CN102614041B

CN102614041B - Snore stopper

Info

Publication number: CN102614041B
Application number: CN201110057082XA
Authority: CN
Inventors: 陈宝鑑
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2011-01-27
Filing date: 2011-03-03
Publication date: 2013-11-20
Anticipated expiration: 2031-03-03
Also published as: CN102614041A; TW201231108A; TWI471149B

Abstract

A snore relieving device is used for occluding upper and lower jaw teeth in a mouth and is provided with an upper tooth socket, a lower tooth socket and a connecting piece, wherein the upper and lower tooth sockets are provided with a retaining wall and an occluding part so as to position the upper and lower jaw teeth and enable the teeth to be stressed averagely to enable the lower jaw to extend forwards, thereby preventing parts of soft tissues of the throat from sinking towards a breathing passage to reduce the breathing passage, preventing air resistance in the breathing passage from becoming larger, further reducing mucous membranes or secretions of the breathing passage from vibrating to make sound, and effectively preventing snoring. The snore stopper is made of elastic material, so that the process of connecting the upper and lower tooth sockets can be saved, and the snore stopper can be elastically deformed after occlusion, so that a tooth mould does not need to be made according to the tooth shape of a user, the manufacturing cost can be greatly reduced, and the wearing comfort level can be improved.

Description

Snore stopper

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a snore stopper, and more particularly, to a snore stopper for occluding teeth of upper and lower jaws inside an oral cavity.

Background

The snoring may be caused by various reasons during sleeping, such as the breathing channel is blocked, the patient is elderly, and obese, and the main reason for snoring is that, referring to fig. 1, when the breathing channel 11 is drawn by gravity to sink and narrow the throat soft tissue 12 such as the soft jaw and the tongue root, the sucked air must force to pass through the narrow place, and the resistance of the air is naturally increased, so the mucous membrane or the secretion of the narrowed portion of the breathing channel 11 will vibrate or generate friction sound, and the vibration sound and the friction sound are snoring.

In order to solve the snoring condition during sleep, the medical community needs to find a solution, for example, the snore stopper is used to move the lower jaw forward, which is a common method, please refer to fig. 2, in which the snore stopper 2 sleeved on the teeth 14 is used to open the mouth at a certain angle and move the lower jaw 13 forward, so as to drive the soft throat tissue 12 such as the soft jaw and the tongue root to move forward, so as to prevent part of the soft throat tissue 12 from sinking down to the breathing channel 11, thereby ensuring the smoothness of the breathing channel 11 and effectively preventing snoring.

The prior art snore stopper 2 is shown in fig. 3, and as shown in the figure, the snore stopper 2 includes upper and

lower tooth sockets

21, 22 made of hard material, the

tooth sockets

21, 22 are provided with

recesses

212, 222 according to the tooth shape of the user to reduce the gap between the snore stopper 2 and the teeth 14, and the left and right sides are provided with bonding pads 23 to connect the upper and

lower tooth sockets

21, 22 separated by a specific distance into a whole for the user to bite. In addition, the upper shell 21 has a positioning post 211 made of metal material for positioning against the gum of the user.

At this time, the installation of the

concave portions

212 and 222 needs to be customized according to the tooth mold of the user's tooth shape to effectively reduce the gap between the snore stopper 2 and the teeth 14, and the upper and

lower tooth sockets

21 and 22 can be connected by the adhesive pad 23 to form the snore stopper 2, which causes the manufacturing cost of the snore stopper 2 to be high and one of the reasons that the snore stopper 2 cannot be widely used.

In addition, for aesthetic reasons, the positioning post 211 is usually made of a slender stainless steel wire, so that the abutment of the positioning post 211 may cause a local area of the gum to be pressed, which may cause discomfort to the user wearing the snore stopper 2 and even more serious people may have inflamed gum.

Therefore, it is an urgent subject to be solved in the medical field how to provide an anti-snoring device to save the manufacturing cost and improve the wearing comfort.

Disclosure of Invention

One objective of the present invention is to provide a snore stopper to save the manufacturing cost and improve the wearing comfort.

