Patent ID: 7670141
Filing Date: 2010-03-02
Classification: A61C

Abstract:
1. A handheld oral irrigator comprising: a fluid reservoir; a pump including a suction side and a discharge side, wherein the suction side is in fluid communication with the fluid reservoir; a pressure control assembly including a valve cylinder and a member longitudinally displaceable within the valve cylinder, wherein the valve cylinder has an inlet and an outlet, wherein the inlet is in fluid communication with the discharge side of the pump, and wherein the member includes a lumen and an orifice leading to the lumen from an outside surface of the member; and a nozzle in fluid communication with the outlet of the valve cylinder, wherein placing the member in a first position within the valve cylinder causes the orifice to be placed in fluid communication with the inlet and thereby define a fluid pathway from the inlet to the outlet that extends through the lumen, wherein placing the member in a second position within the valve cylinder isolates the orifice from the inlet and thereby defines a fluid pathway from the inlet to the outlet that does not extend through the lumen.