AUTOMATIC CURLING IRON WITH ROTATABLE AND DETACHABLE STRUCTURE

Abstract

Disclosed herein is an automatic curling iron having a structure in which a cylindrical heating body is easily separable from a main body, with the consequence that the cylindrical heating body can be replaced with a different cylindrical heating body having a brush, and the automatic curling iron not only occupies a small volume when stored but also simplifies hair styling since the cylindrical heating body is rotated to the left merely by operating a switch button. The automatic curling iron includes a main body, and a cylindrical heating body rotatably coupled to one side of the main body. The main body includes a main body casing, a motor, a rotary shaft, a fixed terminal section, and a rotary terminal. The cylindrical heating body includes a heating body casing, a heating element, and a heating element terminal section.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a curling iron with rotatable and detachable structure, and more particularly, to an automatic curling iron having a structure in which a cylindrical heating body is easily separable from a main body, with the consequence that the cylindrical heating body can be replaced with a different cylindrical heating body having a brush, and the automatic curling iron not only occupies a small volume when stored but also simplifies hair styling since the cylindrical heating body is rotated to the left merely by operating a switch button.

Description of the Related Art

A hair-curling iron is widely used as a kind of beauty tool for styling hair, such as straightening wavy or curly hair or curling or waving straight hair.

A conventional hair-curling iron is divided into a wave curling iron for creating hair in a wavy style and a straight curling iron for straightening hair. For this reason, there is a problem of poor economy in that a user must possess and use both types of curling irons in order to create various hairstyles.

Moreover, when using each curling iron, there is a disadvantage in that the user must use the curling iron while holding a separate brush in the other hand to trim hair.

In addition, the conventional hair-curling iron as described above is manufactured in the form of tongs, and has a heating part formed at the front end thereof. Since the surface of the heating part that is in contact with hair is mainly a flat surface, the user has to pull the heating part with great force to straighten the hair, thereby causing the hair to fall out due to the excessive force. When creating wavy hair, the user has to perform multiple operations on the same hair, such as manually picking up the hair and then rolling it up with the curling iron, which may cause damage to the hair due to heat and may quickly fatigue the user's wrist due to the lengthy work.

In addition, in the state in which all types of curling irons with respective functions, such as a function of applying heat to the hair, a function of making the hair wavy, and a function of combing the hair, are separately provided, the use must replace the curling iron with a new curling iron every time it is used, and then apply power thereto to use it. Accordingly, there is a need to develop a curling iron that can perform all these functions in a single device.

In order to solve this issue, Korean Patent Application Publication No. 10-2012-0090486 discloses, as illustrated in FIG. 12, a rotary hair-curling iron equipped with a detachable heat dissipation roll for styling hair by applying heat to the hair, the rotary hair-curling iron including: a heat dissipation body 10 having a handle member 11 formed thereon; a heat dissipation roll 20 detachably coupled to one end of the heat dissipation body 10 to radiate heat while rotating; a heating element 30 installed in the heat dissipation roll 20 to generate heat; a rotating member 40 installed in the heat dissipation body 10 to rotate the heat dissipation roll 20; a power supply unit 50 formed on the heat dissipation body 10 to turn on/off the heating element 30 or the rotating member 40; and an operation adjustment unit 60 formed on the heat dissipation body 10 to adjust the heating temperature of the heating element 30 and the speed of rotation of the rotating member 40, wherein a coupling part 21 is detachably coupled to one end of the heat dissipation body 10 for rotation.

However, although the above patent describes that the heat dissipation body 10 and the heat dissipation roll 20 are detachable through the coupling part 21, it does not disclose a structure for supplying power to the heating element by any specific means while the heat dissipation roll rotates.

