Patent Application
20200174239
This application claims priority of Taiwanese Utility Model Patent Application No. 107216338, filed on Nov. 30, 2018.
The disclosure relates to an accessory for a dental microscope, and more particularly to a control device for adjusting an operating parameter of the dental microscope.
Referring to
Therefore, an object of the disclosure is to provide a control device for a dental microscope that can alleviate at least one of the drawbacks of the prior art.
According to one aspect of the disclosure, the control device for a dental microscope includes a control module and a driving module. The dental microscope includes an adjustment knob operable to adjust an operating parameter of the dental microscope.
The control module includes at least one pedal, and a signal transmitter coupled to the at least one pedal. The signal transmitter is configured to generate and output a control signal upon the at least one pedal being pressed.
The driving module includes a motor to be connected to the adjustment knob, and a signal receiver in communication with the signal transmitter for receiving the control signal from the signal transmitter. The signal receiver is configured to activate the motor to turn the adjustment knob according to the control signal.
Other features and advantages of the disclosure will become apparent in the following detailed description of the embodiment(s) with reference to the accompanying drawings, of which:
Before the disclosure is described in greater detail, it should be noted that where considered appropriate, reference numerals or terminal portions of reference numerals have been repeated among the figures to indicate corresponding or analogous elements, which may optionally have similar characteristics.
Referring to
The control device 100 includes a control module 1 and a driving module 2. The control module 1 includes at least one pedal 11 to be placed on the floor near the dental microscope 3, and a signal transmitter 12 coupled to the at least one pedal 11. The signal transmitter 12 is configured to generate and output a control signal upon the at least one pedal 11 being pressed, for example, by a foot. In this embodiment, the signal transmitter 12 is electrically connected directly to the at least one pedal 11 through a wire, or wirelessly communicates with the at least one pedal 11.
In the embodiment illustrated in
The driving module 2 includes a signal receiver 21 in communication with the signal transmitter 12 for receiving the first and second control signals, a transmission mechanism 23, and a motor 22 connected to the adjustment knob 31 via the transmission mechanism 23. The transmission mechanism 23 includes a gearwheel 231 mounted coaxially on the adjustment knob 31, and a belt 232 connected to the motor 22 and trained on the gear wheel 231. The motor 22 is configured to drive the gear wheel 231 through the belt 232.
In this embodiment, the signal transmitter 12 is configured to communicate with the signal receiver 21 via wireless communication, e.g., Wi-Fi, Bluetooth®, infrared wireless communication, or the like. In other embodiments, the signal transmitter 12 may be electrically connected to the signal receiver 21 via physical wire(s) (not shown).
The signal receiver 21 is configured to activate the motor 22 to turn the adjustment knob 31 according to the control signal. Specifically, the signal receiver 21 is configured to activate the motor 22 to drive the gear wheel 231 through the belt 232 to turn the adjustment knob 31 counterclockwise upon receiving the first control signal, and to activate the motor 22 to drive the gear wheel 231 through the belt 232 to turn the adjustment knob 31 clockwise upon receiving the second control signal.
It should be noted that there is no particular limitation on the type of dental microscope that can make use of the control device 100 of this disclosure. Simply put, the control device 100 of this disclosure is suitable for use on any dental microscope that comes with an adjustment knob, including existing dental microscopes already in use by dental clinics or hospitals and existing models currently available on the market, and no adaption by re-configuring or re-structuring the dental microscope is necessary for utilizing the control device 100 of this disclosure to facilitate user operation of the dental microscope. When a dentist is using the dental microscope 3 equipped the control device 100 of this disclosure, he/she may adjust the focus and/or magnification of the dental microscope 3 by pressing the pedals 11a, 11b with his/her foot/feet without using his/her hand, and thus the examination or surgical operation will not be suspended.
In the description above, for the purposes of explanation, numerous specific details have been set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the embodiment(s). It will be apparent, however, to one skilled in the art, that one or more other embodiments may be practiced without some of these specific details. It should also be appreciated that reference throughout this specification to “one embodiment,” “an embodiment,” an embodiment with an indication of an ordinal number and so forth means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic may be included in the practice of the disclosure. It should be further appreciated that in the description, various features are sometimes grouped together in a single embodiment, figure, or description thereof for the purpose of streamlining the disclosure and aiding in the understanding of various inventive aspects, and that one or more features or specific details from one embodiment may be practiced together with one or more features or specific details from another embodiment, where appropriate, in the practice of the disclosure.
While the disclosure has been described in connection with what is (are) considered the exemplary embodiment(s), it is understood that this disclosure is not limited to the disclosed embodiment(s) but is intended to cover various arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and equivalent arrangements.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 107216338 | Nov 2018 | TW | national |
