U.S. patent application number 13/500192 was filed with the patent office on 2013-01-03 for accessory for hair treatment device.
This patent application is currently assigned to SUN LUEN ELECTRICAL MANUFACTURING COMPANY LIMITED. Invention is credited to Wah Hing Cheung, Ki Cheong Yeung.
Application Number | 20130000139 13/500192 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 44648411 |
Filed Date | 2013-01-03 |
United States Patent
Application |
20130000139 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Yeung; Ki Cheong ; et
al. |
January 3, 2013 |
ACCESSORY FOR HAIR TREATMENT DEVICE
Abstract
An air deflector (12, 12a) for an electric hair dryer (10)
includes a housing (24, 24a) with an air passageway therethrough,
and a nozzle (28, 28a) in the air passageway. The nozzle (28, 28a)
includes an air inlet (30) receiving all the air entering the
housing (24, 24a) and an air outlet (32) allowing the air received
by the air inlet (30) to exit. The nozzle (28, 28a) oscillates
relative to the housing (24, 24a) to continuously change the
direction of the air from the air outlet (32).
Inventors: |
Yeung; Ki Cheong; (Hong
Kong, CN) ; Cheung; Wah Hing; (Hong Kong,
CN) |
Assignee: |
SUN LUEN ELECTRICAL MANUFACTURING
COMPANY LIMITED
Hong Kong
CN
|
Family ID: |
44648411 |
Appl. No.: |
13/500192 |
Filed: |
March 15, 2010 |
PCT Filed: |
March 15, 2010 |
PCT NO: |
PCT/CN2010/071050 |
371 Date: |
April 4, 2012 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
34/97 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A45D 20/122
20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
34/97 |
International
Class: |
A45D 20/12 20060101
A45D020/12 |
Claims
1. An accessory for a hair treatment device, said accessory
comprising: a housing with an air passageway therethrough; and a
nozzle in said air passageway; wherein said nozzle includes an air
inlet and an air outlet, said air inlet receiving at least part of
air entering said housing, and said air outlet allowing exit of
said air received by said air inlet; and wherein said nozzle is
oscillatable relative to said housing to continuously change the
direction of the air exiting said nozzle.
2. The accessory according to claim 1 wherein said nozzle is
oscillatable relative to said housing about an axis fixed relative
to said housing.
3. The accessory according to claim 1 wherein the centre of gravity
of said nozzle is away from a longitudinal plane containing said
axis.
4. The accessory according to claim 1 wherein said nozzle is
oscillatable upon passing of air from said air inlet to said air
outlet.
5. The accessory according to claim 1 wherein said nozzle is freely
hinged to said housing.
6. The accessory according to claim 1 wherein the area of said air
outlet of said nozzle is smaller than the area of said air inlet of
said nozzle.
7. The accessory according to claim 1 further comprising a locking
member movable between a locking position in which oscillating
movement of said nozzle relative to said housing is prevented and
an unlocked position in which oscillating movement of said nozzle
relative to said housing is allowed.
8. The accessory according to claim 1 further comprising at least
one inwardly extending rim at or adjacent to said air outlet of
said nozzle.
9. The accessory according to claim 8 further comprising a
plurality of inwardly extending rims at or adjacent to said air
outlet of said nozzle.
10. The accessory according to claim 1 wherein said air inlet is
adapted to receive substantially all air entering said housing.
11. A hair treatment device set comprising a hair treatment device
and an accessory for a hair treatment device which are releasably
engageable with each other, said accessory including: a housing
with an air passageway therethrough; and a nozzle in said air
passageway; wherein said nozzle includes an air inlet and an air
outlet, said air inlet receiving at least part of air entering said
housing, and said air outlet allowing exit of said air received by
said air inlet; and wherein said nozzle is oscillatable relative to
said housing to continuously change the direction of the air
exiting said nozzle.
12. The hair treatment device set according to claim 11 wherein
said accessory is releasably engageable with said hair treatment
device in at least two configurations, and wherein an axis of
oscillation of said nozzle differs by substantially 90.degree.
between said two configurations.
13. The hair treatment device set according to claim 11 wherein
said accessory, when engaged with said hair treatment device, is
rotatable relative to said hair treatment device about an axis
substantially parallel to a central longitudinal axis M-M of said
accessory.
14. The hair treatment device set according to claim 11 wherein
said air inlet is adapted to receive substantially all air entering
said housing.
