American Orthodontics Exhibit 1001 Page 1 of 6. US 6,276,930 Bl Aug. 21,2001 /IIIII

Transcription

1 (12) United States Patent Pozzi /IIIII US Bl (10) Patent No.: (45) Date of Patent: US 6,276,930 Bl Aug. 21,2001 (54) ORTHODONTIC AID (75) Inventor: Alessandro Pozzi, Florene (IT) (73) Assignee: Leone S.p.A. (IT) ( *) Notie: Subjet to any dislaimer, the term of this patent is extended or adjusted under 35 U.S.C. 154(b) by 0 days. (21) Appl. No.: 09/443,724 (22) Filed: Nov. 19, 1999 Related U.S. Appliation Data ( 63) Continuation-in-part of appliation No. 09/039,792, filed on ar. 16, 1998, now abandoned. (30) Foreign Appliation Priority Data ay 6, 1997 (IT)... F197U0066 (51) Int. Cl?... A61C 3/00 (52) U.S. Cl /9 (58) Field of Searh /8, 9, 10, 11, 433/12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17 (56) Referenes Cited 4,068,379 4,100,678 4,279,593 5,326,259 5,556,276 5,595,484 5,622,494 U.S. PATENT DOCUENTS 1/1978 iller et a! /9 7/1978 Yatabe /9 7/1981 Riihlke /8 7/1994 Riihlke et a! /8 9/1996 Roman et a! /8 1/1997 Orikasa et a! /8 4/1997 Andreiko et a! /9 Primary Examiner-John 1. Wilson (74) Attorney, Agent, or Firm--Glew and Tutle, P.C. (57) ABSTRACT Orthodonti braket having a retention base for a respetive tooth and identifying indiia in relation to the tooth for whih the orthodonti aid is suitable. The indiia inludes a sign provided on the bak side of the retention base. The size of the indiia is at least 3 square millimeters. The indiia has substantially null depth with respet to the retention base, thus following the outer profile of the latter. 10 Claims, 2 Drawing Sheets ) 8 Page 1 of 6

