CA1067321A - Resilient artificial denture tooth - Google Patents
Resilient artificial denture toothInfo
- Publication number
- CA1067321A CA1067321A CA241,655A CA241655A CA1067321A CA 1067321 A CA1067321 A CA 1067321A CA 241655 A CA241655 A CA 241655A CA 1067321 A CA1067321 A CA 1067321A
- Authority
- CA
- Canada
- Prior art keywords
- occlusal
- base
- base portion
- tooth
- tab
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Expired
Links
- 230000000670 limiting effect Effects 0.000 claims abstract description 7
- 239000000543 intermediate Substances 0.000 claims description 44
- 238000000034 method Methods 0.000 claims description 8
- 239000011505 plaster Substances 0.000 claims description 7
- 239000011800 void material Substances 0.000 claims description 4
- 229920000136 polysorbate Polymers 0.000 claims description 3
- 238000004519 manufacturing process Methods 0.000 claims 1
- 238000009966 trimming Methods 0.000 claims 1
- 239000012858 resilient material Substances 0.000 description 8
- 230000006835 compression Effects 0.000 description 6
- 238000007906 compression Methods 0.000 description 6
- 239000000463 material Substances 0.000 description 5
- 230000004913 activation Effects 0.000 description 4
- 238000000926 separation method Methods 0.000 description 4
- 150000002500 ions Chemical class 0.000 description 3
- 230000008901 benefit Effects 0.000 description 2
- 210000004373 mandible Anatomy 0.000 description 2
- 230000000452 restraining effect Effects 0.000 description 2
- 208000022351 Human Bites Diseases 0.000 description 1
- 241000283986 Lepus Species 0.000 description 1
- NIXOWILDQLNWCW-UHFFFAOYSA-N acrylic acid group Chemical group C(C=C)(=O)O NIXOWILDQLNWCW-UHFFFAOYSA-N 0.000 description 1
- 238000007792 addition Methods 0.000 description 1
- 210000000988 bone and bone Anatomy 0.000 description 1
- 150000001768 cations Chemical class 0.000 description 1
- 230000001055 chewing effect Effects 0.000 description 1
- ZPUCINDJVBIVPJ-LJISPDSOSA-N cocaine Chemical compound O([C@H]1C[C@@H]2CC[C@@H](N2C)[C@H]1C(=O)OC)C(=O)C1=CC=CC=C1 ZPUCINDJVBIVPJ-LJISPDSOSA-N 0.000 description 1
- 230000003247 decreasing effect Effects 0.000 description 1
- 230000000994 depressogenic effect Effects 0.000 description 1
- 230000001066 destructive effect Effects 0.000 description 1
- 239000013013 elastic material Substances 0.000 description 1
- 230000002452 interceptive effect Effects 0.000 description 1
- 210000001847 jaw Anatomy 0.000 description 1
- 230000014759 maintenance of location Effects 0.000 description 1
- 230000018984 mastication Effects 0.000 description 1
- 238000010077 mastication Methods 0.000 description 1
- 230000007246 mechanism Effects 0.000 description 1
- 239000002184 metal Substances 0.000 description 1
- 238000000465 moulding Methods 0.000 description 1
- 210000003205 muscle Anatomy 0.000 description 1
- 230000036961 partial effect Effects 0.000 description 1
- 238000005498 polishing Methods 0.000 description 1
- 230000008569 process Effects 0.000 description 1
- 230000004044 response Effects 0.000 description 1
- 239000004575 stone Substances 0.000 description 1
- 230000036339 tooth positioning Effects 0.000 description 1
Classifications
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A61—MEDICAL OR VETERINARY SCIENCE; HYGIENE
- A61C—DENTISTRY; APPARATUS OR METHODS FOR ORAL OR DENTAL HYGIENE
- A61C13/00—Dental prostheses; Making same
- A61C13/10—Fastening of artificial teeth to denture palates or the like
- A61C13/1026—Shock absorbers
Abstract
Abstract of Disclosure An artificial tooth for use in a denture compris-ing a base portion, an occlusal portion, and an intermediate portion sandwiched between and secured to the base portion and occlusal portion, the intermediate portion being re-silient to permit the occlusal portion yieldably to move relative to the base portion. The intermediate portion is disposed generally at equal vertical distances from the occlusal surface of the occlusal portion and the ridge lap surface of the base portion. Two connecting members, spaced apart in the mesial-distal direction, are provided for limiting the movement of the occlusal portion relative to the base portion. Such members are rigidly connected to the occlusal portion and loosely pivotally connected to the base portion. The loose pivotal connection permits the occlusal portion to move from its normal position toward the base por-tion even by tipping movement. The tooth may also include vertically extending tabs or projections connected to the occlusal portion or the base portion or both to limit the movement of the occlusal portion. The projections may be so situated between the occlusal and base portions to pre-vent excessive tilting of the occlusal portion, a pinching of the resilient portion and rotation of the occlusal por-tion with respect to the base portion.
Description
The present invention relates to dentures and par-ticularly to the provision of a resilient artiEicial tooth for use in dentures.
It will be appreciated that the human bite is not merely opening and closiny like a gate hinge, but, in addi-tion, when chewing, has a complicatad lateral and protrusive `
move~ent with the mandibular teeth moving on a spherical ..
pattern having a radius of about four inches with the center ~.
of the sphere being above the mandibular teeth. The move-10. ments are different for each individual and are r~gulated by muscles of mastication and the temporomandibular joi~ts. .~
My present invention provides an artificial tooth for a . ~ .. .
denture, the occlusal portion of that too h having resilient resisted movement relative to the base portion. In a set of dentures, including upper and lower dentures, I could pro~
~ide eight resilient lower posterior teeth (four on each : side) that would have vertical individual movements o~ ~ .
occlusal (biting) surfaces concurrently with tipping o~ the occlusal surface~
20. My preferred artificial tooth comprises a base ~ :
portion, an occlusal portion, and an intermediate portion ;~-sandwiched between and secured to the base portion and oc- -clusal portion, the intermediate portion being resilient to permit the occlusal por~ion yieldably to move relative to ~::
the base po.rtion. The occlusal portion provides, at its up- : :
: per end, an occlusal surface and the base portion provides, at its lower end, a ridge lap surface. Preferably, the intermediate portion is disposed generally at equal vextical ~ ;
distances from the occlusal surface and the ridge lap surface.
. 30. The terms "generally at equal vertical distances" is intended :
It will be appreciated that the human bite is not merely opening and closiny like a gate hinge, but, in addi-tion, when chewing, has a complicatad lateral and protrusive `
move~ent with the mandibular teeth moving on a spherical ..
pattern having a radius of about four inches with the center ~.
of the sphere being above the mandibular teeth. The move-10. ments are different for each individual and are r~gulated by muscles of mastication and the temporomandibular joi~ts. .~
My present invention provides an artificial tooth for a . ~ .. .
denture, the occlusal portion of that too h having resilient resisted movement relative to the base portion. In a set of dentures, including upper and lower dentures, I could pro~
~ide eight resilient lower posterior teeth (four on each : side) that would have vertical individual movements o~ ~ .
occlusal (biting) surfaces concurrently with tipping o~ the occlusal surface~
20. My preferred artificial tooth comprises a base ~ :
portion, an occlusal portion, and an intermediate portion ;~-sandwiched between and secured to the base portion and oc- -clusal portion, the intermediate portion being resilient to permit the occlusal por~ion yieldably to move relative to ~::
the base po.rtion. The occlusal portion provides, at its up- : :
: per end, an occlusal surface and the base portion provides, at its lower end, a ridge lap surface. Preferably, the intermediate portion is disposed generally at equal vextical ~ ;
distances from the occlusal surface and the ridge lap surface.
. 30. The terms "generally at equal vertical distances" is intended :
- 2 - ~ ~.
~ .
