APPLICATOR DEVICE FOR APPLYING A FLUID OR PASTE PRODUCT TO KERATIN FIBRES

Description

The invention relates to the field of applicators for applying a fluid or paste product to keratin fibers such as eyelashes or eyebrows.

In particular the applicators that the invention concerns enable a cosmetic, make-up or care product to be applied to the hair, eyelashes or eyebrows. They can further enable application of a cosmetic product to the skin of a person.

In known manner these applicators, which include in particular mascara brushes, essentially include two elements: a core of elongate shape on which is disposed at least one row of teeth or bristles or protuberances. This constitutes the simplest embodiment of this type of applicator.

A constant problem with these applicators is to enable application in sufficient quantity and harmoniously of the cosmetic product to the keratin fibers of the person with very simple gestures and thus with the minimum of operations.

Numerous applicators, and in particular mascara brushes, exist in the prior art, providing a more or less satisfactory solution to the aforementioned problem.

Thus the present invention aims in particular to provide an applicator, and more particularly a mascara brush, that makes it possible to solve this problem in a more satisfactory manner than the solutions proposed until now.

This aim of the invention and other advantages that will emerge from the description given hereinafter are achieved by an applicator device for applying a fluid and/or paste product to keratin fibers, including a core and a plurality of protuberances connected directly or indirectly to the core, these protuberances being arranged along a surface the shape of which corresponds to the surface defined by the keratin fibers intended to receive said product.

Thanks to these features the protuberances of the applicator device intended to be charged with the product to be applied to the keratin fibers are able to espouse the spatial profile defined by these fibers perfectly and thus enable homogeneous application of the product to these fibers in a single gesture.

In accordance with other optional features of the applicator device in accordance with the invention, separately or in combination:

• • this applicator device includes at least one simple arch connected at at least one of its ends to said core, this flexible arch supporting a plurality of said protuberances: the presence of a flexible arch of this kind enables on the one hand easier passage of the applicator through the neck of a container containing the product to be applied without significant loss of this product during this passage and on the other hand flexible contact with the part of the body of the person with which the applicator device must come into contact;
  • this applicator device includes two flexible arches disposed on respective opposite sides of said core: this arrangement enables use of the applicator device with the same ergonomics to treat a right eye or a left eye;
  • this applicator device includes at least one groove formed in said core and extending along the length thereof: a groove of this kind constitutes a reservoir for the product to be applied, thereby making it possible to increase the product charge of the applicator device and therefore to reduce the number of passages necessary over the fibers to be treated;
  • at least some of said protuberances are disposed at the edge of said groove: this arrangement enables direct flow of the product to be applied from the interior of the groove as far as the exterior surface of the protuberance and therefore more effective discharge of this product onto the fibers to be treated;
  • this applicator device is made in one piece by injection molding a plastic material: thanks to this method of manufacture using appropriate molds this applicator device can be manufactured industrially with high throughput and at low cost;
  • said at least one arch and said protuberances have a hardness lower than that of said core: these features enable each part to fulfil its function perfectly.

Other features and advantages of the invention will emerge from a reading of the following description with reference to the appended figures, which depict:

FIG. 1: a perspective view of an applicator device in accordance with the invention,

FIG. 2: another perspective view of this applicator device represented in a simplified manner without the protuberances and showing a distribution surface for some of these protuberances,

FIG. 3: a side view of the applicator device from FIG. 1,

FIG. 4: another side view of this applicator device, the latter having pivoted about its longitudinal axis relative to the FIG. 3 view,

FIG. 5: a perspective view of a typical protuberance of this applicator device,

FIG. 6: a perspective view in cross section of this applicator device,

FIG. 7: a view analogous to that of FIG. 6 as seen from a slightly different angle,

FIG. 8: four perspective views of the eye the eyelashes of a person and,

FIG. 9: a perspective view of one side of the applicator device showing in particular the spatial arrangement of the protuberances of this applicator device.

For greater clarity identical or similar elements are identified by identical or similar reference signs in all the figures.

Refer more particularly now to FIGS. 1, 3 and 4.

As can be seen in these figures the applicator device in accordance with the invention includes a core 1 extending substantially along a longitudinal axis XX′ and intended to be connected to a handle for holding it not represented in these figures.

On this core 1 are disposed directly or indirectly a plurality of protuberances 3 extending in a globally radial direction relative to this core.

As can be seen in FIG. 2 in particular, at least two flexible arches 5a, 5b extending substantially in the longitudinal direction XX′ are preferably connected at each of their ends to the core 1 and disposed on respective opposite sides of this core 1, that is to say in a substantially diametrically opposite manner.

