US 11,806,884 B2
Pressure sensing electric shaver
Marcus Franciscus Eijkelkamp, Peize (NL); Daniele Solerio, Groningen (NL); Joost Willem Frederik Nengerman, Groningen (NL); Martijn Van Zutphen, Marum (NL); and Joop Hendriks, Groningen (NL)
Assigned to KONINKLIJKE PHILIPS N.V., Eindhoven (NL)
Filed by KONINKLIJKE PHILIPS N.V., Eindhoven (NL)
Filed on Mar. 7, 2022, as Appl. No. 17/687,766.
Application 17/687,766 is a continuation of application No. 17/284,897, abandoned, previously published as PCT/EP2020/060302, filed on Apr. 10, 2020.
Claims priority of application No. 19170323 (EP), filed on Apr. 18, 2019.
Prior Publication US 2022/0184830 A1, Jun. 16, 2022
Int. Cl. B26B 19/38 (2006.01); B26B 19/14 (2006.01)
CPC B26B 19/388 (2013.01) [B26B 19/14 (2013.01); B26B 19/386 (2013.01); B26B 19/3813 (2013.01)] 20 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. An electric shaver comprising:
a main body;
a shaving unit having at least two cutting units exposed on a shaving face of the shaver, each cutting unit being mounted to a cutting unit carrier of the shaving unit and comprising an external cutting guard and an internal cutting member,
a sensor comprising a first sensor unit mounted in a fixed position relative to the main body and a second sensor unit mounted in a fixed position relative to a sensor unit carrier, wherein the sensor is configured for outputting a signal indicating a distance of the second sensor unit to the first sensor unit in a direction parallel to a z-axis which is oriented transverse to the shaving face; and
at least one suspension arm arranged between the main body and the shaving unit, wherein the at least one suspension arm is flexible for allowing movement of the sensor unit carrier the direction parallel to the z-axis,
wherein the at least one suspension arm suspends the shaving unit and the sensor unit carrier with respect to the main body for displacement in unison from a rest position towards the main body along the z-axis to a pushed-in position in response to a pushing force exerted onto the shaving face of the shaver,
wherein the at least one suspension arm is configured for exerting a resilient force along the z-axis biasing the shaving unit in a direction from the pushed-in position towards the rest position, and
wherein the first sensor unit and the second sensor unit are located in positions offset from the z-axis over a distance in a direction parallel to an x-axis which extends perpendicularly to the z-axis, and
wherein the at least one suspension arm is configured to provide greater stiffness against tilting of the sensor unit carrier with respect to the main body about a y-axis, which extends perpendicularly to the x-axis and the z-axis, than stiffness against tilting about the x-axis and the z-axis during movement of the shaving unit between the rest position and the pushed-in position along the z-axis.