15. A hair treatment device comprising: an air entrance and an air
exit defining an air passage therebetween; an air flow generator
adapted to draw air into said device through said air entrance and
to drive air out of said device through said air exit; and a nozzle
in said air passage; wherein said nozzle includes an air inlet and
an air outlet, said air inlet receiving at least part of air
flowing from said air flow generator, and said air outlet allowing
exit of said air received by said air inlet; and wherein said
nozzle is oscillatable relative to said passage to continuously
change the direction of the air exiting said nozzle.
16. The hair treatment device according to claim 15 wherein said
nozzle is positionable relative to said air passage in at least two
configurations, and wherein an axis of swiveling of said air flow
deflector differs by substantially 90.degree. between said two
configurations.
17. The hair treatment device according to claim 15 wherein said
nozzle is rotatable relative to said passage about an axis
substantially parallel to a central longitudinal axis A-A of said
nozzle.
18. The hair treatment device according to claim 14 wherein said
air inlet receives substantially all air flowing from said air flow
generator.
Description
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0001] This invention relates to an accessory for a hair treatment
device, such as a hair dryer or a diffuser, and a hair treatment
device incorporating such an accessory.
BACKGROUND
[0002] There are in existence various hair treatment devices, such
as hair dryers and curl diffusers, which are usually electrically
operated. Such hair treatment devices usually generate heated air
flow to dry or heat up the hair of a user, e.g. for styling
purposes. Such conventional hair treatment devices usually have a
handle portion adjoining a barrel through which air exits the
devices. The air (whether heated or not) exits the device in one
direction only, usually along a longitudinal direction of the
barrel. If the user would like to dry or heat up the hair of a
larger area, he/she has to oscillate the device. In addition, if
hot air is (e.g. inadvertently) only applied on a small portion of
the hair of the user, that portion of the user's hair may be
over-heated, thus damaging the hair.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0003] It is thus an object of the present invention to provide an
accessory for a hair treatment device and a hair treatment device
with such an accessory in which the aforesaid shortcomings are
mitigated or at least to provide a useful alternative to the
public.
[0004] According to a first aspect of the present invention, there
is provided an accessory for a hair treatment device, said
accessory including a housing with an air passageway therethrough;
and a nozzle in said air passageway; wherein said nozzle includes
an air inlet and an air outlet, said air inlet receiving at least
part of air entering said housing, and said air outlet allowing
exit of said air received by said air inlet; and wherein said
nozzle is oscillatable relative to said housing to continuously
change the direction of the air exiting said nozzle.
[0005] According to a second aspect of the present invention, there
is provided a hair treatment device set including a hair treatment
device and an accessory for a hair treatment device which are
releasably engageable with each other, said accessory including a
housing with an air passageway therethrough; and a nozzle in said
air passageway; wherein said nozzle includes an air inlet and an
air outlet, said air inlet receiving at least part of air entering
said housing, and said air outlet allowing exit of said air
received by said air inlet; and wherein said nozzle is oscillatable
relative to said housing to continuously change the direction of
the air exiting said nozzle.
[0006] According to a third aspect of the present invention, there
is provided a hair treatment device including an air entrance and
an air exit defining an air passage therebetween; an air flow
generator adapted to draw air into said device through said air
entrance and to drive air out of said device through said air exit;
and a nozzle in said air passage; wherein said nozzle includes an
air inlet and an air outlet, said air inlet receiving at least part
of air flowing from said air flow generator, and said air outlet
allowing exit of said air received by said air inlet; and wherein
said nozzle is oscillatable relative to said passage to
continuously change the direction of the air exiting said
nozzle.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0007] Embodiments of an accessory for a hair treatment device and
a hair treatment device with such an accessory according to the
present invention will now be described, by way of examples only,
with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:
[0008] FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of an electric hair dryer,
being a hair treatment device, and an air deflector, being an
accessory for a hair treatment device according to an embodiment of
the present invention, detached from each other;
[0009] FIG. 2 shows a perspective view of the electric hair dryer
and air deflector of FIG. 1 engaged with each other;
[0010] FIG. 3 shows a perspective view of the air deflector of FIG.
1;
[0011] FIG. 4 shows a front view of the air deflector of FIG.
3;
[0012] FIG. 5 is a top view of the air deflector of FIG. 3;
[0013] FIG. 6 is a side view of the air deflector of FIG. 5;
[0014] FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a nozzle in the air
deflector of FIG. 3;
[0015] FIG. 8 is a front view of the nozzle of FIG. 7;
[0016] FIG. 9 is a top view of the nozzle of FIG. 7;
[0017] FIG. 10 is a side view of the nozzle of FIG. 9;
[0018] FIG. 11 is a sectional view taken along the line A-A in FIG.
