Powered Toothbrush with Evacuation Technology

Rutgers Inventor(s):  Maxine Strickland; Vivek Kumar

Awarded:  January 2019

Summary:  When food is chewed or while drinking, the tongue moves to push food or liquid toward the back of the throat; this process stimulates swallowing. The food or liquid swallowed then moves down the upper part of the throat, called the pharynx, after which it goes into an area called the esophagus and then down into the stomach. Management of fluids while brushing, in particular, can be a challenge for the young or convalescent, the elderly or disabled populations who may ordinarily have difficulty spitting and may tend to swallow or aspirate toothpaste and particulates during the brushing process. When this happens, the liquid or food can get into the wrong passage and instead enter the lungs. This allows bacteria to also get into the lungs, putting them at risk for aspiration pneumonia.

A Rutgers researcher, working in collaboration with a biomedical engineer at NJIT, has put together a new powered toothbrush with evacuation technology for this reason. The Rutgers TechAdvance project will be used to prototype an esthetic model and design of its own. It is hoped that this innovation in toothbrushing can reduce problems with aspiration in this growing population as well as put parents at ease while training young children in toothbrushing. The novel brush design can withdraw saliva, toothpaste and debris during brushing at a rate commensurate with activated saliva production as seen in the figure above.

Market Applications:

• Evacuation assisted brushing
  • Elderly Populations
  • Individuals with limited swallowing ability
  • Pediatric population
  • Individuals in nursing homes