U.S. patent application number 12/026860 was filed with the patent office on 2009-08-06 for bristled brush and methods of cleaning the same.
Invention is credited to Craig Albrecht.
Application Number | 20090194119 12/026860 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 40930459 |
Filed Date | 2009-08-06 |
United States Patent
Application |
20090194119 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Albrecht; Craig |
August 6, 2009 |
BRISTLED BRUSH AND METHODS OF CLEANING THE SAME
Abstract
A brush is provided that includes a handle portion further
including a first end and an opposite second end, a plurality of
tines extending outward from said handle first end, where the
plurality of tines are spaced apart such that a gap is defined
between each pair of adjacent tines, and a plurality of bristles
extending generally radially outward from each of the plurality of
tines.
Inventors: |
Albrecht; Craig; (St. Louis,
MO) |
Correspondence
Address: |
Patent Docket Department;Armstrong Teasdale LLP
One Metropolitan Square, Suite 2600
St. Louis
MO
63102-2740
US
|
Family ID: |
40930459 |
Appl. No.: |
12/026860 |
Filed: |
February 6, 2008 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
132/119 ;
132/120; 134/6; 15/160 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A46B 17/06 20130101;
A46B 2200/104 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
132/119 ;
132/120; 134/6; 15/160 |
International
Class: |
A45D 24/40 20060101
A45D024/40; A45D 24/16 20060101 A45D024/16; A46B 17/06 20060101
A46B017/06; A46B 15/00 20060101 A46B015/00 |
Claims
1. A hairbrush comprising: a handle portion comprising a first end
and an opposite second end; a plurality of tines extending outward
from said handle first end, said plurality of tines spaced apart
such that a gap is defined between each pair of adjacent tines; and
a plurality of bristles extending generally radially outward from
each of said plurality of tines.
2. A brush in accordance with claim 1, wherein said handle portion
comprises a cylindrically-shaped body.
3. A brush in accordance with claim 1, wherein said handle first
end is substantially planar.
4. A brush in accordance with claim 3, wherein said plurality of
tines are circumferentially spaced about said handle first end.
5. A brush in accordance with claim 1, wherein said plurality of
bristles are oriented in at least one row that extends generally
longitudinally across each of the said plurality of tines.
6. A brush in accordance with claim 1, wherein the gap is sized to
enable a cleaning element to be inserted between each said pair of
circumferentially-adjacent tines.
7. A brush in accordance with claim 1, wherein each of said
plurality of tines is cylindrically shaped.
8. A brush in accordance with claim 1, wherein said handle portion
and said plurality of tines are unitarily constructed.
9. A method for cleaning a brush, said method comprising:
determining that foreign matter is contained within an array of
bristles extending outward from a plurality of
circumferentially-spaced tines; inserting a cleaning element
between at least two of the circumferentially-spaced tines; and
moving the cleaning element between the tines to facilitate
removing foreign matter from the brush.
10. A method in accordance with claim 9, wherein moving the
cleaning element between the tines further comprises withdrawing
the cleaning element from the brush to further facilitate removing
foreign matter from the brush.
11. A method in accordance with claim 9, wherein inserting a
cleaning element between at least two of the
circumferentially-spaced tines further comprises insert a cleaning
element between at least two of the circumferentially-spaced tines
that extend generally longitudinally from a handle of the
brush.
12. A system for hairbrush cleaning, comprising: a cleaning
element; and a hairbrush further comprising: a handle portion
comprising a first end and an opposite second end; a plurality of
tines extending outward from said handle first end; and a plurality
of bristles that extends generally radially outward from each of
said plurality of tines, said plurality of tines spaced apart such
that a gap is defined between each pair of adjacent tines.
13. A system in accordance with claim 12, wherein said cleaning
element is an elongated member of a width capable of being slidably
engaged between two adjacent tines in the said plurality of
tines.
14. A system in accordance with claim 12, wherein said handle
portion comprises a cylindrically-shaped body.
15. A system in accordance with claim 12, wherein said handle first
end is substantially planar.
16. A system in accordance with claim 12, wherein said plurality of
tines are circumferentially spaced about said handle first end.
17. A system in accordance with claim 12, wherein said plurality of
bristles are oriented in at least one row that extends generally
longitudinally across each of said plurality of tines.
18. A system in accordance with claim 12, wherein the gap is sized
to enable a cleaning element to be inserted between each said pair
of circumferentially-adjacent tines.
