JPH022020B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to a device that outputs rotational force and/or vibration from the energy of a compressible fluid such as compressed air, and a dental machine using the device.

[Background technology]

The applicant previously developed a novel vibration generator that uses fluid energy to generate mechanical vibrations (US Pat. No. 4,453,919, dated June 12, 1984).
This device has a hollow body defining a disc-shaped working chamber, and a disc-shaped vibrator having a size slightly smaller than the working chamber is movably accommodated in the working chamber. The main body is provided with a blowout nozzle that opens approximately tangentially to the working chamber, and is configured to blow out a working fluid such as compressed air into the working chamber to generate a swirling flow within the working chamber. US Patent No.
As stated in No. 4453919 and as will be described later in this specification with reference to drawings, the operating principle of this vibration generator is not necessarily clear, but the vibrator rotates within the working chamber due to the action of swirling flow. It is thought that this causes the vibrations to be generated by hitting the side wall of the working chamber. The working fluid in the working chamber is discharged from the exhaust hole.

[Summary of the invention]

The purpose of the vibration generator was originally to extract mechanical vibrations from fluid energy. However, the inventor of the present invention has newly discovered that the vibration generated by this vibration generator not only vibrates an object engaged with this device, but also has the effect of rotating the object.

The present invention is based on the above-mentioned novel discovery.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a rotational force/vibration output device capable of extracting rotational force and/or vibration from fluid energy.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a dental machine using this rotational force/vibration output device.

The rotational force/vibration output device of the present invention for outputting rotational force and/or vibration from fluid energy includes:
The apparatus includes a support means such as a housing, a vibration generator supported by the support means so as to be able to freely vibrate, an output shaft rotatably supported by the support means, and a one-way joint mechanism. Here, the one-way joint mechanism is
It is defined as a mechanism that connects a vibration generator and an output shaft in a vibration transmission relationship, and also converts the vibration of the vibration generator into unidirectional rotational force and transmits it to the output shaft. The vibration generator is substantially similar to that disclosed in the above-mentioned U.S. Pat. It is comprised of a fluid ejecting means for ejecting a working fluid having a pressure such as that into the working chamber in a direction that generates a swirling flow around the axis of the working chamber within the working chamber, and a working fluid discharge hole.

In one embodiment of this rotational force/vibration output device, the main body of the vibration generator has an outer wall surface perpendicular to the axis of the working chamber on the opposite side from the discharge hole, and the one-way joint mechanism makes elastic contact with this outer wall surface. It consists of a rotating disk that rotates integrally with the output shaft.

In another embodiment, the one-way joint mechanism comprises a cylindrical recess in the body of the vibration generator;
One end of the output shaft fits within this recess with a slight clearance.

In yet another embodiment, the one-way joint mechanism includes a cylindrical protrusion provided on the vibration device body and a rotating body connected to the output shaft, and the rotating body has a small clearance between the protrusion and the rotating body. A cylindrical recess is formed to receive it.

The dental machine of the present invention includes a handpiece, a vibration generator having the above-mentioned structure held in the handpiece so as to be able to vibrate, an output shaft rotatably supported by the handpiece, and a main body of the vibration generator. It consists of a rotary disk that is in elastic contact with the outer wall surface of the rotor and rotates together with the output shaft, and a dental tool that is attached to the output shaft.

In another aspect of the dental machine of the present invention, the vibrations generated in the vibrating device can be transmitted to the rotating disk via the vibration transmitting member.

The operation of the rotational force/vibration output device and dental machine of the present invention will be explained in accordance with the description of the following embodiments.

〔Example〕

Figure 1 shows the first rotational force/vibration output device of the present invention.
An example is shown. In this embodiment, the rotational force/vibration output device 10 has a supporting means such as a stepped cylindrical housing 12, and a vibration generator 14 is installed in the large diameter portion of the housing 12 via O-rings 16, 18. It is supported resiliently, ie, vibrably relative to the housing 12.