In order to solve this issue, Korean Utility Model No. 20-0394529 discloses, as illustrated in FIG. 13, a hair styling iron including: a handle unit 30 including a drive motor 44 driven by power from a power source, a reducer 46 connected to the rotary shaft of the drive motor 44 to reduce the speed of rotation of the drive motor 44, and power transmission means 48, 50 and 52 for transmitting rotational driving from the reducer 46; and a heating unit 10 including an intermediate connection part 24 provided with transmission power receiving means 28 and 26 for accommodating the rotational power sequentially transmitted from the power transmission means 48, 50, and 52 of the handle unit 30, and a heating rod 12 rotatably coupled to the intermediate connection part 24 and having a built-in thermal conductor configured to rotate together with a heating rod rotation gear 29 by the rotation of the transmission power receiving means 28 and 26 of the intermediate connection part 24, wherein one of the handle unit 30 and the heating unit 10 is axially fitted to the other of them, the handle unit 30 and the heating unit 10 are configured such that one of them is provided with a power transmission outlet 38 and the other is provided with a power transmission plug 18, and a movable clutch 40 and a driven clutch 20 are provided between the power transmission means 52 and the transmission power receiving means 28 to easily attach/detach the heating unit 10 with respect to the handle unit 30.

In the case of Korean Utility Model No. 20-0394529, since the hair styling iron must be equipped with expensive components such as the transmission power receiving means, the movable clutch and the driven clutch, the motor, and the gear box, there is a problem in that the hair styling iron has a complicated structure and is manufactured at high cost.

Therefore, there is a need to develop a curling iron, which can have a detachable heat dissipation roll while supplying power to the heating element mounted on the rotating heat dissipation roll, have a simple structure, and be manufactured at low cost.

PATENT DOCUMENT

(Patent Document 1) Korean Patent Application Publication No. 10-2012-0090486

(Patent Document 2) Korean Utility Model No. 20-0394529

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and it is an object of the present invention to provide an automatic curling iron having a structure in which a cylindrical heating body is easily separable from a main body, with the consequence that the cylindrical heating body can be replaced with a different cylindrical heating body having a brush, and the automatic curling iron not only occupies a small volume when stored but also simplifies hair styling since the cylindrical heating body is rotated to the left merely by operating a switch button. In addition, the automatic curling iron has a simple internal structure and can be manufactured at low cost.

The present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned objects, and other objects of the present invention can be clearly understood by those skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains from the following description.

In accordance with the present invention, the above and other objects can be accomplished by the provision of an automatic curling iron with rotatable and detachable structure, which includes a main body, and a cylindrical heating body rotatably coupled to one side of the main body. The main body includes a main body casing, a motor mounted within the main body casing, a rotary shaft coupled to the motor, a fixed terminal section fixed to the main body casing with the rotary shaft fitted thereinto, and a rotary terminal module rotatably coupled to the rotary shaft, and having one side electrically connected to the fixed terminal section and the other side electrically connected to the cylindrical heating body. The cylindrical heating body includes a heating body casing, a heating element mounted within the heating body casing, and a heating element terminal section installed on one side of the heating body casing and electrically connected to the rotary terminal module to supply power to the heating element.

In the automatic curling iron with rotatable and detachable structure, the fixed terminal section may include a fixed terminal body having a hole into which the rotary shaft is inserted, a first annular terminal disposed outside the fixed terminal body and having an elastic structure, and a first cylindrical terminal disposed in the center of the fixed terminal body and having an elastic structure, the first cylindrical terminal being open at one side thereof. The rotary terminal module may include a terminal disk including a disk part having a hole into which the rotary shaft is inserted, a protrusion part extending from the center of one surface of the disk part to be rotatably inserted into the first cylindrical terminal and having a hole into which the rotary shaft is inserted, a second annular terminal disposed outside one surface of the disk part and electrically connected to the first annular terminal, and a second cylindrical terminal disposed on an outer peripheral surface of the protrusion part and inserted into and electrically connected to the first cylindrical terminal, and a terminal body including a cylindrical terminal disk-coupling part, which is open at one side to accommodate the terminal disk, having a coupling groove formed in the center thereof such that the rotary shaft is fitted into the coupling groove, and a socket part extending from the other side of the terminal disk-coupling part and having a plurality of socket holes arranged to detachably couple the heating element terminal section. The terminal disk and the terminal body may have fastening holes formed therein, respectively, and a fastening member may be screwed into the fastening holes.

