The present invention relates to hair removal. In order to provide a hair-removal apparatus with improved user acceptance, a hair-removal apparatus (10) is provided that comprises a hair-removal device (12) with a movable hair-removal component (14) which comprises at least a first hair-contacting member (36) and a second hair-contacting member (36) which are movable relative to each other and which are configured and arranged to mutually co-operate for removing hairs by mutually exerting a contact force, a pressing component (40) configured and arranged to generate said contact force by exerting a pressing force (20) on the movable hair-removal component during operation, a skin proximity sensing component (16), and a force adjusting component (18). The skin proximity sensing component (16) is configured and arranged to detect a relative distance (22) between the movable hair-removal component (14) and a portion of the skin (24) with hairs to be removed. The force adjusting component (18) is configured and arranged to adjust, during operation, the pressing force (20) exerted by the pressing component (40) in dependence on the relative distance (22) detected by the skin proximity sensing component (16). The movable hair-removal component (14) has a functional mode wherein the contact force has a first value and a non-functional mode wherein the contact force has a second value smaller than the first value. The force adjusting component (18) is configured and arranged to adjust the pressing force (20) exerted by the pressing component (40) such that, when the relative distance (22) detected by the skin proximity sensing component (16) is a first relative distance (26), the movable hair-removal component (14) operates in the non-functional mode and, when the relative distance (22) detected by the skin proximity sensing component (16) is a second relative distance (28) smaller than the first relative distance (26), the movable hair-removal component (14) operates in the functional mode.

A shaver head assembly includes at least one cutting head component having a housing, an inner cutting blade mounted to the housing and configured and adapted to rotate about an axis and an outer cutting disc coaxially mounted about the axis. The outer cutting disc is configured to oscillate about the axis through positive and negative predetermined angular sectors of rotation, and is configured to cooperate with the inner cutting blade to cut hair.

A shaver head assembly includes at least one cutting head component having a housing, an inner cutting blade mounted to the housing and configured and adapted to rotate about an axis and an outer cutting disc coaxially mounted about the axis. The outer cutting disc is configured to oscillate about the axis through positive and negative predetermined angular sectors of rotation, and is configured to cooperate with the inner cutting blade to cut hair.

A hair-removal apparatus is provided that comprises a hair-removal device with a movable hair-removal component, which comprises at least a first hair-contacting member and a second hair-contacting member, which are movable relative to each other and which are configured and arranged to mutually co-operate for removing hairs by mutually exerting a contact force, a pressing component configured and arranged to generate said contact force by exerting a pressing force on the movable hair-removal component during operation, a skin proximity sensing component, and a force adjusting component. The skin proximity sensing component is configured and arranged to detect a relative distance between the movable hair-removal component and a portion of the skin with hairs to be removed. The force adjusting component is configured and arranged to adjust, during operation, the pressing force exerted by the pressing component in dependence on the relative distance detected by the skin proximity sensing component.

A rotary electric shaver according to the present invention includes an outer blade whose upper surface functions as annular shaving surfaces having multiple hair inlets formed therein, and an inner blade that has a small blade which rotates while coming into sliding contact with a lower surface of the outer blade. The inner blade is an integral structure using a metal material, and has a projection in which an upper surface side is a convex portion and a lower surface side is a concave portion at a center position in a radial direction. An upper end portion of an inner blade drive shaft directly engages with the concave portion so as to be disengageable therefrom.

A shaving system is disclosed comprising a shaving unit (14) and a cleaning device (22), wherein the shaving unit (14) comprises at least one hair-cutting unit having a movable hair-cutting member; the cleaning device (22) comprises a supporting structure for supporting the shaving unit (14), and a receiving space (26) for receiving the shaving unit (14) when the shaving unit (14) is arranged in a cleaning position supported by the supporting structure (24); and the cleaning device (22) comprises a reservoir (32) for containing a cleaning liquid and a fluid pumping unit (38) for transporting the cleaning liquid from the reservoir (32) to the receiving space (26); wherein the shaving unit (14) comprises a driven coupling member (30) which is accessible from an outside of the shaving unit (14) and which is coupled to the movable hair-cutting member such that the movable hair-cutting member is drivable by the driven coupling member (30); the cleaning device (22) comprises a driving coupling member (28) which is accessible from an outside of the cleaning device (22), and an electric actuator (34) coupled to the driving coupling member (28) such that the driving coupling member (28) is drivable by the electric actuator (34); and the driving coupling member (28) and the driven coupling member (30) are arranged such that, in the cleaning position of the shaving unit (14), the driven coupling member (30) is coupled to the driving coupling member (28) such that the movable hair-cutting member is drivable by the driving coupling member (28) via the driven coupling member (30).

A rotary electric shaver includes an outer blade whose upper surface functions as annular shaving surfaces having multiple hair inlets formed therein, and an inner blade that has a small blade which rotates while coming into sliding contact with a lower surface of the outer blade. The small blade is formed so that an inner blade base plate is partially erected, and is disposed in at least two rows on a circumference close to an outer periphery and on a circumference close to an inner periphery. There is provided a movable inner blade that has a movable small blade which is vertically movable along a front end surface in a rotation direction of the small blade, with respect to the predetermined small blade.

An inner blade of a rotary electric shaver decreases a rake angle and increases an erecting angle in a small blade, which can prevent remaining hair from appearing on one end side in a cross section of hair, and which can prevent poor shaving performance and increased sliding resistance against an outer blade. An inner blade of a rotary electric shaver includes an outer blade whose upper surface functions as an annular shaving surface having multiple hair inlets, and the inner blade having a plurality of small blades which rotate while coming into sliding contact with a lower surface of the outer blade. The small blade is formed by erecting a portion of a metal plate so that an angle of a front side in a rotation direction with respect to a plate surface of the metal plate becomes an acute angle, the front side in the rotation direction has a concave portion having a shape hollowed toward a lower end portion from an upper end surface which comes into sliding contact with the outer blade, and an upper end edge defined by the upper end surface and the concave portion functions as a blade edge.

A rotary electric shaver having a support structure in which a followability of an outer blade to a skin surface is enhanced.

A rotary electric shaver includes a main body in which a first transmission mechanism, and a connecting portion is disposed; a head unit in which a plurality of blade units each having an outer blade, an inner blade being in sliding contact with an inner surface of the outer blade, and a driven shaft rotating the inner blade are disposed, and a second transmission mechanism that transmits a power of the first transmission mechanism to rotate the driven shaft is built, and which is connected to the connecting portion. The head unit has a first magnet disposed at a position corresponding to each of the blade units. The main body has a second magnet disposed at a position facing and repelling the first magnet.

This electric shaver has outer blades, inner blades, an inner-blade joint component, and skin-entry prevention parts. The outer blades have outer-blade holes. The inner blades have main inner-blade walls, multiple blade pieces, inner-blade holes, and internal inner-blade spaces. The inner blades move back and forth relative to the outer blades so as to cut hair that has entered through the outer-blade holes. The main inner-blade walls are connected to the inner-blade joint component. The internal inner-blade spaces are bounded by the main inner-blade walls and the multiple blade pieces. The skin-entry prevention parts are located inside the internal inner-blade spaces, at positions that correspond to the inner-blade holes, and are structured so as to contact skin that has entered the internal inner-blade spaces via the inter-blade holes.