Improvements in Tooth Brushes.
Year: 1895

page_text: Date of Application, 23rd Sept., 1895
Complete Specification Left, 23rd June, 1896-Accepted, 15th Aug., 1896
PRUVIDIUNAL DE LLLS
Improvements in Tooth Brushes.
I, CARL EDUARD FLEMMING, of Schönheide in the Kingdom of Saxony and
Empire of Germany. Brush Manufacturer, do hereby declare the nature of this
invention to be as follows:-
The improved tooth brush enables the surfaces of the teeth, both externally and
internally and the spaces or interstices between the teeth to be cleaned by moving
the brush either horizontally or vertically; and this is accomplished by means
of a brush body or support of concave or convex shape or outline, adjustably
secured to the handle of the brush.
In one form of the improved brush the brush body or support is pivoted at its
centre to the handle and may therefore be so adjusted in relation to the said handle
as to form a horizontal extension thereof or to project from it vertically or at right
angles. In the former case both parts lie in the same plane. The surface formed
by the ends of the hairs or hair bundles, is also of concave shape, and its length as
well as the magnitude of its curve, or the extent of its convexity may be varied
according to the configuration of the mouth or jaws for which the brush is intended.
In use, the handle is grasped with the hand and the brush support is moved
backwards and forwards in the horizontal direction over the outer surfaces of the
tecth.
The same brush body or support, curved in concave shape, may be employed in
cleaning the outer tooth surfaces and the outer part of the interstices between the
teeth by being moved in the vertical direction, it being only necessary for this
purpose to turn the handle at an angle of 90° to the brush. The handle is then at
right angles to the longitudinal axis of the brush body. In using the brush,
adjusted in this manner, the user's hand should perform a reciprocating up-and-down
motion, in the vertical direction, both the external surfaces of the teeth and
the outer parts of the interstices between the said teeth being thus effectively
cleaned.
The convex brush body or support is also pivotally attached to the handle and
consequently made adjustable thereon so that it may take up either a horizontal
In the former case both parts, as
or a vertical position in relation to the same.
before, lie in the same plane. The rubbing surface formed by the ends of the
bairs, being here intended for cleaning the inner surfaces of the teeth, is also of
convex shape; it being preferable to reduce its size rather considerably in the
direction of its length. In use, the brush is carried over the inner tooth surfaces
horizontally.
The same brush support curved in convave shape, may be employed in cleaning
the inner tooth surfaces and the inner portions of the interstices between the teeth
in the vertical direction, it being only necessary to turn the handle so that it is at
an angle of 90° to the brush support. Being thus placed at right angles to the
longitudinal axis of the said brush support, the user, on taking it in hand need
only move it up and down to effect a thorough cleaning of the inner tooth surfaces
and of the inner portions of the interstices between the teeth, internally, and in the
normal direction of the teeth.
Thus it will be seen that one and the same tooth brush, constructed in accordance
with the first described form may be used in cleaning the outer surfaces of the

page_text: teeth by being moved either horizontally or vertically as may be more convenient ;
and similarly, one and the same tooth brush, of the second described construction
may be used in the same ways and with similar effects on the inner surfaces of the
teeth.
According to this invention, double brushes may be constructed, either consisting
of two brushes with concave surfaces which, obviously, may be replaced by two
brushes with convex surfaces; or, comprising two brushes one of which has a
concave rubbing surface made up of hairs, and the other a convex surface; so that
in this case the same brush capable of being moved-both horizontally and
vertically, may serve to clean both the outer and the inner tooth surfaces and
intermediate spaces.
Or the arrangement may be modified so that for the special purpose of cleaning
the teeth by a vertical movement of the brush, the pivot or centre of rotation of
the handle may be removed from the centre of the brush body and shifted to either
side or, in fact at either end of the same, for the purpose of enabling the same
brush to be used in cleaning both the left side and the right side of the rows of
teeth, as may be required; it only being necessary, in changing the side, to turn
the brush support at an angle of 180°; so that all parts of the mouth may be
readily and conveniently reached. It will be seen that, in both cases, the point of
operation of the handle and brush support will be thus situated just in front of the
corners of the mouth; while the brush may be carried over the teeth sideways, so
that even the rearmost tooth surfaces and spaces may without difficulty be reached
and effectually cleaned. This applies both to the outer and inner tooth surfaces
and spaces.
