Electronic toothbrush with vibration dampening

• US 9,468,511 B2
• Filed: 03/15/2013
• Issued: 10/18/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 03/15/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Water Pik Incorporated (Church & Dwight Company Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Water Pik Incorporated (Church & Dwight Company Incorporated)
• Inventors: Garrigues, Jeffrey M., Luettgen, Harold A.
• Primary Examiner(s): JENNINGS, MICHAEL DEANGILO
• Application Number:
  US13/833,897
• Publication Number:
  US 20140259469A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,313 Days
• Field of Search: 15/221
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A46B 13/02 power-driven carriers
• CPC Class Codes: A61C 17/34 driven by electric motor
• CPC Class Codes: A61C 17/3409 characterized by the movement of the brush body
• CPC Class Codes: A61C 17/3418 Rotation around the axis of the toothbrush handle
• CPC Class Codes: A61C 17/3481 Vibrating brush body, e.g. by using eccentric weights

Abstract

An electronically powered toothbrush. The toothbrush includes a brush head including a plurality of bristles, a motor, and an output shaft connected to the brush head and the motor. The output shaft is selectively rotated by the motor. The toothbrush further includes a bumper assembly connected to the output shaft and configured to conserve kinetic energy from the output shaft during rotation and reapply the kinetic energy to the output shaft.

Claims

1. An electrically driven toothbrush comprising

a handle housing;

a brush head releasably connected to the handle housing and including a plurality of bristles;

an output shaft connected to the brush head;

a motor coupled to the output shaft via a linkage assembly, wherein a motor rotates the output shaft to pivot the brush head in a first direction and a second direction along the rotation arc;

a first deformable member connected to a first side of the output shaft; and

a second deformable member connected to a second side of the output shaft, wherein

the first deformable member absorbs kinetic energy from the output shaft only at an end of the first direction of the rotation arc and imparts stored kinetic energy to the output shaft only at a beginning of the second direction of the rotation arc; and

the second deformable member imparts stored kinetic energy to the output shaft only at a beginning of the first direction of the rotation arc and absorbs kinetic energy from output shaft only at an end of the second direction of the rotation arc.

2. The electrically driven toothbrush of claim 1, further comprising a connecting member coupled to the first deformable member and the second deformable member, wherein the connecting member connects the first deformable member and the second deformable member to the output shaft.

3. The electrically driven toothbrush of claim 1, wherein the linkage assembly comprises

a link coupler operably coupled to a drive shaft of the motor;

a drive pin connected to the link coupler; and

a rocker connected to the drive pin and the output shaft.

4. The electrically driven toothbrush of claim 1, further comprising a boot seal positioned around the output shaft and against an interior surface of the handle housing.

5. The electrically driven toothbrush of claim 1, further comprising one or more bearings received around the output shaft.

6. The electrically driven toothbrush of claim 1, wherein

the first deformable member imparts the stored kinetic energy to the output shaft at the beginning of the second direction to assist the motor in rotating the output shaft in the second direction;

and

the second deformable member imparts the stored kinetic energy to the output shaft at the beginning of the first direction to assist the motor in rotating the output shaft in the first direction.