The vibration generator 14 has a main body 22 made of steel in which a disk-shaped working chamber 20 is formed. In this embodiment, the main body 22 is a casing 24 having a substantially bottomed cylindrical shape.
and the rear plate 2 screwed into this casing.
It consists of 6. The working chamber 20 is defined by opposing flat side walls 28, 30 and a cylindrical inner circumferential wall 32.

The main body 22 is provided with a plurality of fluid blowing nozzles 34 . In order to simplify the drawing, the blowout nozzles 34 are shown as extending in the radial direction in FIG. 1, but in reality, as shown in FIG. It is oriented substantially tangentially to the peripheral wall 32 of the working chamber, and has an axial line within the working chamber 20.
It is designed to generate a swirling flow around XX.
A working fluid such as compressed air is supplied from a pressure fluid source such as a compressor (not shown) through a supply pipe 36, and is supplied to an annular fluid formed between the inner peripheral surface of the housing 12 and the outer peripheral surface of the main body 22. It is sent to the filling chamber 38. The O-rings 16 and 18 are connected to this fluid-filled chamber 38.
It also serves as a seal. Fluid is filled chamber 3
8 and is injected into the working chamber 20 through the blow-off nozzle 34 to generate a high-speed swirling flow within the working chamber. The fluid in the working chamber 20 escapes to the outside through an exhaust hole 40 formed in the rear plate 26 and an exhaust hole 44 formed in the cap 42.

A disc-shaped vibrator 46 made of steel and having a size slightly smaller than that of the working chamber is accommodated in the working chamber 20 .
A central opening is provided in the vibrator 46 in order to allow fluid that has entered between the front wall 28 of the working chamber 20 and the vibrator 46 to easily flow out toward the exhaust holes 40 and 44. Further, a tapered surface with a slight slope is formed on both sides of the vibrator 46, and when the vibration generator 14 is at rest due to oil mist mixed in the working fluid, the vibrator 46 is moved to either side wall 28, 30. Even if the fluid sticks to the vibrator 46 when restarting operation,
and the side wall 28 or 30, and the vibrator 4
6 can be easily lifted from the side walls 28, 30.

The rotation of the vibration generator 14 with respect to the housing 12 is prevented by a rotation prevention pin 48 embedded in the outer periphery of the main body casing 24 and an O-ring 50 supported by the housing 12.

An output shaft 56 is pivotally supported in the small diameter portion of the housing 12 via two sets of bearing assemblies 52 and 54. A one-way joint mechanism 5 is provided at the inner end of the output shaft 56.
A rotary disk 60 forming part 8 is integrally fixed. The output shaft 56 and the disc 60 are arranged coaxially with the axis XX of the working chamber 20. Vibration generator 1
4, an outer wall surface 62 perpendicular to the axis XX of the working chamber 20 is formed at the front part of the main body 22 of the rotary disk 60.
is in elastic sliding contact with this outer wall surface 62. Therefore, the vibration generator main body 22 is elastically biased toward the rotating disk 60 via the O-ring 64 by the cap 42 screwed onto the right end of the housing 12 . The contact pressure between the outer wall surface 62 and the disk 60 can be adjusted by turning the cap 42 in either direction, and the cap 42 and the O-ring 64 constitute contact pressure adjusting means.

To explain the operation of this first embodiment, compressible fluid with pressure, such as compressed air, is supplied to the supply pipe 36.
When the fluid is injected into the working chamber 20 from the injection nozzle 34 and a swirling flow is generated in the working chamber 20, the vibrator 46 moves and the vibration generator main body 22
generate vibrations. As mentioned above, the behavior of the vibrator 46 at this time and the principle of vibration generation are not necessarily clear, but the movement of the vibrator 46 causes the coin spinning on the table to lose its speed, as shown in Figure 3. This can be compared to a state in which the vibrator 46 swings and rotates while hitting the table surface, and the vibrator 46 rotates on the swirling flow while hitting the working chamber side wall 2.
It is thought that vibrations are generated in the main body 22 by alternately striking the parts 8 and 30.

