Hand held appliances

Abstract

A hand held appliance including a handle, a head part for use in performing a treatment on a body of a user of the appliance, an electrically operable vibration generating device, and a control device to control operation of the vibration generating device. The control device is proximity or touch sensitive and has a sensor element located at the head part. The vibration generating device is actuated in response to a user of the appliance moving the head part into close proximity to, or into contact with, the body for treating the body.

1 . A hand held appliance comprising
 a handle;   a head part for use in performing a treatment on a body of a user of the appliance;   an electrically operable vibration generating device; and   a control device to control operation of the vibration generating device, wherein the control device is proximity or touch sensitive and comprises a sensor element located at the head part, whereby the vibration generating device is actuated in response to the user of the appliance moving the head part into close proximity to, or into contact with, the body for treating the body.   
     
     
         2 . A hand held appliance of  claim 1 , wherein the appliance is a safety razor with a head part in the form of a blade unit, and wherein the vibration generating device is operable to vibrate at least a component of the blade unit. 
     
     
         3 . A hand held appliance of  claim 1 , wherein the appliance further comprises a delivery system to dispense a fluid substance at the head part, and an electrical device controlled by the control device to cause the fluid substance to be dispensed. 
     
     
         4 . A hand held appliance of  claim 2 , wherein the vibration generating device comprises an electric motor controlled by the control device. 
     
     
         5 . A hand held appliance of  claim 4 , wherein the vibration generating device comprises a rotatable eccentric weight arranged to be rotated by the electric motor. 
     
     
         6 . A hand held appliance of  claim 2 , wherein the control device is arranged to provide a delay of up to a few seconds in deactivating the vibration generating device in response to the blade unit being moved away from contact with the body of the user. 
     
     
         7 . A hand held appliance of  claim 6 , wherein the control device is arranged to provide a delay of 0.1 to 0.5 seconds. 
     
     
         8 . A hand held appliance of  claim 1 , wherein the sensor element comprises an electrode. 
     
     
         9 . A hand held appliance of  claim 2 , wherein the sensor element comprises an electrode comprising a blade of the blade unit. 
     
     
         10 . A hand held appliance of  claim 8 , further comprising a second electrode and wherein the control device is sensitive to a change in an electrical parameter between the electrodes. 
     
     
         11 . A hand held appliance of  claim 10 , wherein the second electrode is arranged so as to be, in use, in close proximity to or in contact with the body of the user. 
     
     
         12 . A hand held appliance of  claim 10 , wherein said second electrode is provided as part of the handle. 
     
     
         13 . A hand held appliance of  claim 10 , wherein the electrical parameter is electrical resistance. 
     
     
         14 . A hand held appliance of  claim 10 , wherein the electrical parameter is electrical capacitance. 
     
     
         15 . A hand held appliance of  claim 1 , further comprising an electric power source arranged to supply electric power for said control device and said vibration generating device. 
     
     
         16 . A hand held appliance of  claim 15 , further comprising a switch device arranged to connect or interrupt the supply of electric power from said electric power source to said control device and said vibration generating device. 
     
     
         17 . A hand held appliance of  claim 16 , wherein said switch device is provided on the exterior of the appliance and is manually operable by the user. 
     
     
         18 . A safety razor comprising a blade unit carried on a handle; an electrical device; and a control device to control operation of the electrical device, wherein the control device is in proximity or is touch sensitive and includes a sensor element located on the blade unit whereby the electrical device is actuated in response to a user of the appliance moving the blade unit into close proximity to or into contact with the body of the user, and the electrical device comprises a dispensing device actuable for delivery of a shaving enhancement product to the blade unit for application to the skin being shaved. 
     
     
         19 . A safety razor of  claim 18 , further comprising a conditioning device incorporated in the blade unit and actuable for acting on the skin to be shaved and hairs to be cut or both. 
     
     
         20 . A wet-shaving razor comprising:
 a handle;   a razor blade unit configured to be detachably connected to said handle, said unit comprising a plurality of blades;   an electrical device operable to vibrate the blade unit; and   a control device to control operation of the electrical device, wherein the control device is in proximity or is touch sensitive and comprises a sensor element located at the razor blade unit, whereby the electrical device is actuated in response to a user of the appliance moving the blades into close proximity to, or into contact with, the user's body for cutting hair.