Tongue locking device
OwnerWinton W. Wirt, Desmond C. Prevatt +1inventors
InventorsWinton W. Wirt, Desmond C. Prevatt, William H. Frecker
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Abstract
A suction producing formation is elastically contracted to apply suction upon release, to a tongue receiving receptacle inserted into the mouth of a patient. The tongue tip is thereby wedgingly engaged with the rearwardly converging walls of the receptacle to seal a connecting conduit so as to maintain a suction holding pressure on the tongue.
Claims12
A device for holding the tip of a tongue of a person in out of contact relation to the mouth surfaces, comprising an elongated receptacle having an open tongue receiving means on one end insertable into the mouth of the person having a cross-sectional configuration converging rearwardly from said tongue tip receiving end, an elastically contractable handle grip means having an expanded condition in which a larger volume is enclosed therein relative to the volume enclosed by the receptacle, a conduit connecting the handle grip means to the receptacle for applying suction pressure in response to release of the handle grip means from a contracted condition, the suction pressure being operative to draw the tongue tip longitudinally into said tongue tip receiving means of the receptacle for wedging engagement therewith to substantially seal the conduit and thereby prevent withdrawal of the tongue from the receptacle.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.