Patent Publication Number: US-10327540-B2

Title: Mobile toothbrush holder

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application is a National Entry Application of PCT application no CA2016/050426 filed on Apr. 13, 2016 and published in English under PCT Article 21(2), which itself claims benefit of Canadian application Serial No. 2,887,531, filed on Apr. 13, 2015. All documents above are incorporated herein in their entirety by reference. 
     TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The present application relates to toothbrush holders. 
     BACKGROUND 
     A toothbrush holder providing protection for a toothbrush head in known in Applicant&#39;s published PCT patent application WO2014/078953 (MAUFETTE et al.) published May 30, 2014. In many embodiments of that patent application, a pair of juxtaposed rollers is provided at the ends of biased arms. The rollers allow for the easy insertion and removal of the toothbrush head from an enclosure for storage. In some embodiments, the rollers are shaped concavely to keep the sides of the toothbrush head aligned or guided during insertion and removal, with the benefit that the toothbrush is unlikely to twist with the result that bristles of the toothbrush contact the holder or its enclosure during insertion, storage and/or removal. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 2,937,910 (Randa) discloses a toothbrush holder with a pair of jaws gripping the toothbrush by its neck. The jaws include two cylindrical pins that are spaced from each other and are mounted in place by resilient side strips that flex when the toothbrush is inserted or removed. These resilient side strips form a passage between the strips for insertion and removal of the toothbrush. However, the side strips come into direct contact with the toothbrush head which leads to hygienic problems as the inside of Randa&#39;s holder becomes contaminated by the toothbrush head rubbing against the inside of the holder. 
     SUMMARY 
     According to the present invention, there is provided a toothbrush holder for holding an individual toothbrush having a head with bristles and a handle, the holder comprising: an enclosure comprising complementary enclosure parts articulated relative to one another to separate while receiving said head and come together when said head is stored within said enclosure, said enclosure being dimensioned for storing said head while providing a spacing between said bristles and an inner side of the enclosure for hygienic purpose; a guide member cooperating with said enclosure parts for guiding said head during insertion and removal of said head into and out of said enclosure; and a biasing member interacting with said enclosure parts for biasing said enclosure parts to be closed, said guide member facilitating said insertion of said head by forcing said enclosure parts to separate against the action of the biasing member. 
     In embodiments, the toothbrush holder is configured so that when said head is inserted within said enclosure, said guide member and enclosure parts being biased by said biasing member retain said head within said enclosure while leaving a portion of said handle outside said enclosure. 
     In embodiments, said guide member comprises a roller mounted on each of said enclosure parts for guiding said head. Thereby, said biasing member&#39;s force can be used both for the roller action as well as for keeping the enclosure closed around the toothbrush head. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The various embodiments disclosed herein will be better understood by way of the following detailed description with reference to the appended drawings, in which: 
         FIG. 1A  is an exploded oblique view of various parts making up one embodiment of the toothbrush holder with a toothbrush; 
         FIG. 1B  is another exploded oblique view of various parts making up one embodiment of the toothbrush holder with a toothbrush; 
         FIG. 2A  is a front elevation view of the holder of  FIG. 1A  shown while the toothbrush head is about to be inserted into the holder, the view showing in outline the rollers inside the enclosure parts. 
         FIG. 2B  is a front elevation view of the holder of  FIG. 1A  shown while the toothbrush head is being inserted into the holder with the enclosure partly expanded, the view showing in outline the rollers inside the enclosure parts; 
         FIG. 2C  is a front elevation view similar to  FIG. 2A  with the toothbrush head is fully inserted and the enclosure closed around the toothbrush head; 
         FIG. 3  is a perspective top view of an embodiment of the toothbrush holder with a toothbrush; 
         FIG. 4  is a side view of the toothbrush holder with toothbrush shown in  FIG. 3 ; and 
         FIG. 5  is a perspective bottom view of the toothbrush holder with toothbrush shown in  FIG. 3 . 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     When a factory-fresh toothbrush is first used, it provides a sense of comfort that it is clean and safe to use. Once it is used, it has come in contact with oral bacteria and any other germs present in the oral cavity. Rinsing the toothbrush gives some sense of hygiene, however, there is a lingering sense that bristles of an exposed toothbrush head may contain remnant bacteria or germs from the oral cavity and may attract airborne germs as well. 
     Giving the user a feeling of comfort and security in storage of the toothbrush involves providing a way for the toothbrush to be stored without exposure of the bristles to airborne contaminants and with protection of the bristles against physical contact with other objects. 
     As shown in  FIGS. 1A and 1B , the toothbrush  20  is a standard toothbrush having a neck portion  22  connecting a handle  21  to a head portion  24  supporting bristles  26 . While the toothbrush shown is of a conventional design, it is possible to constrain the use of the holder  10  to specific toothbrush designs instead of attempting to make it universal, namely suitable for the majority of commercially sold toothbrushes. 
