Tooth pick with flexible hollow body

A tooth pick includes a hollow body, a rib provided in the middle of the hollow body, and a head part. The head part includes a tip which is an extension of the rib, an inclined section which is an extension of the hollow body, and a sealing wall formed between the hollow body and the tip. The sealing wall seals air in the hollow body.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
1. Field of the Invention 
The present invention relates to a tooth pick. More particularly, the 
present invention relates to a tooth pick with a hollow body that has a 
pointed tip of a rib attached to a flexible hollow body. 
2. Description of Related Art 
The Mclain patent, U.S. Pat. No. 710,498, discloses a tooth pick in 
combination with the quill or pick proper of a point-retaining device 
provided with a right-angular passage or seat adapted to be slipped bodily 
over the entire end of the pick. The point of the pick will extend through 
the angular passage or seat and be held at a substantially right angle to 
the body of the quill. 
The Shimenkov patent, U.S. Pat. No. 4,805,646, discloses a tooth pick which 
has a body part with two body portions that are movable relative to one 
another to assume different angles. The tooth pick can be filled with a 
substance which may be expelled by squeezing or displacing a part of it. 
Both ends of the tooth pick can be formed as working ends with different 
sizes. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
The present invention is directed to a tooth pick that substantially 
obviates one or more of the problems due to limitations and disadvantages 
of the related art. 
A primary object of the present invention is to provide a tooth pick with a 
flexible hollow body to be inserted into an embrassure or opening between 
adjacent teeth. 
Another object of the present invention is to provide a tooth pick with a 
pointed tip of a rib which has a diamond-shaped top and a 
triangular-shaped front that conforms to the embrassure and can 
effectively remove food residuals from between the teeth. 
Another object of the present invention is to provide a tooth pick that can 
effectively remove plaque, tartar and germ built on the sides of teeth by 
lifting the tooth pick to reduce various dental diseases. 
Another object of the present invention is to provide a tooth pick that can 
be manufactured inexpensively, but which is effectively in preserve the 
teeth in a healthy condition. 
Another object of the present invention is to provide a tooth pick that is 
lightweight so that a user can carry it easily in the user's pocket and 
can use it anytime when the user desires. 
Another object of the present invention is to provide a tooth pick with 
having a slanted bevel formed under the tip of the tooth pick to protect 
free gingiva from hurting while the tooth pick is being inserted into the 
embrassure. 
Further objects of the invention will be clear as the description proceeds. 
To achieve these objects and provide other advantages, and in accordance of 
the purpose of the invention as embodied and broadly described, the 
invention provides a tooth pick including a hollow body, a rib provided in 
the middle of the hollow body, a tip which is an extension of the rib, and 
a sealing wall formed between the hollow body and the tip. The sealing 
wall is for sealing air in the hollow body. The invention may be embodied 
in the form illustrated in the associated drawings. Attention is called to 
the fact, however, that the drawings are for illustrative purposes only, 
and that changes may be made in the specific construction illustrated and 
described within the scope of the appended claims.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
Reference will now be made in detail to the preferred embodiments of the 
invention, an example of which is illustrated in the accompanying 
drawings. 
FIG. 1 illustrates a preferred embodiment of the present invention. As 
shown in FIG. 1, a flexible tooth pick according to the present invention 
is designated generally by reference numeral 1 and includes a hollow body 
2, a head part 8, hinges 3 formed by crimping and separate ribs 7. Each 
rib 7 is located so that it extends diametrically over a cross section of 
the hollow body 2. The head part 8 includes a sealing wall 5, a pointed 
tip 9 of the rib 7 which is formed by an extension of one of the ribs 7, 
and an inclined section 11 of the hollow body 2. FIG. 1 includes an 
enlarged portion showing how the tooth pick 1 engages with the teeth 10. 
The head part 8, according to the preferred embodiment, is formed 
perpendicular to the immediately adjacent connected portion of the hollow 
body 2 so as to be easily inserted into an embrassure (not shown) without 
hurting a free gingiva 13. 
The pointed tip 9 of the rib 7 is inserted into an embrassure using 
flexible movement of the hollow body 2. As shown in FIG. 1, two pointed 
tips 9 of opposed ribs 7 can be inserted into the embrassure at the same 
time to effectively remove food residuals, plaque and tartar. Each pointed 
tip 9 of a rib 7 has a diamond-shaped top and a triangular-shaped front to 
conform to a triangular-shaped embrassure. The sealing wall 5 is provided 
to seal the air in the hollow body 2 to preserve the flexibility of the 
hollow body 2. Ribs 7 are provided in the middle of hollow body 2 to 
provide a minimum strength to the hollow body 2 and to reinforce the tooth 
pick 1. The hollow body 2 can be made of aluminum, plastic or tungsten 
that is lightweight. Since the hollow body 2 includes air, and flexible 
ribs 7 are formed inside the hollow body 2, the tooth pick 1 can be 
flexible and adaptable to any type or shape of teeth. 
