Spring clutch dental handpiece
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light operated arrangement device has a ramp type bearing which allows the instrument to be easily inserted in and withdrawn from the tube as it is not necessary to insert any separate component into the top of the dental head, and a more aseptic device is thus provided.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.
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.