This vibration is transmitted to the disc 60 through the contact surface between the main body 22 and the rotating disc 60, and applies rotational force to the disc 60, causing the disc 60 and the output shaft 50 integrated therewith to
Rotate. Although it is not clear to the inventor of the present invention why the rotating disk 60 that is in contact with the vibrating vibration generator 14 rotates,
Several reasons are speculated. One reason is that since the vibrator 46 hits the side walls 28 and 30 while rotating, the vibrator 46 applies an impact that has components in both the axis XX direction and the vibrator rotation direction to the side walls 28 and 30.
30, and as a result, a shock wave having an axial component and a circumferential component is propagated within the main body 22 of the vibration generating device 14, giving a rotational force to the rotating disk 60. Another reason is that the main body 22
makes a swinging motion about the axis XX, and the center of the outer wall surface 62 of the main body performs an eccentric rotational motion with respect to the center of the rotating disk 60, so it is thought that rotational force may be generated in the rotating disk 60. Seem.

By turning the cap 42 and changing the distance and contact pressure between the rotary disk 60 and the outer wall surface 62 of the main body, the mode of movement of the output shaft 56 can be changed. That is, if the setting is made so that a minute clearance is maintained between the disk 60 and the outer wall surface 62,
Rotational force and vibration are transmitted from the main body 22 to the disk 60, and both the rotational force and vibration are output to the output shaft 56. If the cap 42 is tightened to increase the contact pressure and the outer wall surface 62 and the disc 60 are strongly pressed against each other so that no slippage occurs between them, the output from the output shaft 56 becomes only vibration again.

FIG. 4 shows a second embodiment of the rotational force/vibration output device. Components common to those in the first embodiment are indicated by the same reference numerals and description thereof will be omitted. In the second embodiment, the one-way joint mechanism 70 is connected to the main body 22 of the vibration generator 14.
It consists of a cylindrical recess 72 provided in the casing 24 , which recess 72 is coaxial with the axis of the working chamber 20 . The diameter of this recess 72 is slightly larger than the diameter of the output shaft 56, and the right end 74 of the output shaft 56 is loosely fitted within this recess 72.

In the second embodiment having such a structure, when the vibration generator 14 is operated, the output shaft 56 is connected to the vibrator 46.
This phenomenon was also experimentally discovered by the inventor. The rotation of the output shaft 56 can be explained as follows. When the vibration generator 14 is activated by compressed air, the main body 22 swings around the axis of the output shaft 56, causing the inner circumferential surface of the recess 72 to circumscribe the outer circumferential surface of the right end 74 of the output shaft 56. The axis 72 performs eccentric rotational movement in the same direction as the rotational direction of the vibrator 46 around the axis of the output shaft 56 . The circumference of the inner peripheral surface of the recess 72 is the output shaft 56
Since the output shaft 56 is longer than the circumferential length of the outer circumferential surface of the vibrator 46, the output shaft 56 rotates in a direction opposite to the direction of rotation of the vibrator 46, just like when an external gear is inscribed in an internal gear and rotates. Further, the vibration of the vibration generator 14 is generated by the one-way joint mechanism 7.
0 to the output shaft 46, the output shaft performs a rotational motion and at the same time generates deflection vibration.

FIG. 5 shows a third embodiment of the rotational force/vibration output device, which differs from the first and second embodiments only in the configuration of the one-way joint mechanism 80.
The one-way joint mechanism 80 includes a coaxial cylindrical protrusion 82 provided on the casing 24 of the main body 22 of the vibration generator 14, and a rotating body 84 engaged with the protrusion 82. The rotating body 84 is integrally coupled to the output shaft 56. The rotating body 84 is provided with a cylindrical recess 86 coaxial with the output shaft 56 . The diameter of this recess 86 is slightly larger than the diameter of the projection 82, and the projection 82 is loosely fitted within this recess 86 with a small radial clearance.

