Automatic cleaning device
AssigneeDental Research Corporation
InventorsAlan D. Crawford, Allan B. Johnson, John M. Trenary
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A periodontal cleaning device including a hollow housing having a handle member and a brush head member. The brush head includes a gear train reciprocally driven by a rack. The gear train includes at least one drive gear engageable by the rack which in turn drives a plurality of series interconnected driven gears. The drive gear includes one portion engaged by the rack and another portion engaged by an adjacent driven gear. An axial width of a gear portion of the drive gear is greater than the axial width of gear portions of the driven gears so that in operation, the rack does not engage the driven gears. The drive and driven gears each include a tuft holder by which bristles are removably held.
Claims37
An automatic cleaning device for cleaning work surfaces comprising, a hollow housing having a handle member and a brush head member, said brush head member including drive train means disposed interiorly thereof, said drive train means including at least one tuft holding drive gear drivingly engaging a gear train including a plurality of series connected, tuft holding driven gears, said drive gear and driven gears rotated and counter rotated upon reciprocation of a power driven rack means, said rack means engaging only said tuft holding drive gear, said tuft holding driven gears being reciprocally rotated and counter-rotated by Baid tuft holding drive gear without substantial driving engagement by said rack means.
An automatic cleaning device in accordance with claim I, wherein said tuft holding drive and driven gears includes a drive or driven gear portion, the drive gear portions of said tuft holding drive gear being drivingly engaged by said rack means such that said tuft holding driven gears are reciprocally rotated and counter-rotated by meshing engagement with the drive gear portions of the tuft holding drive gears while being substantially free of driving engagement with rack means.
An automatic cleaning device in accordance with claim I, including top and bottom bearing members defining a cavity therebetween adapted to receive said tuft holding drive and driven gears therein, said tuft holding drive and driven gears each including integral drive and driven gear portions, respectively, and integral tuft holding receptacle portions, said drive and driven gears being rotatably journaled at one end in said top bearing member with said receptacle portions extending therethrough and communicating with the exterior of said bottom bearing member and adapted to receive said tufts therein.
A cleaning device in the form of a motor driven toothbrush for cleaning surfaces and crevices of teeth comprising, a housing having a powered handle member and a brush head member, said brush head member including a hollow brush head portion adapted to receive top and bottom bearing members therein, said bearing members together defining a cavity therebetween, a driven gear means including a plurality of tuft holding, series driven gears disposed for reciprocal, rotation and counter-rotation upon driving engagement by at least one tuft holding drive gear, said tuft holding drive gear having a gear portion engageable with at least one gear of said driven gear means upon driving engagement of said tuft holding drive gear means by a rack member, said driven gear means being out of engagement with said rack means.
A cleaning device of the type including a motor drive brush unit comprising at least one tuft holding drive gear member operatively connected to one of a plurality of series interconnected tuft holding driven gear members, a rack means disposed for driving said tuft holding drive gear member, such that said drive and driven gear members are concurrently reciprocally rotated and counter-rotated by said rack means, said rack means engaging only said drive gear and being out of engagement with said driven gear members.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.