Personal care implement with replacement head

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11160358-B2
Application number	US-201716464324-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 22, 2017
Priority date	Nov 28, 2016
Publication date	Nov 2, 2021
Grant date	Nov 2, 2021

Abstract

A personal care implement includes a treatment device having a longitudinal axis and including a treatment portion having at least one treatment element; a connection portion having a main body and a first resilient snap attachment protruding from the main body, the main body formed of a first material having a first hardness and the first resilient snap attachment formed of a second material having a second hardness, the first hardness being greater than the second hardness; and the treatment device is alterable between: (1) a detached state; and (2) an assembled state in which the treatment device is detachably coupled to a grip section such that the first resilient snap attachment cooperates with and engages a first engagement portion of the grip section to secure the treatment device to the grip section.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A personal care implement, comprising:
a treatment device having a longitudinal axis and comprising:
a treatment portion having at least one treatment element;
a connection portion having a main body and a first resilient snap attachment protruding from the main body; and
the treatment device is alterable between: (1) a detached state; and (2) an assembled state in which the treatment device is detachably coupled to a grip section such that the first resilient snap attachment cooperates with and engages a first engagement portion of the grip section to secure the treatment device to the grip section;
wherein the first resilient snap attachment is configured such that during transition from the detached state to the assembled state, the first resilient snap attachment is deflected in a first circumferential direction relative to the longitudinal axis to allow the first resilient snap attachment to pass by the first engagement portion.

2. The personal care implement of claim 1 , wherein the treatment device is an oral treatment device, the treatment portion is an oral insertion portion, and the treatment element is an oral treatment element.

3. The personal care implement of claim 1 , further comprising a second resilient snap attachment protruding from the main body, wherein the second resilient snap attachment is configured to cooperate with and engage a second engagement portion of the grip section to secure the treatment device to the grip section.

4. The personal care implement of claim 3 , wherein the first resilient snap attachment is located on a first side of the main body of the connection portion, the second resilient snap attachment is located on a second side of the main body of the connection portion, and the first side is opposite the second side.

5. The personal care implement of claim 1 , wherein the resilient snap attachment is crescent shaped.

6. The personal care implement of claim 1 , wherein the resilient snap attachment protrudes radially relative to the longitudinal axis.

7. The personal care implement of claim 1 , further comprising the grip section, the grip section having a longitudinal axis.

8. The personal care implement of claim 7 , wherein the grip section comprises a connection receptacle, the connection receptacle comprising the first engagement portion and a first recess configured to receive the first resilient snap attachment, the first recess being located in a first inside surface of the connection receptacle.

9. The personal care implement of claim 8 , wherein the connection receptacle further comprises a second recess configured to receive a second resilient snap attachment protruding from the main body, the second recess being located in a second inside surface of the connection receptacle,
wherein the first inside surface is opposite the second inside surface.

10. The personal care implement of claim 9 , wherein the first engagement portion is a protrusion into the first recess that reduces the size of the first recess, and the second engagement portion is a protrusion into the second recess that reduces the size of the second recess.

11. The personal care implement of claim 1 , wherein the connection portion is configured such that during transition from the detached state to the assembled state, the first resilient snap attachment is deflected to a first degree by the first engagement portion to allow the first resilient snap attachment to pass by the first engagement portion, and is deflected to a degree less than the first degree after it passes by the first engagement portion such that removal of the treatment device from the grip section is impeded by the first resilient snap attachment contacting the first engagement portion.

12. A personal care implement, comprising:
a treatment device having a longitudinal axis and comprising:
a treatment portion having at least one treatment element;
a connection receptacle having a first recess located in a first inside surface of the connection receptacle, and a first engagement portion located in the first recess;
the first engagement portion extends circumferentially relative to the longitudinal axis in a first circumferential direction;
the treatment device is alterable between: (1) a detached state; and (2) an assembled state in which the treatment device is detachably coupled to a grip section such that the first engagement portion cooperates with and engages a first resilient snap attachment of the grip section to secure the treatment device to the grip section, the first resilient snap attachment protruding from a main body of a connection portion of the grip section;
wherein the first resilient snap attachment is configured such that during transition from the detached state to the assembled state, the first resilient snap attachment is deflected in the first circumferential direction relative to the longitudinal axis to allow the first resilient snap attachment to pass by the first engagement portion.

13. The personal care implement of claim 12 , wherein the treatment device is an oral treatment device, the treatment portion is an oral insertion portion, and the treatment element is an oral treatment element.

14. The personal care implement of claim 12 , wherein the first engagement portion is a protrusion into the first recess that reduces the size of the first recess.

15. The personal care implement of claim 12 , further comprising a second recess located in a second inside surface of the connection receptacle, and a second engagement portion located in the second recess, the second engagement portion extending circumferentially relative to the longitudinal axis in a second circumferential direction opposite to the first circumferential direction.

16. The personal care implement of claim 12 , further comprising the grip section, the grip section having a longitudinal axis.

17. The personal care implement of claim 12 , wherein the main body of the connection portion is formed of a first material having a first hardness and the first resilient snap attachment is formed of a second material having a second hardness, the first hardness being greater than the second hardness.

18. The personal care implement of claim 12 , wherein the first resilient snap attachment is located on a first side of the main body of the connection portion and a second resilient snap attachment is located on a second side of the main body of the connection portion, the first side opposite the second side.

19. The personal care implement of claim 18 , wherein the resilient snap attachments protrude radially relative to the longitudinal axis of the grip section.

20. The personal care implement of claim 18 , wherein the connection receptacle is configured such that during transition from the detached state to the assembled state, each of the resilient snap attachments is deflected to a first degree by a corresponding one of the engagement portions to allow the resilient snap attachment to pass by the corresponding one of the engagement portions, and is deflected to a degree less than the first degree after it passes by the corresponding one of the engagement portions such that removal of the treatment device from the grip section is impeded by each of the resilient snap attachments contacting one of the engagement portions.

Assignees

• Colgate Palmolive Co

Inventors

• Wainless Daniel
• Hohlbein Douglas
• Henderson Douglas
• Tan Thuanchong
• Fu Pengyang

Classifications

• A46B15/0089 Primary

  Brushes with figurines such as animals on the handle · CPC title

• A46B2200/1066

  Toothbrush for cleaning the teeth or dentures (A61C17/16 takes precedence; bristles arrangements for toothbrushes A46B9/04) · CPC title

• A46B9/04 Primary

  {Arranged like in or} for toothbrushes · CPC title

• A46B5/0095 Primary

  Removable or interchangeable brush heads · CPC title