In view of the above and other objects, the present invention provides a snore stopper, comprising: the upper tooth socket is at least composed of a first occlusion part, a first inner retaining wall and a first outer retaining wall, the height of the first outer retaining wall is between 5 and 10 millimeters, and the height of the first inner retaining wall is smaller than that of the first outer retaining wall; the lower tooth socket is at least composed of a second occlusion part, a second inner retaining wall and a second outer retaining wall, the height of the second inner retaining wall is between 6 and 10 millimeters, the height of the second outer retaining wall is smaller than that of the second inner retaining wall, and the first outer retaining wall and the second outer retaining wall have a distance between 5 and 9 millimeters; and a connecting member connecting the upper shell and the lower shell and spacing the occlusal surfaces of the first and second occlusal portions, the spacing distance between the occlusal surfaces being gradually decreased from the middle of the occlusal portions toward both end sides, the connecting member having an opening between the occlusal surfaces; wherein, the upper and lower tooth sockets and the connecting piece are made of elastic materials integrally; the middle part of the occlusal surface of the first occlusion part and the second occlusion part has a spacing distance between 12 and 20 mm; and the two end sides of the occlusal surface of the first occlusion part and the second occlusion part have a spacing distance between 4 and 8 millimeters.

In addition, the upper and lower tooth sockets can have notches at both end sides relative to the opening. The upper and lower braces and the connecting piece may be made of rubber, resin or plastic. The opening may be rectangular, oval or circular in shape. The biting surfaces of the first and second biting parts may have an inclination angle of 8 to 15 degrees. The heights of the first and second internal retaining walls can be gradually reduced from the middle parts of the occlusion parts to the two end sides.

Furthermore, the snore stopper also comprises a supporting rib arranged on the peripheral wall of the opening. The middle part of the first outer retaining wall or the second inner retaining wall is provided with a concave part. The distance between the middle parts of the occlusal surfaces of the first occlusion part and the second occlusion part can be between 13 and 17 millimeters. The distance between the two end sides of the occlusal surface of the first and the second occlusion parts can be between 5 and 7 mm. The height of the first internal retaining wall can be between 2 and 5 millimeters, and the height of the second external retaining wall can be between 5 and 8 millimeters.

In summary, the snore relieving device of the present invention comprises an upper mouthpiece, a lower mouthpiece and a connecting member, wherein the upper mouthpiece and the lower mouthpiece comprise a retaining wall and an occlusion part to position the upper and lower jaw teeth, so as to extend the lower jaw forward, thereby preventing a part of the soft tissue of the throat from sinking to the breathing passage, so that the air resistance in the breathing passage is not increased, and further effectively preventing snoring. The snore stopper is made of an elastic material in a whole, so that the process of connecting the upper and lower tooth sockets can be omitted, and the snore stopper can be elastically deformed after occlusion without manufacturing a tooth mould according to the tooth shape of a user, so that the manufacturing cost can be greatly reduced, and the wearing comfort can be improved.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a view showing the structure of the throat of a human body in snoring.

Fig. 2 is a structural diagram of a human throat when wearing the snore stopper.

Fig. 3 is a structural diagram of a conventional snore stopper.

Fig. 4 is a structural diagram of the snore stopper according to an embodiment of the invention.

Fig. 5 is an external view of the user wearing the snore stopper of fig. 4.

Fig. 6 is a view showing the structure of the throat of a human body when wearing the snore stopper of fig. 4.

Detailed Description

The following are examples illustrating embodiments of the present invention, and other advantages and effects of the present invention will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art from the disclosure herein. The invention may be embodied or carried out in various other specific embodiments, and various modifications and changes may be made in the details within the description without departing from the spirit of the invention.

Referring to fig. 4 to 6, fig. 4 is a structural diagram of a snore stopper according to an embodiment of the invention, fig. 5 is an external view of a user wearing the snore stopper of fig. 4, and fig. 6 is a structural diagram of a throat of a human body wearing the snore stopper of fig. 4.

The snore stopper 3 of this embodiment is used for positioning the

teeth

151, 131 of the upper jaw 15 and the lower jaw 13 inside the oral cavity. The snore stopping device 3 comprises an upper tooth socket 31, a lower tooth socket 32 and a connecting piece 33. The upper and

lower teethes

31, 32 and the connecting member 33 are made of elastic materials such as rubber, resin or plastic, so that after the user bites the snore stopper 3, the upper and

lower teethes

31, 32 can be deformed by the biting force to reduce the gap between the snore stopper 3 and the teeth and improve the wearing comfort, so that it is not necessary to customize a tooth mold according to the tooth shape of the user, thereby reducing the manufacturing procedure, further mass production and greatly reducing the manufacturing cost of the snore stopper 3.

In addition, because the upper and

lower tooth sockets

31, 32 and the connecting piece 33 are integrally manufactured, the manufacturing process of connecting the upper and

lower tooth sockets

31, 32 can be omitted in the manufacturing of the snore stopper 3, and the manufacturing cost of the snore stopper 3 can also be reduced.

