Abstract
The present invention relates to a handheld device (1) which is used for performing a treatment action while being moved along a treatment surface (4). The result of the treatment action is dependent on the angular position () in which the device (1) is being held relative to the treatment surface. An example of such a device is an epilator for removing hairs from a surface of the user's skin. The device comprises at least two light sources (5) arranged and adapted to each provide a delimited light spot (6) on the treatment surface or on an outer surface of the device when the device is in operation. The two or more light sources (5) are arranged so that the light spots (6) they provide are at least partially coincident when the device is held at an angular position relative to the treatment surface which is within a predetermined optimal range of angular positions for which the treatment action is optimal. The light spots are non-coincident when the device is held at an angular position outside said predetermined optimal range of angular positions. As a result, the user is provided with a visible indication of a correct angular position, which guides him or her towards an optimal use of the device.
Claims
1. Handheld device adapted to be moved along a plane of a treatment surface while being held at an angular position () relative to the treatment surface, the device comprising: a housing, and an operating member arranged at least partially within the housing, the operating member being adapted to perform a treatment action on or close to the treatment surface when the device is in operation, wherein a result of the treatment action is dependent on the angular position () relative to the treatment surface, and wherein the device further comprises two or more light sources wherein the two or more light sources are arranged and adapted to each provide, during operation of the device, a delimited light spot on the plane of the treatment surface or on an outer surface of the device, said outer surface having a predefined angular position relative to the treatment surface when the device is in operation, and wherein the two or more light sources are arranged so that the light spots provided by the two or more light sources are: at least partially coincident when the device is held at an angular position relative to the treatment surface which is within a predetermined optimal range of angular positions for which the treatment action of the operating member is optimal, and non-coincident when the device is held at an angular position relative to the treatment surface which is outside said predetermined optimal range of angular positions, and wherein the device is an epilating device for epilating hair from a surface of a skin, and wherein the operating member is an epilating member.
2. Device according to claim 1, wherein the two or more light sources comprise a laser, LED, OLED, incandescent lamp or a combination thereof.
3. Device according to claim 1, further comprising one or more light guiding components, such as lenses or light guides, arranged in relation to the two or more light sources to provide a delimitation of the light spots.
4. Device according to claim 1, wherein the two or more light sources are arranged such that the light spots are provided in a region proximate to a treatment area wherein the treatment action of the operating member is performed.
5. Device according to claim 1, wherein different colours of light of the light sources are selectable.
6. Device according to claim 1, further comprising at least one on-off switch for switching on and off the two or more light sources.
7. Device according to claim 1, further comprising at least one size switch for changing a size of the light spots.
8. Device according to claim 1, comprising three or more light sources.
9. Device according to claim 1, further comprising a contact member arranged pivotally relative to the housing, said contact member comprising a contact surface adapted to extend parallel to the treatment surface during operation of the device for facilitating a desired movement of the device along the treatment surface.
10. Device according to claim 1, wherein the epilating member comprises clamping members which are rotatable relative to the housing about a rotational axis, and wherein the predetermined optimal range of angular positions is associated with an angular effective operating zone of the clamping members relative to the rotational axis.
11. Device according to claim 10, wherein the clamping members comprise pairs of clamping elements which are adapted to open and close to clamp hairs and extract the hairs from the skin during rotation of the clamping members about the rotational axis, and wherein the angular positions of the clamping members relative to the rotational axis, in which the clamping members open and close, are predefined.
Description
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
(1) Embodiments of the invention will be described, by way of example only, with reference to the drawings, in which
(2) FIG. 1 schematically shows a side view of a handheld device according to the present invention;
(3) FIG. 2 schematically shows an embodiment having two light sources;
(4) FIG. 3 schematically shows an embodiment comprising lenses in front of the light sources as well as switches;
(5) FIG. 4 schematically shows an embodiment comprising three light sources;
(6) FIG. 5 schematically shows an embodiment comprising a contact member;
(7) FIG. 6 shows photos of a prototype of an epilator having two light sources arranged in accordance with the invention; and
(8) FIG. 7 shows an epilator according to the invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS
(9) A handheld device 1 according to the invention is schematically shown in FIG. 1. The device 1 comprises a housing 2 and an operating member 3 arranged at least partially within the housing 2. The device 1 is adapted to be moved along a treatment surface 4 during use while being held at an angular position relative to the treatment surface. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, the angular position is defined in relation to a longitudinal axis L of the housing 2. In this embodiment the longitudinal axis L extends parallel to a main direction in which the longitudinal housing 2 extends. The direction of movement of the device 1 over the treatment surface 4 is illustrated with an arrow. The operating member 3 is adapted to perform a treatment action on or close to the treatment surface 4 when the device 1 is in operation. In the following, the invention will be explained with reference to a device embodied as an epilator. This is an example of a handheld device wherein a result of the treatment action is dependent on the angular position relative to the treatment surface. In this case, the treatment action is the removal of hairs from the skin.
