EP-4739164-A1 - PERSONAL CARE IMPLEMENT

Abstract

A personal care implement having a head portion configured to perform a personal care treatment function, and a handle portion configured to be gripped by a user. The handle portion has a core component and an exterior body portion, both formed from a hard plastic material. The core component has a top surface, a bottom surface, a first lateral side, a second lateral side, and an aperture extending from the first lateral side to the second lateral side. The exterior body portion covers the top and bottom surfaces of the core component while leaving the first and second lateral sides of the core component exposed.

Inventors

• OKAI, TAKAHIDE
• TIAN, YONGCHAO
• HARSACKY, CHRISTOPHER
• FEALTMAN, DYLAN
• VAUTOUR, ERAN
• CHEN, ZHIZHONG
• JI, YANMEI

Assignees

• Colgate-Palmolive Company

Dates

Publication Date

20260513

Application Date

20230811

Claims (20)

1. A personal care implement comprising: a head portion configured to perform a personal care treatment function; a handle portion configured to be gripped by a user, the handle portion comprising: a core component comprising a top surface, a bottom surface, a first lateral side, a second lateral side, and an aperture extending from the first lateral side to the second lateral side; an exterior body portion covering the top and bottom surfaces of the core component while leaving the first and second lateral sides of the core component exposed; and wherein the core component and the exterior body portion are both formed from a hard plastic material.
2. The personal care implement according to claim 1 wherein the handle portion extends along a longitudinal axis, and wherein at least a portion of the core component comprises an I-beam shaped transverse cross-sectional area.
3. The personal care implement according to claim 1 or claim 2 wherein the handle portion extends along a longitudinal axis, and wherein the core component comprises a distal axial portion, a proximal axial portion, and a central axial portion located between the distal and proximal axial portions, and wherein the central axial portion of the core component comprises the aperture.
4. The personal care implement according to claim 3 wherein the distal axial portion and the proximal axial portion of the core component have an I-beam shape.
5. The personal care implement according to claim 3 or claim 4 wherein the central axial portion of the core component comprises: a lower portion having an inner surface that forms a floor of the aperture and an outer surface that forms the bottom surface of the core component; and an upper portion having an inner surface that forms a roof of the aperture and an outer surface that forms the top surface of the core component; and wherein the exterior body portion covers the outer surfaces of the lower and upper portions of the core component.
6. The personal care implement according to any one of claims 1 to 5 wherein the core component is transparent or translucent and the exterior body portion is opaque.
7. The personal care implement according to any one of claims 1 to 67 wherein the core component comprises at least one through-hole extending from the top surface of the core component to the bottom surface of the core component, and wherein the exterior body comprises a filler portion that fills the at least one through-hole of the core component.
8. The personal care implement according to any one of claims 1 to 7 wherein the aperture is elongated in a direction of a longitudinal axis of the personal care implement.
9. The personal care implement according to any one of claims 1 to 8 wherein the exterior body portion comprises an upper strip portion comprising an outer surface that forms a top exterior surface of the handle portion and an inner surface opposite the outer surface, a lower strip portion comprising an outer surface that forms a bottom exterior surface of the handle portion and an inner surface opposite the outer surface, the inner surfaces of the upper and lower strip portions being spaced apart from one another to define a cavity that is open on opposing lateral sides of the exterior body portion, and wherein the core component is positioned within the cavity of the exterior body portion.
10. The personal care implement according to any one of claims 1 to 9 further comprising a main structural body, the main structural body being a monolithic component that that forms the exterior body portion of the handle portion and the head portion.
11. The personal care implement according to any one of claims 1 to 10 wherein the head portion comprises a front surface and a rear surface, and further comprising a plurality of bristles extending from the head portion, the head portion extends along a head axis, wherein the plurality of bristles comprises a plurality of peripheral bristle tufts positioned along a peripheral portion of the front surface of the head portion and a plurality of central bristle tufts positioned along a central portion of the front surface of the head portion, the plurality of peripheral bristle tufts surrounding the plurality of central bristle tufts, and wherein the plurality of central bristle tufts comprises a first bristle tuft extending along a first bristle axis and having a first transverse cross-sectional shape, a second bristle tuft extending along a second bristle axis and having a second transverse cross-sectional shape that is the same as the first transverse cross-sectional shape, and a third bristle tuft extending along a third bristle axis and having a third transverse cross-sectional shape that is different than the first and second transverse cross-sectional shapes, the third bristle tuft being located between the first and second bristle tufts in a direction of the head axis.
12. The personal care implement according to claim 11 wherein the first and second transverse cross-sectional shapes are circles or circular segments and wherein the third transverse cross-sectional shape is rectangular, the third bristle tuft being elongated in the direction of the head axis, wherein the third transverse cross-sectional shape comprises a top side that faces the first bristle tuft, a bottom side that faces the second bristle tuft, and first and second lateral sides extending between the top and bottom sides, wherein the first and second lateral sides are concave.
13. The personal care implement according to claim 12 wherein the plurality of peripheral bristle tufts comprises a first peripheral bristle tuft located on a first side of the head axis and being aligned with the first lateral side of the third transverse cross-sectional shape of the third bristle tuft and a second peripheral bristle tuft located on a second side of the head axis and being aligned with the second lateral side of the third transverse cross-sectional shape of the third bristle tuft, the first and second peripheral bristle tufts comprising convex inner surfaces that face the concave first and second sides of the third transverse cross-sectional shape of the third bristle tuft.
14. The personal care implement according to any one of claims 1 to 13 wherein the core component and the exterior body portion are configured to deflect into the aperture in response to forces being applied onto the handle and head portions of the personal care implement.
15. The personal care implement according to any one of claims 1 to 14 wherein the handle portion extends along a handle axis and wherein the core component comprises a first recess in the first lateral side and second recess in the second lateral side, the first and second recesses being elongated in a direction of the handle axis.
16. The personal care implement according to any one of claims 1 to 15 wherein the core component comprises a lower portion having an inner surface, an upper portion having an inner surface, and at least one beam portion that extends from the inner surface of the lower portion to the inner surface of the upper portion, the at least one beam portion comprising a first side surface that is recessed relative to first side edges of the upper and lower portions and a second side surface that is recessed relative to second side edges of the upper and lower portions.
17. A personal care implement comprising: a head portion configured to perform a personal care treatment function; a handle portion configured to be gripped by a user, the handle portion comprising: a core component comprising a top surface, a bottom surface, a first lateral side, a second lateral side, and an aperture extending from the first lateral side to the second lateral side; an exterior body portion covering the top and bottom surfaces of the core component while leaving the first and second lateral sides of the core component exposed; and wherein the core component and the exterior body component have a different light transmissivity.
18. A personal care implement comprising: a main structural body that extends along a longitudinal axis, the main structural body comprising an exterior body portion of a handle portion, the exterior body portion comprising a top surface that forms a top exterior surface of the handle portion, a bottom surface that forms a bottom exterior surface of the handle portion, a first lateral side, a second lateral side, and a cavity that extends from a first opening in the first lateral side to a second opening in the second lateral side; a core component positioned within the cavity of the exterior body portion, the core component comprising a first lateral side, a second lateral side, a first axial portion comprising an aperture that extends from the first lateral side to the second lateral side, and a second axial portion having an I-beam shaped transverse cross-sectional area.
19. The personal care implement according to claim 18 wherein at least one of: the main structural body and the core component have a different light transmissivity; and the main structural body and the core component are both formed from a hard plastic material.
20. The personal care implement according to any one of claims 18 to 19 wherein the cavity, the first opening, the second opening, and the aperture are elongated in a direction of the longitudinal axis.

