Direct-snap dental abutment systems
OwnerPatrick C. Bell, Michael A. Mathews +2inventors
InventorsPatrick C. Bell, Michael A. Mathews, Thomas J. Arendt, Leo J. Malin
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Example dental assemblies and methods involve snap-fitting a denture or other dental prosthesis to a patient's jaw. In some examples, an implant is anchored to the jaw, an abutment is screwed to the implant, and a head of the abutment snaps directly into a pocket created in the dental prosthesis. In some examples, a polymeric cap couples the abutment's head to the pocket. Based on coordinate data from a CT or intraoral scanner, the pocket can be created by CNC milling or 3D printing. The method eliminates the need for bonding a metal housing or casing to the dental prosthesis.
Claims15
A dental assembly connectable to a jaw of a patient, the dental assembly comprising:
- a dental prosthesis to be attached to the jaw, the dental prosthesis comprising a pocket inner surface defining a pocket in the dental prosthesis, the pocket having a pocket rim ID, the pocket inner surface being of a first material selected from the group consisting of a polymer and a zirconia-based ceramic;
- and
- an abutment comprising a head extending from an abutment body, the head having selectively an engaged position and a disengaged position relative to the dental prosthesis, the head having a snap-fit head OD, at least most of the head being sized to fit within the pocket, the abutment body being connectable to the jaw of the patient, the head engaging the pocket inner surface when the head is in the installed position, the head being spaced apart from the dental prosthesis when the head is in the removed position, and the snap-fit head OD being greater than the pocket rim ID, wherein the abutment comprises a base material coated with titanium nitride, and the first material of the dental prosthesis is harder than the base material.
A dental assembly connectable to a jaw of a patient, the dental assembly comprising:
- a dental prosthesis to be attached to the jaw, the dental prosthesis comprising a pocket inner surface defining a pocket in the dental prosthesis, the pocket having a pocket rim ID, the pocket inner surface being of a first material selected from the group consisting of a polymer and a zirconia-based ceramic;
- a polymeric cap comprising a plug extending from a cap body, the plug having selectively an installed position and a removed position relative to the dental prosthesis, the plug comprising a polymeric outer surface, the plug having a plug OD on the polymeric outer surface, the cap body defining a cap receptacle having a cap mouth ID, the plug being sized to fit within the pocket, the polymeric outer surface engaging the pocket inner surface when the plug is in the installed position, the plug being spaced apart from the dental prosthesis when the plug is in the removed position;
- an abutment comprising a head extending from an abutment body, the head having selectively an engaged position and a disengaged position relative to the polymeric cap, the head having a snap-fit head OD, at least most of the head being sized to fit within the cap receptacle, the abutment body being connectable to the jaw of the patient, the head engaging the polymeric cap when the head is in the installed position, the head being spaced apart from the polymeric cap when the head is in the removed position, and the snap-fit head OD being greater than the cap mouth ID;
- and
- an adhesive between the plug and the pocket inner surface.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.