A ''FOAM-O-GENIC'' TOOTHBRUSH AND A GUM-MASSAGING DEVICE

Abstract: A toothbrush with liquid-absorbing sponge structure (70) formed with a thickness diminishing to a pointed head which projects outwardly longitudinally from the bristle (50) whereby the absorbed liquid may be introduced into and along the rows of bristles. The sponge structure (70) carries substantially more liquid than the bristles alone and thereby irrigates the mouth while brushing and particularly upon repeated wetting of the brush.

Description: A "FOAM-O-GENIC" TOOTHBRUSH AND A GUM-MASSAGING DEVICE BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION ! This is an International (Patent Convention Treaty) Application for my allowed U.S. Application entitled "A Foam-Generating Toothbrush". ^ Water is of paramount importance in most cleaning processes and clea¬ ning the teeth (Oral Hygiene in general) is no exception. The conven¬ tional toothbrush (which was introduced some two hundred eleven years (211 years) ago being poorly or totally non-absorbent is incapable of carrying or conveying into the mouth cavity any significant amounts of water in comparison with the current invention. Insufficient water as carried by the conventional toothbrush results in substantially limi¬ ting the cleaning power of the conventional toothbrush. Furthermore, he bristle-design of the classical toothbrush is incapable of instantly generating copious amounts of cleansing foam during the process of brushing the teeth. It lags far behind the FoamBrush subject of the current invention. A toothpaste in order to exert any cleansing action, it must be converted into a mobile solution first. This is particularly true in order to clean the difficult or inaccessible areas of the mouth, such as in-between the teeth,nooks,cranies and crevices. Foam or suds is invaluable in cleaning in general,on account of its effective pene¬ tration into inaccessible areas of the mouth mentioned above on account of its huge surface area,high dirt-emulsifying/lifting & anti-sticking power on certain pigments,more importantly food particles,debris and plaq Foam has much lower surface tension. The extremely valuable measure of water absorbed by the FoamBrushes providing and making available an "irri¬ gation factor" at the opportune moment while brushing the teeth is in¬ valuable for practically everyone. However, it is indispensible for the people suffering from the condition known as dry mouth ' Ό_\ as Xero¬ stomia whether temporary or chronic. Water is an excellent lubricant and further protects the gums and teeth against excessive chemical harsh¬ ness of toothpastes and abrasive action of the bristles. This is accomp¬ lished through increased lubricity as mentioned above and the dilution effect on the detergents and soaps usually added to toothpastes and denti¬ frices. Foam is milder than equally-concentrated Soap or Detergent solutio BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGSt Fig.l-A : Shows a front view of a preferred embodiment of a Foam-Toothbrus Fig.l-B s Shows a back view of the Foam-Toothbrush in Fig. 1-A . Fig.2-A : Shows a front view of a second embodiment of a Foam-Toothbrush. Fig.2-B s Shows a back view of the Foam-Toothbrush of Fig.2-A. Fig.3-A : Shows a front view of a third embodiment of a Foam-Toothbrush. Fig.3-B : Shows a back view of the Foam-Toothbrush of Fig. 3-A . • Fig. -A : Shows a front view of a fourth embodiment of a Foam-Toothbrush. Fig.if—B : Shows a back view of the Foam-Toothbrush in Fig. -A. Fig«5-A : Shows a front view of a fifth embodiment of a Foam-Toothbrush. Fig._>-B : Shows a back view of the Foam-Toothbrush of Fig.5-A. Fig.6-A s Shows a front view of a sixth embodiment of a Foam-Toothbrush. Fig.6-B : Shows a back view of the FoamBrush in Fig. 6- . Fig.7-A ! Shows a front view of a seventh Foam-Toothbrush. Fig.7-B : Shows a back view of the FoamBrush of Fig.7-A. Fig.7-C s Shows a side view of the "Tail-end" of the FoamBrush of Fig. 7-A & 7-B. Figs.l-C,2-C,3-C,lJ-C,5-C & 6-C Show side views of the Head of the respective Foam-Toothbrushes. DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION t Referring to Fig.1-A,FoamBrush has 3-rows of bristles 50 which may be soft or extra-soft....etc. with handle 60 and fibrous/fibrocellular conical or pyramidal spongy structure 0 glued-on or mechanically-fitted t the tip,sides& back of the head of the toothbrush. Fig.l-B shows a back-view of.same.toothbrush where the sponge structure 0 is glued- on or mechanic*/©nto the tip,sides & back of the head 80. In the embo¬ rows of bristles 50 and glued-on e_ h i4 .e_a_.d_ 8_■0-.. a ι,ι, v f_.i,_t..t.ed„ In Fig.3-A,a thirά embodiment has glued-on or mechanic-/foam 70 com¬ pletely encircling the 3-rows of bristles and handle-end 90. In the embodiment of Fig -A multiple laminated & conically-shaped foam is glued-on or mechanically-fitted thereon. Fi -B : Shows a view of the back of with multiple-layered rainbow-colored covering the upper two thirds of the back of the head of the brush 80. In the embodiment of Fig.5-A two rows of bristles 5° have contiguous ally-fitted , glued-on or mechanic-/ oam 70 with handle 60 and handle-end 90. In Fig.6-A : The Foam-Toothbrush has a circumference-row of bristles 50 completely surrounding glued-on or mechanic-/foam 70. In Fig.7-A,the,Foam-Toothbrush has three rows of bristles 50 with a & ally-fitted . glued-on or mechanic-/conιcal sponge 70 at one end& a non-bristle,coni¬ cal foam at the other end. The side-views show the positions of the glued-on or mechanic-/foam-appendages 70 respectively and in relation to the Bristles-head 80 (or bristle-free tail-end 90 in case of Fig.7-C) of the Foam-Toothbrush and. more importantly in relation to the brushing bristles 50 which enjoy total freedom from the foam. •In operation,the Foam-Toothbrush is wetted well with warm (or tepid.) water,then the tooth-paste is applied to the bristles 50 and the sponge head 70, he latter providing an extra & highly absorbent area for sec¬ uring an extra amount of toothpaste/gel. The toothbrush is then introd¬ uced into the mouth and brushing is commenced preferably with the mouth closed. It will be felt that the FoamBrush fits more comfortably against the teeth in general and the back-teeth in particular. In addition * copious amounts f foam will be instantly generated-, excess, or two main reasonstFirst,the significant amount of water carried on the sponge head 70. This water-instantly mixing with the toothpaste-contrib¬ utes substantially to the build-up and mobility of the foam generated as explained earlier. Second: the fibrocellular design plus the trapped air-bubbles -the latter constituting 7 of the sponge mass- strongly promotes the instant & model*- generation of myriads of foam bubbles. This extra foam which can be -5 times greater in quantity and higher in cleaning power than o her ise,ba hes the teeth. ums & mouth cavity for a highly effective and cleansing Foam-Bath. ttOothpastes/Gels appa¬ rently taste better when in the "Foam State" than in solution- compara¬ ble to a solution of candy before and after being transformed into co¬ tton candy. The latter in the oam state tastes uniquely better than in solution,although both solution and foam are chemically identical. The unplasant taste of toothpaste seems to be much milder,less unpleasant & mediciney in the foam state than in solution. In addition,the higher water content of the foam generated by the foam toothbrush contributes to this mildness by diluting the bitter taste of the toothpastes. Further¬ more the higher water content enhances the flow and mobility,hence the penetration of the toothpaste/gel or dentifrice ingredients into other¬ wise inaccessible areas in the mouth cavity,such as in-between the teeth, cracks & crevices...etc. This contributes to much fetter and overall "all" tooth-surfaces cleaning and minimizes the buildup of "plaque material" and lessens significantly the chances of developing cavities, tooth decaysgingivitis with the dreaded tooth-loss that may ensue. The milder taste of the toothpastes/gels in the"foam-state" definitely en¬ courages more brushing and lessens the common hate or phobia associated with brushing and toothpastes in general,especially by children and young adults. Furthermore, oam-having more body to it- seems to have a protec¬ tive or cushioning effect on the gums against the often sharp,abrasive pointed ends of the bristles of the toothbrush. It will be noticed in brushing with the FoamBrush of Fig. 1-A & 1-B that the brush fits more comfortably in general against the teeth .particularly the back-teeth for the first time by virtue of the cushioning of the tip of the brush. This results in a more thorough and adequate brushing of the teeth in general and the back-teeth in particular. It should be mentioned here that the back-teeth are notoriously more.vulnerable and susceptible to tooth decay cavities, which are than the front teeth. Also bigger / more difficult to treat. The sponge- composition(s) in the different