Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to an attachment for a haircare appliance, and a haircare appliance.

Background of the Invention

Haircare appliances are generally used to treat or style hair, and some haircare appliances may treat or style hair using airflow.

Summary of the Invention

According to a first aspect of the present invention there is provided an attachment for a haircare appliance, the attachment comprising a main body comprising: an air inlet; an air outlet; and a hair treatment chamber for receiving hair, the hair treatment chamber defined by a wall and an opening through which hair is insertable into the hair treatment chamber, and an insert removably attachable to the main body, wherein, when the insert is attached to the main body, the insert directs airflow in a first direction away from the hair treatment chamber and, when the insert is removed from the main body, airflow emitted from the air outlet is directed in a second direction into the hair treatment chamber.

The functionality of the attachment may be changed dependent on whether the insert is attached to the main body. With the insert removed from the main body, the hair treatment chamber may hold the user’s hair in place during use such that the user’s hair is less likely to be disrupted by the flow of air into the hair treatment chamber. As such, relatively high flow rates of air can be used without significantly disrupting the user’s hair. With the insert removed from the main body, as hair is inserted through the opening, and the hair treatment chamber is in fluid communication with the air outlet. Airflow is therefore directed in the second direction. In use, the user may place their hair in the hair treatment chamber and place a periphery of the opening against their head. As such, the airflow may initially be directed away from the head of the user and into the hair treatment chamber in use. In examples where the airflow is heated, this may reduce an amount of direct heat being applied to the user’s head which may increase the comfort of using the haircare appliance, particularly over an extended period of time.

With the insert attached to the main body, airflow is instead directed in the first direction away from the hair treatment chamber, and towards the roots of the hair. This may provide different drying and/or styling characteristics for the same airflow through the main body.

The haircare appliance may comprise a heater for heating hair received in the hair treatment chamber. For example, the heater may be for heating the airflow. Advantageously, with the insert removed from the main body, as the hair treatment chamber defines a confined space, as hot air passes into the confined space the ambient temperature within the hair treatment chamber rises. With the insert attached to the main body, hot air may be directed towards the roots of the hair. In both configurations, this may help to increase the efficiency and/or speed of drying the hair of the user.

The insert may comprise an insert inlet in fluid communication with the air outlet when the insert is attached to the main body, and an airflow pathway configured to direct airflow from the insert inlet towards the first direction. The airflow pathway may thus act to change the direction and/or characteristics of the airflow as the airflow passes along the airflow pathway. For example, the airflow pathway may converge or diverge as it extends away from the insert inlet, to change the airflow velocity. For example, the airflow may be emitted from the air outlet in the second direction and the airflow pathway may divert the airflow towards the first direction.

The insert may comprise a base configured to inhibit airflow from travelling in the second direction when the insert is attached to the main body, and an upper panel defining an aperture through which airflow is emitted from the insert in use, the base and the upper panel separated by a gap defining the airflow pathway. Providing a gap between the base and the upper panel may permit more controllability of the airflow as it passes from the insert inlet to the aperture.

The base may be non-air permeable such that substantially all of the airflow passing along the airflow pathway is directed through the aperture.

The upper panel may define a plurality of apertures through which airflow is emitted from the insert in use.

The insert inlet may extend around a periphery of the gap. This may help to provide more even airflow within the gap, which may provide better airflow distribution as the airflow is emitted from the insert.

The insert may comprise a plurality of protrusions disposed on the base and configured to separate airflow from the base. Separating airflow from the base may help to direct airflow towards the upper panel and/or the aperture. This may help to improve the characteristics of airflow emitted from the aperture.

At least some of the protrusions may be ribs extending towards a centre of the base. The ribs may help to control separation of airflow from the base. Airflow may be guided by the ribs towards a centre of the insert and detach substantially uniformly from the base along a length of a respective rib. The protrusions may be distributed around the periphery of the base, which may provide more even airflow within the gap, which in turn may provide more desirable airflow distribution as the airflow is emitted from the insert, for example an even and diffused airflow.