19. A system in accordance with claim 12, wherein each of said
plurality of tines is cylindrically shaped.
20. A system in accordance with claim 12, wherein said handle
portion and said plurality of tines are of unitarily constructed.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The field of the invention relates generally to brushes and
more particularly, to brushes that include a plurality of bristles,
and methods of cleaning the same.
[0002] During use, at least some known brushes, such as
hairbrushes, tend to pick up foreign matter, such as hair or
debris. For example, with respect to hairbrushes, hair products,
such as gel or hair spray, may increase the likelihood that foreign
matter may be transferred from a person's hair to the brush during
subsequent uses. To prevent fouling of the brush, bristles
extending from the brush must be periodically cleaned, such as by
running warm water over the bristles and/or by dragging a second
brush or comb through the bristles of the first brush to loosen any
foreign matter contained in the brush. However, depending on the
relative spacing and density of the bristles extending from the
brush, it may be difficult to drag such a cleaning element through
the bristles. Moreover, over time, the bristles of the brush may
become damaged as the cleaning element is dragged through the
hairbrush. Another method of removing the foreign matter is by
manually grasping the foreign matter in an attempt to pull the
foreign matter from the hairbrush. Such a cleaning process may be
time-consuming and may provide only limited effectiveness,
depending on the size, orientation, and spacing of the
bristles.
[0003] In addition, depending on the type of brush, removing
foreign matter from the bristles may be difficult. For example,
because of the orientation of the bristles, removing foreign matter
from round brushes may be difficult. Specifically, during use hair
tends to get wrapped around round brushes and may get twisted
around a handle at the interface between the bristles and the
handle.
[0004] To facilitate cleaning hairbrushes, at least some known
hairbrushes include a cleaning element. For example, at least one
known brush includes a cleaning element that is slidably coupled to
the brush, such that when the cleaning element is slid down the
length of the brush to facilitate removing foreign matter from the
brush. Although such a cleaning element is effective in removing
foreign matter from brushes, the bristles of such brushes may be
displaced by the cleaning element, and over time the effectiveness
of the cleaning element and/or brush may decrease. Other known
brushes include a re-useable netting material that is removably
coupled over the bristles. After the bristles have become fouled
the netting is lifted from the bristles to facilitate removing
contaminates from the bristles. However, repositioning the netting
over the bristles may be a cumbersome and time consuming task.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0005] In one aspect, a brush is provided that includes a handle
portion further including a first end and an opposite second end, a
plurality of tines extending outward from said handle first end,
where the plurality of tines are spaced apart such that a gap is
defined between each pair of adjacent tines, and a plurality of
bristles extending generally radially outward from each of the
plurality of tines.
[0006] In another aspect, a method for cleaning a brush is
provided. The method includes determining that foreign matter is
contained within an array of bristles extending outward from a
plurality of circumferentially-spaced tines, inserting a cleaning
element between at least two of the circumferentially-spaced tines,
and moving the cleaning element between the tines to facilitate
removing foreign matter from the brush.
[0007] In yet another aspect, a system for hairbrush cleaning is
provided. The system includes a cleaning element, and a hairbrush.
The hairbrush further includes a handle portion that includes a
first end and an opposite second end, a plurality of tines
extending outward from said handle first end, and a plurality of
bristles extending generally radially outward from each of the
plurality of tines
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0008] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an exemplary brush that may
be cleaned with a cleaning element.
[0009] FIG. 2 is an end view of brush shown in FIG. 1.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0010] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an exemplary hairbrush 10
that may be easily cleaned using a cleaning element 12. FIG. 2 is
an end view of hairbrush 10. In the exemplary embodiment, hairbrush
10 includes a body 14 that further includes a handle portion 16 and
a tined portion 18. More specifically, in the exemplary embodiment,
body 14 is unitarily constructed with handle portion 16 and tined
portion 18 molded as a single unit. Alternatively, handle portion
16 may be fabricated independently from tined portion 18. In the
exemplary embodiment, a plurality of bristles 20 extend generally
radially outward from tined portion 18, as is described in more
detail below.
[0011] In the exemplary embodiment, handle portion 16 includes a
first end 22 and an opposite second end 24. In the exemplary
embodiment, handle first end 22 comprises a frusto-conical portion
25 and an end surface 26. In the exemplary embodiment, handle
portion 16 has a generally circular cross-sectional profile.