These arrangements of brush supports and handles may also, if
desired, be carried out in the shape of double or compound brushes similar to
those above described.
According to my invention I provide an arrangement which is secured to the
handle and brush body to enable these two parts to be fitted together and adjusted
in the required position to each other and also to be readily disconnected and taken
to pieces. A plate or disc carries a pin or pivot in its centre, and is secured to an
extension or projection of the brush body. And a second disc or plate is provided
with an aperture, recess or eye corresponding in shape and position to the pin, and
is secured to the end of the handle. The said pin has shoulders or projections
formed on it, which are passed through the notches provided in the inner edge or
flange of the second disc. The connection is completed by imparting half a
revolution to the said disc after having fitted together the projections and notches,
respectively of the handle and support. The first disc has recesses provided in it,
into which recesses the heads of bolts adjustable longitudinally, are adapted to
engage under the action of springs, arranged underneath the collars with which
the said bolts are fitted; such engagement taking place as soon as the disc, together
with the brush support, is turned, and an outward strain is exercised upon the bolts
by the springs. By such means the handle may be connected with the support
rigidly, either in straight or parallel lines, or at a suitable angle of inclination, or
at right angles to each other. The parts may be inclined to each other and the
disc for this purpose is provided with apertures.
The bundles of hairs used in the manufacture of these brushes may be arranged
in any desired position, say, for example radially, or they may be parallel, in the
case of convex brush holders, or in the case of concave brush holders. Or the said
bundles of hairs may converge inwardly at an angle, or the hairs may be in an
inclined position and extend outwardly.
Instead of a concave or convex brush body or holder, a straight body may be
used for the same purpose, the rubbing surface formed by the hairs being
nevertheless somewhat curved. To this end the bundles of hairs placed at the
extremities of such a body or support should be rather longer than those situated
in the centre, so as to form a hair surface in steps or off-sets. It will be seen that
here the two terminal rows of bundles of hairs protrude from the rest.
The bundles of hairs may in all cases be trimmed so as to present straight,

page_text: rounded pointel or otherwise conveniently shaped ends. The material to be
employed in the manufacture of the handles and supports of the brushes may be
wood, bone, hard rubber celluloid or the like.
Dated this 23rd day of September 1895.
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45 Southampton Buildings, London, W.C., Agents for the Applicant.
PPTURES 1 TOOL Brushes.
I, CARL EDUARD FLEMMING, of Schonheide in the Kingdom of Saxony in
the Empire of Germany, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in
what manner the same is to he performed, to be particularly described and
ascertained in and by the following statement: -
This improved tooth brush enables the front and back surfaces of the teeth to be
brushed horizontally, and vertically and the interstices to be cleaned more
efficiently and with greater convenience than hitherto, the brush body being made
of n convex or concave shape, and adjustably connected to the brush handle.
Brushes made in accordance with this invention are illustrated in the accom-
panying drawing, in which
Figures 1 and 2 represent a tooth brush adjusted to the position and suitably
shaped for cleaning the front surfaces of the teeth in a horizontal direction and
Figures 34 and 5 show the same tooth brush adjusted for cleaning in a vertical
direction.
Figures 6 and 7 show a tooth brush adjusted to a position and shaped for
cleaning the back surfaces of the teeth in a horizontal direction.
Figures 8, 9 and 10 represent the same tooth brush adjusted for cleaning in a
vertical direction.
In Figures 1 to 12 the tooth brushes represented, have their handles connected
centrally to the brush body, and in Figures 13 and 14 tooth brushes are shown in
which the handles are connected to the brush body at, or near the extremity
thereof.
Figure 15 represents on a larger scale a device enabling the handle and brush
body to be rigidly connected to each other, and
Figure 16 illustrates the manner in which the handle and brush body may be
inclined relatively to each other.
Figures 17 to 24 represent various methods of connecting the brush-body and
handle by means of a detachable, prismatic connecting pin in such a manner that
the brush body may be fixed to the handle in various positions; and
Figures 25 and 26 show a method of obtaining a curved brushing surface when
the backs of the brushes are straight.
The curved brush body a represented in Figure 1 and 2 is rotatably mounted
on the handle b and can be adjusted thereon to a horizontal as well as a vertical
position. In the former case both of the constituent parts lie in one plane. The
bristle-surface is likewise curved; the length and degree of curvature depending
on the shape of the mouth for which the brush is to be used. When using the
brush, the handle 6 is held in the hand and the brush body is moved horizontally
to and fro over the front surfaces of the teeth; in the direction indicated by the
arrow in Figure 1.
The same curved brush body a is applicable for brushing the front surfaces of
the teeth and the front intermediate spaces of the teeth in a vertical direction, as
indicated by arrows shown between Figures 3 and 4, when the handle b is turned
relatively to the brush through an angle of 90 degrees. The handle is then at
right angles to the longitudinal direction of the brush body a as shown in

page_text: Figures 3 to 5. When using the brush in this position an up and down movement
is imparted to it by the hand, by which operation an efficient cleaning of the teeth
surfaces and a clearing out of the front interstices is effected.
The curved brush body, Figures 6 and 7 is mounted on the handle d so as to be
likewise rotatable and adjustable on the said handle to a horizontal or vertical
position. In the former position both constituent parts lie in the same plane. The
bristle surface is similarly curved for the purpose of cleaning the inner surfaces of
the teeth.
The body of the brush for this
case of the brush first described.
over the inner surfaces of the
Figures 6 and 7.
purpose is preferably much shorter than in the
When using this brush, it is moved horizontally
teeth as indicated by arrows placed between
The same convex brush body c can be used for brushing the inner surfaces of the
teeth and for clearing out the back interstices when the handle d has been turned
through an angle of 90 degrees relatively to the brush body. The handle in this
case occupies a vertical position relatively to the brush body c, as illustrated in
Figures 8 to 10. When using the brush thus adjusted, an up and down movement
is imparted to the handle by the band and thereby an efficient cleaning of the
back surfaces of the teeth and a clearing out of the intermediate interstices is
effected.
Thus by using one tooth brush such as that illustrated by Figures 1 to 5 the
front surfaces of the teeth can be brushed in a horizontal as well as in a vertical
direction; and with one tooth brush, such as that illustrated in Figures 6 to 10 the
same result is obtained with regard to the back surfaces of the teeth.
Figures 11 and 12 show the construction of a double brush, having, as shown in
Figure 11, two brushes with concave surfaces, which may of course be replaced by
two brushes with convex surface, or, as shown in Figure 12, the handle carries
two brushes one with a concave and the other with a convex bristle surface, which
brushes enable the cleaning of both the back and front surfaces of the teeth in a
horizontal as well as in a vertical direction and the clearing out of the interstices
to be effected by the same instrument.
The arrangement may, however, be such, that especially for executing the
vertical cleaning, the pivot of the handle is placed at the extremity of the brush
body or between its extremity and its centre, in order that, by the use of the same
brush, the left side of the teeth, and, by simply turning the brush body through an
angle of 180 degrees, the right side of the teeth may be more conveniently cleaned;
because in both cases the connecting point of handle and brush body does not
extend to the corners of the mouth, when the brush body is passed within the
mouth beyond the back teeth, so that even the farthest teeth surfaces can be
reached and cleaned and the interstices cleared out. This refers to the back
surfaces of the teeth and intermediate spaces as well as to the front.
This form of brush body may also be adapted for use as a double brush, analogous
to those brushes represented in Figures 11 and 12.
The brush body and handle may be. detachably connected in a manner such as
to allow of their being easily fixed together in various positions.
Figure 15 for example represents two plan views and two cross-sections of a
device arranged on the handle and brush body and serving to readily fix both of
these parts in certain given positions relatively to each other and to equally easily
separate them from one another.
and
A disce fixed to the connecting piece 9 (Figure 14) of the brush body, is provided
with a pin f, and a disc h, fixed to the extremity (Figure 14) of the handle, is
provided with a bore corresponding in size to the pin. The said pin has exten-
sions which traverse notches provided in the interior part m of the disc
which, by a half turn of the disc h are caused to secure the handle to the brush
body. The disc e is provided with recesses n with which the heads of bolts o
movable longitudinally are caused to engage by the action of springs 9 which bear
against collars p thereon. The disc e is turned together with the brush body, the

page_text: springs acting to force the bolts o outward. The handle may, by using this device,
be rigidly locked in a parallel, an inclined, or a right angled position relatively to
the brush body.
Figure 16 represents the inclined position occupied by the handle b, when the
heads of the bolts o have, engaged with the holes n' of the disc e (Figure 15) the
said holes being shown in dotted lines.
