Abstract:
A toothbrush with an extraction device, such as a key winding tool feature, built into the handle portion, which is used to facilitate the dispensing of toothpaste or the contents of other pasty substances found in collapsible tubes. One or more open-ended slits allow the handle portion to be easily slipped onto the free end of a tube or to be slipped back onto an already curled tube for further ease of manipulation. The toothbrush easily slips off the tube after curling with it, so as to allow the toothbrush to be used for brushing teeth, and allows its use on a plurality of collapsible tubes in various stages of use. The brush head portion can be made detachable so that other attachments made be attached to the handle portion or so that a winding tool remains after the toothbrush head is rendered no longer usable.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The invention relates to a device for facilitating the dispensing of products found in collapsible tubes and the construction of a toothbrush with such a device integrated within it. 
     2. Prior Art 
     Collapsible tubes containing semi-fluid or pasty commodities such as toothpastes, creams, ointments, and the like, are dispensed by having a user forcefully exert pressure on the tube. However, the use of such a tube by the human hand alone results in the contents of the tube being dispensed unevenly, thereby leaving air pockets, and results in some of the contents of the tube being left behind, thereby resulting in some waste when one has finished dispensing the product in this fashion. 
     There have been many patented disclosures that are directed to facilitating dispensing product from a tube evenly and maximizing the expulsion of the contents of such tubes. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 2,670,876 to Clouse discloses some larger containers that house the tube entirely or partially with built in rollers or the like to evenly push the contents out of the tube from the bottom out. Although this might squeeze the contents of a tube out of the tube better than if done by free hand, it is a product that must be either mounted on a wall or stood on a table. A similar, table standing product, yet with fewer parts, is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,215,223 to Lee. However, because of the size and the number and complexity of parts involved with these devices, these devices are much more complex to manufacture and result in a greater cost than some smaller and simpler inventions that serve the same purpose. 
     For example, smaller products include simple winding keys that a user places at the bottom of a collapsible tube and winds upward progressively, thereby exerting pressure to force the contents of the tube to the top of the tube. These devices, being made of fewer pieces, and in some instances only one piece, are simpler to manufacture, thereby also costing less. Some such devices are described in U.S. Pat. No. 1,257,609 to Johnson, U.S. Pat. No. 2,820,575 to Dietz, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,167,348 to Okami et al. The device shown in U.S. Pat. No. 1,257,609 to Johnson is most practical in that it is a simple one-piece key that is used to roll up the tube. 
     Regardless of which of these prior art devices a consumer uses, they all have the intent of neatly and effectively squeezing out the contents far better than a freehanded method. Thus, if every consumer would acquire and use such a dispensing tool, consumers would be able to dispense the contents of their tubes to the maximum, have more neatly wound up dispensing tubes and eliminate the waste from these collapsible containers. The use of the tool would also decrease any chance of puncturing more malleable tubes, such as those containing ointments, by being hand pushed. 
     However, even a device as simple as this and still as functional requires a cost to manufacture and a cost to the consumer. In addition, small winding tools could be misplaced, lost, even accidentally thrown out towards the end use of the tube&#39;s life, thus preventing capture of a good portion of the contents of the tube that is concealed within the tube in its final wound up stage. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to afford every consumer that has product within such collapsible tubes the opportunity to be able to use a winding tool for completely dispensing product from the tube without an additional cost to the consumer. 
     Since the most commonly found collapsible tube in one&#39;s household is a toothpaste tube, one would use a winding key, if available, most frequently on toothpaste tubes. Thus, the present invention comprises a winding tool built into the handle portion of a toothbrush, as will be described in preferred embodiments below. 
     Because a tube of toothpaste and a toothbrush go hand in hand, having a winding tool within the toothbrush would encourage one to use the tool for extracting toothpaste from the tube. Furthermore, a separate, additional item such as a winding key need not be acquired, nor need it take up any more space in one&#39;s drawer or other compartment. Having a winding tool on a toothbrush would enable the winding tool to be easily located for use on other tube-dispensed substances, since a toothbrush is generally used daily by consumers and not often misplaced. 
     It is a further purpose of this invention to have the winding key easily slip onto and off of a rolled up tube without the user having to uncurl the tube to start the expelling process again. This will enable one to use the toothbrush portion for brushing of teeth or to use the winding tool key portion on a plurality of tube like dispensers in various stages of use. 