73~
to encompass a considerable latitude. Particularly, X pre~
fer that the intermediate resilient portion be about one-half way up the heiyht of the tooth, well below the occlusal surface and well above the ridge lap surface. The inter-mediate portion may have different thicknesses such as 1 mm, 1.5 mm, 2 mm, 2.5 mm, etc., up to, for instance, 4 or 5 mm if a patient has very resorbed ridges. ;-By placing the intermediate region at generally ;`
the vertical center of the tooth, I provide for an optimal , ;~
lQ. resiliently resisted movement of the occlusal portion~ The horizontally extending resilient intermediate section of each lower posterior tooth reduces very significantly the ; ;
rocking o the base portion of the denture on eithar side, /~ right ~r let. The occlusal portion will compress toward the base portion or against the resilient intermediate portion or ~ -tip in all directions such as mesial, distal, buccal, lingual or between these positions as dictated by the occlusion o the opposing de~tal arch. Thus, each tooth will automatical-ly respond to changes in occlusion of the opposite dental 20. arch. This results in balanced occlusion, less alveolar bone ;~. .
loss and greater comfort. I presently believe that the thick-ness of the resilient intermediate portion should be a mini-mum of 1 mm while the maximum thickness may range up to, for instance, 4 or 5 mm. `~
- The compressi~e-resilient tooth of my invention al-lows individual teeth automatically to adjust in vertical and tipping movements to the patient's jaw movements and condyle inclination in occlusion, thus decreasing the need for exten-,"" .
;:J.,'. sive preconstruction registrations which are conventionally ; 30. used in constructing dentures with conventional artiicial ~,.;,:. . .
; 3 :....................................................................... . .
'''.. '' , ' ,,, ~, , .
.,: ~ . :
,., ~. - . , :
~0~73~
teeth.
With my resilient teet~ used as the posterior teeth of both sides for the lower denture, if a bolus of food is placed on the right working side, for example, be~
tween compressive resilient teeth and the teeth made to oc-clude, then the teeth on the right side will be depressed -;
:, .
and the balancing side or left side will remain in cont~ t.
Thus, the denture will be balanced continuously in masti- .~
cation. i ~ ~ `
10. By having the two separate anchor wires or the two ~, ~
separate legs of the U~haped anchor wire, I pre~ent rota~
tion of the occlusal portion relative to the bass, which ro~
tation would result in dislodging of the occlusal portion.
~,, . ~ .
My anchor wire retention system is importantly in-~ternal to the tooth and not exposed to the mouth.
Further, importantly, my connecting means or an~
~i. . .
chor wire means serve to prevent the occlusal portion from moving from its normal unloaded position away from the base portion to ~he extent that the resilient intermediate por~
20. tion would be broken. My connecting means or anchor wire means permit the occlusal portion to move from its normal un~
loaded position toward the base portion to compress the re-silien~ material of the intermediate portion.
My resilient tooth may also include a plurality o vertically extending tabs or projections extending from the adjacent surfaces of the base or occlusal portions. Such projections prevent excessive rotation of the occlusal por-tion with respect to the base, prevent excessive tilting and compression o the occlusal portion relative to the base, 30. and protect the resilient intermediate portion. The pro~
, ~ :
- 4 - ` -.. . . . . . . . .
~ ;73~
jections, whic~l may be interengaged to prevent relatlve rotation, are cut by the dentist after the denture is completed selectively to adjust the permitted movement of the occlusal portion.
In accordance with the invention there is provided an artificial tooth for use in a denture, said tooth comprising a base portion, an ` ~ J.
occlusal portion and an intermediate portion~ said base portion and occlusal portion each providing surfaces for securing said intermediate portion in sandwiched relation therebetween, said intermediate portion being resilient ~ -ta permit said occlusal portion to move yieldably relative to said base portion, and tab means for limiting movement of said occlusal portion . ~ ,.. ..
relative to said base portion, said tab means projecting from one of said ~ -surfaces to~ard the other of said surfaces about the outer perimeter of one -of said occlusal and base portions.
In accordance with another aspect of thls invention there is pro-vided a method for constructing a denture having a plurality of resilient artificial teeth, each tooth having an occlusal portion and a base portion sandwiching therebetween a resilient layer, each tooth also having tab means ~ ~
rigidly positioning said occlusal portion on said base portion, said method ~ -comprising the steps of placing said teeth in a flask containing dental ~0 plaster formed to define a void for a denture base, said teeth being positioned in said plaster to protrude into said void, forming a denture base in said void and connected to said teeth, and cutting said tab means to release said occlusal portion for movement relative to said base portion. ~;~
In the drawings:
Figure 1 is a fragmentary view of a portion of a denture showing my resiliently compressible tooth mounted thereon;
~igure 2 is a fragmentary sectional view taken generally along the ~ -~
line 2-2 in Figure l; ~
~igure 3 is a fragmentary sectional view of another slightly ~;
different tooth in accordance with my present invention;
Figure 4 is a fragmentary sectional view taken through the tooth along a vertical plane lying in the mesial-distal direction; ~;
.
.. . .
.,',,'.", Q~3~'73'~
Figure 5 is a fragmentary sectional view taken along the llnes 5-5 in Figure 4;
Figures 6 and 7 are sectional views similar to Figure 5 but showing different tipping movement of the occlusal portion;
Figure 8 is a fragmentary sectional view showing my tooth in a flask with lugs on the base portion of the tooth positioning the tooth in the dental plaster;
Figure 9 is a perspective view showing a common base portion elongated in the mesial-distal direction with four occlusal portions resiliently mounted on the common base portion;
Figure 10 is a view, from either the mesial or distal direction~
of a portion of a prior art denture having a ,' ' . ~ ~ `
' ~:
~ ~ ' "'.
': , :
~, ~. ,.
~ ~,'.: .,' ~ i,.;? ~ :
~.~ 5a .:
~ . '. ' ~ ' , , , , ,,", , : ".
`~ ~u~73Z~ ~
,..... ..,; ~ "
strip of resilient material extending therethrough;
Fig. 11 is a view, from either the buccal or lin~
gual side, of a tooth constructed in accordance with an em~
bodiment of the present invention before activation of the ~:
strip of resilient material; ~ ;
Fig. 12 is a view, from either the buccal or lin- -g~al side, of the tooth of ~ig. 11 after activation of the strip of resilient material; ~
Fig. 13 is a view, fxom either the buccal or lin- - . .
` 10. gual side; of a tooth constructed in accordance with an em~
~ .
73~
to encompass a considerable latitude. Particularly, X pre~
fer that the intermediate resilient portion be about one-half way up the heiyht of the tooth, well below the occlusal surface and well above the ridge lap surface. The inter-mediate portion may have different thicknesses such as 1 mm, 1.5 mm, 2 mm, 2.5 mm, etc., up to, for instance, 4 or 5 mm if a patient has very resorbed ridges. ;-By placing the intermediate region at generally ;`
the vertical center of the tooth, I provide for an optimal , ;~
lQ. resiliently resisted movement of the occlusal portion~ The horizontally extending resilient intermediate section of each lower posterior tooth reduces very significantly the ; ;
rocking o the base portion of the denture on eithar side, /~ right ~r let. The occlusal portion will compress toward the base portion or against the resilient intermediate portion or ~ -tip in all directions such as mesial, distal, buccal, lingual or between these positions as dictated by the occlusion o the opposing de~tal arch. Thus, each tooth will automatical-ly respond to changes in occlusion of the opposite dental 20. arch. This results in balanced occlusion, less alveolar bone ;~. .
loss and greater comfort. I presently believe that the thick-ness of the resilient intermediate portion should be a mini-mum of 1 mm while the maximum thickness may range up to, for instance, 4 or 5 mm. `~
- The compressi~e-resilient tooth of my invention al-lows individual teeth automatically to adjust in vertical and tipping movements to the patient's jaw movements and condyle inclination in occlusion, thus decreasing the need for exten-,"" .
;:J.,'. sive preconstruction registrations which are conventionally ; 30. used in constructing dentures with conventional artiicial ~,.;,:. . .
; 3 :....................................................................... . .
