Nozzle piece for a handpiece of a dental apparatus

• US 6,837,709 B2
• Filed: 03/21/2002
• Issued: 01/04/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 03/23/2001
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Ferton Holding SA
• Original Assignee: Ferton Holding SA
• Inventors: Sierro, Alexandre, Beerstecher, Lutz
• Primary Examiner(s): WEHNER, CARY ELLEN
• Application Number:
  US10/104,686
• Publication Number:
  US 20020137004A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,020 Days
• Field of Search: 433/80, 433/88, 433/81, 433/82
• US Class Current: 433/88
• CPC Class Codes: A61C 3/025 Instruments acting like a sandblast machine, e.g. for cleaning, polishing or cutting teeth

Abstract

A nozzle piece for a handpiece of a dental abrasive blasting apparatus comprises a gripping member for connection with a head portion of the handpiece whereby the gripping member has a closed surface with a thusly defined curvature on its upper and underneath visual surfaces that discharge openings of two discharge nozzles of the nozzle piece are located close to a visual plane which by definition includes a longitudinal axis of the handpiece and outside of which are located the crossing points of two supply ducts with a common central axis of the two discharge nozzles, whereby the two supply ducts extend in parallel and inclined with respect to the longitudinal axis of the handpiece for defining an inclined discharge angle of a working jet of the nozzle piece.

Claims

1. A nozzle piece for a head portion of a handpiece of a dental abrasive blasting apparatus, comprising:

an inner discharge nozzle for discharging a mixture of a gaseous carrier medium and an abrasive dental powder as supplied by an associated first supply duct of a gripping member which is connected at an end with a head portion of the handpiece,

a concentrically arranged outer discharge nozzle for discharging a fluid as supplied by an associated second supply duct of said gripping member,

said inner and outer discharge nozzles having inner and outer discharge openings of a common central axis which by definition is inclined with respect to a longitudinal axis of the handpiece under a discharge angle in the range of 60°

or more,

said gripping member being provided with a closed and thusly curved surface that the first and second discharge openings of the inner and outer discharge nozzles are located close to a visual plane which is in common with the longitudinal axis of the handpiece whereby the first and second supply ducts extend in parallel along the gripping member and under an inclination angle with respect to the longitudinal axis of the handpiece which differs from 90°

, said supply ducts defining axial crossing points with the common central axis of the first and second discharge openings of the inner and outer discharge nozzles which are located outside of said visual plane;

wherein the first supply duct of the gripping member is provided with a slanted transition in respect to the associated inner discharge nozzle resulting in a low loss directional diversion of the supplied mixture of a gaseous carrier medium and a dental powder towards the discharge opening of the inner discharge nozzle; and

wherein said slanted transition is formed by a slanted cut of the distal end of the discharge tube which is inserted into the inner bore defining the inner discharge nozzle and which protrudes with its distal end into the associated first supply duct.

2. A nozzle piece according to claim 1, wherein the first supply duct of the gripping member is provided with a larger cross section than the associated inner discharge nozzle at a position upstream of its axial crossing point with the common central axis of the discharge openings of the inner and outer discharge nozzles.

3. A nozzle piece according to claim 1, wherein the gripping member is connected with the head portion of the handpiece by a separate plug-in connection which is thusly formed that maintenance of the visual plane is secured when nozzle pieces of a different discharge angle are connected with the head portion of the handpiece.

4. A nozzle piece according to claim 3, wherein the separate plug-in connection comprises a groove and tongue connection between the head portion of the handpiece and the gripping member for securing a correct positioning of the visual plane also for gripping members of different discharge angles.

5. A nozzle piece according to claim 1, wherein the closed surface of the gripping member is provided with an upper concavely curved visual face and an underneath visual face of a convex curve which further extends to a concave at a transition to the discharge openings of the two discharge nozzles.

6. A nozzle piece according to claim 1, wherein said gripping member comprises a metallic or plastic injection moulded part.

7. A nozzle piece according to claim 6, wherein said injection moulded part is provided with first and second bores defining said first and second supply ducts and with inner and outer bores defining said inner and outer discharge nozzles whereby at least said inner discharge nozzle is completed with a discharge tube which is inserted into the associated inner bore in such a manner that its discharge opening protrudes over the concentric discharge opening of the outer discharge nozzle.

8. A nozzle piece according to claim 7, each of said first and second bores of the gripping member comprises a stepped bore having each a larger diameter at a proximal end for allowing a plug-in connection of an associated supply line extending through the handpiece.