WO2007117254A1

WO2007117254A1 - Disposable toothbrush and dental care kit

Info

Publication number: WO2007117254A1
Application number: PCT/US2006/018772
Authority: WO
Inventors: Sherry R. Blankenship; Sharon K. Glover
Original assignee: Blankenship Sherry R; Glover Sharon K
Priority date: 2006-04-12
Filing date: 2006-05-15
Publication date: 2007-10-18

Abstract

The disposable toothbrush and dental care kit (10) includes a toothbrush handle (12) and at least one disposable toothbrush head (22) for releasable mounting on the toothbrush handle (12). The toothbrush head (22) has a plurality of bristles (30) and sufficient toothpaste (32) for single use pre-applied to the bristles (30). A cover (34) is releasably attached to the head (22), the cover (34) protecting the bristles (30) and keeping the toothpaste (32) fresh. The handle (12) is foldable for compact transport in a pocket or purse. The dental care kit (10) further includes a carrying pouch (18), preferably in the form of a selectively resealable bag, for storage and transport of the handle (12) and a plurality of disposable toothbrush heads (22) therein.

Description

DISPOSABLE TOOTHBRUSH AND DENTAL CARE KIT

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to dental care products, and particularly to a portable disposable toothbrush having a toothbrush handle and at least one removable toothbrush head with toothpaste pre-applied thereto. The present invention also extends to a dental care kit having the toothbrush handle and a plurality of disposable toothbrush heads having toothpaste pre-applied thereto with packaging for the heads.

BACKGROUND ART

Toothbrushes are practically a necessity for good dental hygiene. Typical conventional toothbrushes include a toothbrush handle having a toothbrush head permanently mounted thereto, and usually integrally formed therewith. The toothbrush head permanently supports a plurality of bristles to which toothpaste is applied.

Given the unitary structure of the toothbrush, the conventional toothbrush is designed for use by a single person for sanitary reasons. Further, once the bristles are no longer effective for teeth cleaning purposes, the entire toothbrush must be disposed of, including the toothbrush handle. Normally people brush their teeth at home. Consequently, a toothbrush that can be reused and a tube of toothpaste containing enough toothpaste for multiple brushings is normally a very economical system.

Nevertheless, this system becomes inconvenient when people travel, since it becomes necessary to have a storage compartment for both the toothbrush and the toothpaste that can be conveniently carried in luggage, or to purchase one or the other or both at each destination or stopover while traveling. Furthermore, dentists recommend brushing after every meal, and carrying a toothbrush and a tube of toothpaste back and forth to work everyday for use in public restrooms at one's place of employment, or in restaurants, is cumbersome. Thus, a disposable toothbrush and dental care kit solving the aforementioned problems are desired.

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION

The disposable toothbrush and dental care kit includes a toothbrush handle and at least one disposable toothbrush head for releasable mounting on the toothbrush handle. The toothbrush head has a plurality of bristles mounted thereon. A cover is provided for releasably engaging the head and for covering the bristles and toothpaste pre-applied to the bristles. The toothbrush head is preferably manufactured and sold with the toothpaste applied to the bristles, and with the cover providing an airtight seal about the bristles and toothpaste. One end of the toothbrush handle has a recess formed therein, which is preferably internally threaded, for engaging a stud extending from an end of the toothbrush head. The stud preferably is externally threaded for releasable attachment to the toothbrush handle. The toothbrush handle is preferably hinged in the middle so that the handle can be folded to a convenient, compact size for transport in one's pocket or purse. The dental care kit further includes a carrying pouch, preferably in the form of a selectively resealable bag, for receiving and transporting the at least one removable toothbrush head therein. Preferably, the dental care kit includes a plurality of removable toothbrush heads, received within the resealable bag, allowing the user to easily remove and replace used toothbrush heads. The toothbrush heads are disposable, and the handle may also be disposable.

These and other features of the present invention will become readily apparent upon further review of the following specification and drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a disposable toothbrush and dental care kit according to the present invention.

Fig. 2 is an exploded view of the disposable toothbrush according to the present invention.

Similar reference characters denote corresponding features consistently throughout the attached drawings.

BEST MODES FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

Fig. 1 illustrates a dental care kit 10, according to the present invention. The dental care kit 10 includes a toothbrush handle 12 and at least one toothbrush head 22. Toothbrush handle 12 may be formed from plastic, metal, treated wood or any other suitable material. As will be described in greater detail below, toothbrush head 22 is disposable and may be releasably mounted to toothbrush handle 12 for the cleaning of a user's teeth. Handle 12 may also be made from economical, lightweight plastic so that the handle 12 is also disposable. Preferably, a plurality of toothbrush heads 22 are provided, and may be stored and transported within a carrying pouch or bag 18. Preferably, pouch 18 is a fluid-tight and sanitary bag, which may be formed from transparent plastic or any other suitable, easily transportable material, and may include a resealable closure 20. The pouch 18 may be sealed by any suitable resealable closure. However, in a preferred embodiment, a bead-and-groove or Ziploc® (Ziploc is a registered trademark of S.C. Johnson, hie.) closure, such as that shown in Fig. 1, is utilized.

In manufacture and sale, pouch 18 preferably houses a manufacturer-selected number of toothbrush heads 22. In Fig. 1, five such heads 22 are shown as being packaged within pouch 18. However, it should be understood that the kit 10 may contain any number of toothbrush heads 22. The plurality of toothbrush heads 22 are provided for use with the single toothbrush handle 12 so that multiple users may share handle 12, with each user having his or her own toothbrush head 22, for sanitary purposes, or so that the toothbrush heads 22 may be easily changed and disposed after a single use. Further, as will be described below with reference to Fig. 2, each head 22 is provided with a volume of toothpaste 32 applied to the head 22 during the manufacturing and packaging process. Thus, the user is not required to carry a separate source of toothpaste, such as a toothpaste tube, during travel. The dental care kit 10 includes all the materials a user will require to brush his or her teeth. Also, the toothbrush handle 12 may be formed from first and second handle portions, centrally joined together, as shown, by a binge 13, allowing the toothbrush handle 12 to be folded for compact portability in a pocket or purse.