The inclined section 11 of the hollow body 2 is provided to remove the 
tartar or plaque which has built up on the side body of the teeth 10. The 
tartar or plaque which has built up on the side body of the teeth 10 is 
usually hard to remove by using a brush, dental floss or an ordinary tooth 
pick. According to the present invention, after a pointed tip 9 of a rib 7 
is inserted into the embrassure until the inclined section 11 contacts 
with the side body of the teeth 10, the tooth pick 1 can be lifted and 
lowered repeatedly while maintaining the contact with the teeth 10. During 
this action, the tooth pick 1 can effectively remove tartar, plaque and 
germs which have built up on the sides of the teeth 10. 
Since each pair of head parts 8 is perpendicular to the immediately 
connected hollow body 2 according to the preferred embodiment of the 
present invention, the tooth pick 1 can also remove tartar, plaque and 
germs which have built up on the interior sides of the teeth 10. 
FIG. 2 illustrates a single tooth pick according to a second embodiment of 
the present invention. The tooth pick 4 has generally the same structure 
as the tooth pick 1 as shown in FIG. 1. According to the second embodiment 
of the present invention, the head part 8 is an extension of the hollow 
body 2. The tooth pick 4 according to the second embodiment of the present 
invention can be used in the same way as other typical tooth picks; the 
pointed tip 9 of the rib 7 of the tooth pick 4 can be inserted into an 
embrassure from only one direction. 
FIG. 3 illustrates the unfolded tooth pick 1 according to the preferred 
embodiment of the present invention. An enlarged top view of a head part 8 
also forms part of the illustration provided by FIG. 3. 
FIGS. 4-6 illustrate cross-sectional views of the hollow body 2 with a rib 
7, according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention, as seen 
in the directions of arrows 4, 5 and 6 in FIG. 3, respectively. 
FIG. 7 is a side view of the head part 8. As shown in FIG. 7, the pointed 
tip 9 of a rib 7 has a diamond-shaped top and a triangular-shaped front 
(better seen in FIG. 11). The line indicates the sealing wall 5 which 
seals the air in the hollow body 2 to preserve the flexibility of the 
hollow body 2 and prevents debris from entering the interior of the hollow 
body 2. 
Under the pointed tip 9 of the rib 7, the rib 7 is cut to form a 
round-shaped slanted bevel 17 for protecting free gingiva 13. The bevel 17 
is better seen in FIG. 10. The round shape of the bevel prevents the bevel 
from hurting a user when the tooth pick 1 is inserted into the embrassure. 
The term "free gingiva" 13 is used to designate an extension of a gingiva 
12 that is not fixed to the roots of the teeth 10. Since the free gingiva 
13 is flexible and is not fixed to the teeth 10, it is easy for the free 
gingiva to be pricked by the ordinary tooth picks. However, the 
round-shaped slanted bevel 17 formed at the head part 8 according to the 
present invention provides a soft contact with the free gingiva 13 when 
the tooth pick 1 is being inserted into the embrassure. Preferably, the 
slope of the slanted bevel is about 45 degrees relative to horizontal, as 
shown in FIG. 10, so that the tooth pick 1 can be slipped over the free 
gingiva and between the free gingiva and the enamel of the tooth without 
pricking the free gingiva. 
The pointed tip 9 of the rib 7 conforms well to an embrassure so that the 
flexible contact with the embrassure is improved. The device can be used 
in this way for effectively cleaning the teeth. By using this tooth pick 
according to the present invention, food residuals, plaque and tartar 
built up on the side body of the teeth 10, which ordinarily cannot be 
removed by brushing or using dental floss, can be removed effectively. 
FIG. 8 shows a front view of the tooth pick 1 according to the preferred 
embodiment of the present invention. 
FIG. 9 shows a front view of the head part 8 of the tooth pick 1 according 
to the preferred embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 9 also 
illustrates a triangular-shaped front of the tip 9. 
FIG. 10 better illustrates how the slanted bevel 17 is utilized to protect 
the free gingiva 13 from being pricked when the tooth pick 1 is being 
inserted into the embrassure. 
FIG. 11 better illustrates the pointed tip 9 of the rib 7 in three 
dimensions. As shown in FIG. 11, the front shape of the tip 9 is 
triangular and, thus, the tip 9 conforms to the triangular-shaped 
embrassure. FIG. 11 further illustrates the slanted bevel 17 which 
facilitates the insertion of the tip 9 without hurting the free gingiva 
13. 
It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications 
can be made in the tooth pick without departing from the spirit or scope 
of the invention. Thus, it is intended to cover modifications and 
variations of this invention within the scope of the appended claims and 
their equivalents.