Toothbrush

Abstract

A toothbrush having novel bristles and/or a novel handle is disclosed. The toothbrush has a better grip and a better massaging effect than in the prior art. The effective areas of bristle contact are preferably flat sections, which increase the total area of contact. The bristles in the present invention are shaped like a polygon in cross-section. The polygon-shaped bristles preferably have three to six sides, and the polygon is preferably a regular polygon. The points of contact on the tooth are the edges of the polygon. When the cleaning direction of the brush is perpendicular to the long axis of the bristle, the effective cleaning agent is a cleaning edge equivalent to the corner of the polygon. The bristles are twisted in a spiral (screw-like) pattern to allow for the tooth to contact primarily the edges of the sides of the bristles. The edges of the bristles are preferably always in contact with the tooth. The toothbrush handle preferably has at least four thumb grips. The thumb grips are preferably concave areas with raised parallel ridges to minimize slip and maximize friction under wet conditions. The handle has a general elongated shape that is preferably slightly elliptical. In a preferred embodiment, each thumb grip area has a layer of soft non-slip material covering it.

What is claimed is:  
     
         1 . An improved toothbrush comprising a handle and a head, wherein the improvement comprises a bristle sub-assembly located on the head of the toothbrush comprising: 
 at least one tuft of bristles, wherein said tuft of bristles comprises a plurality of U-shaped bristles in which a cross-section of said bristles forms a polygon, wherein a first end and a second end of said bristles are embedded in the head such that a middle section of said bristles form a flattened area for contact with a tooth.    
     
     
         2 . The improved toothbrush of  claim 1 , wherein at least a middle portion of each bristle is twisted lengthwise, such that the tooth contacts more than one corner of the polygon during brushing.  
     
     
         3 . The improved toothbrush of  claim 1 , wherein said polygon is a regular polygon.  
     
     
         4 . The improved toothbrush of  claim 3 , wherein all of the internal angles of said regular polygon are less than or equal to 120°.  
     
     
         5 . The improved toothbrush of  claim 3 , wherein said regular polygon is selected from the group consisting of: 
 a) a triangle;    b) a square;    c) a pentagon; and    d) a hexagon.    
     
     
         6 . The improved toothbrush of  claim 1 , wherein there is a plurality of alternating tufts of bristles, wherein a middle section of the bristles in each tuft of bristles is at a 90 degree angle to the middle section of the bristles in the tuft of bristles directly adjacent to it.  
     
     
         7 . The improved toothbrush of  claim 1 , wherein each tuft of bristles further comprises an interior set of bristles and two exterior sets of bristles, wherein said exterior sets of bristles sandwich said interior set of bristles and a middle section of the bristles in said exterior set of bristles is positioned perpendicularly to the middle section of the bristles in said interior set of bristles.  
     
     
         8 . The improved toothbrush of  claim 1 , wherein the handle comprises at least four thumb grips arranged radially around an axis of the handle, wherein said thumb grips comprise a concave area with a plurality of raised parallel ridges.  
     
     
         9 . The improved toothbrush of  claim 8 , wherein a longitudinal cross-section of said handle is elliptical.  
     
     
         10 . An improved toothbrush comprising a handle and a head, wherein the improvement comprises at least four thumb grips arranged radially around an axis of the handle, wherein said thumb grips comprise a concave area with a plurality of raised parallel ridges.  
     
     
         11 . The improved toothbrush of  claim 10 , wherein a longitudinal cross-section of said handle is elliptical.