The ribs may be curved. Accordingly, each ribs may change the direction of airflow that flows along the length of that protrusion. This may further help separate airflow from the base. Each rib may each extend along a respective spiralled path. The spiralled paths may originate from a centre of the base and extend outward to the periphery of the base. The ribs may extend along only a portion of the respective spiralled path.

When the insert is attached to the main body, an interface may be formed around a periphery of the hair treatment chamber between the base and the wall. The interface may help to prevent airflow emitted from the air outlet from entering the hair treatment chamber instead of the gap, which may help to improve the drying and/or styling performance of the insert.

The attachment may comprise a seal at the interface. The seal may help to prohibit airflow passing through the interface which may help to increase airflow emitted from the insert and so improve the drying and/or styling performance of the insert.

When the insert is attached to the main body, a further interface may be formed between a rim defining the opening, and the upper panel. The further interface may help to prevent airflow from escaping the attachment without first passing through the insert, which may help to improve the drying and/or styling performance of the insert.

The upper panel may define a plurality of apertures, at least some of the apertures positioned closer to a centre of the upper panel than a periphery of the upper panel. The area over which airflow is emitted from the insert may thus be increased compared to examples in which the apertures are located close to the periphery of the opening. This may be beneficial for diffusing airflow so as to reduce disruption of hair during use of the attachment with the insert attached to the main body.

At least some of the plurality of apertures may be positioned on a respective plurality of prongs disposed on an outer surface of the upper panel. The prongs may be useful for engaging hair in use, the apertures configured to direct airflow towards the roots of the hair.

The insert may comprise one or more gripping surfaces disposed on an outer surface of the insert. The one or more gripping surfaces may aid attachment and detachment of the insert from the main body. The gripping surfaces may be distal from the upper panel, which may become hot in examples in which the airflow is heated.

The one or more gripping surfaces may comprise a ridge projecting from the outer surface and extending around a periphery of the insert. This may allow the user to grip the insert from any direction around the insert, which may, for example, be beneficial if the user is holding the main body in one hand and needs to attach or detach the insert with the other hand.

When the insert is attached to the main body, hair may be inhibited from being inserted into the hair treatment chamber. This may help to reduce disruption to the hair during use of the attachment with the insert attached to the main body.

The insert may be a diffuser. The diffuser may be used to dry the roots of hair, which are not subject to direct airflow during use of the attachment with the insert detached from the main body. According to a second aspect of the present invention there is provided a haircare appliance comprising an attachment according to the first aspect of the present invention and an airflow generator for generating an airflow from the air inlet to the air outlet.

This may allow for a multi-functional appliance to which different attachments can be attached to the handle. The haircare appliance may be a hair dryer and/or a hair styling device. The airflow generator may be comprised in a handle unit of the haircare appliance. The haircare appliance may comprise a heater for heating the airflow. The heater may be comprised in the handle unit.

The attachment may communicate with the handle unit to modify operation of the haircare appliance. For example, the attachment may communicate with the airflow generator to modify the airflow provided to the attachment. The attachment may communicate with the haircare appliance to transfer information indicative of a desired air flow rate or airflow temperature. The airflow generator may be operated on the basis of the information to provide the desired airflow characteristics. The attachment may comprise an RFID tag which includes information indicative of the air flow rate desired for the attachment. This information may be read from the RFID tag and transmitted to the airflow generator to cause the airflow generator to generate airflow with the desired flow rate. Alternatively or additionally, the attachment may communicate with the haircare appliance by Bluetooth™ or other suitable wireless communication standard, and/or by a wired connection.

According to a third aspect of the present invention there is provided a haircare appliance comprising a main body comprising: an air inlet; an air outlet; and a hair treatment chamber for receiving hair, the hair treatment chamber defined by a wall, and an opening through which hair is insertable into the hair treatment chamber, an insert removably attachable to the main body, and an airflow generator for generating an airflow from the air inlet to the air outlet, wherein, when the insert is attached to the main body, the insert directs airflow in a first direction away from the hair treatment chamber and, when the insert is removed from the main body, airflow emitted from the air outlet is directed in a second direction into the hair treatment chamber.

