Method and apparatus for curling light-curable dental materials
First Claim
1. A dental light curing apparatus comprising:
- a housing;
a solid state light emitter connected to the housing; and
a source of electrical current detachably connected to the solid state light emitter, wherein the source of electrical current provides a current to the solid state light emitter that is sufficient to reduce the lifetime of the solid state light emitter to less than 10 hours.
1 Assignment
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A method and apparatus for curing photocurable dental materials involve a solid state light emitter and a source of electrical current connected to the light emitter. The source of electrical current provides a current to the light emitter that is sufficient to reduce the lifetime of the light emitter to less than 10 hours. The intensity of light from the light emitter is substantially increased and the apparatus can be conveniently disposed of after use on a single patient. A light guide that includes two conical optical surfaces collects light from the solid state light emitter and optionally directs the light to a third optical surface which has the shape of an elongated, curved tube.
-
Citations
31 Claims
-
1. A dental light curing apparatus comprising:
-
a housing;
a solid state light emitter connected to the housing; and
a source of electrical current detachably connected to the solid state light emitter, wherein the source of electrical current provides a current to the solid state light emitter that is sufficient to reduce the lifetime of the solid state light emitter to less than 10 hours. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
-
-
20. The method of bonding a quantity of photocurable dental material to a tooth comprising the acts of:
-
placing a quantity of photocurable material in contact with the tooth; and
activating a solid state light emitter in order to direct actinic radiation toward the photocurable material, wherein the act of activating a solid state light emitter includes the acts of directing an electrical current to the solid state light emitter in an amount sufficient to reduce the lifetime of the solid state light emitter to less than 10 hours. - View Dependent Claims (21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31)
-
Specification