'''.. '' , ' ,,, ~, , .
.,: ~ . :
,., ~. - . , :
~0~73~
teeth.
With my resilient teet~ used as the posterior teeth of both sides for the lower denture, if a bolus of food is placed on the right working side, for example, be~
tween compressive resilient teeth and the teeth made to oc-clude, then the teeth on the right side will be depressed -;
:, .
and the balancing side or left side will remain in cont~ t.
Thus, the denture will be balanced continuously in masti- .~
cation. i ~ ~ `
10. By having the two separate anchor wires or the two ~, ~
separate legs of the U~haped anchor wire, I pre~ent rota~
tion of the occlusal portion relative to the bass, which ro~
tation would result in dislodging of the occlusal portion.
~,, . ~ .
My anchor wire retention system is importantly in-~ternal to the tooth and not exposed to the mouth.
Further, importantly, my connecting means or an~
~i. . .
chor wire means serve to prevent the occlusal portion from moving from its normal unloaded position away from the base portion to ~he extent that the resilient intermediate por~
20. tion would be broken. My connecting means or anchor wire means permit the occlusal portion to move from its normal un~
loaded position toward the base portion to compress the re-silien~ material of the intermediate portion.
My resilient tooth may also include a plurality o vertically extending tabs or projections extending from the adjacent surfaces of the base or occlusal portions. Such projections prevent excessive rotation of the occlusal por-tion with respect to the base, prevent excessive tilting and compression o the occlusal portion relative to the base, 30. and protect the resilient intermediate portion. The pro~
, ~ :
- 4 - ` -.. . . . . . . . .
~ ;73~
jections, whic~l may be interengaged to prevent relatlve rotation, are cut by the dentist after the denture is completed selectively to adjust the permitted movement of the occlusal portion.
In accordance with the invention there is provided an artificial tooth for use in a denture, said tooth comprising a base portion, an ` ~ J.
occlusal portion and an intermediate portion~ said base portion and occlusal portion each providing surfaces for securing said intermediate portion in sandwiched relation therebetween, said intermediate portion being resilient ~ -ta permit said occlusal portion to move yieldably relative to said base portion, and tab means for limiting movement of said occlusal portion . ~ ,.. ..
relative to said base portion, said tab means projecting from one of said ~ -surfaces to~ard the other of said surfaces about the outer perimeter of one -of said occlusal and base portions.
In accordance with another aspect of thls invention there is pro-vided a method for constructing a denture having a plurality of resilient artificial teeth, each tooth having an occlusal portion and a base portion sandwiching therebetween a resilient layer, each tooth also having tab means ~ ~
rigidly positioning said occlusal portion on said base portion, said method ~ -comprising the steps of placing said teeth in a flask containing dental ~0 plaster formed to define a void for a denture base, said teeth being positioned in said plaster to protrude into said void, forming a denture base in said void and connected to said teeth, and cutting said tab means to release said occlusal portion for movement relative to said base portion. ~;~
In the drawings:
Figure 1 is a fragmentary view of a portion of a denture showing my resiliently compressible tooth mounted thereon;
~igure 2 is a fragmentary sectional view taken generally along the ~ -~
line 2-2 in Figure l; ~
~igure 3 is a fragmentary sectional view of another slightly ~;
different tooth in accordance with my present invention;
Figure 4 is a fragmentary sectional view taken through the tooth along a vertical plane lying in the mesial-distal direction; ~;
.
.. . .
.,',,'.", Q~3~'73'~
Figure 5 is a fragmentary sectional view taken along the llnes 5-5 in Figure 4;
Figures 6 and 7 are sectional views similar to Figure 5 but showing different tipping movement of the occlusal portion;
Figure 8 is a fragmentary sectional view showing my tooth in a flask with lugs on the base portion of the tooth positioning the tooth in the dental plaster;
Figure 9 is a perspective view showing a common base portion elongated in the mesial-distal direction with four occlusal portions resiliently mounted on the common base portion;
Figure 10 is a view, from either the mesial or distal direction~
of a portion of a prior art denture having a ,' ' . ~ ~ `
' ~:
~ ~ ' "'.
': , :
~, ~. ,.
~ ~,'.: .,' ~ i,.;? ~ :
~.~ 5a .:
~ . '. ' ~ ' , , , , ,,", , : ".
`~ ~u~73Z~ ~
,..... ..,; ~ "
strip of resilient material extending therethrough;
Fig. 11 is a view, from either the buccal or lin~
gual side, of a tooth constructed in accordance with an em~
bodiment of the present invention before activation of the ~:
strip of resilient material; ~ ;
Fig. 12 is a view, from either the buccal or lin- -g~al side, of the tooth of ~ig. 11 after activation of the strip of resilient material; ~
Fig. 13 is a view, fxom either the buccal or lin- - . .
` 10. gual side; of a tooth constructed in accordance with an em~
3 bodiment of the present invention before activation of the strip of resilient material; :~
'! ,;
Fig. 14 is a view, from either the buccal or lin~
3 gual side, of the tooth o~ Fig. 13 ater activation of the .
strip of resilient material; . .
Fig~ 15 is a ~ragmentary sectional view of the i , , , . ~
: tooth of Fig. 11 taken along section lines 160-160 thereo~
Fig. 16 ls a fragmentary sectional view of the ,~ tooth of Fig. 12 taken alo~g section lines 170-170 thereof; ;
s~l 20. and Fig. 17 is a fragmentary view, from either the :;~ :
~ buccal or lingual side, of a tooth constructed in accordance : with the invention.
~ .................................................................... .
:~ ~eferring now to the drawings, and particularly to ,~ Figs. 1 and 2, it will be seen that I have illustrated my ,: artificial tooth 10 as comprising a base portion 12, an ~ :
. occlusal portion 14, and an intermediate resilient por~
tion 16. The base portion 12 is mounted upon a denture ~ .
base, a portion o~ which is indicated at 18. The reerence 30. numeral 20 indicates the ridge lap sur~ace of the tooth ., ., :,. . . .
~(~ti73'~1 ~
while the reference numeral 22 indicates the occlusal surface of the tooth.
The intermediate portion 16 is sandwiched be~
tween ~he upwardly facing surface 24 provided by the base 12 and the downwardly facing surface 26 or lower surface provided by the occlusal portion 14. These surfaces 24, 26, which are preferably generally congruently superposed, lie in horizontally extending planes as bonding surfaces.
In some cases, as illustrated, the bonding surfaces may be ~-~ 10. provided with small cavities or cross ridges as desired, as indicated by the reference numerals 28, 30.
Two holes 32, 34 extend vertically through the base portion 12~ the holes lying in a plane which is ap-prox~mately the center mesial-distal section of the tooth.
Means for connecting the occlusal portion 14 to the base portion 12 is indicated generally by the reference numer- ;
al 36, the illustrative means including a generally U~
shaped anchor wire having a base 38 which is rigidly se~
cured to the occlusal portion 14 and vertically downwa~dly ~`
20. extending legs 40, 42 received, respectîvely, in the through holes 32, 34. ~he distal end portions 44, 46 ~, of the legs 40, 42 are bent inwardly or toward each other -as illustra~ed to restrain the anchor wire from moving verti-..~
cally upwardly relative to the base portion 12. It will be `~
seen that the ridge lap surface 20 provides a well into which the portions 44, 46 extend, which well may be filled with resilient material indicated at 48 which serves to '::; ' ' prevent the base 18 material from entering the well during the processing of the dentures. Since the holes 32, 34 are 30. larger in diameter than the wi.re le~s 40, 42, some tipping , -:, , , , : :
'73'~
movement or lateral movement of the occlusal portion 14 ~ .
relative to the base portion 12 is permitted. Of course, the legs 40, 42 and the end portions 44, 46 can move ;
downwardly relative to the base portion 12 to accommodate ~.
the compression of the resilient portion 16. : :
The embodiment of Fig. 3 indicated generally by the reference numeral 10', is very similar to the embodi- .
ment of Figs. 1 and 2, like re~erence numerals representing like parts. The primary diference in the embodiment of Fig.