The haircare appliance may be a hair dryer and/or a hair styling device. The haircare appliance may be beneficial for drying and/or styling hair. With the insert removed, the hair treatment chamber may hold the user’s hair in place during use such that the user’s hair is less likely to be disrupted by the flow of air into the hair treatment chamber. As such, relatively high flow rates of air can be used to dry and/or style the hair without significantly disrupting the user’s hair. With the insert attached, airflow may be directed towards the roots of the hair to provide a different drying and/or styling effect compared to when the insert is removed.

Optional features of aspects of the present invention may be equally applied to other aspects of the present invention, where appropriate.

Brief Description of the Drawings

Figure 1 illustrates a haircare appliance according to an example;

Figure 2 illustrates a schematic cross-sectional view of a handle unit of the haircare appliance of Figure 1 ;

Figure 3 illustrates a schematic view of a main body of an attachment of the haircare appliance of Figure 1 ;

Figure 4 illustrates a side view of the main body of Figure 3;

Figure 5 illustrates a plan view of the main body of Figure 3; Figure 6 illustrates a slice side view of the main body of Figure 3 along the line AA shown in Figure 5;

Figure 7 illustrates an exploded view of the attachment of the haircare appliance of Figure 1 , the attachment comprising the main body of Figure 3 and an insert;

Figure 8 illustrates a schematic view of the attachment of the haircare appliance of Figure 1 with the insert attached to the main body;

Figure 9 illustrates a side view of the attachment of the haircare appliance of Figure 1 with the insert attached to the main body;

Figure 10 illustrates a slice side view of the attachment of the haircare appliance of Figure 1 with the insert attached to the main body along the line AA shown in Figure 5; and

Figure 11 illustrates a top view of a base of the insert of Figure 7.

Detailed Description of the Invention

A haircare appliance according to the present invention, generally designated 10, is shown schematically in Figure 1 . The haircare appliance 10 comprises a handle unit 12, and an attachment 100 removably attachable to the handle unit 12. The handle unit 12 comprises a housing 14, an airflow generator 16, a heater 18, and a control unit 20, as can be seen schematically in Figure 2.

The housing 14 is tubular in shape, and comprises an inlet 22 through which an airflow is drawn into the housing 14 by the airflow generator 16, and an outlet 24 through which the airflow is discharged from the housing 14. The airflow generator 16 is housed within the housing 14, and comprises an impeller 26 driven by an electric motor 28. The heater 18 is also housed within the housing 14, and comprises heating elements 30 to optionally heat the airflow.

The control unit 20 comprises electronic circuitry for a user interface 32 and a control module 34. The user interface 32 is provided on an outer surface of the housing 14, and is used to power on and off the haircare appliance 10, to select a flow rate (for example high, medium and low), and to select an airflow temperature (for example hot, medium or cold). In the example of Figure 1 , the user interface comprises a plurality of sliding switches, but other forms of user interface 32, for example buttons, dials or touchscreens, are also envisaged.

The control module 34 is responsible for controlling the airflow generator 16, and the heater 18 in response to inputs from the user interface 32. For example, in response to inputs from the user interface 32, the control module 34 may control the power or the speed of the airflow generator 16 in order to adjust the airflow rate of the airflow, and the power of the heater 18 in order to adjust the temperature of the airflow. In other examples, the heater 18 is omitted.

An example of the attachment 100 is described with reference to Figures 3 to 11 . The attachment 100 comprises a main body 200 and an insert 300 removably attachable to the main body 200. The attachment 100 is usable in a first configuration, in which the insert 300 is removed from the main body 200, and a second configuration, in which the insert 300 is attached to the main body 200.

Figures 3 to 6 show the attachment 100 in the first configuration. The main body 200 comprises an air inlet 202 and a manifold 220 in fluid communication with the air inlet 202. The air inlet 202 is in the form of an aperture and, when the main body 200 is attached to the handle unit 12, is in fluid communication with the outlet 24 of the housing 14, and receives airflow generated by the airflow generator 16 in use. The manifold 220 feeds three conduits 222, 224, 226, an inner annular wall 212 and an outer annular wall 213. The conduits 222, 224, 226 extend from the air inlet 202 to an opening at a respective distal end, and each conduit 222, 224, 226 has an inner wall 216 and an outer wall 218. The inner walls 216 conjoin at the distal ends to form the inner annular wall 212 and the outer walls 218 conjoin at the distal ends to form the outer annular wall 213.

