HAIR REMOVAL DEVICE

• US 20170215960A1
• Filed: 01/30/2017
• Published: 08/03/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 02/02/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Braun GmbH (The Procter & Gamble Company)
• Original Assignee: Braun GmbH (The Procter & Gamble Company)
• Inventors: Dadic, Dalibor, Heinemann, Felix, Beerwerth, Frank, Neyer, Christian
• Granted Patent: US 10,485,612 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: A45D 26/00 Hair-singeing apparatus; Apparatus for removing superfluous hair, e.g. tweezers removing hair using electrosurgical instruments A61B18/04, A61B18/18
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 18/18 by applying electromagnetic radiation, e.g. microwaves radiation therapy A61N5/00
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 18/1815 using microwaves
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 18/203 applying laser energy to the outside of the body
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2018/00476 Hair follicles
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2018/1807 using light other than laser radiation
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 2005/0652 Arrays of diodes
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 2005/0659 infrared
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 5/0617 Hair treatment
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 25/0753 the devices being arranged next to each other
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 31/147 the light sources and the devices sensitive to radiation all being semiconductor devices characterised by potential barriers
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 33/486 adapted for surface mounting
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 33/60 Reflective elements
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 33/62 Arrangements for conducting electric current to or from the semiconductor body, e.g. lead-frames, wire-bonds or solder balls
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 33/642 characterized by the shape

Abstract

The present invention is concerned with a hair removal device for removal of red hairs that has a light emission unit having a substrate and a plurality of first LED dies emitting at a peak emission wavelength in a wavelength range of between about 480 nm and about 510 nm, the first LED dies being mounted on the substrate on an area in the range of between about 0.2 cm² and about 100 cm², wherein the hair removal device is arranged to emit a treatment light pulse by the first LED dies having a pulse length in the range of between about 30 ms and about 200 ms, and the first LED dies have a radiant flux such that a radiant fluence on the skin of a user in the range of between about 3 J/cm² and about 6 J/cm² is achieved by application of the treatment light pulse.

Claims

1. A hair removal device for removal of red hairs, comprising

a light emission unit comprising a substrate and a plurality of first LED dies emitting at a peak emission wavelength in a wavelength range of between about 480 nm and about 510 nm, the first LED dies being mounted on the substrate on an area in the range of between about 0.2 cm² and about 100 cm²,

wherein the hair removal device is arranged to emit a treatment light pulse by the first LED dies having a pulse length in the range of between about 30 ms and about 200 ms, and the first LED dies have a radiant flux such that a radiant fluence on the skin of a user in the range of between about 3 J/cm² and about 6 J/cm² is achieved by application of the treatment light pulse.

2. The hair removal device in accordance with claim 1, wherein the device has a mode in which the pulse length is in a range of between about 100 ms and about 200 ms.

3. The hair removal device in accordance with claim 1, wherein the first LED dies emit at a peak wavelength of about 500 nm.

4. The hair removal device in accordance with claim 1, wherein the first LED dies are mounted on the substrate on an area in the range of between 1.0 cm² and about 10 cm².

5. The hair removal device in accordance with claim 1, further comprising a control unit for controlling the plurality of first LED dies, in particular for activating each of the plurality of LED dies to emit light at a selected radiant flux.

6. The hair removal device in accordance with claim 1, wherein at least one second LED die is arranged for emitting light with a peak emission wavelength in the visible wavelength range of between about 400 nm and about 700 nm at a radiant flux lower than the radiant flux required for hair removal, in particular at a radiant flux in the range of between about 0.1 mW and about 100 mW.

7. The hair removal device in accordance with claim 5, where the control unit is arranged to control the at least one second LED die to selectively emit visible light at a radiant flux of lower than about 100 mW also outside of the time period during which a treatment light pulse is emitted.

8. The hair removal device in accordance with claim 7, further comprising a control element for selecting an active area of the plurality of first LED dies mounted on the substrate and optionally wherein at least two second LED dies are used to selectively indicate the chosen active area.

9. The hair removal device in accordance with claim 1, wherein the plurality of first LED dies are mounted on the substrate with a density of at least about 8 LED dies per square centimeter.

10. The hair removal device in accordance with claim 1, wherein the mounted substrate area is surrounded by a casing defining an inner chamber of essentially the shape and area of the mounted substrate area, the casing having inner walls that are reflective with respect to the light emitted by the LED dies so that the radiant flux of the LED dies per unit area is essentially preserved until an exit opening of the casing.

11. The hair removal device in accordance with claim 3, wherein the light emission unit comprises at least one sensor for measuring at least one skin property, which sensor is coupled with the control unit for controlling the light emission of at least one LED die of the plurality of first LED dies based on the measured skin property.

12. The hair removal device in accordance with claim 1, further comprising a user interface arranged for inputting at least one control parameter such as hair color.

13. The hair removal device in accordance with claim 1, further comprising an exit opening, wherein the vertical distance between each of the plurality of first LED dies and the area of the exit opening is less than about 10 mm.

14. The hair removal device in accordance with claim 1, further comprising a control element for switching between a hair removal function and a skin treatment function, in particular a skin rejuvenation function.

16. The method in accordance with claim 13, further comprising the step of:

providing at least one second LED die mounted on the substrate that is arranged to emit light with a peak emission wavelength in the visible wavelength range of between about 400 nm and about 700 nm; and

controlling the at least one second LED die to emit visible light during the treatment light pulse and/or outside of the treatment light pulse at a radiant flux in the range of between about 0.1 mW and about 100 mW per second LED die.

15. A method of cosmetic hair removal for removal of red hair comprising the steps of:

providing a substrate on which a plurality of first LED dies is mounted on an area in the range of between about 0.2 cm² and about 100 cm², which first LED dies are arranged for emitting light with a peak emission wavelength in the wavelength range of between about 480 nm and about 510 nm; and

controlling the plurality of first LED dies to emit a treatment light pulse having a pulse length in the range of between about 30 ms and about 200 ms, wherein the plurality of first LED dies is controlled to emit at a radiant flux such that a radiant fluence on the skin of a user in the range of between about 3 J/cm² and about 6 J/cm² is achieved by application of the treatment light pulse.

17. A hair removal device for the removal of red hairs that comprises a light emission unit having at least one solid state light source, in particular being realized by a plurality of first LED dies mounted on a substrate, which solid state light source is controllable to emit a treatment light pulse in the wavelength range of between about 480 nm and about 510 nm, and a pulse length in a range of between about 30 ms and about 200 ms or with a radiant fluence applied via the treatment light pulse on the skin of a user in a range of between about 3 J/cm² and about 6 J/cm².