10. 3 is the provision o a hollowed-out cavity 50 into which the resilient material is injected to cushion the upper or base portion 38. Thus, in the embodiment of Fig. 3, the anchor wire is not so rigidly attached to the occlusal por~
tion 14.
I have said that the anchor wire 36 is rigidly secured to the occlusal portion 14 in Figs. 1 and 2. This :~ :
may be accomplished, for instanee, by molding that occlusal portion with the wire extending into the mold~ Any number of other techniques may be used rigidly to secure such an . 20. anchor wire or connector member to the occlusal portion.
- Referring now to Figs. 4 7, it will be seen ~hat I ;`
have shown a resilient tookh indicaked generally by the ~ ~
reference numeral 60, like reference numerals indicaking ~ -:
like parts. One dif~erence between the tooth 60 and the tooth 10 of Figs. 1 and 2, is the manner in which the oc-~ clusal portion 14 is restrained from moving from its nor-l mal position away ~rom the base portion 12. Instead of an inverted U-shaped anchor wire, t.here are two separate wires 40, 42 the upper ends of which are bent as indicated at 30~ 40a, 42a. Then, the distal ends o the through holes 32, ,~ .
, '"
: , .
. ,: :, . ... . .. .
.~()tj'73'2~ ~
34 are enlarged as indicated at 32a, 34a to provide soc~
kets 62, 64 in the base portion 12 for receiving the en-larged distal ends 66l 68 of the wires 40, 42. These enlarged openings 32a, 34a may preferably be plugged with a soft elastic material such as indicated at 70, 72 which prevents the hard acrylic base 18 material from flowing upwardly into the sockets 62, 64 to impede the movement of the enlarged distal ends 66, 68.
One advantage of my inventive resilient tooth is - 10. that a considerable amount of the occlusal surface 22 as well as the ridge lap surfaae 20 may be removed by grind~
ing withoutt in any way~ interfering with my mechanism for -resiliently mounting the occlusal portion 14 on the bas~
portion 12 and restraining the occlusal portion from moY- ~ ;
ing away or tearing away from the base portionO The refer~
ence numerals 74, 76 indicate, respectively, the amount of occlusal surace 22 and ridge lap surface 20 which . . :
can be removed from the tooth 60. This feature applies al~
so to the tooth 10, 10' of Figs. 1, 2 and 3. Mass~
20. produced teeth in accordance wlth my invention may be cus~
` tom ground to fit a particular denture requirement. ;~ `
:1, `;'. ~ .
The sectional YieW of Fig. 4 is taken throu~h a vertical plane extending centrally through the tooth in the ' mesial-distal direction. The t~o wires ~0, 42 spaced apart in khis plane serve to prevent the occlusal portion 14 from rotating about a vertical axis relative tQ the base portion 12, which rotation would be destructive to the intermediate resilient layer 16. -, In the views 5, 6 and 7, I show an upper tooth 80 30. engaging the tooth 60, the views o~ Figs. 5, 6 and 7 being ~ ;
.' ' ' ' ~ ', g _ :
` !
:~, . . .... ....
: ~ " , .: " ~, :- :: , ':: ~ ,~- , ' :
1()~'~3'~
taken in the buccal-lingual direction with the ri~ht-hand side of each view being the buccal or fadal side and the left-hand side of each view being the lingual or tongue side. Fig. 5 shows the right side denture tooth 60 in occlusion with no pressure on the resilient portion lÇ.
~he retainer ball or enlarged end 66 is generally at the `
top of the socket 62. This position of the ooclusal por-tion 14 represents its r.sormal or unloaded position. It will be appreciated that the occlusal portion 1~ cannot 10. move vertically upwardly from the position of Fig. 5 be~
cause of the restraining feature of khe enlarged end portion 66.
Fig. 6 shows a right lateral excursion of the mandible and lower denture with the occlusal portion 14 ,r;
depr ssed and tipping to the lingual side. The retainer ball or enlarged end portion 66 depresses to the bottom of ;~
the socket 62 and is angulated in the over-sized hole 32.
Fig. 7 shows a left lateral excursion of the mandible with ~ the occlusal portion 14 depxessed and tipping on the buc~
,j 20. cal side with the wire 40 angulated in the opposite di~
rection relative to that shown in Fig. 6. The occlusal por-f tion 14, therefore, can accommodate a considerable ~mount of excursion or grinding of the engaging occlusal surfaces of opposed teeth~ The occlusal portion 14 can tip in any ;; directions, i.e., from side to side in the buccal~lingual di-. rection or from front to back in the mesial-distal direction.
I show laterally outwardly extending lugs or lips ', 84 in dashed lines on the base portion 12 of the toot~
,s 60. These lugs 84 serve to position the base por~ion 12 ` 30. in the dental plaster or stone of a split metal flask indi- ;~
.
`"i - 10 -;_i ., .
cated at 86 in Fig. ~, the flask having an upper half 88 and a lower half 90. The plastic material from which the denture base 18 is made is m~xed like putty and placed between the two halves 88, 90 of th~ flask with the part-ing line of the flask being indicated at 92. Then the flask is squeezed together. The lugs 84 will position themselves in the dental plaster in the flask to keep the base portion 12 from being forced against the occlusal portion 14 to place the intermediate layer 16 in com~
lO. pression during the squeeæing process. After the denture ~-~
is removed ~rom the flask, the lugs 84 are removed by ~
grinding and polishing operations. ~ ~ `
In the embodiment of Fig. 9, indicated generally at lO0, foux separate and indiYidually yieldably movable , ~
occlusal portions 14 are mounted upon a common base por~
tion 12a and resiliently supported thsreon by intermediate ;~
portions 16. Each of the individual occlusal portions 14 in Fig. 9 are restrained from moving away rom the base .: ., portion 12a by anchor wires such as indicated at 40, 42 20. in other embodiments. The entire base portion 12a, there-fore, would be mounted upon a denture base 18 as an assem~
blyO
In Fig. lO, I have illustrated a priox art artifi- ~`
cial tooth 110, again comprising a base portion 12, an occlusal portion 14, and an intermediate resilient por~
tion 16. The base portion 12 is mounted upon a denture base, a portion of which is indicated at 18. The occlusal surface of the tooth is indicated by the reference numeral `-22 and the ridge lap ~urface of the tooth is indicated by 30~ reference numeral 20. As before, the resilient intermediate ' ~ ~ .
;,, , , "., , ., , , , - , . :. :, . :
7~32~
portion 16 is sandwiched between an upwardl~ facing sur-face 24 provided by base 12 and a downwardly facing sur-face 26 provided by occlusal portion 14.
An upper tooth 10~ engages the occlusal surface 22 of tooth 110, sxertiny pressure on either the buccal -or lingual side thereof and causing the occlusal poxtion 14 ;~
of tooth 110 ~o tilt in response to the pressure exerted. .;~
Extensive compression of resilient layer 16 caused by this ;
pressure results in a bulging ox pinching of the resilient 10. layer 16 on either the buccal or lingual side of tooth 110 as indicated at reference numeral 116. It i5 generally de~
s~rable to limit this bulging of resilient layer 16, since excessive bulging of the resilient layer 16 may cause dam~
age thereto.
In the embodiments of ~igs. lI-14, the tilting of the occlusal portion 14 of such a tooth 110 is lim4ted, -' : thereby limiting the resultant ~ulging of the resilient layer 16 in either the buccal or lingual direction. It is : to be understood that the concepts embodied in the teeth af ;~ :
20. Figs. 11~14 may be applied equally as effectively to li~it ~ f the tilting of the occlusal portion 14 o such a too~h 110 : `
in the mesial-distal direction.
' ~ . In the embodiment of Figs. 11-12, the base portion ~ :
12 and occlusal portion 14 are joined along their buccal and lingual sides by a plurality of vertically extending projections or tabs 120, the tabs 120 extendiny at the tooth 110 outer perimetral surface from the upper extent .
