Vibratory Dental Tool
First Claim
1. A dental tool comprising:
- a substantially hollow body portion;
at least one tool tip disposed on said body portion, said tool tip having a longitudinal axis, a proximal end and a distal end;
a first magnetic transfer element coupled to the proximal end of said tool tip; and
at least one motion generating mechanism comprising a second magnetic transfer element disposed in proximity to said first magnetic transfer element, and a rotational source for rotating the second magnetic transfer element;
wherein said first and second magnetic transfer elements interact to generate a vibratory reciprocating motion of the tool tip substantially along the longitudinal axis.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A powered dental tool generally includes a tool tip at its distal end, a body at its proximal end and a motion generating mechanism. In one aspect, the dental tool includes a tool tip having a proximal end and a distal end along a generally longitudinal axis and a reciprocating motion generating mechanism. The reciprocating motion generating mechanism may repeatedly move the tool tip generally back and forth by a given displacement generally along the tool tip'"'"'s longitudinal axis. This displacement generally resembles the action of a hand scaler, i.e., a reciprocating motion along the longitudinal axis of the scaler, which is unlike the vibration of most powered scalers. Such action may be advantageous as it may be more intuitive for the dental professional or hygienist and may provide more effective scaling action. It may further be advantageous for a powered scaler to more closely resemble a hand scaler in form, which is small, portable and untethered. In one embodiment, the motion generating mechanism may include a rotational source and set of opposing magnetic transfer elements.
18 Citations
27 Claims
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1. A dental tool comprising:
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a substantially hollow body portion; at least one tool tip disposed on said body portion, said tool tip having a longitudinal axis, a proximal end and a distal end; a first magnetic transfer element coupled to the proximal end of said tool tip; and at least one motion generating mechanism comprising a second magnetic transfer element disposed in proximity to said first magnetic transfer element, and a rotational source for rotating the second magnetic transfer element;
wherein said first and second magnetic transfer elements interact to generate a vibratory reciprocating motion of the tool tip substantially along the longitudinal axis. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. A dental tool comprising:
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a substantially hollow body; at least one tool tip disposed on said body, said tool tip having a longitudinal axis, a proximal end and a distal end; at least one magnetic transfer element coupled to the proximal end of said tool tip; and at least one motion generating mechanism comprising at least one coil in close proximity to said at least one magnetic transfer element, and an alternating current source for powering the coil to generate a vibratory reciprocating motion of the tool tip substantially along the longitudinal axis. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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21. A dental tool comprising:
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a substantially hollow body; at least one tool tip disposed on said body, said tool tip having a longitudinal axis, a proximal end and a distal end; a first magnetic transfer element comprising at least one surface having at least a pair of North and South magnetic pole domains disposed on said surface, said first magnetic transfer element being coupled to the proximal end of said tool tip; and at least one motion generating mechanism comprising a second magnetic transfer element in proximity to said first magnetic transfer element, the second magnetic transfer element comprising at least one surface proximal to the at least one surface of the first magnetic transfer element, and having at least a pair of North and South magnetic pole domains disposed on said surface, and a rotational source for rotating the second magnetic transfer element. - View Dependent Claims (22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27)
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Specification