Patent Publication Number: US-8529149-B2

Title: Sponge type make-up brush

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     This application claims priority to Korean Patent Application No. 2009-0128233 filed on Dec. 21, 2009, the contents of which are herein incorporated by reference in its entirety. 
     BACKGROUND 
     1. Technical Field 
     Embodiments of the present invention relate to a sponge type make-up brush, and more particularly, to a sponge type make-up brush that includes both a sponge puff and a bristle brush. 
     2. Discussion of the Related Art 
     Generally, applicators, such as soft brushes or sponge puffs, are used to apply make-up or apply powder on the skin of an adult or child. 
     Various types of make-up brushes using animal bristles are disclosed in, for example, Korean Patent No. 530486 (issued on Nov. 16, 2005), Korean Utility Model Registration Nos. 0165482 (issued on Oct. 18, 1999), and 0442172 (issued on Oct. 8, 2008), which are incorporated herein by reference. 
     The above-mentioned conventional make-up brushes may provide a soft touch to user&#39;s skin and may evenly apply a coating material to the user&#39;s skin. However, the conventional make-up brushes can be complicated to manufacture, can have high manufacturing costs, and may lose bristles during use. 
     A make-up sponge puff can be made by processing a sponge that is formed by foaming a material, such as latex or synthetic resin. A handle band may be disposed on a surface of the sponge puff. Conventional functional make-up sponge puffs are disclosed in, for example, Korean Utility Model Registration Nos. 0206069 (issued on Sep. 28, 2000) and 0391389 (issued on Jul. 22, 2005) and Korean Patent Application Laid-open No. 2006-85526 (issued on Jul. 27, 2006), which are incorporated herein by reference. 
     The above-mentioned conventional make-up sponge puffs may have a relatively simple manufacturing process compared to that of the make-up brushes. However, since a portion contacting user&#39;s skin is flat, it may be difficult to continuously retain cosmetics or powder on the make-up sponge and to evenly apply the cosmetics or powder to the user&#39;s skin. 
     As mentioned above, the make-up brushes and the make-up sponge puffs have different characteristics and functions. Portable brushes having both a brush and a sponge are disclosed in, for example, Korean Utility Model Registration No. 262439 (issued on Jan. 16, 2002), which is incorporated herein by reference. 
     SUMMARY 
     Embodiments of the present invention provide a sponge type make-up brush that has a brush-shaped sponge part adapted to contact user&#39;s skin, thereby providing desirable qualities of both of a brush and a sponge puff. 
     According to an embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a sponge type make-up brush comprising a handle part having a sponge-receiving portion on a peripheral portion of the handle part, and a sponge part having a first portion press-fittingly inserted into the sponge-receiving portion and a second portion exposed to an outside of the sponge-receiving portion, wherein the second portion of the sponge part includes a plurality of coating blades each having cutting surfaces formed at opposing sides of the cutting blade, wherein the plurality coating blades are arranged one after another and wherein a thickness of each of the coating blades is reduced in a direction away from the handle part, and wherein the second portion of the sponge part includes a plurality of edge line portions and a plurality of valley portions, wherein each of the plurality of edge line portions is formed where two cutting surfaces of a coating blade meet each other and each of the plurality of valley portions is formed where a cutting surface of one coating blade meets a cutting surface of a neighboring coating blade. 
     According to an embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a method for manufacturing a sponge type make-up brush, comprising press-fittingly inserting a first portion of a sponge part into a sponge receiving portion of a handle part, and exposing a second portion of the sponge part to an outside of the sponge receiving portion, wherein the second portion of the sponge part includes a plurality of coating blades each having cutting surfaces formed at opposing sides of the cutting blade, wherein the plurality coating blades are arranged one after another and wherein a thickness of each of the coating blades is reduced in a direction away from the handle part, and wherein the second portion of the sponge part includes a plurality of edge line portions and a plurality of valley portions, wherein each of the plurality of edge line portions is formed where two cutting surfaces of a coating blade meet each other and each of the plurality of valley portions is formed where a cutting surface of one coating blade meets a cutting surface of a neighboring coating blade. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The embodiments of the present invention will be apparent from the following detailed description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which: 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view showing a sponge type make-up brush according to an embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 2  is a front view of the sponge type make-up brush of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 3  is a sectional view of the sponge type make-up brush of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 4  is a perspective view showing a sponge type make-up brush according to an embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIGS. 5A and 5B  are views schematically showing structures of cutters used for forming coating blades of sponge parts in sponge type make-up brushes according to embodiments of the present invention; and 
         FIG. 6  is a sectional view showing a sponge type make-up brush according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS 
     Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein like reference numerals are used to denote the same or substantially the same elements throughout the specification and the drawings. 
