The present invention relates to an orthodontic bracket assembly, more particularly to a self-ligating orthodontic bracket assembly having a simplified operating mechanism for the orthodontic archwire ligation slide to greatly improve the efficiency and stability of orthodontic treatments and procedures and increase economic viability.
Orthodontic correction is for correcting irregularities in teeth alignment such as in the case of malocclusion, etc. Orthodontic correction may commonly employ dental braces, a type of mechanical assistance device.
In recent times, various forms and types of dental braces have been developed and are being used in orthodontic procedures. Among the various types, the fixed type dental braces are braces in which an archwire is connected to the slots of brackets, which are attached to the surfaces of the teeth, to provide correction by pulling or pushing the teeth.
The fixed type dental braces provide the advantage of convenience for the practitioner in that the brackets are mounted onto the smooth outer surfaces of the teeth. However, securing the wire onto the brackets require a task of tying the securing member, such as an elastic O-ring, bolt, or clip, etc., onto the brackets individually. Not only does this require large amounts of time and effort on the part of the practitioner, but also the patient may frequently experience pain.
To resolve such drawbacks of the fixed type dental braces, the self-ligation type bracket is being used, for which the wire can be secured with a so-called one-touch method. Examples can be found in Korean Registered Patents No. 10-1541126, No. 10-1506343, etc.
For example, a self-ligating orthodontic bracket assembly enables an easy securing and mounting of a clip or cap in the form of a snap-on fastener or an operation member in the form of a plate or lid, for example, with a one-touch manipulation without requiring a winding or tightening of a wire. Accordingly, as the securing member such as an elastic O-ring, bolt, or clip, etc., for securing the wire is omitted, the friction between the teeth can be reduced, so that the correction period may be relatively shorter, and the patient may experience less pain and discomfort.
However, in the case of a conventional self-ligating orthodontic bracket assembly, the outward size is very small, whereas the operation member for binding the wire has a very complicated structure. As the assembly is thus not easy to manufacture with high precision, the manufacturing costs are high, while the workability and durability are relatively low.
The present invention, which has been conceived to address and mitigate the problems described above, carries the objective of providing a self-ligating orthodontic bracket assembly having a simplified operating mechanism for the ligating slide of the orthodontic archwire to allow easy manipulation and convenient handling, enable manufacture at an economically viable cost, improve the efficiency of treatments and procedures, and increase stability by eliminating pain during the treatments and procedures.
To achieve the objective above, an aspect of the present invention provides a self-ligating orthodontic bracket assembly that includes: a bracket body having an attachment surface, which is configured to be adhered to a tooth surface, and a slot, which has an open form to enable the placement of a wire along the direction of teeth alignment; a ligation slide installed movably on the bracket body to enable a selective opening/closing operation of the slot; and a binding part for restraining the ligation slide to prevent the ligation slide from becoming detached from the bracket body, where the binding part comprises a pin member, which is provided on the bracket body to be arranged in a movement zone of the ligation slide, and a retainer, which is provided on the ligation slide in a manner enabling a complementary fastening/detaching action with the pin member, and where the ligating and releasing operation is selectively achieved for the wire inserted in the slot by the complementary fastening/detaching action of the retainer and the pin member according to a movement of the ligation slide.
In a self-ligating orthodontic bracket assembly having the features described above according to an aspect of the present invention, the bracket body can include a base, which may have the shape of a flat block such that the attachment surface configured to be adhered to a tooth surface forms a lower surface, and a first upper body and a second upper body, which may each be provided on the base in the shape of a protruding block such that the first upper body and the second upper body are divided into two sides with the slot positioned in-between, while the slot can expose a portion of an upper surface of the base to form a bottom surface and can be surrounded by the first upper body and the second upper body such that opposing wall surfaces of the first upper body and the second upper body form inner walls, whereby the slot can form a trough that is open at the upper portion and at both ends to enable a coupling of the bracket body to a tooth by inserting and placing an archwire in the trough.
The base can have an adhesive and a multiple number of protrusions provided on the lower surface forming the attachment surface that is to be adhered to the tooth surface, where the multiple protrusions can be arranged in a particular pattern to increase bonding strength by increasing the contact area.
The protrusions can be formed in an undercut shape to restrain the adhesive filled around the protrusions and prevent the adhesive from readily being removed.
In the first upper body of the bracket body, a tool receptacle can be provided, which can be processed to a particular depth at an upper end of a wall surface forming an inner wall of the slot to form a recessed indentation shaped as a tab.
In the second upper body of the bracket body, a slide part and a pair of guide parts can be formed, the slide part formed in a “U” shape to form a pathway for receiving the ligation slide in a movable manner, and the pair of guide parts facing each other and protruding to form side walls on both sides of the slide part.