Alternatively, handle portion 16 may have any shape that enables
hairbrush 10 to function as described herein.
[0012] Tined portion 18 includes a plurality of
circumferentially-spaced tines 28. Tined portion 18 extends
generally co-axially outward from handle portion 18 and, in the
exemplary embodiment, the plurality of tines 28 are oriented such
that each tine 27 is spaced equi-distantly from each
circumferentially-adjacent tine 27. Alternatively, the plurality of
tines 28 may be arranged in any orientation that enables brush 10
to function as described herein. In the exemplary embodiment, tines
28 are not coupled together, but rather, each extends independently
outward from end surface 26. Accordingly, tined portion 18 is known
as a "vented" brush and as such, a plurality of gaps 29 are defined
between each pair of circumferentially-adjacent tines 28. Moreover,
in the exemplary embodiment, gaps 29 are interconnected through a
center portion of tined portion 18. In the exemplary embodiment,
each gap 29 is uniform and of length L. Alternatively, each gap 29
may be a different length than each adjacent gap.
[0013] In the exemplary embodiment, bristles 20 extends outward
from each tine 27. More specifically, in the exemplary embodiment,
bristles 20 each extend generally radially outward from each tine
27. Alternatively, bristles 20 may extend outward from tines 28 in
any orientation that enables brush 10 to function as described
herein. Moreover, in the exemplary embodiment, bristles 20 are
oriented in clusters 30 spaced laterally across each tine 27 from
end surface 26 towards an end 34 of each tine 27. More
specifically, in the exemplary embodiment, each tine 27 includes a
plurality of longitudinally-spaced clusters 30 of bristles 20.
Alternatively, brush 10 does not include clusters 30 of bristles 20
but rather bristles are oriented in rows that extend generally
longitudinally across each tine 27. Moreover, in the exemplary
embodiment, bristles 20 are coupled radially to each tine 27 such
that tines 28 are circumferentially identical within tined portion
18. Alternatively, bristles 20 may be secured to tines 28 in any
pattern, orientation, or arrangement that enables hairbrush 10 to
function as described herein.
[0014] In the exemplary embodiment, the cleaning element 12 is a
rod-shaped structure having a maximum width W of less than the
length L, allowing the cleaning element 12 to be inserted between
two adjacent tines in the plurality of tines 28. The cleaning
element 12 can then be translated from the position of insertion
along the length of the tine portion 18 towards an end 34 of tine
portion 18, enabling the user to clear any foreign matter that is
present within the plurality of tines 28 or within the array of
bristles 20. Alternatively, the cleaning element is a structure
that allows the user to grip the cleaning element and of a size to
allow the user to insert the cleaning element 12 in between two
tines in the plurality of tines 28 at any position along tine
portion 18, for example, a rod, a comb or a hair pick.
[0015] Exemplary embodiments of hairbrushes including tines and
cleaning elements are described in detail above. The
above-described hairbrushes, and methods of cleaning enable a
hairbrush to be easily cleaned of foreign matter without the
potential of damage to the bristles. More specifically, the
hairbrush 10 and method facilitate cleaning the hairbrush 10 by
slidably translating a cleaning element 12 between the tines of a
plurality of tines 28, thereby removing foreign matter held against
the cleaning element 12 after the cleaning element 12 has been
translated at least partially along the length between each tine of
the plurality of tines 28. As a result, the hairbrush 10 can be
reliably and efficiently cleaned without damage or disarrangement
of the individual bristles or the cluster 30 of bristles.
[0016] Exemplary embodiments of an apparatus and method for
cleaning a hairbrush are described above in detail. The apparatus
and method are not limited to the specific embodiments described
herein, but rather, components of the apparatus and/or steps of the
method may be utilized independently and separately from other
components and/or steps described herein. Additionally, while
hairbrush 10 is described herein as a brush for hair, it is
understood that hair brush 10 may be any brush having spaced tines
that would facilitate cleaning as described herein, such as a lint
brush, a cleaning brush, a scrub brush or a currycomb. Further, the
described apparatus components and/or method steps can also be
defined in, or used in combination with, other apparatus and/or
methods, and are not limited to practice with only the apparatus
and method as described herein.
[0017] While the invention has been described in terms of various
specific embodiments of a hairbrush, those skilled in the art will
recognize that the invention can be practiced with modification
within the spirit and scope of the claims.
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