JP7634340B2 - Interdental Cleaning Tools - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an interdental cleaning tool for cleaning between teeth.

Interdental cleaners suitable for cleaning between molars are known (see, for example, Patent Document 1). This interdental cleaner comprises a main body having a base with a gripping portion at one end that can be held with the fingers and a shaft extending from the other end of the base, and a cleaning portion made of an elastic material with a hardness lower than that of the main body, covering at least a portion of the outer surface of the shaft.

The interdental cleaning tool described in Patent Document 1 has a base (referred to as the handle base body in the document) that has a handle body and a tapered base body, and the tip of the tapered base body is curved.

JP 2016-104382 A

However, when the gap between the teeth is narrow, the frictional force acting between the cleaning part and the teeth is large, and a relatively large force may be required to insert the cleaning part between the teeth. However, with the interdental cleaning tools disclosed in Patent Documents 1 and 2, it may be difficult to transmit the force of the hand to the interdental cleaning tool.

Therefore, there is a need to develop an interdental cleaning tool that allows easy transmission of hand force.

The interdental cleaning tool according to one aspect of the present invention comprises a main body having a base having a grip portion that can be held with the fingers and an extension portion extending from the grip portion in a first direction, a bent portion that extends from an end of the extension portion opposite the grip portion and bent toward a second direction intersecting the first direction, and a shaft portion that extends from an end of the bent portion opposite the extension portion along the second direction, and a cleaning portion formed on the shaft portion and configured with an outer shape that can be inserted between teeth, wherein the shape of the cross section perpendicular to the first direction is a convex polygon having an odd number of vertices, and the back surface of the extension portion, which is on the outer side of the bend of the bent portion, is formed as a flat surface corresponding to the sides of the convex polygon.

When the interdental cleaner is held by grasping the entire extension and gripping portion, a stable gripping position can be achieved by abutting the pad of the thumb against the back side of the extension and the first joint of the index finger against the second direction side (ventral side) of the extension. Also, when the interdental cleaner is held by pinching the gripping portion with the thumb and middle finger and placing the index finger along the extension, the gripping position can be stabilized by abutting the pad of the index finger against the back side of the extension. Thus, with the above configuration, the gripping position of the interdental cleaner is easily stabilized, making it easy to transmit the force of the hand to the interdental cleaner and to insert the cleaning portion between the teeth.

In another configuration, the convex polygon is preferably a triangle or a convex pentagon.

In this way, it is easier to ensure a flat surface on the back side of the extension that is large enough for the pad of the thumb to abut, compared to when the convex polygon is a heptagon or larger.

In another configuration, it is preferable that the convex polygon is an isosceles triangle and the flat surface corresponds to the base of the isosceles triangle.

This makes it easier to ensure that the back side of the extension has a flat surface large enough for the pad of the thumb to come into contact with. Also, because the cross section is linearly symmetrical, the gripping position is more stable.

Further features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following description of exemplary, non-limiting embodiments, which are given with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an interdental cleaning tool according to an embodiment of the present invention; 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along line II-II of FIG. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of use of an interdental cleaning tool according to an embodiment of the present invention; 10 is a cross-sectional view of an extension portion of an interdental cleaning tool according to another embodiment of the present invention;

Below, an embodiment of the interdental cleaning tool according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to the following embodiment, and various modifications are possible without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

[Configuration of interdental cleaning tool]
As shown in Fig. 1, the interdental cleaner D according to this embodiment comprises a main body A in which a base 1 having a gripping portion 11 and an extending portion 12, a bending portion 2 and a shaft portion 3 are integrally molded, and a soft member B made of an elastic material having a hardness lower than that of the main body A and having a cleaning portion 4. Hereinafter, the interdental cleaner D will be described with the outer side of the bent portion 2 (the right side of the page in Fig. 1) being the dorsal side, and the inner side of the bent portion 2 (the left side of the page in Fig. 1) being the ventral side.

In the following explanation, the meaning of terms related to the shape of a figure (such as "polygon," "vertex," and "orthogonal") is not limited to the mathematical definition of the term, but includes the deformations that may be usually applied when implementing the shape represented by the term in an industrial product. For example, "polygon" in the following explanation is not limited to a polygon based on the mathematical definition of a closed curve surrounded by multiple line segments, but includes shapes in which the vertices of a polygon based on the mathematical definition have been rounded or rounded. Furthermore, "orthogonal" in the following explanation is not limited to a state in which the two intersect at a right angle, but includes a state in which the two intersect at an angle of about 90°, which can be considered to be a right angle in practical use. Terms other than those exemplified here should not be interpreted in a strict mathematical sense.

