Anisotropic Toothbrush Neck for Pressure-Controlled Tooth Targeting
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing toothbrushes with soft resin neck portions are difficult to maintain appropriate brushing pressure and accurately target individual teeth due to easy bending in various directions during brushing.
Innovation Solution
A toothbrush design with an anisotropic deformation portion that allows for different bending strengths in orthogonal directions, featuring a neck portion with anisotropic deformation properties, including an elastic deformation portion and a hard portion, to stabilize brushing pressure and enhance targeting accuracy.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Force
If the neck portion is made mainly of soft resin to suppress excessive brushing pressure, then brushing pressure control is improved, but the toothbrush becomes difficult to maintain appropriate brushing pressure and accurately target individual teeth due to easy bending in all directions
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies different material properties to different regions of the neck portion. The first region (near the head) uses soft resin for pressure suppression, while the second region (toward the grip) uses hard resin for stability. This local differentiation allows the neck to provide both pressure control and positioning accuracy simultaneously.
Solution Approach 2:
The neck portion is constructed as a composite structure combining soft resin and hard resin materials. The soft resin component suppresses excessive brushing pressure through flexibility, while the hard resin component provides structural stability for accurate tooth targeting. This composite approach resolves the contradiction between pressure control and positioning accuracy.
2Adaptability or versatility
If the main part of the toothbrush is made of soft resin to provide flexibility, then pressure control is improved, but it becomes difficult to maintain appropriate brushing pressure and accurately brush tooth by tooth due to easy bending during brushing
Solution Approach 1:
Different regions of the toothbrush are assigned different material qualities: the head and first region use soft resin for adaptability and pressure control, while the second region and grip use hard resin for stability and precision. This spatial differentiation of material properties resolves the conflict between flexibility and brushing precision.
Solution Approach 2:
The toothbrush is segmented into distinct functional zones with different material properties. The segmentation allows the soft resin portion to provide flexibility and adaptability where needed, while the hard resin portion maintains structural integrity and precision where required, eliminating the trade-off between these properties.
3Force
If the neck portion has flexibility in all directions, then excessive brushing pressure is suppressed, but it becomes difficult to stably apply the brush portion to target portions during brushing
Solution Approach 1:
The neck portion exhibits directional differences in material quality: it is flexible in the vertical direction (for pressure suppression) but stable in the horizontal direction (for positioning). This anisotropic property distribution allows simultaneous achievement of pressure control and positioning stability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the material parameter (hardness) differently across spatial locations and directions. The neck portion is designed with softer material properties in the vertical direction to allow pressure absorption, while maintaining harder material properties in the horizontal direction to ensure stable positioning during brushing operations.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The toothbrush maintains appropriate brushing pressure and allows for accurate brushing of individual teeth by controlling bending in specific directions, enhancing cleaning efficacy and operability.
Implementation Method 1
an elastic deformation portion that connects a first region on the tip end side from the anisotropic deformation portion and is elastically deformable in the first direction and the second direction
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3~4
AI summary
An object of the present invention is to provide a toothbrush able to accurately brush a dentition tooth by tooth while maintaining an appropriate brushing pressure. An anisotropic deformation portion (70) is provided on a rear end side from the bristle tufting surface (11), and a bending strength in a first direction orthogonal to the bristle tufting surface is smaller than a bending strength in a second direction orthogonal to the long axis direction and the first direction. The anisotropic deformation portion includes an elastic deformation portion (90) that connects a first region on the tip end side from the anisotropic deformation portion and a second region on the rear end side from the anisotropic deformation portion and is elastically deformable in the first direction and the second direction, and any bending load when the head portion is displaced in the first direction with a reference displacement amount of 10 mm, 20 mm, or 30 mm in a state where the grip portion is supported is lower than a bending load when the head portion is displaced in the second direction with a reference displacement amount of 10 mm in a state where the grip portion is supported.