In Figures 17 to 24 detachable connecting pins of a prismatic shape are repre-
sented, by the aid of which the brush body can be fixed and adjusted to the handle
in various positions. In these instances the prismatic pin may either form a
separate constituent part of the brush and so engage with appropriately shaped
prismatic holes or bores in the brush body and in the head of the handle, that one
or the other or both the said parts can be detached therefrom; or the said
pristnatic pin forms a rigid part of the brush body or of the handle-head and is
adapted to engage with a corresponding prismatic hole or bore in the other
constituent part of the brush.
Figure 17 shows the prismatic pin a' as a separate part of the brush and having
a square, hexagonal or octagonal cross-section. The brush body b¹ and the
handle c are shown in dotted lines, also the connection of these parts in different
positions. The number of the different positions obtainable depends on the number
of sides of the prism.
Figure 18 represents the connecting pin a¹ firmly fixed to the brush body & or
integral therewith, whilst Figure 19 shows the connecting pin a¹ either rigidly.
fixed to or integral with the handle c'. If the connecting pin is made detachable,
it may have one of its extremities provided with a screw thread as shown in
Figure 20 at a², in order that it may be screwed into the corresponding part of the
brush or it may be fixed therein in any other appropriate manner.
The prismatic pin may also be fixed near one extremity of the brush body as is
shown in Figure 21; or the brush body may be provided with a hole or bore of
prismatic cross section arranged at or near one of its extremities, as shown in
Figure 22. Hales of this kind may be arranged at or near both extremities of the
brush body or at the centre, as indicated in Figure 22 in dotted lines. The pin
may also taper slightly, that is to say it may have the shape of a truncated pyramid
as shown in Figure 23. A fastening pin of this kind is shown as a separate part
in Figure 24.
The beard may be arranged in the back or stock of the brush body in any
suitable position. The bristles or hairs may for example be placed radially as
would apply to curved backs such as shown in Figures 7, 10 and 14, or they
may be placed parallel as illustrated at the right side of Figure 12 which
shows them applied to a convex back, and in Figure 5, which shows them
applied to a concave back. The bristles may converge toward the inside, as is
shown in Figure 2, and Figures 13 to 13°, further shown at the right hand side of
Figure 11 and on the left hand side of Figure 12. The bristles may also be
arranged to incline outwardly as shown in Figure 1.
Instead of employing a concave or a convex back a straight back having the
brushing surface, of the bristles slightly curved, may be used. In this case the
bundles of bristles toward and at the ends of the brush back are longer than those
at and near the centre of the back, so that a stepped brush is formed, as repre-
sented in Figures 25 and 26. In these instances the two outermost rows of bundles
project beyond the other bundles.
In all cases these bundles of bristles may be cut so as to present straight, round,
pointed or other shaped ends. The material employed in the manufacture of the
bandles and backs of the brushes may be wood, bone, ebonite, celluloid or the like.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention, and in what manuer the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is:-
1. A single or double tooth brush with one or two adjustable brush bodies, in

page_text: which the handle (b) is rotatably mounted upon the centre of the convex or
concave brush body (a, c) and is capable of adjustment to a parallel, right angle or
inclined position thereon, and of being fixed in any of these positions, for the
purpose of enabling the front as well as the back surfaces of the teeth to be
efficiently cleaned and the interstices cleared out the brushing being effected in a
horizontal direction as well as vertically in the direction of the teeth, all by one
brush, substantially as described, and illustrated.
3. A constructional form of the tooth brush described in the first claim, in which
a rotatable, adjustable, straight brush back is used having the bundles of bristles
at its extremities made longer than those at its centre, substantially as described
and illustrated.
4. A constructional example of the tooth brush described in the first claim, in
which, for effecting a detachable connection of the brush body and handle, and
for adjusting and fixing the brush body in various positions relatively to the handle,
a prismatic pin is employed, which may be constructed as a separate part of the
brush, or be connected with either the brush body or handle respectively and which
may present the shape of a truncated pyramid, substantially as described and
illustrated.
5. A constructional form of the tooth brush described in the first claim, in
which, for the purpose of effecting a detachable connection between the brush body
and handle and for the purpose of adjusting and fixing the brush body in various
positions relatively to the handle, the said brush body and handle are provided
with disce, one of which is furnished with a number of recesses, the other having
spring actuated bolts adapted to engage with the said recesses of the first mentioned
discs, substantially as described and illustrated.
Dated thi 02-11
1000
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45 Southampton Buildings, London, W.C., Agents for the Applicant.