Depilating device

Abstract

A depilating device (1) comprises a depilating body (10) which is rotatable about a rotation axis (R) extending in a longitudinal direction (L) with respect to the depilating body (10) and which is provided with at least one hair-catching space (11). The depilating device (1) further comprises an actuating mechanism (30) configured to act on the depilating body (10) so as to cause compression and extension of the depilating body (10) in the longitudinal direction (L) during rotational movement of the depilating body (10) about the rotation axis (R), for the purpose of varying the size of the hair-catching space (11) of the depilating body (10) in the longitudinal direction (L), wherein the actuating mechanism (30) includes a force-inducing member (31) which is compressible and extensible in the longitudinal direction (L) and which has a function in determining the level of a hair-clamping force in the depilating body (10).

Claims

1. A depilating device, comprising: a depilating body which is rotatable about a rotation axis extending in a longitudinal direction with respect to the depilating body and which is provided with at least one hair-catching space, wherein a size of the at least one hair-catching space in the longitudinal direction is variable through compression and extension of the depilating body in the longitudinal direction; and an actuating mechanism configured to act on the depilating body so as to cause compression and extension of the depilating body in the longitudinal direction during rotational movement of the depilating body about the rotation axis, wherein the actuating mechanism includes a force-inducing member which is compressible and extensible in the longitudinal direction and which is configured to determine a level of a force exerted by the actuating mechanism on the depilating body in the longitudinal direction when a size of the force-inducing member in the longitudinal direction is varied while the at least one hair-catching space of the depilating body is in a closed condition, wherein a force-displacement characteristic of compression and extension of the force-inducing member in the longitudinal direction is stronger than a force-displacement characteristic of compression and extension of the depilating body in the longitudinal direction.

2. The depilating device according to claim 1, wherein the force-inducing member is a passive force-inducing member.

3. The depilating device according to claim 2, wherein the force-inducing member comprises a spring.

4. The depilating device according to claim 1, wherein the force-inducing member is an active force-inducing member designed to perform a force-inducing function in an activated, energized condition.

5. The depilating device according to claim 4, wherein the force-inducing member comprises a solenoid.

6. The depilating device according to claim 1, wherein one end of the depilating body is a fixed end having a fixed position in the longitudinal direction and an opposite end of the depilating body is a movable end having a variable position in the longitudinal direction, and wherein the actuating mechanism is configured to act on the depilating body at a side of the movable end thereof.

7. The depilating device according to claim 1, further comprising a driving mechanism configured to drive the depilating body so as to perform a rotational movement about the rotation axis.

8. The depilating device according to claim 7, wherein the driving mechanism is configured to also drive the actuating mechanism so as to cause compression and extension the depilating body in the longitudinal direction.

9. The depilating device according to claim 7, wherein the actuating mechanism comprises two actuating members which are both movable in the longitudinal direction, a first one of the two actuating members being at a position closer to the depilating body in the longitudinal direction than a second one of the two actuating members, and wherein the force-inducing member is at a position of coupling the two actuating members to each other.

10. The depilating device according to claim 9, wherein the driving mechanism comprises a rotatable drive shaft coupled to the depilating body for imposing rotational movement on the depilating body, and wherein each of the two actuating members is bush-shaped and at a position for surrounding a portion of the drive shaft.

11. The depilating device according to claim 10, comprising a movement-imposing arrangement including a cam and a cam follower, wherein one of the cam and the cam follower has a fixed position in the depilating device, and wherein the other one of the cam and the cam follower is fixed to the second one of the two actuating members.

12. The depilating device according to claim 1, wherein the depilating body comprises a linear coil spring.

13. A depilating device, comprising: a depilating body rotatable about a rotation axis extending in a longitudinal direction with respect to the depilating body, the depilating body comprising at least one hair-catching space, wherein a size of the at least one hair-catching space in the longitudinal direction is variable through compression and extension of the depilating body in the longitudinal direction; a rotatable drive shaft coupled to the depilating body and a motor for imposing rotational movement on the depilating body about the rotation axis; a first actuator movable in the longitudinal direction and arranged to surround a first portion of the drive shaft adjacent to an end portion supporting the depilating body; a second actuator movable in the longitudinal direction and arranged to surround a second portion of the drive shaft further away from the depilating body in the longitudinal direction than the first portion of the drive shaft, wherein the first and second actuators are configured to act on the depilating body to cause compression and extension of the depilating body in the longitudinal direction during the rotational movement of the depilating body about the rotation axis; and a coil spring configured to couple the first and second actuators to each other, wherein the coil spring is compressible and extensible in the longitudinal direction and is configured to determine a level of a force exerted by the first actuator on the depilating body in the longitudinal direction when a size of the coil spring in the longitudinal direction is varied while the at least one hair-catching space of the depilating body is in a closed condition, wherein a force-displacement characteristic of compression and extension of the coil spring in the longitudinal direction is stronger than a force-displacement characteristic of compression and extension of the depilating body in the longitudinal direction.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) The invention will now be explained in greater detail with reference to FIG. 1, which is a diagrammatic sectional view of an assembly of components of a depilating device according to an embodiment of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