     It is a further purpose of the invention for the user to have a winding key tool in his possession even after the user considers the toothbrush to which it is integrated no longer usable and discards it. 
     It is a further purpose of this invention to offer a winding key device with detachable and attachable accessories such as other brush heads, tooth picking utensil, string floss attachment, tongue scraper, etc. In addition, the user may simply use the winding key part of the toothbrush independently. 
     A new mold with my integrated design of the winding tool would not cost a manufacturer any more than the typical tooling cost for the conventional toothbrush. The option of acquiring a winding tool gratis with the purchase of a toothbrush can now be offered to the consumer, making such a toothbrush with an integrated winding tool more favorable over others with similar cost. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     Other objects, advantages, features and characteristics of the present invention, as well as methods, operation and functions, will become apparent upon consideration of the following detailed description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which similar reference characters refer to like parts throughout the several views and in which: 
     FIG. 1 shows a preferred embodiment of the toothbrush with an integrated winding key tool. 
     FIG. 1A shows a cross section of the bottom of the toothbrush handle of FIG. 1 with a side view of a collapsible tube through its slit. 
     FIG. 2 shows a preferred embodiment of the device showing the toothbrush handle gripping the end or near the end of a collapsible tube. 
     FIG. 3 shows a preferred embodiment of the toothbrush with integrated winding tool in use, being rolled up from the bottom portion of a somewhat used collapsible tube to the point where the contents of the tube have been forced upward. 
     FIG. 4 shows an embodiment of the device having more than one slit. 
     FIG. 4 a  shows a cross section of the bottom portion of the embodiment of FIG. 4 with a side view of a collapsible tube through one of its many slits. 
     FIG. 5 shows another embodiment of the device with a slit open only on one face of the handle. 
     FIG. 5 a  shows a cross section of the bottom portion of the embodiment of FIG. 5 with a side view of a collapsible tube where this type of slit is now only able to receive the end of a collapsible tube. 
     FIG. 6 shows an embodiment of the device made as a two-piece version. 
     FIG. 7 shows the embodiment of FIG. 6 with the toothbrush head detached, such that another toothbrush head or accessory may replace it or such that the key portion may be left to function independently. 
     FIG. 8 shows the key handle portion of the embodiment of FIG. 6 being used independently on a collapsible tube. 
     FIG. 9 shows the embodiment of FIG. 1 being used with a tongue scraper. 
     FIG. 10 shows the key handle portion being used with a motorized attachment. 
     FIG. 11 shows the key handle portion and the brush head portion both being used with a motorized attachment. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     Referring now in detail to the drawings and in particular, FIGS. 1-3 illustrate a preferred embodiment of the toothbrush with integrated winding key of the present invention. FIG. 1 illustrates toothbrush  111  with a head portion  90  and a handle portion  35 . Handle portion  35  has a slit  25  longitudinally formed therein that begins at the end of the handle  35  and continues up handle  35  to a slit end point  26  that is at least partway up the handle  35  towards the head portion  90 . In a preferred embodiment, slit  25  extends a majority of the way along handle  35 , and extends at least as long as a several inches. Slit  25  separates the toothbrush handle portion  35  into two fingers  21 ,  31 . 
     Toothbrush handle  35  is made of a sturdy and inexpensive material, preferably plastic. This material, of which conventional toothbrushes are made, is appropriate for the construction of the slit  25 . Slit  25  can be formed into handle  35  during the molding process. Alternatively, handle  35  can be separated into fingers  21 ,  31  after the mold has set. The strong plastic and resilient properties of toothbrushes will also form resilient fingers  21 ,  31  that will keep them from moving or breaking during use of toothbrush  111  as a winding tool. 
     Slit  25  allows a collapsible tube  100  to be inserted between fingers  21 ,  31 , as shown in FIG.  1 A. Tube  100  typically has an opening at a top region and a free end at a bottom region. Tube  100  can be inserted into slit  25  either at its bottom-most point  50  at the free end or at other point  60  on tube  100 , and can be inserted far enough into the slit  25  between fingers  21 ,  31  so as to be gripped across the entire width of tube  100 , as shown in FIG.  2 . FIG. 2 shows a preferred embodiment of the device showing the toothbrush handle gripping the end or near the end of a collapsible tube, wherein the open end slit design makes it easy for a slit  25  to be slipped onto an already used tube  100  at a mid-point  60  of the tube  100  other than the bottom  50 . From this position, handle  35  could be slid upwards along tube  100  towards the aperture in order to forcibly expel the contents of tube  100 . Alternatively, as discussed below and as shown in FIG. 3, handle  35  could be rolled with the free end of tube  100  towards the aperture in order to forcibly expel the contents of tube  100 . 