With reference to Fig. 2, the toothbrush head 22 includes a substantially flat bristle support 24 having an upper surface and a lower surface. Bristle support 24 is preferably formed from plastic, or any other suitable material. A plurality of toothbrush bristles are mounted on the upper surface of support 24 and project therefrom, as shown. A stud 26 extends from an end of bristle support 24 and projects therefrom for releasable engagement with toothbrush handle 12.

As shown in Fig. 1, toothbrush handle 12 has a recess 14 formed therein, with recess 14 extending in the axial direction of handle 12. Stud 26 is releasably received within recess 14 for the releasable attachment of toothbrush head 22 to toothbrush handle 12. Preferably, recess 14 is internally threaded for threaded engagement with externally threaded stud 26. Alternatively, toothbrush head 22 may be releasably secured to toothbrush handle 12 through the use of any suitable releasable fastener. A volume of toothpaste 32 sufficient for single use is supported on bristles 30. Toothpaste 32 is preferably applied during the manufacturing and packaging processes, thus providing the user with toothbrush heads 22 having pre-applied toothpaste 32. In order to maintain toothpaste 32 in its viscous state, and to prevent toothpaste 32 from leaving bristles 30 during transport, a fluid-tight cover 34 is provided for releasably covering bristles 30, toothpaste 32 and at least the upper surface of bristle support 24. Cover 34 is preferably formed from transparent plastic, although any other suitable material may be utilized.

In the preferred embodiment, depressions 36 are formed on opposite ends of the interior surface of cover 34. A pair of snap members 28 protrude from opposite ends of the upper surface of bristle support 24 for releasable engagement with depressions 36, providing releasable mounting of cover 34 to the bristle support 24. It should be understood that any suitable releasable fastener for releasably securing the cover 34 to the support 24 may be utilized.

It is to be understood that the present invention is not limited to the embodiment described above, but encompasses any and all embodiments within the scope of the following claims.

Claims

CLAIMSWe claim:

1. A disposable toothbrush, comprising: an elongated toothbrush handle having opposing ends; a disposable toothbrush head including a substantially flat, elongated bristle support having opposing ends and a plurality of bristles extending from a surface thereof; mating releasable fasteners disposed on one of the ends of the handle and one of the ends of the head, respectively, for releasably attaching the disposable toothbrush head to the handle; a quantity of toothpaste applied to the bristles of the toothbrush head; and a cover releasably attached to the bristle support, the cover extending over the bristles and the toothpaste when the cover is attached to the toothbrush head in order to protect the bristles and keep the toothpaste fresh.

2. The disposable toothbrush as recited in claim 1, wherein said toothbrush handle comprises a head attachment member, an extension member, and a hinge pivotally attaching the extension member to the head attachment member, the toothbrush handle being foldable for compact storage and transport.

3. The disposable toothbrush as recited in claim I₅ wherein said toothbrush handle has a recess formed therein, said mating releasable fasteners including a stud extending from said bristle support, the stud releasably mating with the recess in said toothbrush handle.

4. The disposable toothbrush as recited in claim 4, wherein the recess is internally threaded and said stud is externally threaded to form mating threaded fasteners.

5. The disposable toothbrush as recited in claim 1, wherein said cover has a pair of depressions formed in opposite ends thereof, said bristle support having snap members protruding from the opposing ends thereof, the snap members releasably engaging the depressions formed in said cover in order to releasably fasten said cover to said toothbrush head.

6. A dental care kit, comprising: an elongated toothbrush handle having opposing ends; a plurality of disposable toothbrush heads, each of the disposable toothbrush heads including a substantially flat, elongated bristle support having opposing ends and a plurality of bristles extending from a surface thereof; a first releasable fastener disposed on one of the ends of the handle; a second releasable fastener disposed on one of the ends of each of the heads, respectively, the second fastener releasably engaging the first fastener for interchangeably attaching the heads to the handle; a quantity of toothpaste applied to the bristles of each of the toothbrush heads; a cover releasably attached to each of the bristle supports, the cover extending over the bristles and the toothpaste when the cover is attached to the toothbrush head in order to protect the bristles and keep the toothpaste fresh; and a carrying pouch having a resealable closure, the handle and the heads being transported and stored in the pouch.

7. The dental care kit as recited in claim 6, wherein each said toothbrush handle comprises a head attachment member, an extension member, and a hinge pivotally attaching the extension member to the head attachment member, the toothbrush handle being foldable for compact storage and transport.

8. The dental care kit as recited in claim 6, wherein said first releasable fastener is a recess formed in said toothbrush handle, said second releasable fastener comprising a stud extending from each said bristle support, the studs releasably mating with the recess in said toothbrush handle.

9. The dental care kit as recited in claim 8, wher,ein the recess in said toothbrush handle is internally threaded, each of said studs being externally threaded to form mating threaded fasteners.

10. The dental care kit as recited in claim 6, wherein each of said covers has depressions formed in opposite ends thereof, each of said bristle supports having snap members protruding from the opposing ends thereof, the snap members releasably engaging the depressions formed in said covers in order to releasably fasten said covers to said toothbrush heads.

11. The dental care kit as recited in claim 6, wherein the resealable closure of said carrying pouch comprises a bead-and-groove type closure.