DEVICE FOR MANUAL APPLICATION OF A LIQUID

Abstract

The invention concerns a device for manual application of a liquid, particularly for painting, marking, drawing, writing and/or applying make-up to keratinous surfaces, in which the device has a capillary store for the liquid. According to the invention a device for measuring the filling level of the capillary store is provided.

Claims

1. A device for manual application of a liquid, comprising: a capillary store for the liquid, the capillary store having a filling level, a device for measuring the filling level of the capillary store.

2. The device according to claim 1, wherein the device for measuring the filling level comprises a moisture sensor.

3. The device according to claim 2, wherein the moisture sensor comprises conducting paths configured and arranged to measure the filling level of the capillary store resistively or capacitively.

4. The device according to claim 3, wherein the conducting paths comprise a comb-like structure.

5. The device according claim 1, further comprising an interface configured to contactlessly provide a result of the filling level measurement.

6. The device according to claim 5, further comprising an electronic circuit connected to an antenna and the device for measuring the filling level.

7. The device according to claim 6, wherein the antenna is configured to supply the electronic circuit with power.

8. The device according to claim 6, wherein the device comprises a flat outer surface extending in a longitudinal direction of the device and the antenna is disposed parallel to the outer surface.

9. The device according claim 6, wherein the antenna comprises at least two antenna disposed in planes that are perpendicular to each other.

10. The device according to claim 6, further comprising a capacitor and a rectifier for supplying the electronic circuit with power.

11. The device according to claim 5, wherein the device for measuring the filling level, the interface, or the device for measuring the filling level and the interface are disposed on a carrier.

12. The device according to claim 5, wherein the device for measuring the filling level, the interface, or the device for measuring the filling level and the interface are arranged in the capillary store.

13. The device according to claim 12, wherein the capillary store comprises a longitudinal center line and in the cross-sectional view, the device for measuring the filling level, the interface, or the device for measuring the filling level and the interface have a distance of at least 5% of a maximum transverse extension of the capillary store from a longitudinal axis, an outer limit of the capillary store, or the longitudinal axis and the outer limit of the capillary store.

14. The device according to claim 1, wherein the carrier is constructed of a flexible polymer.

Description

[0018] The invention is explained in more detail in the following using a preferred example embodiment with reference to the enclosed drawing with further details. They show

[0019] FIG. 1 a diagrammatic, perspective view of an example embodiment of the applicator device according to the invention in the form of a flat marker,

[0020] FIG. 2 the marker from FIG. 1, but without its front part,

[0021] FIG. 3 a diagrammatic view of an example embodiment of the filling level measurement device according to the invention, including electronic circuit and antenna,

[0022] FIG. 4 diagrammatically the arrangement of the elements in a capillary store shown in FIG. 3 and

[0023] FIG. 5 the same view as FIG. 4, but from another embodiment.

[0024] FIGS. 3 to 5 show a carrier strip 1, an antenna 2, an electronic circuit 3, conducting paths 4, a fibre store that is indicated with the reference number 8 as a whole and a filling 9 of the fibre store 8.

[0025] The electronic circuit 3 represents the heart of the system. This is an RFID chip with an integrated A/D converter, which is applied to the carrier strip 1, which is made flexibly in this example embodiment. The electronic circuit 3 is connected to the antenna 2 on the one hand, through which it is supplied with power by means of an electromagnetic alternating field. It is also connected to the conducting paths 4. The conducting paths 4 have two comb-like parts, by means of which the amount of liquid in the fibre store 8 may be measured resistively. This unit is indicated as a circuit in the following. Depending on the degree of wetting of the intermediate area between the conducting paths 4 with the liquid contained in the fibre store 8, the electrical resistance between both combs of the conducting paths 4 and therefore the resistance in the circuit goes down with increasing filling level in the fibre store 8.