The upper shell 31 is formed by a first engaging portion 313 and first inner and

outer retaining walls

312, 311. As shown, the

retaining walls

312, 311 are plate-shaped structures having a cross section (e.g., U-shaped) corresponding to the shape of the dentition of the upper jaw 15, so as to evenly apply force to the teeth 151 of the upper jaw 15, thereby improving comfort. The first engaging portion 313 has an engaging surface for engaging the teeth 151 of the upper jaw 15 (see fig. 5 and 6). The height of the first external retaining wall 311 is greater than or equal to 1/2 of the crown of the upper jaw 15, so as to provide enough area to abut against the external tooth surface of the teeth 151 of the upper jaw 15, and push the teeth 151 of the upper jaw 15 towards the inside of the oral cavity. Generally, the height of the crown of the upper jaw 15 is approximately between 8 to 9 mm, so the height of the first outer wall 311 is approximately between 5 to 10 mm, preferably between 7 to 9 mm. The height of the first internal retaining wall 312 is less than the height of the first external retaining wall 311 (e.g., less than 1/2 of the crown of the upper jaw 15 incisor) to provide enough area to abut against the inner tooth surface of the upper jaw incisor to cooperate with the first external retaining wall 311 to prevent the upper jaw 15 teeth 151 from moving away from the occlusion with the first occlusion part 313. The height of the first internal wall 312 is approximately between 2 to 5 mm, preferably between 3 to 4.5 mm. It should be noted that the incisors mentioned in this specification are the commonly known incisors or anterior teeth.

In the present embodiment, the first inner and

outer retaining walls

312, 311 extend toward the gum of the upper jaw 15 to ensure effective contact with the tooth surface of the teeth 151 of the upper jaw 15, and the upper dental shell 31 is disposed on the teeth 151 of the upper jaw 15, and the distance between the first inner and

outer retaining walls

312, 311 is determined according to the thickness of the dentition of the upper jaw 15, so that the upper dental shell 31 can be disposed on the teeth 151 of the upper jaw 15. In addition, a concave portion 3111 for identification and convenient wearing may be disposed in the middle of the first external retaining wall 311 to assist the user to correctly use the snore stopper 3. As shown in fig. 6, the thickness of the first outer wall 311 may be gradually increased from top to bottom according to the tooth shape of the upper jaw 15, so as to increase the structural strength of the first outer wall 311.

The lower shell 32 is formed by a second engaging portion 323 and second inner and

outer walls

322, 321. As shown, the

retaining walls

322, 321 are sheet-like structures having a cross section (e.g., U-shaped) corresponding to the tooth row shape of the lower jaw 13. The second occlusion part 323 has an occlusion surface for occlusion of the teeth 131 of the lower jaw 13 (see fig. 5 and 6). The height of the second internal retaining wall 322 is greater than or equal to 1/2 of the crown of the incisors of the lower jaw 13, so as to provide a sufficient area to abut against the internal tooth surface of the incisors of the lower jaw 13, so that the lower jaw 13 is pushed towards the outside of the oral cavity when lying on the back, and the lower jaw 13 is extended forwards by using the upper jaw 15 as a fixed point, i.e. the lower jaw 13 is moved forwards to drive the soft laryngeal tissue 12 to move forwards, thereby preventing the part of the soft laryngeal tissue 12 from sinking towards the breathing passage 11, so as to keep the breathing passage 11 unobstructed (i.e. not narrowed), so that the air resistance in the breathing passage 11 is not increased, and further reduce the vibration of the mucous membrane or secretion of the breathing passage 11 or the generation of friction sound, therefore, the snore stopper 3 of the present invention can effectively prevent snoring. In the present embodiment, the height of the second inner retaining wall 322 is approximately between 6 to 10 mm, preferably between 7 to 9 mm.

The height of the second external retaining wall 321 is less than the height of the second internal retaining wall 322 (e.g. less than 1/2 of the crown of the teeth of the lower jaw 13) to provide enough area to abut against the outer surface of the teeth of the lower jaw 13 to cooperate with the second internal retaining wall 322 to prevent the teeth 131 of the lower jaw 13 from being disengaged from the second occlusion part 323. The height of the second external wall 321 is between 5 to 8 mm, preferably between 6 to 7 mm.

The second inner and

outer retaining walls

322 and 321 extend in the direction of the gums of the lower jaw 13 to ensure effective abutment against the tooth surfaces of the teeth 131 of the lower jaw 13, so that the lower dental brace 32 is fitted over the teeth 131 of the lower jaw 13, and the distance between the second inner and

outer retaining walls

321 and 322 is determined according to the thickness of the dentition of the lower jaw 13, so that the lower dental brace 32 can be fitted over the teeth 131 of the lower jaw 13. As shown in fig. 6, the thickness of the second internal retaining wall 321 can be gradually increased from top to bottom according to the tooth shape of the human lower jaw 13, so as to increase the structural strength of the second internal retaining wall 321 and the wearing comfort of the snore stopper 3.