Also, the pair of guide parts can have guide rails provided in the lower end portions of the inner walls, with the guide rails arranged in parallel and processed in a groove shape to expand the slide part, and the slide part can have a through-hole formed therein penetrating through the base and the second upper body, while the pin member forming a component of the binding means can be installed such that its upper end portion protrudes up to a particular height above the bottom surface of the slide part when the pin member is inserted into the through-hole.
According to an aspect of the present invention, the first upper body and the second upper body of the bracket body can have placement indentations formed concavely in a groove shape along the perimeters of their lower end portions, which contact and form boundaries with an upper end portion of the base, so that a rubber ring or an elastic band can be placed in common in the placement indentations for binding onto the tooth.
The ligation slide can include a body, which may be complementarily joined with the slide part and received in a movable state, and a pair of sliding wings, which may protrude outward from both sides of a lower end portion of the body.
The sliding wings can be complementarily joined with guide rails provided respectively on the pair of guide parts that form side walls on both sides of the slide part of the bracket body, in a manner that permits movement by sliding.
Also, the ligation slide can be provided with a press-fit indentation that is formed in a lower surface of the body and is configured to support the retainer that is fitted into the press-fit indentation.
The retainer can be made with a flat spring element formed as a snap ring to enable the complementary fastening/detaching action while being elastically deformed by the pin member according to a movement of the ligation slide.
Also, the retainer can include a disk part, which may have a circular hole formed in a body made of a flat elastic piece, a pair of floating plates, which may protrude and extend from the disk part such that a slit hole continuing from an open one side of the circular hole forms the shape of a keyseat, and a pair of shock-absorbing elastic ribs, which may each be formed with an arced elongated hole formed as a recessed indentation connecting to the other side of the circular hole and with a vane protruding inward from the boundary portion between the circular hole and the arced elongated hole.
Also, the bracket body can be molded using any one material selected from nonmetal transparent materials and semitransparent materials. The pin member and the retainer can each be made of a metal material to be visible through the bracket body.
A self-ligating orthodontic bracket assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention can provide the following advantages.
Firstly, since the operation of the ligation slide for the orthodontic archwire can be manipulated by a one-touch method, handling of the assembly becomes easier and simpler, so that the efficiency and effectiveness of orthodontic treatments and procedures can be improved.
Secondly, since the operating mechanism of the ligation slide for the orthodontic archwire is simplified, the assembly can be manufactured in a cost effective manner and with high precision, so that the quality and reliability of orthodontic treatments and procedures can be improved.
Thirdly, as the operating mechanism of the ligation slide for the orthodontic archwire is simplified, the pain experienced during orthodontic treatments and procedures can be mitigated, and stability can be increased.
Fourthly, the structure employing an inserting of a reinforced core allows improved wear resistance and durability.
A more detailed description is provided below, with reference to the accompanying drawings, of a self-ligating orthodontic bracket assembly according to certain embodiments of the present invention. The descriptions below and the accompanying drawings are merely presented as preferred embodiments and do not limit the self-ligating orthodontic bracket assembly of the present invention set forth in the scope of claims.
Referring to
The bracket body 110 may be provided with an attachment surface, which is to be adhered to a tooth surface, and a slot 114, which is open so as to enable the insertion of a coupling wire (not shown) along the teeth alignment direction. The ligation slide 120 may be installed movably in the bracket body 110 in a manner that allows a selective opening/closing operation of the slot 114.
The bracket body 110 may be provided with a base 111, which may be formed in the shape of a flat block with the attachment surface for adhering onto the tooth surface formed as the lower surface, as well as a first upper body 112 and a second upper body 113, which may be provided in the form of blocks protruding respectively from the base 111 with the slot 114 positioned in-between to be divided into two sides.
That is, the slot 114 may be formed in the shape of a concave trough, such as a groove or rail indentation, that is open at the upper portion and both ends. The slot 114 may be formed, as a portion of the upper surface of the base 111 is exposed to form the bottom surface, and as the first upper body 112 and second upper body surround the slot 114 and have the opposing wall surfaces of the first upper body 112 and second upper body 113 form the inner walls. An archwire (not shown) may be inserted and placed in the trough of the slot 114 to enable a coupling of the bracket body 110.
The base 111 may be provided with a multiple number of protrusions 111a on the lower surface, i.e. the lower surface forming the attachment surface that is to be adhered onto the tooth surface. The protrusions 111a may increase the contact area with the adhesive to increase the bonding strength. The protrusions 111a can be formed in an undercut shape, as illustrated in
In the first upper body 112, a tool receptacle 112a can be formed. The tool receptacle 112a may be processed to a particular depth in an upper end of the wall surface forming an inner wall of the slot 114 and may be formed as a recessed indentation having the shape of a tab.
