Technical field

The invention relates to a hygienic no-touch device.

Background

For avoiding to touch by hands or fingers uncleaned and infected surfaces, such as touch screens, PIN-code keyboards, door handles, elevator buttons, chair rests etc. different types of tools for such purposes (hereinafter “no-touch tools") have been recently developed and made commercially available.

A drawback of these presently known no-touch tools is that after using them once their contact surfaces become unhygienic if they are not cleaned and/or disinfected each time after their use. The contaminated contact surfaces of such uncleaned no-touch tools may thereafter cause infection risk for the user when the user fits the no-touch tool in his/her pocket or bag after its use and when the user takes the no-touch tool off from such places and uses the notouch tool again. Another drawback of the presently known no-touch tools is that such no-touch tools which have been designed to be more versatile i.e. are intended to be applicable for many different purposes are, in many cases, substantially large-sized and cumbersome and thus considered to be too troublesome and impractical in any of their intended purpose of use.

Summary

It is an aim of the present invention is to provide a new hygienic no-touch device which remains hygienic even it is used several times without cleaning and/or disinfecting it each time between its uses and from which the risk of getting an viral infection is thus remarkably smaller when fitting it in to a pocket or placing it in to a bag or other storing position and when taking it back from there for using it again. Furthermore, the object of the invention is to introduce a new hygienic no-touch device which the same no-touch device can be utilized for many different purposes but which is compact and small-sized as well as handy and convenient to use. The aim of the invention is achieved by the hygienic no-touch device according to present invention because the hygienic no-touch device includes a separate casing part and tool part and because the tool part has been arranged to be fitted inside a at least partly surrounding or fully encapsulating protecting cover of the casing part after its use without touching any parts of the probably infected tool part. To put it more precisely, the hygienic no-touch device according to the invention is characterized by what has been presented in the independent claim 1 . The dependent claims 2-15 present some advantageous embodiments of the hygienic no-touch device according to the invention.

An advantage of the hygienic no-touch device according invention is that the hygienic no-touch device can be used plurality times without risk of getting infection from the hygienic no-touch device itself and without cleaning and/or disinfecting the device each time after its use. In addition another advantage of the hygienic no-touch device according invention is that it can be applied for many different purposes but regardless of that it is compact and small-sized as well as handy and convenient to use.

Brief description of the drawings

In the following, the invention is described in more detail with reference to the appended drawings, wherein

Fig. 1 shows an oblique top view of a hygienic no-touch device according to the invention,

Fig. 2 shows the hygienic no-touch device according to figure 1 seen from the direction of the first side-wall of its casing part,

Fig. 3 shows a the hygienic no-touch device according the preceding figures seen from the direction of the bottom-wall of its casing part,

Fig. 4 shows a principle drawing of the hygienic no-touch device according to preceding figures wherein the hygienic no-touch device is seen from the direction of the first side wall of the casing part when the tool part is fed inside the casing part,

Fig. 5 shows a principle drawing of the hygienic no-touch device according to preceding figures wherein the hygienic no-touch device is seen from the direction of the first side-wall of the casing part when the tool part is moved partly outside the casing part, and

Fig. 6 shows a principle drawing of the hygienic no-touch device according to preceding figures wherein the hygienic no-touch device is seen from the direction of the first side-wall of the casing part when the tool part is moved wholly outside the casing part.

Detailed description of some advantageous embodiments of the invention

Figures 1-6 show an embodiment of a hygienic no-touch device 10 according to the invention comprising tool part 11 having at least one operation element 12-14 for performing at least one operation for an object to be operated. The embodiment of the hygienic no-touch device 10 shown in the figures 1 to 6 comprises also a casing part 15 inside which the tool part 11 has been arranged to be fitted from at least partly outside casing part 15 such that casing part 15 surrounds the operation elements 12-14 of the tool part 11 during the time when it is not used for any of its intended operation. In this embodiment fitting of the tool part 11 inside the casing part 15 is accomplished by sliding the tool part 11 linearly in respect of the casing part 15 as it is shown in the figures 4-6. However, in some other embodiments fitting may be accomplished instead or in addition to sliding by e.g. turning the tool part 11 in respect of some pivot point being common for both the tool part 11 and casing part 12. When the tool part 11 has been fitted in the casing part 15 the casing part 15 covers the whole tool part 11 with its operation elements 12-14. However, the casing part 15 may be designed also such a way that it surrounds partly the tool part 11 (i.e. only some of or all the operation elements 12-14) or fully encapsulates the whole tool part 11 when it has been fed into the casing part 11 . In the embodiment of figures 1-6 the casing part 15 may be designed alternatively e.g. in such a way that covers the other portions of the tool part 11 except the stylus at the end of the stick 12 when the tool part 11 has been fitted (i.e. slid) inside the casing part 15.

