Appliance for personal care with automatic fluid dispenser

• US 9,346,180 B2
• Filed: 09/23/2011
• Issued: 05/24/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 03/21/2005
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Koninklijke Philips N.V.
• Original Assignee: Koninklijke Philips N.V.
• Inventors: Molema, Jeroen, Sinnema, Anke, Westerhof, Wilko
• Primary Examiner(s): Manahan, Todd E
• Assistant Examiner(s): KALACH, BRIANNE E
• Application Number:
  US13/242,069
• Publication Number:
  US 20120005898A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,705 Days
• Field of Search: 132/112, 132/292, 30/415, 30/56, 305/38, 222/23, 222/56, 222/639, 222/61, 222/63, 222641-642, 222644-649, 222/183, 239/93, 239/101, 239/11, 239 63- 65, 239 67- 70, 239 75- 76, 239/99, 118/663, 118/683, 118/715, 118/696, 118/699, 118/712, 700/47, 700/44, 700/283
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A45D 20/12 Details thereof or accessories therefor, e.g. nozzles, stands
• 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: A45D 34/04 Appliances specially adapted for applying liquid, e.g. using roller or ball
• CPC Class Codes: A46B 11/001 with integral reservoirs A46B11/0003, A46B11/0006 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61C 17/02 Rinsing or air-blowing devices, e.g. using fluid jets or comprising liquid medication combined with receptacles for spittle A61C17/14; combined with power-driven cleaning or polishing devices A61C17/16
• CPC Class Codes: B26B 19/40 Lubricating

Abstract

An appliance for personal care, such as skin, dental or hair treatment, comprising a dispensing structure (30) for automatically dispensing a fluid. The dispensing structure (30) includes a fluid reservoir (10), a discharge opening (11) and a fluid drive structure (9, 12, 15, 16, 17, 19, 20) for driving the fluid to be dispensed from the reservoir (10) and to and out of said discharge opening (11) in accordance with a dispensing rate/time profile (S_x). The fluid drive structure (9, 12, 15, 16, 17, 19, 20) is arranged for spurting at least once during said dispensing operation for squirting an additional quantity of the fluid to and out of the discharge opening (11) in addition to the fluid being dispensed in accordance with said dispensing rate/time profile (S_x).

Claims

1. A personal care appliance, comprising:

a structure configured to perform a treatment; and

a dispensing structure for dispensing a fluid relating to the treatment through a discharge opening, the dispensing structure comprising;

a fluid reservoir storing the fluid;

a sensor configured to detect changes during the treatment in an operating condition of the structure which is configured to perform the treatment;

a data processor configured to determine a dispensing rate of the fluid in accordance with a dispensing rate profile based on the operating condition of the structure which is configured to perform the treatment; and

a drive mechanism configured to drive the fluid from the fluid reservoir through the discharge opening in accordance with the dispensing rate,

wherein the dispensing rate of the fluid changes in accordance with the changes in the operating condition of the structure during the treatment.

2. The personal care appliance of claim 1, wherein the personal care appliance is a shaver.

3. The personal care appliance of claim 2, wherein the sensor is further configured to sense friction between a skin to be treated and the structure, and the data processor is further configured to vary the dispensing rate of the fluid in accordance with the sensed friction.

4. The personal care appliance of claim 2, wherein the fluid is one of a shaving lotion and a gel.

5. The personal care appliance of claim 1, wherein the personal care appliance is a brush.

6. The personal care appliance of claim 5, wherein the fluid is one of a toothpaste and a polishing agent.

7. The personal care appliance of claim 1, wherein the personal care appliance is a hairstyler.

8. The personal care appliance of claim 7, wherein the fluid is one of steam, a fixing agent, a wax and a dye.

9. The personal care appliance of claim 1, wherein the drive mechanism is further configured to drive the fluid from the fluid reservoir through the discharge opening at a further rate that is higher than the dispensing rate at a predetermined time during a dispensing operation.

10. The personal care appliance of claim 9, wherein the further rate is at least five times higher than the dispensing rate.

11. The personal care appliance of claim 9, wherein the drive mechanism drives the fluid at the further rate in response to an input by a user of the personal care appliance.

12. The personal care appliance of claim 1, wherein the drive mechanism comprises a pump communicating with the reservoir and with the discharge opening for driving the fluid from the reservoir to the discharge opening.

13. The personal care appliance of claim 1, wherein the drive mechanism is further configured to spurt for providing additional fluid during a dispensing operation for spurting an additional quantity of the fluid as the additional fluid which is in addition to the fluid being dispensed in accordance with the dispensing rate, wherein the additional fluid is dispensed during a limited spurting time, and wherein the dispensing rate is maintained during a non-spurting time and includes a high initial rate followed by a gradual decreased constant rate lower than the high initial rate, and wherein the limited spurting time is one of a predetermined time and based on a time period of activation by a user.

14. The personal care appliance of claim 1, further comprising a memory configured to store a plurality of dispensing rates for selection of the dispensing rate from the stored plurality of dispensing rates.

15. The personal care appliance of claim 1, wherein the sensor is further configured to detect of a property including a condition of the treatment, and the data processor is further configured to vary the dispensing rate of the fluid in accordance with the detected property.

16. A device configured to be attached to a personal care appliance, comprising:

a fluid reservoir storing a fluid;

a sensor configured to detect changes during a treatment in an operating condition of the personal care appliance;

a data processor configured to determine a dispensing rate of the fluid in accordance with a dispensing rate profile based on the operating condition of the personal care appliance; and

a drive mechanism configured to drive the fluid from the fluid reservoir through a discharge opening in accordance with the dispensing rate,

wherein the dispensing rate of the fluid changes in accordance with the changes in the operating condition of the structure during the treatment.

17. The device of claim 16, wherein the sensor is further configured to sense friction, and the data processor is further configured to vary the dispensing rate of the fluid in accordance with the sensed friction.

18. The device of claim 16, wherein the drive mechanism is further configured to drive the fluid from the fluid reservoir through the discharge opening at a further rate that is higher than the dispensing rate at a predetermined time during a dispensing operation.

19. The device of claim 18, wherein the further rate is at least five times higher than the dispensing rate.

20. The device of claim 18, wherein the drive mechanism drives the fluid at the further rate in response to an input by a user of the personal care appliance.

21. The device of claim 16, wherein the drive mechanism comprises a pump communicating with the reservoir and with the discharge opening for driving the fluid from the reservoir to the discharge opening.

22. A personal care appliance, comprising:

a structure configured to perform a treatment; and

a dispensing structure for dispensing a fluid relating to the treatment through a discharge opening, the dispensing structure comprising;

a fluid reservoir storing the fluid;

a sensor configured to detect changes during the treatment in an operating condition of the treatment based on performance of the structure which is configured to perform the treatment;

a data processor configured to determine a dispensing rate of the fluid in accordance with a dispensing rate profile based on the operating condition; and

a drive mechanism configured to drive the fluid from the fluid reservoir through the discharge opening in accordance with the dispensing rate,

wherein the dispensing rate of the fluid changes in accordance with the changes in the operating condition of the treatment based on the performance of the structure during the treatment.