Infant oral hygiene device

An oral hygiene device for use by an infant has a toothbrush bristle support and teething member interconnected by spaced curved handles. The handles, teething member and toothbrush bristle support form an opening for an infant's hand and are disposed in a common plane. Toothbrush bristles are attached to the toothbrush bristle support and extend in the direction of the plane.

TECHNICAL FIELD 
This invention relates to an oral hygiene device for use by an infant. More 
particularly, the device incorporates structure allowing an infant to 
stimulate his or her gums and to brush teeth. 
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
A number of devices are known in the prior art for use by infants or small 
children as either teethers or toothbrushes. The following patents are 
believed to be representative of the current state of the art in this 
field: U.S. Pat. No. 5,048,143, issued Sep. 17, 1991, U.S. Pat. No. 
5,729,859, issued Mar. 24, 1998, U.S. Pat. No. 5,291,878, issued Mar. 8, 
1994, U.S. Pat. No. 5,078,732, issued Jan. 7, 1992, U.S. Pat. No. 
5,511,273, issued Apr. 30, 1996, and U.S. Pat. No. 3,753,266, issued Aug. 
21, 1973. 
DISCLOSURE OF INVENTION 
The invention disclosed and claimed herein is characterized by its relative 
simplicity, ease of use and effectiveness as either a teether or a 
toothbrush. The device incorporates a number of features which make it 
particularly suitable for use by an infant from both the standpoints of 
safety and efficaciousness. 
The oral hygiene device of the present invention is for use by an infant. 
The term infant as employed herein encompasses any young child. 
The device includes a toothbrush bristle support and a teething element for 
engaging the gums of an infant. 
The toothbrush bristle support and the teething element are spaced from one 
another. 
A first manually graspable handle segment extends between and interconnects 
the toothbrush bristle support and the teething element. 
A second manually graspable handle segment also extends between and 
interconnects the toothbrush bristle support and the teething element, the 
first and second manually graspable handle segments being spaced from one 
another. 
The first and second manually graspable handle segments, the toothbrush 
bristle support and the teething element define an opening for receiving 
an infant's hand so that the infant can grasp one or both of the first and 
second manually graspable handle segments to support and manipulate the 
oral hygiene device. The first and second manually graspable handle 
segments, the toothbrush bristle support and the teething element are 
disposed along a common plane. 
The device further includes a plurality of toothbrush bristles attached to 
and projecting outwardly from the toothbrush bristle support in a 
direction substantially corresponding to the direction of the common 
plane. 
Other features, advantages, and objects of the present invention will 
become apparent with reference to the following description and 
accompanying drawings.

MODES FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION 
Referring to FIGS. 1-6 of the drawings, an oral hygiene device 5 
constructed in accordance with the teachings of the present invention 
includes a toothbrush bristle support 10, a teething element 12 and two 
manually graspable handles 14, 16 spaced from one another and extending 
between and interconnecting the toothbrush bristle support and the 
teething element. 
The manually graspable handles 14, 16, the toothbrush bristle support 10 
and the teething element 12 define an opening 18 for receiving an infant's 
hand so that the infant can grasp one or both of the handles to support 
and manipulate the oral hygiene device. FIG. 1 illustrates the device 5 
being held by an infant. 
The toothbrush bristle support, teething element and handles are of 
integral construction, being molded in one piece from rubber or other 
suitable soft, pliable, resilient material. 
The manually graspable handles, the toothbrush bristle support and the 
teething element are disposed along a common plane. Toothbrush bristles 20 
are attached to and project outwardly from the toothbrush bristle support. 
The toothbrush bristle support is elongated and includes an elongated, 
substantially straight outer surface 22 from which the plurality of 
toothbrush bristles project. The surface 22 is disposed substantially 
orthogonal to the common plane occupied by the toothbrush bristle support, 
the teething element and the handles and the toothbrush bristles project 
outwardly in a direction corresponding to the direction of the common 
plane. This is an important feature since the bristles can be readily 
positioned and employed by an infant (or an infant's caregiver) to clean 
anterior/front teeth (first erupted teeth). See FIG. 6. The bristles can 
be used for stimulation during teething or to remove plaque from the 
erupted teeth. The toothbrush bristle support is somewhat enlarged as 
compared to the handles to provide sufficient backup support for the 
bristles during use. Because of the location and orientation of the 
bristles they can be moved through a wide range of motion. 
Teething element 12 comprises a pad including a pair of outer pad surfaces 
24, 26 which converge toward one another to form a tapered distal pad end 
28. The pad is substantially flat at the front and back surfaces thereof 
and has a smooth outer surface. The taper of the teething pad allows the 
distal end thereof to be inserted in the mouth and provides a chewing 
surface to minimize discomfort during teething. 
It should be noted that the end portions 30 of the manually graspable 
handles 14, 16 are actually continuations of the outer pad surfaces 24, 26 
and diverge away from one another as they extend from the pad. The 
configuration of the pad and the handle end portions 30 is relatively wide 
as compared to the distal end 28 of the pad so that the device cannot be 
over-inserted into the user's mouth. The overall appearance of the device 
is that of a heart, the handles arching away from one another between the 
pad and toothbrush bristle support; that is, the toothbrush bristle 
support, the teething element and the two handles cooperate to form a 
generally heart-shaped configuration. 
Spaced ribs 34 are integrally formed with the handles and extend along 
substantially the full lengths of the handles. The ribs are formed of the 
same soft, pliable, resilient material of which the toothbrush bristle 
support, the teething element, and the handles are made. The ribs may be 
utilized in a teething function for providing gum massage and stimulation. 
The ribs fulfill the additional function of being engageable by the 
infant's hand when grasping the handles to reduce the chance of slippage 
or dropping the device. 
FIGS. 7 and 8 show an alternate embodiment 5A of the device which is wider 
than device A but the same in all other respects.