(10) As shown in FIG. 1, the device 1 comprises two or more light sources 5 arranged and adapted to each provide a delimited light spot 6 on the treatment surface 4, i.e. the surface of the skin when the device is an epilator. As FIG. 1 is a side view, only one of the light sources 5 is visible. For other kinds of devices according to the invention, the two or more light spots 6 may be provided on an outer surface of the device 1 when the device is in operation, wherein the outer surface has a predefined angular position relative to the treatment surface 4 when the device 1 is in operation. Such an outer surface may e.g. be on a contact member as will be described below. As will be clearer from the following figures, the shape and/or position of the two or more light spots 6 provide information about a correspondence between an actual angular position at which the device is actually held relative to the treatment surface 4 and a predetermined optimal angular position or an optimal range of angular positions for which the treatment action of the operating member 3 is optimal. The definition of the angular position depends on how the longitudinal axis L is defined. However, as both the definition of the angular position and the corresponding arrangement of the light sources 5 are determined during the design process of the device, this will not influence the scope of protection. The shape of the housing 2 of the device 1 shown in FIG. 1 and in the following schematical figures is not intended to illustrate the real shape of the device. The main focus in the figures is to illustrate the working principle of the invention.
(11) FIG. 2 schematically shows front and side views of a device 1 with two light sources 5. In FIGS. 2.a and 2.b, the device 1 is seen in a direction opposite to the direction of movement. In principle, the light sources could also be arranged so as to point away from the direction of movement, but then the user would have to pay attention to two different areas. However, this might still be relevant for devices having a design such that it is difficult to see the light spots if they are provided ahead of the device with respect to the direction of movement. The device in FIG. 2 comprises two light sources 5 arranged such that the light spots 6 are: at least partially coincident when the device 1 is held at an angular position which is within a predetermined optimal range of angular positions for which the treatment action of the operating member 3 is optimal. In FIG. 2.a, the two light spots 6 are shown as being fully coincident; non-coincident when the device 1 is held at an angular position which is outside said predetermined optimal range of angular positions. This is shown in FIG. 2.b. As illustrated, too small or too large angular positions of the device in relation to the treatment surface lead to two light spots 6 next to each other on the treatment surface. The distance between the light spots 6 thus indicates how large the difference is between an actual angular position at which the device is actually held and the predetermined optimal range of angular positions which has been found to result in an optimal treatment, i.e. the most efficient or satisfactory use of the device. FIGS. 2.c and 2.d are side views of the device in, respectively, FIGS. 2.a and 2.b and illustrate how the position of the light spots 6 may also move in the direction of the movement, when the angular position of the device is varied.
(12) As described above, the light sources 5 may comprise a laser, LED, OLED, incandescent lamp or a combination thereof. Further elements, which are not shown in the figures but which will be well known to a person skilled in the art, are needed to attach these lights sources 5 to the device 1 and to electrically connect the light sources 5 with a battery or with the electricity mains via a cable. In relation to the development of the present invention, studies have been conducted using two coloured lights in the form of lasers with a 3-5 Volt input voltage attached to the epilator head of an epilator. The two or more light sources should preferably be arranged such that the light spots are provided in a region proximate to a treatment area wherein the treatment action of the operating member 3 is performed. By virtue thereof, the user needs to focus at one area only.
(13) FIG. 3 schematically shows a device as in FIG. 2, but further comprising lenses 7 arranged in front of the light sources 5 to provide a delimitation of the light spots 6. Such lenses 7 are examples of light guiding elements which will be required for light sources 5 that do not themselves provide a non-diverging beam of light. The figure shows one lens 7 in front of each light source 5, but in principle there could be more than one lens. The device in FIG. 3 further comprises a colour switch 8 which provides the user with the option of selecting between different colours of light. The illustrated device further comprises an on-off switch 9 for switching on and off the light sources 5, and a size switch 10 for changing a size and/or a shape of the light spots 6. In practice, a device 1 according to the invention may have none, one or more of these as well as other kinds of switches dependent on the type of device and the desired use possibilities. In the figure, all the switches are shown schematically with respect to shape, size and location. The figure is not intended to show how they would look on a real product. That would be decided as a part of the design process.
