JPS5820252Y2 - Dental handpiece sensor device - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed description of the invention] This invention is based on the idea that when the handpiece is held in the holder of the dental unit, the operation of the handpiece stops, and when the handpiece is taken out from the holder, the handpiece stops operating. The present invention relates to an operable dental handpiece sensor device.

In the conventional sensor device for this type of dental handpiece, a retractable actuator is loosely fitted into a horizontal actuator loading hole that is connected to a handpiece insertion hole formed in the vertical direction of a holder that holds the handpiece. The valve of the air signal circuit was operated by the protrusion and retraction of the actuator.

However, in the conventional type, the valve of the air signal circuit, which is operated by the protrusion and retraction of the actuator built into the holder, has a diameter of 3.
Because we use a spool with a large outer diameter (mm), the air blocking area also becomes larger, and as a result,
Not only did this have the disadvantage of increasing the force and frictional resistance required to move the valve, but also the valve did not open and close accurately due to various manufacturing and installation errors in the actuator.
There were drawbacks such as interfering with precise dental treatment procedures.

Separately, there is a publication described in Japanese Patent Publication No. 16639/1982 which describes a fluid control assembly for controlling the supply of dental fluid from various dental fluid sources to a plurality of dental tools.

The same publication states from column 14, line 5 to column 15, line 14 as follows.

The operation of a pilot valve that controls the flow of fluid from a fluid supply to a dental tool is illustrated with reference to FIGS. 20 and 21.

In FIG. 20, a first dental drill is shown in position within a holder, a nylon cylinder.

This nylon cylinder is attached to the lever arm by an aperture screw.

The lever arm is pivoted about a pin in a support projection or flange on the top of the valve plate.

The weight of the dental drill pushes the lever arm downward, which in turn pushes the needle valve against the spring.

When the needle valve is pushed downwards as shown in Figure 20, the O-ring is pushed towards the upper cone of the pilot valve channel, thus allowing air to escape from the pyrower 1 through the upper part of the pilot valve channel. to prevent

When the dental drill is in the position shown in Figure 20, pilot air from the groove in the manifold plate passes through the opening in the gasket, through the transfer passageway in the valve plate, and then through the opening in the diaphragm seat and into the pilot valve channel. passed inside.

The lower end of the pilot valve channel is sealed by a nylon cap and the lower O-ring is moved from the conical valve seat to allow pilot air to flow into the pilot valve channel.

Pilot air from the pilot valve channel pressurizes the recess and forces the diaphragm seat against the flat surface of the valve plate.

The diaphragm seat thus closes the transfer passageway and prevents fluid flow to the dental drill.

The on or activated state of the Pilot I valve is shown with reference to FIG. 21, with the dental drill removed from the cylinder or holder.

Removal of the weight of the dental drill forces the needle valve upwardly by the spring, causing the lever arm to pivot about the pin.

In this position, the lower 01J ring is pushed against the conical valve seat, thus isolating the pilot valve channel from the pilot air supply source from the groove.

At this time, the upper O'J ring is lifted from the conical valve seat and depressurizes the recess.

When the recess is depressurized, fluid pressure from the transfer passage pushes the flexible diaphragm seat away from the flat surface of the valve seat, causing the transfer and return passages to pass through the recess and through the tubing to the dental drill. allows fluid transmission between the two.

It is stated that. However, this device basically opens the needle valve using the weight of the handpiece, etc., and when the handpiece is removed from the holder, the holder and the lever arm connected to the holder spring against their own weight. The needle part of the needle valve has to be able to withstand the weight well and cannot be made too thin, so that the needle part of the needle valve can be pushed upward to close the valve. This has disadvantages in that the cross-sectional area of the passage increases, and the force and frictional resistance required to move the valve also increases.

This invention was devised to eliminate the above-mentioned drawbacks, and its purpose is to effectively absorb processing errors and mounting errors in the actuator, needle rod valve, and rod valve box. In addition, the needle-like valve stem can be made extremely thin, and when the needle-like valve stem hits the actuator, there is no problem such as the valve stem bending or being stuck into the actuator, unlike conventional valve stems. It is an object of the present invention to generally provide a sensor device for a dental handpiece that is devised so that a valve can be opened and closed reliably without malfunction with a force much lighter than that of the present invention.

An embodiment of this invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

In the figure, 1 is a holder that holds handpiece A.
An actuator 4 is loaded into a horizontal actuator loading hole 3 connected to the handpiece insertion hole 2 formed in the vertical direction.
can be moved in and out by inserting and removing the handpiece A.