Description

PERSONAL CARE IMPLEMENT BACKGROUND Many personal care products, including toothbrushes, are typically manufactured out of plastic and are only intended to be used for a short period of time, after which they are discarded and replaced. Many plastics are not recyclable, are more difficult to recycle, or are not accepted in standard local recycling streams. There is a current trend in many industries to move away from plastic as a material for product manufacture or to reduce the amount of plastic that is used to manufacture a product in order to address environmental concerns. Thus, there is a continuing need to find alternative techniques for reducing the amount of plastic used in the manufacture of toothbrushes and other personal care implements. BRIEF SUMMARY The present invention may be directed to a personal care implement having a head and a handle. The handle may have a core component, an exterior body portion, and an aperture extending through the lateral sides of the implement. In one aspect, the invention may be a personal care implement comprising: a head portion configured to perform a personal care treatment function; a handle portion configured to be gripped by a user, the handle portion comprising: a core component comprising a top surface, a bottom surface, a first lateral side, a second lateral side, and an aperture extending from the first lateral side to the second lateral side; an exterior body portion covering the top and bottom surfaces of the core component while leaving the first and second lateral sides of the core component exposed; and wherein the core component and the exterior body portion are both formed from a hard plastic material. In another aspect, the invention may be a personal care implement comprising: a head portion configured to perform a personal care treatment function; a handle portion configured to be gripped by a user, the handle portion comprising: a core component comprising a top surface, a bottom surface, a first lateral side, a second lateral side, and an aperture extending from the first lateral side to the second lateral side; an exterior body portion covering the top and bottom surfaces of the core component while leaving the first and second lateral sides of the core  component exposed; and wherein the core component is transparent and the exterior body portion is opaque. In yet another aspect, the invention may be a personal care implement comprising: a main structural body that extends along a longitudinal axis, the main structural body comprising an exterior body portion of a handle portion, the exterior body portion comprising a top surface that forms a top exterior surface of the handle portion, a bottom surface that forms a bottom exterior surface of the handle portion, a first lateral side, a second lateral side, and a cavity that extends from a first opening in the first lateral side to a second opening in the second lateral side; and a core component positioned within the cavity of the exterior body portion, the core component comprising a first lateral side, a second lateral side, a first axial portion that defines an aperture that extends from the first lateral side to the second lateral side, and a second axial portion having an I-beam shaped transverse cross-sectional area. In yet another aspect, the invention may be a personal care implement comprising: a head portion configured to perform a personal care treatment function; and a handle portion configured to be gripped by a user during performance of the oral care treatment function, the handle portion extending along a handle axis and comprising a top surface, a bottom surface, a first lateral surface, a second lateral surface, a first axial portion comprising an aperture that extends from the first lateral surface to the second lateral surface and is elongated in a direction of the handle axis, and a second axial portion comprising an I-beam shaped transverse cross-sectional area. In another aspect, the invention may be a personal care implement comprising: a handle portion configured to be gripped by a user during performance of a personal care treatment function; and a head extending along a head axis and comprising a head portion having a front surface and a plurality of tooth cleaning elements extending from the front surface, the plurality of tooth cleaning elements comprising: a plurality of central bristle tufts positioned along a central portion of the front surface of the head portion, the plurality of central bristle tufts comprising a first bristle tuft extending along a first bristle axis and having a first transverse cross-sectional shape, a second bristle tuft extending along a second bristle axis and having a second transverse cross-sectional shape that is the same as the first transverse cross-sectional shape, and a third bristle tuft extending along a third bristle axis and having a third transverse cross-sectional shape that is different than the first and secon