Dental prosthesis and method of its production utilizing standardized framework keys and matching premanufactured teeth
OwnerThomas J. Balshi, Stephen F. Balshiinventors
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Abstract
A system including a method and associated structures creates efficiencies in the manufacture of prosthetic tooth support frameworks. Pre-manufactured teeth with matching internal keys are used in the setup of a patient prototype. Each key includes a shaft, a cervical platform, a retention knob and preferably at least one channel for the expulsion of excess adhesive fluid. The cervical platforms are shaped to provide intimate contact with a base of their respective tooth. The same tooth/key pairs are then used to make a framework pattern from the setup positioning. The pattern can be cast or scanned for direct machining to produce the finished framework.
Claims14
A method for producing a prosthetic tooth support framework including a horizontal beam, vertical support struts and implant prosthetic connectors comprising the steps of:
- constructing a working model of at least a portion of a human dental arch;
- arranging pre-manufactured teeth on said model to create a prototype setup representing a finished prosthesis, said teeth each including an axial internal keyway for receiving a key;
- inserting a plurality of keys into a closely fitting keyway of the teeth forming keyed tooth pairs, an attachment portion of each key extending from a base of each tooth;
- holding said keyed tooth pairs in a setup location adjacent a dental arch defined by said model, said model including implant prosthetic connectors;
- affixing said key attachment portions onto a horizontal beam and said implant prosthetic connectors while held in said setup location during the formation of a beam assembly;
- removing the teeth from the beam assembly leaving a framework pattern;
- and
- constructing a finished prosthetic tooth framework using said beam assembly as a pattern, the pattern keys each matching the configuration and location of the permanent teeth support struts of said finished framework.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.