WO2009039585A1 - A head lice removal apparatus and a method for removing head lice and eggs from a user's scalp - Google Patents
A head lice removal apparatus and a method for removing head lice and eggs from a user's scalp Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- WO2009039585A1 WO2009039585A1 PCT/AU2008/001436 AU2008001436W WO2009039585A1 WO 2009039585 A1 WO2009039585 A1 WO 2009039585A1 AU 2008001436 W AU2008001436 W AU 2008001436W WO 2009039585 A1 WO2009039585 A1 WO 2009039585A1
- Authority
- WO
- WIPO (PCT)
- Prior art keywords
- main body
- comb
- piece
- hair
- head lice
- Prior art date
Links
Classifications
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A01—AGRICULTURE; FORESTRY; ANIMAL HUSBANDRY; HUNTING; TRAPPING; FISHING
- A01K—ANIMAL HUSBANDRY; CARE OF BIRDS, FISHES, INSECTS; FISHING; REARING OR BREEDING ANIMALS, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; NEW BREEDS OF ANIMALS
- A01K13/00—Devices for grooming or caring of animals, e.g. curry-combs; Fetlock rings; Tail-holders; Devices for preventing crib-biting; Washing devices; Protection against weather conditions or insects
- A01K13/002—Curry-combs; Brushes
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A45—HAND OR TRAVELLING ARTICLES
- A45D—HAIRDRESSING OR SHAVING EQUIPMENT; EQUIPMENT FOR COSMETICS OR COSMETIC TREATMENTS, e.g. FOR MANICURING OR PEDICURING
- A45D24/00—Hair combs for care of the hair; Accessories therefor
- A45D24/30—Combs specially adapted for removing dirt or grease
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A45—HAND OR TRAVELLING ARTICLES
- A45D—HAIRDRESSING OR SHAVING EQUIPMENT; EQUIPMENT FOR COSMETICS OR COSMETIC TREATMENTS, e.g. FOR MANICURING OR PEDICURING
- A45D24/00—Hair combs for care of the hair; Accessories therefor
- A45D24/32—Combs with suction appliance
Definitions
- This invention relates to a hand held removal apparatus adapted to rid hair or fur from head lice, lice eggs and other undesirable debris and insects from such hair or fur, and also a method for removing such undesirables from the hair and/or fur.
- this invention relates to a unique hand held removal apparatus that provides a convenient, safe and environmentally friendly apparatus for the speedy removal of undesirables, such as lice, lice eggs or ticks, from the hair or fur of both humans and animals.
- head lice can be removed from the scalp and the hair is through the use of chemical compositions which normally contain an active ingredient which is responsible for killing the lice and those eggs that are currently incubating on the hair.
- the carcasses of the head lice then need to be brushed from the hair as well as the combing out of the dead eggs.
- Another mechanical means in order to combat head lice is the use of a very fine tooth comb wherein the hair is stroked with the fine tooth comb in order to try and capture the head lice and also frictionally remove those eggs fastened to the hair locks or strands.
- the actual span of a fine tooth comb is particularly narrow so the overall process to mechanically comb one's hair in the attempt to capture head lice in the most part could be one of chance rather than good management.
- a head lice removal system could also utilize an exhaust or suction system whereby the head lice and eggs are literally sucked from the scalp.
- the main body of the apparatus presents an aperture opening to which suction or exhaust can draw items there into.
- the suction will have to work against the fine tooth comb in order to suck through the head lice and the eggs through the comb and then into the main body and on into the vacuum cleaner.
- the device would need to be combed through the hair from a down to top pattern arrangement in that the comb would literally have to bull doze or scoop up any head lice and eggs so that it can be presented to the front part of the comb rather than it being brushed aside away from the aperture opening.
- Patent Specification with international Publication No. WO03/056972 also discloses a superficially distantly related removal apparatus for getting rid of head lice and the associated eggs from hair and fur.
- a vacuum cleaner mouth-piece has a comb extending over the mouth-piece along with the use of a filter.
- the problem of placing the comb over the aperture to which suction or exhaust can be drawn from results in losing the effectiveness of the synergy between the combing action of the user and the suction or exhaust feature coming from the vacuum cleaner.