9;
[0019] FIG. 12 is a sectional view taken along the line B-B in FIG.
10;
[0020] FIG. 13 is a perspective view of the air deflector of FIG. 3
with part of the housing removed;
[0021] FIG. 14 is another perspective view of the air deflector of
FIG. 3 with another part of the housing removed;
[0022] FIG. 15 is an exploded perspective view of the parts forming
the air deflector of FIG. 3;
[0023] FIG. 16 is a sectional exploded perspective of the parts
forming the air deflector taken along the line C-C in FIG. 5;
[0024] FIG. 17 is a perspective view of a further air deflector,
being an accessory for a hair treatment device according to another
embodiment of the present invention, with part of the housing
removed;
[0025] FIG. 18 is a side view of the air deflector of FIG. 17;
[0026] FIG. 19 is a top view of the air deflector of FIG. 17;
[0027] FIG. 20 is a front view of the air deflector of FIG. 17;
[0028] FIG. 21 is a top view of the air deflector of FIG. 17, in
which a locking plate is in an unlocked position and the nozzle of
the air deflector is at a left-most position;
[0029] FIG. 22 is a top perspective view of the air deflector of
FIG. 21;
[0030] FIG. 23 is a top view of the air deflector of FIG. 17, in
which the locking plate is in a locking position and the nozzle of
the air deflector is at a centre position;
[0031] FIG. 24 is a top perspective view of the air deflector of
FIG. 23;
[0032] FIG. 25 is a top view of the air deflector of FIG. 17, in
which the locking plate is in an unlocked position and the nozzle
of the air deflector is at a right-most position;
[0033] FIG. 26 is a top perspective view of the air deflector of
FIG. 25;
[0034] FIG. 27 is a sectional view of the air deflector of FIG. 3
or of FIG. 17 in which the nozzle is at a left-most position;
[0035] FIG. 28 is a sectional view of the air deflector of FIG. 3
or of FIG. 17 in which the nozzle is at a centre position; and
[0036] FIG. 29 is a sectional view of the air deflector of FIG. 3
or of FIG. 17 in which the nozzle is at a right-most position.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0037] FIGS. 1 and 2 show a hair treatment device, being an
electric hair dryer, and generally designated as 10, and an air
deflector, being an accessory for a hair treatment device according
to an embodiment of the present invention, and generally designated
as 12. In FIG. 1, the air deflector 12 is detached from the hair
dryer 10; and in FIG. 2, the air deflector 12 is releasably engaged
with the hair dryer 10. The hair dryer 10 and the air deflector 12
may collectively form a hair treatment device set, or part of a
hair treatment device set including one or more other accessories
which are selectively releasably engageable with the hair dryer
10.
[0038] The hair dryer 10 has an air entrance 14 and an air exit 16
defining an air passage therebetween. An electrically operated air
flow generator (e.g. a fan) is provided within the hair dryer 10
for drawing air from the outside environment into the hair dryer 10
via the air entrance 14 and driving the air through the air passage
between the air entrance 14 and the air exit 16, and subsequently
out of the hair dryer 10 to the outside environment via the air
exit 16. A heating element (e.g. heating filaments) is also
provided in the air passage and downstream of the air flow
generator such that, in operation, the heating element raises the
temperature of the air entering the hair dryer 10 before exiting
the hair dryer 10, e.g. for drying or heating up the hair of a
user. The hair dryer 10 has a number of buttons 18a, 18b, 18c for
controlling, e.g. the on and off of the hair dryer 10, the speed of
operation of the air flow generator (and in turn the rate of flow
of air out from the hair dryer 10), and the temperature of the
heating element (and in turn the temperature of air flow exiting
the hair dryer 10).
[0039] The air deflector 12 has an air ingress 20 at one
longitudinal end and an air egress 22 at an opposite longitudinal
end. The air ingress 20 and the air egress 22 define an air
passageway (not shown) therebetween. The longitudinal end of the
air deflector 12 with the air ingress 20 is threaded, for
releasable threaded engagement with the air exit 16 of the hair
dryer 10. By way of such an arrangement, air exiting the air exit
16 of the hair dryer 10 will enter the air ingress 20 of the air
deflector 12. It is possible to have the air deflector 12
releasably engageable with the air exit 16 of the hair dryer 10 in
other manners, e.g. by force fit or friction fit.
