Toothpaste has been in use for perhaps 7000 years. For most of history, people used available components for abrasiveness, with soap for cleaning, and often in powder sold in jars or tins. Herbs and other flavorings were sometimes added to overcome the taste and smell, and to treat bad breath. By the 1850's, industrial manufacturing of tooth cleaners provided standardized formulation and tube packaging. Most jars, tins, and tubes, however, are comparatively small and are a major cost to the price, as well as a cumulative component of landfills. Having to remove and replace caps also make tubes inconvenient. Fortunately, ULTRASMILE® realized that tubes are not needed in many uses and designed a reusable pump system, and then contacted Gerald R. Prettyman to secure a patent. After reviewing the design and features for patentable options, Gerald R. Prettyman prepared and filed a design patent appplication. While utility applications protect the function of an invention, design patent applications protect the appearance. Design patent applications also require less work and are therefore less expensive. With US Patent D887844, ULTRASMILE can help people around the world to SMILE, SMILE, SMILE. Got A Bright Idea? Visit GotABrightIdea.com