Patent Publication Number: US-2002002753-A1

Title: Superior toothbrush

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS  
     [0001] This application is entitled to the benefit of Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60/213,974 filed Jun. 24, 2000. 
    
    
     
       BACKGROUND  
       [0002] 1. Field of Invention  
       [0003] This invention relates to toothbrushes, specifically to a toothbrush adapted for the thorough cleaning of the entire mouth.  
       [0004] 2. Description of Prior Art  
       [0005] Previously various devices have been used in an attempt to clean the teeth and entire mouth thoroughly in order to prevent tooth decay, plaque, tartar, halitosis and gum disease.  
       [0006] These devices have included toothpicks, floss, including a variety of flossing devices, tongue scrapers and irrigation devices. These cleaning devices have done an unsatisfactory job as they do not clean thoroughly, are only ment for use in small and limited areas, and in some cases, cannot be reused.  
       [0007] Still, the most effective and widely used of all these cleaning devices is the conventional toothbrush. These have included toothbrushes with bristles of various lengths, angles and bristles that cross. Toothbrushes with angled, flexible and various shaped bristle support heads. Toothbrushes with angled and irregular shaped handles, electrical toothbrushes and folding toothbrushes.  
       [0008] However, while most of these toothbrushes are inexpensive to manufacture and do a basic job of cleaning, they fail to do a thorough job of cleaning the teeth, gums, tongue and entire mouth.  
       [0009] This failure of the conventional toothbrush is due to the fact that in all the different variations of the conventional toothbrush, the bristles are on only one side of the bristle support head. This makes it difficult and time consuming to thoroughly clean the easy to reach areas of the teeth, gums, tongue and mouth, missing some areas entirely as the user has to keep adjusting the angle of the toothbrush to clean different areas. Also, the user can only clean one area at a time. Additionally, it is impossible to clean the hard to reach areas of the mouth, for example, the back of the mouth where the gums contact the cheek, also, under the tongue. Because there are no bristles at the extreme tip of the bristle support head, when the user attempts to clean that area, it is impossible to angle the toothbrush so that the bristles can contact the area.  
       [0010] This lack of thorough cleaning of the teeth, gums, tongue and entire mouth can cause dental problems, such as, plaque, tartar, tooth decay, gum disease and halitosis.  
       [0011] Also, being aware that the conventional toothbrush is not doing a thorough job of cleaning, the user, because of the flattened shape of the body of the toothbrush, tends to use too much pressure resulting in abrasion and permanent damage to the teeth.  
       [0012] Thus, all the toothbrushes heretofore known suffer from these disadvantages:  
       [0013] (a) They do not clean the teeth, gums, tongue and mouth thoroughly.  
       [0014] (b) The user has to keep adjusting the angle of the brush in order to clean different areas,  
       [0015] (c) They are time consuming to use.  
       [0016] (d) They cannot reach the hard to reach areas of the mouth, thus leaving those areas uncleaned.  
       [0017] (e) They invite the use of excessive pressure when brushing, causing permanent damage to the teeth.  
       SUMMARY  
       [0018] In accordance with the present invention a toothbrush comprises a solid straw like base formation completely surrounded at one end by tufts of bristles implanted in rows to achieve a cylindrical formation.  
       [0019] Objects and Advantages  
       [0020] Accordingly, besides the objects and advantages of the cleaning devices described above, several objects and advantages of the present invention are:  
       [0021] (a) to provide an extremely efficient toothbrush that is easy to use, of simple construction and economical to manufacture;  
       [0022] (b) to provide a toothbrush that cleans the easy to reach areas of the mouth thoroughly;  
       [0023] (c) to provide a toothbrush that will clean surrounding areas simultaneously;  
       [0024] (d) to provide a toothbrush that will clean the areas of the mouth that are impossible to clean with other cleaning devices;  
       [0025] (e) to provide a toothbrush that can clean the gum line and all other areas of the mouth without the user adjusting its angle;  
       [0026] (f) to provide a toothbrush that will eliminate the possibility of the user brushing too hard;  
       [0027] (g) to provide a toothbrush that will lessen the time spent cleaning the teeth.  
       [0028] Further objects and advantages are to provide a toothbrush that is inexpensive to purchase, can be used by people of all ages to prevent plaque, tartar, halitosis, tooth decay, gum disease and abrasion of the teeth. Still further objects and advantages will become apparent from a consideration of the ensuing description and drawings. 
     
    
    
     DRAWING FIGURES  
     [0029] In the drawings, closely related figures have the same number but different suffixes.  
     [0030]FIGS. 1A and 1B show the toothbrush as view from both sides.  
     [0031]FIG. 2 show a longitudinal sectional view taken from line  2 - 2  of FIG. 1A.  
     [0032]FIG. 3 show a transverse sectional view taken from line  3 - 3  of. FIG. 1B. 
    