; of base 12 to the lower extent of occlusal portion 14.
Each o tabs 120 is of limited thickness in the 30. buccal-lingual direction to provide for relative ease of cut- ~
~: .
- 12 ~
, ' ' ' :,~: - ,,, " . , 3'~
ting the tabs between dashed lines 122 and 124 of the base portion 12 and occlusal portion 14, respectively.
This cutting apart of the base 12 and occlusal portion 14 may b~ accomplished ater the denture is completed and even ~;
after the denture is tried by the patient. As can be ap-preciated, this cutting apart of base 12 and occlusal por- -tion 14 ac~ivates the resilient layer 16, i.e., allows depression of occlusal portion 14 to compress resilient layer 16. If a patient needs more movement of the occlusal lOo portion 14 after trying ~he denture, the dis~ance between t~e cutting lines can be increased selectively.
As best illustrated in Fig. 12, the separating of base 12 and occlusal portion 14 o the too~h 110 estab~
lishes on the buccal and lingual sides of tooth 110 a plurality of engaging projecting tabs 12~ and est~blishes between the distal ends of projecting tabs 128 and the opposite surfaces of the base portion 12 or occlusal por-tion 14 t~o substantially parallel planes 132, 134. It is the separation of these planes 132, 134 as well as the 20. relative location and separation of the projecting tabs 128 along the buccal and lingual sides of the tooth 110 which determine the extent to which resilient layer 16 can be compressed in the buccal-lingual directions as well as in the mesial-distal directions. Separation of alternating ones of connecting ta~s 120 at opposite ends establishes first engaging tabs 128 extending from occlusal portion 14 toward hase portion 12 and second engaging tabs 128 extending from base portion 12 toward occlusal portion 14.
Fiy. 15 is a fragmentary sectional view o~ the tooth 30. o~ Figs. 11-12 be~ore tabs 120 of tooth 110 are cut to ,~
- 13 ~ ~ s ~ `
: ~ - , "
~: . .. .
:;~ :: . . : .. . .
.
1~'73'~
free occlusal portion 14 for movement relative to base portion 12. As shown in Fig. 16, after separation of tabs 120 between dotted lines 122, 124, resilient intermediate portion 16 is activated for compression. It can be seen from Fig. 16 that after tabs 120 are cut to form engaging projecting tabs 128, grooves 138 result in the outer perimeter of tooth 110 between the generally parallel sur-faces 132, 134. Grooves 138 can be filled with resil-ient material like or similar to that used in resilient inter-i .
10. mediate portion 16 o~ tooth 110 to pre~ent food parti~cles from accumulating in grooveB 138-Figs. 13-14 illustxate an alternative arrangement -for tabs 120. As in the embodiment of Figs. 11-12, the ' ~;~
tabs 120 of ~ig. 13 may be cu~ along dotted lines 122,124 to produce engaging projecting tabs 128 along the buccal and lingual sides of tooth 110'. See Fig. 14. -As can be appreciated from Figs. 11-14, the pro~
jecting tabs 128 prevent excessive compression of resil-ient layer 16, excessive tilting of the occlusal portion 20. 14 of each o~ teeth 110, 110', and relative rotation of occlusal portion 14 with respect to the base 12 of each ~ ~`
of teeth 110, 110'. Additionally, tabs 128 aid in re-taining the rasilient material between occlusal portion 14 and base 12.
It is also understood that in mass-produced teeth made in accordance with the invention of Figs. 11-14, when there are to be engaging tabs 128 on either the buccal or lingual side, or both, o~ tooth 110, 110', only one o~ the tabs 128 need be manufactured as a tab 120 connecting 30. base 12 to occlusal portion 14. Tha~ is, only one of ' ,, : ' ~, ~........ . , , j 73'~L
tabs 128 need brid~e the entire gap between occlusal portion 14 and base 12. In such a situation, it would -~
only be necessary to cut between the dotted lines 122,124 o~ one of ~abs 120 of the teeth of Figs. 11-14, to separate the base 12 from the occiusal portion 14 and activatè the resilient layer 16.
Instead of having the engaging projecting tabs 128 re~sulting from activa~ion of the resilient intermediate portions 16 of the teeth o~ ~igs. 11-16, tooth 110" of 10. Fig. 17 has only a single tah 120 on its buccal or lin~
gual sider or both. Of course, when tab 120 of tooth ;`
110" is cut between dotted lines 122, 124, a single pro-jecting tab will result. This single projecting tab will aid in retaining and protecting the perimetral surface of resilient portion 16 between occlusal portion 14 and base 12. In addition, since rotation of occlusal portion ;-14 of tooth 110" relative to base portion 12 would re- ~ ~
~uire some compression of resilient portion 16, the single ~ -tab on the buccal and lingual sides of tooth 110" will 20. help prevent rotation of occlusal portion 14 of tooth -110" relative to base 12.
One of the primary advantages of the vertically extending tabs o~ Figs. 11 to 17 is that the occlusal por-tion 14 is prevented from moving relative to the base por-tion 12 during processin~ of the denture in the flask 86 in Fig. 8. The occlusal portion 14 can move only after the tabs 120 are cut and then only by the selected depth of the cut.
; It will be appreciated that the vertical tabs 120 30. may preferably be provided on resilient tee~h which also in-~.
:.
Z~L
clude connecting means 36, i.e., the two spaced apar~ con~
necting members 40, 42 discussed hereinabove.
It will fuxther be appreciated that the connecting tabs 120 between the occlusal portion 14 and base portion 12 may be disposed externally to the perimetral surfaces o~
the tooth so that, after the denture is completed, the tabs may be cut or ground away completely. In such a case, the t~bs would be useful for rigidly positioning the occlusal ~ `
portion during processiny of the denture.
10. I have shown the resilien~ teeth of my present in vention on the lower posterior sides of dentures. It will be ~ppreciated ~hat my resilient teeth may be placed upon ~ -~
upper denkure plates as well as lower plates and even on partial danture plates. -~
~, '" ~ . ''...
"'', ''.` ,' ' ' ' ', ' ' ' ' . '
'! ,;
Fig. 14 is a view, from either the buccal or lin~
3 gual side, of the tooth o~ Fig. 13 ater activation of the .
strip of resilient material; . .
Fig~ 15 is a ~ragmentary sectional view of the i , , , . ~
: tooth of Fig. 11 taken along section lines 160-160 thereo~
Fig. 16 ls a fragmentary sectional view of the ,~ tooth of Fig. 12 taken alo~g section lines 170-170 thereof; ;
s~l 20. and Fig. 17 is a fragmentary view, from either the :;~ :
~ buccal or lingual side, of a tooth constructed in accordance : with the invention.
~ .................................................................... .
:~ ~eferring now to the drawings, and particularly to ,~ Figs. 1 and 2, it will be seen that I have illustrated my ,: artificial tooth 10 as comprising a base portion 12, an ~ :
. occlusal portion 14, and an intermediate resilient por~
tion 16. The base portion 12 is mounted upon a denture ~ .
base, a portion o~ which is indicated at 18. The reerence 30. numeral 20 indicates the ridge lap sur~ace of the tooth ., ., :,. . . .
~(~ti73'~1 ~
while the reference numeral 22 indicates the occlusal surface of the tooth.
The intermediate portion 16 is sandwiched be~
tween ~he upwardly facing surface 24 provided by the base 12 and the downwardly facing surface 26 or lower surface provided by the occlusal portion 14. These surfaces 24, 26, which are preferably generally congruently superposed, lie in horizontally extending planes as bonding surfaces.
In some cases, as illustrated, the bonding surfaces may be ~-~ 10. provided with small cavities or cross ridges as desired, as indicated by the reference numerals 28, 30.
Two holes 32, 34 extend vertically through the base portion 12~ the holes lying in a plane which is ap-prox~mately the center mesial-distal section of the tooth.