The connecting member 33 connects the upper and

lower braces

31, 32 to make the tooth contact surface spacing distance D1 of the first and second

outer retaining walls

311, 321 be 1.5 to 2.5 times the thickness of the crowns of the upper and

lower jaws

15, 13, generally speaking, the thickness of the crowns of the upper and

lower jaws

15, 13 is about 3 to 4 mm, so the spacing distance between the first and second

outer retaining walls

311, 321 is 5 to 9 mm, preferably 5.5 to 7.5 mm. The connecting member 33 separates the biting surfaces of the first and second biting parts 313, 323, and the separation distance between the biting surfaces is gradually decreased from the middle of the biting parts 313, 323 to both ends, so that the biting surfaces of the first and second biting parts 313, 323 have an inclination angle θ of about 8 to 15 degrees (preferably, 9 to 13 degrees), thereby spreading the upper and

lower jaws

15, 13 at a certain angle and pushing the lower jaw 13 forward to prevent the soft tissue 12 of the throat from sinking partially, so as to ensure the clear breathing passage 11 and effectively prevent snoring. In other words, the snore stopper 3 of the present invention positions the upper and

lower teeth

151, 131 by the upper and

lower braces

31, 32, so as to extend the lower jaw 13 forward, and further avoid the backward contraction of the lower jaw 13, thereby preventing the breathing passage 11 from being narrowed due to the compression of the trachea.

The separation distance D2 between the occlusal surfaces of the first and second occlusal portions 313, 323 is 1.5 to 2 times the height of the crown of the incisors of the upper and

lower jaws

15, 13. generally, the height of the crown of the incisors of the upper jaw 15 is about 8 to 9 mm, so the separation distance between the occlusal surfaces of the first and second occlusal portions 313, 323 is about 12 to 20 mm, preferably about 13 to 17 mm. In this embodiment, the distance between the two ends of the occlusal surfaces of the first and second occlusion parts 313, 323 is between 4 and 8 mm, preferably between 5 and 7 mm.

The connecting member 33 also provides an opening 331 between the upper and

lower mouthpiece

31, 32 to allow the passage of air into and out of the mouth cavity, even if the user is sleeping, to breathe smoothly.

In the embodiment, the opening 331 is rectangular, but the shape of the opening 331 can be oval or circular according to the breathing condition of the user. The snore stopper 3 further comprises a support rib 34, and the support rib 34 is arranged on the peripheral wall of the opening 331 so as to improve the structural strength of the snore stopper 3.

In this embodiment, the inner and

outer retaining walls

312, 311, 322, 321 of the upper and

lower braces

31, 32 respectively abut against the inner and outer tooth surfaces of the

teeth

151, 131 of the upper and

lower jaws

15, 13, respectively, so as to evenly apply force to the

teeth

151, 131, thereby effectively solving the problem that the conventional snore stopper applies pressure to a local area of the teeth, and preventing a user wearing the snore stopper 3 from feeling uncomfortable.

Preferably, the first engaging portion 313 and the first inner and

outer retaining walls

312, 311 of the upper shell 31 extend to positions corresponding to the molars of the upper jaw 15, the second engaging portion 323 and the second inner and

outer retaining walls

322, 321 of the lower shell 32 extend to positions corresponding to the molars of the lower jaw 13, so as to ensure sufficient engaging area of the first and second engaging portions 313, 323, and sufficient abutting area of the first inner and

outer retaining walls

312, 311 and the second inner and

outer retaining walls

322, 321, so as to fit the upper and

lower shells

31, 32 on the

teeth

151, 131 of the upper and

lower jaws

15, 13. The middle portion of the second inner retaining wall 322 may be provided with a recessed portion for identification and convenient wearing.

As shown in fig. 4, the upper and

lower braces

31 and 32 have

notches

314 and 324 at opposite ends with respect to the opening 331 to pass through the

teeth

151 and 131 of the upper and

lower jaws

15 and 13, respectively, so as to facilitate the user to wear the snore stopper 3. The heights of the first and second

inner walls

312, 322 at the ends opposite to the opening 331 are gradually reduced according to the shapes of the upper and

lower jaws

15, 13, respectively, so as to avoid squeezing the upper and

lower jaws

15, 13, and to better improve the wearing comfort of the snore stopper 3.