Foam-Toothbrushes described above may be advantageously & permanently pretreated with un-leaching (non-bleeding) antibacterial & anti-micrnbial agents during the process of manufacture. This pre-treatment,so as to chemically-bind these antibacterial&anti-micro bial agents will render these sponge composition(s) highly resistant to "souring" and the development of any potentially harmful microbes,although these compositions are self-cleaning for all practical purposes during brushing of the teeth, insing immediately afterwards to be followed by sque _ing-out /excess water & rapid drying of these sponge compositions. Rapid drying of the highly-ventilatable sponge-compositions automatically discou rages any such microbial development. The anti-microbial pre-treatment is for" : added rotection and as a precautionary measure against any such develo The foam-tail 70 of Fig.7-A,B&C Foambrush can be used for massaging (with or without dentifrices) and even cleaning,brushing & stimulating the gums & teeth of people with delicate &/or inflammed,painful & tender or bleeding & diseased gums,referred to as Periodontal disease by Dentists. If the Periodontal or gum condition persists, it may be advisable to switch to the bristles-free or Foam-Only TooStix subject of U.S. patent 4,576,190 mentioned above & a third co-pending patent application,a continuation-in-part for the TooStix patent. It is understood that variations could be made on the embodiments described herein, ithout departing from the essential features of the invention and the preferred embodiments are not intended to limit the spirit or scope of the invention as set forth in the appended claims,thus :

Claims: I claim: 1- A Hybrid "Foam-Toothbrush" comprising: a handle, a head; ■ quality, brush bristles located on said head; and sponge-type composition located on said head adjacent to said bristles and operating in conjunction with said bristles to enhance normal operation thereof. 2- The Hybrid of Claim 1 wherein said sponge composition is conical and pyramidal in shape and is glued-on or mecha ic-/ to"the tip, sides and back of the head of said Hybrid toothbrush. 3- The Hybrid_o .Claim 1 wherein said sponge composition is glued-on or mechanic-/ to the tip,sides and completely surrounds the back of the head of said Hybrid. - The Hybrid of Claim 1 wherein said sponge composition forms a "Corona" around the head of said Hybrid. - The Hybrid of claim 1 wherein said sponge composition forms a "Rainbow" of colors bn the head of said Hybrid. - The Hybrid of Claim 1 wherein said sponge composition completely surrounds said bristles and is maintained flush with their ends. - The Hybrid of claim 1 wherein said bristles completely surround said sponge composition and is maintained flush with their ends. - The Hybrid of claim 1 wherein said sponge composition is conical & pyramidal in shape and may additionally be located on the "tail" or handle-end of said FoamBrush opposite to said head. - The Hybrid of claim 1 wherein said sponge composition comes in various textures on said head. 0- A method of making a fibrocellular/fibrous "Hybrid" FoamBrush, comprising: permanently placing brushing bristles in a preferred pattern on the head of a holder; placing fibrocellular/fibrous composition in a preferred pattern in operable proximity to said bristles on said head,such that said sponge composition operated to materially enhance the foaming and cleaning properties of said FoamBrush. 11- The method of claim 10 wherein said fibrocellular/fibrous compo¬ sition is placed in such position that said brushing bristles will fit comfortably against the back teeth,its cushioned-tip protecting the mucous membranes and the gums in the mouth,thereby encourages more thorough and better brushing of the teeth in general and the more decay-prone back teeth in particular. 12- The method of claim 10 wherein said fibrocellular composition is maintained flush with the pointed ends of said brushing bristles so as to protect further a user's gums against the abrasiveness of said brushing bristles. 13-The Foam-toothbrush according to claim 1, herein said sponge-type composition is permanently pre-treated with antibacterial and anti¬ microbial agents,so as to render it bacteria-resistant and discourage any potentially harmful bacterial and microbial development within.

Inventors: YOUSSEF KAMAL A, YOUSSEF, KAMAL, A.
Applicants: YOUSSEF KAMAL A, YOUSSEF, KAMAL, A.
Application year: 1986
Main classification: A46B9
IPC codes: A46B9, A46B11