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US 4,718,662 AGranted
Tongue positioning and exercising device
OwnerRichard B. Northinventor
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A device having an outer marginal area for clenched retention between the upper and lower teeth. Tongue supporting members extend inwardly and upwardly from the marginal area to properly position the tongue with the tongue tip in contact with the upper alveolar ridge of the gum. Openings permit passage of saliva through the device. Projections, on a modified form of the device, cause tongue discomfort if the tongue is improperly located below the device.
Claims7
A tongue positioning and muscle training device for periodic positioning in clenched engagement with upper and lower teeth of the wearer, said device comprising,
- a curved frontal marginal area for retentive disposition intermediate the clenched teeth of the upper and lower dental arches, and
- a pair of inclined tongue supporting portions extending laterally inwardly from said marginal area and each portion having an upper convex surface forming upper rounded tongue supporting surfaces and inwardly disposed surfaces for centering the tongue, said portions with their upper convex surfaces in place in the mouth being dimensioned to be subjacently spaced from the alveolar gum ridge of the wearer's mouth for receiving and elevating the tongue and confining the latter substantially centrally in the mouth for touching the alveolar ridge of the mouth and guiding the tongue above and out of contact with the wearer's teeth.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.