the present disclosure, it is possible to provide a cosmetic applicator that can reliably guide the cosmetic, including the particles, to the brush tip even when the cosmetic contains relatively large particles, and thus can apply the application liquid to the surface to be applied in good condition.

[0009] FIG. 1 is a front view of a cosmetic applicator of an embodiment. FIG. 2 is a front perspective view of the cosmetic applicator of FIG. 1. FIG. 3 is a plan view of the cosmetic applicator of FIG. 1. FIG. 4 is a bottom view of the cosmetic applicator of FIG. 1. FIG. 5 is a front view of the cosmetic applicator of FIG. 1 with the cap removed. FIG. 6 is a front perspective view of the cosmetic applicator of FIG. 5. FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view taken along A-A in FIG. 1. FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view taken along B-B in FIG. 5. FIG. 9 is a front view of an applicator member used in a cosmetic applicator of an embodiment. FIG. 10 is an enlarged plan view of the applicator member of FIG. 9. FIG. 11 is a bottom view of the applicator member of FIG. 9. FIG. 12 is a cross-sectional view taken along C-C in FIG. 9.

[0010] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that reference numerals commonly used in the drawings indicate common configurations or components even if not referred to in the description of each drawing. In the following description, the side of the cosmetic applicator where the brush tip is located will be referred to as the "front end," and the opposite side will be referred to as the "rear end." At any position on the cosmetic applicator, the direction of the front end will be referred to as the "forward" and the direction of the rear end will be referred to as the "rear."

[0011] Fig. 1 is a front view of a cosmetic applicator 10 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, Fig. 2 is a front perspective view of the cosmetic applicator 10, Fig. 3 is a plan view of the cosmetic applicator 10, and Fig. 4 is a bottom view of the cosmetic applicator 10. As shown in Figs. 1 to 4, the cosmetic applicator 10 comprises a cylindrical barrel 20, a cap 30 attached to the tip of the barrel 20, and a tail plug 24 attached to the rear end of the barrel 20.

[0012] Figure 5 is a front view of the cosmetic applicator 10 of Figure 1 with the cap 30 removed, and Figure 6 is a front perspective view of the cosmetic applicator 10 in this state. The barrel 20 has a large-diameter cylindrical portion 21 that is not covered by the cap 30, and a small-diameter portion 22 that is approximately cylindrical and has a slightly smaller diameter and is located in front of the large-diameter cylindrical portion 21. A tapered tip barrel 25 is attached to the tip of the barrel 20, and the brush tip portion 51 of the applicator member 50 protrudes from the tip barrel 25.

[0013] Figure 7 is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A in Figure 1, and Figure 8 is a cross-sectional view taken along line B-B in Figure 5. In addition to the large diameter portion 21 and small diameter portion 22 described above, barrel tube 20 is equipped with a partition wall 23 that internally separates large diameter portion 21 from small diameter portion 22, a tail plug 24 attached to the rear end of large diameter portion 21, and a front barrel 25 attached to the front end of small diameter portion 22. A through-hole 23A, through which applicator member 50 passes, is formed in the axial center of partition wall 23.

[0014] The barrel 20, specifically the front half of the large-diameter section 21, contains a padding 40 impregnated with a liquid cosmetic. The padding 40 is formed by bundling polyester fibers into a cotton-like mass. Examples of cosmetics impregnated into the padding include liquid eyeliner and eyebrow pencils. The cosmetic may contain glitter such as aluminum flakes. The average particle diameter of the glitter is preferably 10 μm to 90 μm, with glitter exceeding 100 μm also acceptable. The "average particle diameter" is the D50 value calculated on a volume basis using a particle size distribution analyzer HRA9320-X100 (manufactured by Nikkiso Co., Ltd.).

[0015] A tail plug 24 is attached to the rear end of the large-diameter portion 21 of the barrel 20. The tail plug 24 comprises a hollow tip portion 24A with an outer diameter substantially equal to the inner diameter of the large-diameter portion 21, an intermediate portion 24B that accounts for approximately 70% of the overall length of the tail plug 24 and has a smaller diameter than the tip portion 24A, and a rear end portion 24C that is located rearward of the intermediate portion 24B and has an outer diameter substantially equal to the inner diameter of the large-diameter portion 21. The tip of the tip portion 24A presses against the rear end portion of the padding 40. The outer periphery of the rear end portion 24C forms an outward-protruding flange 24D, which abuts against the rear edge of the large-diameter portion 21 when the tail plug 24 is attached to the barrel 20 and is flush with the outer diameter of the large-diameter portion 21.