Means for connecting the occlusal portion 14 to the base portion 12 is indicated generally by the reference numer- ;
al 36, the illustrative means including a generally U~
shaped anchor wire having a base 38 which is rigidly se~
cured to the occlusal portion 14 and vertically downwa~dly ~`
20. extending legs 40, 42 received, respectîvely, in the through holes 32, 34. ~he distal end portions 44, 46 ~, of the legs 40, 42 are bent inwardly or toward each other -as illustra~ed to restrain the anchor wire from moving verti-..~
cally upwardly relative to the base portion 12. It will be `~
seen that the ridge lap surface 20 provides a well into which the portions 44, 46 extend, which well may be filled with resilient material indicated at 48 which serves to '::; ' ' prevent the base 18 material from entering the well during the processing of the dentures. Since the holes 32, 34 are 30. larger in diameter than the wi.re le~s 40, 42, some tipping , -:, , , , : :
'73'~
movement or lateral movement of the occlusal portion 14 ~ .
relative to the base portion 12 is permitted. Of course, the legs 40, 42 and the end portions 44, 46 can move ;
downwardly relative to the base portion 12 to accommodate ~.
the compression of the resilient portion 16. : :
The embodiment of Fig. 3 indicated generally by the reference numeral 10', is very similar to the embodi- .
ment of Figs. 1 and 2, like re~erence numerals representing like parts. The primary diference in the embodiment of Fig.
10. 3 is the provision o a hollowed-out cavity 50 into which the resilient material is injected to cushion the upper or base portion 38. Thus, in the embodiment of Fig. 3, the anchor wire is not so rigidly attached to the occlusal por~
tion 14.
I have said that the anchor wire 36 is rigidly secured to the occlusal portion 14 in Figs. 1 and 2. This :~ :
may be accomplished, for instanee, by molding that occlusal portion with the wire extending into the mold~ Any number of other techniques may be used rigidly to secure such an . 20. anchor wire or connector member to the occlusal portion.
- Referring now to Figs. 4 7, it will be seen ~hat I ;`
have shown a resilient tookh indicaked generally by the ~ ~
reference numeral 60, like reference numerals indicaking ~ -:
like parts. One dif~erence between the tooth 60 and the tooth 10 of Figs. 1 and 2, is the manner in which the oc-~ clusal portion 14 is restrained from moving from its nor-l mal position away ~rom the base portion 12. Instead of an inverted U-shaped anchor wire, t.here are two separate wires 40, 42 the upper ends of which are bent as indicated at 30~ 40a, 42a. Then, the distal ends o the through holes 32, ,~ .
, '"
: , .
. ,: :, . ... . .. .
.~()tj'73'2~ ~
34 are enlarged as indicated at 32a, 34a to provide soc~
kets 62, 64 in the base portion 12 for receiving the en-larged distal ends 66l 68 of the wires 40, 42. These enlarged openings 32a, 34a may preferably be plugged with a soft elastic material such as indicated at 70, 72 which prevents the hard acrylic base 18 material from flowing upwardly into the sockets 62, 64 to impede the movement of the enlarged distal ends 66, 68.
One advantage of my inventive resilient tooth is - 10. that a considerable amount of the occlusal surface 22 as well as the ridge lap surfaae 20 may be removed by grind~
ing withoutt in any way~ interfering with my mechanism for -resiliently mounting the occlusal portion 14 on the bas~
portion 12 and restraining the occlusal portion from moY- ~ ;
ing away or tearing away from the base portionO The refer~
ence numerals 74, 76 indicate, respectively, the amount of occlusal surace 22 and ridge lap surface 20 which . . :
can be removed from the tooth 60. This feature applies al~
so to the tooth 10, 10' of Figs. 1, 2 and 3. Mass~
20. produced teeth in accordance wlth my invention may be cus~
` tom ground to fit a particular denture requirement. ;~ `
:1, `;'. ~ .
The sectional YieW of Fig. 4 is taken throu~h a vertical plane extending centrally through the tooth in the ' mesial-distal direction. The t~o wires ~0, 42 spaced apart in khis plane serve to prevent the occlusal portion 14 from rotating about a vertical axis relative tQ the base portion 12, which rotation would be destructive to the intermediate resilient layer 16. -, In the views 5, 6 and 7, I show an upper tooth 80 30. engaging the tooth 60, the views o~ Figs. 5, 6 and 7 being ~ ;
.' ' ' ' ~ ', g _ :
` !
:~, . . .... ....
: ~ " , .: " ~, :- :: , ':: ~ ,~- , ' :
1()~'~3'~
taken in the buccal-lingual direction with the ri~ht-hand side of each view being the buccal or fadal side and the left-hand side of each view being the lingual or tongue side. Fig. 5 shows the right side denture tooth 60 in occlusion with no pressure on the resilient portion lÇ.
~he retainer ball or enlarged end 66 is generally at the `
top of the socket 62. This position of the ooclusal por-tion 14 represents its r.sormal or unloaded position. It will be appreciated that the occlusal portion 1~ cannot 10. move vertically upwardly from the position of Fig. 5 be~
cause of the restraining feature of khe enlarged end portion 66.
Fig. 6 shows a right lateral excursion of the mandible and lower denture with the occlusal portion 14 ,r;
depr ssed and tipping to the lingual side. The retainer ball or enlarged end portion 66 depresses to the bottom of ;~
the socket 62 and is angulated in the over-sized hole 32.
Fig. 7 shows a left lateral excursion of the mandible with ~ the occlusal portion 14 depxessed and tipping on the buc~
,j 20. cal side with the wire 40 angulated in the opposite di~
rection relative to that shown in Fig. 6. The occlusal por-f tion 14, therefore, can accommodate a considerable ~mount of excursion or grinding of the engaging occlusal surfaces of opposed teeth~ The occlusal portion 14 can tip in any ;; directions, i.e., from side to side in the buccal~lingual di-. rection or from front to back in the mesial-distal direction.
I show laterally outwardly extending lugs or lips ', 84 in dashed lines on the base portion 12 of the toot~
,s 60. These lugs 84 serve to position the base por~ion 12 ` 30. in the dental plaster or stone of a split metal flask indi- ;~
.
`"i - 10 -;_i ., .
cated at 86 in Fig. ~, the flask having an upper half 88 and a lower half 90. The plastic material from which the denture base 18 is made is m~xed like putty and placed between the two halves 88, 90 of th~ flask with the part-ing line of the flask being indicated at 92. Then the flask is squeezed together. The lugs 84 will position themselves in the dental plaster in the flask to keep the base portion 12 from being forced against the occlusal portion 14 to place the intermediate layer 16 in com~
lO. pression during the squeeæing process. After the denture ~-~
is removed ~rom the flask, the lugs 84 are removed by ~
grinding and polishing operations. ~ ~ `
In the embodiment of Fig. 9, indicated generally at lO0, foux separate and indiYidually yieldably movable , ~
occlusal portions 14 are mounted upon a common base por~
tion 12a and resiliently supported thsreon by intermediate ;~
portions 16. Each of the individual occlusal portions 14 in Fig. 9 are restrained from moving away rom the base .: ., portion 12a by anchor wires such as indicated at 40, 42 20. in other embodiments. The entire base portion 12a, there-fore, would be mounted upon a denture base 18 as an assem~
blyO
In Fig. lO, I have illustrated a priox art artifi- ~`
cial tooth 110, again comprising a base portion 12, an occlusal portion 14, and an intermediate resilient por~
tion 16. The base portion 12 is mounted upon a denture base, a portion of which is indicated at 18. The occlusal surface of the tooth is indicated by the reference numeral `-22 and the ridge lap ~urface of the tooth is indicated by 30~ reference numeral 20. As before, the resilient intermediate ' ~ ~ .
;,, , , "., , ., , , , - , . :. :, . :
7~32~
portion 16 is sandwiched between an upwardl~ facing sur-face 24 provided by base 12 and a downwardly facing sur-face 26 provided by occlusal portion 14.