2 U.S. Patent Aug. 21, 2001 Sheet 1 of 2 US 6,276,930 Bl PRIOR ART s~ 2 s I 8 FIG.l FIG.2 Page 2 of 6

3 U.S. Patent Aug. 21,2001 Sheet 2 of 2 US 6,276,930 Bl Fig. 3 d Fig. 4 Page 3 of 6

4 1 ORTHODONTIC AID This is a CIP of appliation Ser. No. 09/039,792 filed ar. 16, 1998, now abandoned and the entire dislosure of this prior appliation is onsidered to be part of the dislosure of the aompanying appliation and is hereby inorporated by referene therein. FIELD OF THE INVENTION US 6,276,930 Bl The present invention relates to an orthodonti aid or 10 braket. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION It is known that the orthodonti aids used for orreting 15 dental malformations basially onsist of one or more bodies featuring seats for an orthodonti arhwire in their inner part, whih are wedded to a retention base, as to allow various operating orthodonti aids to be suitable for the same arhiwire whih extends along the arh subjeted to 20 therapeutial treatment. The manufaturing of these orthodonti aids is diversified on aount of the different shape of eah tooth so that a single orthodonti aid orresponds to a respetive tooth. For example, an orthodonti aid for the upper right eye-tooth is different from that for the upper left eye-tooth and so on. At present, in order to identify orthodonti aids in relation to the teeth for whih they are suitable, eah orthodonti aid is usually marked with a orresponding sign whih onsists of a numerial abbreviation or of a olour dot positioned on the disto-gingival edge of the orthodonti aid as is learly shown in FIG. 1 of the enlosed drawings wherein said odes onsist of a "2" and of blak dot foreseen on the tie wings (A) of the bodies wedded to the retention base (B). However, an identifiation ode positioned on this edge of the orthodonti aid onsequently beomes less pereptible and reognizable, being the surfae available, the area of whih is generally about 1 square millimeter, quite limited, whih an ause tiredness and mistakes on the part of the 40 orthodontist. The U.S. Pat. No. 5,326,259 desribes a method of manufaturing orthodonti aids with identifying indiia whih an be positioned on the upper area of the bodies wedded to the retention base. But, despite its omplexity, 45 this ommon operative method presents the above mentioned disadvantages. Another example of suh devie is found in U.S. Pat. No. 5,556,276. The U.S. Pat. No. 5,622,494 relates to a plasti orthodonti appliane having projeting struture extending outwardly from a bonding base whih is shaped to have a bonding area within the bonding base and the free edge of the projeting struture. A portion of the bonding base may be an open area without projetions to allow for the molding of an identifying mark. However, this known appliane doesn't allow for molding identifying marks easily reognizable by the orthodontist. In fat, by inreasing the marking area the bonding area will be orrespondingly redued with a relevant bonding ation redution. Furthermore, the molding of identifying marks is 60 ause for a limited possibility of hoie for the appliane bonding struture, said molding tehnique being not utilizable, for example, in ase of brakets having bonding net-like struture, whih are greatly reliable and fully tested, due to the fat that the molding tehinique would imply a 65 deformation of suh entity to funtionally damage the bonding net-like struture. 2 The U.S. Pat. No. 5,595,484 desribes a plasti aesthetial orthodonti braket. The retention base may be provided with identifiation marks whih are molded in small reessed portions of the retention base to be not notieable 5 when the braket is bonded to the relevant tooth. The molding of the identifiation marks in the small reesses of the lingual surfae of the braket may involve an undue 25 visual weariness by part of the orthodontist beause said marks are too small. Even in this ase a braket having a retention base with net-like struture is not utilizable beause the molding tehinique would imply an untollerable deformation of the net-like struture. SUARY OF THE INVENTION The objet underlying the present invention is to overome the aforesaid disadvantages. This objet has been ahieved in aordane with the invention by manufaturing an orthodonti braket having a retention base for a respetive tooth and identifying indiia in relation to the tooth for whih the orthodonti aid is suitable. The indiia inludes a sign provided on the bak side of the retention base. The size of the indiia is at least 3 square millimeters. The indiia has substantially null depth with respet to the retention base, thus following the outer profile of the latter. The present invention has the advantage of rendering the identifiation ode more easily reognizable in every operative ondition without modifying the struture of the orth- 30 odonti aid and improving its hold while it is being used, all this in an easy, reliable and inexpensive manner. Furthermore, the anhorage of the retention base to the tooth is not adversely affeted, ontrarly to the ase of brakets having molded identifiation marks, sine the 35 thikness of the identifiation marks aording to the invention is substantially null when ompared with the thikness of the retention base and, therefore, it follows the outer profile of the latter without adversely affeting the shape and operative effiieny thereof. A further advantage lies in that the marking may be arried out even separately from the manufaturing or assemblage of the braket. Said marking may be also performed with appropriate inks, even for aesthetial plasti brakets. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS These and further advantages and harateristis of the present invention will be better understood by anyone skilled in the art from a reading of the following desription 50 in onjuntion with the attahed drawings, given as a pratial exemplifiation of the invention, but not to be onsidered in a limitative sense, wherein: FIG. 1 is a plan view of an orthodonti aid with traditional identifiation odes; 55 FIG. 2 is a bak view of an orthodonti aid in aordane with the present invention; FIG. 3 is a perspetive bak view of an orthodonti aid in aordane with the present invention; FIG. 4 is a shemati partial ross setion of the net-like bak side of an orthodonti aid in aordane with the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EBODIENT An orthodonti braket in its essential struture and with referene to the figures of the enlosed drawings, in aor- Page 4 of 6

