Tint brush comfort grip

Abstract

A grip for a tint brush includes a first section for accepting a handle of the tint brush, a second section for accepting a bristle top of the tint brush. The first and second sections are removable from the tint brush.

Description

PRIORITY

The present invention claims priority under 35 USC section 119 and provisional application Ser. No. 60/626,089 filed on Nov. 8, 2004.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to tools for hair coloring.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

It is common and well accepted that individuals often wish to cosmetically maintain the coloring of their hair or wish to change the color of their hair. Oftentimes, these individuals seek to alter the coloring of their hair by various standardized hair color treatments such as tinting, highlighting, bleaching and so on. One widely used method used in hair coloring techniques includes the use of foil wraps and a brush. Using these apparatuses, a small amount of hair such as a small strand of hair is placed on the foil wrap, and the brush is used to apply the tint or bleach to the small strand of hair. Then, the small strand of hair is wrapped in the foil wrap until the desired result is reached. The brush that is used is known in the art as a tint brush and includes a integral handle which is extremely small in diameter. The use of this tint brush for even a small amount of time can lead to fatigue in the hand, and if the amount of time that this tint brush is used is sufficient long, the use of the tint brush can lead to cramps and severe pain in the form of thumb cramps, hand fatigue and finger numbness.

In order to avoid color contamination, these tint brushes are disposed of frequently, and consequently, it is necessary to minimize the cost of these tint brushes.

SUMMARY

The present invention combines the standard tint brush with a grip in order to form a comfortable hand-friendly brush that can be used by a hair colorist, avoiding the problems of the standard tint brush. The comfort grip is non-absorbent and durable and includes a non-slip smooth surface. The comfort grip may be formed from a PVC closed cell foam so that the comfort grip is unaffected by most solvents and chemicals. The comfort grip is removable from the standard tint brush so that the standard tint brush can be discarded after one or more uses, leaving the comfort grip to be used with another standard tint brush. The comfort grip forms a friction fit without adhesive with the standard tint brush, and the comfort grip does not interfere with the intended function of the standard tint brush. The comfort grip absorbs the shocks from the standard tint brush so that these shocks are not transmitted to the hand of the colorist. The comfort grip helps to relieve thumb cramps, hand fatigue and finger numbness caused by the repetitive action of applying color by the colorist and other injurious effects. The comfort grip includes two openings for the standard tint brush. One opening of the comfort grip allows the bristles of the standard tint brush to be exposed so that the bristles of the standard tint brush can receive the color to be applied to the hair. The other opening of the comfort grip allows the comfort grip to be used to accommodate standard tint brushs of varying lengths for example, the handle of the standard tint brush may be short or it may be long. The other opening of the comfort grip allows the handle of the standard tint brush regardless of the length to extend beyond the comfort grip. In this way, the length of the handle does not affect the operation of the comfort grip.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention may be understood by reference to the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which, like reference numerals identify like elements, and in which:

FIG. 1 illustrates a cross-sectional view of the comfort grip;

FIG. 2 illustrates a perspective view of the comfort grip and tint brush;

FIG. 3 illustrates an end view of the comfort grip;

FIG. 4 illustrates a perspective view of the comfort grip;

FIG. 5 illustrates a cross-sectional view of the comfort grip;

FIG. 6 illustrates an cross-sectional view of a portion of the comfort grip;

FIG. 7 illustrates the other end view of the comfort grip.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

FIG. 1 illustrates the comfort grip 100 or grip which includes a first section 102 and a second section 104 which is shown as being integral with the first section 102 and is formed as an approximate Y shaped device of substantially uniform thickness. The first section 102 is substantially of uniform width, and the first section 102 includes a first opening 106 to allow the handle of the tint brush to extend beyond the comfort grip 100. The second section 104 is shown having an expanding width in order to accept the bristle top of the standard tint brush and includes a second opening 108 to allow the bristle top of the standard tint brush to extend beyond the comfort grip 100 so that the comfort grip 100 does not interfere with the intended function of the standard tint brush.

FIG. 2 illustrates the comfort grip 100 and a tint brush 200 having a bristle top 202 extending beyond the second section 104 and having a tint brush handle 204 extending beyond the first section 102.

