Abstract:
A replacement cartridge for a safety razor includes a dispensing head and a reservoir for a flowable shaving aid material. A removable shield is between the reservoir and the dispensing head and the shield interrupts fluid communication between channels of the reservoir and the dispensing head when the shield is in place. Fluid communication is permitted when the shield is removed. Removal of the shield is a onetime event. The shield can be a thermoplastic film. A razor cartridge can be disposed adjacent the dispensing head and the housing of the razor cartridge can be integrally formed with the housing of the dispensing head.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS: 
       [0001]    This application claims the benefit of International Application PCT/US2009/060424, filed Oct. 13, 2009, which claims the benefit of U.S. provisional patent application Ser. No. 61/107,753, filed Oct. 23, 2008, both incorporated herein for reference in their entireties. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND 
       [0002]    1. Technical Field 
         [0003]    This disclosure relates generally to wet shaving devices, and more specifically to safety razors having a dispensing head in fluid communication with a reservoir of a flowable shaving aid material and a removable shield therebetween. 
         [0004]    2. Background Information 
         [0005]    Many modern shaving implements, commonly known as wet shave or safety razors, include a disposable razor cartridge, releasably connected to a reusable handle. Other modern safety razors have a handle and a razor cartridge that are intended to be permanently coupled and disposed of as a single unit. The cartridge comprises a housing having at least one razor blade with a cutting edge disposed therein. 
         [0006]    There have been many proposals to provide a safety razor with a dispensing system for delivering to the skin during shaving a flowable shaving aid material, such as shave foam, shave cream or other lubricating fluid, or skin care materials that cleanse or otherwise care for the skin The material is stored within a reservoir ready for use. The flowable shaving aid material can replace a customary shaving preparation or can be used in addition thereto. The reservoir is in fluid communication with a dispensing head to deliver the shaving aid material to the skin surface of a user during a normal shaving operation. The dispensing head can include a valve arrangement to regulate the flow of the shaving aid material and the dispensing head can be integral with the razor cartridge or situated adjacent thereto. Several different types of dispensing head have been proposed, including those utilizing a capillary wick, e.g. as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,134,775 to Althaus et al. and an array of apertures, valves or rollers that partially or completely surround the cutting edge(s), e.g. as disclosed respectively in U.S. Pat. No. number 7,137,203 to Bressler et al., U.S. Pat. No. 7,043,841 to Franzini et al. and U.S. Patent application publication 2005/0138814. 
         [0007]    In the course of, for example, shipment of such razors between the manufacturer and the retail outlet or end user, certain changes in meteorological conditions can occur such as changes in barometric pressure and/or ambient temperature. Such changes can lead to changes in properties of a shaving aid material stored therein e.g. viscosity changes or changes in volume due to thermal expansion or contraction. Furthermore, similar differential dimensional changes due to thermal expansion can affect the effectiveness of various valve arrangements where provided. One effect of such changes is that the shaving aid material can drool or otherwise exude in small quantities which can be unattractive and make the razor undesirable for a potential purchaser. In U.S. Pat. No. 7,306,392 to Mislove a shaving head is filled with a quantity of shaving soap and enclosed by a removable tape prior to use. However, some dispensing heads of e.g. the aforementioned &#39;775 or &#39;841 patents or the &#39;814 application have generally non-flat skin contacting surfaces of their dispensing heads due to the nature of the capillary wick or the presence of protruding valves or rollers. Suitably adhering a removable tape to such non-flat surfaces provides manufacturing challenges. In addition any reaction between the shaving aid material and an adhesive coating of the removable tape can result in a reduction of adhesiveness. 
       SUMMARY 
       [0008]    The present disclosure has for its objective to eliminate, or at least substantially alleviate the limitations of the prior art safety razors employing a delivery system for a flowable shaving aid material. A replacement cartridge for such a razor assembly comprises a reservoir adapted to contain the flowable shaving aid material, a dispensing head adapted to deposit the flowable shaving aid material on a skin surface of a user during a normal shaving operation and a removable shield disposed between the reservoir and the dispensing head adapted to prevent flow of the shaving aid material the reservoir until the shield is removed. When the shield is removed, fluid communication is provided between one or more channels of the reservoir and the dispensing head and the shaving aid material can be deposited as described above. A portion of the shield extends outwardly from an opening in a slot or gap between the reservoir and the dispensing head to provide a region that can be gripped by the user for removal of the shield. Removal of the shield is a onetime event. The shield can be integrally formed with a plug and can include a weakened portion, e.g. a notch or a series of perforations therebetween. Application of a predetermined force by the user can cause the shield to separate from the plug in the region of the weakened portion. After separation, the plug is retained in the replacement cartridge and can substantially close the opening of the slot to prevent undesirable flow of the shaving aid material out of the opening. 
