Personal Care Device Sliding Surface with Covalent Polymer Coating
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing personal care devices, such as razors and electric shavers, experience rapid wear of friction-reducing coatings due to mechanical load during shaving, leading to reduced comfort and longevity.
Innovation Solution
A hard coating with covalently attached pendant hydrophilic polymer chains is incorporated into the device's surface, providing a durable and lubricious layer that absorbs water to form a hydrogel, reducing friction and enhancing adhesion, thus prolonging the device's lifespan.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a hard coating with covalently attached pendant hydrophilic polymer chains is used, then wear resistance and lubricious effect are improved, but coating complexity and manufacturing difficulty increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies composite materials by combining a hard coating matrix with dispersed particles having covalently attached hydrophilic polymer chains. This creates a multi-component coating system where the hard coating provides structural integrity and wear resistance, while the polymer-functionalized particles provide lubrication and hydrophilicity. The composite structure allows simultaneous achievement of mechanical durability and surface lubricity that neither component could provide alone.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements local quality by concentrating the lubricating function in specific localized regions - the particles with covalently attached hydrophilic polymer chains are dispersed within the hard coating matrix. This means the lubricious effect is not uniform across the entire surface but is localized at particle sites, allowing the bulk of the coating to maintain its hard, wear-resistant properties while specific local zones provide low-friction contact.
2Duration of action of stationary object
If a hard coating with covalently attached pendant hydrophilic polymer chains is used, then useful lifetime is extended, but manufacturing precision requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-functionalizing particles with hydrophilic polymer chains before incorporating them into the hard coating matrix. This pre-preparation of particles with desired surface properties allows for more controlled and uniform distribution during the coating process, reducing the precision requirements for the final coating application while ensuring consistent lubricating performance throughout the product lifetime.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent utilizes parameter changes by modifying the chemical properties of particles through covalent attachment of hydrophilic polymer chains. This chemical modification changes the surface energy, wettability, and friction characteristics of the particles, allowing them to provide effective lubrication. The parameter changes in particle surface chemistry enable the coating to achieve both durability and lubricity without requiring extreme manufacturing precision.
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 results in a prolonged lubricious effect, improving shaving comfort and extending the useful lifetime of personal care devices by providing a high resistance to wear and maintaining effective lubrication.
Implementation Method 1
covalently attached to it pendant hydrophilic polymer chains... absorb water to form a hydrogel
Implementation Method 2
particles having covalently attached thereto pendant hydrophilic polymer chains... high resistance to wear is achieved
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention relates to a personal care device having a surface intended to engage the skin and/or hair, such as a blade razor or an electric shaver. The surface of such a device is formed from a substrate on which a hard coating layer is provided. A lubricating layer comprising pendant hydrophilic polymer chains is provided on the hard coating. The hard coating has particles incorporated therein, said particles having covalently attached thereto said pendant hydrophilic polymer chains. In addition, the present invention relates to a process of making a skin engaging surface for such personal care devices.