US3536913A - Panoramic x-ray machine for taking radiographs of the oral cavity - Google Patents

Description

Oct. 27, 1970 I PANORAMIC X-RAY MACHINE FOR TAKING RADIOGRAPHS OF THE ORAL CAVITY Filed Nov. 17, 1967 Fzggl P. E. HUCHEL s: Sheets-Sheet'l Paul Huche/ INVIEZVIOK.

UeL27, 1970 EH HEL 3,536,913

PANORAMIC X-RAY MACHINE FOR TAKING RADIOGRAPHS OF THE ORAL CAVITY' Filed Nov. 17, 1967 1 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 .28 Fig Paul E. 'Huche/ /IVVIINTOR.

Oct. 27,1970 P EHUCHEL 3 3,536,913

PANORAMIC X-RAY MACHINE FOR TAKING RADIOGRAPHS I OF THE ORAL CAVITY v Filed NOV. 17, 1967 I 3 Sh'e'ets-Sheet 5 Fig.3

44 I Fig .4-

United States Patent 3,536,913 PANORAMIC X-RAY MACHINE FOR TAKING RADIOGRAPHS OF THE ORAL CAVITY Paul E. Huchel, Tyler, Tex., assignor to 'Societe Anonyme dite: Societe des Automobiles Simca Filed Nov. 17, 1967, Ser. No. 684,073 Int. Cl. G03b 41/16 US. Cl. 25061.5 8 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE An apparatus for making continuous panoramic radiographs of the oral cavity and adjacent areas in which the film is moved in a curved path substantially concentric with the ideal arch of the human dentition. The apparatus will take the X-ray when moving in either direction, that is from left to right as well as right to left and includes a relatively simple mechanism for moving the film holder and X-ray source in a path concentric with the ideal arch and at the same time move the film past an exposure opening for producing a panoramic view of the entire dentition on a single film with the film disposed as closely as possible to the surface of the face of the patient in order to reduce distortion while following a curve concentric with the ideal arch.

The present invention generally relates to apparatuses for making radiographs or X-ray pictures and is primarily concerned with such an apparatus being used in conjunction with various phases of dental work and includes an X-ray source and a film cassette supported in a shielded holder all oriented in straight line relation with the path of the beam from the X-ray source to the film and film holder being obliquely upwardly through the jaw from the center thereof in a manner well known in the art.

An object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus in accordance with the preceding object including a mechanism for moving the X-ray source and shielded film holder and film therein in a substantially elliptical or parabolic path substantially concentric with an ideal arch thus moving the film so that it is in substantially the same relationship to the human dentition during its panoramic movement from one extreme end of the jaw or dentition, around the front of the jaw or dentition to the other extreme end thereof to reduce distortion as much as possible and to maintain a constant relationship of the film being exposed and the area being X-rayed.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus in accordance with the preceding object in which the film cassette is moved simultaneously with movement of the shielded cassette holder and X-ray source in underlying relation to a slit-like opening in the shielded cassette holder so that the film will be exposed to the X-ray source progressively as the panoramic X-ray picture is being taken.

Another important object of the present invention is to provide a panoramic X-ray machine which is versatile in utility in that it can be adapted for various dental uses as well as general purpose X-ray uses, simple in construction and operation, efficient in use, effective for taking an undistorted panoramic X-ray and comparatively inexpensive to manufacture and operate.

These together with other objects and advantages which will become subsequently apparent reside in the details of construction and operation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout, and in which:

FIG. 1 is a front view of the X-ray machine of the present invention;

ice

FIG. 2 is a side elevational view of the construction of FIG. 1 with certain components thereof displaced angularly from the position illustrated in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the construction of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken substantially along section line 44 of FIG. 1 illustrating the structure for positioning the head in relation to the film cassette;

FIG. 5 is a plan sectional view taken generally along section line 5-5 of FIG. 4 illustrating the structure for moving the supporting assembly for the X-ray head and cassette holder in a path substantially concentric with an ideal arch of the human dentition;

FIG. 6 is a detailed sectional view taken along section line 6-6 of FIG. 4 illustrating further structural details of the apparatus;

FIG. 7 is a view similar to FIG. 6 but with the film cassette and shield angularly displaced;

FIG. 8 is a detailed sectional view of the film cassette, actuating roller and tubular member;

FIG. 9 is a detailed sectional view taken along section line 9-9 of FIG. 8 illustrating further structural details thereof;

FIG. 10 is a detailed view taken along reference line 1010 of FIG. 8 showing the roller assembled with the shield; and

FIG. 11 is a perspective view of the film cassette.