An upper tooth 10~ engages the occlusal surface 22 of tooth 110, sxertiny pressure on either the buccal -or lingual side thereof and causing the occlusal poxtion 14 ;~
of tooth 110 ~o tilt in response to the pressure exerted. .;~
Extensive compression of resilient layer 16 caused by this ;
pressure results in a bulging ox pinching of the resilient 10. layer 16 on either the buccal or lingual side of tooth 110 as indicated at reference numeral 116. It i5 generally de~
s~rable to limit this bulging of resilient layer 16, since excessive bulging of the resilient layer 16 may cause dam~
age thereto.
In the embodiments of ~igs. lI-14, the tilting of the occlusal portion 14 of such a tooth 110 is lim4ted, -' : thereby limiting the resultant ~ulging of the resilient layer 16 in either the buccal or lingual direction. It is : to be understood that the concepts embodied in the teeth af ;~ :
20. Figs. 11~14 may be applied equally as effectively to li~it ~ f the tilting of the occlusal portion 14 o such a too~h 110 : `
in the mesial-distal direction.
' ~ . In the embodiment of Figs. 11-12, the base portion ~ :
12 and occlusal portion 14 are joined along their buccal and lingual sides by a plurality of vertically extending projections or tabs 120, the tabs 120 extendiny at the tooth 110 outer perimetral surface from the upper extent .
; of base 12 to the lower extent of occlusal portion 14.
Each o tabs 120 is of limited thickness in the 30. buccal-lingual direction to provide for relative ease of cut- ~
~: .
- 12 ~
, ' ' ' :,~: - ,,, " . , 3'~
ting the tabs between dashed lines 122 and 124 of the base portion 12 and occlusal portion 14, respectively.
This cutting apart of the base 12 and occlusal portion 14 may b~ accomplished ater the denture is completed and even ~;
after the denture is tried by the patient. As can be ap-preciated, this cutting apart of base 12 and occlusal por- -tion 14 ac~ivates the resilient layer 16, i.e., allows depression of occlusal portion 14 to compress resilient layer 16. If a patient needs more movement of the occlusal lOo portion 14 after trying ~he denture, the dis~ance between t~e cutting lines can be increased selectively.
As best illustrated in Fig. 12, the separating of base 12 and occlusal portion 14 o the too~h 110 estab~
lishes on the buccal and lingual sides of tooth 110 a plurality of engaging projecting tabs 12~ and est~blishes between the distal ends of projecting tabs 128 and the opposite surfaces of the base portion 12 or occlusal por-tion 14 t~o substantially parallel planes 132, 134. It is the separation of these planes 132, 134 as well as the 20. relative location and separation of the projecting tabs 128 along the buccal and lingual sides of the tooth 110 which determine the extent to which resilient layer 16 can be compressed in the buccal-lingual directions as well as in the mesial-distal directions. Separation of alternating ones of connecting ta~s 120 at opposite ends establishes first engaging tabs 128 extending from occlusal portion 14 toward hase portion 12 and second engaging tabs 128 extending from base portion 12 toward occlusal portion 14.
Fiy. 15 is a fragmentary sectional view o~ the tooth 30. o~ Figs. 11-12 be~ore tabs 120 of tooth 110 are cut to ,~
- 13 ~ ~ s ~ `
: ~ - , "
~: . .. .
:;~ :: . . : .. . .
.
1~'73'~
free occlusal portion 14 for movement relative to base portion 12. As shown in Fig. 16, after separation of tabs 120 between dotted lines 122, 124, resilient intermediate portion 16 is activated for compression. It can be seen from Fig. 16 that after tabs 120 are cut to form engaging projecting tabs 128, grooves 138 result in the outer perimeter of tooth 110 between the generally parallel sur-faces 132, 134. Grooves 138 can be filled with resil-ient material like or similar to that used in resilient inter-i .
10. mediate portion 16 o~ tooth 110 to pre~ent food parti~cles from accumulating in grooveB 138-Figs. 13-14 illustxate an alternative arrangement -for tabs 120. As in the embodiment of Figs. 11-12, the ' ~;~
tabs 120 of ~ig. 13 may be cu~ along dotted lines 122,124 to produce engaging projecting tabs 128 along the buccal and lingual sides of tooth 110'. See Fig. 14. -As can be appreciated from Figs. 11-14, the pro~
jecting tabs 128 prevent excessive compression of resil-ient layer 16, excessive tilting of the occlusal portion 20. 14 of each o~ teeth 110, 110', and relative rotation of occlusal portion 14 with respect to the base 12 of each ~ ~`
of teeth 110, 110'. Additionally, tabs 128 aid in re-taining the rasilient material between occlusal portion 14 and base 12.
It is also understood that in mass-produced teeth made in accordance with the invention of Figs. 11-14, when there are to be engaging tabs 128 on either the buccal or lingual side, or both, o~ tooth 110, 110', only one o~ the tabs 128 need be manufactured as a tab 120 connecting 30. base 12 to occlusal portion 14. Tha~ is, only one of ' ,, : ' ~, ~........ . , , j 73'~L
tabs 128 need brid~e the entire gap between occlusal portion 14 and base 12. In such a situation, it would -~
only be necessary to cut between the dotted lines 122,124 o~ one of ~abs 120 of the teeth of Figs. 11-14, to separate the base 12 from the occiusal portion 14 and activatè the resilient layer 16.
Instead of having the engaging projecting tabs 128 re~sulting from activa~ion of the resilient intermediate portions 16 of the teeth o~ ~igs. 11-16, tooth 110" of 10. Fig. 17 has only a single tah 120 on its buccal or lin~
gual sider or both. Of course, when tab 120 of tooth ;`
110" is cut between dotted lines 122, 124, a single pro-jecting tab will result. This single projecting tab will aid in retaining and protecting the perimetral surface of resilient portion 16 between occlusal portion 14 and base 12. In addition, since rotation of occlusal portion ;-14 of tooth 110" relative to base portion 12 would re- ~ ~
~uire some compression of resilient portion 16, the single ~ -tab on the buccal and lingual sides of tooth 110" will 20. help prevent rotation of occlusal portion 14 of tooth -110" relative to base 12.
One of the primary advantages of the vertically extending tabs o~ Figs. 11 to 17 is that the occlusal por-tion 14 is prevented from moving relative to the base por-tion 12 during processin~ of the denture in the flask 86 in Fig. 8. The occlusal portion 14 can move only after the tabs 120 are cut and then only by the selected depth of the cut.
; It will be appreciated that the vertical tabs 120 30. may preferably be provided on resilient tee~h which also in-~.
:.
Z~L
clude connecting means 36, i.e., the two spaced apar~ con~
necting members 40, 42 discussed hereinabove.
It will fuxther be appreciated that the connecting tabs 120 between the occlusal portion 14 and base portion 12 may be disposed externally to the perimetral surfaces o~
the tooth so that, after the denture is completed, the tabs may be cut or ground away completely. In such a case, the t~bs would be useful for rigidly positioning the occlusal ~ `
portion during processiny of the denture.
10. I have shown the resilien~ teeth of my present in vention on the lower posterior sides of dentures. It will be ~ppreciated ~hat my resilient teeth may be placed upon ~ -~
upper denkure plates as well as lower plates and even on partial danture plates. -~
~, '" ~ . ''...
"'', ''.` ,' ' ' ' ', ' ' ' ' . '
Claims (16)
PROPERTY OR PRIVILEGE IS CLAIMED ARE DEFINED AS FOLLOWS:
1. An artificial tooth for use in a denture, said tooth comprising a base portion, an occlusal portion and an intermediate portion, said base por-tion and occlusal portion each providing surfaces for securing said inter-mediate portion in sandwiched relation therebetween, said intermediate portion being resilient to permit said occlusal portion to move yieldably relative to said base portion, and tab means for limiting movement of said occlusal portion relative to said base portion, said tab means projecting from one of said surfaces toward the other of said surfaces about the outer perimeter of one of said occlusal and base portions.
