Abstract:
An application system applies a product, such as a lotion, cream or other therapeutic product to a skin surface of a user, the application system includes: an applicator comprising: a handheld container to hold the product; and a plurality of spheres which acquire on surfaces thereof the product upon rotating relative to the container.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    This application is a non-provisional patent application of U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/220,875, filed Sep. 18, 2015 in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, the contents of which are incorporated in their entirety herein. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    1. Field of the Invention 
         [0003]    In many aspects of life, it is desirable and/or necessary to apply products such as creams, lotions, sanitizers, medications or any other type of therapeutic product to the back of one&#39;s hands (although a product may be applied to other body skin surfaces, as well) to moisturize, medicate and sanitize one&#39;s skin. 
         [0004]    Moisturizing often, especially after washing, keeps the skin healthy by inhibiting cracks and fissures, to form. These vectors or pathways may allow bacteria to enter the dermis resulting in unsightly skin, pain and infection. 
         [0005]    There are many professions where frequent hand washing is mandatory, thus causing a need for increased moisturizing of the hands, for e.g., physicians, healthcare workers, restaurant workers, teachers, hairdressers etc. 
         [0006]    Presently, the only effective method to aid in applying products such as moisturizers are one&#39;s hands. This method is not precise since it contaminates the palms of working hands with the greasy and slippery products, making it difficult to do one&#39;s job safely and effectively. It should be noted that the palms of one&#39;s hands, as well as the soles of one&#39;s feet, have a natural protective keratin layer of skin and callous rarely needing therapeutic products to heal or protect them from drying out. 
         [0007]    2. Description of the Related Art 
         [0008]    Up till now, containers which hold such cream, lotion, sanitizer or some other type of therapeutic product have had various types of dispensing devices at the tops thereof, where the user pumps or squeezes to force globs of a product out or even may tilt the container upside down to allow the liquid to flow by gravity. There are also containers which enable a user to spray a product onto the skin surface which also contaminates the surrounding air. All the above are archaic, not precise, wasteful and can also be dangerous not only to the user but to the environment and others. 
         [0009]    Normally, in order to get a product applied to the desired skin surface, a user will first place the product onto that targeted skin site. Next, the palm and fingers will be employed as an applicator. Therefore, in order to spread the product thoroughly over the surface of the skin, the user must use the palm of his/her hand to perform the spreading task. The process is then repeated using the other hand to apply the product. The result of this application process is that both hands will become moist and slippery since palms or ventral aspects of hands will not absorb products. This has the potential for spreading bacteria, thus defeating the process of first washing one&#39;s hands before applying a product. 
         [0010]    In many situations, it is imperative for a user, like doctors and other medical providers, or anyone else such as chefs who frequently come into contact with others in a public setting, to have their fingertips and palms free of foreign substances, chemicals and bacteria. It is not uncommon for medical providers to wash their hands over 50 times a day, and thus cannot afford the time to apply products to their hands. This forces a majority of physicians and medical personnel to avoid using a moisturizer or even washing their hands as often as they need to do as prescribed by OSHA. Others may wash often but reduce the soap or time needed to wash effectively, hoping to avoid the adverse effects of warm water and soap on their skin. If there is not a quick and convenient manner in which to apply a product to the user&#39;s hands, the user becomes discouraged from even applying the product, thereby not achieving the appropriate amount of moisturizing necessary to maintain healthy skin, most importantly on the posterior or back of one&#39;s working hands. 
         [0011]    The best time to use a moisturizer is after washing, since the pores of the skin will stay open for approximately 2 minutes after washing, which enhances the ability for the moisturizer to be absorbed and to be effective. Since many physicians wash their hands in front of their patients they are not able to place moisturizers during that vital two (2) minute window. 
         [0012]    Further, by dumping globs of liquid onto the back of a hand to be spread out by the other hand, or on the fingertips of one hand to be spread on the back of the other hand, there is a significant amount of waste of product that is dispensed from the container which cannot be absorbed by the desired skin surfaces. This excess needs to be washed or wiped off. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0013]    According to aspects of the present invention, there is provided an application system which provides a precise, quick, clean and efficient manner in applying a product, such as a cream, lotion, sanitizer or some other type of therapeutic product, to a skin surface, including the backs of hands and fingers of a user. Since this novel applicator can reduce the time it takes to apply a product to seconds instead of minutes, there is produced an increase in a willingness to use a product. This benefit enhances the effectiveness of inferior and a cheaper product&#39;s therapeutic abilities simply by its increased use. Another benefit of the application system is a direct reduction in costs of using products by reducing waste, due to its efficient and precise placement of only the exact amount of product needed. 
         [0014]    According to an embodiment, there is provided an application system to apply a product to a surface of a target, comprising: an applicator comprising: a handheld container to hold the product; and a plurality of spheres which acquire on surfaces thereof the product upon rotating relative to the container. 