In the automatic curling iron with rotatable and detachable structure, the heating element terminal section may include a cylindrical plug body coupled to an open one side of the cylindrical heating body, and a plurality of connection pins installed in the plug body and fitted into the socket holes. The plug body may have a guide groove extending circumferentially on an outer peripheral surface thereof. The main body casing may be provided with a detachable lever detachably fitted into the guide groove to rotatably fix the main body and the cylindrical heating body.

In the automatic curling iron with rotatable and detachable structure, the first annular terminal may have an elastic structure in which a first plane, an inclined plane, and a second plane are formed sequentially on left and right sides thereof with respect to a virtual center line, so that the second plane is in contact with the second annular terminal.

In the automatic curling iron with rotatable and detachable structure, the detachable lever may be coupled to the main body casing by a hinge, and may have a spring installed on one side thereof with respect to the hinge and a fitting protrusion formed on the other side thereof to be fitted into the guide groove, so that when one side of the detachable lever having the spring installed thereon is pressed, the fitting protrusion is separated from the guide groove, thereby enabling coupling/decoupling of the cylindrical heating body.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above and other objects, features and other advantages of the present invention will be more clearly understood from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating an overall appearance of an automatic curling iron with rotatable and detachable structure according to the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of FIG. 1;

FIGS. 3 and 4 are partial perspective views illustrating a main body and a cylindrical heating body according to the present invention;

FIGS. 5 and 6 are exploded perspective views illustrating a coupling structure of a rotary terminal module according to the present invention;

FIGS. 7A and 7B are exploded perspective views illustrating a detailed configuration of a fixed terminal section and the rotary terminal module according to the present invention;

FIG. 8 is a partial perspective view illustrating a structure in which the main body is coupled to the cylindrical heating body according to the present invention;

FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view of FIG. 8;

FIGS. 10A to 10C are views illustrating a state in which the cylindrical heating body is rotated according to the present invention;

FIG. 11 is a view illustrating a process of separating the cylindrical heating body according to the present invention; and

FIGS. 12 and 13 are views illustrating a structure of a conventional rotary curling iron.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in more detail. However, these embodiments are only illustrative of the present invention, and are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating an overall appearance of an automatic curling iron with rotatable and detachable structure according to the present invention. FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of FIG. 1. FIGS. 3 and 4 are partial perspective views illustrating a main body and a cylindrical heating body according to the present invention. FIGS. 5 and 6 are exploded perspective views illustrating a coupling structure of a rotary terminal module according to the present invention. FIGS. 7A and 7B are exploded perspective views illustrating a detailed configuration of a fixed terminal section and the rotary terminal module according to the present invention. FIG. 8 is a partial perspective view illustrating a structure in which the main body is coupled to the cylindrical heating body according to the present invention. FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view of FIG. 8. FIGS. 10A to 10C are views illustrating a state in which the cylindrical heating body is rotated according to the present invention. FIG. 11 is a view illustrating a process of separating the cylindrical heating body according to the present invention.

Referring to FIGS. 1 to 11, the automatic curling iron with rotatable and detachable structure according to the present invention mainly includes a main body 110 and a cylindrical heating body 130 rotatably coupled to one side of the main body 110.

The main body 110 includes a main body casing 111, a motor 115 mounted within the main body casing 111, a rotary shaft 116 coupled to the motor 115, a fixed terminal section 117 fixed to the main body casing 111 with the rotary shaft 116 fitted thereinto, and a rotary terminal module 120 rotatably coupled to the rotary shaft 116, and having one side electrically connected to the fixed terminal section 117 and the other side electrically connected to the cylindrical heating body 130.

The main body casing 111 is provided with a first circuit board 112a configured to adjust power and an amount of heat generation, a first switch part 112b connected to the first circuit board 112a, a second circuit board 113a configured to control leftward and rightward rotation and the original position of the cylindrical heating body 130, and a second switch part 113b connected to the second circuit board 113a.

