HAIR COLORING DEVICE CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application claims priority to U. S. Provisional Patent Application Serial No.

60/501, 119 filed on September 8,2003, incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an improved device to color or otherwise apply a prepackaged liquid to sections of hair.

Description of Related Art It is known in the art to employ hollow combs, which connect reservoirs of liquid hair colorant to openings in a portion of a comb shaped manifold, to distribute color onto strands of hair. Coloring selected strands of hair in colors contrasting the natural hair color is called streaking and is a popular hair ornamentation. The various prior art devices have encountered difficulty distributing the coloring liquid in a controlled and predictable manner, without inadvertently spilling the colorant and inadvertently coloring adjacent hairs. There is need for an improved applicator for delivering colorant accurately to the selected hair tress.

Prior art devices have employed refillable elastomeric bulbs, piston cylinders and compressible bottles to contain the colorant or fluid. These reservoirs have then been pressurized by squeezing the bulb directly or by compressing the bulb with various mechanical or pneumatic devices. Prior art application devices have, however, had difficulty with left over liquid remaining in the manifold cavity and leaking after the device has been disengaged. There is need for a system to relieve pressure on the liquid after applications and to evacuate the manifold cleanly.

Prior art hair coloring systems that require refilling have necessitated the handling of messy colored fluids. Prior art systems which have employed prepackaged liquids, in order to avoid such problems, have been pressurized by compressed gases. Such systems require charged containers of volatile gases or air compressors, which are expensive and inconvenient. There is need, therefore, for a simple mechanical system, in a convenient package, which can automatically deliver liquid colorant to the hair and which utilizes prepackaged liquid containers.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a hair-coloring device and associated method that overcomes the shortcomings of the prior art mentioned above.

These and other objects are achieved by the present invention described herein.

The present invention improves the delivery system for a hair-coloring and streaking device by combining, in a single hand held appliance, a motor driven piston and a modular liquid colorant container, in combination with an efficient spring-loaded clip and comb. The invention features a carefully controlled interface between the hair and the liquid delivery system and a feature that reverses the motor automatically when the device is shut off in order to empty the manifold back into the reservoir and to prevent subsequent leakage of fluid. In addition the invention includes a modular dye package employing an accordion pleated bottle that allows reliable pressurizing with a simple motor driven piston.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The present invention is more fully understood by reference to the following detailed description of an illustrative embodiment with the drawings identified below.

Fig. 1 is an illustration of the preferred embodiment of the hair-coloring device.

Fig. 2 is a schematic illustration of the preferred embodiment of the hair-coloring device, illustrating the assembled components.

Fig. 3 is an exploded view of the preferred embodiment of the hair-coloring device.

Fig. 4 is an illustration of the assembly of the preferred coloring head.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Referring to Fig. 1, the preferred embodiment of the present invention (1), an improved electrical device for streaking color into hair, is illustrated in a schematic view.

The appliance overall (1) is made up of a handle section (2) a switch (3) a reservoir housing (5) and a coloring head (4).

Fig. 2 illustrates the preferred embodiment of the hair-coloring tool, displaying the internal components ghosted in their assembled positions. The coloring head assembly (4) is made up of a housing (13), a comb and clip (11) and a manifold tube (10). The manifold tube is open to the reservoir, via an interference or threaded seal (20), which, in the preferred embodiment, is a blow molded, accordion pleated bottle (9). The bottle is seated upon a moving piston (12) which is driven by a threaded shaft (14) engaging a rotating thread (15) which is couple to the output of a DC motor (6). Controls (3) and (16) switch the motor direction to drive the piston (12) forward or back. The motor switches are mounted on circuit board (8) and the motor is powered by batteries (7).

Alternative embodiments could also be powered off mains through a line cord and swivel (not shown).

Fig 3 illustrates the components of the preferred embodiment in an exploded assembly. A bayonet lock detail (16) is shown on the color head housing (13). The bayonet lock engages the reservoir housing (5) and allows the color reservoir bottle (9) to be accessed and replaced. This allows empty bottles to be changed out and alternate colors to be loaded. The reservoir bottle (9) is sealed into the tube manifold (10) and when the piston (12) is driven forward, color is displaced in an amount metered by the motor speed. The motor speed can be a fixed RPM or in the preferred embodiment it can be a variable RPM, controlled by the position of switch (3). The circuit board (8) supports components that comprise the control circuit. A unique feature of the control employed in the preferred embodiment is that it automatically reverses the forward motion of the piston (12) when switch (3) is released. The reversing of the motor is momentary and sufficient to relieve pressure in the manifold (10) and return the liquid agent, which is resident in the manifold (10), back to the reservoir (9). This feature improves control of the color application and avoids untoward leaking.

Fig. 4 illustrates exploded and ghosted assemblies of the preferred color head (4).

The components of the color head (4) include the manifold tube (10) which delivers color to the hair from the reservoir bottle (9). The clip (11) features a tip for gathering hair into the clip (19) and a series of combs (18) to maintain the spread of the hair tress over the manifold (10). The clip is biased against the housing (13) and manifold tube (10). The manifold tube is replaceable and can be changed out with the color bottle (9). The pattern of holes in the manifold tube (10) and of pattern of combs (18) which are molded into the spring clip (11) are designed to spread the coloring fluid evenly into the hair in a controlled and predictable manner.

While a preferred embodiment of the invention has been herein disclosed and described, it is understood that various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the invention.