Abstract: The present invention is directed to an appliance for oral hygiene, in particular an oral irrigating apparatus 10, comprising a hand-held unit 12 and a base unit 14 interconnected by a fluid conducting hose 19 and electrical conductors 21, 23. By means of an operating means 33 arranged on the handle section 28 of the hand-held unit 12, two operating parameters, particularly the On/Off state and the jet pressure of the oral irrigating apparatus 10, can be varied.

Abstract: The invention is directed to an electric power driven toothbrush having a four-bar linkage (8) disposed in the handle section, the input end thereof being driven by an electric motor (2) through a train of spur gears, while the output end thereof drives in an oscillatory manner an output shaft (15) within an angular range of .+-.35.degree., approximately. The output shaft (15) is suitable for coupling engagement with a toothbrush section through a bevel gear train, and the axis of rotation of the toothbrush section forms an approximately right angle with the axis of the output shaft (15).

Abstract: An oscillating-armature electric motor comprises an armature which, during operation of the motor, moves along a path of oscillatory movement that includes a substantial range of movement in which the armature poles are located remote from the stator poles. When the poles are remote from each other, the efficiency of electrical to mechanical energy conversion would be low. The stator winding is energized in dependence upon the position of the motor, to avoid wasteful electrical energy dissipation during that part of the armature swing in which the aforementioned efficiency would be low. During the part of the armature swing in which the efficiency is high, the energization is great enough to establish a range of armature movement which goes beyond the high-efficiency armature positions to predominantly comprise low-efficiency armature positions.