A detachable lever 114 is installed at the front end of the main body casing 111.

The fixed terminal section 117 includes a fixed terminal body 118 having a hole 118a into which the rotary shaft 116 is inserted, a first annular terminal 119 disposed outside the fixed terminal body 118 and having an elastic structure, and a first cylindrical terminal 119e disposed in the center of the fixed terminal body 118 and having an elastic structure, the first cylindrical terminal 119e being open at one side thereof.

The first annular terminal 119 has an elastic structure in which a first plane 119b, an inclined plane 119c, and a second plane 119d are formed sequentially on the left and right sides thereof with respect to a virtual center line 119a, so that the second plane 119d is in contact with a second annular terminal 124.

The rotary terminal module 120 includes a terminal disk 121, and a cylindrical terminal body 127 which is open at one side to accommodate the terminal disk 121.

The terminal disk 121 includes a disk part 122 having a hole 122a into which the rotary shaft 116 is inserted, a protrusion part 123 extending from the center of one surface of the disk part 122 to be rotatably inserted into the first cylindrical terminal 119e and having a hole 123a into which the rotary shaft 116 is inserted, a second annular terminal 124 disposed outside one surface of the disk part 122 and electrically connected to the first annular terminal 119, and a second cylindrical terminal 125 disposed on the outer peripheral surface of the protrusion part 123 and inserted into and electrically connected to the first cylindrical terminal 119e.

The terminal body 127 includes a cylindrical terminal disk-coupling part 128, which is open at one side to accommodate the terminal disk 121, having a coupling groove 128a formed in the center thereof such that the rotary shaft 116 is fitted into the coupling groove 128a, and a socket part 129 extending from the other side of the terminal disk-coupling part 128 and having a plurality of socket holes 129a arranged to detachably couple a heating element terminal section 135.

A third terminal 129b is inserted into an associated one of the socket holes 129a.

The terminal disk 121 and the terminal body 127 have fastening holes 121a and 127a formed therein, respectively, and a fastening member 127b is screwed into the fastening holes 121a and 127a.

The cylindrical heating body 130 includes a heating body casing 131, a heating element 133 mounted within the heating body casing 131, and a heating element terminal section 135 installed on one side of the heating body casing 131 and electrically connected to the rotary terminal module 120 to supply power to the heating element 133.

A tongs 132 is installed on the outer peripheral surface of the rear end of the heating body casing 131 to press down the hair.

The heating element terminal section 135 includes a cylindrical plug body 136 coupled to an open one side of the cylindrical heating body 130, and a plurality of connection pins 136b installed in the plug body 136 and fitted into the socket holes 129a.

Meanwhile, the plug body 136 has a guide groove 136a extending circumferentially on the outer peripheral surface thereof.

The detachable lever 114 is coupled to the guide groove 136a. The detachable lever 114 is coupled to the main body casing 111 by a hinge 114a, and has a spring 114b installed on one side thereof with respect to the hinge 114a and a fitting protrusion 114c formed on the other side thereof to be fitted into the guide groove 136a.

When one side of the detachable lever 114 having the spring 114b installed thereon is pressed, the fitting protrusion 114c is separated from the guide groove 136a, thereby enabling coupling/decoupling of the cylindrical heating body 130.

Hereinafter, a method of using the automatic curling iron with rotatable and detachable structure according to the present invention will be described.

After a user turns on the power of the automatic curling iron by pressing the first switch part, the user can adjust a heating temperature and then rotate the cylindrical heating body leftwards and rightwards using the second switch part.

When the use of the automatic curling iron is complete, the cylindrical heating body can be returned to its original position by pressing the home button of the second switch part.

