Dental handpiece having means for opening and closing a chuck

A device for opening and closing a chuck for a dental handpieces has a handle portion and a powerhead assembly including a hollow driving shaft having, adjacent to its outer orifice, a forwardly outwardly tapering portion defining a small diameter rear portion and a large diameter front portion. A chuck pusher is held in a socket member with a disc plate spring interposed between the socket member and the chuck pusher, and the pusher is movable for axially displacing the chuck to hold or release the dental tool.

Ethylene oxide gas has been utilized as an alternative method for sterilization of dental handpiece, as it is less corrosive than steam. However, its effectiveness for sterilization of the internal components of dental handpieces has not been established. The objective of this study was to compare the effectiveness of ethylene oxide and steam for sterilization of dental equipment. Unused handpieces and handpieces which had been exposed to clinical dental procedures (’clinical’) were contaminated with Streptococcus mutans, exposed to steam or ethylene oxide, and flushed with sterile saline. Washings were plated on mitis-salivarius agar, and colonies identified and counted. This data suggests that a substance entrapped within ‘clinical’ handpieces (possibly the biofilm) may protect bacteria from ethylene oxide gas, preventing adequate sterilization.

To understand current status of the uses of dental high speed handpiece, methods of disinfection and sterilization and their effectiveness in dental-care hospitals and out-patient departments of stomatology in general hospitals. METHODS: Ten dental-care hospitals and departments of stomatology in general hospitals at varied levels were randomly sampled during 2000 to 2001 to investigate the uses of dental autoclave and means of their disinfection and sterilization. One used dental handpiece from each hospital or department of stomatology in general hospital selected was detected for possible contamination of bacteria by aerobic bacterial count and CONCLUSIONS: dental handpieces without anti-suction should be replaced soon by those with it or comprehensive dental unit with anti-suction device should be used. Used dental handpieces must be sterilized effectively before next use. Awareness on prevention from cross-infection should be improved for dental-care professional staff and operation of sterilization should be standardized.

dental handpieces  dental equipment  dental high speed handpiece   dental autoclave

To learn more about this article, kick here: http://www.livejournal.com/

Ultrasonic dental handpiece having a rotatable head

Ultrasonic dental handpieces for holding a transducer is provided. The transducer converts electrical energy into ultrasonic vibrations. The dental handpiece includes a body, a rotator head, and a retainer ring. The body rotatably receives the transducer. The rotator head engages the transducer for rotation thereof. The retainer ring is fixedly coupled to one of the body and the rotator head and rotatably coupled to the other of the body and the rotator head, such that the rotator head is rotatably coupled to the body.

Dental practitioners use ultrasonic dental equipment(instruments) for dental treatments and procedures, such as scaling, periodontal treatments, root canal therapy, and the like. The ultrasonic dental autoclave typically include a handpiece coupled atone end (i.e., a proximal end) to an electrical energy and fluid source via a cable. The cable includes a hose to provide fluid (e.g., water) and conductors to provide electrical energy.

Therefore, there is a need for ultrasonic dental tools that are more comfortable and less fatiguing to use than conventional dental high speed handpiece. Any such new improvements should be downwardly compatible with the numerous electrical energy and fluidsources, handpieces and inserts that are already present in dental offices.

In another exemplary embodiment of the present curing light, an ultrasonic dental unit including an insert and a handpiece is provided. The insert includes a tip and a transducer for converting electrical energy into ultrasonic vibrations. The dental handpieces include a body, a rotator head, a retainer ring and a coil assembly. The body rotatably receives the insert. The rotator head engages the insert for rotation thereof. The retainer ring fixedly coupled to one of the body and the rotator headand rotatably coupled to the other of the body and the rotator head, such that the rotator head is rotatably coupled to the body. The coil assembly excites the transducer.

dental handpieces  dental equipment  dental autoclave  dental high speed handpiece

To learn more about this article, kick here: http://www.livejournal.com/

Spring clutch dental handpiece

A dental handpiece including an instrument holder which comprises an integral gear and tube, the tube having a closed-end bore or socket which houses a spiral spring of uniform inside diameter, with a slot being provided in the tube for securing one end of the spring, and with a cap which fits on the end of the tube and aids in securing the spiral spring within the tube bore, and acting to grip and hold a dental equipment within the instrument holder when the holder is stationary and driving the instrument to rotate with the instrument holder by a tightening of the coils of the spring around the instrument.

In dental handpieces known to the prior art, spiral springs have been employed to grip the shank of a dental instrument in order for the instrument to rotate with some other component with which the spring was attached. This type of handpiece requires the spring to have both of its ends attached to other parts of the handpiece, so that these parts could be manually adjusted to grip or release a dental instrument shank which was manually inserted in or removed from the handpiece.