FIG. 3 illustrates the second opening 108 of the second section 104 as a rectangle and having a chamfer 302 around the periphery of the opening 108. While the second opening 108 is shown as a rectangle, other shapes are within the scope of the present invention. The shape and size of the second opening 108 is formed to match the bristle top 202 so that the bristle top 202 can be removed from the comfort grip 100 yet is formed to obtain a frictional fit without adhesive with the tint brush 200. In this way, the tint brush 200 can be inserted and removed from the comfort grip 100.

FIG. 4 illustrates a perspective view of the comfort grip 100. In particular, FIG. 4 illustrates the rounded sides 402 of the comfort grip 100 to provide a more comfortable handle for the hand of the colorist or user, the substantially flat top 404 of the comfort grip 100 and the substantially flat bottom of 406 of the comfort grip 100. These rounded sides 402 extend from the first opening 106 to the second opening 108.

FIG. 5 illustrates a cross-sectional view of the comfort grip 100. As illustrated in FIG. 5, the comfort grip 100 includes a cavity 502 that is defined by the sides 402, top 404 and the bottom 406.

FIG. 6 illustrates a cross-section A-A′ of the comfort grip 100 as shown in FIG. 5.

FIG. 7 illustrates the first opening 106 of the first section 102. The first opening 106 is shown as a rectangle again formed to conform to the tint brush handle 200. Other shapes and sizes of the first opening 106 are within the scope of the present invention.

In conclusion, it can be seen that the comfort grip may be formed from PVC closed cell foam so that the comfort grip is generally unaffected by most solvents and chemicals. The comfort grip 100 is removable from the standard tint brush 200 so that the standard tint brush 200 can be discarded and replaced after one or more uses, leaving the comfort grip 100 to be used with another standard tint brush 200. The comfort grip 100 forms a friction fit without adhesive with the standard tint brush 200 so that the comfort grip 100 does not interfere with the intended function of the standard tint brush 200. The comfort grip 100 of the present invention could be used with adhesive if desired. The comfort grip 100 absorbs the shocks from the standard tint brush 200 so that these shocks are not transmitted to the hand of the colorist. The comfort grip 100 helps to relieve thumb cramps, hand fatigue and finger numbness caused by the repetitive action of applying color by the colorist.

While the invention is susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms, specific embodiments thereof have been shown by way of example in the drawings and are herein described in detail. It should be understood, however, that the description herein of specific embodiments is not intended to limit the invention to the particular forms disclosed.

Claims

1. A grip for a tint brush, comprising:

a first section for accepting a handle of said tint brush;

a second section for accepting a bristle top of said tint brush;

wherein said first and second sections are removable from said tint brush.

2. A grip for a tint brush as in claim 1, wherein said second section includes an expanding width.

3. A grip for a tint brush as in claim 1, wherein said first section includes a first opening for said handle.

4. A grip for a tint brush as in claim 1, wherein said second section includes a second opening for said handle.

5. A grip for a tint brush as in claim 3, wherein said first opening is substantially rectangular.

6. A grip for a tint brush as in claim 4, wherein said second opening includes a chamfer.

7. A grip for a tint brush as in claim 1, wherein said first and second sections are formed from PVC vinyl.

8. A method for forming a grip for a tint brush, comprising the steps of:

forming a first section for accepting a handle of said tint brush;

forming a second section for accepting a bristle top of said tint brush;

wherein said first and second sections are formed to be removable from said tint brush.

9. A method for forming a grip for a tint brush as in claim 8, wherein said second section includes an expanding width.

10. A method for forming a grip for a tint brush as in claim 8, wherein said first section includes the step of forming a first opening for said handle.

11. A method for forming a grip for a tint brush as in claim 8, wherein said second section includes the step of forming a second opening for said handle.

12. A method for forming a grip for a tint brush as in claim 10, wherein said first opening is formed substantially rectangular.

13. A method for forming a grip for a tint brush as in claim 11, wherein the step of forming said second opening includes the step of forming a chamfer.

14. A method for forming a grip for a tint brush as in claim 8, wherein said first and second sections are formed from PVC vinyl.