Referring now specifically to the drawings, the numeral 10 generally designates the X-ray apparatus of the present invention including a vertically disposed supporting column 12 supported from the floor 14 by a suitable base plate 16 or the like and supported from the wall 18 by suitable bracket structure 20 of any suitable configuration thus supporting the column 12 in a vertical position in substantially parallel relation to the wall surface 18 'but spaced therefrom. Alongside of the column 12, a pair of guide rails or rod-like members 22 are mounted on which a vertically movable carriage 24 is supported. The carriage 24 is elongated and is slidably engaged with the rails 22. The opposite sides of the carriage 24 are connected to cables 26 which are entrained over pulleys 28 at the upper end of the column 12 with the other ends of the cables 26 extending downwardly into the column 12 and connected to a suitable counterbalancing apparatus such as counterweights or the like.

The carriage 24 includes a vertically elongated member 30 which slides on the rails and includes an upwardly extending arm 32 rigid therewith adjacent the upper end thereof and a similar arm 34 adjacent the bottom thereof which supports a hollow member 36 thereon constructed of radiolucent material and which is substantially elliptical in configuration with the outer portion thereof being provided with an arcuate cut out area 38 for receiving the front portion of the head 40 of a person having an X-ray taken. The arm 34 is in the form of a plate having a semi-elliptical cutout 42 therein corresponding with the bottom edge of the upstanding hollow or tubular member 36 to receive the neck portion of the head 40 of the patient. The top end of the tubular member 36 is in supporting engagement with a circular plate 44 having a centrally disposed mounting block 6 thereon. The mounting block is provided with intersecting slots 48 and 50 which communicate with the upper surface thereof and which may be provided with straight side walls or downwardly diverging side walls for slidably receiving correspondingly shaped slides 52 and 54 which are pivotally supported from the undersurface of an elongated supporting arm 56. With the bottom plate or arm 34 being stationary, the tubular member 36 and the plate 44 as well as the block 46 are also stationary. Due to the construction of the slots 48 and 50 as well as the slides 52 and 54 which are pivotally attached to the arm 56 by pivot pins 58, rotation of the arm 56 about a generally vertical, laterally shifting axis will cause longitudinal shifting of the arm 56 during its rotational movement. This structure is generally referred to as an ellipsograph and any point along the arm 56 will move in an elliptical path as the arm is rotated or swung in a horizontal plane.

For driving the arm 56 for rotation thereof, the upper surface thereof is provided with a plate 60 which is drivingly engaged by a friction wheel 62 driven by a reversible and variable speed motor 64 supported in a suitable manner on the arm or plate 32 with the friction wheel 62 extending through a slot-like opening 66 in the plate or arm 32 thus drivingly engaging the plate 60. The motor 64 and wheel 62 may be moved radially in relation to the rotational axis of the arm 56 to vary the speed thereof or the motor 64 may be a variable speed motor controlled by a suitable rheostat or the like to vary the rotational speed of the arm 56. As the arm 56 moves along its longitudinal axis, the relative movement between the plate 60 and the friction drive wheel 62 will be accommodated due to the friction engagement of the wheel 62 with the plate 60.

At one end of the arm 56, there is provided a depending support yoke 68 through which is connected a conventional X-ray head 70 which forms the source of the X-ray beam. The yoke 68 is adjustably attached to the end of the arm 56 by a suitable adjustment sleeve 72 provided with setscrew type locking elements or the like to enable the vertical position of the X-ray head 70 to be adjusted for optimum position in relation to a film holding and moving assembly generally designated by the numeral 74 supported by the other end of the arm 56. To stabilize the arm 56, a spherical type bearing assembly 76 is provided between it and the plate 44 and a similar spherical bearing assembly 78 is provided between the arm 56 and the plate 32. Inasmuch as the head 70 is considerably heavier than the film holding and moving apparatus 74, the bearing assembly 76 on the underside of the arm 56 is located between the axis of rotation of the arm 56 and the end thereof which supports the X-ray head 70 while the bearing assembly 78 is located between the arm 56 and the plate 32 on the opposite side of the pivot axis thus stabilizing the arm 56 during its swinging movement.

