TOOTHBRUSH WITH BRISTLES PROGRESSIVELY DECREASING IN HEIGHT TOWARDS THE LONGITUDINAL AXIS OF THE TOOTHBRUSH HEAD

BROSSE A DENTS DONT LA HAUTEUR DES SOIES AUGMENTE PROGRESSIVEMENT DE L'INTERIEUR VERS L'EXTERIEUR DANS LE SENS TRANSVERSAL

English Abstract

Toothbrush in which the height of the bristles, present
on its head, decreases progressively, from its lateral
edges towards the longitudinal axis, with the result
that the free tips of the bristles form an elongated
hollow, which runs parallel to the longitudinal axis of
the head.

Claims

- 7 -
CLAIMS
1. Toothbrush comprising a head, handle and bristle set,
characterized by the fact that the bristle set comprises
two subset of bristles (S,S') in each of which the
height of the bristles decreases progressively from the
edges (2,2') of the head (1) towards its longitudinal
axis, with the result that the tips of the bristles form
an elongated hollow (3), which runs parallel to the
longitudinal axis of the head.
2. The toothbrush of claim 1, characterized by the fact
that the hollow (3) is rounded.
3. The toothbrush of claim 1, characterized by the fact
that the hollow (3) is flat sided.
4. The toothbrush of the foregoing claims, characterized
by the above descriptions and illustrations.

Description

~134858
TOOTHBRUSH WITH BRISTLES PROGRESSIVELY DECREASING IN
HEIGHT TOWARDS THE LONGITUDINAL AXIS OF THE TOOTHBRUSH
HEAD
The present invention relates to a toothbrush the
structure of which is conceived in such a way as to
produce a thorough cleaning and massaging action on the
gingival structures in addition to the customary
cleaning of the interdental spaces.
The results of recent studies indicate that the main
problem in adults is not so much tooth decay as a
deterioration of the gum tissue, particularly the
gingival margin and the alveolar gum. With advancing age
the gums tend to retract, with consequent greater
exposure of the crowns and alveolar processes, and the
end result of such deterioration may be tooth loss.
For many years the improvements made to the structure of
toothbrushes have reflected the greater degree of
emphasis placed, in oral hygiene, on the treatment of a
population consisting mostly of young people for whom,
as mentioned above, the main problem is tooth decay.
With such toothbrushes an attempt has therefore been
made to improve the cleaning of the interdental spaces
and reach the rearmost molars with greater ease and
comfort for the user (particularly if very young), even

~13~
-- 2
in subjects with a tight rim of the mouth and cramped
vestibular space. This result, however, is often
achieved without producing a proper parallel cleaning
and massaging of the gums, and even at the expense of an
abrasive J irritant action on the gingival tissues, which
dissuades the user from insisting on thorough,
hygienically correct cleaning.
With the toothbrushes currently in use, the situation is
further worsened when it comes to proper cleaning of the
rear surface of the dental arch and the corresponding
internal gingival areas, since the user is "naturally"
inclined to neglect them, confining the cleaning to the
brushing of the front surface.
This phenomenon is further aggravated in children, who
may experience unpleasant self-provoked retching by
prodding the base of the tongue with the plastic part of
the toothbrush in an attempt to reach the rear surface
of the teeth in the innermost areas of the mouth, and
this retching may induce them to neglect the less easily
accessible zones of the oral cavity.
These drawbacks are all overcome by the toothbursh of
the present invention, which allows not only the
cleaning of the interdental spaces, but also a thorough
cleaning, profound massaging and consequent reactivation
of the circulation of the gum tissues, particularly the

~34858
gingival margin and the alveolar gum,. even in the
innermost areas of the mouth without any discomfort to
the user, even if extremely young.
Toothbrushes have been available for some time now in
which the height of the bristles is not constant, but
differentiated in such a way that cleaning surface
defined by the bristle tips takes on a broadly
"anatomical" form, i.e. so as to adapt to the mean
curvature of the users' dental arches. In particular,
there is known to be a toothbrush whose set of bristle
bundles presents a rake; in this type of toothbrush, the
height of the bristles increases progressively and
linearly with the increasing distance from the end of
the toothbrush opposite to the handle.
The "raked" toothbrush affords various advantages over
traditional toothbrushes. In particular, the rearmost
molars can be reached easily, even in subjects with a
tight rim of the mouth or cramped vestibular space,
achieving, moreover, satisfactory removal of food
residues from the gingival pockets and dental plaque
with reactivation of the gingival circulation.
It has now been found that all the advantageous results
achievable with the "raked" toothbrush can be further
improved by a toothbrush with a head, handle and brlstle
set characterized by the fact that the bristle set

~13~
consists of two groups of bristles in each of which the
height of the bristles decreases progressively from the
edge of the brush head towards its longitudinal axis in
such a way that the tips of the bristles produce an
elongated hollow depression running parallel to the
longitudinal axis of the head.
This invention may be better understood from the
following detailed description provided purely for
indicative purposes with particular reference to the
figures in the attached drawings, where:
- figure 1 is a side view of a toothbrush of known type
with the bristle tips forming a rake;
- figure 2 is a perspective view of a toothbrush as per
the invention;
- figure 3 is the cross section obtained in the middle
area of the toothbrush head in its first execution
version, and
- figure 4 is also a cross section obtained in the
middle area of the toothbrush head according to a
different execution version.
Comparison between figure 1, which represents a "raked"
toothbrush of known type, and figures 2-4 immediately
reveals the difference in arrangement of the bristle
sets in the two toothbrush giving rise to different and
functionally distinct "raked structures".

S ~
-- 5 --
Whereas in the known toothbrush (fig. 1), the decreasing
height of the bristles produces a single raked structure
in the longitudinal direction from head to handle, in
the toothbrush as per the invention, as can be seen in
figure 2 and even`more clearly in figures 3 and 4, the
height of the bristles decreases gradually from the
edges (2,2') of the head towards its longitudinal axis.
Two subsets of bristles are thus formed presenting
opposite "raked structures" (S,S') which run
transversally in relation to the head-handle axis (not
longitudinally as in the known toothbrush) and cooperate
to form a hollow (3) which runs parallel to the
longitudinal axis of the head (1) of the toothbrush.
This hollow is completely lacking in the known "raked"
toothbrush.
The particular arrangement of the bristles produces the
positive effect of achieving simultaneously a delicate
massaging of the gums by the longer (and therefore
softer) bristles, access in any direction and from any
angle to the interdental spaces on the part of the
intermediate bristles, and, lastly, a vigorous cleaning
action on the dental arches by the shorter (and
therefore stiffer) bristles.
It goes without saying that the specific form of the
hollow created by the differentiated lengths of the

;i ~ 3 ~ 8
bristles may differ from the two practical versions
currently regarded as preferential and, for this reason,
illustrated in the attached drawings, just as the
illustrated shape of the toothbrush may be modified
according to specific production requirements, without
thereby depriving such toothbrushes of the patent
protection accorded this invention.

Representative Drawing