Spring-Supported Telescoping Toothbrush Head for Throat Injury Prevention
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Solution Overview
Problem
Children's toothbrushes pose a risk of serious injury, particularly when used unsupervised, as they can be forcefully jammed into the back of the throat, potentially causing life-threatening injuries.
Innovation Solution
A collapsible telescoping spring-supported toothbrush head that moves into the handle upon forceful pressure, preventing injury by compressing the spring and allowing the toothbrush to return to its normal length after the force is removed.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a toothbrush head is made rigid and fixed in length, then it provides stable brushing performance, but it can cause serious injury when forcefully jammed into the throat
Solution Approach 1:
The toothbrush head is made dynamically adjustable by incorporating a telescoping mechanism that allows the head to extend and retract. The spring-loaded structure enables the head to automatically compress when encountering resistance, transforming the rigid fixed-length design into a dynamic system that adapts to varying conditions while maintaining brushing effectiveness and preventing injury.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the physical parameter of the toothbrush head length from fixed to variable. The spring mechanism allows the head length to change based on applied force, compressing when pressure is applied and returning to its original length when force is removed, thereby preventing throat injury while maintaining brushing performance.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If a spring mechanism is added to allow the toothbrush head to compress, then the risk of injury is reduced, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The telescoping mechanism implements the nested doll principle by placing the toothbrush head inside the handle, with the head capable of retracting into the handle when compressed. This nested arrangement allows the spring mechanism to be integrated within the existing toothbrush structure without adding external complexity, maintaining a compact design while providing injury prevention functionality.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If the toothbrush head is made collapsible to prevent injury, then safety is improved, but the ease of operation may be affected
Solution Approach 1:
The spring-loaded telescoping mechanism provides self-service functionality by automatically compressing the toothbrush head when resistance is encountered and returning to its original length when force is removed. This automatic response eliminates the need for user intervention to manage the telescoping action, maintaining brushing convenience while preventing injury through autonomous operation.
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
Prevents the toothbrush head from puncturing the throat by allowing it to retract into the handle, reducing the risk of serious injuries and ensuring safe use, even when used unsupervised.
Implementation Method 1
a spring contained within the handle/body, the spring having a spring head end and a spring base end, the spring head end configured to press against the movement platform of the movable toothbrush, and the spring base end configured to rest against the base, such that when the moveable toothbrush head is pressed against an inner surface of a throat, the movement platform of the moveable toothbrush is moveably pressed against the spring, causing the spring to compress within the handle/body
Implementation Method 2
when the moveable toothbrush head is subsequently moved away from the inner surface of the mouth, the spring expands, thereby pushing the movement platform towards the first opening at the head end of the handle/body, allowing the toothbrush head to move away from the handle/body
Data Source
AI summary
A toothbrush with a collapsible telescoping spring-supported toothbrush head can prevent the toothbrush head from being jammed forcefully into the back of a child's throat, thereby reducing serious injuries. The toothbrush head of the toothbrush is harmlessly pushed towards the handle/body against a spring inside the handle/body, rather than being forcefully pressed against the back of the throat, the toothbrush then returning to full length after removing the pushing force. The toothbrush head can move towards the handle some distance, depending on the pushing force. Even when the toothbrush head is pushed against the back of a child's throat, the toothbrush head moves towards the handle/body, compressing the spring, rather than making a hole in the back of the child's throat. The handle/body includes a weep hole to allow fluids to escape the handle/body. The toothbrush can also have a suction cup attached to the base of the handle/body.