       FIG. 1  is a perspective view showing a sponge type make-up brush according to an embodiment of the present invention,  FIG. 2  is a front view of the make-up brush of  FIG. 1 , and  FIG. 3  is a sectional view of the make-up brush of  FIG. 1 . 
     Referring to  FIGS. 1 to 3 , a sponge type make-up brush according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a handle part  10  and a sponge part  20 . 
     The handle part  10  includes a sponge-receiving portion  11 . The sponge part  20  is inserted into and fixed by the sponge-receiving portion  11 . A cross section of the sponge-receiving portion  11  has a shape corresponding to a cross section of the sponge part  20 . The handle part  10  is made of plastic, wood, steel, or so on. 
     The sponge-receiving portion  11  has a smaller size than a size of the sponge part  20  so that the sponge part  20  is press-fittingly inserted into the sponge-receiving portion  11 . The sponge part  20  inserted into the sponge-receiving portion  11  may be further fixed to the sponge-receiving portion  11  using an adhesive to prevent the sponge part  20  from being removed from the sponge-receiving portion  11 . 
     The sponge part  20  is formed of a sponge. The sponge part  20  is formed by foaming and molding a material, such as, for example, latex or synthetic resin. According to embodiments, the sponge part  20  may be shaped as a relatively short post whose cross section has a round, oval, square, or polygonal shape. 
     A portion of the sponge part  20  exposed to the outside of the handle part  10  includes a plurality of coating blades  21  each having cutting surfaces  25  formed at both sides thereof. The plurality of coating blades  21  are arranged one after another. A thickness of each of the plurality of coating blades is reduced as going away from the handle part  10 . Each of the coating blades  21  has an edge line portion  22  along which both cutting surfaces  25  thereof meet each other. A V-shaped valley portion  23  is formed where a cutting surface  25  of a coating blade meets a cutting surface  25  of a neighboring coating blade  21 . 
     As shown in  FIGS. 1 to 3 , the handle part  10  has a cylinder shape, and the sponge part  20  has substantially a cylinder shape. Referring to  FIGS. 1 and 2 , a length L of an edge line portion  22  is different for one or more of the coating blades. 
     For example, in a direction toward a middle portion of the sponge part  20 , the length L increases, and in a direction away from the middle portion, the length L decreases. A length of a valley portion  23  likewise can vary depending on whether the valley portion is located near or away from a middle portion of the sponge part  20 . 
       FIG. 4  is a perspective view showing a sponge type make-up brush according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
     Referring to  FIG. 4 , “H 1 ” refers to a distance between an edge line portion  22  and an upper portion of the handle part  10 , “H 2 ” refers to a distance between a valley portion  23  and the upper portion of the handle part  10 , and “H 3 ” refers to a distance between a valley portion  23  and an edge line portion  22  of a coating blade. In a direction toward a middle portion of the sponge part  20 , distance H 1  increases, and in a direction away from the middle portion of the sponge part  20 , distance H 1  decreases. Distance H 2  also increases and decreases going toward and away from the middle portion of the sponge part  20 , respectively. According to an embodiment, distance H 2  may be constant irrespective of whether a coating blade is located near or away from the middle portion. Distance H 3  is constant regardless of the location of a coating blade. 
     According to an embodiment, only the distance H 1  may be varied according to locations of the coating blades and distance H 2  may be constant irrespective of locations of the coating blades. According to an embodiment, distance H 3  may be varied according to locations of the coating blades. 
     The coating blades  21  are formed by cutting a sponge bar whose cross section has a circular or oval shape. Cutting is performed using a cutter having a zigzag-shaped blade. According to an embodiment, the sponge bar may be formed by an extrusion molding process. 
       FIGS. 5A and 5B  are views schematically showing structures of cutters used for forming the coating blades  21  according to embodiments of the present invention. 