When the ligation slide 120 is in a closed state, closing off the open portion at the upper side of the slot 114, the front end portion of the ligation slide 120 may form a wall surface to block the open portion and may thus form a trough in the shape of a slimmer linear slot.
Therefore, while the archwire is inserted in the slot 114 and the ligation slide 120 in set in a closed state, if the archwire is to be released from the ligated state during an orthodontic procedure, the orthodontist may insert a tool or instrument into the tool receptacle 112a and provide a gentle rotation, so that the physical force pressing on and pushing the ligation slide 120 can readily cause the ligation slide 120 to retreat and cause the upper side of the slot 114 to be opened, thereby allowing an easy release of the archwire from the ligated state.
The second upper body 113 may include a slide part 113s, which forms a “U” shaped cavity to form a pathway in which the ligation slide 120 may be received in a movable manner, and a pair of guide parts 113a, which protrude facing each other to form walls on both sides of the slide part 113s.
In the lower end portions at the inner walls of the pair of guide parts 113a, guide rails 113g may be provided, which may be arranged in parallel and may be processed in the form of grooves to expand the slide part 113s.
In the slide part 113s, a through-hole may be provided, which may be formed penetrating through the base 111 and the second upper body 113, and a pin member 130 forming a component of the binding means may be inserted through the through-hole and installed such that the upper end portion protrudes to a particular height above the bottom surface of the slide part 113s.
In the first upper body 112 and the second upper body 113, respectively, placement indentations 112b, 113b may be provided, which may be formed concavely in the form of grooves in the perimeters of the lower end portions that are adjacent to and form boundaries with the upper end portion of the base 111. Into these placement indentations 112b, 113b, a rubber ring or an elastic band, etc., for example, may be installed and placed commonly for binding with the tooth.
A bracket body 110 having the composition described above can, for example, be molded into a colored or dyed mold or into a transparent or semitransparent mold via injection molding, etc., using a resin, plaster, or ceramic material.
The ligation slide 120 may include a body 121, which may be complementarily joined onto the “U” shaped slide part 113s provided in the second upper body 113 and which may take the form of a cover, lid, or door held in a movable state, and a pair of sliding wings 122, which may protrude outward from both sides of the lower end portion of the body 121.
The sliding wings 122 may be held in and complementarily joined to the guide rails 113g, which are provided respectively on the pair of guide parts 113a forming the side walls on both sides of the slide part 113s in the bracket body 110, with the sliding wings 122 installed such as to be capable of movement by sliding.
According to an aspect of the present invention, the ligation slide 120 may be provided with a press-fit indentation 123, in which to fit and support the retainer 140, in a rear end portion on the lower surface of the body 121, and the rear end portion of the retainer 140 can be fitted in and joined to the press-fit indentation 123 such that the retainer 140 is in tight contact with the lower surface of the body 121.
According to another aspect of the present invention, the retainer 140 can be installed onto the lower surface of the body 121 of the ligation slide 120 for example by way of a fastening member such as a screw, etc., which is not shown in the drawings, in such a way that the retainer 140 is set in a tightly contacting state.
A ligation slide 120 having the composition described above can, for example, be molded into a colored or dyed mold or into a transparent or semitransparent mold via injection molding, etc., using a resin, plaster, or ceramic material.
The retainer 140 may, together with the pin member 130, form another component of the binding means and can be formed, for example, as a flat spring element in the form of a snap ring, to be installed in tight contact on the lower surface of the body 121 of the ligation slide 120, as illustrated in
Referring to
The disk part 141A may be provided with a circular hole 141h formed in the center of a body 141 made of a flat elastic piece, the circular hole 141h formed to be capable of holding the pin member 130 placed therethrough. The pair of floating plates 141B may protrude extending from the disk part 141A such that a keyseat shape is formed by a slit hole 141s, which is formed from the opened one side of the circular hole 141h and which forms a pathway that may be stretched in width by the interference of the pin member 130. The pair of shock-absorbing elastic ribs 141L may be formed with arced elongated holes 141t that are formed as recessed indentations connecting from the other side of the circular hole 141h and vanes that protrude inward from the boundary portions between the circular hole 141h and the arced elongated holes 141t.
That is, as shown in the vertical cross-sectional view of
Simply put, the retainer 140 may made in the form of a flat spring element or snap ring having the general shape of an arch or a horseshoe, with a keyseat formed in the center of a body 141 made as a flat elastic piece, and may form a binding means for determining a bound state and a released state between the bracket body 110 and the ligation slide 120 by way of a complementary fastening/detaching action with the pin member 130, which may be installed to protrude up to a particular height in the bottom surface of the slide part 113s that is formed as a “U” shaped cavity in the second upper body 113 of the bracket body 110.
