Personalized Oral Insert With Circular Manifold Connector
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Current oral care devices, such as water flossers and electric toothbrushes, are cumbersome and time-consuming, leading to inconsistent and incomplete oral hygiene practices, which can result in increased bacterial levels and systemic inflammation, contributing to conditions like cardiovascular disease.
Innovation Solution
A personalized oral care system with a customized oral insert featuring fluid nozzles and an effluence conduit, combined with a handle and fluid pump, that provides pressurized fluid to interproximal spaces for efficient cleaning, optionally incorporating an elastomeric substrate for vibratory motion to mimic brushing, and a fluid reservoir for antiseptic solutions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If water flossers and electric toothbrushes are used to provide high-speed fluid jets and vibrating bristles for effective cleaning, then plaque and biofilm removal efficiency is improved, but device complexity and time consumption increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple oral care functions (flossing, rinsing, brushing) into a single integrated device. The oral insert includes fluid nozzles for flossing, vibrating bristles for brushing, and fluid reservoirs for rinsing, all in one unit. This merging eliminates the need for multiple separate devices while maintaining effective cleaning capabilities.
Solution Approach 2:
The oral care device is designed with multi-functionality to perform flossing, rinsing, and brushing operations simultaneously or sequentially. The handle includes fluid pumps, vibrating mechanisms, and fluid reservoirs that enable multiple cleaning modes, making a single device capable of addressing various oral hygiene needs that previously required separate tools.
2Productivity
If water flossers and electric toothbrushes are used for thorough cleaning, then plaque and biofilm removal is improved, but the time required for oral care increases
Solution Approach 1:
The device enables continuous oral care through integrated fluid delivery and vibrating mechanisms that can operate simultaneously across multiple zones. The fluid pumps and vibrating elements work continuously to provide uninterrupted cleaning action, eliminating the need to switch between multiple devices or perform separate flossing and rinsing steps.
Solution Approach 2:
By merging flossing, rinsing, and brushing functions into one device, the patent eliminates the time required to switch between multiple separate oral care steps. The integrated design allows all cleaning actions to occur in a single continuous motion, reducing overall oral care time while maintaining thoroughness.
3Reliability
If multiple separate oral care steps are performed, then comprehensive oral hygiene is achieved, but ease of operation decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple oral care functions into a single integrated device that can be operated with one hand. The handle includes combined fluid delivery systems, vibrating mechanisms, and fluid reservoirs that work together in a unified operation, eliminating the need to manage multiple separate devices and steps.
Solution Approach 2:
The device provides universal oral care functionality, performing flossing, rinsing, and brushing operations through a single multi-functional unit. This universality simplifies operation by eliminating the need to switch between different devices or perform separate sequential steps, while still achieving comprehensive oral hygiene.
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 system effectively cleans interproximal spaces, reduces microbial populations, and combines flossing and rinsing functions in a single step, promoting thorough daily oral care and reducing bacterial growth.
Implementation Method 1
a fluid pump that is configured to pressurize the fluid from the reservoir and a fluid regulator, such as a fluid switcher, that is configured to deliver and distribute the pressurized fluid to the nozzles of the oral insert
Implementation Method 2
The fluid nozzles of the oral insert may be located at regions that correspond with interproximal spaces between the user's teeth, so that fluid jets shaped by the nozzles may be directed into the interproximal spaces
Implementation Method 3
an elastomeric substrate that is configured to vibrate and/or otherwise mechanically agitate and/or translate along, and/or be manually actuated to contact, the surface of the user's teeth
Data Source
AI summary
An oral insert includes a plurality of fluid nozzles, a plurality of manifolds, and an attachment mechanism configured to be releasably attach with a handle. Each of the manifolds is associated with a corresponding subset of the plurality of fluid nozzles. The attachment mechanism includes a manifold connector having a plurality of manifold openings arranged in a circle. Each of the plurality of manifold openings is associated with one of plurality of manifolds.