(2) FIG. 1 illustrates the design of an depilating device 1 according to an embodiment of the invention. The particular depilating device 1 represented in FIG. 1 and described in the following is just one example of many types of depilating devices which are feasible in the framework of the invention. It is practical for the depilating device 1 to be a handheld device including a housing 2 for accommodating a number of components of the device. The housing 2 is diagrammatically depicted as a dashed rectangle in FIG. 1. The depilating device 1 may be intended for use as a facial depilating device 1, for example.

(3) The depilating device 1 is configured to be used for the purpose of performing a hair removing operation on skin. In view thereof, the depilating device 1 comprises a depilating body 10 which is intended to actually interact with the hairs to be plucked from the skin. For the purpose of catching and clamping the hairs, the depilating body 10 is provided with at least one hair-catching space 11. The depilating body 10 is designed so as to be compressible and extensible in a longitudinal direction L, and may comprise a coil spring, for example. The longitudinal direction L is indicated by means of a double-headed arrow in FIG. 1. Further, the depilating body 10 is rotatable in the depilating device 1 about a rotation axis R extending in the longitudinal direction L.

(4) Besides the depilating body 10, the depilating device 1 comprises a driving mechanism 20 which is configured to drive the depilating body so as to actually perform a rotational movement about the rotation axis R during operation of the depilating device 1. In the shown example, the driving mechanism 20 comprises a drive shaft 21 which is also rotatable about the rotation axis R and an electric motor 22 for driving the drive shaft 21, wherein the depilating body 10 is arranged on the drive shaft 21 at the position of an end portion of the drive shaft 21 so that when the drive shaft 21 is driven by the electric motor 22, the depilating body 20 rotates along with the drive shaft 21.

(5) Further, the depilating device 1 comprises an actuating mechanism 30 which is configured to act on the depilating body 10 so as to vary the size of the depilating body 10 in the longitudinal direction L during rotational movement of the depilating body 10 about the rotation axis R. In the shown example, one end of the depilating body 10 is fixedly connected to the drive shaft 21 and has a fixed position in the longitudinal direction L as a result thereof. In this configuration, the actuating mechanism 30 is arranged so as to interact with the other end of the depilating body 10 for the purpose of displacing the other end of the depilating body 10 with respect to the drive shaft 21 in the longitudinal direction L. In the following, the first-mentioned end of the depilating body 10 will be referred to as fixed end of the depilating body 10, and the other end of the depilating body 10 will be referred to as movable end of the depilating body 10.

(6) The actuating mechanism 30 comprises a first actuating member 31 which is shaped like a bush extending in the longitudinal direction L, and which is arranged to surround a portion of the drive shaft 21 adjacent to the end portion supporting the depilating body 10, wherein the first actuating member 31 is slidable on the drive shaft 21 in the longitudinal direction L and is positioned so as to contact the movable end of the depilating body 10. Further, the actuating mechanism 30 comprises a second actuating member 32 which is shaped like a bush extending in the longitudinal direction L, and which is arranged to surround a portion of the drive shaft 21 which is further away from the depilating body 10 in the longitudinal direction L than the portion of the drive shaft 21 surrounded by the first actuating member 31, wherein the second actuating member 32 is also slidable arranged on the drive shaft 21 in the longitudinal direction L. Still further, the actuating mechanism 30 comprises a force-inducing member 33 which is at a position of coupling the actuating members 31, 32 to each other, i.e. a position between the actuating members 31, 32 in the longitudinal direction L. In the shown example, the force-inducing member 33 comprises a coil spring which is arranged so as to surround the drive shaft 21, which coil spring may be a normally-closed coil spring or a normally-opened coil spring. The force-inducing member 33 is covered by a cylindrical cover 34 surrounding the force-inducing member 33 and overlapping with end portions of the actuating members 31, 32 as well, wherein the cylindrical cover 34 is connected to the second actuating member 32.

