Patent Publication Number: US-2009232584-A1

Title: Applicator device

Description:
BACKGROUND 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     Embodiments of the present invention generally relate to applicators. More particularly the invention relates to applicator devices to be used for consumer products such as cosmetics, skin care, hair care or paint products. The applicator device of the present invention provides for convenience in storing as well as applying consumer products wherein the handle of the applicator device stores the product. Also disclosed is the usage of such an applicator device in a ready to use kit where the applicator handle stores an additional product. 
     2. Description of the Related Art 
     There are known various applicators comprising of an applicator element attached to a handle wherein the handle acts as a support for the applicator element and also a tool for easy application. Also known are various applicators where the handle acts as a reservoir and the product flows through to the applicator element for the application of the product. Examples of such applicator devices include shaving brush with a foam dispenser in the handle or a tooth brush where toothpaste flows via the handle and through a hole between the bristles or also nail polish brushes, in which the nail polish likewise flows out of an inverted bottle directly between the brush bristles and thus can be spread on the fingernails. Such applicator elements have also existed on a large scale for years as shoe brushes. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,066,155 to English, et al. discloses a toothbrush and toothpaste dispensing unit, U.S. Pat. No. 4,930,923 to Reichmann et al. discloses a barrel shaped holder with an applicator attached at its front end and which has a valve arranged to be opened by an actuating means. With all these applicator devices there exists the difficulty of sealing the reservoir from outside, especially during the times when the applicator is not being used. Moreover, there also exists the problem of leakage in the usage of such applicators which makes their life very less and there is always a requirement of a means for addressing the leakage issue. 
     Further, a user would generally prefer that all the items required for usage of a product are readily available for application of that product. For example, a woman while applying any cosmetic would prefer to have the applicators to be present in the package itself for a ready and quick usage. Also, when at work, she may need to apply her favourite cosmetics products rapidly, several times a day and often in conditions such as whilst travelling in a car, or using a public transportation on the go. Also, she may want to have a different look for different occasions and would like to be able to have all the required products for a different look. To meet these requirements a woman will generally carry all the products along with different brushes for their usage in a make-up bag within her handbag. However it is often difficult to locate the required cosmetics product within the handbag or make-up bag rapidly especially when other personal items are also carried in the handbag. 
     There are also present various applicators which have a handle and a brush head. Also known are applicators which have detachable heads, however, the handle again is acting as a support in these cases. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,926,903 discloses a make-up brush wherein the brushing head and the stem are separably combined. Similarly U.S. Pat. No. 4,471,507 discloses paint brushes with detachable handle. However, the handle just acts as a support and does not contain any product. Therefore, it would be preferred if an applicator is provided that serves both the purposes of a storage package and an applicator. There exists a need for a portable applicator that also acts as a container for a particular product that can be easily carried in a kit for ready usage and can be used at will of the user where the applicator can be used irrespective of the fact that the handle contains the product. 
     Moreover, in the cosmetic area, there are cosmetics packs on the market where different cosmetics products, for example, blushers, eyeshadows, highlighters and powder, are packaged together. Although these are all ready-to-use kits, none of these known cosmetics packs is able to contain all the cosmetics products that a woman needs to make herself up for different looks in a single package. Moreover, none of the existing packages provide the accessibility for a liquid inside the package/kit itself. For example, to get a wet look, the user needs to either carry a converter in a separate container or use fluid if an when available. Therefore, there is a need for minimizing the number of products carried such that the bulk carried by the user is minimized and allows easy individual access and is capable of being used on the go. 
     SUMMARY 
     According to an embodiment of the invention, an applicator device is provided which is capable of storing a product apart from being usable as an applicator. The applicator device comprises of a head portion and a gripping portion. The gripping portion further comprises of an elongated housing that terminates into a neck which defines an opening wherein the housing acts as a receptacle for containing a consumer product. The head portion further comprises of an applicator element and an applicator element holder. 