     Handle portion  35  of toothbrush  111  also has shoulders  70  formed outward on its upper region to facilitate gripping of the handle portion  35  in its use as a winding tool. Turning the handle portion  35  with the fingers of a user&#39;s hand at shoulders  70 , which could be formed in a wing design that extend outward, will enable use of the handle portion  35  of the toothbrush as a winding key. FIG. 3 shows a preferred embodiment of the toothbrush  111  in use, being rolled up from the bottom portion  50  of a somewhat used collapsible tube  100  to the point where the contents of the tube  100  have been forced upward, making it as easy to extract the contents of the tube  100  as if the tube  100  were new. 
     The toothbrush handle  35  is generally wider along its length than the prior art turning keys. This greater width will afford a greater ergonomic design to be built into the turning key portion and also offer better torque because of the fact that fingers  21 ,  31  are wider than the prior art turning keys. In addition, rather than having only a short slit at the end of the handle  35 , a rather elongated slit can be made along the greater portion of the handle  35 , thus allowing it to be used with many different tubes, from the widest to the narrowest. It is also preferred that fingers  21 ,  31  be kept parallel, up to the slit end point  26 . This will allow the fingers  21 ,  31  to be freed and reinserted easily onto an already curled up tube, as shown for example in FIG.  3 . 
     At the juncture between head portion  90  and handle portion  35 , a ring  77  can be molded onto toothbrush  111 , as shown in FIGS. 1-3. Ring  77  serves to act as a frangible or cutting point or can be made to allow head portion  90  to intentionally snap off handle portion  35 , so as to separate the handle portion  35  from the brush head portion  90 , thereby affording the user an independent winding key after the brush head  90  is rendered useless. 
     Referring to FIGS. 4 and 4A, another embodiment of the invention is illustrated wherein toothbrush  121  has a handle portion  35  into which multiple slits can be longitudinally formed. In this embodiment, two slits are orthogonally formed into handle  35 , creating slit openings  10 ,  20 ,  30  and  40  in handle  35 . FIGS. 4 and 4A show a collapsible tube  100  inserted through opposed slit openings  20  and  40 . Of course, collapsible tube  100  could have easily been fitted through opposed slit openings  10  and  30 . Similarly, other combinations of slit openings can also be used to grasp a collapsible tube  100 , such as non-opposed slit openings  10  and  20  and non-opposed slit openings  30  and  40 . The latter two combinations can be even used simultaneously with two separate tubes, by using the handle  35  as a winding key that holds and squeezes the two tubes concurrently, with one tube gripped within two adjoining slit openings and a second tube gripped within two other adjoining slit openings. 
     As shown in FIG. 4, a narrower tube  150  can be easily grasped anywhere within slits  10 ,  20 ,  30  and  40 , between the end of handle  35  and the slit endpoints  26 , and can be wound about, even at a point  60  on the tube far from the tube&#39;s bottom-most edge  50 . Similarly, because of the length of the slits along handle  35  (in any embodiment of the invention described herein), more than one narrow tube  150  can be grasped within slits  10 ,  20 ,  30  and  40 , for example two or more (not shown). 
     FIGS. 5 and 5A illustrate yet another embodiment of the invention wherein toothbrush  131  has a handle portion  35  into which a slit  55  that is open only on one side of handle  35  is formed. As shown in FIG. 5A, this design will allow only the very bottom  50  of collapsible tube  100  to be inserted into slit  55  to begin the winding process. Although the winding process of toothbrush  131  will work as well as that of toothbrushes  111  and  121  in FIGS. 1-3 and  4 - 4 A, respectively, toothbrush  131  does not offer the user the ease of reinserting a tube within the slit easily as the others. In an already curled up tube, the bottom portion  50  has to be located within the curl to engage it back onto the slit  55  of toothbrush  131 . 
     FIGS. 6-7 illustrate a two-piece version of the invention wherein the handle portion  35  and brush head portion  90  of toothbrush  141  are easily attachable and detachable from each other. In one embodiment, this attachment could be by means of one or more detent tabs and corresponding mating apertures. For example, as shown in FIGS. 6-7, one or more detent tabs  95  are attached to the inside end of brush head portion  90  and could be made to snap into a corresponding number of mating holes or ports  85  within the head end portion of handle  35 . This attachment mechanism could also be made as a threaded-screw type of mechanism, wherein the handle  35  and head  90  portions of toothbrush  141  screw into each other. 
