Toothbrush
AssigneeGlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare GmbH & Co. KG
InventorsGerd Broecker, Matthias Georgi, Berthold Meyer, Wolf-Dieter Muller
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A dental cleaning implement such as a toothbrush, having longitudinally disposed first and second parts flexibly joined together. Between the first and second parts is a rotatable member such that when the implement bends the first parts adjacent to the member bear upon the member. The rotatable member has circumferentially disposed relatively softer and harder regions, so that as the member is rotated the parts can be caused to bear compressibly upon selected softer or harder regions.
Claims12
A dental cleaning implement having a head which carries a dental cleaning tool, and a grip handle, the head and handle being disposed along a longitudinal head-handle direction, the implement comprising longitudinally disposed first and second parts which are joined together by means of a flexible link which allows the implement to bend about the link under the action of pressure applied in a direction sideways of the longitudinal direction, characterised in that situated longitudinally between the first and second parts there is a member which is rotatable about the longitudinal direction of the implement, and such that when the implement bends about the flexible link the first and/or second parts adjacent to the member bear compressibly upon die member, the member comprising circumferentially disposed relatively less and more resiliently hard regions, so that as the member is rotated the first and second parts can be caused to bear compressibly upon selected less or more hard regions.
A dental cleaning implement according to any preceding claim characterised in that the link is a thin longitudinally extending spine of the construction material of the implement.
A dental cleaning implement according to any one of the preceding claims characterised in that the member is of a wheel or cylinder shape which is mounted rotatably on the link and between the first and second parts.
A dental cleaning implement according to any preceding claim characterised in that the circumferentially disposed less and more resiliently hard regions of the member are provided by the member being made of a plurality of circumferentially disposed regions of relatively less and more resiliently hard material.
A dental cleaning implement according to any preceding claim characterised in that the regions are disposed circumferentially in the manner of segments divided by radii of a constructed circle, so that as the member is rotated the first and second parts can be caused to bear compressibly upon selected less or more hard segments.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.