         [0015]    According to another embodiment, there is provided an application system to apply a product to a surface of a target, comprising: an applicator comprising: a handheld container to hold the product; and a plurality of spheres which receive the product on one side, and upon rolling of the sphere across the surface, applies the product to the surface with another side of the spheres. 
         [0016]    Additional aspects and/or advantages of the invention will be set forth in part in the description which follows and, in part, will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0017]    These and/or other aspects and advantages of the invention will become apparent and more readily appreciated from the following description of the embodiments, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings of which: 
           [0018]      FIG. 1  is a top view of an applicator according to an embodiment of the present invention; 
           [0019]      FIG. 2  is a top end view of the applicator shown in  FIG. 1 ; 
           [0020]      FIG. 3  is a bottom end view of the applicator shown in  FIG. 1 ; 
           [0021]      FIG. 4  is a perspective view of the applicator shown in  FIG. 1 ; 
           [0022]      FIG. 5  is a side view of the applicator shown in  FIG. 1 ; 
           [0023]      FIG. 6  is cross-sectional view along line I-I of  FIG. 5 ; 
           [0024]      FIG. 7  is a cross-sectional view along line J-J of  FIG. 1 ; 
           [0025]      FIG. 8  is a top view of an applicator and docking station according to another embodiment of the present invention; 
           [0026]      FIG. 9  is a top end view of the applicator shown in  FIG. 8 ; 
           [0027]      FIG. 10  is a side of the applicator shown in  FIG. 8 ; 
           [0028]      FIG. 11  is a perspective view of the applicator shown in  FIG. 8 ; 
           [0029]      FIG. 12  is a cross-sectional view along line A-A of  FIG. 10 ; 
           [0030]      FIG. 13  is cross-sectional view along line H-H of  FIG. 8 ; 
           [0031]      FIG. 14  is an exploded side view of the applicator shown in  FIG. 8 ; 
           [0032]      FIG. 15  is a perspective exploded view of the applicator shown in  FIG. 8 ; 
           [0033]      FIG. 16  is a cross-sectional view along line F-F of  FIG. 14 ; 
           [0034]      FIG. 17  is a blown up detailed view of section G of  FIG. 16 ; 
           [0035]      FIG. 18  is a top view of the docking station shown in  FIG. 8 ; 
           [0036]      FIG. 19  is a top end view of the docking station shown in  FIG. 8 ; 
           [0037]      FIG. 20  is a perspective view of the docking station shown in  FIG. 8 ; 
           [0038]      FIG. 21  is a side view of the docking station of  FIG. 8 ; 
           [0039]      FIG. 22  is cross-sectional view along line I-I of  FIG. 21 ; 
           [0040]      FIG. 23  is a cross-sectional view along line J-J of  FIG. 18 ; 
           [0041]      FIG. 24  is a top view of an applicator and a docking station according to yet another embodiment of the present invention; 
           [0042]      FIG. 25  is a side view of the applicator shown in  FIG. 24 ; and 
           [0043]      FIG. 26  is a cross-sectional view along line H-H of  FIG. 25 . 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS 
       [0044]    Reference will now be made in detail to the present embodiments of the present invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein like reference numerals refer to the like elements throughout. The embodiments are described below in order to explain the present invention by referring to the figures. 
         [0045]    As shown in  FIGS. 1-7 , a precision self-warming applicator  42  includes a container (flask)  32 , which holds product to be used, according a first embodiment.  FIG. 1  is a top view of the applicator  42 ,  FIG. 2  is a top end view,  FIG. 3  is a bottom view,  FIG. 4  is a perspective view,  FIG. 5  is a side view,  FIG. 6  is cross-sectional view along line I-I of  FIG. 5 , and  FIG. 7  is a cross-sectional view along line J-J of  FIG. 1 ; 
         [0046]    The product may be a cream, lotion or some other type of liquid or therapeutic product. A container cover  34  (see  FIGS. 1 and 6 ) snaps onto the container  32  (see  FIG. 6 ) so as to protect the container  32 . The container cover  34  also contains a pressure device  36  (which may be a switch) (see  FIG. 5 ), which is ergonomically placed since it is to be held down to be engaged. When pressed, the pressure device  36  applies direct pressure to the contents of the container  32 , which starts the flow of product it contains. In one embodiment, the pressure device  36  presses down at an exposed point of the container  32  to put pressure on the product to exit the container  32 . The product next passes through a warmer conduit  22  (see  FIG. 6 ) before it can exit so the temperature of the product will be increased to enhance skin absorption when it is applied. 