- a head lice removal apparatus including:
- a main body adapted to be clasped by a user's hand for convenient top down combing action through the hair or fur
- said main body in communication with an air suction and/or air exhaust system.
- said main body further including an aperture to which said air from suction and/or exhaust may be drawn there from,
- the mounting of the comb over the aperture defines a lateral spacing between the comb and the aperture to allow the strands of the hair or fur to enter there into said spacing for the exhaust and suction effect to act on the head lice and/or eggs within this spacing.
- An advantage of such an arrangement is that by defining this lateral spacing between the aperture opening and the detachable comb means that when the apparatus combs the hair, a natural action from top down can be employed and advantaqeouslv as it passes throuqh the hair the hair strands can then be lifted into this defined space in order for the suction effect to act upon removing the head lice and/or associated eggs.
- the comb and the suction effect are working in unison and as there is the defined gap between the aperture opening and the comb means that any dislodgement of the head lice and eggs need not sit on the front of the comb but rather be introduced into the defined space for the suction to there act upon.
- a further advantage of this arrangement is that the apparatus is a hand held device, it can be conveniently used to.effectively remove head lice infestation. There is now no longer the requirement to apply chemical compositions that need to remain applied on the hair for prolonged periods of time.
- the person infected with the head lice need not be subjected to painful means of combating the head lice during their removal.
- the head lice victim can sit comfortably and through gentle top down combing through the hair with the device, results in the dislodging of the head lice and removal of the eggs, where the combed hair can move into the defined spacing between the comb and the open aperture.
- the main body is adapted to be connected to a conventional vacuum cleaner.
- the main body includes a portion extending from the main body of which is tapered to allow a telescopic or snap like fit into a nozzle of a vacuum
- the overall apparatus can be light weight, cheap and easy to manufacture as well as convenient and comfortable to use when combing through the hair.
- the apparatus includes its own means to generate the required air suction or exhaustion by virtue of an inbuilt fan and/or motor.
- An advantage of such an arrangement is the apparatus can stand alone in its provision for the means of removing the head lice and eggs on the user's scalp.
- the apparatus itself has all the necessary inbuilt features to generate the required suction which will be responsible for removing the head lice and eggs once the hair strands have been combed into that defined space in between the comb and the open aperture of the main body.
- the detachable comb has a snap or frictional fit with a receiving socket on the main body.
- An advantage of such an arrangement is that the detachable comb can be conveniently removed and cleaned when required and also allow for changeability between the actual dimensions of the fine tooths of the comb.
- the apparatus removes the head lice without any chemical compositions or the like, it can be utilized by all those infected with such head
- suction and the ability to comb the hair to allow it to enter into that defined space between the comb and the aperture means that head lice can be removed instantaneously rather than waiting in some cases literally hours for example when shampoos are used to wipe out the head lice.
- the head lice removal apparatus includes a perforated cover over the aperture.
- this perforated aperture or grill or serrated barrier is that while for the most part the passage of thereinto the mouth-piece for the most part would be avoided by this unique lateral spacing between the comb and the aperture, just to guarantee that the arrangement would work on all kinds of hair and fur for the removal of the lice and associated eggs the perforated grill or gate is positioned over the aperture.
- the perforated aspect of the grates or grill means that suction and/or exhaust can easily still be drawn through the aperture with the added safety guard to avoid any inadvertent entry of the hair into the apparatus per se which could again, perhaps unlikely, lead to some type of hair or fur entanglement.
- the introduction of the perforated grill or grate over the aperture provides significant differences between previous arrangements utilising a vacuum cleaner mouth-piece for the removal of u ⁇ desired occurrences in hair and fur particularly in the International Patent Specification No. WO03/056972, where much of the focus was in fact to get to get the hair inside the mouth-piece.
- the main body is divided into four fastenable segments or portions.
- each section is adapted for a snap-fit or frictional engagement-type fit with respect to at least one other section such that the main body presents a single body to which can be clasped by the user's hand for convenient top-down combing action with the same main body configured for the convenient connection to a mouth-piece of a vacuum cleaner.