[0016] Front barrel 25 is composed of a substantially cylindrical press-fit portion 25A that is inserted into small diameter portion 22 of barrel tube 20, and a tapered exposed portion 25B located at the tip side of the press-fit portion 25A. The tip portion of applicator member 50 protrudes from the tip of exposed portion 25B. Applicator member 50 penetrates the interior of front barrel 25, penetrates through-hole 23A in partition wall 23, reaches the interior of large diameter portion 21 of barrel tube 20, and punctures batting 40. Details of applicator member 50 will be described later.

[0017] 7, cap 30 is composed of a cylindrical outer tube 31 having the same diameter as large-diameter portion 21 of barrel 20, an inner tube 32 that is housed inside outer tube 31 and has a shorter axial length than outer tube 31, a connecting portion 33 that connects the inner periphery of outer tube 31 to the rear end of inner tube 32, and a head plug 34 that is attached to the tip of outer tube 31 and houses the tip portion of inner tube 32. Connecting portion 33 is formed in a tapered shape that matches the tapered shape of exposed portion 25B of front barrel 25. When cap 30 is attached to barrel 20, the tip portion of applicator member 50 is housed in the internal space of inner tube 32.

[0018] FIG. 9 is a front view of the applicator member 50 used in the cosmetic applicator 10 of this embodiment, FIG. 10 is a plan view, FIG. 11 is a bottom view, and FIG. 12 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line CC of FIG.

[0019] The applicator 50 is composed of a fiber bundle made of synthetic resin such as polybutylene terephthalate. The applicator 50 is integrally formed with a brush tip portion 51, a cylindrical intermediate portion 52 located behind it, and a truncated conical rear end portion 24C located behind it. As described above, the rear end portion 24C is the portion that is punctured into the padding 40 (see Figures 7 and 8). The overall length of the applicator 50 is preferably 30 to 40 mm, and the outer diameter is preferably 3 to 4 mm.

[0020] 10 and 12, a guide hole 55, which is a through-hole that extends from the rear end to the entire length of the relay portion 52, is formed at the axial center of the applicator member 50. The inner diameter of the guide hole 55 is preferably 1 to 2 mm. Four guide grooves 56, which are grooves that run along the longitudinal direction, are formed around the guide hole 55. The guide hole 55 and the guide grooves 56 are provided to facilitate penetration of the cosmetic impregnated in the padding 40 into the applicator member 50.

[0021] Additionally, outer skins 54 are formed on the outer peripheries of the relay section 52 and rear end section 53 of the applicator 50 by melting the surface and then solidifying. The applicator 50, which is a fiber bundle, is weak and soft when in a bristle bundle state, and therefore cannot pierce the padding 40. However, by melting the surface and forming the solidified outer skin 54, it becomes possible to pierce the padding 40. When the material is polybutylene terephthalate, the melting temperature at this time is preferably 215°C to 235°C, and the heating time is preferably 5 to 15 seconds. After the surface is melted, the temperature for cooling and solidifying is preferably 190°C to 200°C, and the cooling time is preferably 5 seconds or longer.

[0022] Because the cosmetic applicator 10 of this embodiment is configured as described above, the fluid cosmetic impregnated in the padding 40 passes through the applicator member 50 by capillary force and is guided to the brush tip 51, allowing it to be applied to a target surface such as the face. Here, the relay portion 52 and the brush tip 51 are integrally formed, which prevents particles contained in the cosmetic from clogging between the relay portion 52 and the brush tip 51, making it possible to guide cosmetics containing large particles, such as glitter particles of about 100 μm, to the tip. Furthermore, the provision of a guide groove 56 in the guide hole 55 formed in the applicator member 50 strengthens the capillary force, allowing the cosmetic to be guided to the tip.

[0023] The cosmetic applicator of the present disclosure can be used as a cosmetic container that contains liquid eyeliner or eyebrow pencil and has a brush tip attached to the tip.

Claims

1. A cosmetic applicator comprising: a barrel; a batting housed inside the barrel and impregnated with a fluid cosmetic; and an applicator member made of a synthetic resin fiber bundle and attached to the tip of the barrel; wherein the applicator member is integrally formed with a brush tip portion located at the tip end and a relay portion located at the rear end and pierced into the tip portion of the batting.

2. The cosmetic applicator according to claim 1, wherein the outer periphery of the relay portion is melted and solidified.

3. The cosmetic applicator according to claim 2, further comprising: a guide hole that passes through the relay portion in the longitudinal direction; and a guide groove that is a longitudinal groove formed around the guide hole.

Images