Electromagnetic radiation emitting toothbrush and dentifrice system
First Claim
1. A cleaning and whitening system for teeth comprising a toothbrush having a cleaning surface, the toothbrush being adapted to direct polychromatic electromagnetic radiation toward the cleaning surface, wherein the polychromatic electromagnetic radiation consists essentially of wavelengths within a range of 300 to 750 nanometers.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A cleaning and whitening system for teeth having an electromagnetic radiation emitting toothbrush and a dentifrice with a photosensitive agent is disclosed. The toothbrush has a cleaning surface, such as bristles. The toothbrush is also adapted to direct electromagnetic radiation toward the cleaning surface. The electromagnetic radiation may be monochromatic or polychromatic. Further, the electromagnetic radiation may be substantially free of ultraviolet radiation. Additionally, the electromagnetic radiation may consist essentially of wavelengths within a range of 300 to 750 nanometers. The photosensitive agent is dispersed throughout the dentifrice. The dentifrice transmits the electromagnetic radiation through a varying thickness disposed over a target surface during use of the system. As a result, a significant portion of the photosensitive agent reacts, resulting in whitening stains, removing and/or disclosing undesired substances, and/or foaming. The dentifrice may be clear and may have clear abrasive particles. A method for tuning the cleaning and whitening system for teeth includes formulating the dentifrice with photosensitive agents that react to a range of electromagnetic radiation and providing a toothbrush that emits that electromagnetic radiation range. Another method Of tuning the cleaning and whitening system includes designing a toothbrush that emits a range of electromagnetic radiation and formulating a dentifrice with photosensitive agents that react to the electromagnetic radiation range.
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Citations
103 Claims
- 1. A cleaning and whitening system for teeth comprising a toothbrush having a cleaning surface, the toothbrush being adapted to direct polychromatic electromagnetic radiation toward the cleaning surface, wherein the polychromatic electromagnetic radiation consists essentially of wavelengths within a range of 300 to 750 nanometers.
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19. A cleaning and whitening system for teeth comprising:
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a. a toothbrush having a cleaning surface, wherein the toothbrush is adapted to direct electromagnetic radiation toward the cleaning surface, wherein the electromagnetic radiation is at least substantially free of ultraviolet radiation; and
b. a dentifrice comprising a photosensitive agent, wherein;
i. the photosensitive agent is dispersed throughout the dentifrice;
ii. the dentifrice is dispersed in a % varying thickness over a target surface during use of the system; and
iii. the dentifrice transmits the electromagnetic radiation, whereby a significant portion of the dispersed photosensitive agent in the varying thickness over the target surface receives the electromagnetic radiation during use of the system, thus enabling the significant portion of the dispersed photosensitive agent to react. - View Dependent Claims (20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60, 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68, 69)
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70. A teeth cleaning and whitening system comprising:
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a. a dentifrice comprising a photosensitive agent that reacts substantially only to electromagnetic radiation within a predetermined range wherein;
i. the photosensitive agent is dispersed throughout the dentifrice;
ii. the dentifrice is dispersed in a varying thickness over a target surface during use of the system; and
iii. the dentifrice transmits the electromagnetic radiation, whereby a significant portion of the dispersed photosensitive agent in the varying thickness over the target surface receives the electromagnetic radiation during use of the system, thus enabling the significant portion of the dispersed photosensitive agent to react; and
b. a toothbrush having a cleaning surface, the toothbrush being adapted to direct polychromatic electromagnetic radiation toward the cleaning surface, wherein the polychromatic electromagnetic radiation is bound to wavelengths that are substantially within the predetermined range. - View Dependent Claims (71, 72, 73, 74, 75, 76, 77, 78, 79, 80, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85, 86, 87, 88, 89)
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90. A method of providing a tuned whitening and cleaning system for teeth, the system comprising a dentifrice and an electromagnetic radiation emitting toothbrush, the method comprising the steps of:
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a. formulating the dentifrice, wherein the dentifrice comprises photosensitive agents;
b. determining wide-range reactive electromagnetic radiation wavelengths that cause the photosensitive agents to react; and
c. designing the electromagnetic radiation emitting toothbrush such that the electromagnetic radiation emitting toothbrush emits at least a portion of the wide-range reactive electromagnetic radiation wavelengths. - View Dependent Claims (91, 92, 93, 94, 95, 96, 97, 98)
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99. A method of providing a tuned whitening and cleaning system for teeth, the system comprising a dentifrice and an electromagnetic radiation emitting toothbrush, the method comprising the steps of:
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a. determining the electromagnetic radiation wavelengths the electromagnetic radiation emitting toothbrush radiates and b. using photosensitive agents to formulate the dentifrice such that the dentifrice reacts when irradiated by the electromagnetic radiation emitting toothbrush. - View Dependent Claims (100, 101, 102, 103)
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Specification