Personal hygiene device having treatment-force-measurement unit

• US 10,433,636 B2
• Filed: 05/12/2016
• Issued: 10/08/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 05/12/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Braun GmbH (The Procter & Gamble Company)
• Original Assignee: Braun GmbH (The Procter & Gamble Company)
• Inventors: Scheele, Jannik, Haas, Martin, Schaefer, Norbert, Schafer, Robert, Franke, Sven Alexander, Schober, Uwe, Vetter, Ingo, Ziegler, Frank
• Primary Examiner(s): Karls, Shay
• Application Number:
  US15/153,708
• Publication Number:
  US 20160331120A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,244 Days
• Field of Search: 15105, 15 221, 433316, 433216
• CPC Class Codes: A46B 15/0012 with a pressure controlling device
• CPC Class Codes: A46B 15/0014 with a controlling temperature device
• CPC Class Codes: A46B 15/0034 with a source of radiation, e.g. UV, IR, LASER, X-ray for irradiating the teeth and associated surfaces
• CPC Class Codes: A46B 15/004 with an acoustic signalling means, e.g. noise
• CPC Class Codes: A46B 15/0044 with light signalling means A46B15/0034, A46B15/0036 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A46B 15/0046 with vibrating signalling means
• CPC Class Codes: A46B 5/0025 Brushes with elastically deformable heads that change shape during use
• CPC Class Codes: A46B 5/007 Inserts made of different material, e.g. springs, plates
• CPC Class Codes: A46B 9/04 Arranged like in or for toothbrushes
• CPC Class Codes: A61C 17/221 Control arrangements therefor

Abstract

A personal hygiene device has a handle, a treatment head mounted for relative movement of at least a portion thereof with respect to the handle against a restoring force when a treatment force is applied in at least one direction onto the treatment head, a treatment-force-measurement unit for determining the applied treatment force comprising a light-emitting element, a light-sensitive element, and a light-changing element arranged at least partly in the light path between the light-emitting element and the light-sensitive element, wherein the light-changing element and at least one of the light-emitting element and light-sensitive element are arranged to be moved relatively to each other when at least the portion of the treatment head is moved.

Claims

1. A personal hygiene device, comprising:

a handle;

a treatment head mounted for relative movement of at least a portion of the treatment head with respect to the handle against a restoring force when a treatment force is applied in at least one direction onto the treatment head;

a treatment-force-measurement unit for determining the applied treatment force comprising a light-emitting element, a light-sensitive element, and a light-changing element arranged at least partly in the light path between the light-emitting element and the light-sensitive element;

wherein the light-changing element and at least one of the light-emitting element and light-sensitive element is arranged to be moved relatively to each other when at least the portion of the treatment head is moved, and

wherein the treatment-force-measurement unit comprises a control circuit for determining a parameter indicative of a light intensity measured by the light-sensitive element.

2. The personal hygiene device of claim 1, wherein the light-changing element is a light-absorbing element.

3. The personal hygiene device of claim 2, wherein the light-absorbing element is realized as a translucent gray wedge, wherein the gray wedge is arranged to fully cover the light-sensitive element with respect to the light emitted by the light-emitting element.

4. The personal hygiene device of claim 2, wherein the light-absorbing element is only partly covering the light-sensitive element with respect to the light emitted by the light-emitting element.

5. The personal hygiene device of claim 2, wherein the light-absorbing element has a wedge-like shape and has a length extension along a direction into which the light-absorbing element is moved under application of a treatment force, which length extension is longer than a maximum movement length.

6. The personal hygiene device of claim 1, wherein the light-changing element is a light-reflecting element.

7. The personal hygiene device of claim 1, wherein at least one light-absorbing surface is arranged in proximity of the light path.

8. The personal hygiene device of claim 1, wherein a first stopper is fixedly provided with respect to the handle so that the treatment head abuts against the first stopper when no treatment force is applied at the treatment head.

9. The personal hygiene device of claim 8, wherein the treatment head is spring-biased and is arranged to move away from the first stopper when a treatment force above a first treatment-force threshold value is applied at the treatment head.

10. The personal hygiene device of claim 1, wherein a second stopper is fixedly provided with respect to the handle against so that the treatment head abuts the second stopper when a treatment force having a second treatment-force threshold value is applied at the treatment head.

11. The personal hygiene device of claim 1, wherein the light-emitting element emits light at a wavelength or in a wavelength range essentially not visible to the human eye.

12. The personal hygiene device of claim 11, wherein the light emitted is in the infrared or ultraviolet wavelength ranges.

13. The personal hygiene device of claim 1, wherein the treatment head and the handle are secured to each other or are integral with each other, and only a portion of the treatment head elastically deforms when the treatment force is applied at the treatment head.

14. The personal hygiene device of claim 1, further comprising a drift-compensation circuit for determining a reference output signal of the light-sensitive element representing zero applied treatment force, wherein the drift-compensation circuit is arranged to apply a median value determination based on output signals from the light-sensitive element prior to an instant when the personal hygiene device is switched on.

15. The personal hygiene device of claim 1, further comprising a temperature sensor and a temperature-compensation circuit.