The main body A is made of one or a combination of two or more synthetic resins such as polypropylene, ABS, polybutylene terephthalate, polycarbonate, polyethylene terephthalate, polystyrene, and polyacetal. In this embodiment, the main body A is made of polypropylene. In addition, the synthetic resin constituting the main body A preferably contains a reinforcing agent that increases rigidity. Examples of the reinforcing agent include fibrous reinforcing agents such as glass fiber, nanocellulose fiber, aramid fiber, and carbon fiber, plate-shaped reinforcing agents such as mica and glass frames, powdered reinforcing agents such as talc, and needle-shaped reinforcing agents such as wollastonite. The content of the reinforcing agent is 5% by weight or more and 50% by weight or less, preferably 10% by weight or more and 40% by weight or less, and more preferably 15% by weight or more and 40% by weight or less.

The soft member B is made of an elastomer having a hardness lower than that of the main body A. As this elastomer, a styrene-based elastomer is preferable, but silicone, olefin-based elastomer, polyester-based elastomer, etc. may also be used.

The gripping portion 11 is configured in a shape that allows the user to grip it with the pads of two fingers. The thickness of the ventral gripping portion 11a located on the ventral side of the gripping portion 11 is smaller than the thickness of the dorsal gripping portion 11b located on the dorsal side of the gripping portion 11. The gripping portion 11 is also provided with a through hole portion 11c.

The extension portion 12 extends from the grip portion 11 in the first direction Xa. The extension portion 12 is configured so that the shape of a cross section C perpendicular to the first direction Xa is an isosceles triangle (Figure 2). Here, the ventral extension portion 12a, which is the surface located on the ventral side of the extension portion 12, is configured in a peak-like shape corresponding to the apex Cc of the isosceles triangle of the cross section C of the extension portion 12. On the other hand, the extension back surface 12b located on the dorsal side of the extension portion 12 is configured as a flat surface corresponding to the base Cb of the isosceles triangle of the cross section C of the extension portion 12. Therefore, the thickness of the ventral extension portion 12a is smaller than the thickness of the extension back surface 12b. The ventral extension portion 12a is connected to the ventral grip portion 11a, and the extension back surface 12b is connected to the dorsal grip portion 11b.

The shaft portion 3 extends in the second direction Xb from the end of the base portion 1 opposite the grip portion 11 via the bent portion 2. The intersection angle between the first direction Xa and the second direction Xb (the bent inner angle of the bent portion 2) is preferably 30 degrees or more and 150 degrees or less, more preferably 80 degrees or more and 140 degrees or less, and even more preferably 100 degrees or more and 130 degrees or less.

The cleaning part 4, which constitutes a part of the soft member B, covers at least a part of the outer surface of the shaft part 3 and has an outer shape that allows it to be inserted between teeth. As shown in FIG. 1, the cleaning part 4 in this embodiment has a covering part 41 that adheres to the entire shaft part 3, and a brush part 42 having multiple (many) bristles that protrude outward from the covering part 41. The covering part 41 is configured with a thickness smaller than the diameter of the shaft part 3. The brush part 42 is formed in a cone shape that tapers as it moves away from the covering part 41. In the interdental cleaning tool D according to this embodiment, when the cleaning part 4 is inserted between teeth, the bristles of the brush part 42 flexibly deform, and the covering part 41 and the brush part 42 come into contact with the teeth, so that foreign matter (such as food debris) present between the teeth and foreign matter (such as plaque) attached to the teeth can be removed.

[How to use the interdental cleaning tool]
Next, a method of using the interdental cleaner D according to this embodiment will be described. The interdental cleaner D having the bent portion 2 can be held in the following three ways.
(1) A first gripping method in which the grip portion 11 is pinched between the thumb and index finger.
(2) A second gripping method in which the grip portion 11 is pinched between the thumb and middle finger and the index finger is placed along the extended back surface 12b of the extended portion 12.
(3) A third gripping method in which the entire grip portion 11 and the extension portion 12 are gripped.