         [0009]    In other embodiments, the replacement cartridge can include a spring or springs to provide an attractive force between the reservoir and the dispensing head. The spring or springs can be e.g. a helical spring or leaf spring, such as a cantilevered beam that is preferably integrally formed with either the reservoir or the dispensing head. As described above a shield disposed between the reservoir and the dispensing head prevents flow of the shaving aid material from the reservoir until the shield is removed. When the shield is removed the attractive force between the reservoir and the dispensing head closes a gap between the reservoir and the dispensing head to provide fluid communication as previously described and to prevent undesirable flow of the shaving aid material from end(s) of the gap. 
         [0010]    The shield is preferably a die-cut biaxiallyoriented polyethylene terephthalate (boPET) polyester film or other suitable film or can be injection molded or extruded from other suitable thermoplastic materials. 
         [0011]    The replacement cartridge can include a razor cartridge disposed adjacent the dispensing head. The housing of the dispensing head housing can be integrally formed with the housing of the razor cartridge. 
         [0012]    Embodiments of the present disclosure can include one or more of the following advantages. The razor will largely resist changes in meteorological conditions and retain its attractiveness to a potential purchaser. The shield provides a “freshness” indicator to the user. 
         [0013]    The above features and advantages of the present disclosure will be more fully understood with reference to the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0014]      FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a first embodiment of a safety razor of the present disclosure. 
           [0015]      FIG. 2A  is a perspective view of an embodiment of a replacement cartridge of the present disclosure. 
           [0016]      FIG. 2B  is a perspective view of another embodiment of a replacement cartridge of the present disclosure. 
           [0017]      FIG. 3  is a perspective view of a further embodiment of a replacement cartridge of the present disclosure. 
           [0018]      FIG. 4  is an exaggerated schematic cross section taken on lines  4 - 4  of  FIG. 2 . 
           [0019]      FIG. 5A  is a perspective view of an embodiment of a shield of the present disclosure. 
           [0020]      FIG. 5B  is a perspective view of another embodiment of a shield of the present disclosure. 
           [0021]      FIG. 5C  is a perspective view of a further embodiment of a shield of the present disclosure. 
           [0022]      FIGS. 6A and 6B  are exaggerated schematic cross sections taken on lines  6 - 6  of  FIG. 2  in respective first and second states. 
           [0023]      FIGS. 7A and 7B  are exaggerated schematic cross sections taken on lines  7 - 7  of  FIG. 2  in respective first and second states. 
           [0024]      FIG. 7C  is an alternate embodiment to that of  FIGS. 7A and 7B  having a different spring arrangement. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0025]    Referring now to the drawings and in particular  FIG. 1 , an exemplary razor assembly  10  is shown comprising a handle  12  and a replacement cartridge  14 . In  FIG. 1  the replacement cartridge  14  is shown partially disassembled from the handle  12  purely for convenience of illustration. The replacement cartridge  14  comprises a reservoir  20  adapted to contain a flowable shaving aid material that can be as known in the art and a dispensing head  30  adapted to deposit the flowable shaving aid material on a skin surface of a user during a normal shaving operation. A removable shield  40  having a user grippable portion  42  is disposed at an interface region  22  between the reservoir and the dispensing head. In the embodiment depicted the dispensing head  30  includes a plurality of ports, valves or wicks  32 , or combinations thereof, to regulate the flow of shaving aid material during use. These ports, valves or wicks can be as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,134,775 to Althaus et al., U.S. Pat. No. 7,137,203 to Bressler et al., U.S. Pat. No. 7,043,841 to Franzini et al. and U.S. Patent application publication 2005/0138814, the disclosures of which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entireties. The ports, valves or wicks  32  can be disposed to partially or completely surround cutting edges  52  of a razor cartridge  50 . 
         [0026]    Referring additionally now to  FIG. 2A  an embodiment of a replaceable cartridge  60  generally as previously described, is depicted having a dispensing head  62  disposed adjacent a razor cartridge  64 . A reservoir  66  is connected to the dispensing head and a shield  68  is disposed therebetween as will be discussed later in the present disclosure. 
         [0027]    Referring additionally now to  FIG. 2B  another embodiment of a replaceable cartridge  70  is depicted having a dispensing head  72 , a reservoir  76  connected to the dispensing head and a shield  78  disposed therebetween. 
         [0028]    Referring additionally now to  FIG. 3  a further embodiment of a replaceable cartridge  80  is depicted having a dispensing head  82  with a housing  84  integrally formed with a housing  86  of a razor cartridge  88 . A reservoir  96  is connected to the dispensing head and a shield  98  is disposed therebetween. 