In summary, the snore stopper of the present invention is provided for the occlusion of the upper and lower teeth in the oral cavity, and comprises an upper mouthpiece, a lower mouthpiece and a connecting member, wherein the upper and lower mouthpieces have a retaining wall and an occlusion portion for positioning the upper and lower teeth to extend the lower jaw forward, thereby preventing the soft tissue of the larynx from sinking down to the breathing passage, so that the trachea is not compressed to reduce the breathing passage, the air resistance in the breathing passage is not increased, and the vibration or friction sound generated by the mucous membrane or secretion in the breathing passage is reduced, thereby effectively preventing the snoring.

In addition, the upper and lower tooth sockets and the connecting piece are made of elastic materials integrally, so the snore stopping device can be manufactured without a process of connecting the upper and lower tooth sockets and can be elastically deformed after being occluded so as to effectively reduce the gap between the snore stopping device and the teeth, and a tooth mould does not need to be manufactured according to the tooth shape of a user, so the process can be reduced, the snore stopping device has universality and can be produced in batches, and the manufacturing cost is greatly reduced.

Furthermore, the retaining walls of the upper and lower tooth sockets are respectively abutted against the upper and lower jaw teeth so as to provide enough abutting area for effectively avoiding the local area of the gum from being pressed, so that the user can not feel uncomfortable.

The foregoing embodiments are merely illustrative of the principles and utilities of the present invention and are not intended to limit the invention. Modifications and variations can be made to the above-described embodiments by those of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Therefore, the scope of the invention should be determined from the following claims.

[ description of main element symbols ]

11 breathing passage

12 tongue root

13 lower jaw

131 teeth

14 teeth

15 maxilla

151 teeth

2 snore stopping device

21 upper tooth socket

211 positioning column

212 recessed portion

22 lower tooth socket

222 recess

23 adhesive pad

3 snore stopping device

31 upper tooth socket

311 first outer baffle wall

3111 recess part

312 first inner retaining wall

313 first engaging part

32 lower tooth socket

321 second outer retaining wall

322 second inner retaining wall

323 second engaging part

324 gap

33 connecting piece

331 opening

34 support rib

Claims

1. A snore relieving device is characterized by comprising:

the upper tooth socket is at least composed of a first occlusion part, a first inner retaining wall and a first outer retaining wall, the height of the first outer retaining wall is between 5 and 10 millimeters, and the height of the first inner retaining wall is smaller than that of the first outer retaining wall;

the lower tooth socket is at least composed of a second occlusion part, a second inner retaining wall and a second outer retaining wall, the height of the second inner retaining wall is between 6 and 10 millimeters, the height of the second outer retaining wall is smaller than that of the second inner retaining wall, and the first outer retaining wall and the second outer retaining wall have a distance between 5 and 9 millimeters; and

a connecting member connecting the upper shell and the lower shell and spacing the occlusal surfaces of the first and second occlusal portions, wherein the spacing distance between the occlusal surfaces is gradually reduced from the middle of the occlusal portions to the two end sides, and the connecting member has an opening between the occlusal surfaces; wherein,

the upper and lower tooth sockets and the connecting piece are made of elastic materials integrally; the middle part of the occlusal surface of the first occlusion part and the second occlusion part has a spacing distance between 12 and 20 mm; and the two end sides of the occlusal surface of the first occlusion part and the second occlusion part have a spacing distance between 4 and 8 millimeters.

2. The snore stopper of claim 1, wherein the upper and lower braces have notches at opposite ends of the opening.

3. The snore stopping device of claim 1, wherein the upper and lower braces and the connector are made of rubber, resin or plastic.

4. The snore stopper of claim 1, wherein the opening is rectangular, oval or circular in shape.

5. The snore stopper of claim 1, wherein the occlusal surfaces of the first and second engaging portions have an angle of inclination of 8 to 15 degrees.

6. The snore stopper of claim 1, wherein the height of each retaining wall gradually decreases from the middle of each engaging portion to both ends.

7. The snore stopper of claim 1, further comprising a support rib provided on a peripheral wall of the opening.

8. The snore stopper as recited in claim 1, wherein a recess is formed in the middle of the first external wall or the second internal wall.

9. The snore stopper of claim 1, wherein the first and second engaging portions are separated by a distance between 13 and 17 mm; and the distance between the two end sides of the occlusal surfaces of the first occlusion part and the second occlusion part is between 5 and 7 millimeters.

10. The snore stopper of claim 1, wherein the first internal wall is between 2 and 5 mm high and the second external wall is between 5 and 8 mm high.