         [0047]    As shown in  FIG. 6 , the pressure device  36 , when engaged and held down in an on position, will simultaneously turn on a warmer  24 . The product temperature is regulated by a controller board  28 . The warmer conduit  22  may be powered by rechargeable batteries  26 . The controller board  28  contains a thermostat, which is regulated by a switch (not shown) that may have at least two positions to control temperature settings. The switch may be directly wired to the control board  28 . A cable inlet  30  may be used to be connected to an AC adapter or other power source. 
         [0048]    After the product passes out of the narrow section of the warmer conduit  22 , the product will enter a chamber where spheres  20  are located, which is actually a continuation of the warming conduit  22 . This chamber will house at least 3 spheres  20  which rotate about axes of rotation 360 degrees. The axes of rotation in this embodiment are in one line, although such a configuration is not necessary. The spheres  20  will continually rotate so that each portion of a surface thereof moves from inside the chamber of the warming conduit  22  to the outside atmosphere. The rotating spheres  20  can have more than 180 degrees of their surface area exposed to the outside to increase the speed of the application process. To increase the sphere  20  surface area exposed to the outside environment, a cut back of the container cover  34  can be made or the axes of rotation of the spheres  20 , while maintaining their parallel orientation, may be offset from the straight line orientation of all 3 spheres  20 . 
         [0049]    The warming conduit warms the spheres  20  to regulate a temperature of the liquid to a desired comfort level. The warming of the liquid opens up the pores of the user&#39;s skin, enhancing the therapeutic ability of even the least expensive moisturizer and other products. It is not necessary any more to put the liquid on the skin surface anymore right after washing the skin surface to get the most out of the moisturizer. 
         [0050]    Although not required, it is contemplated that the warming conduit  22  will house no less than three spheres  20  (thus one or two sphere configurations are also possible). As the spheres  20  rotate from the inside of the warming conduit  22 , they will pick up a very small and precise amount of the product that is to be used through contact with a skin surface. The circulating process is simply accomplished with a direct contact to an outside surface of skin. The applicator  42  is moved along that skin surface using simple friction to rotate the spheres  20 . If the skin on the back of a human hand is the target for the product, the application process should take less than ten seconds to apply to both hands. The absorption of the product due to the warming process and the small amount applied at any given time will enhance the speed of absorption into the skin. 
         [0051]    Second and third embodiments of an applicator are shown in  FIGS. 8-26 . 
         [0052]    With respect to the second embodiment,  FIG. 8  is a top view of an applicator  2  and a docking station  8 ,  FIG. 9  is a top end view of the applicator  2 ,  FIG. 10  is a side of the applicator  2 ,  FIG. 11  is a perspective view of the applicator  2 ,  FIG. 12  is a cross-sectional view along line A-A of the applicator shown in  FIG. 10 ,  FIG. 13  is cross-sectional view along line H-H of  FIG. 8 ,  FIG. 14  is an exploded side view of the applicator  2 ,  FIG. 15  is a perspective exploded view of the applicator  2 ,  FIG. 16  is a cross-sectional view along line F-F of  FIG. 14 , and  FIG. 17  is a blown up detailed view of section G of  FIG. 16 .  FIG. 18  is a top view of the docking station  8 ,  FIG. 19  is a top end view of the docking station  8 ,  FIG. 20  is a perspective view of the docking station  8 ,  FIG. 21  is a side view of the docking station  8 ,  FIG. 22  is cross-sectional view along line I-I of  FIG. 21 , and  FIG. 23  is a cross-sectional view along line J-J of  FIG. 18 . 
         [0053]    With respect to the third embodiment,  FIG. 24  is a top view of an applicator  40  and a docking station  8  according to the third embodiment of the present invention,  FIG. 25  is a side view of the applicator  40 ; and  FIG. 26  is a cross-sectional view along line H-H of  FIG. 25 . 
         [0054]    The second and third embodiments show the applicators  2  and  40 , respectively. The applicator  2  has a container  3  and the applicator  40  has a container  41 . Both applicators  2  and  40  contain smaller spheres  6  than the spheres  20  of the first embodiment. Having six smaller spheres  6  allows an applicator sphere holder  4  along with the six spheres  6  to be positioned so that the axes of rotation are parallel to each other, but formed aligned in cross-section in an arc shape to better conform to the back of a hand or other curved body parts for more complete coverage of the product being applied. The increase in the number of spheres and wider conforming shape will increase the speed of product application. 
         [0055]    The applicator  42 , due to the linear positioning of its spheres  20 , may be used on other parts of the human body that a curved sphere holder  4  may not conform to. Thus, it is possible to have different precise applicators  42 ,  2  or  40 , just as some examples, for different application purposes. 
         [0056]    Instead of the built in warmer  24  as in embodiment  42 , the applicators  2  and  40  have a docking station  8  which can warm the spheres  6 . The container  41  of the applicator  40  (see  FIGS. 24-26 ) is intentionally crimped at one end and is manufactured as a one-piece unit to allow for ease of manufacturing and product insertion. This allows for a less expensive overall cost, which will hopefully be passed along to the end user or allow for a larger profit margin. The design of the applicator  40  is for disposal when the product is used up. 
