Abstract: The invention relates to a shaving apparatus comprising a first blade (1) and a second blade (3) having parallel cutting edges (5, 7) extending perpendicularly to a cutting direction X of the blades. The second blade follows the first blade, viewed in the cutting direction. According to the invention, the first blade comprises a blocking element (15) which is provided on a side surface (17) of the first blade at a distance (d) from the cutting edge (5) of the first blade, which distance (d) is much smaller than an average diameter of a hair (25) to be shaved by the apparatus, the first blade being periodically displaceable in the cutting direction by a displacing unit (11) of the apparatus from a first position, in which the cutting edge of the first blade is close to the cutting edge of the second blade, to a second position. In a prefered embodiment, said distance (d) ranges between 10 &mgr;m and 50 &mgr;m, and is in particular 30 &mgr;m.

Abstract: The invention relates to a shaving apparatus comprising a first blade (1) and a second blade (3) having parallel cutting edges (5, 7) extending perpendicularly to a cutting direction X of the blades. The second blade follows the first blade, viewed in the cutting direction. According to the invention, the first blade comprises a blocking element (15) which is provided on a side surface (17) of the first blade at a distance (d) from the cutting edge (5) of the first blade, which distance (d) is much smaller than an average diameter of a hair (25) to be shaved by means of the apparatus, the first blade being periodically displaceable in the cutting direction by a displacing unit (11) of the apparatus from a first position, in which the cutting edge of the first blade is close to the cutting edge of the second blade, to a second position.

Abstract: The invention relates to a depilation apparatus, comprising a housing which accommodates a pinching member for consecutively pinching hairs growing from human skin and twisting the pinched hairs about their longitudinal axes.According to the invention, the pinching member holds the pinched hairs in a substantially constant position relative to the housing while twisting the hairs. In this manner, the pinching member does not pull at the hairs and, therefore, does not cause any pain while twisting the hairs. The hairs are twisted by the pinching member until the adhesion between the hairs and the skin tissue is broken or until the hairs are broken beneath the skin surface. After having been twisted in this manner, the hairs can be removed from the skin substantially without pain.

Abstract: An appliance for removing hairs growing from skin is provided with a clamping device and a cutting device cooperating therewith. The clamping device clamps the hairs to be removed and subsequently extracts them at least partly from the skin, whereupon the hairs extracted partly from the skin are cut through adjacent the skin by the cutting device. The hairs thus cut through return to below the surface of the skin, so that a smooth shaving result is achieved which remains intact during a considerable period. According to the invention, the appliance is provided with structure for adjusting an extraction distance over which the clamping device extracts the hairs from the skin before they are cut through by the cutting device. In a special embodiment, the structure is adjustable to a first mode in which the appliance purely has a shaving function and to a second mode in which the appliance purely has a depilation function.

Abstract: A shaving apparatus has at least one cutting unit (3) comprising an external cutting member (4) and an internal cutting member (5) which is drivable relative thereto, which external cutting member (5) has a number of broad and narrow hair-entry apertures (7a, 7b) which are bounded by peripheral portions (12, 13) of the external cutting member. In order to enable both short and long hairs to be caught and severed effectively while irritation of the skin is avoided as far as possible, the peripheral portions (12, 13) bounding the hair-entry apertures (7a, 7b) have different thicknesses, the width (B1) of a hair-entry aperture (7a) between two thick peripheral portions (12) being greater than the width (B2) of a hair-entry aperture (7b) between two thin peripheral portions (13).

Abstract: A shaving apparatus is provided which has at least one cutting unit (3) comprising an external cutting member (4) and an internal cutting member (5) which is drivable relative thereto, which internal cutting member comprises at least one cutter rim (11), which external cutting member has at least one slot-shaped hair-entry aperture (15), a part of the cutter rim (11) constantly extending over an associated hair-entry aperture (15), and each point (A) of the cutter rim (11) performing a movement in accordance with a closed curve, the hair-entry aperture (15) being passed at least once when the closed curve is traversed one time. Preferably, both the cutter rim (11) and the slot-shaped hair-entry aperture (15) are circular and the movement of the cutter rim is an eccentric circular movement.

Abstract: A depilation method whereby hairs are gripped and pulled from the skin by means of a depilation member. Immediately prior to depilation, a vibration member is brought into contact with the skin to be depilated, which member exerts forces of varying intensity on the skin whereby the nerve function in the skin is affected.

Abstract: A depilation apparatus is provided with a depilation member (7) with pinching elements (19, 21, 69, 73, 111, 115) for consecutively holding hairs growing from the skin clamped in and pulling these hairs from the skin and comprises means (7, 41, 67) for twisting the hairs about their longitudinal axes before the depilation member (7) pulls the hairs from the skin whereby a considerable reduction of the required pulling force, a reduction of the pain occurring during pulling-out and a reduction of the risk of hair fracture during pulling-out of the hairs is obtained, the twisting action of the depilation apparatus being obtained through the use of a pair of discshaped pinching elements (19, 21, 69, 73, 111, 115) with cooperating pinching surfaces (23a, 23b, 71, 75, 113, 117) which slide alongside one another at least temporarily in the pinching position of the pinching elements (19, 21, 69, 73, 111, 115) and the pinching elements (19, 21, 69, 73, 111, 115) having different rotation speeds in the pinching positi

Abstract: A piston engine comprising a piston movable in a recriprocating manner in a cylinder, while during operation a wedge-shaped gap is present between piston and cylinder. The piston divides the cylinder into a first chamber and a second chamber, which communicate with each other through the gap. A stable central position of the piston is obtained by means of the wedge-shaped gap, which mainly determines a pressure difference between the first chamber and the second chamber. A particular application of the piston engine is a cryo-cooler, by means of which, for example, processors of computers are cooled.

Abstract: A thermodynamic oscillator having a displacer (5) and a piston (3) (further displacer) movable due to pressure fluctuations at the resonance frequency of the oscillator. The displacer (5) and the piston (3) are located in a working space (11, 15) which is filled with working medium and can be connected through a release valve (51, 125, 167) and a supply valve (53, 129, 169), respectively, to simple reservoir (55) filled upon working medium with an increase and a decrease, respectively, of the ambient temperature with respect to a nominal temperature. The valves (51, 53, 125, 129, 167, 169) have an opening pressure which is a function of the ambient temperature. The average pressure and the resonance frequency of the oscillator can thus be stabilized at a variable ambient temperature.The oscillator can be operated as a cold-gas engine, a hot-gas engine (motor), a heat pump or a current generator.