As shown in FIG. 1, the actuator 4 is a cylindrical body with a conical head 4a on the side that contacts the handpiece A, that is, the protruding and retracting side, and a wide annular groove 4b is provided in the middle of the side body. A stopper 18 is placed in this groove 4b to prevent the actuator 4 from being pulled out when moving from side to side.

Then, a spring 4d whose one end is in contact with the inner bottom surface of the horizontal hole 4C is inserted into a horizontal hole 4C that is bored from the end opposite to the protruding/retracting head 4a of the actuator 4 toward the protruding/retracting head 4a. The other end is brought into contact with the inner bottom surface of a cylindrical elastic member 4f made of rubber or the like and integrally provided with a collar 4e slidably inserted into the horizontal hole 4C as shown in the first figure.

Therefore, the elastic member 4f equipped with the collar 4e
Normally, it moves in the same direction as the actuator 4, but for example, due to machining errors and installation errors of the rod-shaped valve box 5, which will be described later, the tip of the rod-shaped valve box 5 may be moved in the same direction as the actuator. When the elastic member 4f makes contact just before reaching the end of the retracted movement amount of 4, the elastic member 4f moves to the left against the spring 4d, so that the elastic member 4f and the needle valve rod 10 are always in contact with each other. Keep it.

Further, in order to prevent the situation where the elastic member 4f does not come into contact with the tip of the rod-shaped valve box 5 at the end of retraction of the actuator 4, the elastic member 4f is always brought into contact with the needle-shaped valve stem 10 by the spring force of the spring 4d. In this state, it is brought into contact with the tip of the rod-shaped valve box 5.

5 has a diameter of 8 mm and is installed at a position equal to or slightly more than the 1.5 mm movement of the actuator 4 through a bracket 6 attached to the holder 1 on the same axis as the actuator 4.
It is a rod-shaped valve box.

On the central axis of the rod-shaped valve box 5, there is a small diameter hole 7 with a diameter Q of 8 mm located closer to the actuator side and a diameter 2.2 mm hole 7 communicating with this.
A large diameter hole 8 of mm is provided.

The reason why the small diameter hole 7 is used as the air passage is to reduce the air passage blocking area so that the valve 9 or the needle valve rod 10 (described later) can be moved with a small force, and also because the small diameter hole 7 is formed at the tip of the small diameter hole 7. This is to increase the air jet force to easily return the operating element 4 to its old position, and to reduce the sealing force of the operating element 4.

Reference numeral 10 denotes a needle-like valve rod having a diameter of 1 mm or less, which is inserted into the small-diameter hole 7 and whose tip protrudes from the rod-like valve box 5 .

In this example, a case where the diameter is 0.6 mm is shown. The protruding length of the tip of the needle valve rod 10 is always set to a length equivalent to the amount of movement of the actuator 4 or slightly longer than this.

Reference numeral 9 denotes a conical or spherical valve with a diameter of 2 mm provided at the end of the needle-like valve rod 10, and is located inside the large-diameter hole 8, with a blocking portion 9' having a straight or curved cross section on the closed side of the air passage. form,
The air flow cross section can be reliably closed with a light force.

Also, at the end of the large diameter hole 8, there is a flat backing 1 as shown in the first figure.
1 is loaded, and the flat passing has a diameter of 1.2 mm at the contact part with the valve 9, reducing the blocking area so that the flow cross section can be reliably blocked with a small blocking force. .

This loading of the flat backing 11 is carried out by the conical or spherical valve 9.
This is required when the flat backing 11 is made of metal, but if it is made of an elastic material such as rubber or plastic instead of metal, the loading of the flat backing 11 can be omitted, which requires less machining. The above trouble is eliminated (see Figure 3).

Reference numeral 12 denotes a supply air hole provided in the middle of the large-diameter hole 8, through which an air signal is supplied via a flexible tube (not shown) connected to a connector 13 that projects outside.

An output air hole 14 is provided so as to communicate with the small diameter hole 7, and an air signal is taken out through a flexible tube (not shown) connected to a connector 15 projecting to the outside.

16 is a stainless steel ball that closes the opening of the large diameter hole 8.

Next, the operating state of the sensor device of the dental handpiece of the present invention having the above structure will be described.

First, FIG. 1 shows a case where handpiece A is taken out from handpiece insertion hole 2, and air signals from an air circuit (not shown) are sent to a flexible tube (not shown) and supply air hole 12. The compressed air enters the large-diameter hole 8 through the compressed air, and the pressure of this compressed air pushes the conical or spherical valve 9 to the left, and the flat backing 11 and the conical or spherical valve 9 come into pressure contact, causing the air in the air passage to flow. Distribution is cut off.