     According to another embodiment of the invention, the gripping portion may optionally comprise a spout that may be attached to the elongated housing of the gripping portion. The spout could be shaped according to the composition of the product stored in the housing. 
     According to another embodiment of the invention, the head portion is configured to be mounted on to the gripping portion by way of screwing or snapping onto the gripping portion or by any other suitable mechanism. To the proximal end of the applicator element holder is attached the applicator element while the distal end of the applicator element holder is configured to be mounted on to the gripping portion. Further, the applicator element holder has a partitioning wall that separates the opening of the elongated housing or the spout from the distal ends of the applicator element. The partitioning wall, towards the distal end of the holder component, has a suitable means to shut the opening of the elongated housing or the spout when the head portion is mounted on to the gripping portion. A suitable means for plugging the opening could be in the form of a protrusion being shaped according to the shape of the opening such as a pintle or a pimple which is capable of plugging the opening of the housing or spout. 
     According to yet another embodiment of the invention, the partitioning wall in the applicator element holder may be formed by way of provision of an inner cap that fits into the applicator element holder. The inner cap may have a suitable means to shut the opening of the elongated housing or the spout when the head portion is mounted on to the gripping portion. 
     According to yet another embodiment of the invention the housing of the gripping portion is squeezable to dispense the product contained in it. 
     According to yet another embodiment of the invention there is provided an applicator device in which there is no possibility of spill-over of the product during usage, as the consumer would use the applicator only after mounting the applicator head onto the gripping portion. Also, there is provided an applicator device that is compact and portable as it provides the user with an applicator that also holds the product. 
     According to yet another embodiment of the invention, it is also contemplated that this applicator device could be used as a component of a kit where the additional product having a complimentary composition than the products of the kit could be stored in the receptacle of the applicator device. 
     According to yet another embodiment of the invention, there could optionally be provided a cap to cover the applicator element for preventing any damage to the same when not in use. 
     According to yet another embodiment of the invention, the cap could be provided with a mixing well on its proximal end to enable the user to dispense the product into the well for usage with the applicator. 
     According to yet another embodiment of the invention, the applicator device could be provided with various head parts having different kinds of applicator elements which could be used interchangeably on the same handle thereby providing a wide usage of the applicator. 
     According to yet another embodiment of the invention, as the applicator could be used for a product other than the one stored in it, it provides for a multiple usage with a single head component applicator element, thereby providing a ready-to-use applicator device for the user. 
     According to yet another embodiment of the invention, the gripping portion can be, advantageously, transparent thereby enabling the consumer to see the product from the outside and in particular its colour. 
     According to yet another embodiment of the invention, the receptacle could store a wide variety of consumer products related to cosmetic, hair care, skin care or paint products. The examples of various consumer products that could be stored include but are not limited to a shimmer, primer, gel, powder, hair color, converter, paint color and pigment. 
     These and further aspects which will be apparent to the expert of the art are attained by an applicator device in accordance with the main claim. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       So that the manner in which the above recited features of the present invention can be understood in detail, a more particular description of the invention, briefly summarized above, may be had by reference to embodiments, some of which are illustrated in the appended drawings. It is to be noted, however, that the appended drawings illustrate only typical embodiments of this invention and are therefore not to be considered limiting of its scope, for the invention may admit to other equally effective embodiments. 
         FIG. 1  illustrates an isometric view of the applicator device according to one embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 2  illustrates an exploded view of the applicator device as shown in  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 3  is front view of the applicator device of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 4  is front cross sectional view of the applicator device taken along the line N-N of  FIG. 3 ; 
         FIG. 5  is front view of the gripping portion of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 6  is front cross sectional view of the gripping portion taken along the line N-N of  FIG. 5 . 
         FIG. 7  is an isometric view of a kit in open position containing the applicator device according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 8  is an isometric view of cosmetic kit containing the applicator device according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
    
     To facilitate understanding, identical reference numerals have been used, where possible, to designate identical elements that are common to the figures. It is to be noted, however, that the appended drawings illustrate only typical embodiments of this invention and are therefore not to be considered limiting of its scope, for the invention may admit to other equally effective embodiments. 