    
     [0033] As shown in the drawings, the toothbrush of the present invention comprises of four simple parts, namely, a solid straw-like base  6 , bristles  8  and a small metal plug  10 .  
     DESCRIPTION  
     [0034] FIGS.  1 A and  1 B—Preferred Embodiment  
     [0035] A preferred embodiment of the toothbrush of present invention is illustrated in FIGS. 1A and 1B (views from both sides).  
     [0036] While the solid straw-like base  6  may be made from other simular material, it is at present preferred to form it as a molding in part or in whole of a suitable plastic material which is rigid, strong, will not easily snap and is capable of securely anchoring bristles.  
     [0037] As shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, a solid straw like form  6  extends from a gripping area at one end, to a bristly area, or bristle support head at the other end  6   a .  
     [0038] Tufts of bristles  8  which extend radically, are implanted securely  8   a  at one end in the bristle support head  6   a . The bristles  8  are implanted in rows in a cylindrical formation completely covering the bristle support head  6   a , terminating in a dome like formation at the tip of the bristle support head  6   a .  
     [0039]FIGS. 2, 3 and  4 —Additional Embodiments  
     [0040]FIGS. 2, 3 and  4 , in each case the interior of the toothbrush is shown.  
     [0041]FIG. 2 show the sectional view taken from line  2 — 2  of FIG. 1A. As shown in FIG. 2, tufts of radically extending bristles  8  are implanted  8   a  in rows completely covering the bristle support head  6   a  including its tip.  
     [0042]FIG. 3 show a transverse view of the bristle support head  6   a  taken from  3 - 3  of FIG. 1B. As shown in FIG. 3, the bristles  8  are securely implanted  8   a  in rows in the bristle support head by bending the tufts of bristles  8  measuring twice the required length in half and implanting said bristles  8   a  in the bristle support head  6   a , securing the bristles with a small flat rectangular metal plug equal to width of fold in bristles, as is the mothod used in conventional toothbrushes.  
     [0043]FIG. 4 shows the exploded view of a tuft of bristles  8 . It shows portion of bristles implanted  8   a  in bristle support head  6   a  bent in half at mid length  8   b . A small flat retangular metal plug  10  equal to width of bristle fold  8   b  secures the bristles  8   a  in the bristle support head  6   a , the bristles converging to form a common unit  8  as they emerge from the bristle support head  6   a.    
     [0044] Advantages  
     [0045] From the description above, a number of advantages of my toothbrush become evident:  
     [0046] (a) Since the solid straw-like base of my toothbrush is smaller in width then the flattened base of the conventional toothbrush, less material would be needed to manufacture it.  
     [0047] (b) The thorough cleaning of the entire mouth due to the cylindrical formation of the bristles and the hundreds of additional bristles.  
     [0048] (c) The ability of cleaning impossible to reach areas of the mouth due to the dome like formation of bristles at the tip of the bristle support head.  
     [0049] (d) The ability of my toothbrush to clean surrounding areas simultaneously.  
     [0050] (e) The smaller straw-like base of my toothbrush makes it impossible to use excessive pressure when brushing.  
     [0051] (f) The routine of cleaning the teeth will be less time consuming.  
     [0052] Operation—FIGS. 1A and 1B  
     [0053] The manner of using the Superior to clean the teeth, gums, tongue and entire mouth is identical to that of the conventional toothbrush Namely, the toothbrush as shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B is used after applying toothpaste to the toothbrush. Next, the user proceeds to clean the teeth, gums, tongue and entire mouth as one would with the conventional toothbrush.  
     [0054] Conclusion, Ramifications and Scope  
     [0055] Accordingly, the reader will see that the toothbrush of this invention has superior cleaning ability over the conventional toothbrush and other teeth cleaning devices. Futhermore, the Superior Toothbrush&#39;s cylindrical bristle formation has the added advantage in that:  
     [0056] it cleans the impossible to clean areas;  
     [0057] it cleans thoroughly;  
     [0058] it cleans surrounding areas simultaneously;  
     [0059] it cleans without having to re-adjust its angle;  
     [0060] it prevents the user from using too much pressure when brushing;  
     [0061] it reduces the time required for brushing.  
     [0062] Although the above description contain many specifications, these should not be construed as limiting the scope of the invention, but rather as an exemplification of some os the presently perferred embodiments of this invention. For example, the said solid straw-like base could be make of variety of materials. It could be hollow, spiral, looped, a hinge could be added to make it fold and convient for travel, a wire core could be used to anchor the bristles. The bristles could be implanted in a different design, for example, a swirling design, Also. the bristles could be of different lengths, inclined or crossed.  
     [0063] Thus, the scope of this invention should be determined by the appended claims and their legal equivalents, rather than the example given.