For fitting the tool part 11 safely inside the casing part 15 the embodiment of the hygienic no-touch device 10 shown in the figures 1 -6 comprises a fitting element 16 which can be used for fitting the tool part 11 inside the casing part 15 without touching any parts of the tool part 11 . Thus, the unintended touches to the tool 11 part are prevented and hence the hygienic no-touch device 10 can be used several times without risk of getting viral infection from the tool part 11 which may have been contaminated during its previous uses.

In the embodiment of the hygienic no-touch device 10 according to the figures 1 -6 the tool part 11 is attached slidably in to the casing part 15 such that the tool part 11 is slidable from inside the casing part 15 to at least partly outside the casing part 15 and back from at least partly outside the casing part 15 to inside the casing part 15 by means of the fitting element 16. In some other embodiments the tool part 11 may be attached, for instance, turnably in to the casing part 15 such that the tool part 11 is turnable from inside the casing part 15 to at least partly outside the casing part 15 and back from at least partly outside the casing part 15 to inside the casing part 15 by means of the fitting element 16. In some embodiments the tool part 11 may be attached e.g. both, turnably and slidably in to the casing part 15. In such embodiment the fitting method applied may be chosen during the use of the hygienic no-touch device e.g. depending on the operation element to be used in that application to which the hygienic no-touch device is to be applied. When the tool part is turnably attached to the casing part the tool part and casing part may have some common pivot point in respect of which the tool part can be turned (or rotated) in respect of the casing part.

In the figures 1 -3 it is shown the structure of the embodiment of the hygienic no-touch device 10 according to the figures 1-6. In this embodiment the tool part 11 can be divided mainly two portions i.e. a support portion 17 and an operational portion 18. The operational portion 18 is the front portion of the tool part 11 wherein the operation elements 12-14 exist. The support portion 17 is the rear portion of the tool part 11 which includes the protrusion 19 being, in this embodiment, a part of the fitting element 16. As can be seen from the figures 1 to 3 the casing part 15 is formed of rectangular box-like casing which front end is open. Thus, the casing part has a top-wall 20, a bottom-wall 21 , a first side-wall 22, a second side-wall 23 and a rear wall 24 but not a front wall. The dimensions of the casing part 15 has been defined such that the support portion 17 of the tool part 11 can be fitted inside the casing part 15 through the open front end such that it slides snugly and controllably inside the casing part 15. The first side-wall 22 is the side wall which can be seen in the figures 1 , 2 and 4 to 6 i.e. it includes a groove 25 through which the protrusion 19 of the tool part 11 forming a part of the fitting element 16 protrudes outside the first sidewall 22. The second side-wall 23 has not any openings or grooves since there are no fitting elements on that side since in this embodiment the fitting element 16 exist only on the side of the first side-wall 22.

There are also, in this embodiment, a spring element 26 arranged between the support portion 17 of the tool part 11 end rear-wall 24 of the casing part 15. The spring element 26 is a tension spring that aims to pull the tool part 11 in the casing part 15 from outside the casing part 15. The pulling force of the spring element 26 is in this embodiment greater than the friction between the tool part 11 and the casing part 15. Thus, it causes that the tool part 11 slides automatically inside the casing part 15 if the user releases the tool part 11 . The spring element 26 may be alternatively a pushing spring in which case releasing causes that tool part slides automatically out from inside the casing part 15. The pushing or pulling force of the spring element 26 may be also smaller than the friction between the tool part 11 and the casing part 15. In such case, it only makes it lighter for user to slide the tool part 11 to the direction of the spring force. The second purpose of the spring element 26 is to form leader extending from the first (i.e. the uppermost) operation element (that is, in this embodiment, a stick 12 with stylus 29 at its end) to the rear-side 24 of the casing part 11 such that stick 12 forms a capacitive or resistive stylus.

