Oral treatment device, system and method
AssigneeColgate-Palmolive Company
InventorsBrian Bloch, Thuan Chong Tan
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An oral treatment device that emits electromagnetic radiation onto surfaces of a user's teeth. The oral treatment device may include an intraoral mouthpiece and a handle extending therefrom, the handle containing the control circuitry required for operation of the device. The mouthpiece may include a lamp support structure, a lamp, a lens plate, and a guard component. The lamp may include an electromagnetic radiation source that includes a flexible sheet and a plurality of illumination elements located thereon. The illumination elements may be light emitting diodes printed with an electrically conductive. Additional electronic components such as a processor and a power source may also be included in the device.
Claims16
An oral care treatment device comprising:
- an intraoral mouthpiece having a dental arch midline plane and comprising:
- a lamp support structure comprising:
- a lamp support surface having a concave curvature;
- at least one upper overhang structure defining an upper slot having an open bottom between the upper overhang structure and the lamp support surface;
- at least one lower overhang structure defining a lower slot having an open top between the upper overhang structure and the lamp support surface;
- and
- a lamp comprising a flexible sheet body and configured to generate and emit electromagnetic radiation;
- wherein the lamp extending along a lamp longitudinal axis that extends from a first lamp side edge of the flexible sheet body to a second lamp side edge of the flexible sheet body;
- the flexible sheet body of the lamp comprising at least one upper illumination zone located on a front surface of the flexible sheet body of the lamp above the lamp longitudinal axis and at least one lower illumination zone on the front surface of the flexible sheet body of the lamp located below the lamp longitudinal axis;
- a curved lens plate mounted to the lamp support structure and overlying the lamp, the lamp located between the lens plate and the lamp support structure;
- a guard component comprising a frame portion defining a window through which the lens plate is exposed and the electromagnetic radiation emitted by the lamp can pass;
- and
- the lamp is mounted to the lamp support structure so that a top edge of the flexible sheet body nests within the upper slot and a bottom edge of the flexible sheet body nests within the lower slot, the flexible sheet body being maintained in a flexed state along the lamp support surface due, at least in part, to contact with the upper and lower overhang structures.
A method of forming an intraoral mouthpiece of an oral treatment system, the method comprising:
- a) providing a lamp support structure comprising:
- a lamp support surface having a concave curvature;
- at least one upper overhang structure defining an upper slot having an open bottom between the upper overhang structure and the lamp support surface;
- and at least one lower overhang structure defining a lower slot having an open top between the upper overhang structure and the lamp support surface;
- and
- b) mounting a lamp to the lamp support structure by inserting a top edge of a flexible sheet body of the lamp into the upper slot and a bottom edge of the flexible sheet body into the lower slot, the flexible sheet body being maintained in a flexed state along the lamp support surface due, at least in part, to contact with the upper and lower overhang structures;
- wherein step b) comprises snap fitting at least one of:
- (i) the upper edge of the flexible sheet body past the upper overhang structure and into the upper slot;
- and (ii) the lower edge of the flexible sheet body past the lower overhang structure and into the lower slot.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.