[0040] As shown in FIGS. 3 to 6, the air deflector 12 has a
generally cylindrical housing 24 and a switch 26 the manner of
operation and function of which will be discussed below. A nozzle
28 is provided within the air deflector 12.
[0041] FIGS. 7 to 12 show various views of the nozzle 28. The
nozzle 28 has an air inlet 30 at one longitudinal end and an air
outlet 32 at an opposite longitudinal end, defining an air conduit
34 therebetween. It should be noted that:
[0042] a. the area of the air outlet 32 is smaller than the area of
the air inlet 30;
[0043] b. when the nozzle 28 is assembled to the air deflector 12,
it can oscillate to and fro about an axis of oscillation L-L. When
the nozzle 28 is assembled with the air deflector 12, the axis of
oscillation L-L is fixed relative to the housing 24;
[0044] c. as shown more clearly in FIG. 8, a right side 36 of the
air outlet 28 (in the sense as shown in FIG. 8) is thicker than the
left side 38 of the air outlet 28. The weight of the air deflector
28 is therefore not symmetrically distributed about a longitudinal
plane containing its central longitudinal axis A-A as shown in FIG.
9 and its axis of oscillation L-L as shown in FIG. 8. Put another
way, the centre of gravity of the air deflector 28 lies away from
the longitudinal plane containing its central longitudinal axis A-A
and its axis of oscillation L-L. More particularly, the centre of
gravity of the air deflector 28 lies rightward of the longitudinal
plane containing its central longitudinal axis A-A and its axis of
oscillation L-L, again in the sense as shown in FIG. 8; and
[0045] d. two narrow rims 40 are provided along the inner edge of
the air outlet 32 of the nozzle 28. Both rims 40 extend inwardly
towards the central longitudinal axis A-A of the nozzle 28.
[0046] As shown in FIGS. 13 and 14, when the nozzle 28 is assembled
within the air deflector 12, the nozzle 28 is freely hinged to the
housing 24 for to-and-fro oscillation relative to the housing 24
about the axis of oscillation L-L within the confines of the
housing 24, and within an angle of less than 180.degree..
[0047] As shown more clearly in FIGS. 15 and 16, the air deflector
12 includes a housing 24 comprising a front cover 42, a body 44 and
an end piece 46, with a common central longitudinal axis M-M. The
nozzle 28 includes two diametrically opposite pins 48, 50. The pin
48 is received within an upper hole 52 of the body 44 and the pin
50 is received within a lower hole 53 (see FIG. 16) of the body 44.
The nozzle 28 can thus freely oscillate relative to the body 44 of
the housing 24 about the axis L-L which joins the pins 48, 50. The
switch 26 is slidable to and fro along a slot 54 on an outer
surface 56 of the body 44 in a direction along the bi-directional
arrow G-G in FIG. 15, which is parallel to the central longitudinal
axis M-M of the housing 24.
[0048] In operation, when the air deflector 12 is engaged with the
air exit 16 of the hair dryer 10, air (heated or otherwise) exiting
the air exit 16 of the hair dryer 10 will be received through the
air ingress 20 of the air deflector 12, through the air inlet 30 of
the nozzle 28, through the air conduit 34, out of the air outlet 32
of the nozzle 28, and out of the air egress 22 of the air deflector
12. It is found that passing of air from the air inlet 30 to the
air outlet 32 of the nozzle 28 (and thus through the nozzle 28)
will set the nozzle 28 into to-and-fro oscillating movement about
its axis L-L, thus continuously changing the direction of the air
exiting the nozzle 28, and thus exiting the air deflector 12. The
fact that the weight of the nozzle 28 is asymmetrically distributed
about the longitudinal plane containing its central longitudinal
axis A-A and its axis of oscillation L-L ensures that even when the
nozzle 28 is at its centre position, the reaction force of air
impinging on the inner surface of the nozzle 28 is not balanced,
thus ensuring continuous oscillating movement of the nozzle 28. It
is found in practice that the presence of the two rims 40 along the
inner edge of the air outlet 32 of the nozzle 28 enhances the
oscillating movement.
[0049] It can be seen from FIG. 16 that the end piece 46 includes
an outer shell 64 and an inner funnel 66 which are integrally
formed with each other. An inner opening end 67 of the funnel 66 is
received into the nozzle 28 through the air inlet 30 of the nozzle
28. By way of such an arrangement, all air from the hair dryer 10
will enter the end piece 46 (and thus the housing 24 of the air
deflector 12) through the funnel 66. This also means that all air
from the hair dryer 10 will enter the nozzle 28, to cause the
nozzle 28 to oscillate. All such air will subsequently exit the air
outlet 32 of the nozzle 28 and eventually the air egress 22 of the
air deflector 12.