In the embodiment of the hygienic no-touch device 10 shown in the figures 1- 6 the fitting element 16 comprises a protrusion 19 at the tool part 11 extending from the tool part 11 outside the casing part 15 through the groove 25 in the casing part 15. Fitting element 16 is formed, in this embodiment, of the protrusion 19 and a control member 27 that is attached or formed at the end of the protrusion 19 that remains outside the first side-wall 22 of the casing part 15. The control member 27 is, in this embodiment, a disc-like element which outer diameter is about the same as the width of the area of the users fingertip (i.e. about 6-12 mm) touching the control element 27 during the use. The outer side of the control member 27 may have been shaped and/or roughen or scratched in order to improve gripping between the users fingertip and the control member. However, the shape and size as well as surface properties of the outer side of the control member 27 may vary in different embodiments of the invention.

The groove 25 has been designed such that it allows to move the tool part 11 a distance outwards from inside the casing part 15 and back inside the casing part 16 by moving the fitting element 16 and hence the protrusion 19 respectively back and forth along the groove 25. In order to ensure that impurities, bacteria, viruses and other infecting fine particles cannot exit from inside the casing part 15 through the groove 25 (i.e. e.g. through the gap between the protrusion 19 and the groove 25) the fitting element comprises sealing member 28 which has been arranged to seal the gap between the protrusion 19 and the groove 25. Sealing member 28 may be, for instance, some kind of flexible and soft rim (made of e.g. thin rubber or plastic) which allows the protrusion move along the groove but closes and/or seals the groove from those areas where the protrusion 19 and/or the control member 27 of the fitting element 16 does not cover the groove 25. One advantage of the sealing member is that it prevents washing water or applied disinfecting substance (liquid) to enter inside the casing part 15 or exit outside from the casing part 15 through the groove 25. This ensures that washing water or disinfecting liquid provided inside the casing part 15 cannot transport viruses from the tool part 11 to the hands of the user.

The fitting element 16 can be formed also such that it is positioned in connection with the top wall 20. In such case similar protrusion as protrusion 19 may be fitted through a corresponding groove as groove 25 that is formed in to the top-wall 20 and the control element is placed at the end of protrusion that extend on the top-wall 20. Furthermore, the fitting element can be also placed correspondingly in some other positions at the casing part 15 from where it can be used. Thus, in some embodiments fitting element may be placed also, for instance, on the second side-wall or there can be even embodiments wherein there are fitting elements in both side-walls of the casing part. This makes it possible to use the no-touch device comfortably regardless of the handedness of the user.

In the hygienic no-touch device according to the figures 1-6 one of the operation elements is a stick 12 extending outwards from the tool part 11 . The stick 12 has capacitive stylus or tip 29 at its end for operating touchscreens. The capacitive stylus or tip 29 is known as such i.e. it is designed such that it causes enough change in capacitance such a way that by touching it on a capacitive touchscreen the touchscreen operates like it would have been touched by a fingertip. Thus, the stick 12 can be used for operation of the touchscreen without a risk of getting viral infection through the touchscreen. Alternatively stylus 29 may have been designed to be a resistive stylus.

Another operation element in the embodiment shown in the figures 1-6 is a gripping tool 13 for gripping a lock handle. This operation element is intended to be used for unlocking such type of door lock which is opened by screwing or twisting a rotatable lock handle. However, this operation element may be used also for carrying out any other operation than opening door locks to which it is suitable for.

A third operation element in the embodiment of the hygienic no-touch device according to the figures 1 -6 is a hook 14 for gripping a door handle. The contact surface 30 of the hook 14 (i.e. the inner surface) may include some coating which improves gripping such as silicone, rubber, neoprene rubber or nitrile rubber coating as well as which may be automatically disinfecting. Also the hook 13 can be, of course, used also for any other purpose wherein such a hook included in to this embodiment can be utilized in avoiding the user to touch some unclear object.

Figures 4-6 shows the tool part of the embodiment of figures 1 -6 in three different positions. In figure 4 the tool part 11 has been fed entirely inside the casing part 15. In that position handling of the hygienic no-touch device 10 is safe since the tool part 11 which contact surfaces may have gathered some bacteria or viruses is surrounded entirely by the casing part 15. In figure 5 the tool part 11 has been slid partly outside the casing part 15. In that position the hygienic no-touch device 10 is intended to be used for opening the door lock by using its lock handle gripping tool 13. In figure 6 the tool part 11 is shown when it is slid in its outer extreme position wherein the protrusion 19 rests against outer extreme end of the groove 25. The tool part 11 is moved in its extreme position when the third operation element (i.e. the hook 14) is used for caching a door handle in order to open or close a door. The stick 12 and stylus 29 at its end can be used when the tool part 11 has been slid out from the casing part 15 such amount that at least the stylus 29 is outside the casing part 15. However, it can be used also in any other positions between the aforementioned position and the outer extreme position shown in the figure 6.