After use, the automatic curling iron can be stored with the main body and the cylindrical heating body separated from each other, or the cylindrical heating body can be replaced with a different cylindrical heating body having a brush. To this end, the main body and the cylindrical heating body can be easily separate from each other by pressing the detachable lever so that the fitting protrusion is separated from the guide groove, and then pulling the main body and the cylindrical heating body. As is apparent from the above description, in the automatic curling iron with rotatable and detachable structure according to the present invention, since the cylindrical heating body is easily separable from the main body, the cylindrical heating body can be replaced with a different cylindrical heating body having a brush, and the automatic curling iron not only occupies a small volume when stored but also simplifies hair styling since the cylindrical heating body is rotated to the left merely by operating a switch button. In addition, the automatic curling iron has a simple internal structure and can be manufactured at low cost.

The present invention is not limited to the above effects, and other effects of the present invention will be clearly understood by those skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains from the above description.

It will be understood that the present invention is not limited to the specific form set forth herein. Accordingly, the true technical protection scope of the present invention should be determined by the technical concepts of the appended claims. Furthermore, it should be understood that the present invention includes all modifications, equivalents, and substitutions falling within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

Claims

1. An automatic curling iron with rotatable and detachable structure, comprising:

a main body, and a cylindrical heating body rotatably coupled to one side of the main body, wherein the main body comprises:

a main body casing;

a motor mounted within the main body casing;

a rotary shaft coupled to the motor;

a fixed terminal section fixed to the main body casing with the rotary shaft fitted thereinto; and

a rotary terminal module rotatably coupled to the rotary shaft, and having one side electrically connected to the fixed terminal section and the other side electrically connected to the cylindrical heating body, and wherein the cylindrical heating body comprises:

a heating body casing;

a heating element mounted within the heating body casing; and

a heating element terminal section installed on one side of the heating body casing and electrically connected to the rotary terminal module to supply power to the heating element.

2. The automatic curling iron according to claim 1, wherein the fixed terminal section comprises a fixed terminal body having a hole into which the rotary shaft is inserted, a first annular terminal disposed outside the fixed terminal body and having an elastic structure, and a first cylindrical terminal disposed in the center of the fixed terminal body and having an elastic structure, the first cylindrical terminal being open at one side thereof,

wherein the rotary terminal module comprises:

a terminal disk comprising a disk part having a hole into which the rotary shaft is inserted, a protrusion part extending from the center of one surface of the disk part to be rotatably inserted into the first cylindrical terminal and having a hole into which the rotary shaft is inserted, a second annular terminal disposed outside one surface of the disk part and electrically connected to the first annular terminal, and a second cylindrical terminal disposed on an outer peripheral surface of the protrusion part and inserted into and electrically connected to the first cylindrical terminal; and

a terminal body comprising a cylindrical terminal disk-coupling part, which is open at one side to accommodate the terminal disk, having a coupling groove formed in the center thereof such that the rotary shaft is fitted into the coupling groove, and a socket part extending from the other side of the terminal disk-coupling part and having a plurality of socket holes arranged to detachably couple the heating element terminal section, and

wherein the terminal disk and the terminal body have fastening holes formed therein, respectively, and a fastening member is screwed into the fastening holes.

3. The automatic curling iron according to claim 2, wherein:

the heating element terminal section comprises a cylindrical plug body coupled to an open one side of the cylindrical heating body, and a plurality of connection pins installed in the plug body and fitted into the socket holes;

the plug body has a guide groove extending circumferentially on an outer peripheral surface thereof; and

the main body casing is provided with a detachable lever detachably fitted into the guide groove to rotatably fix the main body and the cylindrical heating body.

4. The automatic curling iron according to claim 2, wherein the first annular terminal has an elastic structure in which a first plane, an inclined plane, and a second plane are formed sequentially on left and right sides thereof with respect to a virtual center line, so that the second plane is in contact with the second annular terminal.

5. The automatic curling iron according to claim 3, wherein the detachable lever is coupled to the main body casing by a hinge, and has a spring installed on one side thereof with respect to the hinge and a fitting protrusion formed on the other side thereof to be fitted into the guide groove, so that when one side of the detachable lever having the spring installed thereon is pressed, the fitting protrusion is separated from the guide groove, thereby enabling coupling/decoupling of the cylindrical heating body.