Ligature tying instrument
OwnerRichard L. Ashbyinventor
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Abstract
This patent describes a new orthodontic instrument to be used for tying or twisting the ligature wires used to hold the arch wire to the bracket. It also explains the method of use which consists of: twisting the wires, after the ligature wire has been placed on the bracket; tucking the twisted end out of the way; and then breaking the end at the tip of the instrument. The instrument replaces three instruments normally used, by improvements in jaw design to facilitate grasping and centering the wires for spinning, balancing the instrument by general symmetry, and the addition of an extension handle to allow rapid spinning, and tucking of the wire ends as they are broken in a controlled manner, and at a specific place. The instrument thus simplifies, speeds and further improves the application of ligature wires.
Claims5
An improvement in ligature tying instrument comprising a hemostat-like plier in which grasping jaw members are flexibly pivoted together intermediate their ends;
- means for releasably securing said jaws in grasping position on a ligature wire;
- wherein the improvement comprises a balanced and substantially symmetrical instrument having one handle member extended as a polygonal rod rigidly fixed in the long axis of the instrument for purposes of spinning the instrument about a longitudinal centerline, when said instrument is locked in the grasping position;
- wherein the grasping face of the jaw members is concave except right at the tip, such that closure of the jaws tends to force the grasped wires toward the long axis of the instrument for purposes of centering the wires and maintaining their central position during the twisting, tucking and breaking process.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.