Abstract:
Disclosed in a toothbrush with ceramic handle. The toothbrush includes a handle that is made of ceramics in order to provide functionalities of wear resistance and contamination resistance. The handle and a head of the toothbrush are both provided with a connection portion for coupling the handle and the head together and also allowing the head to be readily replaced.

Description:
(a) TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
       [0001]    The present invention relates generally to a toothbrush with ceramic handle, and in particular to a toothbrush that has a handle made of ceramics and the ceramic handle has a surface that is glazed so as to provide such properties as to be wear resistant and contamination resistant and be readily cleanable. 
       (b) DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART 
       [0002]      FIG. 1  of the attached drawings shows a commonly used conventional toothbrush  1 , which comprises a handle  1  made of plastics and has an end portion to which a soft plastic section  12  is mounted, a middle portion that forms a skidding prevention section  13 , and an opposite end portion that forms a bristle section  14 . A user holds the skidding prevention section  13  with a hand with fingers engaging the soft plastic section  12 , in order to control the bristle section  14  for cleaning teeth. Since the handle  11 , the soft plastic section  12 , and the skidding prevention section  13  are all made of plastics, which have certain drawbacks of being soft materials, having large surface pores, and being easily worn, so that dirt and contamination that is carried by the hand may be easily left on the surfaces of the handle  11 , the soft plastic section  12 , and the skidding prevention section  13  and joints among the three components. Consequently, after a long term of use, a significant amount of dirt and contamination may be accumulated. Further, the toothbrush  1  is often placed in a bath room that is a place of high humidity. This increases the potential risk that bacteria breed on the toothbrush  1 , leading to undesired concern of hygiene. Further, the conventional toothbrush  1  is often of a one-piece design so that the toothbrush  1  must be completely disposed of when it is attempted to replace a new one. This increases the expense of purchase and may cause pollution to the environments. 
         [0003]    Thus, it is desired to overcome the problems of the conventional toothbrushes. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0004]    In view of the above discussed problems, the present invention aims to provide a toothbrush with ceramic handle in order to overcome such problems of the conventional toothbrushes. 
         [0005]    The primary objective of the present invention is to provide a tooth brush that has a handle made of a ceramic material in order to achieve the goals of wear resistance and contamination resistance. Further, the handle and a head of the toothbrush are both provided with a connection end at an end thereof so that the handle and the head can be coupled together and ready replacement of the head can be realized. 
         [0006]    A secondary objective of the present invention is to provide a toothbrush that further comprises a coupler made of metal and arranged between the handle and the head, so that the coupler provides a function of coupling the handle and the head together and is also helpful in readily replacing the head. 
         [0007]    The foregoing objectives and summary provide only a brief introduction to the present invention. To fully appreciate these and other objects of the present invention as well as the invention itself, all of which will become apparent to those skilled in the art, the following detailed description of the invention and the claims should be read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. Throughout the specification and drawings identical reference numerals refer to identical or similar parts. 
         [0008]    Many other advantages and features of the present invention will become manifest to those versed in the art upon making reference to the detailed description and the accompanying sheets of drawings in which a preferred structural embodiment incorporating the principles of the present invention is shown by way of illustrative example. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0009]      FIG. 1  is a perspective view showing a conventional toothbrush. 
           [0010]      FIG. 2  is a perspective view showing a toothbrush according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0011]      FIG. 3  is an exploded view of the toothbrush according to the present invention. 
           [0012]      FIG. 4  is a cross-sectional view of the toothbrush according to the present invention. 
           [0013]      FIG. 5  is an exploded view showing a toothbrush according to another embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0014]    FIG. is a perspective view showing a toothbrush according to a further embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0015]      FIG. 7  is an exploded view of the toothbrush according to said further embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0016]      FIG. 8  is a cross-sectional view of the toothbrush according to said further embodiment of the present invention. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
       [0017]    The following descriptions are exemplary embodiments only, and are not intended to limit the scope, applicability or configuration of the invention in any way. Rather, the following description provides a convenient illustration for implementing exemplary embodiments of the invention. Various changes to the described embodiments may be made in the function and arrangement of the elements described without departing from the scope of the invention as set forth in the appended claims. 