The film holding and moving apparatus 74 includes a depending support member 80 supported from the end of the arm 56 remote from the yoke 68 and which supports a lead shield 82 having a vertically disposed slot 84 therein. The shield 82 includes a generally semi-cylindrical lead Wall 86 in which the slot 84 is formed to reveal the film cassette 88 and the film 89 therein through the slot 84 to expose the film when the X-ray head 70 is energized. The film cassette includes a peripheral channelshaped frame 90 for receiving the film and also a pivotal closure door 92 to enable the film to be removed therefrom and placed therein. The cassette 88 is movabl supported in a groove 94 in a support member 96 for movement thereof past the slot 84. The movement of the cassette 88 is accomplished by a friction wheel 98 supported from the bottom portion 85 of shield 82 by pivot axle 100 and in frictional engagement with the stationary tubular member 36 and in engagement with the support member 96. Thus, as the arm 56, support 80 and shield 82 move in the path of the ideal arch, the film cassette 88 and film 89 therein will be moved a corresponding linear distance to expose the film progressively during the rotational movement of the arm 56.

The support member 96 is rigidly connected with a sleeve 102 which is journaled on the depending support 80 by suitable bearing assemblies 104 so that the film cassette 88 and the holder or supoprt 96 therefor may be rotated about the vertical axis of the support member 80 as illustrated in FIGS. 6 and 7 as the roller 98 rolls around the outer surface of the transparent member 36 during accurate swinging movement of the arm 56. To facilties removal of and replacement of the cassette 88, it is provided with a transversely extending handle 106 on the interior thereof to enable the cassette to be easily grasped and removed when the cassette 88 is rotated to its extreme position so that a substantial portion thereof will be projecting beyond the rear edge of the shield 82. Thus, a cassette with exposed film may be easily removed and another cassette with an unexposed film may be easily placed in position on the holder 96. The pivotal closure 92 for the cassette 88 enables the film to be easily removed in the darkroom and an unexposed film may be easily inserted into the cassette. Any suitable type of closure mechanism may be provided for retaining the door 92 in closed condition.

In order to obtain a proper X-ray picture, the patients head 40 must be stabilized and retained in position. This is accomplished by providing an adjustable chin engaging bar 108 supported by a forwardly and downwardly extending shank 110 which is adjustably supported in a sleeve 1,12 supported by a suitable bracket 114 from the bottom arm 34. The chin bar 108 engages the recess or cavity formed in the chin of each individual so that a stable support will be engaged for the patients head by the patient bringing his chin into engagement with the chin bar 108 with the chin 108 engaged in the groove or recess in the front portion of the chin. To stabilize the upper portion of the head 40, a generally U-shaped strap member 116 is provided which engages the forehead and diverges rearwardly from the side edges of the forehead and is supported at the rear end thereof by upstanding brackets 118 in the form of straps anchored to the stationary top plate 44. The bottom ends of the brackets or straps 118 are spaced apart a distance greater than the normal width of a persons head so that the person may walk into the machine and bring his forehead into engagement with the front of the strap 116 and the groove in his chin in engagement with the chin bar 108 which will accurately position is jaw for taking an X-ray of the oral cavity. To further stabilize the patient, especially those who may be somewhat frightened, elderly people, small children, invalids or the like, a pair of vertically disposed handrails 120 is provided alongside of the machine and attached to the wall in any suitable manner such as by brackets 122. Thus, by the patient grasping the handrails 120, they may pull themselves into proper engagement with the chin bar and forehead strap 116 and retain themselves in a stable condition during the movement of the X-ray head 70, arm 56 and film cassette and shield assembly 74.

For adjusting the width of the slot 84 in the shield thus varying the exposure characteristics, there is provided a pair of adjustable shutters 128 mounted on the inner surface of the arcuate wall 86 in any suitable manner to permit adjustment of the effective width of the slot 84 up to a maximum width which would enable the apparatus to be used with any standard type of X-ray head which has differences in emission characteristics. The shutter elements 128 are also constructed of lead shielding material and may be secured in place by slots and fasteners so that an effective shield will be retained and the width of the slot 84 may be effectively adjusted.

FIG. 10 illustrates the association of the roller with the shield 86 and the slot 84 in that a larger opening 130 is provided closely receiving the peripheral surfaces of the roller or wheel 98 so that the slot 84 will be substantially in direct alignment with the rotational center of the roller 98. The X-ray head 70 is adjusted so that the X-ray beam will pass above the roller 98 and pass through the slot 84 for exposing the film in the cassette 88.