The interdental cleaner D according to this embodiment has a structure that is particularly suitable for the second and third gripping methods out of the three gripping methods described above. When the interdental cleaner D is gripped using the second gripping method, the extended back surface 12b is a flat surface, so the pad of the index finger can easily fit along the extended back surface 12b. When the interdental cleaner D is gripped using the third gripping method, a stable gripping posture can be achieved by abutting the pad of the thumb against the extended back surface 12b and abutting the first joint of the index finger against the ventral extension portion 12a.

The user holds the interdental cleaner D by any gripping method and inserts the cleaning part 4 from the tip to the base end into the oral cavity so that the cleaning part 4 is inserted between the teeth. The user then operates the interdental cleaner D to move the cleaning part 4 back and forth between the teeth. When the cleaning part 4 (shaft part 3) is inserted between the teeth and moved back and forth while an external force is applied to the grip part 11, stress in the direction of reciprocation and in a direction intersecting the direction of reciprocation is transmitted from the shaft part 3 to the extension part 12 via the bent part 2 due to friction and contact between the cleaning part 4 covering the shaft part 3 and the teeth.

Here, when the gap between the teeth is narrow, the frictional force acting between the cleaning part 4 and the teeth is large, and therefore the external force required to move the cleaning part 4 back and forth is large. In this case, when the interdental cleaner D is held using the second gripping method, the extended back surface 12b can be pressed with the pad of the index finger when moving the cleaning part 4 in the direction of pushing it between the teeth, making it easy to apply an external force to the extended part 12. Also, when the interdental cleaner D is held using the third gripping method, the extended back surface 12b can be pressed with the pad of the thumb. This makes it easy to move the cleaning part 4 back and forth.

Other embodiments
Finally, other embodiments of the interdental cleaner according to the present invention will be described. Note that the configurations disclosed in the following embodiments can be combined with the configurations disclosed in other embodiments as long as no contradiction occurs.

In the above embodiment, a configuration in which the shape of cross section C is an isosceles triangle has been described as an example. However, without being limited to such a configuration, the shape of the cross section of the extension part may be a convex polygon having an odd number of vertices, for example, a convex pentagon as shown in FIG. 4. However, as described in the above embodiment, from the viewpoint of facilitating the reciprocating movement of the cleaning part in the second gripping method and the third gripping method, the shape of the cross section of the extension part is preferably a triangle or a convex pentagon, and more preferably an isosceles triangle.

In the above embodiment, an example has been described in which the cleaning unit 4 is provided as a soft member B. However, the material constituting the cleaning unit is not particularly limited. For example, the cleaning unit can be configured as a brush with many flexible bristles fixed to a metal shaft.

As for other configurations, it should be understood that the embodiments disclosed in this specification are illustrative in all respects and that the scope of the present invention is not limited thereto. Those skilled in the art will easily understand that appropriate modifications are possible without departing from the spirit of the present invention. Therefore, other embodiments that are modified without departing from the spirit of the present invention are naturally included in the scope of the present invention.

The present invention can be used in interdental cleaning tools suitable for cleaning between teeth.

D: Interdental cleaning tool A: Main body 1: Base 11: Grip portion 11a: Ventral gripping portion 11b: Dorsal gripping portion 11c: Through hole portion 12: Extension portion 12a: Ventral extension portion 12b: Extension rear surface C: Cross section of extension portion 12 Cb: Base of isosceles triangle in cross section C Cc: Apex of isosceles triangle in cross section C 2: Bent portion 3: Shaft portion B: Soft member 4: Cleaning portion 41: Covering portion 42: Brush portion Xa: First direction Xb: Second direction

Claims (3)

a main body having a base portion having a grip portion that can be gripped with fingers and an extension portion that extends from the grip portion in a first direction, a bent portion that extends from an end portion of the extension portion opposite the grip portion and bent toward a second direction that intersects with the first direction, and a shaft portion that extends from an end portion of the bent portion opposite the extension portion along the second direction;
A cleaning part is formed on the shaft part and has an outer shape that can be inserted between teeth,
The extension portion has a cross section perpendicular to the first direction that has a convex polygon shape having an odd number of vertices,
An interdental cleaning tool in which the back surface of the extension portion, which is on the outer side of the bent portion, is formed as a flat surface corresponding to the sides of the convex polygon. The interdental cleaning tool according to claim 1, wherein the convex polygon is a triangle or a convex pentagon. The interdental cleaning tool according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the convex polygon is an isosceles triangle, and the flat surface corresponds to the base of the isosceles triangle.

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