(14) For some embodiments of the invention, it may be desirable to have more than two light sources 5. This is particularly relevant for devices having more degrees of freedom with respect to the movement of the device over the treatment surface. For such devices it may be advantageous to be able to obtain a more precise indication of the correspondence between an actual and an optimal angular position of the device. FIG. 4 schematically shows a device having three light sources 5. FIG. 4.a is a side view and FIG. 4.b is a front view. The embodiment of FIG. 4 with the three light sources has a similar shape as the embodiments in the previous figures for illustration only. In practice, however, the use of three or more light sources will be more relevant for other kinds of embodiments having more degrees of freedom with respect to movement, as explained above.
(15) As shown schematically in FIG. 5, some embodiments of the invention comprise a contact member 11 arranged pivotally relative to the housing 2. The contact member 11 comprises a contact surface 12 adapted to extend parallel to the treatment surface 4 during operation of the device for facilitating a desired movement along the treatment surface 4. In this figure, the light sources and other features as shown in the previous figures are left out for clarity only. In this embodiment, an outer surface of the contact member 11, such as for example the upper surface of the contact member 11, has a predefined angular position relative to the treatment surface 4 as a result of the pivotal arrangement of the contact member 11 relative to the housing 2. In the embodiment of FIG. 5, the upper surface is always substantially parallel to the treatment surface 4. In such embodiments, instead of being provided on the treatment surface 4, the light spots may be provided on said outer surface having a predefined angular position relative to the treatment surface. In view of the predefined angular position of said outer surface relative to the treatment surface, the light spots on said outer surface will provide a similar indication to the user about the angular position of the housing 2 relative to the treatment surface 4.
(16) As mentioned, an example of a device according to the present invention is an epilating device for epilating hair from a surface of the skin, and wherein the operating member is an epilating member. FIG. 6 shows photos of a prototype of an epilator having two light sources 5 arranged in accordance with the invention. As it is a prototype only, the light sources 5 are arranged in provisional attachments to an outer surface of the housing 2. FIG. 6.a shows the epilator held at a predetermined optimal angular position, resulting in coincident light spots 6, i.e. only one light spot is visible. FIG. 6.b shows the epilator held at a non-optimal angular position, resulting in two non-coincident light spots 6. The distance between the two light spots is an indication to the user of the difference between the actual angular position and the optimal angular position or the optimal range of angular positions. When the actual angular position is changed such that the light spots move towards each other, this will be an indication that the correct adjustment is taking place. To the contrary, if the light spots move further away from each other, this will be an indication that the actual angular position should be changed in the opposite direction.
(17) In an epilator, the epilating member 3 typically is cylindrical and comprises a plurality of disc-shaped clamping members 12 which are rotatable relative to the housing 2 about a rotational axis. An example of such an epilator is shown in a schematical front view in FIG. 7. The rotational axis is the central axis of the cylindrical epilating member 3. The predetermined optimal range of angular positions of the epilating member 3 in relation to the surface of the skin 4 is associated with an angular effective operating zone of the clamping members 12 relative to the rotational axis. The clamping members 12 typically comprise pairs of clamping elements which are adapted to open and close to clamp hairs and extract them from the skin. The angular positions of the clamping members 12 relative to the rotational axis at which the clamping members 12 open and close are predefined and determine said angular effective operating zone. This is generally known to the person skilled in the art, and details of the epilating member 3 are therefore not shown in FIG. 7. In FIG. 7, the light sources have been left out to more clearly show the clamping members.
(18) While the invention has been illustrated and described in detail in the drawings and foregoing description, such illustration and description are to be considered illustrative or exemplary and not restrictive. The invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments. Other variations to the disclosed embodiments can be understood and effected by those skilled in the art in practicing the claimed invention, from a study of the drawings, the disclosure, and the appended claims. In the claims, the word comprising does not exclude other elements or steps, and the indefinite article a or an does not exclude a plurality. A single processor or other unit may fulfill the functions of several items recited in the claims. The mere fact that certain measures are recited in mutually different dependent claims does not indicate that a combination of these measures cannot be used to advantage. A computer program may be stored/distributed on a suitable medium, such as an optical storage medium or a solid-state medium supplied together with or as part of other hardware, but may also be distributed in other forms, such as via the Internet or other wired or wireless telecommunication systems.
(19) Any reference signs in the claims should not be construed as limiting the scope.