     According to a preferred embodiment, the holder  10  includes two enclosure parts  12 A and  12 B that form an enclosure  12 , shown in  FIG. 2A , for providing protection to the bristles  26  against contact with foreign objects. In the embodiment illustrated, the enclosure parts  12 A and  12 B are substantially similar in shape. Alternatively, at least one part  12 A,  12 B may have a portion that is has a flat side for wall mounting or for resting on a flat surface, while another portion of at least one part  12 A,  12 B may be shaped to have a rounded surface so as to enclose the toothbrush  20 . Using substantially similar shapes is convenient for a compact holder  10  that can be stored on the counter, in a travel bag or in a drawer. 
     The enclosure shells or parts  12 A and  12 B in the embodiment shown are structured to close with minimal gaps or openings around the head  24  and bristles  26 . Interlocking flange  19 A closes the gap along the parting line between the shells  12 A and  12 B, while the flange  19 B closes the gap around the neck  22  at the entry to the holder  10 . It will be understood that the bristles  26  do not contact the upper part of the flange  19 B since the insertion of the head  24  causes the enclosure parts  12 A and  12 B to separate sufficiently to make way for the bristles  26  entering and exiting the enclosure. Advantageously, the parts  12 A and  12 B are shaped and sized so that the bristles  26  do not touch the inside of the enclosure  12  for hygienic purposes. Indeed, when the head  24  is stored within the enclosure  12 , there is provided a spacing between the bristles  26  and the inner side of the enclosure  12  so as to avoid contamination or soiling of the inside of the enclosure  12 . 
     The biasing of the enclosure parts  12 A and  12 B is provided, in the embodiment shown, by a biasing member such as unitary clip  14 . Other spring or biasing mechanisms can be contemplated and other mechanisms to articulate the enclosure parts with respect to one another can also be contemplated. 
     The clip member  14  is provided with a locking mechanism in the form of recesses  15 A on each end of the clip member that engage protrusions  15 B. To release the clip  14 , buttons  16  can be depressed to disengage the protrusions  15 B from the recesses  15 A, to allow the clip  14  to be pulled away. It will be appreciated that the clip  14  could have protrusions while the parts  12 A and  12 B could have corresponding recesses. Likewise, a clip could be provided with a lift tap to allow the user to pull the clip end away from one part  12 A and disengage the clip  14 . While a suitable release mechanism for the clip  14  is likewise optional, it is used to provide a way for the user to easily disassemble the holder  10  to clean the inside of the holder. 
     The enclosure parts  12 A and  12 B cooperate with a guide member  17  mounted thereon for guiding the head  24  during insertion into and removal from the inside of the enclosure  12 . The guide member  17  may include guide rollers  17 A and  17 B that are mounted respectively on each of the enclosure parts  12 A and  12 B. Suitable bearings, such as for example the ones shown at  18  in  FIGS. 1A and 1B  are provided. The rollers  17 A and  17 B may have a depression such as concave surfaces for receiving the sides of the head  24  while guiding the same and preventing twisting of the head  24  as it is inserted and removed from the holder  10 . Other roller shapes and designs are contemplated than the one shown, however, it is possible that the roller shape needs to take into account the shape of the head  24  to provide for good guidance of the head during insertion and removal. For example, the rollers  17 A and  17 B may be flexible so that these are straight in a rest position, but are flexed to present a depression such as a concave depression when the head  24  is inserted or removed from the enclosure  12 . 
     Furthermore, when the sides of a toothbrush head  24  are made of smooth plastic, it is contemplated that the rollers can simply be replaced by suitable fixed guides that allow the sliding insertion of the head  24  to cause the separation of the parts  12 A and  12 B against the action of the biasing member  14 . This requires some cooperation between the materials, the shape of the head  24  and the guide members, as it is less tolerant than the shaped roller design illustrated in the Figures to a more bluntly shaped head  24  or a head made of rubberized material that would offer much higher friction than a smooth plastic material. 
     The parts shown in  FIGS. 1A and 1B  can be made of any suitable material, whether plastic or metal. 
       FIGS. 2A and 2B  illustrate how the two enclosure parts  12 A and  12 B are initially closed and then caused to separate against the action of the clip  14  during insertion of the toothbrush head  24  into the holder  10 . The parts  12 A and  12 B are designed to articulate about a pivot point at their respective tops. As shown in  FIG. 2B , when the head  24  is fully inserted, the enclosure parts  12 A and  12 B are fully enclosed around the head  24  with the clip  14  keeping the parts  12 A and  12 B securely closed to form an enclosure  12 . 
     While the enclosure  12  shown is shaped to fit relatively snugly around the toothbrush head  24  but without the bristles  26  touching the inside of the enclosure  12 , it will be appreciated that the enclosure  12  may be oversized to accommodate a wider variety of toothbrush styles and designs. 
     Referring to  FIGS. 3 to 5 , there is shown different views of an embodiment of the mobile toothbrush holder  10  with the toothbrush  20  being inserted within. 
     Further details of the rollers, and other configurations and details of the holder are described in Applicant&#39;s PCT patent application PCT/CA2013/050733, filed 26 Sep. 2013 (designating the United States) and published as WO2014/078953 on May 30, 2014, the content of which is hereby incorporated by reference as if fully set forth herein. 
     While the invention has been shown and described with reference to preferred embodiments thereof, it will be recognized by those skilled in the art that various changes in form and detail may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.