Vented Brush Having Curved Heads

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application claims priority to U.S. Utility Patent Application Serial No. 11/341 ,821 filed on January 27, 2007, incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to hair brushes and, more particularly, to a two-part, tong-shaped, vented styling brush having brush heads with curved- profile heads.

Description of Related Art

Various known hair brushes have two heads that are moveable toward and away from each other. The heads reside at a distal end of respective handle sections, and the proximal ends are attached by a hinge and are usually spring- biased.

To date, the only known brushes of this type are referred to as "straightening brushes" and have generally flat brush heads that are generally limited to procedures on the hair where flat brush heads are optimal.

OBJECTS OF THE PRESENT INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a hairbrush that overcomes the limitations of existing brushes by making a styling brush that is suitable for optimal performance in procedures that are not necessarily straightening procedures.

These and other objects are achieved by the present invention.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT INVENTION According to the present invention, a hair brush has two portions joined by a hinge at one end and each having brush heads at the other end. In profile, the brush heads are curved such that one is concave and the other is convex and, as a result, they nest within each other when closed together and apply their contour to hair trapped between the brush heads.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a brush according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2A is a partial, end view of a brush according to Fig. 1 shown in an opened position.

Fig. 2B is a partial, end view of a brush according to Fig. 1 , shown in a closed position.

Fig. 3 is a top view of a brush according to Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a bottom view of a brush according to Fig. 1.

Fig. 5 Fig. 3 is a side view of a brush according to Fig. 1.

Fig. 6 is an exploded of a brush according to Fig. 1. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT OF THE

INVENTION

As shown in Fig.s 1-4, a brush (10) has a first portion (12) and a second portion (14) joined at a proximal end by a hinge (16) of a type generally known. Preferably, the hinge (16) is spring-biased by means of a spring module (17) of a type generally known. Each portion has a brush head (18, 20) at its distal end. The first brush head (18) has a generally concave cross-sectional profile with a concave hair engaging surface (22). The second brush head (20) has a generally convex cross-sectional profile with a convex hair engaging surface (24). When the heads (18, 20) are moved to the closed position as shown in Fig. 2B, the concave surface (22) and the convex surface (24) nest relative to each other.

The first brush head (18) has a series of vents (26) beginning on the concave surface (22) and penetrating completely through. The second brush head (20) has a series of first vents (28) penetrating into the body of the second brush head (20), which is a hollow body, and a series of second vents (30) on the back surface (32) of the second brush head (20). The first vents (28) and second vents (30) are in communication via the hollow body of the second brush head (20) so that air can pass through.

A first set of bristles (34) is attached to the first brush head (18) as shown. A second set of bristles (36) is attached to the second brush head (20) as shown. The respective bristles and vents are aligned such that when the two heads (18, 20) are moved to a closed position, the bristles on one head enter a vent on the other head to prevent the bristles from being crushed.

A lock (38) has a button (40) mounted on the first portion (12) on a handle section (42) for sliding movement relative thereto. The button (40) is attached to a first cam wedge shoulder (44) that extends through the handle section (42). A second cam wedge shoulder member (46) resides in the second portion handle section (48) and lines up with the first cam wedge shoulder (44) when the portions are closed as shown in Fig. 2B. By sliding the button (40) while the portions are closed, the cam wedge shoulders (44, 46) interlock and hold the portions in the closed position of Fig. 2B.

Each brush head (18, 20) is provided with a hair treatment section (50, 52). These sections may be plated, coated, deposited or otherwise treated with substances such as ceramic, tourmaline, metals, glass, and / or various substances that retain heat, emit heat, emit ions, emit infra red energy, remove static, removed contaminants and perform other functions.

In use, the brush (10) is held by the handle portions (42, 48) and the brush heads (18, 20) are positioned around hair to be styled or treated. The brush heads (18, 20) are closed such that the bristles engage the hair. If desired, a hair dryer can be used to apply heat to the hair via the vents. The brush my be pulled through the hair with a sweeping motion including a curved motion to impart a desired shape to the hair.

While the preferred embodiment is described herein, various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.