5 3 US 6,276,930 Bl The marking of the indiia produed in aordane with the invention, by means of a laser beam or by equivalent means, allows the formation of a muh wider area where adhesive an operate more effetively. As shown in FIG. 4, the elements () of net-like bass (B) are subjet, due to the ation of the laser apparatus operating the indiia marking, to an oxiding and/or roughening effet whih leads to a wider adhesion area of the net-like struture with the adhe- dane with the invention, onsists of a retention base (B) and of two bodies (C) wedded to the retention base and provided with seats for a orresponding setion of an orthodonti arhwire. The orthodonti aid is provided with indiia onsisting of a numerial ode ("22" in FIG. 2 and "14" in 5 FIG. 3) provided on the bak side of the retention base (B) that is to say on the side whih will adhere to the tooth. In the examples of FIGS. 2 and 3, the ode of the orthodontial aid orresponds to the position of the tooth for whih it is suitable, in ompliane with the "FDI SISTE" identifia- 10 tion system (i.e. FEDERATION DENTAIRE IINTERNATIONALE) wherein teeth an be identified thanks to a progressive numeration with two figures, always starting from the medium line, wherein the first ten indiates the upper right side, the seond ten indiates the upper left side, the third ten indiates the lower left side and the fourth ten indiates the lower right side, as is shown in the hart below: dental ement on the dental surfae, whih has previously been treated with aids failitating the formation of mirosopi leaks for a onsequent better retention. sive or dental ement. The roughened portions of the ele- 15 ments () are those indiated in FIG. 4 by the letter "I". It will be further appreiated that the indiia provided aording to the present invention follow the outer profile of the net-like base (B), as it is visible in FIG. 3, and there are 20 no projetions from the latter whih may limit the bonding of the orthodonti aid to the respetive tooth Aording to the present invention, there is provided a strutural modifiation of a portion of the bak side of the 25 In this way, for example, the lower entral inisors are retention base (B), said portion having the shape and size of identified by the numbers 41 and 31 and so on. the desired identifying indiia or ode. The depth of the said struturally altered portion of the bak side base (B) is Any other identifiation system of the position of teeth substantially null with respet to the depth (d) of the same an advantageously serve the purpose as well. To better explain this system and in aordane with a tehnique base (B). Said slight strutural modifiation of the retention 30 already known to tehniians operating in this field, the base bak side marked portion involves a hange of appearane or olour with respet to the non-marked portion of the aforementioned identifiation ode may onsist of a number with one figure identifying the tooth, proeded or followed same side of the retention base. by a "+" or a "-" sign, whih indiates if the number belongs to the right or to the left side: the 3 + symbol identifies the 35 upper right eye-tooth and the - 4 symbol identifies the first lower left premolar. Anyway, whatever symbols may be hosen, the size of the indiia provided on the bak side (B) is at least 3 square millimeters, for example 9 square millimeters, as to allow 40 the orthodontist to better reognize it, to avoid getting tired and making mistakes and to exeute the operation in a safe manner. In FIG. 2 it is also shown a further ode provided on the bak side (B) of the orthodonti aid. Said further ode may 45 be, for example, a number ("031199") representing the manufaturing date or soure. The marking of the retention base (B) an be produed by means of a programmable laser apparatus whih many 50 tehniians already know. The laser apparatus an be, for example, a diode-pumped laser of the "ROFIN SINAIR" type manufatured by the German firm Rofin Sinair Laser GmbH. The orthodonti aid illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 3 and, 55 partially, in FIG. 4, features a net-like retention base, but the present invention an be applied to orthodonti aids with various types of bases. The net-like base struture of the orthodonti aid in aordane with the present invention onsists of individual mesh elements () in a lattie arrangement. An orthodonti aid featuring a net-like retention base is known from U.S. Pat. No. 4,068,379 whih also relates to manufaturing of orthodonti aids having a net-like bak side. The anhorage of the retention base (B) to the tooth an be effeted in the usual manner, by applying adhesive or 65 The marking of orthodonti aids in aordane with the invention an be produed along with the traditional marking by positioning said identifiation ode both on the bak and on the front side of these. What is laimed is: 1. An orthodonti braket, omprising: a retention base for a respetive tooth, said retention base having a bak side; identifying indiia for identifying the respetive tooth for whih the orthodonti braket is suitable, said indiia inluding a sign provided on the bak side of said retention base, the size of said indiia being at least 3 square millimeters, the depth of said indiia being substantially null with respet to the depth of the retention base, said indiia having a profile whih follows the outer profile of said retention base. 2. The orthodonti braket aording to laim 1, wherein said sign omprises harater markings onsisting of a number with two figures. 3. The orthodonti braket aording to laim 1, wherein said sign onsists of a number with one figure preeded or followed by the plus sign or by a minus sign. 4. The orthodonti braket aording to laim 1, wherein said sign is provided on said bak side of said retention base 60 with a laser apparatus. 5. The orthodonti braket aording to laim 1, wherein said sign is provided on said bak side of said retention base with a diode-pumped laser apparatus. 6. An orthodonti braket, omprising: a retention base for a respetive tooth, said retention base having a net-like strutured bak side; Page 5 of 6

6 US 6,276,930 Bl 5 identifying indiia for identifying the respetive tooth for whih the orthodonti braket is suitable, said indiia inluding a sign provided on the bak side of said retention base, the size of said indiia being at least 3 square millimeters, the depth of said indiia being s substantially null with respet to the depth of the retention base, said indiia having a profile whih follows the outer profile of said retention base. 7. The orthodonti braket aording to laim 6, wherein said sign omprises harater markings onsisting of a 10 number with two figures The orthodonti braket aording to laim 6, wherein said sign onsists of a number with one figure preeded or followed by the plus sign or by a minus sign. 9. The orthodonti braket aording to laim 6, wherein said sign is provided on said bak side of said retention base with a laser apparatus. 10. The orthodonti braket aording to laim 6, wherein said sign is provided on said bak side of said retention base with a diode-pumped laser apparatus. * * * * * Page 6 of 6