Oral device and method for the use thereof
AssigneesTrudell Medical International, The University of Western Ontario
InventorsRuth E. Martin, Marcus Sieffert, Peter Scarrott, Andreas Rifani, Kelly Armstrong
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An oral device includes an intraoral bolus simulator having an exterior surface and an interior volume fillable with a fluid. An extraoral user interface extends from the bolus simulator, and can be used to locate or position the intraoral bolus simulator. In various embodiments, the fluid may be a gas or a liquid, or combinations thereof. In other embodiments, an oral device includes an extraoral handle, a shield connected to the handle, a tether extending from the shield, and a bolus simulator connected to the tether.
Claims38
An oral device comprising:
- an extraoral handle defining a longitudinal axis;
- and
- a bolus simulator connected to said extraoral handle, wherein the bolus stimulator and extraoral handle are moveable along said longitudinal axis between a use position, wherein the bolus simulator is disposed in an oral cavity, and a non-use position, wherein the bolus simulator is removed from the oral cavity, the bolus simulator comprising a bottom engageable by the user's tongue, an opposite top and a peripheral side disposed between the bottom and top, wherein said bolus simulator comprises a non-removable outer jacket having an exterior surface defining said bottom and top, an interior surface defining a cavity, and a reinforcement member comprising a ring coupled to said jacket and extending around said peripheral side of said bolus simulator, wherein said ring defines a central opening having an axis perpendicular to said longitudinal axis, wherein said jacket surrounds said ring and covers an entirety of said central opening, wherein said cavity is a closed volume and not in fluid communication with said exterior surface during use such that any material contained in said cavity cannot be swallowed or aspirated.
An oral device comprising:
- an extraoral handle;
- a bolus simulator comprising a non-removable jacket having a textured exterior surface and defining a closed interior cavity not in fluid communication with said exterior surface during use such that any material contained in said closed interior cavity cannot be swallowed or aspirated, a reinforcement member comprising a ring coupled to said jacket and extending around at least a portion of a periphery of said bolus simulator, wherein said ring defines an opening having a central axis, and a hydrophilic coating covering at least a portion of said exterior surface;
- and
- a tether connecting said extraoral handle and said bolus simulator, wherein said tether and said extraoral handle define a longitudinal axis perpendicular to said central axis of said opening of said ring.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.