Claims
- 1. An impression cap for coupling to one of a dental abutment or implant in which the abutment or implant includes a collar having an upper shoulder portion and a peripheral retention edge with an outer diameter, the impression cap comprising:
a body having a first end for coupling to the one abutment or implant; and a retention flange at said first end, said flange having an inner surface engageable with the retention edge, said inner surface having an inner diameter equal to or slightly less than the outer diameter of the retention edge, such that the inner surface forms a friction fit with the retention edge.
- 2. The impression cap of claim 1 wherein the retention flange is generally shaped as a cylinder.
- 3. The impression cap of claim 2 wherein the retention flange extends downwardly from the body in a direction generally parallel to a longitudinal centerline of the body.
- 4. The impression cap of claim 3 further comprising an inner angled surface located at the first end of the body, the inner angled surface having a size and an angle complementary to the upper shoulder portion.
- 5. The impression cap of claim 4 wherein the inner angled surface extends circumferentially around the first end of the body.
- 6. The impression cap of claim 2 wherein the retention flange extends downwardly from the body and has an inner press surface that engages the retention edge at its outer diameter when the inner angled surface is mated to the upper shoulder portion.
- 7. The impression cap of claim 7 wherein an inner diametrical dimension of the press surface is about 0.04 inches to about 0.08 inches less than the outer diametrical dimension of the retention edge.
- 8. The impression cap of claim 7 wherein a leading edge of the retention flange includes a lead-in surface and an angled exterior surface.
- 9. The impression cap of claim 8 wherein the lead-in surface has an angle complementary to the upper shoulder portion.
- 10. The impression cap of claim 8 wherein the angled exterior surface extends at an angle of about 20 to about 25 degrees.
- 11. The impression cap of claim 2 wherein the inner angled surface includes an indentation, which defines a gap between the inner angled surface and the upper shoulder portion when the impression cap is coupled to the dental abutment or implant.
- 12. The impression cap of claim 11 including a vent channel formed in the inner press surface.
- 13. The impression cap of claim 12 wherein the inner angled surface includes an indentation, which defines a gap between the inner angled surface and the upper shoulder portion when the impression cap is coupled to the dental abutment or implant.
- 14. The impression cap of claim 1 wherein the body is generally conical.
- 15. The impression cap of claim 1 wherein an inner cavity of the body has an inner geometry that includes an internal abutment flat and has a size and shape complementary to an abutment on the one dental abutment or implant.
- 16. The impression cap of claim 1 further comprising a one-way vent positioned at a second end of the body.
- 17. The impression cap of claim 16 wherein the one-way vent is adapted to allow air to exit an internal cavity of the body and to prevent external material from entering the internal cavity when the impression cap is encased in impression material.
- 18. The impression cap of claim 1 wherein the impression cap is color coded to denote an abutment length and a collar diameter and to correspond to an appropriate color-coded abutment and abutment analog.
- 19. The impression cap of claim 1 further comprising a temporary crown formed on an external surface of the body.
- 20. A reduction-coping method for communicating modifications to the size or shape of an abutment post of an abutment, the method comprising:
providing a modification cap having an interior cavity substantially matching portions of an exterior surface of the abutment post; modifying the abutment post as desired to created a modified abutment; installing the modification cap over the abutment; removing a portion of the modification cap to create a modified modification cap that matches the geometry of the modified abutment; and using the modified modification cap as a pattern to create a duplicate of the modified abutment, the duplicate having an external geometry substantially matching that of the modified abutment.
- 21. The method of claim 20 wherein the installing step is performed before the modifying step, and further wherein the modifying step includes modifying the abutment post and the modification cap simultaneously.
- 22. The method of claim 20 wherein the modifying step is performed on an abutment post attached to an analog in a stone model of a patient's mouth.
- 23. The method of claim 22 wherein the modified modification cap is delivered to a dentist and the duplicate abutment is created in the patient's mouth.
- 24. The method of claim 23 wherein the modified modification cap is delivered to the dentist along with a replacement crown.
- 25. The method of claim 20 wherein the modifying step is performed on an abutment post attached to a dental implant located in the patient's mouth.
- 26. The method of claim 25 further including providing an impression cap having an interior cavity substantially matching portions of the exterior surface of the abutment.
- 27. The method of claim 26 further comprising removing the modified modification cap, seating the impression cap over the abutment, and molding a negative of the patient's teeth, which includes the impression cap, from an impression material.
- 28. The method of claim 25 wherein the modified modification cap is delivered to a lab together with the negative of the patient's teeth.
- 29. The method of claim 28 further comprising generating a stone model of the patient's teeth that includes an analog located using the impression cap in the negative.
- 30. The method of claim 29 wherein the duplicate abutment is created from the abutment located in the stone model.
- 31. The method of claim 20 wherein the modification cap is an impression cap.
- 32. The method of claim 20 wherein the installing step includes coupling the modification cap to one of a dental implant or dental abutment.
- 33. The method of claim 26 wherein the modification cap and the impression cap have substantially similar means for coupling to one of a dental implant or dental abutment.
- 34. A method of creating a temporary crown to cover an abutment attached to a dental implant in a patient's mouth, the method comprising:
providing an impression cap having a first end connectable to one of the dental implant or the abutment and having an internal opening forming an interval cavity sized to receive the abutment; forming a temporary crown on the impression cap; and attaching the impression cap, with formed crown, to the dental implant or the abutment.
- 35. The method of claim 34 wherein the impression cap is attached to a collar of the abutment or the dental implant using a temporary adhesive.
- 36. The method of claim 35 wherein the impression cap has a generally cylindrical body having an opening extending longitudinally into the body from a first end to form an internal cavity that generally matches the geometry of the abutment.
- 37. The method of claim 35 further wherein the impression cap has a flange coupled to the first end, the flange extending circumferentially around a majority of the body and having an inside diameter equal to or slightly less than the outer diameter of the collar, such that the flange forms a friction fit with the collar.
- 38. The method of claim 35 wherein a second end of the impression cap is closed.
- 39. The method of claim 35 further comprising a one-way vent positioned at a second end of the impression cap.
- 40. The method of claim 37 wherein the body is generally conical and wherein the impression cap has a one-way vent position at the first end of the cap, the one-way vent adapted to allow air to exit the internal cavity and to prevent external material from entering the internal cavity when the cap is encased in impression material.
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION(S)
[0001] This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application No. 10/099,930, filed Mar. 13, 2002, which is hereby incorporated by reference, and claims priority to U.S. provisional patent application No. 60/427,147, filed Nov. 18, 2002.
Provisional Applications (1)
|
Number |
Date |
Country |
|
60427147 |
Nov 2002 |
US |
Continuation in Parts (1)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
10099930 |
Mar 2002 |
US |
Child |
10356735 |
Jan 2003 |
US |