[0026] In order to make an enquiry regarding the filling level, an evaluation device must be used, in which in the example embodiment illustrated this may be a mobile phone, on which a suitable App is installed. The mobile phone must be capable of nearfield communication (NFC) for this purpose. NFC supplies the antenna of the mobile phone with an electrical alternating current, which induces a current in surrounding conductive objects via a magnetic field. If the fibre store 8 with the elements described above arranged in it is brought near the telephone, an alternating current is induced in the antenna 2. Through a rectifier 5 provided in the electronic circuit 3 a capacitor 6 also provided in the electronic-circuit 2 is charged, which supplies the RFID chip with the necessary power. The chip now measures the ohmic resistance in the circuit indicated above and sends the measurement result to the mobile phone via the antenna 2. The result may be displayed there. The electronic circuit 3 together with the conducting paths 4 represents a moisture sensor. The antenna 2 serves as an interface for providing the result of the filling level measurement in a contact-free way.

[0027] A rectifier 5, a capacitor 6 and a switch 7 belong to the electronic circuit 3. In the position shown in FIG. 3 the switch 7 connects the antenna 2 to the rectifier 5. In this situation the capacitor 6 may be charged inductively via the antenna 2. If the capacitor 6 is full, the switch 7 connects the antenna 2 to the antenna output of the electronic circuit 3, therefore it is ensured that the radio signal is not lost in the rectifier 5.

[0028] The production of an example embodiment of the device according to the invention is explained in the following. The electronic circuit 3, the conducting paths 4 and the antenna 2 are applied to a continuous strip made of a flexible plastic. The production steps necessary for this are generally known. Advantageously in this the division between two units corresponds precisely to the length of a fibre store of the devices to be produced. Precise insertion of the elements indicated into the fibre store 8 is possible through this.

[0029] The fibre store 8 has a strand of threads (made of polyester for example) as filling 9, which is pulled through the centre of a ring nozzle. This ring nozzle extrudes a tube made of covering material (polypropylene for example) around the fibre strand. This continuous strand provided with the covering is shortened to the desired length by a rotating knife after the covering material has cooled.

[0030] Before the ring nozzle the continuous strip with the circuit elements on it is added to the strand, so that it is embedded in the strand. The continuous strand provided with the covering is always cut between two circuit units. This may be done by optical or inductive measurement of the position of the circuits on the continuous strip when they are supplied for example, which synchronises cutting, Such a store fitted with circuit elements may be used like a normal fibre store in a shaft or suchlike.

[0031] The circuit elements are not added at the edge of the strand as far as possible in this. If they are completely surrounded by fibres, they also become less heated in the extrusion process, which makes the use of cheaper, less heat-resistant plastics such as polyester possible for the carrier strip 1. However, the carrier strip 1 also should not lie precisely in the middle of the fibre store 8. Because the actual applicator element (therefore the tip of a pen for example) is inserted there when the device is assembled.

[0032] In FIG. 4 the longitudinal axis of the fibre store 8 is indicated with L. The distance A of the carrier strip 1 and therefore the antenna 2 as well as the electronic circuit 3 and the conducting paths 4 from the longitudinal axis L should be more than 5% of the diameter D. In the example embodiment shown it is 44%. The distance a from the outer edge is 11% of the diameter D in the example embodiment shown.

[0033] Therefore, compared with conventional devices of the type indicated at the beginning, in principle the production process does not have to be changed. Only the carrier with the circuit elements on it has to be inserted into the fibre bundle before extrusion.

[0034] If the fibre store 8 with the filling level measurement device provided with only one antenna 2 is used in the flat marker according to FIGS. 1 and 2, it must be inserted in such a way that the antenna 2 lies with its main plane parallel to the flat surfaces 11 of the marker. Additional expense is necessary in order to ensure this.

[0035] This expense is not necessary in the example embodiment according to FIG. 5. According to FIG. 5 a second antenna 10 is connected orthogonally to the first antenna 2. Electrically both antenna 2, 10 lie parallel to the electronic circuit 3. In this form a sufficient amount of power is transferred by inductive coupling and any radio signal transferred is received with sufficient strength on an evaluation device with the antenna 2 and 10 in any position with reference to the evaluation device (mobile phone for example).

[0036] The characteristics of the invention disclosed in the above description, the claims and the drawing may be essential for carrying out the invention in its various embodiments both individually and also in any combination.