The operation of the third embodiment is similar to that of the second embodiment, and vibration and rotational force are generated on the output shaft 56 as the vibration generator 14 operates, but the rotation direction of the output shaft 56 is Unlike the second embodiment, this direction is the same as the rotation direction of the vibrator 46. The phenomenon in which the output shaft 56 rotates in the third embodiment can be compared to a state in which an internal gear is circumscribed by an external gear, and when the internal gear is eccentrically rotated, the external gear rotates on its own axis while revolving. It is considered that rotational force is applied to the rotating body 84 by the swinging motion of the main body 22 of the vibration generator 14.

FIG. 6 shows a dental machine of the present invention using the rotational force/vibration output device. This dental machine is intended for drilling and enlarging root canals. This dental machine 100 has a handpiece 102, and a head 104 of the handpiece 102 incorporates a rotational force/vibration output device having substantially the same configuration as that in FIG. That is, the O-ring 10 is located within the cylindrical recess 106 of the handpiece head 104.
A vibration generator 112 is elastically supported by 8 and 110 to be able to vibrate with respect to the hand piece 102 . An output shaft 114 and a rotary disk 116 integrated therewith are rotatably mounted on the head 104 by a bearing assembly 118 coaxially with the vibration generator 112, and the outer wall surface 1 of the vibration generator 112
20 is elastically pressed against the rotating disk 116 by a cap 122 screwed onto the head 104 and an O-ring 124. The output shaft 114 has a shaft hole,
A dental tool 126, such as a dental file or reamer, is inserted. The tip of the output shaft 114 is split into quarters, for example, and a tool 126 is chucked by a nut 128.

In the illustrated embodiment, the main body 130 of the vibration generator 112 includes a casing 132, a disc-shaped front side plate 134, a blow ring 136,
It is composed of a disc-shaped rear side plate 138 and a rear plate 140, and the rear plate 1
40 to the casing 132, these are integrally fastened. side plate 13
A substantially disk-shaped vibrator 144 is accommodated in a disk-shaped working chamber 142 defined by the blow-off ring 136 and the blow-out ring 136 . Bubble ring 13
6 is provided with a plurality of tangential injection nozzles 146 similar to those shown in FIG.

The handpiece 102 is connected to a dental unit (not shown) by a hose 150 with a connector 148.
The compressed air is injected into the working chamber 142 via the supply passage 152 in the handpiece 102 through the injection nozzle 146 to generate a swirling flow and cause the vibrator 144 to vibrate and rotate. Exhaust is provided through axial exhaust holes in the rear side plate 138, axial and radial exhaust holes in the rear plate 140,
It is routed to the dental unit via an exhaust passageway 154 within the handpiece 102. Also within the handpiece 102 is a water supply passage 156 and a water injection nozzle 1.
58 is provided to direct a water spray toward the treatment area of the dental tool 126.

When the vibration generator 112 is operated, a rotational force and vibration are generated on the output shaft 114 by the one-way joint mechanism 160 consisting of the main body outer wall surface 120 and the rotating disk 116. This is the same as described above regarding 10. Accordingly, the dental tool 126, such as a reamer or file, is vibrated and rotated at the same time.

Root canal enlargement is required for pulp extraction and treatment of infected root canals, but enlarging the root canal is difficult in stenotic or curved root canals. It is desirable to exercise. According to the dental machine of the invention, the tool 12
6 is given both vibration and rotational force. Rotating disk 116 and outer wall surface 120 of vibration generator 112
If the contact pressure with the tool 126 is initially set to be low, more rotation than vibration will be transmitted to the tool 126 during normal use. Therefore, in the case of a straight root canal, the root canal can be enlarged by the drilling action caused by the rotation of the tool 126. If a narrowed or curved area is encountered during root canal expansion,
The axial load applied to the tool 126 increases, the contact pressure between the rotary disk 116 and the outer wall surface 120 of the vibration generator 112 increases, and no slipping occurs between them. As a result, vibrations are exclusively transmitted to the rotating disk 116, so in the case of a curved root canal, the tip of the tool 126 can enter along the curved root canal, and in the case of a stenotic root canal, the tip of the tool 126 can be transmitted along the curved root canal. The drilling effect can be enhanced. Further, if the tool 126 is forced to rotate at a narrowed portion or a curved portion, there is a risk that the tool 126 will break. however,
According to the present invention, the tool 126 does not rotate in the narrowed portion or the bent portion, but only vibrates, and therefore does not break.