- the four sections include a top piece which includes the comb, said top piece adapted to rest or nest within an intermediate piece by frictional or snap-fit communication wherein a bottom piece is adapted to fastenably engage the underside of the intermediate piece wherein the intermediate piece and bottom piece define a hole at one end to which there is inserted a fourth piece, of which said fourth piece is adapted to engage the mouth-piece of the vacuum cleaner.
- top intermediate and bottom portions can all be snap-fitted together and once done so the opening is created to which the adaptor or connecting piece to the vacuum cleaner mo ⁇ th-piece can be inserted thereinto.
- the bottom portion includes the perforated grate.
- both the comb and the perforated grate can form part of both the upper and bottom portions respectively.
- the aperture to which suction and exhaust will be drawn from, from the main body will be covered by the grate of the bottom portion and wherein at the opposing end the adaptor can easily be inserted into that opening so as to easily then interconnect with the vacuum cleaner.
- Figure 1 is a representation of previously available head lice removal apparatus that employed the system of suction and the use of a detachable comb.
- Figure 2A shows the application of the apparatus of this invention to the hair of the user with the source of the suction being derived from a conventional vacuum cleaner and whereas Figure 2B is a part exploded view of Figure 2A highlighting the combing effect of bringing strands of hair into that defined space separated by the comb and the aperture opening.
- Figure 3 is a perspective view of the head lice removal apparatus.
- Figure 4A is a side view of Figure 3 wherein Figure 4B is a front on view of Figure 3.
- Figure 5 is a perspective view of an embodiment of the invention wherein the main body of the removal apparatus is configured from four separate interconnected portions.
- Figure 6 is an expanded or exploded view of Figure 5 showing the four interconnectable components or portions.
- Figure 7 is a cross-sectional view of Figures 5 and 6.
- Figure 8 shows the application of the removal. apparatus with the removal of undesired occurrences in the hair or fur of animals, which in this case is a domesticated dog.
- FIG. 1 presents a head lice removal apparatus 10 which was currently available before this invention.
- This head lice removal system has a main body 12 which derives its source of air suction from a conventional vacuum cleaner 18.
- the main body has an open aperture which can suck objects there into and as shown in the illustration is totally covered and closed off by the attached comb 16.
- the head lice removal apparatus has been able to improve upon the suction head lice removal system of Figure 1 by strategically placing the comb attachment such that there is a defined spacing between the aperture opening and the comb.
- main body 22 which has a comb 24 of which is detachably mountable to receiving slot 26 on the main body to snap fit the comb 24 there onto the apparatus 20.
- the main body also includes a tapered portion 28 which allows for easy insertion for a frictional type fit into the nozzle 30 of the conventional vacuum cleaner 32.
- the dislodged head lice and eggs can then be sucked into the main body 22 by virtue of the suction provided for in this preferred embodiment by the conventional vacuum cleaner 32.
- the attachment of the comb 25 to the main body 22 is such that the angle of the comb's teeth and the angle of the edge of the aperture opening are parallel in orientation.
- this alignment assists in that natural combing effect by the user as they pass the apparatus 20 through the infested scalp.
- the apparatus is hand held and streamlined in design, its application to be able to stroke and comb through the hair is comfortable and without pain to the user.
- the main body of the removal apparatus shown generally as 40 includes four interconnectable pieces 44, 46, 48 and 50.
- Top portion 44 which includes comb 62 is adapted to the rested or nested with the intermediate portion 46 by way of a snap or frictional type fit shown in this embodiment as features 52 and 54.
- Bottom portion 48 which includes the perforated grate 66 is able to inter-engage along its length 56 with the underside 58 of the intermediate portion 46.
- At one distal end of the engagement between the respective portions 44, 46 and 48 is adequate spacing for the grate 66 to comfortably cover the aperture to which suction and/or exhaust will be drawn from the vacuum cleaner.
- an opening is provided for to allow the component feature 50 to be able to be frictionally slid in along head 60 so as to be adapted then to connect to the mouth-piece or hose of the vacuum cleaner.
- the embodiment shown in Figures 5 to 7 provides for very streamlined, easy to manufacture, easy to assemble removal apparatus.
