Sonicare
Template:Short description Template:More citations needed Sonicare is the brand name of an electric toothbrush produced by Philips.
HistoryEdit
In 1987, David Giuliani, an entrepreneur with a background in electrical engineering, met with University of Washington professors Drs. David Engel and Roy Martin. They formed a new company named GEMTech to promote a dental hygiene device using a piezoelectric multimorph transducer. After several years of research and creating prototypes, the Sonicare toothbrush was introduced in 1992.<ref name=":0">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
In 1995, GEMTech changed its name to Optiva Corporation.<ref name=":0" /> The company was originally headquartered in Bellevue, Washington, and moved to Snoqualmie, Washington, in 1999. The Template:Convert plant in Snoqualmie was later supplemented by an additional facility in Auburn, Washington.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In October 2000, Philips Domestic Appliances and Personal Care, a division of Philips, acquired the company. A few months later Optiva Corporation changed its name to Philips Oral Healthcare, Inc. By the end of 2001, Sonicare had become the number-one selling rechargeable power toothbrush in the United States.<ref name="History">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> In 2003, to improve Philips brand recognition in the US, Philips rebranded the Sonicare toothbrush as "Philips Sonicare".
Product and technologyEdit
The brush head vibrates at hundreds of times per second, with the latest models at 31,000 strokes per minute (517 Hz) or 62,000 movements per minute<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}Template:Dead link</ref> (1033 Hz). Rather than connecting to its charger with conductors, it uses inductive charging—the charger includes the primary winding of the voltage-reducing transformer and the handle of the brush includes the secondary winding. The replaceable head is also driven magnetically. Currently, there are multiple types of Sonicare brushes.
EffectivenessEdit
Template:Further Based on 10 relevant studies, a 2014 Cochrane review concluded that electric toothbrushes with side-to-side lateral motion, including Sonicare brushes, were similarly effective as manual toothbrushes in reducing dental plaque and gingivitis.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> A 2004 review found that the Oral-B toothbrush with oscillating rotating motion removed plaque more thoroughly than Sonicare toothbrushes; the review also identified no clinical evidence that the Sonicare toothbrush generates "dynamic fluid activity" that would eliminate plaque, as claimed in Sonicare's marketing.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>