Toothbrush suction apparatus and method
AssigneeRutgers, The State University of New Jersey
InventorMaxine Strickland
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A suction assembly, toothbrush, and method are provided that suction fluids and debris resulting from brushing. The suction assembly includes a housing configured to couple to the toothbrush so that a portion extends around sides and a back of the toothbrush head and is spaced from the toothbrush head by a gap. The suction assembly further includes a vacuum pump, a collection reservoir, and one or more conduits that couple the vacuum pump, suction head portion, and collection reservoir to apply a suction around the toothbrush head through the gap and deposit suctioned material in the collection reservoir.
Claims17
A suction apparatus for a toothbrush having a body including a head, a neck, and a handle, the suction apparatus comprising:
- a housing configured to couple to the toothbrush, the housing including:
- a suction head portion sized to extend around sides and along a back of the toothbrush head, and be spaced from the sides and back of the toothbrush head by a gap;
- and
- a neck portion configured to snap-fit to the toothbrush neck so that the suction head portion extends around the sides and back of the toothbrush head;
- a vacuum pump;
- a collection reservoir;
- and
- one or more conduits coupling the vacuum pump, suction head portion, and collection reservoir to apply a suction around the toothbrush head through the gap and deposit suctioned material in the collection reservoir.
A suction toothbrush device comprising:
- a toothbrush including a toothbrush body with a toothbrush head, a toothbrush neck, and a toothbrush handle;
- a housing configured to couple to the toothbrush body, the housing including:
- a suction head portion sized to extend around sides and along a back of the toothbrush head, and be spaced from the sides and back of the toothbrush head by a gap;
- and
- a neck portion configured to snap-fit to the toothbrush neck so that the suction head portion extends around the sides and along the back of the toothbrush head;
- a vacuum pump coupled to the toothbrush body;
- a collection reservoir coupled to the toothbrush body;
- and
- one or more conduits coupling the vacuum pump, the suction head portion, and the collection reservoir to apply a suction around the toothbrush head through the gap and deposit a suctioned material in the collection reservoir.
A method for suctioning material while using a toothbrush, the method comprising:
- removably coupling a neck portion of a housing to a toothbrush neck of a toothbrush so that a suction head portion of the housing extends around sides and along a back of a toothbrush head of the toothbrush and be spaced from the sides and back of the toothbrush head by a gap;
- creating suction with a vacuum pump coupled to the toothbrush;
- applying the suction to the gap between the toothbrush head and a suction head portion of the housing;
- and
- transferring the suctioned material to a collection reservoir coupled to the toothbrush through one or more conduits.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.