The cassette 88 may be removed from the holder 96 at either extreme end of its movement and the linear dimension of the exterior surface of the tubular member 36 and the frame of the cassette are equal so that the cassette will be removed between its extremes of movement during movement of the shield 82 around and concentric with the tubular member 36.

The support arm 80 for the film cassette and shield is pivotally attached to the supoprt arm 56 by a hinge 132 with a spring device 133 extending across the juncture to urge the support arm 80 inwardly to retain the roller 9-8 in frictional engagement with the tubular member 36 and to enable rolling movement of the roller 98 on the tubular member 36 even though the tubular member 36 may have irregularities in the surface thereof. This construction also enables the support arm 80 to be pivoted upwardly to the inoperative position as illustrated in dotted line in FIG. 1 so that the X-ray head 70 may be employed for other uses in the dental X-ray field or for general X-ray purposes. When the arm 80 is pivoted upwardly, a contact switch 81 is engaged to deactivate motor 64. A support arm 134 may then be brought into play either by inserting into a socket 37 provided through the carriage 24 or otherwise attached thereto either permanently or temporarily.

The arm 134 is provided with a forwardly extending portion 136 having a depending support assembly 138 including a film holder 140 and an adjustable head holder 14]. so that the X-ray head may be employed in taking a cephalometric X-ray exposure. This is accomplished by having a removable short cone 69 to restrict X-rays that is interchangeable with a long cone 71 (shown in dotted line) for taking cephalometric X-rays. The head 70 is adjustable at 73 so that the head 70' will be at right angles to yoke 68 with adjustment 72 aligning the head with film holder 140. This same arrangement may be employed for general X-ray purposes and for X-rayiug various portions of the anatomy as desired.

By adjusting the head using the lower part of nose resting on chin engaging bar 108 and adjusting the U-shaped strap 116, a panoramic picture of the frontal and maxillary sinus area can be taken thus enabling the condition of the sinus cavities and the like to be analyzed.

As illustrated in FIG. 4, the upper supporting arm 32 is provided with a housing or cover 142 attached to the vertical member 30 by hinge structure 144. This housing cover may be plastic material, sheet metal or any other suitable material and conceals the operating mechanism. This cover also provides access for enabling removal or adjustment of the arm 134.

Thus, with the present invention, a relatively simple and efficient structure has been provided to enable a panoramic X-ray picture to be made of the entire dentition during a single movement of the X-ray head and film holder with the patient remaining immobilized. The X- ray head and film is mounted on a rigid hollow arm or the like which follows a curved path substantially concentric with the ideal arch form and retains the film as close as possible to the surface of the jaw or face of the patient to reduce distortion. This enables a clearer radiograph of the oral cavity and adjacent areas which would enable a. much better permanent record to be retained by various organizations, especially U.S. Government agencies for providing a good record of dental condition when a person enlisted in the Armed Forces and when they are discharged in order to substantiate any claim made relating to dental problems which may have developed during the term of service. This also enables a more effective identification procedure, especially of persons burned or otherwise injured to a point beyond visual recognition. Such identification purposes may be also significant in various hospitals, mental institutions, prisons and other similar organizations. This device would also be effective for diagnosis of various problems relating to the sinuses and would be useful for physicians diagnosing eye, ear, nose and throat conditions. The ap paratus may be manufactured with a minimum number of moving parts, very little adjustment, very little maintenance, easily adapted to existing ofiice space, requires less than one foot of floor space, may be easily cleaned and sterilized after each use, adjust to the patient rather than a patient being adjusted to the machine, enable the patient to either stand in a relaxed position or sit in a relaxed position such as in a wheelchair or the like, includes handrails fixed to the wall to steady the patient, requires less time in taking the picture, the X-ray picture may be taken from left to right as well from right to left, only one film to mount or process and reduces the exposure to radiation as compared With individual X-ray of each tooth or group of teeth.

The machine may be used to take a panoramic X-ray of complete maxillary and mandibular arches and bone structure, sinus evaluation, for taking a lateral head or cephalometric X-ray can be taken, parpical X-rays can be taken and the device may be converted for field use, text type X-rays and the like.

Conventional controls and electrical supply may be provided including various manual switches, rheostats and the like all of which are known in the art and form no particular part of the present invention.

The foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to.

