Diffuser

Abstract

A diffuser for attachment to an airflow outlet end of a hair dryer has an air inlet, a grille having a central portion and a plurality of air outlets for emitting a first part of the airflow; and a plurality of projections upstanding from the grille for contacting hair and emitting a second part of the airflow. The projections include a set of inner projections arranged about the central portion of the grille, and a set of outer projections arranged about the inner projections. The air outlets of a first subset of inner projections are arranged to emit air away from the central portion of the grille and the air outlets of a second subset of inner projections are arranged to emit air towards the central portion of the grille. The air outlets of the outer projections are arranged to emit air towards the central portion of the grille.

1 . A diffuser for attachment to an airflow outlet end of a hair dryer, the diffuser comprising:
 at least one air inlet for receiving an airflow from a hair dryer;   a grille comprising a central portion and a plurality of air outlets for emitting a first part of the airflow from the diffuser; and   a plurality of projections upstanding from the grille for contacting the hair of a user and for emitting a second part of the airflow, each of the projections comprising a single air outlet;   wherein the plurality of projections comprise a set of inner projections arranged about the central portion of the grille, and a set of outer projections arranged about the inner projections, and wherein the air outlets of a first subset of inner projections are arranged to emit air away from the central portion of the grille and the air outlets of a second subset of inner projections are arranged to emit air towards the central portion of the grille, and the air outlets of the outer projections are arranged to emit air towards the central portion of the grille.   
     
     
         2 . The diffuser according to  claim 1 , wherein the inner projections are arranged in an annular array. 
     
     
         3 . The diffuser according to  claim 1 , wherein the inner projections are arranged about some of the air outlets of the grille. 
     
     
         4 . The diffuser according to  claim 1 , wherein the number of projections in the first subset of inner projections is equal to the number of projections in the second subset of inner projections. 
     
     
         5 . The diffuser according to  claim 1 , wherein the inner projections are arranged at equiangular intervals. 
     
     
         6 . The diffuser according to  claim 1 , wherein the first subset of inner projections and the second subset of inner projections are alternately arranged about the central portion of the grille. 
     
     
         7 . The diffuser according to  claim 1 , wherein the air outlets of first subset of inner projections are arranged to emit air radially away from the central portion of the grille and the second subset of inner projections are arranged to emit air radially towards the central portion of the grille. 
     
     
         8 . The diffuser according to  claim 1 , wherein the outer projections are arranged in an annular array. 
     
     
         9 . The diffuser according to  claim 1 , wherein the set of inner projections and the set of outer projections are concentric. 
     
     
         10 . The diffuser according to  claim 1 , wherein the angular spacing between adjacent inner projections is substantially the same as the angular spacing between adjacent outer projections. 
     
     
         11 . The diffuser according to  claim 1 , wherein the outer projections are arranged at equiangular intervals. 
     
     
         12 . The diffuser according to  claim 1 , wherein the air outlets of the outer projections are arranged to emit air radially towards the central portion of the grille. 
     
     
         13 . The diffuser according to  claim 1 , comprising a set of intermediary projections located between the inner projections and the outer projections. 
     
     
         14 . The diffuser according to  claim 13 , wherein each of the intermediary projections comprises a single air outlet arranged to emit air towards the central portion of the grille. 
     
     
         15 . The diffuser according to  claim 14 , wherein the air outlets of the intermediary projections are arranged to emit air radially towards the central portion of the grille. 
     
     
         16 . The diffuser according to  claim 13 , wherein the intermediary projections are angularly offset relative to both the inner projections and the outer projections. 
     
     
         17 . The diffuser according to  claim 13 , wherein the intermediary projections are arranged in an annular array. 
     
     
         18 . The diffuser according to  claim 13 , wherein the number of intermediary projections is equal to the number of outer projections. 
     
     
         19 . The diffuser according to  claim 1 , wherein the outer projections are located adjacent to the outer periphery of the diffuser. 
     
     
         20 . The diffuser according to  claim 1 , wherein the central portion of the grille comprises a circular unperforated grille area.