         [0029]    Referring additionally now to  FIGS. 5A ,  5 B and  5 C, exemplary embodiments of a shield  100  are depicted.  FIG. 5C  depicts a unitary shield  104 .  FIGS. 5A and 5B  depict a shield  104  integrally formed with a plug  106  and having a weakened portion  102  therebetween where it is intended the shield and the plug will separate when a predetermined force is applied to a grippable portion  108  of the shield. In  FIG. 5A  a notch  110  is provided as a so-called stress concentration that will act as an initiation site for a tear to separate the shield from the plug. In  FIG. 5B  a series of perforations  112  are provided, preferably extending across the width of the shield. The shield is preferably manufactured from a polyester film, most preferably biaxiallyoriented polyethylene terephthalate (boPET) polyester which is readily commercially available under a number of different trade names including MYLAR and MELINEX provided by the DUPONT Company. This material is preferred due to a preferred combination of several properties such as strength, chemical stability and barrier properties. However other film materials can also be provided. The shield is preferably about 0.1 mm thick and is preferably manufactured by die-cutting. The shield can also be manufactured by e.g. injection molding or extrusion processes in which case the thickness and material can be altered to suit the chosen process. 
         [0030]    Referring now to  FIG. 4 , an exaggerated schematic partial cross section taken on lines  4 - 4  of  FIG. 2  is depicted showing a slot  120  in the vicinity of an interface between the reservoir  122  and the dispensing head  124 . One or more channels  126  are included in both the housings of the reservoir and dispensing head to provide fluid communication therebetween when the shield  128  is removed by a user by gripping the shield by a grippable portion  130  that extends outwardly from an opening  132  of the slot  120  and applying a predetermined force in an approximately horizontal leftward direction relative to the depicted figure. In this figure the clearances between the component parts are shown enlarged purely for clarity of depiction. In practice, the clearances are preferably sized such that no flowable shaving aid material will pass from the reservoir to the dispensing head or out of the opening until the shield is operated by the application of the aforementioned predetermined force. 
         [0031]    Referring now to  FIGS. 6A and 6B , exaggerated schematic partial cross sections taken on lines  6 - 6  of  FIG. 2  are depicted showing the region in the vicinity of an interface between the reservoir  142  and the dispensing head  144 . In  FIG. 6A  this embodiment is generally similar to the depiction of  FIG. 4  with the exception that the shield  148  preferably of the type of  FIGS. 5A and 5B  is disposed between the reservoir and dispensing head in a U-shape and with the plug  146  preferably bonded (e.g. by a suitable adhesive or ultrasonic welding or mechanically attached) to one housing in the region  147 .  FIG. 6B  depicts the result of a predetermined force in approximate direction  160  applied to the grippable portion  150  of the shield  148 . The shield  148  has separated from the plug  146  and the plug  146  substantially blocks the opening of the slot to prevent shaving aid material flowing out of the opening. Fluid communication is permitted between channel(s) of the reservoir and channel(s) of the dispensing head. 
         [0032]    Referring now to  FIGS. 7A and 7B , exaggerated schematic partial cross sections taken on lines  7 - 7  of  FIG. 2  are depicted showing the region in the vicinity of an interface between the reservoir  172  and the dispensing head  174 . One or more springs  176 , e.g. conventional helical springs, are provided between the reservoir and dispensing head to provide an attractive force therebetween. In  FIG. 7A  a shield  178  preferably of the type of  FIG. 5C  is provided in a gap  182  between the reservoir and dispensing head.  FIG. 7B  depicts the result of a predetermined force as previously described being applied to a grippable portion  180  of the shield  178 . The shield has been removed and the attractive force between the reservoir and the dispensing head has caused the gap, previously occupied by the shield, to close permitting fluid communication between channel(s) of the reservoir and channel(s) of the dispensing head and preventing shaving aid material flowing in other directions. 
         [0033]    In  FIG. 7C  a similar embodiment to that of  FIGS. 7A and 7B  is depicted however the attractive force between the reservoir and the dispensing head is provided by an integrally formed spring, e.g. a cantilevered beam  190 . 
         [0034]    While various embodiments have been described above, it should be understood that they have been presented by way of example only, and not limitation. For instance, modifications or changes as can be made within the scope of the attached claims and features disclosed in connection with any one embodiment can be used alone or in combination with each feature of the respective other embodiments. Thus, the breadth and scope of any embodiment should not be limited by any of the above described exemplary embodiments, but should be defined only in accordance with the following claims and their equivalents. Those skilled in the art will further recognize that variations and modifications can be made within the scope of the disclosure. For example the U-shape shield of  FIG. 6A  can be substituted by a straight shield.