- the apparatus will work equally well in the application for the removal of any undesired occurrences in all varieties of hair and fur and this includes its application with animals, particularly domesticated pets such as dogs and cats where grooming to remove undesirable objects and vermin such as ticks and lice is often required.
Landscapes
- Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
- Environmental Sciences (AREA)
- Zoology (AREA)
- Animal Husbandry (AREA)
- Biodiversity & Conservation Biology (AREA)
- Nozzles For Electric Vacuum Cleaners (AREA)
Abstract
Description
Claims
Priority Applications (1)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
AU2008303076A AU2008303076B2 (en) | 2007-09-28 | 2008-09-26 | A head lice removal apparatus and a method for removing head lice and eggs from a user's scalp |
Applications Claiming Priority (4)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
AU2007905353A AU2007905353A0 (en) | 2007-09-28 | A head lice removal apparatus and a method for removing head lice and eggs from a user's scalp | |
AU2007905353 | 2007-09-28 | ||
AU2007906602A AU2007906602A0 (en) | 2007-12-05 | Lice suk - Head lice removal appartus & a method for removing head lice & eggs from an infested person | |
AU2007906602 | 2007-12-05 |
Publications (1)
Publication Number | Publication Date |
---|---|
WO2009039585A1 true WO2009039585A1 (en) | 2009-04-02 |
Family
ID=40510680
Family Applications (1)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
PCT/AU2008/001436 WO2009039585A1 (en) | 2007-09-28 | 2008-09-26 | A head lice removal apparatus and a method for removing head lice and eggs from a user's scalp |
Country Status (2)
Country | Link |
---|---|
AU (1) | AU2008303076B2 (en) |
WO (1) | WO2009039585A1 (en) |
Citations (7)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US4485583A (en) * | 1982-07-26 | 1984-12-04 | Audrey Planty | Flea-vacuum |
US5074006A (en) * | 1989-09-01 | 1991-12-24 | Nunzio Eremita | Pet vacuum comb |
US5768748A (en) * | 1996-05-16 | 1998-06-23 | Silvera; Curtis | Vacuum attachment for grooming cats and dogs |
US5870851A (en) * | 1997-05-30 | 1999-02-16 | Shoemaker; David G. | Flea removal assembly and conversion kit |
US20020189049A1 (en) * | 2001-05-17 | 2002-12-19 | Freidell James E. | Vacuum grooming tool |
WO2003056972A1 (en) * | 2002-01-07 | 2003-07-17 | Snatchers Company A/S | Removal of undesired occurrences in hair and fur |
US20080190376A1 (en) * | 2007-02-14 | 2008-08-14 | Matsumoto Evan I | Self cleaning pet fur stripping comb |
-
2008
- 2008-09-26 AU AU2008303076A patent/AU2008303076B2/en not_active Ceased
- 2008-09-26 WO PCT/AU2008/001436 patent/WO2009039585A1/en active Application Filing
Patent Citations (7)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US4485583A (en) * | 1982-07-26 | 1984-12-04 | Audrey Planty | Flea-vacuum |
US5074006A (en) * | 1989-09-01 | 1991-12-24 | Nunzio Eremita | Pet vacuum comb |
US5768748A (en) * | 1996-05-16 | 1998-06-23 | Silvera; Curtis | Vacuum attachment for grooming cats and dogs |
US5870851A (en) * | 1997-05-30 | 1999-02-16 | Shoemaker; David G. | Flea removal assembly and conversion kit |
US20020189049A1 (en) * | 2001-05-17 | 2002-12-19 | Freidell James E. | Vacuum grooming tool |
WO2003056972A1 (en) * | 2002-01-07 | 2003-07-17 | Snatchers Company A/S | Removal of undesired occurrences in hair and fur |
US20080190376A1 (en) * | 2007-02-14 | 2008-08-14 | Matsumoto Evan I | Self cleaning pet fur stripping comb |
Also Published As
Publication number | Publication date |
---|---|
AU2008303076A1 (en) | 2009-04-02 |
AU2008303076B2 (en) | 2012-06-07 |
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