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     The applicator device according to one embodiment of the present invention is shown in  FIGS. 1 to 6 .  FIG. 1  is one embodiment of the present invention showing the applicator device  100 . The applicator device  100  comprises a cap  101 , a head portion  102  and a gripping portion  103 . The cap  101  may be formed from any suitable material or a polymeric material such as polypropylene, acrylonitrile butadiene styrene or styrene acrylonitrile or any other suitable material. As shown in  FIGS. 2 to 6 , the head portion further comprises of an applicator element  104  and an applicator element holder  105 . The gripping portion  103  comprises of an elongated housing  106  to which is attached a spout  107 . The housing  106  terminates into a neck  108  which defines an opening  109 . The housing  106  acts as a receptacle for containing the product. The spout  107  terminates into an opening  110  and the spout  107  could be shaped according to the composition of the product stored in the housing  106 . As shown in  FIGS. 2 to 6 , the outer circumference of the neck  108  of the housing  106  has a threaded portion to enable screwing of the head part  102  thereby sealing the spout opening  110 . The housing  106  may be formed of a suitable polymeric material such as polypropylene or surlyn while the spout  107  could be made from a suitable polymeric material such as polypropylene. The distal portion of the spout  107  locks the opening of the housing  106 . 
     As represented by  FIGS. 2 to 6 , the applicator element holder  105  is further provided with an inner cap  111  that is inserted into the applicator element holder  105  to partition the applicator element holder  105  into two parts wherein the inner cap  111  has a protrusion  112  projecting towards its distal end so as to close the opening  110  of the spout  107 . Further, the inner cap  111  on its outer circumference has provision to be one-time fitted into the applicator element holder  105  while the inner circumference of the inner cap  111  has complimentary threads  113  to enable mounting of the head portion  102  onto the housing  106 . The applicator element holder  105  could be formed of a suitable metal or a suitable polymeric material such as polypropylene. The applicator element  104  may be constructed of a porous or non-porous rubber, fabric mesh, felt material, foamed polymers, sponge material or any other suitable material. Also, the applicator element  104  could have any suitable shape depending on the kind of application required. It could also have a shape other than round such as flattened brushes. The inner cap  111  may be formed from any suitable material or a polymeric material such as polypropylene or any other suitable material. 
     As shown in  FIG. 7 , the cosmetic kit  200  comprises of a base  201  and a cover  202 . The cover  202  is hingedly connected to the base  201 . In the base  201  are placed pans for receiving the cosmetic products wherein either one of them is a mixing well  203 . In the base is also provided a recess  204  to accommodate the applicator device  205  of the present invention. 
     As shown in  FIG. 8 , the cosmetic kit  300  comprises of a base  301  and a cover  302 . The cover  302  is hingedly connected to the base  301 . In the base  301  are placed pans for receiving the cosmetic products wherein either one of them is a mixing well  303 . In the base is also provided a recess  304  to accommodate the applicator device  305  having a cap  306 . 
     Although the above description and drawings show the applicator device  100 , and in particular the housing  106  thereof, being cylindrical, the shapes and profile cross section thereof are not limited to the same. 
     Various examples of the products which the kit  200  or  300  may contain are at least one of a cosmetic, a hair care product, a skin care product or a paint product whereas the applicator holder  205  and  305  may contain an additional consumer product that has a complimentary composition to the products of the kit. Various examples of cosmetic products include that the kit may contain include but are not limited to pressed powder, baked powder, loose powder, hot pour cosmetics or cremes whereas the applicator holder  205  and  305  may contain an additional cosmetic product such as a shimmer, converter, primer or gel. 
     These and further aspects which will be apparent to the expert of the art are attained by an applicator device in accordance with the main claim. 
     While the foregoing is directed to embodiments of the present invention, other and further embodiments of the invention may be devised without departing from the basic scope thereof, and the scope thereof is determined by the claims that follow.