Toilet – Toothpick
Reexamination Certificate
1996-09-13
2001-09-25
Pianalto, Bernard (Department: 1762)
Toilet
Toothpick
C427S175000, C427S385500, C427S386000, C427S389900, C427S558000, C427S559000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06293287
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Tooth decay and dental disease can be caused by bacterial action resulting from the formation of plaque about the teeth and/or the entrapment of food particles in interstices between the teeth. Removal of plaque and entrapped food particles reduces the incidence of caries, gingivitis, and mouth odors as well as generally improving oral hygiene. Conventional brushing has been found to be inadequate for removing all entrapped food particles and plaque. To supplement brushing, dental flosses and tapes have been recommended.
Dental flosses including a thickened “brush” portion have been developed. These flosses may also include a thin “floss” portion and a threader. The brush portion, when drawn between tooth surfaces, provides good cleaning action which removes materials left by a standard thin floss used alone.
To form a brush floss, it is necessary to provide bulked filaments in a strand of floss, i.e., filaments which are separated and have a somewhat sinuous, random orientation.
Dental flosses, both in brush and thin floss form, often include additives such as flavors or colors. These flavors have been conventionally applied by coating the additive onto the surface of the floss.
Conventionally, polymers coating a filament are applied as solutions dissolved in a solvent. The production of polymer-covered filaments entails delay in the time required for the solvent to evaporate, generation of polluting solvent vapors, and the danger of residual unevaporated solvents. There is a need for improved filament coatings and for an improved method of producing a polymer-coated filament.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention features a dental floss having improved abrasivity consisting of a dental filament coated with a UV-curable resin. Improved abrasivity is achieved by coating the fibers with a resin binder curable by exposure to ultraviolet (UV) radiation. Preferably, the resin is a composition comprising a clear oligomer resin and a UV-sensitive component. Preferably the oligomer resin is comprised of monomers having one or more cross-linkable functional groups such as acrylate or methacrylate. In specific embodiments, the monomers are epoxy acrylates, polyurethane acrylates, polyester acrylates, and acrylic acrylates. The UV-sensitive component is a photoinitiating compound which absorbs ultraviolet light and initiates polymerization of the monomers. In specific embodiments, the photoinitiating compound is benzoin, a benzoin alkyl ether, a benzyl ketal, an acetophenone derivative, a benzophenone, Michler's ketone, an &agr;-acyloxime ester, a thioxanthone or a thioxanthone derivative, a quinone, anthraquinone or derivative, an organic peroxide, an organic sulfur compound, a metal compound or metal ion, an alkali dichromate, an organic phosphorus compound, a chlorosilane or an azo compound. In a preferred embodiment, the photoinitiator is benzophenone.
The UV-cured resin coated dental floss of the invention may further comprise additional components that provide desired floss properties and/or health treatment. In a preferred embodiment, the UV-cured resin includes a compound for control of the floss friction coefficient, e.g., abrasivity. In a specific embodiment, polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE or Teflon®) powder is added to the UV resin formulation. In another embodiment, a compound is added to the UV-cured resin formulation for anti-caries tooth treatment. In a specifically preferred embodiment, the anti-caries treatment compound is sodium fluoride, stannous fluoride, or monosodium fluoride phosphate.
The UV-curable resin coated dental floss of the invention may have one or more distinct sections, including 1) a conventional floss section for cleaning the interproximal surfaces between the teeth, 2) a bulked brush section having improved abrasivity toward plaque and a larger dimension than the floss.
The coated dental filaments of the invention may be composed of mono filaments, e.g., filaments composed of one fiber, and multifilaments, e.g., strands having multiple fibers. Specific embodiments of the method of the invention include coating bulked or non-bulked filaments having a high or low elasticity, respectively, to produce dental floss having improved abrasivity.
The invention further features a method for producing a dental floss having improved abrasivity. An oligomer resin containing a photoinitiating system is coated onto a dental fiber and exposed to UV radiation such that the resin coat is cured to the desirable degree of hardness.
The method of the invention allows the degree of abrasivity of a floss to be controlled as desired.
One object of the invention is to provide a dental floss having improved abrasivity.
Another object of the invention is to provide an improved method of producing a coated dental floss having improved abrasivity.
One advantage of the invention is the production of a resin-coated dental floss without the use of solvents.
These and other objects, advantages and features of the present invention will become apparent to those persons skilled in the art upon reading the details of the compositions, composition components, methods and method steps of the invention as set forth below.
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Anglin David L.
Chiang Casper W.
Luebbert Larry H.
Roberts Michael F.
Fish & Richardson P.C.
Gillette Canada Inc.
Pianalto Bernard
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