Brushing – scrubbing – and general cleaning – Implements – Combined
Reexamination Certificate
2000-06-05
2003-06-03
Till, Terrence R. (Department: 1744)
Brushing, scrubbing, and general cleaning
Implements
Combined
C015S167100, C015S188000, C015S245000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06571417
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates generally to dentition cleaning devices and dentition cleaning systems. More specifically the invention relates to dentition cleaning devices and dentition cleaning systems that clean teeth, gums and dentures through contact.
BACKGROUND
The toothbrush is the most common instrument for cleaning teeth, gums, and other areas of the mouth. A toothbrush, unfortunately, is an inefficient device for removing plaque and stains from the enamel surfaces of teeth and is poorly suited for cleaning the surfaces of gum tissue. The inefficiency arises because plaque, while relatively soft, strongly adheres to enamel surfaces of the teeth. Because, plaque strongly adheres to enamel surfaces of teeth, brushing convection does not readily remove plaque. In order to remove all the plaque from the enamel surfaces of the teeth, bristles must contact each point on the surfaces of the teeth. Even where bristles contact the enamel surfaces of the teeth during a cleaning operation, the toothbrush generally fails to remove stains.
A further disadvantage of toothbrushing is the tendency of the toothbrush to cause gum abrasion, or toothbrush abrasion. The main symptom of toothbrush abrasion is gingival recession, or receding gums, often found in people who brush their teeth frequently. As the gums recede, sensitive parts of the teeth are exposed, generally resulting in painful reactions to hot and cold foods. Frequent brushing of the teeth, even with a very soft bristle toothbrush can lead to a condition of gingival recession. Furthermore, gingival recession is a progressive condition: it never improves but only worsens with time. In fact, toothbrushing as the leading cause of gingival recession is the subject of a current national class action lawsuit against toothbrush manufacturers, Trimarco vs. Colgate Palmolive et al., filed in Cook County, Ill. More information about toothbrush abrasion can be found at the Internet address www.toothbrushlawsuit.com. Although the connection between toothbrushes and receding gums has been documented for over half a century, progress in the field of dentition cleaning devices designed to reduce or eliminate receding gums has been tortuously slow.
In addition to causing gingival recession, toothbrushes are difficult to keep clean, because the bristles have a tendency to accumulate and trap debris. Further, toothbrushes have the propensity to retain water and remain moist long after brushing thus providing an excellent place for the cultivation of bacteria, germs and the like.
There have been several attempts to improve oral hygiene by providing cleaning devices that help remove plaque from the tongue, the gums and the palate. For example, Vezjak describes an oral hygiene brush in U.S. Pat. No. 4,610,043 that comprises a toothbrush and a rigid plaque scraper mounted on the side of the toothbrush head. The plaque scraper is engineered for removing plaque from the tongue, and Vezjak's device requires that a toothbrush still be used for cleaning teeth. Herrera, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,032,082 discloses a device for removing denture adhesive from the palate. The device comprises a head that has several lines of projections extending from a common surface. The projections are made of a material whose flexibility is temperature dependent, so that submerging the projections in hot water makes them more pliable, and placing them in cold water makes them more rigid. This device is tailored toward removing adhesive from the mouth, and cannot be effectively used for cleaning teeth. Tveras, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,810,856 discloses an oral scraping device having at least one wiping element. Each wiping element is flexible, and has at least one scoop-like side that terminates in a wiping edge in an undercutting fashion. This device is designed for scraping the tongue, and in the preferred embodiment, is mounted on a toothbrush handle on the end opposite the toothbrush head. Thus, using the device of Tveras, teeth must still be cleaned with a toothbrush.
The effects of gum stimulators were studied recently by M. J. Cronin et al., “Anti-Gingivitis Efficacy of Toothbrushing Compared to Toothbrushing and Gum Stimulation, ” Journal of Dental Research 78 (Special Issue), 1999, p. 149. In this study, a group of test subjects used selected toothbrushes and gum stimulators regularly, and were compared to a control group that used the toothbrushes alone. The researchers found that the toothbrushes provided the same benefit in reducing gingival bleeding as the toothbrushes and gum stimulators combined. However, this study did not address the problem of gingival recession, nor did it provide an alternative to toothbrushing for cleaning teeth.
What is needed is an efficient contact dentition cleaning device and system that provides an alternative to using a toothbrush for cleaning teeth and that is capable of reducing bristle abrasion to the surrounding gum tissue.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The invention is a dentition cleaning device and system that provides an alternative to using a bristle-only toothbrush. The dentition cleaning device has at least one squeegee that contacts the surface of the teeth during a cleaning operation. The squeegee may be used in combination with bristles or bristle sections that also contact teeth during cleaning. The bristle sections clean the teeth with brushing convection, much like a conventional tooth brush, while the squeegee wipes the surfaces of the teeth to improve the efficiency of teeth cleaning. Alternatively, the squeegee is configured to confine bristle portions of the device from directly contacting the gum tissue, while a squeegee messages the gums during cleaning of the teeth.
In alternative embodiments, a continuous squeegee encircles the outer portion of the cleaning head allowing the device to be used in conjunction with low viscosity cleaning solutions or allows the cleaning head to be equipped with a scaled cap that can be removed when the device is ready for use. Sealing the cleaning head with a cap can help to keep the cleaning head sanitary during storage and/or can help enclose an oral cleaning material within the cleaning head making the device particularly useful and convenient to used during traveling, camping and the like.
Several embodiments of the invention provide for a plurality of squeegee cleaning directions that enhance the efficiency of cleaning dentition. The plurality of cleaning directions is achieved by supplying several elongated squeegees having different orientations or at least one squeegee that curves, as described in detail below.
Other embodiments of the present invention provide a dentition cleaning device and system that utilize squeegees that extend in several directions and form squeegee channels or compartments. The channels or compartments are preferably capable of holding water or cleaning solutions, allowing the device to wet the surface of dentition during cleaning.
Yet other embodiments of the invention provide for oral squeegee cleaning in a plurality of wiping planes. Because several wiping planes are provided, the device and system is capable of simultaneously contacting non-planar dentition surfaces or irregular dentition surfaces with edges of the squeegees. Configuring the device with different squeegee heights, different squeegee protruding directions, contoured squeegee edges, or combinations thereof, which provides for the plurality of squeegee wiping planes.
Still other embodiments of the invention do not utilize bristles or bristle sections. These embodiments utilize only squeegee cleaning elements to provide a dentition cleaning device. Such bristle-free embodiments provide for a dentition cleaning device and system that is highly sanitary because the cleaning head is less likely to trap debris and moisture which can lead to bacterial to growth between uses of or during storage of the device.
Still other embodiments of the invention, provide for a device and system that stores an oral cleaning substance in a handle portion of the device. The cleaning subst
Gavney, Jr. James Albert
Keaton Gregory Lee
Haverstock & Owens LLP
Till Terrence R.
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