[0050] The switch 26 is engaged with a wire spring 58 with a bent
recess 60. In operation, when the nozzle 28 is in a centre
position, the switch 26 may be moved, e.g. manually by a user, to
push the spring 58 so as to have the recess 60 engaged with a
protrusion 62 extending upwardly from the nozzle 28, so as to
prevent oscillation of the nozzle 28, thus locking the nozzle 28,
even upon passing of air through the nozzle 28. The user may
subsequently move the switch 26 away from the protrusion 62 so as
to disengage the wire spring 58 from the protrusion, thus unlocking
the nozzle 28, allowing it to oscillate upon passing of air
therethrough.
[0051] In the above discussion and the relevant drawings, the air
deflector 12 is discussed and shown as being engageable with the
air exit 16 of the hair dryer 10 in a configuration in which the
axis of oscillation L-L of the nozzle 28 is vertical (in the sense
of FIG. 4), such that the nozzle 28 can oscillate horizontally
(again in the sense of FIG. 4). It is envisaged that the air
deflector 12 may be engaged with the air exit 16 of the hair dryer
10 in more than one configuration. In an alternative configuration,
the air deflector 12 is engaged with the air exit 16 of the hair
dryer 10 such that the axis of oscillation L-L of the nozzle 28 is
rotated by 90.degree., and is thus horizontal (in the sense of FIG.
4), in which case the nozzle 28 can oscillate up and down (again in
the sense of FIG. 4). In a still further configuration, the axis of
oscillation L-L of the nozzle 28 may be slanted (in the sense of
FIG. 4) such that the nozzle 28 can oscillate in a slanted manner
(again in the sense of FIG. 4). In a yet further configuration, the
air deflector 12, when engaged with the air exit 16 of the hair
dryer 10, may be freely rotatable relative to the hair dryer 10
about an axis substantially parallel to the central longitudinal
axis M-M of the air deflector 12, including the central
longitudinal axis M-M of the air deflector 12, thus brining about
simultaneous corresponding rotation of the nozzle 28.
[0052] A second exemplary air deflector, being an accessory for a
hair treatment device according to another embodiment of the
present invention, is shown FIGS. 17 to 26, generally designated as
12a. The structure of the air deflector 12a is very similar to that
of the air deflector 12 discussed above.
[0053] One difference between the air deflector 12a and the air
deflector 12 is that, in the air deflector 12a, an air outlet 32a
of a nozzle 28a hinged with and within the air deflector 12a for
to-and-fro oscillation about an axis L.sub.a-L.sub.a relative to
and within `the confines of a housing 24a and within an angle of
less than 180.degree. is thicker on its left side 38a (in the sense
of FIG. 20) than its right side 36a (again in the sense of FIG.
20).
[0054] A more important difference between the air deflector 12a
and the air deflector 12 resides in the locking mechanism. As shown
more clearly in FIGS. 21 to 26, a switch 26a engaged with the air
deflector 12a has a locking plate 68a with a recess 70a facing a
protrusion 62a of and fixed to the nozzle 28a. FIGS. 21, 22, 25 and
26 show the switch 26a in an outer position in which the protrusion
62a of the nozzle 28a is clear of the recess 70a of the locking
plate 68. When the switch 26a is in this unlocked position, the
nozzle 28a can oscillate within the housing 24a of the air
deflector 12a and about its axis LaLa upon passing of air
therethrough. When the switch 26a is moved towards the nozzle 28a
to its inner locking position, and when the nozzle 28a is in its
centre position (as shown in FIGS. 23 and 24), the protrusion 62a
is received within the recess 70a. In such a scenario, the nozzle
28a cannot oscillate about the axis` L.sub.a-L.sub.a relative to
the housing 24a even upon passing of air therethrough.
[0055] In the embodiments discussed above, the effect of the weight
of the nozzle 28, 28a being asymmetrically distributed about the
longitudinal plane containing its central longitudinal axis A-A and
its axis of oscillation L-L, L.sub.a-L.sub.a is brought about by
having one side of the nozzle 28, 28a thicker than the other side.
It is envisaged that such an effect can also be brought about in
the following manners:
[0056] a. the nozzle is made by joining two body halves of
symmetrical outer shapes, but of materials of different densities.