In dental high speed handpiece employing turbines as a drive force, the prior art has used devices to allow for the removal of the dental autoclave from the instrument tube. These prior art devices have openings in the top of the instrument head to allow for the inserting of a pin or wrench to effect removal of the instrument.

The present curing light operated arrangement device has a ramp type bearing which allows the instrument to be easily inserted in and withdrawn from the tube as it is not necessary to insert any separate component into the top of the dental head, and a more aseptic device is thus provided.  Modifications of this device employ a lever pin or a locking pin housed within the instrument holder to hold the tube motionless to allow removal.    Another modification employs a rubber bladder that can be pressurized so as to be forced against the turbine in order to hold the tube steady. These modifications also reduce the amount of bacteria that can enter the dental head, and are simple to operate.

dental handpieces  dental high speed handpiece  dental autoclave   dental equipment

To learn more about this article, kick here: http://www.livejournal.com/

Extension devices for dental handpiece

The present invention relates to extension devices for dental handpieces for extending the effective length of a dental tool. The invention also relates to dental handpieces including such extension devices. The invention is particularly useful with respect to the dental handpiece described in Israel Patent 107202 of Oct. 6, 1993, and corresponding U.S. Pat.

   The above-cited patents and patent application describe a dental high speed handpiece comprising a housing including a hand-gripping section at one end, and a tool-clamping section at the opposite end. The tool-clamping section includes a sleeve for receiving a shaft of a dental tool, such as a drill or bur, and a collet or chuck for clamping the shaft of the dental tool within the sleeve. The dental autoclave further includes a button carried by the housing and depressible to cause the collet to release the shaft of the dental tool in order to permit convenient removable and replacement of the dental tool.

It has been found that the use of dental handpieces in general, and particularly the dental handpieces described in the above-cited patents and concurrently-filed patent application, can be easily adapted for many different dental operations if the effective length of the dental tool can be increased in a quick and convenient manner. As will be described more particularly below, the dental equipment permits dental handpieces, particularly high-speed handpieces driven by air turbines, to be more conveniently used in a wide variety of dental operations, especially in drilling holes for implants.

An extension device constructed in accordance with the foregoing features of the present invention is to be sharply distinguished from that described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,098,293, in which the opposite ends of the extension device are formed with notches interlocking with complementary notches in the dental handpieces and dental curing light , respectively. Such an interlocking construction produces a dissymmetry about the rotary axis, and therefore would hardly be suitable for high-speed dental handpieces, such as those operating at about 400,000 rpm, as in the preferred embodiment of the present invention.

dental handpieces dental high speed handpiece  dental equipment

Dental handpiece reduction gear

A modular reduction gear for a dental handpiece comprises an input shaft coupled to the driving motor and provided with a pinion constituting the sun wheel of an epicyclic gear of which the planet carrier is rigid with the adjacent end of the output shaft transmitting the rotary motion to the dental instrument, the carrier supporting three planet pins having mounted thereon for free rotary motion three planet pinions meshing with the sun pinion and with a fixed toothed annulus clamped between the pair of sockets constituting the body of the dental high speed handpiece.

This dental equipment relates to a reduction gear for dental hand tool holders or handpieces, of the type comprising an input shaft driven from the motor and an output shaft for transmitting the rotary motion to an instrument, in particular to a burr, both input and output shafts being mounted in mutual alignment within the body of the handpiece consisting of two sockets secured to each other.

Reduction gears are widely used in the field of dental handpieces whenever it is desired to increase the torque available at the instrument.

Thus for instance, a gear type reducer is known wherein the two registering ends of the two sections of the rotary longitudinal shaft carry respectively two pinions of different diameters which mesh respectively with a pair of pinions rigid with a transverse lay shaft having its axis perpendicular to the axis of the longitudinal shaft. To reduce the overall dimensions of the mechanism, one of the pinions rigid with one section of the longitudinal shaft is bell-shaped so that the larger toothed pinion rigid with the lay shaft can fit partially therein.

It is the primary object of the present curing light to provide a modular reduction gear constituting a substantial improvement over the prior art in that its overall dimensions are reduced considerably while affording a very regular rotational movement.

For this purpose, the reduction gear according to this dental autoclave

is characterized in that the driving end of the input shaft is provided with a toothed sun pinion and that the driven end of the output shaft comprises a head supporting three planet pins parallel to the axis of the toothed pinion, said three planet pins being disposed at the vertices of an equilateral triangle and each having mounted thereon for free rotary motion a planet pinion, the three dental handpieces pinions meshing on the one hand with said central sun pinion which they surround and on the other hand, externally, with a fixed and internally toothed annulus surrounding in turn said planet pinions and secured between the two sockets constituting the body of said holder.

dental handpieces  dental high speed handpiece dental equipment curing light

exemplary dental handpiece

An exemplary dental handpiece is generally designated by the number 10 on the attached drawings. The present invention has application to the manufacture or fabrication of all or any portion of dental handpieces, including for example, the body 11 , neck 12 or head 13 thereof. The invention has particular application to the head 13 and neck 12 portions of dental handpieces 10 , because these portions often have cross section with complex profiles, as shown in FIGS. 2 - 5 . For example, the neck 12 depicted in the drawings is provided with a shaped aperture 20 , which is useful with a fiber optic bundle for the transmission of light. As stated above, such contoured shapes can be machined or otherwise formed in conventional handpieces, but with an increase in the time and expense involved if accurate products are to be made.