     When a sponge bar is cut by using a cutter having teeth of the same height as shown in  FIG. 5A , coating blades  21  having a constant distance H 1  are formed as shown in  FIG. 1 , and when a sponge bar is cut by using a cutter having teeth of different heights as shown in  FIG. 5B , coating blades  21  having different distances H 1  are formed as shown in  FIG. 4 . 
     The sponge bar includes an elastic body. Thus, the sponge bar is pressed and contracted by the cutter before cutting occurs. As a consequence, the coating blades  21  are formed such that the edge line portions have a rounded shape that is concave when viewed from the front as shown in  FIGS. 1 and 2 . For example, a distance between the upper portion of the handle part  10  and an edge line portion decreases in a direction toward a middle portion of the edge line portion. Additionally, the coating blades  21  are formed to have a larger thickness in a middle portion of the sponge part  20  than at both side portions of the sponge part  20 . As a consequence, tactility, softness, and durability of the sponge part  20  are enhanced. 
       FIG. 6  is a sectional view showing a sponge type make-up brush according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
     Referring to  FIG. 6 , the handle part  10  includes a storing portion  12  therein to store a coating material M, such as cosmetics, powder, a medical substance, or the like, and the sponge part  20  includes through-holes  24  passing through the sponge part  20  from the storing portion  12  to the valley portions  23 . 
     The storing portion  12  of the handle part  10  may be formed of a soft material, for example, a soft plastic tube. According to an embodiment, the coating material M may be pushed and discharged from the storing portion  12  via the through holes  24  to the outside of the valley portions  23  by pressing the storing portion  12  with a user&#39;s hand, and the discharged coating material M may be applied to a desired site of user&#39;s skin by rubbing the skin portion with the coating blades  21 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 6 , the storing portion  12  includes an inlet portion  13  into which the coating material M is fed and a cap  14  for covering the inlet portion  13  to prevent leakage of the coating material M. According to an embodiment, the handle part  10  may further include a protection cap (not shown) on an upper portion thereof to cover the sponge part  20  so as to protect the sponge part  20  from the outside. 
     Now, a method for using a sponge type make-up brush according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described. 
     First, a coating material is coated on the coating blades  21  and is then applied on the user&#39;s skin in a direction crossing the edge line portions  22 . Since the user&#39;s skin is continuously rubbed with the coating blades  21  arranged one after another, the coating material coated on the coating blades  21  is evenly applied on the user&#39;s skin. 
     Further, the coating material remaining in the valley portions  23  between the adjacent coating blades  21  is moved toward the edge line portions  22  and continuously applied on the user&#39;s skin while the user&#39;s skin is rubbed with the coating blades  21 . 
     The embodiments of the present invention are not limited to the above-described configurations. According to embodiments, the handle part  10  may have additional functions, the sponge part  20  may have other cross-sectional shapes, and the coating blades  21  may have other arrangements. 
     For example, according to an embodiment, a cap for opening and closing the storing portion  12  may be disposed on the sponge-receiving portion  11  of the handle part  10 , and the sponge part  20  may be disposed on the cap for opening and closing the storing portion  12 . According to an embodiment, the sponge part  20  may be coated with various antibacterial or aromatic substances. 
     As set forth in the foregoing, the sponge type make-up brush according to the embodiments of the present invention has the brush-shaped sponge part adapted to contact the user&#39;s skin, thereby providing advantages of a bristle brush and a sponge puff. 
     That is, the sponge type make-up brush according to the embodiments of the present invention provides enhanced tactility and softness to a user&#39;s skin, evenly applies a coating material to the user&#39;s skin, and prevents loss of bristles during use. Also, the sponge type make-up brush has the storing portion in the handle part so that a coating material may be stored in the storing portion if necessary. 
     Conventional bristle brushes may be replaced by the sponge type make-up brush according to the embodiments of the present invention for various household or industrial applications, such as applying make-up and powder to skin, or removing hair remaining on skin after a haircut. 
     Although the exemplary embodiments of the present invention have been described, it is understood that the present invention should not be limited to these exemplary embodiments but various changes and modifications can be made by one ordinary skilled in the art within the spirit and scope of the present invention as hereinafter claimed.