         [0057]    The applicator  2  (see  FIGS. 8 and 12 ), though having a slightly higher manufacturing cost, allows the user to dispose of the product holder or flask only and keeps the sphere holder  4  with spheres  6  (see  FIGS. 14-16 ) to be reused. Another full container  3  can be purchased without a sphere holder  4  and spheres  6 . The user can now take the sphere holder  4  with the spheres  6  and snap it into the new, full container  3 , and this process can be repeated again when this new container  3  is empty. 
         [0058]    The warming base station  8  (see  FIGS. 12, 20, 22 and 25 ) has as a first purpose to warm the product in either of the applicators  40  or  2 . A second purpose is to keep the product at a steady temperature while the applicator  40  or  2  is docked in the warming station  8 . A third purpose of the warming station  8  is to hold the applicator  40  or  2  while it is docked in a vertical position for easy access and removal from the warming station  8 . A fourth purpose allows for the applicator  40  or  2  to be upright, thereby enabling gravity to force the product towards the spheres  6  for continuous warming. 
         [0059]    Since the applicators  40  and  2  do not have built in flash heaters, batteries, thermostats and switches as does the applicator  42 , their sizes can be reduced for even easier handling than the applicator  42 , but they may not be as portable as applicator  42  in view of the additional docking station. 
         [0060]    The warming base station  8  has an internal shaped spheres holder  4  whose purpose is to precisely fit the 360-degree Spheres  6  (see  FIGS. 12 and 22 ). The spheres holder  4  has six concave cut outs (see  FIG. 19 ) of 180 degrees each to allow one half of a respective convex sphere  6  to be inserted into them. Thus, the spheres holder  4  holds the spheres  6  with the axes of rotation positioned in a concave configuration, while a warmer  10  has an inverse convex configuration, and the warmer  10  is able to maintain a steady temperature on the spheres  6  due to the warmer  10  having a conforming fit to the spheres  6 . 
         [0061]    An outlet  14  (see  FIG. 12 ) will accept an AC adapter to charge the rechargeable battery  12 . When the rechargeable battery  12  is fully charged, the mobility of the Applicators  40  and  2  can increase without having to plug a cord into an electrical socket to power up the Warming station  8  all the time. A controller board  18  contains the thermostat and electronic circuits. The controller board  18  regulates the warmer  10  whose temperature is chosen by different positions of a switch  5 . The product and the spheres  6  are continually warmed by the heat transferred from the warmer  10  to the spheres  6  which conduct the heat to the product with 180 degrees or one half of the surface area of the spheres  6  making direct contact with the product to be applied. 
         [0062]    A lower cap  16  (see  FIG. 12 ) closes the warming station  8  at its base to inhibit moisture or foreign material from entering. The fit between the spheres holder  4  and the spheres  6  along with the warmer  10  is precise, causing passive locking of the parts. Both applicators  40  and  2  can still be easily removed for use with one hand holding the warming station  8 , while the other hand removes the either applicator  40  or  2 . The precise fit of the conforming spheres  6  and the warming Station  8  passively locks the applicators  40  or  2  in the vertical position, which also allows gravity to force the product towards the spheres  6 . 
         [0063]    The warming station  8  will also have a multiple position switch  5  like that with respect to the applicator  42  of the first embodiment. The switch  5  will not only turn the warming station  8  on but will also have the temperature settings, which scientific studies have shown to be either stimulating or soothing to the human skin. 
         [0064]    The spheres  6  and  20  in all the applicators  42 ,  40  and  2  may have miniscule craters  44  (see  FIG. 17 ) that will aid in picking up the correct amount of product to be placed onto the skin. The spheres  6  and  20 , if they have perfectly smooth surfaces, may not be able to pick up all products, which may have different viscosities. 
         [0065]    Based upon the above, there is provided an applicator that can apply a liquid, such as a lotion, cream or other therapeutic product to the surface of the skin in a clean, efficient, product conserving manner. The applicator has at least one sphere which acquires the liquid from a container through different ways, so that as the applicator is moved over the surface of the skin, the at least one sphere rolls across the skin surface, applying the liquid to the skin surface. The applicator may also have a docking station for recharging and/or for heating the at least one sphere so as to improve the absorption of the liquid into the skin. In this way, the liquid can be applied into and absorbed by the skin, without the user needing to get the other hand moistened with the liquid, avoiding contamination by the other hand, and avoiding waste of the liquid. 
         [0066]    Although a few embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described, it would be appreciated by those skilled in the art that changes may be made in this embodiment without departing from the principles and spirit of the invention, the scope of which is defined in the claims and their equivalents.