(7) The present description is equally applicable when the force-inducing member 33 does not comprise a coil spring but another component or combination of components which is designed so as to be compressible and extensible in the longitudinal direction L. The actuating members 31, 32 and the force-inducing member 33 may be provided as three separate components joined together, which does not alter the fact that other options are possible as well, such as an option of the actuating members 31, 32 and the force-inducing member 33 being part of a single integral entirety having different zones, wherein an intermediate zone may have another force-displacement characteristic of compression and extension than the two other zones at the respective sides of the intermediate zone.

(8) At the position of the other end of the second actuating member 32 than the end which is associated with the force-inducing member 33, a movement-imposing arrangement 40 including a cam 41 and cam follower 42 is present in the depilating device 1. The movement-imposing arrangement 40 is configured to impose movement in the longitudinal direction L on the second actuating member 32 when the drive shaft 21 rotates. To that end, one of the cam 41 and cam follower 42 has a fixed position in the depilating device 1, and the other one of the cam 41 and cam follower 42 is attached to the second actuating member 32. In the shown example, the cam follower 42 has the fixed position in the depilating device 1, and the cam 41 is attached to the second actuating member 32. FIG. 1 also illustrates an application of stops 23, 24 on the drive shaft 21 for delimiting the positions of the first actuating member 31 and the second actuating member 32, respectively, in the longitudinal direction L.

(9) The length of the depilating body 10 may be chosen freely in the framework of the invention, depending on intended use of the depilating device 1. When the depilating body 10 comprises a coil spring, the number of windings of the coil spring can be chosen freely, and also the shape of the cross-section of the spring's wire can be chosen freely. Further, the material of the depilating body 10 can be treated material (material subjected to treatment such as mechanical treatment, chemical treatment or heat treatment) so as to have defined/improved grip of the depilating body 10 on the hairs. The depilating body 10 can be rotational symmetrical so that the depilating device 1 is effective in any position relative to skin to be subjected to a depilating action. The drive shaft 21 may be connected directly to the electric motor 22, or through a suitable gearbox system, for example.

(10) With reference to the above explanation of design aspects of the depilating device 1 according to an embodiment of the invention, it is now described how the various components of the depilating device 1 function to enable the depilating device 1 to perform a depilating action during operation thereof. Operation of the depilating device 1 involves actuation of the electric motor 22, as a result of which the drive shaft 21 is driven so as to rotate about the rotation axis R. The rotational movement of the drive shaft 21 causes both a rotational movement of the depilating body 10 about the rotation axis R and cyclic variation of the size of the depilating body 10 in the longitudinal direction L. The rotational movement of the depilating body 10 about the rotation axis R follows directly from the arrangement of the depilating body 10 on the drive shaft 21. The process of alternately causing compression and extension of the depilating body 10 in the longitudinal direction L follows from the movement-imposing arrangement 40 dictating the position of the second actuation member 32 in the longitudinal direction L. The fact is that as the drive shaft 21 rotates about the rotation axis R, the position of the cam 41 of the movement-imposing arrangement 40 in the longitudinal direction L is varied under the influence of contact to the cam follower 42, and so is the position of the second actuating member 32 in the longitudinal direction L.

(11) As long as the at least one hair-catching space 11 of the depilating body 10 is not in the closed condition, the variation of the position of the second actuating member 32 brings about a similar variation of the position of the first actuating member 31, through the force-inducing member 33. On the basis of the fact that the first actuating member 31 acts on the depilating body 10, rotation of the drive shaft 21 about the rotation axis R eventually brings about variation of the position of the movable end of the depilating body 10 in the longitudinal direction L, besides the rotation of the depilating body 10 about the rotation axis R. The displacement path followed by the movable end of the depilating body 10 in the process is determined by the design of the movement-imposing arrangement 40, and so is the relation between the number of times the depilating body 10 is compressed and stretched per revolution. When the at least one hair-catching space 11 of the depilating body 10 is closed, variation of the position of the movable end of the depilating body 10 and the position of the first actuating member 31 is no longer allowed, and the second actuating member 32 performs a movement in the longitudinal direction L relative to the first actuating member 31, which relative movement is allowed due to the presence of the force-inducing member 33 in the actuating mechanism 30. In the process, a force exerted on the depilating body 10 in the longitudinal direction L by the actuating mechanism 30 is determined by the constitution of the force-inducing member 33, particularly the force-displacement characteristic of compression and extension of the force-inducing member 33, and it is this force that determines a hair-clamping force at the position of the hair-catching space 11.

(12) As a result of the cycle of compressing and stretching the depilating body 10 in the longitudinal direction L, the size of the at least one hair-catching space 11 in the depilating body 10 is alternately reduced and increased in the longitudinal direction L, such that the hair-catching space 11 is alternately put to the above-mentioned closed condition and an opened condition. When the depilating body 10 is held at a position close to skin from which hairs protrude, hairs are caught in the hair-catching space 11 during a period that the condition of the hair-catching space 11 changes from the opened condition to the closed position. When the hair-catching space 11 is in the closed position, the hairs are fixed in place in the hair-catching space 11 under the influence of a clamping force acting on the hairs in the longitudinal direction L. Assuming that the hair-clamping force is higher than the holding force exerted on the hairs at the position of the skin, the hairs are pulled out of the skin as a result of the rotational movement of the depilating body 10. On the basis of the presence of the force-inducing member 33 in the actuating mechanism 30 of the depilating device 1, the invention allows for having an accurately defined hair-clamping force under all circumstances, and also for compensating for manufacturing tolerances of the depilating body 10, while the design of the depilating body 10 can be chosen so as to achieve optimal hair catching.

(13) The aspect of compensating for manufacturing tolerances of the depilating body 10 is advantageous because if the force-inducing member 33 would not be present in the depilating device 1, it might occur that the movement-imposing arrangement 40 still acts to put the at least one hair-catching space 11 to the closed position while the hair-catching space 11 has already reached the closed position, in which case forces acting in the depilating device 1 increase to unforeseen high levels, or it might occur that the movement-imposing arrangement 40 is already at a maximum position for compressing the depilating body 10 while the hair-catching space 11 is still not fully closed, in which case the depilating body 10 cannot be effective in performing its depilating function.

(14) The aspect of allowing for having an accurately defined hair-clamping force under all circumstances is particularly obtained when the force-displacement characteristic of compression and extension of the force-inducing member 33 is significantly stronger than the force-displacement characteristic of compression and extension of the depilating body 10. In fact, in the shown example, it is sufficient if the force-displacement characteristic of compression and extension of the depilating body 10 is such that the depilating body 10 is capable of pushing back the components of the actuating mechanism 30 when the movement-imposing arrangement 40 offers space for doing so.

(15) An advantageous option existing in the framework of the invention is an option of tuning the force-inducing member 33, i.e. adjusting the force-displacement characteristic of compression and extension of the force-inducing member 33, as such option allows for having different modes of the depilating device 1, wherein an appropriate one of the modes may be set in dependency on environmental conditions such as soiling of the skin with grease. Also, the invention offers a possibility of setting pre-tension of the force-inducing member 33 to an appropriate value.

(16) It will be clear to a person skilled in the art that the scope of the invention is not limited to the examples discussed in the foregoing, but that several amendments and modifications thereof are possible without deviating from the scope of the invention as defined in the attached claims. It is intended that the invention be construed as including all such amendments and modifications insofar they come within the scope of the claims or the equivalents thereof. While the invention has been illustrated and described in detail in the figures and the description, such illustration and description are to be considered illustrative or exemplary only, and not restrictive. The invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments. The drawings are schematic, wherein details which are not required for understanding the invention may have been omitted, and not necessarily to scale.

(17) Variations to the disclosed embodiments can be understood and effected by a person skilled in the art in practicing the claimed invention, from a study of the figures, the description and the attached claims. In the claims, the word comprising does not exclude other steps or elements, and the indefinite article a or an does not exclude a plurality. Any reference signs in the claims should not be construed as limiting the scope of the invention.

(18) Elements and aspects discussed for or in relation with a particular embodiment may be suitably combined with elements and aspects of other embodiments, unless explicitly stated otherwise. Thus, 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.

(19) The terms comprise and include as used in this text will be understood by a person skilled in the art as covering the term consist of. Hence, the term comprise or include may in respect of an embodiment mean consist of, but may in another embodiment mean contain/have/be equipped with at least the defined species and optionally one or more other species.

(20) Notable aspects of the invention are summarized as follows. A depilating device 1 comprises a depilating body 10 which is rotatable about a rotation axis R extending in a longitudinal direction L with respect to the depilating body 10 and which is provided with at least one hair-catching space 11. The depilating device 1 further comprises an actuating mechanism 30 configured to act on the depilating body 10 so as to cause compression and extension of the depilating body 10 in the longitudinal direction L during rotational movement of the depilating body 10 about the rotation axis R, for the purpose of varying the size of the at least one hair-catching space 11 of the depilating body 10 in the longitudinal direction L, wherein the actuating mechanism 30 includes a force-inducing member 31 which is compressible and extensible in the longitudinal direction L and which has a function in determining the level of a hair-clamping force in the depilating body 10.