FIG. 7 shows another configuration of a dental machine using the rotational force/vibration output device. dental machine 200
The hand piece 202 consists of two parts 204, 206 that are screwed together.
A vibration generator 208 is incorporated within the housing.
The vibration generator 208 is the vibration generator 11 in FIG.
It is similar to No. 2 and has a main body consisting of a casing 210, a pair of side plates, a blow ring, and a rear plate, and an operating chamber containing a vibrator is formed within the main body. The details and operation of this vibration generator are substantially the same as those described above and will not require further explanation. casing 210
is provided with a female thread 212, into which a male thread 216 provided at the right end of the vibration transmission rod 214 is screwed. A collar 218 is screwed onto the left end of the rod 214, and an output shaft 222 into which a dental tool 220 is press-fitted is rotatably supported by a bearing assembly 224. A rotating disk 226 is integrally connected to the output shaft 222, and the rotating disk 226 is in resilient contact with a vertical vibration transmitting surface 228 formed at the left end of the rod 214 in a relatively rotatable manner and in a vibration transmitting relationship. There is.

The compressed air is supplied to the supply passages 230, 2 of the handpiece.
32 to the injection nozzle of the blow ring, and the exhaust is discharged through an exhaust passage 234. The vibration generated in the vibration generator 208 is transferred to the vibration transmission rod 214.
is transmitted to the rotating disk 2 via the vibration transmission surface 228.
26 to rotate and vibrate the rotary disk 226 and the output shaft 222 integrated therewith, thereby imparting rotation and vibration to the dental tool 220. This dental machine 200 can be effectively used for enlarging root canals similarly to the dental machine 100 shown in FIG.

〔Effect of the invention〕

The rotational force/vibration output device of the present invention can simultaneously output rotational force and vibration. This device can be used in any application that requires rotation and vibration.

Since this device can output rotational force from fluid energy, there is no risk of generating radio noise unlike an electric motor.