In some embodiments at least one of the operation elements may be e.g. a bottle opener, can opener or a gripper for gripping and turning a threaded cap of a receptacle or a bottle.

In some embodiments the fitting element may comprise an electrically operated actuator for sliding and/or turning the tool part in respect of the casing part. In such embodiment the fitting element may comprise press button, control switch or other electrical control member for controlling the electrically operated actuator to move and/or rotate the tool part from inside the casing part at least partly outside the casing part and back in to the casing part. Furthermore, such embodiment includes some suitable energy source for providing electric power for the electric actuator. The energy source can be e.g. a rechargeable battery which can be recharged by means of e.g. a USB-charger or some wireless battery charger device. Furthermore, in such embodiment the hygienic no-touch device may include flashlight and/or e.g. electrically operated lighter and/or one or more other electrically operated appliances.

The casing part 15 of the hygienic no-touch device shown in the figures 1 -6 has been made of some typical plastic (such as e.g. PE, PP, PVC or PET-A). Also the tool part 11 may be made mostly of one or more of the above mentioned plastics except the spring element may be made of some spring steel or corresponding spring material. Typically, the stylus 12 is made of some soft and elastic material such as rubber that is made electrically conductive by doping it e.g. graphite powder or some other conductive material. However, the plastic parts or part of them of the hygienic no-touch device may be made alternatively of some metal such as e.g. aluminium. The advantage of the metal is that then separate leader (i.e. spring element) from the stylus end of the stick to the support portion of the tool part is not needed since in such embodiments the metallic tool part and/or casing part forms the leader.

In some embodiments the tool part comprises at least one automatically disinfecting surface. Thus, e.g. in such embodiments as shown in the figures 1 -6 the tip of the stick 12, gripping tool 13 for gripping a lock handle and/or inner surface or the inner and side surfaces of the hook 14 may have been coated or handled with such material/coating which make them automatically disinfecting. The disinfecting material/coating may be e.g. some self-cleaning material/coating such as plastic containing copper nanoparticles or titanium oxide coating which the last purifies itself when it is exposed to ultraviolet light. There may be provided also a disinfecting substance container in the casing part 15 from which disinfecting substance seeps on the tool part 11 or on some portions of the tool part 11 that are preferably those which may be contaminated during the use of the hygienic no-touch device 10. The seeping may be arranged to happen momentarily e.g. during the time when the user moves the tool part 11 inside the casing part 15 or when movement of the tool part 11 reaches the extreme end inside the casing part 15. For this purpose, the tool part 11 may include a switch or corresponding element which activates the seeping during and/or at the end of the action when the tool part 11 is moved inside the casing part 15.

Furthermore, alternatively or in addition to application of disinfecting mate- rial/coating/substance, the hygienic no-touch device may include one or more disinfecting UV light sources (i.e. e.g. UV-Led lights) which is/are placed such a way in connection with the hygienic no-touch device that at least the contaminated portions of the no touch device is exposed by the UV-light of the UV- light source during and/or after the use of the hygienic no-touch device. For instance the stylus of the stick 12 in the embodiments of figures 1-6 may be formed of some transparent material that is electrically conducting and which includes an UV-LED inside the stylus. The UV-light source can be included in the embodiment of figures 1 -6 as well as in other embodiments also inside the casing part 15 or some other suitable place so that it disinfects the tool part at least when it has been fed inside the casing part 15. In such case, the UV-light can be arranged to be turned on when the tool part 11 has been moved inside the casing part 15 and turned off when the tool part 11 has been moved partly or entirely outside the casing part 15. Of course, there may be also other arrangements for controlling the UV-lights, such as separate control switch, press button or corresponding control device. The electrical energy for the disinfecting UV-light may be provided by a battery or rechargeable battery which can be the same battery which is arranged to provide energy for the actuator moving the tool part in respect of the casing part in such embodiment wherein the actuation of the tool part is arranged electrically. Thus, the no-touch device according to the invention is not limited to the abovedescribed embodiments, but can be implemented in a number of ways within the appended claims.