As is conventional in the dental high speed handpiece art, handpiece 10 may also be provided with internal structures such as fluid passages, exhaust ports and the like (not shown). FIG. 4 shows an example of internal structure, namely internal section 21 . Again, such structures have been fabricated in the past using expensive and difficult techniques such as machining. The present dental autoclave fabricates products such as those of handpiece 10 using metal injection molding or MIM techniques. MIM is described in for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,241,354 and 6,274,083, which are hereby incorporated by reference for such disclosures. MIM techniques are conventional and need not be described in detail.

While any conventional MIM technique is within the scope of the dental equipment, one such technique includes a metallic binder mixture that is preferably heated in a suitable injection-molding machine and introduced under pressure into a mold, of which the contour corresponds to those of the desired portion of the handpiece, such as head 13 and neck 12 .

There are other metal fabrication techniques that may be employed to make a curing light, such as die casting, rubber-plaster casting, investment casting and the like, but it is believed that none currently achieve the combination of metal density, ability to mold stainless steel, reasonable finished cost, and high accuracy afforded by MIM.

While particular embodiments of the invention have been shown and described in detail, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that changes and modifications of the present invention, in its various aspects, may be made without departing from the invention in its broader aspects, some of which changes and modifications being matters of routine engineering or design, and others being apparent only after study.

dental handpieces  dental high speed handpiece  dental autoclave curing light

Summary of the dental handpiece

Therefore, it is the primary object of the present invention to provide dental handpieces of the above-described type in which the problems and disadvantages of the solutions described above are eliminated.

In accordance with the present dental equipment, at least one opening in the turbine chamber wall in the area near the axis is connected through a connecting duct to the return duct.

In accordance with a first embodiment, which is based on the same basic solution, the connecting duct ends in the receiving bore of the dental high speed handpiece head on the side of the tool of the bearing located on the side of the tool. As a result of this measure, when the turbine runs out after the propulsion air has been interrupted, the still rotating turbine produces a closed air flow from the periphery of the rotor through the return duct, the connecting duct and the opening near the axis into the turbine chamber, wherein this configuration ensures that essentially no air is taken into the interior of the handpiece along the tool shaft and through the roller bearings. Consequently, when the handpiece is once again operated, no contaminations are blown out of the interior of the handpiece.

In accordance with an advantageous further development of the first embodiment described above, the turbine chamber is constructed in the area of the opening for the connecting duct as an annular chamber which is in communication with the actual turbine chamber only through an annular gap near the axis. This embodiment has the advantage that only a very small amount of air flows off through the connecting duct during operation, because the centrifugal acceleration causes the propulsion air to be guided to the periphery of the turbine chamber and a significantly lower excess pressure exists in the area near the axis than in the peripheral area of the rotor. In this manner, the measure according to the present dental autoclave only insignificantly impairs the efficiency of the turbine.

The various features of novelty which characterize the dental handpieces are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part of the disclosure. For a better understanding of the invention, its operating advantages, specific objects attained by its use, reference should be had to the drawing and descriptive matter in which there are illustrated and described preferred embodiments of the invention.

dental handpieces   dental equipment dental high speed handpiece

 dental autoclave

What You Should Know About Dental Handpiece Repair

If you were considering that starts to adopt the very few capitals business to have, has the low competition, and perhaps simple is you to consider the dental handpiece repair. What exactly is it? You will work with the equipment that dentists use to clean dental. Those shiny drills that you remember hearing in your mouth must be cleaned for dental health. The chemicals used to clean the drills make them break down and need repair on a frequent basis. Most manufacturers are the normal places where these are repaired. You will do it quicker, and cheaper.

Any new enterprise needs some study form. It will take less than a few weeks to understand how this business works after you’ve practiced repairing drills on your own. There are many organization that provide this for future trainees. You need to decide which company will fits your learning methods best. The best feature is that others can explain to you what you are doing right and wrong to help you become a more proficient dental repair person.

You will need the place to carry on the work. If works for yours you and can meet the deadline, does not need inspector general then your won’t to have a question. This place may be a part in yours house or an entire room. It certainly is the beneficial health and organized.

Who are your customers? You start in your local area want to do. After you’ve built up your reputation the sky is the limit as to who you can market to. These dentists will be thrilled to have an alternate company to send their material. You will be their hero with quicker turn around  time.