At this time, the tip of the needle valve rod 10 is connected to the elastic member 4 of the actuator 4.
f, and as a result of the movement of the needle valve stem 10, the entire actuator 4 also moves to the left within the actuator loading hole 3, and the head 4a of the actuator 4 is brought into contact with the hand. It protrudes from the inner wall surface of the piece insertion hole 2.

In this way, the transition from the stoppage of operation to the start of operation of the handpiece A occurs when the handpiece is taken out from the holder 1. Air is ejected from the tip of the small diameter hole 7 of the rod-shaped valve box 5 and supply air moves the conical or spherical valve 9. The elastic member 4 of the actuator 4
This is done by applying a pressing force to f.

Therefore, the supply air does not flow into the output air hole 14 and the flow of air stops, while the inside of the small diameter hole 7 and the output air hole 14
The compressed air accumulated on the side is discharged to the outside from the tip of the small diameter hole 7, and the output air signal side becomes atmospheric pressure.

Therefore, a pressure difference is generated between the air supply side and the air output side, which turns on or opens an air switch or an air valve (not shown), and operates the handpiece A taken out from the holder 1.

Next, when the handpiece A is inserted into the handpiece insertion hole 2 as shown in FIG. Valve 9 separates from flat backing 11.

Therefore, air flows from the air supply side to the output side and enters an air switch or air valve (not shown) at an equal pressure higher than atmospheric pressure, and the hand is used to turn the switch or valve into the off or closed state. Piece A stops operating.

4 and 5 are enlarged sectional views showing modified examples of the small air valve.

1 to 2 and 4 to 5 have in common that when the handpiece A is inserted into the holder 1, the operation of the handpiece stops, but the former (Figs. 1 to 2) When handpiece A is inserted into 1, the output air 1
The difference is that the latter (FIGS. 4 and 5) has a structure that blocks the supply air hole 12, whereas the latter (FIGS. 4 and 5) blocks the supply air hole 12.

That is, in FIG. 4, the diameter at the contact portion with the valve 9 at both ends of the large diameter hole 8 provided in the rod-shaped valve box 5 is 1.2 mm.
A flat backing 11, 11' is provided, and both ends of the cylindrical valve 90 are formed into a conical shape or are formed into a spherical shape without adopting a cylindrical shape.

Further, the supply air hole 12 is provided coaxially with and in communication with the large diameter hole 8, and an output air hole 14 is provided on the side surface of the large diameter hole 8 in communication therewith.

In the figure, 17 is an air vent hole for releasing air to the atmosphere.

The loading of the flat backing 11.11' is required if the conical or spherical valve 9 is made of metal, as mentioned above, but
Of course, when an elastic body such as rubber or synthetic resin is used instead of metal, a flat backing is not required (see FIG. 6).

Next, the operating state of the sensor device of the handpiece when the small air valve shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 is used will be explained.

First, when inserting handpiece A into holder 1,
The conical or spherical valve 9 moves to the right and the flat backing 1
1' to close the supply air hole 12, the outflow of air to the output air hole 14 is blocked.

Therefore air switch or air valve (not shown)
A pressure difference is generated between the two, turning the switch or valve off or closed, and the operation of handpiece A is stopped.

When the handpiece A is then taken out from the holder 1, the conical or spherical valve 9 is pushed to the left by the compressed air from the supply air hole 12, and at the same time, this compressed air is used to move the valve 9 away from the flat backing 11'. is ejected from the tip of the small-diameter hole 7, pushing the elastic member 4f of the actuator 4 to the left (see FIG. 5).

Therefore air switch or air valve (not shown)
becomes equal pressure and turns on or open the switch or valve, so that handpiece A begins to operate.

As can be seen from the above description, this device has a column-shaped actuator that can be freely retracted into a horizontal actuator loading hole that is connected to a vertical hand piece insertion hole of a holder that holds a hand piece. A spring, one end of which is in contact with the bottom surface of the horizontal hole, is inserted into a horizontal hole bored from the end opposite to the retractable head of the actuator toward the retractable head, and the other end of the spring is in contact with the inner bottom surface of an elastic member equipped with a collar that is slidably inserted into the horizontal hole, and is located on the same axis as the actuator, and at a distance equal to or slightly further away from the amount of movement of the actuator. A rod-shaped valve box is disposed opposite to the rod-shaped valve box, and the rod-shaped valve box is provided with a supply air hole and an output air hole, and a small diameter hole and a large diameter hole are arranged in series on the same axis of the rod-shaped valve box, and the rod-shaped valve box is provided with a supply air hole and an output air hole. A needle-like valve rod with a diameter of 1 mm or less is inserted into the diameter hole with its tip protruding, and a valve having a cutoff portion with a straight or curved cross section provided at the end of the valve rod is placed in the large diameter hole. let me,
Since this is a sensor device for a dental handpiece that can close an output air hole or a supply air hole by moving a valve via compressed air or an actuator, it has the following unique effects.