2. An artificial tooth according to claim 1 wherein said tab means comprises a plurality of engaging tabs, at least one of which projects from each of said surfaces toward the other of said surfaces, said oppositely directed tabs engaging to resist rotation of said occlusal portion relative to said bass portion.
3. An artificial tooth according to claim 2 wherein each of said tabs comprises a projection in a direction generally perpendicular to said surfaces about the outer perimeter of one of said occlusal base portions, each of said tabs extending a substantially greater distance about the peri-meter of said tooth than it does in the direction perpendicular to the exterior surface of said tooth.
4. An artificial tooth according to claim 1 wherein said occlusal portion and said base portion provide at their ends remote from said inter-mediate portion an occlusal surface and a ridge lap surface, respectively, and said resilient intermediate portion lies approximately half-way between said ridge lap surface and said occlusal surface.
5. An artificial tooth according to claim 1 wherein said tab means comprises at least one tab on each of the buccal and lingual sides of said tooth.
6. An artificial tooth according to claim 1 wherein said tab means comprises at least a first tab projecting from said occlusal portion and a second tab projecting from said base portions of said tooth on each of the lingual and buccal sides thereof.
7. An artificial tooth for use in a denture, said tooth comprising a base portion, an occlusal portion and an intermediate portion, said occlusal and base portions each providing a surface for securing said intermediate portion in sandwiched relation between said base and occlusal portions, said intermediate portion being resilient to permit said occlusal portion to move yieldably relative to said base portion, and tab means for limiting movement of said occlusal portion relative to said base portion, said tab means pro-jecting part of the distance across the space between said surfaces toward the other of said surfaces said tab means projecting across said space about the outer perimeter of the tooth.
8. An artificial tooth according to claim 7 wherein said tab means comprises engaging tabs, at least a first one of which projects from said occlusal portion surface toward said base portion and a second one of which projects from said base portion surface toward said occlusal portion.
9. An artificial tooth according to claim 7 wherein said tab means comprises at least one engaging tab extending from each of said occlusal and base portions along the outer perimeter of said tooth on each of the buccal and lingual sides thereof.
10. In an artificial tooth for use in a denture, said tooth comprising a base portion, an occlusal portion and an intermediate layer sandwiched between and secured to said base portion and occlusal portion, said inter-mediate layer being resilient to permit said occlusal portion yieldably to move relative to said base portion, the improvement comprising a tab extending generally vertically from one of said portions toward the other of said por-tions about the outer periphery of said tooth, said tab having a distal end spaced apart from said other portion to serve as a stop limiting such relative movement.
11. The improvement of claim 10 including a plurality of said tabs in-cluding first tabs extending downwardly from said occlusal portion and second tabs extending upwardly from said base portion, said first and second tabs engaging to resist rotation of said occlusal portion relative to said base portion.
12. An artificial tooth according to claim 11 wherein each of said tabs is disposed along the outer perimeter of one of said occlusal and base por-tions, each of said tabs extending a substantially greater distance about the perimeter of said tooth than it does in a direction perpendicular to its perimetral extent about said tooth.
13. A method for making an artificial tooth having a base portion, an occlusal portion and an intermediate portion, each of said base and occlusal portions providing bonding surfaces for securing said intermediate portion in sandwiched relation between said base portion and said occlusal portion, said intermediate portion being resilient to permit said occlusal portion to move yieldably relative to said base portion, and tab means projecting between said occlusal portion and said base portion for limiting movement of said occlusal portion relative to said base portion, said method comprising the steps of forming said occlusal portion and said base portion as one piece connected together by said tab means, bonding said resilient intermediate portion to said occlusal portion and said base portion, and trimming said tab means for allowing said occlusal portion to move yieldably relative to said base portion.
14. A method of making an artificial tooth comprising the steps of forming an occlusal portion and a base portion as one piece connected together by tab means, said tab means defining a space between said base portion and occlusal portion, filling said space with a resilient intermediate portion and bonding said resilient intermediate portion to said occlusal portion and said base portion, and disconnecting said tab means from one of said occlusal portion and base portion for allowing said occlusal portion to move yieldably relative to said base portion.
15. An artificial tooth for use in a denture, said tooth comprising a base portion, an occlusal portion, and an intermediate layer sandwiched be-tween and secured to said base portion and occlusal portion, each said portion having a buccal side and lingual side, said intermediate layer being resilient to permit said occlusal portion yieldably to move relative to said base por-tion, in which the improvement comprises a vertically extending tab at the outer periphery of said tooth connected between said occlusal portion and said base portion on each side, said tab being rigid to position fixedly said occlus-al portion to said base portion, said occlusal portion being released for movement relative to said base portion by cutting said tab.
16. A method for making a denture including a plurality of teeth, each tooth comprising a base portion, an occlusal portion, and an intermediate layer sandwiched between and secured to said base portion and occlusal por-tion, each said portion having a buccal side and a lingual side, said inter-mediate layer being resilient to permit said occlusal portion yieldably to move relative to said base portion, a vertically extending tab connected between said occlusal portion and said base portion on each side, said tab being rigid to fixedly position said occlusal portion to said base portion, said occlusal portion being releasable for movement relative to said base portion by cutting said tab, said method including the steps of positioning said teeth in dental plaster in a flask, forming a denture base in a void in said plaster and upon which said teeth are mounted, and cutting said tabs to release said occlusal portions for movement relative to said base portions.
Applications Claiming Priority (2)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| US05/532,513 US3958334A (en) | 1974-12-13 | 1974-12-13 | Resilient artificial denture tooth |
| US05/620,251 US4014095A (en) | 1974-12-13 | 1975-10-08 | Resilient artificial denture tooth |
Publications (1)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| CA1067321A true CA1067321A (en) | 1979-12-04 |
Family
ID=27063861
Family Applications (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA241,655A Expired CA1067321A (en) | 1974-12-13 | 1975-12-12 | Resilient artificial denture tooth |
Country Status (2)
| Country | Link |
|---|---|
| US (1) | US4014095A (en) |
| CA (1) | CA1067321A (en) |
Families Citing this family (8)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US4252525A (en) * | 1979-12-17 | 1981-02-24 | Child Frank W | Dental implant |
| JPS6080449A (en) * | 1983-10-07 | 1985-05-08 | 和田精密歯研究株式会社 | Retention structure of flexible denture |
| DE3731265A1 (en) * | 1987-09-17 | 1989-03-30 | Richter Ernst Juergen Dr | CROWN FASTENING DEVICE FOR AN IMPLANT TO BE INSERTED IN A PINE |
| US5678994A (en) * | 1995-03-03 | 1997-10-21 | Morehead; Gordon | Flexible tooth for dentures |
| AU7937698A (en) * | 1997-07-10 | 1998-11-27 | Hideyo Uji | Artificial tooth |
| EP1245197A4 (en) * | 1999-12-27 | 2006-01-04 | Hideyo Uji | Artificial tooth and controller |
| US7156661B2 (en) | 2002-08-22 | 2007-01-02 | Align Technology, Inc. | Systems and methods for treatment analysis by teeth matching |
| CN113384369B (en) * | 2021-07-08 | 2022-09-16 | 贵阳新洋诚义齿有限公司 | Gum-protecting denture |
Family Cites Families (3)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US2380468A (en) * | 1941-07-29 | 1945-07-31 | Dentists Supply Co | Artificial tooth |
| US2880508A (en) * | 1957-07-11 | 1959-04-07 | George E Lester | Artificial denture structures |
| BE755426A (en) * | 1969-08-29 | 1971-02-01 | Rivoir Karl Heinz | SPRING ENERGY FIXING DEVICE FOR DENTAL PROSTHESIS |
-
1975
- 1975-10-08 US US05/620,251 patent/US4014095A/en not_active Expired - Lifetime
- 1975-12-12 CA CA241,655A patent/CA1067321A/en not_active Expired
Also Published As
| Publication number | Publication date |
|---|---|
| US4014095A (en) | 1977-03-29 |
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