The conduits 222,224,226 define a generally hemispherical hair treatment chamber 210. The hair treatment chamber 210 has an open end 206 and a rear end at which an apex 211 of the hair treatment chamber 210 is located. The air inlet 202 is positioned adjacent to the apex 211 outside of the hair treatment chamber 210. The openings at the distal ends of the conduits 222, 224, 226 are disposed at a periphery of the hair treatment chamber 210 between the inner annular wall 212 and the outer annular wall 213 and together form an air outlet 204. The distal ends are each 120 degrees apart from one another in this example. The hair treatment chamber 210 is for receiving hair and, when the insert 300 is not attached to the main body 200, is in fluid communication with the air outlet 204.

The outer annular wall 213 extends beyond the inner annular wall 212 and comprises a rim 208 that overhangs the inner annular wall 212 to define a channel 205 therebetween. The channel 205 extends around a periphery of the hair treatment chamber 210 and is in fluid communication with the air outlet 204. The rim 208 defines the open end 206 of the hair treatment chamber 210, through which hair is insertable into the hair treatment chamber 210. An underside of the rim 208 comprises a guiding surface 209 that defines a wall of the channel 205. The guiding surface 209 is shaped to direct airflow away from the open end 206 and along a periphery of the hair treatment chamber 210 toward the apex 211 , as best shown by the dashed arrows in Figure 6.

Slats 228 extend between adjacent conduits 222, 224, 226 in a direction around the periphery of the hair treatment chamber 210 and define apertures 214 therebetween. The apertures 214 permit airflow to escape the hair treatment chamber 210 via the apertures 214 whilst inhibiting objects from passing into the hair treatment chamber 210 between adjacent conduits 222, 224, 226.

A porous material (not shown) is disposed between adjacent conduits 222, 224, 226. The inner walls 216 of the conduits 222, 224, 226, the inner annular wall 212, which are each non-porous, and the porous material, define a boundary wall of the hair treatment chamber 210. In this example, the porous material is a mesh. Alternatively, any other suitably porous material can be used.

Figures 7 to 10 show the attachment 100 in the second configuration, in which the insert 300 is attached to the main body 200. In this example, the insert 300 is a diffuser, but in other examples may be any other suitable airflow manipulator, for example a concentrator.

The insert 300 comprises a base 310 and an upper panel 320. The upper panel 320 is fixedly connected to the base 310 by a plurality of rigid connecting members (not shown) with a gap 302 therebetween. A periphery of the gap 302 forms an insert inlet 304, which is in fluid communication with the channel 205 when the insert 300 is attached to the main body 200.

The upper panel 320 has a greater diameter than a diameter of the open end 206 so that the upper panel 302 extends in a radial direction beyond the open end 206. Accordingly, when the insert 300 is attached to the main body 200, an interface is formed between the upper panel 320 and the rim 208. A periphery of the upper panel 320 extends radially outward of the rim 208 and forms a gripping surface 328 against which a user can push or pull to attach or detach the insert 300 from the main body 200, and thus switch the attachment 100 between the first and second configurations.

The upper panel 320 defines a plurality of apertures 322 in fluid communication with the insert inlet 304 via the gap 302. The apertures 322 are within a diameter of the open end 206 of the main body 200 and extend across an area bounded by the rim 208. Some of the apertures 322 are closer to a centre of the upper panel 320 than to a periphery of the upper panel 320.

A plurality of prongs 324 are disposed on an outer surface 326 of the upper panel 320, and an aperture 325 is disposed on each prong 324. The prongs 324 are hollow and the apertures 325 are in fluid communication with the insert inlet 304 via the gap 302. The outer surface 326 is an opposite surface of the upper panel 320 to a surface adjacent to the base 310.