The nozzle so formed is thus symmetrical in outer shape about the
longitudinal plane containing its central longitudinal axis and its
axis of oscillation, but its centre of gravity lies away from this
plane and towards the body half made of the material with a higher
density; or
[0057] b. while the outer shape of the nozzle is symmetrical about
the longitudinal plane containing its central longitudinal axis and
its axis of oscillation, part of the material in one side of the
nozzle is removed, so that the centre of gravity of the nozzle lies
away from this plane and towards the side of the body from which no
material is removed.
[0058] Each of FIGS. 27 to 29 is a cross sectional view of the air
deflector 12, 12a, in which FIG. 27 shows the nozzle 28, 28a in a
left-most position, FIG. 28 shows the nozzle 28, 28a in a centre
position, and FIG. 29 shows the nozzle 28, 28a in a right-most
position. Upon passing of air from the hair dryer 10 through the
nozzle 28, 28a, the nozzle 28, 28a will oscillate about the axis
La-La and within the confines of the housing 24a so as to
continuously change the direction in which the air exits the air
deflector 12, 12a, as shown by the arrows T, S, R in FIGS. 27, 28
and 29 respectively. It can be seen that the air exiting the air
deflector 12, 12a (and thus exiting the hair dryer 10) covers a
wider area and a wider angle than in the absence of the air
deflector 12, 12a.
[0059] Experiments have been carried out to assess the performance
of an electric hair dryer attached with an air deflector according
to the present invention, with the following basic experiment
parameters:
[0060] Input Voltage: 220 volts
[0061] Output Wattage/Full Power: 1875 watts
[0062] The electric hair dryer has a High-Speed mode of operation
and a Low-Speed mode of operation.
Frequency of Oscillation of Sample Air Deflector
TABLE-US-00001 [0063] Mode of Operation Frequency of Oscillation
High Speed 402 rounds per minute Low Speed 125 round per minute
[0064] Given the very high speed of oscillation of the air
deflector, the user will not feel pulses of air flow from the hair
dryer, but a continuous stream of air flow of an even temperature
and of a wider area of coverage than with the hair dryer alone and
without the air deflector.
[0065] The present invention has so far been discussed in the
context of the hair treatment device being an electric hair dryer.
It is of course readily apparent to a person skilled in the art
that the hair treatment device may be in other nature or forms,
e.g. a diffuser.
[0066] In the foregoing discussion of the present invention, the
air deflector is disclosed as being releasably engageable with the
air exit of the electric hair dryer. It is envisaged that the
present invention also encompasses the arrangement in which a
built-in air deflecting mechanism is provided in the air passageway
way of an electric hair treatment device, such as a hair dryer or
diffuser.
[0067] In such an alternative arrangement, the hair treatment
device (e.g. a hair dryer or diffuser) includes an air entrance and
an air exit defining an air passageway therebetween, an air flow
generator to draw air into the device through the air entrance and
to drive the air out of the device through the air exit, and a
nozzle in the air passageway downstream of the air flow generator.
The nozzle includes an air inlet and an air outlet, the air inlet
being configured to receive all or at least part of the air flowing
in the air passageway from the air flow generator, and thus from
the air entrance, and the air outlet allows exit of the air
received by the air inlet. The nozzle is engaged with (e.g. being
freely hinged to) the hair treatment device for to-and-fro
oscillation about an axis of oscillation and within an angle of
less than 180.degree. relative to and within the passageway to
continuously change the direction of the air exiting the nozzle,
and thus the hair treatment device. The nozzle is preferably
positioned close to the air exit of the hair treatment device. All
other features of the air deflector discussed above (e.g. the
locking/unlocking mechanism, the shapes and construction of the
nozzle, and different possible orientations of the nozzle relative
to the hair treatment device) may also be incorporated in this
arrangement. It is also envisaged that the nozzle may be freely
rotatable relative to the passageway about an axis substantially
parallel to the central longitudinal axis A-A of the nozzle,
including the central longitudinal axis A-A of the nozzle.
[0068] It should be understood that the above only illustrates
examples whereby the present invention may be carried out, and that
various modifications and/or alterations may be made thereto
without departing from the spirit of the invention.
[0069] It should also be understood that certain features of the
invention, which are, for clarity, described in the context of
separate embodiments, may be provided in combination in a single
embodiment. Conversely, various features of the invention which
are, for brevity, described in the context of a single embodiment,
may also be provided separately or in any appropriate
sub-combinations.
* * * * *