Longitudinal grooves 7a, 7b may also be formed in the core 1.

The protuberances 3, possibly taking the form of bristles or teeth of elongate general shape as represented in FIG. 5, can have a localized shape particularly suited to the nature of the particular product to be applied.

In the particular example represented in FIG. 5 it can therefore be seen that at least some of the protuberances of the applicator device in accordance with the invention have a shape that decreases in size from their base 9 intended to be connected to the core to their free end 11 and a substantially plane face 13.

Of course, this shape example is in no way limiting on the invention and it can be seen in FIG. 9 in particular that other protuberances 3b can for example feature a concave zone 17 over their length.

The presence of protuberances of different shapes disposed in different zones of the applicator device makes it possible to use this applicator device in various ways to apply the product in zones of the body that may have different geometries: it then suffices to modify the orientation of the applicator device by causing it to pivot about its longitudinal axis XX′ to switch from one mode of applying the product to another and/or from one zone of the body to another.

To be more specific, as can be seen in FIGS. 3, 7 and 9 in particular the protuberances 3 of the same row may be disposed in a quincunx arrangement relative to one another and when these protuberances 3 include a substantially plane face 13 these faces may be part of a common joining surface.

When this applicator device includes arches 5a, 5b some of the protuberances 3a are disposed along these arches, as can be seen in FIGS. 1, 3, 6, 7 and 9 in particular.

When the applicator device includes grooves 7a, 7b some of the protuberances 3b may be disposed along these grooves with their base 9 originating inside these grooves, as can be seen in FIGS. 6 and 9 in particular.

The other protuberances 3c may be connected directly to the core 1, as can be seen in FIGS. 1, 3, 6, 7, 9 in particular.

The applicator device in accordance with the invention is made in one piece from plastic material(s), preferably by injection molding—although of course any other method of manufacture—and in particular additive manufacture—can also be envisaged.

Plastic materials having different hardnesses (measured for example on the Shore scale) may be chosen for the different portions of the applicator and in particular for the core 1 on the one hand (relatively high hardness) and for the arches 5a, 5b and the protuberances 3a, 3b, 3c on the other hand (relatively low hardness).

When the applicator device in accordance with the invention is made by injection molding the joining surfaces along which protuberances 3 extend correspond to the joining surfaces of the mold.

In accordance with one feature of the invention at least some of these protuberances 3 and in particular the protuberances 3a fixed to the arches 5a, 5b in the example represented are spatially arranged in a specific manner: these protuberances are in effect arranged along a surface the shape of which corresponds to the surface defined by the keratin fibers intended to receive the fluid and/or paste cosmetic product with which the applicator device is charged.

For example when the keratin fibers in question are the eyelashes 21 and an eye 23 as can be seen in FIG. 8 these eyelashes 21 therefore define a three-dimensional surface S and their free ends define the edge B of this surface.

Similarly, as can be seen in FIG. 9 in particular at least some protuberances 3a of the protuberances 3 are disposed inside a surface S′ the shape of which corresponds to the surface S of these eyelashes 21 and the edge B′ of which, defined by the free ends of the protuberances 3a, defines a curve analogous to that of the edge B of the eyelashes 21.

When it is indicated here that “the protuberances 3a are disposed inside a surface S”, this means that the mean axes of these protuberances corresponding substantially to their longitudinal axes of inertia define a geometrical locus that can be approximated by this surface S′.

In particular this surface S′ may correspond to a joining surface when the applicator device in accordance with the invention is made by injection molding.

As is clear from the foregoing description, the applicator device in accordance with the invention, which may be a mascara brush for example, enables application of a product, in particular a fluid and/or paste cosmetic product, to keratin fibers such as the eyelashes 21 in a particularly homogeneous manner and in a single pass.

In fact, the perfect correspondence of the surface S′ and of the edge B′ defined by the protuberances, in particular the protuberances 3a with the surface S and the edge B defined by the eyelashes 21, enables these protuberances 3a to correspond perfectly with these eyelashes 21 upon bringing the applicator device into contact with these eyelashes.

This perfect correspondence enables the product situated along the protuberances 3 and where applicable inside the grooves 7a, 7b to be applied in a perfectly distributed manner and once only to each of the eyelashes 21: this results in a particularly simple and effective application gesture.

Naturally the invention is described above by way of example. It is understood that the person skilled in the art is in a position to produce variants of the invention without this departing from the scope of the invention.