     As shown in FIGS. 6-7, a two-piece design would allow the possibility of having accessory head attachments, such as other types of brush heads, cleaning pick utensil, floss head attachment, etc., that can be easily attached to and removed from the handle portion  35 . Perhaps, as a result, the future cost of toothbrushes may even be less expensive in this arrangement, since less material is used in the brush head attachment piece  90 , and a brush head attachment piece  90  would be all one would need to purchase after the initial investment in the handle portion  35 , which remains for use as a winding key. 
     As illustrated in FIG. 8, handle portion  35  is shown in use as a winding key tool independent of a toothbrush head  90  or other attachment. This could have resulted from handle portion  35  being detached from the brush head  90  or from another accessory attachment, or could be the end result of toothbrush  111  after it has been permanently detached at point  77 . 
     It should be noted that the toothbrush with integrated winding key tool of the present invention can be used with other related structures. For example, the winding key portion can also be applied like many automated toothbrushes that are powered by batteries and that usually perform mechanical movement with the brushes. Likewise, the same battery power can also be used to transfer energy to a mechanical motor attached to the winding key portion. This would now enable one to eliminate the step of manually winding the key after fitting it onto a tube, while still achieving the same goal of extracting the contents of the tube. In this situation, as illustrated in FIG. 10, the detached handle portion  35  would be adapted to mate with a mechanized motor attachment  200  to perform the winding motion that would otherwise be performed by the user. The mating of handle  35  and attachment  200  could be done by any means known in the art. The user could grip attachment  200  and the motor contained within attachment  200  would cause handle  35  to rotate, for example in the direction of arrow A, causing fingers  21 ,  31  to be rotated in the direction of arrow A, thus winding a tube that is gripped within slit  25 . This would be especially helpful for those with finger or hand ailments to be able to utilize the winding tool and maximize the extraction of materials from tubes. 
     Similarly, a mechanized toothbrush could have both the brush head and the winding key handle portion be mechanized. For example, an automated toothbrush would normally have a motor situated in the handle portion of the toothbrush for mechanical movement of the brush head. In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 11, the toothbrush could have a motorized midsection  300  situated between the brush head portion  90  and the handle portion  35 , which midsection  300  would be equipped with the winding key structures described above, such as fingers  21 ,  31  and slit  25 . The midsection  300  would preferably have a motorized mechanism within that would be attached on one end  301  to the brush head  90  for mechanized tooth-brushing movement and would be attached on the other end  302  to the handle  35  for mechanized extraction of a tube&#39;s contents. Of course, it is preferred that, because the motorized motions would be different for the brush  90  and handle  35 , with that of the brush  90  being vibration for brushing of teeth and that of the handle  35  being rotation for winding of the toothpaste tube, the midsection  300  would contain separate motors for each end  301 ,  302 . In a preferred embodiment, the handle  90  and brush  35  ends could be detachable from the motorized midsection  300 , and the mating of brush head  90  handle  35  with midsection  300  could be done by any means known in the art. 
     Another feature of the device is that a tongue scraper, such as of the type described in U.S. Pat. No. 1,893,524 to Shanley and U.S. Pat. No. 5,217,475 to Kuber, can be attached. A tongue scraper having end or grip portions, such as in Shanley, can be fitted onto handle portion  35  of toothbrush  111  or  121 , as shown in FIG.  9 . The tongue scraper  105  can be modified to have apertures or holes  106  in grip portions  107  rather than just indentations, as in the Shanley patent, so that these holes  106  can be slipped over handle  35  or over one of fingers  21 ,  31  and gripped within slit  25  when the tongue scraper  105  is being used. Alternatively, tongue scraper  105  could have other gripping means, such as a flap that wraps around handle  35 , or one of fingers  21 ,  31 , with a tab extension that is inserted into a hole in the flap, thereby gripping handle  35  or one of fingers  21 ,  31 . Of course, tongue scraper  105  could be used with any of the toothbrush embodiments disclosed herein. 
     The above illustrations were designed for illustration only and not to define the limits of the invention, and it is to be understood that other embodiments may be utilized without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention.