AN EXFOLIATING DEVICE

TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION

THIS INVENTION relates to an exfoliating device for removing outer skin cells and, in particular but not limited thereto, the device includes an ergonomic handle configured for use by a right or left handed person and for the device to be usable on most parts of the person.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Exfoliation is a cosmetic technique aimed at improving a person's skin appearance by removing outer dead skin cells from the surface of the skin. When excess dead skin cells are removed, the skin would look fresh and healthy. Exfoliation also helps to provide rejuvenation of the skin and to prevent undesirable conditions such as acne scarring or ingrown hairs. Regularly exfoliating the skin helps in maintaining the skin in its optimum condition and accelerates the skin renewal process. It also helps to dispel bacterial and other materials which build up in skin pores.

Prior art exfoliation techniques employ mechanical exfoliants and/or chemical exfoliants. Mechanical exfoliants include micro-bead facial scrubs, crushed almond shells, sugar or salt crystals, pumice, and abrasive cloths such as loofahs. Chemical exfoliants include scrubs containing salicylic acid, glycolic acid, fruit enzymes, citric acid, or malic acid. Scrubbing and application of abrasive materials cause skin irritation. These techniques are complicated and the exfoliants are costly.

In United States patent number 4,438,767, Nelson proposed an exfoliating disc (10) comprising a thin, flat, circular metal blade (12) between two opposite integral side portions (16 and 18) which form a one piece finger grip

(20). The disc has a deflected edge (30) projecting laterally of the side of the blade on which the finger grip portion (16) is disposed. When using the disc as taught in the Nelson patent, a user must grip it with a thumb on the finger grip portion (16) and other fingers on the other finger grip portion (18) as shown in Figure 1 in the patent specification. Thus, this exfoliating disc 10 has limited manipulability in terms of angular displacement and reach. A consistent angle cannot be maintained when scraping over the skin. The user must consciously

maintain any consistency of pressure on the skin. The disc is relatively inefficient as only a very small part of the edge is in contact with the skin at any time.

OBJECT OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the present invention to provide an exfoliating device to alleviate or to at least reduce to a certain level one or more of the prior art disadvantages.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In one aspect therefore the present invention resides in an exfoliating device comprising a body formed as an elongate handle member extending along an longitudinal axis and a head member connected thereto or integrally formed therewith. Said head member extends at a substantial angle laterally from said handle member and is formed with an opening at or adjacent to its free end. The opening has a width extending between side edges of the head member and in a direction substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the handle member. The device further comprises a blade member configured with an exfoliating edge held in said opening of the head member with the exfoliating edge extended therefrom. The exfoliating edge is substantially coextensive with said opening.

In preference, said handle member has a relatively thin thickness and a width which widens progressively from its lower end towards the head member. The handle member may have an inclined plane at least at its section adjacent to the head member. Preferably, said inclined section is adapted to elevate said head member to be at a relatively higher level than the lower end of the handle member. The inclined section may have a curved shape along its plane. Said head member may extend at an angle within 30 to 60 degrees from said handle member. It is preferred that said angle is 45 degrees.

Preferably, said handle member is ergonomically shaped so as to provide a comfortable hand grip section. Said hand grip section may incorporate or be located beneath said inclined section. Plastic and/or rubberised hand grip portions may be provided at the hand grip section.

The handle member and said head member are adapted to enhance actual pressure being applied to a user's skin via the edge with minimal effort from the user.

Preferably, said blade member has curved or rounded corners, between which the edge extends. The blade may have locating holes for receiving corresponding keys provided within the head member. The blade member may be formed with a relatively shallow arc shape along its longitudinal plane whereby its plane inclines progressively upwardly from ends thereof. The blade member may also be formed with its edge inclined progressively inwardly from its ends.

The head member is preferably configured so that said blade member when located therein has its edge facing the handle member.

The edge is configured to scrape dead skin cells from the user's skin. It is preferred that the edge is configured to glide over any body hair to scrape the user's skin.

More preferably, the blade is made of stainless steel. Germ reduction can be achieved as the device does not hold excess dead skin cells.

The handle member allows users to hold the device left or right handed yet enforces the user to adhere to a specifically designed angle in relation to the edge and the skin.

The shape of the device allows for easy cleaning and to ensure the device is hygienic it can be made to be able to be boiled or steam cleaned

The handle member is preferably shaped to provide maximum leverage for the edge to perform its function against the skin, with the angle of the handle in respect to the head member and the edge specifically chosen to ensure a consistent angle and pressure is applied to the skin in the standard motions of the user.

The head member provides for maximising the amount of skin that is in contact with the edge in order to improve the efficiency in the use of the device. The body can be made of specifically selected grades of plastics and the blade member can be made of a high grade surgical stainless steel to maximise the life cycle of the device.

The shape of the edge allows for easy cleaning by simply running under warm water to remove the grit being taken from the skin

In a preferred form, the edge has a double concave to it, in that it curves in an arc across the head and additionally inwards towards the inside of the head of the tool in a "claw" like style/function in order to grab and remove dead skin and grim from the skin.

The metal blade may have only one side with an edge to it and this has been specifically designed to create a relief in a bevel form. This creates a blunt yet consistent edge along the full length of the head in the MFG process to maintain consistency in production.

The handle is preferred shaped in order to reach greater stretching space with controlled application rather than extending or over reaching.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In order that the present invention can be readily understood and put into practical effect the description will hereinafter refer to the accompanying drawings which illustrate non limiting embodiments of the present invention and wherein:

Figure 1 is a top plan view of an embodiment of the exfoliating device according to the present invention; Figure 2 is a bottom plan view of the exfoliating device shown in Figure

1 ;

Figure 3 is an end view of the exfoliating device shown in Figure 1 ; Figure 4 is a prospective view from top of the device shown in Figure 1 ; Figure 5 is a prospective view from bottom of the device shown in Figure 1 ;

Figure 6 is a prospective view of the blade member of the device shown in Figure 2;

Figure 7 is a perspective view of the body of another embodiment of the exfoliating device according to the present invention; Figure 8 is a top plan view of the body shown in Figure 7;

Figure 9 is a bottom plan view of the body shown in Figure 7;

Figure 10 is a cross-section view of the body along the line A-A shown in Figure 9;

Figure 11 is an end view of the body shown in Figure 7; Figure 12 is a side view of the body shown in Figure 7; Figure 13 is a top plan view of the body shown in Figure 7 with grip portions applied thereto;

Figure 14 is a prospective view from bottom of the body shown in Figure 13;

Figure 15 is a prospective view of a fully assembled the device with the body shown in Figure 7;

Figure 16 is a n elevation view of body shown in Figure 7; Figure 17 is a perspective view of the blade member of the device shown in Figure 15;

Figure 18 is a plan edge view of the blade member shown in Figure 17; and

Figure 19 is a plan rear view of the blade member shown in Figure 17.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Referring to the drawings and initially to Figures 1 and 2, there is shown an embodiment of the exfoliating device 10 according to the present invention. The device 10 has a body formed of a handle member 12 and a head member

14. The handle member 14 diverges progressively from its lower end 16 to meet the head member 12. A hand grip 18 is applied to the handle portion 12. The hand grip 18 has a top hand grip portion 18A on the surface 20 and a bottom hand grip portion 18B on the bottom surface 22 of the handle member 12. Each of the portions 20 and 22 has raised finger areas 24 for fingers to grip thereat.

The portions 20 and 22 are made of a soft rubberised non-slip material so that the handle member 12 is comfortable to grasp and slipping while using in a wet condition is minimised.

As shown more clearly in Figures 3 to 5, the head member 14 is substantially elongate in shape with an L-shaped cross-section, and extends in a direction substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the handle member 12. The head member 14 has a relatively larger width than the handle

member 12, and bends inwardly to form a free end 14A. An elongate curved opening 26 is formed in the free end 14A, and a correspondingly curved blade member 28 fixed in the opening 26. The blade member 28 has an exfoliating edge 30 between rounded corners 32 and 34. Its rear 36 is substantially planar, while the exfoliating edge 30 is substantially concave along its outer perimeter. Locating holes 38 in the blade member 28 are for receiving locating pins 40 (see Figure 16) in the head member 14.

In this embodiment, the head member 14 is integrally formed with the handle member 12 which inclines progressively upwardly from partway up from the lower end 16 to the head member 14. The handle member 12 is ergonomically shaped for a user to grasp it comfortably and it allows the user to apply the device to all parts of the user body without excessively extension and bending of one's hand. The grip portions 18A and 18B are made of a non-slip rubberised material and as such the device 10 minimises slippage when used in the wet.

The device 10 is also shaped to provide maximum leverage for the edge 28 to perform its function against the skin, with the angle of.about 45 degrees between the handle member 12 and the edge 28 providing a consistent angle and pressure is applied to the skin in the standard motions of the user. The embodiment of the device 10 shown in Figures 7 to 19 is substantially similar to the embodiment described above. For conciseness, the same numerical references are hereinafter used for the same and similar features. Referring to Figure 15, there is shown another embodiment of a fully assembled exfoliating device 10 according to the present invention. As for the previous embodiment, this device has a handle member 12 and a head member 14. The handle member 12 as shown in Figures 13 and 14 has a hand grip 18 formed of a hand grip portion 18A applied to its top surface 20, and another hand grip portion 18B applied to its bottom surface 22. The portions have hand grip areas 24. The handle member 12 has a width which diverges progressively from its lower end 16to a relatively wide head member 14.

As shown in Figures 7 to 12, the device 10 has a moulded body shaped to form said handle member 12 and the head member 14. Spaced holes 42 are provided in the handle member 12 for fixing the hand grip portions 18A and 18B thereat. The head member 14 has a free end 14A with an opening 26 adapted to receive a blade member 28. As shown in Figure 16, the head member 14 has locating pins 40 which projects into the corresponding holes 38 in the blade member 28 as shown more clearly in Figures 17 to 19. The exfoliate edge 30 extends between rounded corners 32 and 34, and is curved concavely along its perimeter. The blade member 28 is also curved convexly along its horizontal plane.

Whilst the above has been given by way of illustrative example of the present invention many variations and modifications thereto will be apparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the broad ambit and scope of the invention as herein set forth in the following claims.