(I) Operates accurately regardless of processing errors and installation errors of the actuator, needle rod valve, and rod valve box.

In other words, the elastic member with the collar is housed in the actuator and normally moves in the same direction as the trial actuator, but due to processing errors or installation errors of the rod-shaped valve box, etc., the tip of the rod-shaped valve box may be bent. Even when the actuator makes contact just before reaching the end of its retracted movement, the elastic member moves to the left against the spring and absorbs the error well, so that the elastic member and the needle valve stem are always in contact with each other. It is in a state.

In addition, the spring force keeps the elastic member always in contact with the needle-shaped valve rod and the tip of the rod-shaped valve box, so that at the end of retraction of the actuator, the elastic member touches the tip of the rod-shaped valve box. There is no situation where the contact stops.

(II) The needle-shaped valve stem can be made extremely thin, and by making the valve stem thin, there is no problem of breakage or puncturing that has occurred in the past, and the valve can be opened and closed reliably with light force without malfunction.

In other words, unlike the conventional method in which the needle valve is opened by resisting the weight of the handpiece or holder,
The thickness of the valve stem is made even thinner by adopting a system in which the needle valve is opened and closed by retracting and retracting the actuator that is loosely inserted into the actuator loading hole in the horizontal direction perpendicular to the handpiece insertion hole. As a result, the cross section of the small diameter hole of the rod-shaped valve body can be made smaller, and as a result, the transition from stopping the operation of the handpiece to starting the operation is possible when the handpiece is taken out from the holder. The air ejected from the tip of the small diameter hole of the box and the supply air that moves the conical or spherical valve are effectively produced by applying a pressing force to the elastic member of the actuator.

Therefore, the elastic member of the actuator and the tip of the needle valve stem are always in contact with each other due to an appropriate spring force, and even if an excessive force is applied from the valve stem to the elastic member, the elastic force of the elastic member itself and the spring Since this can be absorbed by the valve needle, even if the needle valve rod is extremely thin, it can be operated with light force without causing problems such as bending or sticking into the elastic member.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Figures 1 and 2 show one embodiment of this invention.
The figure is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing the case where the output air hole is closed.
The figure is an enlarged sectional view showing the case where the supply air hole is blocked.
The figure is an enlarged sectional view showing the case where the valve is an elastic body, Nos. 4 to 5.
The figures show other modified examples of the small air valve, in which Figure 4 is an enlarged sectional view showing the case where the small diameter hole is closed, Figure 5 is an enlarged sectional view showing the case where the supply air hole is closed, and Figure 5 is an enlarged sectional view showing the case where the supply air hole is closed. FIG. 6 is an enlarged sectional view showing a case where the valve is an elastic body. 1... Holder, 2... Handpiece insertion hole, 3... Actuator loading hole, 4...
- Actuator, 4a... Appearance side head, 4C...
・・Side hole, 4b・・Spring, 4e・・・・
...Color, 4f...Elastic member, 5...
・Rod-shaped valve box, 7... Small diameter hole, 8... Large diameter hole, 9... Valve, 10... Needle-shaped valve stem,
12... Supply air hole, 14... Output air hole, A... Handpiece.

Claims (1)

[Scope of utility model registration request] A retractable columnar actuator is loosely inserted into a horizontal actuator loading hole that is connected to a handpiece insertion hole formed in the vertical direction of the holder that holds the handpiece, and the lateral head of the actuator is inserted into the actuator loading hole. A spring is inserted into a side hole drilled from the opposite end to the retractable side of the head, one end of which comes into contact with the inner bottom surface of the side hole, and the other end of the spring is slidably inserted into the side hole. A rod-shaped valve box is arranged so as to be in contact with the inner bottom surface of the elastic member provided with the valve body, to be located on the same axis as the actuator, and to face the same distance as the amount of movement of the actuator, or at a position slightly further than this. The rod-shaped valve box is provided with a supply air hole and an output air hole, and a small-diameter hole and a large-diameter hole are arranged in series on the same axis of the rod-shaped valve box, and the tip thereof is made to protrude into the small-diameter hole. A needle-like valve rod with a diameter of 1 mm or less is inserted into the large-diameter hole, and a valve having a straight or curved cross-section cutoff section provided at the end of the valve rod is positioned in the large-diameter hole. A sensor device for a dental handpiece comprising a valve that can be moved to close an output air hole or a co-supply air hole.