         [0018]    Referring to the  FIGS. 2 ,  3 , and  4 , which are respectively a perspective view, an exploded view, and a cross-sectional view of a toothbrush  2  constructed in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, the toothbrush  2  of the present invention comprises the following components: 
         [0019]    A handle  3  is made of ceramics that has an end forming a connection end  31  and has a surface that is coated with nano glaze and fired. 
         [0020]    A head  4  has an end forming a connection end  41 . 
         [0021]    The handle  3 , as a whole, is primarily made of a ceramic material and has a surface that is coated with nano glaze material and then fired, and further has an end that is raised to form the connection end  31 . The head  4  has an end that is recessed to form the connection end  41 . Through fitting the connection end  31  of the handle  3  into the connection end  41  of the head  4 , the head  4  is securely coupled to one end of the handle  3  so that a user may hold the handle  3  with one hand to control the head  4  in order to clean the teeth. 
         [0022]    The toothbrush  2  according to the present invention has a handle  3  that is completely made of ceramics and has a surface coated a nano glaze material to make the surface wear resistant and contamination resistant. Thus, even after being long held by a user&#39;s hand, the handle  3  does not easily accumulate dirt and is readily cleanable. Further, the lifespan can be extended. Further, with the coupling formed between the connection end  31  of the handle  3  and the connection end  41  of the head  4 , when it is desired to replace the head  4  due to hygiene consideration or being unusable after being used for a long while, the head  4  can be simply removed from the handle  3 , and substituted by a new head  4 . Thus, compared to the conventional toothbrushes that must be disposed of completely, the toothbrush  2  according to the present invention can reduce the expense of purchase paid by the user and also reduce pollution to the environments. 
         [0023]    Referring to  FIG. 5 , a different embodiment of the present invention is shown. The drawing clearly shows that besides being what illustrated above, the coupling configuration of the toothbrush  2  can be modified as shown in the drawing that the connection end  31  of the handle  3  is of a recessed configuration, while the connection end  41  of the head  4  is of a raised configuration. Through fitting the connection end  41  of the head  4  into the connection end  31  of the handle  3 , the head  4  is securely coupled to one end of the handle  3 . 
         [0024]    Referring to  FIGS. 6 ,  7 , and  8 , a further embodiment of the present invention is shown. These drawings clearly show that the toothbrush  2  comprises the following components: 
         [0025]    A handle  3  is made of ceramics that has an end forming a connection end  31  and has a surface that is coated with nano glaze and fired. 
         [0026]    A head  4  has an end forming a connection end  41 . 
         [0027]    A coupler  5  is made of metals and has ends respectively forming a positioning end  51  and a coupling end  52 . 
         [0028]    The handle  3 , as a whole, is primarily made of a ceramic material and has a surface that is coated with nano glaze material and then fired, and further has an end that forms the connection end  31 . The head  4  has an end that forms the connection end  41 . Through fitting the connection end  31  of the handle  3  into the coupling end  52  of the coupler  5  and also fitting the positioning end  51  of the coupler  5  into the connection end  41  of the head  4 , the head  4  and the handle  3  are securely coupled, so that a user may hold the handle  3  with one hand to control the head  4  in order to clean the teeth. 
         [0029]    In this embodiment, a coupler  5  is additionally provided and is arranged between the toothbrush  2  and the handle  3  for coupling them together. Since there might be a potential problem that the toothbrush  2  and the handle  3  cannot be directly and securely coupled to each other due to a significant difference of hardness between the materials of the two components, the metal-made coupler  5  that has a hardness between those two components provides a secure coupling between the toothbrush  2  and the handle  3 . Further, the metal-made coupler  5  may extend the lifespan and provide protection against undesired deformation, so that the head  4  does not easily separate due to external forces during the use of the toothbrush  2 . Further, when it is desired to replace the head  4 , it only needs to remove the head  4  from the coupler  5  to allow a substitute head  4  to be mounted. 
         [0030]    It will be understood that each of the elements described above, or two or more together may also find a useful application in other types of methods differing from the type described above. 
         [0031]    While certain novel features of this invention have been shown and described and are pointed out in the annexed claim, it is not intended to be limited to the details above, since it will be understood that various omissions, modifications, substitutions and changes in the forms and details of the device illustrated and in its operation can be made by those skilled in the art without departing in any way from the spirit of the present invention.