You cannot have a proper dental high speed handpiece repair business without piece parts. These are necessary to fix the drills from the dentists. Some units will require more work than others. You can determine if you want to charge more for additional work. It will take less than half an hour to fix the dental equipment. Now you take it back to the dentist and collect payment. If you ask for referrals you can get more clients that way as well. You can now set up a scheduled maintenance time to perform their work.

The best features of dental hanpieces repair work is self-pleasure. No more from a job you hate. Have your salary cap. Vacation time has been approved because you have a great boss. Your next annual review should prove to be all stars.

curing light   dental handpiece  dental high speed handpiece

Description of the dental handpieces

This invention relates to handpieces for dental drills, and more particularly to an improved arrangement for providing illumination at or near the drill tip.

Proposals have been made for providing clip-on illumination devices for dental handpieces, using fibre optic techniques, but these bring manipulative difficulty in using the drill, and are therefore not wholly satisfactory.

The present invention consists in a handpiece for a dental autoclave comprising a fibre optic light conductor passing along inside the handpiece and emerging towards the operative end thereof the said conductor terminating adjacent the operative end of the handpiece so as to illuminate a drill tip when such is fitted in the handpiece.

The conductor may be continued, either directly or through a connection, by a flexible conductor suitable for attachment, e.g., by securing bands over part of its length, to air and water lines for the handpiece.

The free end of the flexible conductor may be illuminated by a suitable light source, e.g., a 150 W bulb focussed onto the free end.

If a connection is provided in the light path, then the handpiece may be separated from its service lines, i.e., air, water and curing light, for maintenance, sterilization or other purposes.

The invention will be further described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a side elevation of a dental high speed handpiece incorporating a light conductor according to a preferred form of the invention;  

FIG. 2 is an end elevation of the handpiece of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 3 is an exploded view of a connection between the handpiece and a flexible light conductor and air and water lines.

The drawings illustrate the application of the invention to a dental handpiece of the turbine driven type, and the handpiece is illustrated at 1 and is shown as incorporating a head 2 in which is mounted a rotary drill holder 3 (see FIG. 2).

A fibre optic light conductor 6 passes through the body of the handpiece 1 and emerges therefrom so as to terminate close to the tip of a conventional drill when such is held in the tool holder 3. It is to be noted from FIG. 2 that the end of the conductor 6 emerges somewhat off centre of the handpiece and is bent near its end so as to direct the light towards the position of the drill tip.

In order to obtain an adequate connection between the assembly 4 and the conduits 7 and 8 and between the conductors 6 and 9, the form of connection illustrated in FIG. 3 is adopted.

Various modifications may be made within the scope of the invention.

dental handpieces  curing light  dental high speed handpiece

Dental Handpiece Maintenance Guide

   I talk to dentists and hygienists I am finding varied methods of dental handpieces maintenance.

   It is my intention to offer my experience on dental handpiece maintenance and hopefully save you some money.

   First, always follow your manufacturers recommendations for dental high speed handpiece maintenance. Make sure your handpiece is used at the proper PSI, usually between thirty and forty PSI. If you run your handpiece at a higher pressure you will certainly cut the life of your bearings and the chuck. Also running your dental autoclave with the burr pulled out to gain extra reach will destroy the chuck and bearings very fast.

   Second, wash the outer casing with alcohol or warm water and a soft to medium bristle brush depending on need. Please do not soak the curing light under water or in any type of chemical. Do not use an ultrasonic cleaner unless recommended by the manufacturer.

Before we go any further you may want to know a little bit about the technical operation of the high-speed handpiece and how it collects debris.

   The high-speed handpiece pushes air from the the top and bottom of the head.

   Third, choose your lubricant. Sprays are good but they have a propellant that needs to evaporate before the lubricant is left. I use an oil pen or syringe. For me this is the better way to go because you have direct control of your oil. The oil you use should meet of exceed the manufacturers specifications. If you use a spray, make sure you have the correct nozzle.

   If you don’t, buy one because you won’t be able to get the oil where it needs to be. Use two or three blasts of one second each into the air hole. The air hole is the smaller one of the two hole system and the middle one for the three hole system. Also the burr must be clean of contaminant. Hook the handpiece back up to the air and run at 20 PSI without the burr for about twenty or thirty seconds over a paper towel. look for the oil to be clear.

   Fourth, autoclave as normal. Do not stack handpieces in the autoclave.

   Fifth, after you autoclave spray a one second blast into the air hole and one more into the chuck. One drop each for the oil pen. Hook up to air and run for 30 or forty seconds to purge the last of the oil and have a properly running handpiece.

   If you observe these procedures you will save hundreds per year on high-speed handpiece repair.

dental handpieces  dental handpiece dental high speed handpiece curing light