What is claimed as new is as follows:

1. In an X-ray apparatus including an extra oral film holder and an X-ray source arranged in a line of sight to radiograph a denture of a patient in said line of sight, and means supporting the film holder and X-ray source for simultaneous movement about a patient uninterruptedly along a path concentric with the ideal arch of the patient while maintaining a constant relationship between the film holder, X-ray source and denture of the patient. I

2. The structure as defined in claim 1 wherein said means supporting the X-ray source and film holder includes a supporting arm structure having the X-ray source at one end thereof and the film holder at the other to maintain the line of sight therebetween, means supporting said arm for rotation in a substantially horizontal plane and imparting simultaneous longitudinal movement during such rotation thus moving the arm, X-ray source and film holder in an arcuate path substantially concentricwith the ideal curve of the maxillary and mandibular dental arches of a human dentition.

3. The structure as defined in claim 2 wherein said film holder includes a film cassette of arcuate construction, a shield impervious to passage of X-rays disposed in the line of sight, said shield including a slot-like open ing to enable exposure of the film in the film cassette disposed in alignment with the slot-like opening, and means moving the film cassette and film therein past the slotlike opening in response to rotational movement of the arm in a horizontal plane.

4. In an X-ray apparatus including a film holder and an X-ray source arranged in a line of sight to radiograph a denture of a patient in said line of sight, and means supporting the film holder and X-ray source for movement about a patient in a path concentric with the ideal arch of the patient, said means supporting the X- ray source and film holder including a supporting arm structure having the X-ray source at one end thereof and the film holder at the other to maintain the line of sight therebetween, means supporting said arm for rotation in a substantially horizontal plane and imparting simultaneous longitudinal movement during such rotation thus moving the arm, X-ray source and film holder in an arcuate path substantially concentric with the ideal curve of the maxillary and mandibular arches of a human dentition, said film holder including a film cassette of arcuate construction, a shield impervious to passage of X-rays disposed in the line of sight, said shield including a slotlike opening to enable exposure of the film in the film cassette disposed in alignment with the slot-like opening, and means moving the film cassette and film therein past the slot-like opening during movement of the arm in a horizontal plane, said means including a drive roller frictionally engaged with the film cassette on one side of the rotational axis thereof, the other surface of the roller on the opposite side of the rotational axis thereof being engaged with a curve radiolucent tubular member disposed in adjacent relation to the surface of the jaws of the patient having an X-ray taken to drive the cassette to move the film in relation to the slot-like opening during movement of the source and film holder.

5. The structure as defined in claim 4 together with reversible motor means to drive the supporting arm, X- ray source and film holder in opposite directions to enable an X-ray to be taken in both directions of movement of the X-ray source and film holder.

6. The structure as defined in claim 5 together with means positioning the chin and forehead of a patient in relation to a radiolucent member with the radiolucent member being tubular and curved in a manner substantially concentric with the ideal arch with a cutout area receiving the head portion of a patient.

7. The structure as defined in claim 4 wherein said means supporting said arm includes a mounting block stationarily supported in a substantially horizontal position and provided with intersecting slots in the upper surface thereof, said arm extending across the top surface of the block and including a pair of slides pivotally supported from the undersurface of the arm and slidable in the intersecting slot whereby rotation of the arm about substantially a vertical axis will cause longitudinal shifting of the arm so that any part along the arm will move in a substantially elliptical path.

8. The structure as defined in claim 7 wherein said arm includes a friction plate on the upper surface thereof, and a motor driven friction drive wheel having the periphery thereof drivingly engaging the friction plate to enable rotational driving movement of the arm as it shifts longitudinally during such rotation, said means supporting said arm includes vertically adjustable means to enable variation in the line of sight for receiving ditferent height patients.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,408,559 3/1922 Zulauf 250-69 X 2,798,958 7/1957 Hudson et al. 2506l.5 3,045,118 7/1962 Hollman et a1 250-61.5

WILLIAM F. LINDQUIST, Primary Examiner A. L. BIRCH, Assistant Examiner U.S. Cl. X.R.

Patent No. 536 ,913 Dated October 27, 1970 Paul E. Huchel Inventor(s) It is certified that error appears in the above-identified patent and that said Letters Patent are hereby corrected as shown below:

Column 1, lines 4 and 5, delete "assignor to Societe Anonyme dite: Societe des Automobiles Simca".

SIGNED AN FORM PO-105O (10-69) USCOMWDC t us, oovnmnnn unmaromcu nu o-su-su

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