Mobile toothbrush holder
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing toothbrush holders often contaminate the inside of the holder due to direct contact between the toothbrush head and the holder's interior, leading to hygienic issues as bristles rub against the holder during insertion and removal.
Innovation Solution
A toothbrush holder with articulated enclosure parts that separate to receive the head, a guide member with rollers for alignment, and a biasing member to keep the head enclosed, ensuring a spacing between the bristles and the holder's interior for hygiene, and a clip mechanism for easy assembly and cleaning.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If the toothbrush head directly contacts the holder's interior during insertion and removal, then the holder structure is simple, but the holder interior becomes contaminated leading to hygienic problems
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces guide members (rollers) as intermediary elements between the toothbrush head and the holder's enclosure. These rollers guide the toothbrush head during insertion and removal while preventing direct contact between the bristles and the enclosure interior, thus solving the contamination problem without significantly complicating the holder structure
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a spatial dimension solution by designing the enclosure to separate into two parts during insertion/removal and come together during storage. This dimensional change allows the bristles to be spaced from the enclosure interior during critical operations while maintaining close contact during storage for hygiene
2Object-affected harmful factors
If the enclosure parts are kept closed to protect the toothbrush head, then hygiene is maintained, but insertion and removal of the head becomes difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies dynamics by making the enclosure parts movable rather than fixed. The enclosure separates into two parts during insertion and removal operations, then comes together to enclose the toothbrush head during storage. This dynamic behavior allows the system to adapt between protection mode and operation mode, resolving the contradiction between hygiene and ease of operation
Solution Approach 2:
The guide members (rollers) act as intermediaries that facilitate the separation of enclosure parts during insertion/removal. The rollers are mounted on the enclosure parts and guide the toothbrush head through the separating parts, enabling easy operation while maintaining the protective enclosure function
3Manufacturing precision
If rollers are shaped concavely to guide the toothbrush head, then alignment is improved, but the complexity of the guide member increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by making only the contact surface of the roller concave while the rest of the roller structure remains simple. This localized concavity provides the necessary guidance and alignment function without requiring the entire roller or the whole guide member system to be complex. The concave shape is applied only where needed for alignment purposes
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 solution prevents contamination by maintaining a gap between the toothbrush bristles and the holder's interior, providing a secure and hygienic storage solution that minimizes exposure to airborne contaminants and physical contact.
Implementation Method 1
a biasing member interacting with said enclosure parts for biasing said enclosure parts to be closed
Implementation Method 2
said guide member facilitating said insertion of said head by forcing said enclosure parts to separate against the action of the biasing member
Data Source
AI summary
An effective assembly for a toothbrush holder is achieved by applying a biasing member's force to cause two portions of an enclosure, each receiving one of two rollers. In this way, the biasing action can be used both for the roller action as well as for keeping the enclosure closed around the toothbrush head.