The dental machine of the present invention can apply rotational force and vibration to a dental tool. Therefore, this dental machine can be particularly effective in treating curved root canals and stenotic root canals, and enables enlargement of these types of root canals to be carried out accurately and easily within a short period of time.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Figure 1 shows the first rotational force/vibration output device of the present invention.
2 is a sectional view of the vibration generator casing taken along the - line in FIG. FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the third embodiment, FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of a dental machine using a rotational force/vibration output device, and FIG. 7 shows another configuration of the dental machine. show. 10... Rotational force/vibration generator, 12... Support means (housing), 14... Vibration generator, 2
0... Working chamber, 22... Main body, 28, 30... Working chamber side wall, 34... Fluid ejection means (blowout nozzle), 40, 44... Exhaust hole, 46... Vibrator,
52, 54... Bearing assembly, 56... Output shaft, 58, 70, 80... One-way joint mechanism, 60
... Rotating disk, 62 ... Main body outer wall surface, 72 ... Cylindrical recess, 82 ... Cylindrical projection, 84 ... Rotating body, 86 ... Cylindrical recess, 100,200 ...
Dental machine, 102,202...handpiece,
112,208... Vibration generator, 114,22
2... Output shaft, 116, 226... Rotating disk, 1
26, 220...Dental tool, 214...Vibration transmission member.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A rotational force/vibration output device that outputs rotational force and/or vibration from fluid energy, which includes: (a) supporting means; and (b) a fluid type supported by the supporting means so as to be able to vibrate freely. A vibration generator comprising: (i) a rigid hollow body having a disc-shaped working chamber and a discharge hole opening outward from the working chamber parallel to the working chamber axis; (ii) the above-mentioned (iii) a rigid disc-shaped vibrator having dimensions slightly smaller than the dimensions of the disc-shaped working chamber and movably housed within the working chamber; (c) a fluid ejecting means for ejecting fluid into the working chamber in a direction that generates a swirling flow around the chamber axis; and (d) coupling the main body of the vibration generator and the output shaft in a vibration transmission relationship, and converting a part of the vibration generated in the main body into a unidirectional rotational force and transmitting it to the output shaft. A rotational force/vibration output device comprising a one-way joint mechanism. 2. The main body of the vibration generator has an outer wall surface perpendicular to the working chamber axis on the opposite side from the discharge hole, and the one-way joint mechanism is in elastic contact with the outer wall surface and is a rotating shaft coaxially coupled to the output shaft. The rotational force/vibration output device according to claim 1, comprising a disc. 3. The rotational force/vibration output device according to claim 2, comprising means for adjusting the contact pressure between the rotating disk and the outer wall surface of the main body. 4. The one-way joint mechanism includes a cylindrical recess provided in the vibration device main body coaxially with the working chamber on the opposite side from the discharge hole, the recess has a diameter slightly larger than the diameter of the output shaft, and the recess has a diameter slightly larger than the diameter of the output shaft. The rotational force/vibration output device according to claim 1, wherein one end of the shaft is fitted into the recess. 5. The one-way joint mechanism has a cylindrical projection provided on the vibrating device main body coaxially with the working chamber on the side opposite to the discharge hole, and a cylindrical recess that receives the projection with a small radial clearance. The rotational force/vibration output device according to claim 1, comprising a rotating body coaxially connected to an output shaft. 6. The rotational force/vibration output device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the support means comprises a housing housing a vibration generator. 7 (a) a handpiece; and (b) a vibration generator held in the handpiece so that it can vibrate freely, which (i) has a disk-shaped working chamber and has an outer wall surface perpendicular to the axis of the working chamber. (ii) a rigid disc-shaped vibrator having dimensions slightly smaller than the dimensions of the working chamber and movably housed within the working chamber; (iii) having a pressure. (iv) a discharge means for discharging the working fluid from the working chamber; (iv) a discharge means for discharging the working fluid from the working chamber;
(c) an output shaft rotatably supported on the handpiece coaxially with the vibration generator and spaced apart from the vibration generator in the axial direction; (d) the vibration generator and the output (e) a rotary disk disposed coaxially with the shaft, elastically contacting the outer wall surface of the main body of the vibration generator, and coupled to the output shaft; (e) removably attached to the free end of the output shaft; A dental machine comprising: a dental tool; and a dental tool configured to rotate and/or vibrate the dental tool in response to vibrations generated in a vibration generator by fluid energy. 8 (a) a handpiece; (b) a vibration generator supported in the handpiece so as to be able to freely vibrate, the vibration generator comprising: (i) a rigid hollow body having a disk-shaped working chamber; and (ii) (iii) a rigid disk-shaped vibrator having dimensions slightly smaller than the dimensions of the working chamber and movably housed within the working chamber; (iv) a fluid ejection means for ejecting the working fluid into the working chamber in a direction that generates a swirling flow; (iv) a discharge means for discharging the working fluid from the working chamber;
(c) an elongated vibration transmission member having one end attached to the vibration generator and having a vibration transmission surface at the other end, and (d) a vibration transmission member perpendicular to the vibration transmission surface and an output shaft rotatably supported at the other end at a distance from the vibration transmission surface; (e) disposed between the vibration transmission surface and the output shaft;
A rotary disk that is in elastic contact with a vibration transmission surface and is integrally rotatably connected to an output shaft; and (f) a dental tool that is detachably attached to the free end of the output shaft. , a dental machine that rotates and/or vibrates a dental tool with vibrations generated in a vibration generator by fluid energy.