Resilient Bridge Oral Care Implement for Contour Adaptation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional toothbrushes lack flexibility and adjustability, which limits their effectiveness in enhancing oral health and cleaning efficiency.
Innovation Solution
An oral care implement featuring a handle and a head with a resilient bridge that is self-biased into a normal state, allowing it to flex between a normal and a flexed state, with tooth cleaning elements mounted to the bridge and extending from its upper surface, providing enhanced cleaning capabilities.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a conventional toothbrush uses bristles fixed at a single angle and height, then the structure is simple and easy to manufacture, but the adaptability to different mouth contours and brushing needs is poor
Solution Approach 1:
The toothbrush head incorporates a resilient bridge that enables dynamic movement between fixed and flexed states, allowing the bristles to adapt to different mouth contours and brushing needs while maintaining a relatively simple overall structure
Solution Approach 2:
The resilient bridge changes the positional parameters of the bristles by transitioning between normal and flexed states, altering the angle and height of bristle tips to provide varied cleaning actions without requiring multiple fixed configurations
2Adaptability or versatility
If a toothbrush uses a resilient bridge that can flex between normal and flexed states, then the adaptability and cleaning effectiveness are improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The toothbrush head is segmented into distinct functional components including the resilient bridge, bristle carriers, and base, allowing each element to perform its specific function while contributing to overall adaptability without excessive complexity
Solution Approach 2:
The resilient bridge structure incorporates nested elements where bristle carriers are positioned on the bridge, and the entire assembly nests within the head structure, achieving compact design while maintaining flexibility
3Stability of the object's composition
If the resilient bridge is self-biased into the normal state under flexure stress, then the toothbrush returns to its original position for consistent cleaning, but the structural complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The resilient bridge is designed with self-biasing characteristics that automatically return the toothbrush head to its normal state after flexing, eliminating the need for external mechanisms or user intervention to restore the original position
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 flexible design of the oral care implement allows for improved adaptation to mouth contours and enhanced cleaning efficiency by adjusting the position of tooth cleaning elements, improving brushing effectiveness.
Implementation Method 1
a resilient bridge flexible between: (1) a normal state in which the resilient bridge comprises a bowed section that is bowed away from the base; and (2) a flexed state in which the bowed section of the resilient bridge is moved toward the base
Data Source
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AI summary
An oral care implement having movable and fixed tooth cleaning elements. The oral care implement may include a handle and a head coupled to the handle. The head may include a base that is coupled to the handle and a resilient bridge coupled to the base. The resilient bridge may be flexible between a normal state in which a portion of the resilient bridge is spaced from the base by a gap and a flexed state in which a portion of the resilient bridge is moved toward the base. Tooth cleaning elements may be coupled to the resilient bridge. Furthermore, the resilient bridge may include one or more apertures through which tooth cleaning elements that are fixed to the base may extend.