Oral-B

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title: "Oral-B" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["oral-hygiene", "procter-&-gamble-brands", "products-introduced-in-1950", "1984-mergers-and-acquisitions", "2005-mergers-and-acquisitions", "brands-of-toothpaste"] description: "American brand of oral hygiene products" topic_path: "general/oral-hygiene" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oral-B" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary American brand of oral hygiene products ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox Brand"]

Field	Value
name	Oral-B
logo	Oral-B Logo 2024.svg
logo_caption	Logo since 2020
type	Oral hygiene
currentowner	Procter & Gamble
previousowners	The Gillette Company
introduced
origin	United States
markets	Worldwide
website	oralb.com
::

| name = Oral-B | logo = Oral-B Logo 2024.svg | logo_caption = Logo since 2020 | type = Oral hygiene | currentowner = Procter & Gamble | previousowners = The Gillette Company | introduced = | origin = United States | markets = Worldwide | website = oralb.com ::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cb/Oral-B_CrossAction_Pro-Health.jpg" caption="Oral-B toothbrushes and floss"] ::

Oral-B is an American brand of oral hygiene products, including toothpastes, toothbrushes, electric toothbrushes, and mouthwashes. The brand has been in business since the invention of the Hutson toothbrush in 1950 and in Redwood City, California.{{cite web |title=History of Redwood City |url=https://www.rwc-localhistory.com/history-of-redwood-city
|website=localhistory |access-date=July 16, 2022 |language=en}} Oral-B has market availability in 150-170 countries.

History

Robert W. Hutson (1919–2001), owner of a periodontal practice in San Jose, began designing a toothbrush in the 1940s.

By 1949, he discovered that thin, round-ended, nylon filaments would be gentle on the gums yet effective for cleaning teeth.

Hutson patented a toothbrush in 1950. The application for a design patent for his "Hutson toothbrush" was filed on January 13, 1950, and U.S. Design Patent No. 160,604 was granted on October 24 the same year.

In 1958, he was granted a utility patent for a "mouthbrush" having fine, soft, flat-ended nylon bristles, and a similar appearance to the 1950 design. He claimed in his application that the brush was less abrasive to tooth enamel, more effective at massaging the gums, and better at picking up tooth powder than other brushes available at the time, which featured coarse, angle-cut bristles.

The toothbrushes were made by the Owens Brush Company. The partners placed a $10,000 order for brushes and hired the first two salespeople. In order to create demand for new brushes, the sales team devoted almost all of their time to communicating with dentists, passing samples, and outreach work. The result of these efforts has been a steady increase in the number of orders. The next successful step was the decision to participate in the conventions and conferences of dentists held in the state of California.

Robert Hutson also created the Oral-B brand name. The first product was known as the "Oral-B 60", because it had 60 tufts. Other sizes were made with differing numbers of tufts and corresponding names.

Oral-B became part of the Gillette group in 1984. Braun, also part of the Gillette group at that time, started to use the Oral-B brand for electric toothbrushes. Procter & Gamble bought Gillette in 2005 and marketed Oral-B together with Crest under Pro-Health in 2007. A company representative has stated that the "B" in Oral-B stands for "brush".

In 2013, Colombian singer Shakira was chosen as the brand ambassador and spokesperson for the 3D White property.

Products

• 1991: Bristle color fades with wear (Indicator toothbrush, Edison Awards winner){{cite patent | inventor-last = Breuer | inventor-first = Miklos M. | inventor2-last = Hanak | inventor2-first = Joseph A. | publication-date = February 7, 1989 | title = Novel brush filaments | country-code = US | patent-number = 4802255 |fdate=August 10, 1987 |assignee=Gillette Canada |status=patent}}
• 1996: IDEO begins design of Oral-B for kids
• 1998: Angled bristles (CrossAction toothbrush)
• 2005: Oral-B Triumph ProfessionalCare 9000 enters the North American market featuring "smart technology". The Gillette Company is acquired by Procter & Gamble, uniting Oral-B and Crest beneath the umbrella of P&G Oral Care.
• 2010: Oral-B Triumph 5000 enters the international market, equipped with touch, sound and light indicators that notify of the need to change the nozzle.

iO

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b8/Oral_B_iO_toothbrush.jpg" caption="Oral-B iO toothbrush"] ::

Oral-B's iO is a series of electric toothbrushes. The series received ADA's "Seal of Acceptance", and three offerings appear in the top five highest scoring products reported by Consumer Reports in 2026. It uses oscillation rotation, which was introduced by Oral-B in the 1990s.

The iO series, introduced in 2020, represents a technological shift within Oral-B’s product lineup, replacing traditional mechanical drive systems with a magnetic drive designed to deliver energy more directly to the brush head while reducing noise and vibration. Across the lineup, iO models incorporate pressure sensors, motion tracking, and app-based guidance features. Newer releases expanded these capabilities, with the iO Series 10 positioned as the most advanced model, adding a magnetic charging stand with real-time feedback and faster charging, while retaining the same core oscillation-rotation brushing mechanism used throughout the series.

References

References

1. (September 1989). "Bond durability between dentinal bonding agents and tooth structure". The Journal of Prosthetic Dentistry.
2. (September 30, 2020). "Dental Plaque Removal Ability of Different Power Toothbrushes by Using a Three-Dimensional Study Model". Korean Academy of Preventive Dentistry.
3. "Oral B Laboratories World Headquarters".
4. "Robert W Hutson, Born 06/20/1919 in California".
5. (May 30, 2001). "Robert W. Hutson; Dentist Designed Oral-B Toothbrush". [[Los Angeles Times]].
6. {{cite patent
7. {{cite patent
8. "Oral-B 60".
9. "About us: History of Oral-B". oralb.com.
10. (May 26, 2001). "Dr. Robert W. Hutson – Oral B originator [obituary]". San Francisco Chronicle.
11. "Oral-B Company Profile".
12. (November 3, 1993). "ORAL-B LOSES ITS BITE IN TOOTHBRUSH RACE". [[Chicago Tribune]].
13. "products".
14. "How to Select a Toothbrush". Oral-B.
15. (January 28, 2005). "P&G to buy Gillette for $55b: Latest in string of deals for old-line Hub firms". The Boston Globe.
16. (August 9, 2007). "P&G starts to market Crest and Oral-B together". Reuters.
17. "About Oral-B". oralb.co.uk.
18. (November 11, 2010). "What does the "B" in the name ORAL B stand for?".
19. "Shakira Named New Global Ambassador Across the Worldwide 3D White Collection from Oral-B and Crest".
20. "Oral-B".
21. "Oral-B ADVANTAGE toothbrush with Micro-Textured Bristles". Oral-B.
22. "Specialty Toothbrushes". Oral-B.
23. "Oral-b Dental Floss With Fluoride 510(k) FDA Premarket Notification K925409 ORAL-B LABORATORIES".
24. (June 24, 2011). "Field Observations with Fresh Eyes". [[YouTube]].
25. (Summer 2022). "Children's toothbrushes".
26. "IDEO's Human Centered Design Process: How to Make Things People Love".
27. (November 12, 2008). "Field Observations with Fresh Eyes". Stanford.
28. (September 16, 2005). "Oral-B Triumph toothbrush". The Globe and Mail.
29. (2024). "Oral-B iO Series". [[American Dental Association]].
30. . (2026). "Electric Toothbrushes".
31. "Oral-B Website".

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