The base 310 is shaped to correspond to a shape of the open end 206 of the hair treatment chamber 210 and is solid and non-porous. A slot 314 extends around a periphery of the base 310 and a seal 312 is positioned within the slot 314. When the attachment 100 is in the second configuration, the seal 312 forms a further interface between the base 310 and the inner annular wall 212. Eight identical ribs 316 are disposed on the base 310, as best shown in Figure 11 . The ribs 316 extend from a periphery of the base 310 along a curved path towards a centre of the base 310.

In use, with the attachment in the first configuration as shown in Figures 3 to 6, hair is inserted through the open end 206 into the hair treatment chamber 210. The airflow generator 16 generates an airflow from the air inlet 22 of the handle unit 12, through the air inlet 202 of the attachment 100, through the conduits 222, 224, 226, and to the air outlet 204. The airflow travels along the channel 205 and is directed away from the open end 206 and into the hair treatment chamber 210 by the guiding surface 209. Accordingly, the airflow is directed towards and passes through the apertures 214.

Thus, airflow may be directed away from the roots of the hair that is located within the hair treatment chamber 210 in use. For example, in use the user may place their hair in the hair treatment chamber 210 and place the rim 208 of the main body 200 against their head, such that the periphery of the open end 206 is located adjacent to roots of hair contained within the hair treatment chamber 210. As airflow within the hair treatment chamber 210 is directed away from the open end 206 toward the apertures 214, airflow may initially be directed away from the head of the user in use. This may reduce an amount of direct heat being applied to the user’s head which may increase the comfort of using the haircare appliance 10, particularly over an extended period of time.

With the insert 300 removed from the main body 200 i.e., in the first configuration, the hair treatment chamber 210 defines a confined space into which the user’s hair is placed. As hot air passes into the confined space, the ambient temperature within the hair treatment chamber 210 rises, which can help dry the hair of the user. Moreover, as the hair treatment chamber 210 holds the user’s hair in place during use, the user’s hair is less likely to be disrupted by the flow of air into the hair treatment chamber 210. As such, relatively high flow rates of air can be used without significantly disrupting the user’s hair, which may increase the efficiency and/or speed of drying the user’s hair and may improve the user’s final hair style.

In use, with the attachment in the second configuration, as shown in Figures 7 to 10, the insert 300 covers an entirety of the open end 206 and hair is inhibited from being inserted into the hair treatment chamber 210.

In the second configuration, the interface between the seal 312 and the wall 212 inhibits airflow from entering the hair treatment chamber 210 and the interface between the upper panel 320 and the rim 208 inhibits airflow escaping the attachment 200 between the upper panel 320 and the rim 208. As in the first configuration, airflow in received from the airflow generator 16 by the air inlet 202 and travels through the conduits 222, 224, 226 to the air outlet 204 and into the channel 205. In contrast to the first configuration, airflow then passes through the insert inlet 304 and into the gap 302. The ribs 316 cause the airflow to separate from the base 310 along the length of the ribs 316, and travel towards the upper panel 320. The airflow is emitted from the attachment 100 via the plurality of apertures 322 with an even and diffused profile, and in a direction away from the hair treatment chamber 210, as best shown by the dashed arrows in Figure 10. In use, the prongs 324 may be held close to, or pressed against, the head of the user and deliver airflow via the apertures 325 closer to the roots of hair of the user than airflow emitted from the apertures 322 not located on the prongs 324.

The different directionality of airflow being emitted from the attachment 100 in the first and second configurations allows a user to use a single attachment 100 to switch between different drying and/or styling operations with the simple action of attaching or detaching the insert 300 from the main body 200.

Although the insert 300 is shown in this example as being completely removable from the main body 200, in other examples the insert 300 may be movably attached to the main body 200 and movable relative to the main body 200 from an open position, in which the insert 300 is remote from the open end 206 and permits use of the attachment 100 in the first configuration, and a closed position, in which the insert 300 covers the open end 206 and permits use of the attachment 100 in the second configuration.

Examples are also envisaged where, rather than the haircare appliance 10 comprising a handle unit 12 and an attachment 100, the haircare appliance 10 is a single-piece unit, for example in which the handle unit 12 and the attachment 100 are combined.