That is, with a self-ligating orthodontic bracket assembly 100 according to an embodiment of the invention, when the ligation slide 120 is moved for setting to a closed state in order to ligate the wire (not shown) inserted in the slot 114, as the pin member 130 is pushed to be inserted into and eventually placed in the circular hole 141h of the disk part 141A, the shock-absorbing elastic ribs 141L may be elastically deformed in the direction of the arced elongated holes 141t to serve and function as brakes. Accordingly, the impact that occurs when the ligation slide 120 is pushed closed for a ligating operation of the archwire can be absorbed naturally to be relieved or greatly alleviated.
Thus, a self-ligating orthodontic bracket assembly 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention can effectively relieve or completely eliminate the pain frequently experienced by the patient during an orthodontic correction using an existing conventional orthodontic bracket assembly.
A detailed description is provided below of the operational states of a self-ligating orthodontic bracket assembly 100 based on the present invention having the composition described above.
When performing an orthodontic treatment by using a self-ligating orthodontic bracket assembly 100 based on an embodiment of the present invention, the bracket body 110 may be set such that the attachment surface forming the lower surface of the base 111 is adhered to the tooth surface, and an archwire (not shown) may be inserted and placed in the slot 114 of the bracket body 110 along a teeth alignment direction.
When setting the bracket body 110 by adhering it to the tooth surface, the ligation slide 120 may be set in an open state, with the ligation slide 120 retreated such that the slot 114 is opened.
The setting procedures for attaching the bracket body 110 onto the tooth surface do not limit the present invention and can be performed in substantially the same manner as for typical orthodontic treatment procedures.
Next, in order to ligate the archwire (not shown) inserted in the slot 114, the orthodontist may use a tool or instrument to gently push the rear end portion of the ligation slide 120, to cause the ligation slide 120 to move forward along the “U” shaped slide part 113s provided in the second upper body 113 of the bracket body 110.
During the movement of the ligation slide 120, the pair of guide parts 113a, provided in the side walls on both sides of the slide part 113s, and the pair of sliding wings 122, protruding from both sides at a lower end portion of the body 121 of the ligation slide 120, may move in a complementary slipping motion for a smooth sliding operation. By way of such sliding operation, the ligation slide 120 can be closed, shutting off the open portion at the upper side of the slot 114, to thereby ligate the archwire (not shown).
When the ligation slide 120 undergoes a ligating and releasing operation, the retainer 140 installed on the lower surface of the body 121 can be set to a restraining and releasing state to form a locking and unlocking state by way of a complementary fastening/detaching action with the pin member 130 that protrudes to a particular height above the bottom surface of the slide part 113s of the bracket body 110. That is, when the ligation slide 120 is slid forward to perform a ligating operation, the pin member 130 may be pushed and inserted into and placed in the circular hole 141h in the disk part 141A of the retainer 140. Here, the shock-absorbing elastic ribs 141L can be elastically deformed towards the arced elongated holes 141t to absorb the impact that occurs during the ligating operation and relieve or alleviate the impact. This can effectively eliminate the pain transferred to the patient.
If the ligated state of the archwire inserted in the slot 114 is to be released while the ligation slide 120 is set in a closed state, the orthodontist may insert a tool or instrument in the tool receptacle 112a and gently rotate. By way of the pressing and pushing physical force thus provided, the tool or instrument may readily move the ligation slide 120 backward. As a result, the upper side of the slot 114 can be opened, so that the ligated state of the archwire may be easily released. For example, a tool or instrument such as a flat-blade screwdriver that has a front end portion formed in a linear shape can be gently rotated after its front end portion is inserted into the tool receptacle 112a. In this case, the torque provided by the linear front end portion may push the ligation slide 120 in reverse to open the upper side of the slot 114. In this way, the procedure can be made more convenient, as the ligated state of the archwire can be easily and readily released by a so-called one-touch method.
With a self-ligating orthodontic bracket assembly according to another embodiment of the present invention, the bracket body 110 can be manufactured, for example, as a colored or dyed mold or a transparent or semitransparent mold via injection molding, etc., using a nonmetal material such as resin, plaster, or ceramic, etc.
The present invention is not limited to the specific preferred embodiments described above. A person having ordinary skill in the field of art to which the present invention pertains would be able to practice various modifications without departing from the essence of the present invention as set forth in the claims, and moreover, such modifications would be encompassed by the scope of claims.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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10-2016-0072163 | Jun 2016 | KR | national |
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
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PCT/KR2017/004415 | 4/26/2017 | WO | 00 |