Orthodontic marginal ridge measurement device
OwnerArthur L. Kapitinventor
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A marginal ridge attachment plate slides onto the center tab of a height gauge to provide more accurate orthodontic bracket placement. In use, vertically-extending legs on the attachment plate rest on mesial and distal marginal ridges of the tooth. The plate is shaped so that while the legs rest directly on the marginal ridges, a cut-out portion between the legs avoids contact and interference from the inward-facing slopes of the tooth cusps. Therefore, correct bracket height is measured with reference to the marginal ridges of the tooth rather than the tooth cusp.
Claims13
An attachment for an orthodontic height gauge having a cusp tab and a bracket locating post, comprising:
- a planar body portion including a rectangular slot, said slot adapted to closely and slidably receive said height gauge cusp tab;
- a first pair of spaced apart vertically-extended legs of substantially equal length separated by a first distance;
- a second pair of spaced apart vertically-extended legs of substantially equal length separated by a second distance, said second pair of legs lying on the opposite side of said rectangular slot from said first pair of legs;
- and
- a cut-out region between said legs for avoiding contact with the inward-sloping sides of a cusp of a tooth when distal ends of said legs are placed against the mesial and distal ridges of said tooth.
An orthodontic bracket placement gauge, comprising:
- a bracket height gauge having a cusp contact tab and a bracket locating arm insertable into an archwire slot of said bracket;
- an attachment plate comprising a body, a first pair of vertically-extending legs spaced apart a first distance, each leg for contacting a marginal ridge of a human tooth, and a cut-out located between said legs for receiving the inward-sloping sides of a cusp of said tooth when distal ends of said legs are placed against the marginal ridges;
- and
- said attachment plate further including a rectangular slot, said slot adapted to closely and slidably receive said height gauge cusp contact tab.
A hand-held dental instrument comprising:
- an elongate handle having a rotatable head at a first end;
- a center tab longitudinally extending from the center of said head;
- an orthodontic bracket positioning arm extending longitudinally from said head, said arm being parallel to said tab and spaced a gauge distance from a first side of said tab;
- and
- a measurement plate including a rectangular slot, said slot adapted to closely and slidably receive said tab.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.