KR20010103377A - Method and device for generating a multi-component compound, in particular for dental purposes - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates in particular to a method and apparatus for producing dental multicomponent compounds by forcing components outward from exchangeable cartridges 5 arranged side by side and open into mixer 10. In order to prevent the mixing quality from being adversely affected by the advancing speed depending on the viscosity and the friction ratio, the advancing speed is kept constant at a predetermined value according to the present invention. This is preferably achieved by the unit 30 assigned to the drive motor 15. This unit 30 can also be used to drive the motor according to the load at a low speed designated for normal forward or at a high speed designated for return movement.

Description

TECHNICAL AND DEVICE FOR GENERATING A MULTI-COMPONENT COMPOUND, IN PARTICULAR FOR DENTAL PURPOSES

To produce the present compound of a cured multicomponent denture used in dental practice, it is embedded in a cylindrical cartridge (as disclosed in EP 87 029 A1, EP-A-492 413, WO98 / 44860) and simultaneously pressed and mutually The ingredients to be mixed are employed. The cartridge is designed as a storage cylinder which forms a nozzle opening whose front end is respectively connected to the inlet of the mixing nozzle, and which is open to receive the plunger which is advanced in the cylinder so that the rear end presses the compound. For this purpose, a device is used in which a cartridge to be connected or connected to the mixing nozzle is introduced, with a stamp acting on the plunger by the rear open end of the cartridge in each cartridge. In order to achieve a constant mixing ratio, the stamps are mechanically connected to one another for synchronous movement and are usually equipped with an electric drive mechanism. The electric drive mechanism includes a coupling that can be detached so that it can be recovered from the cartridge by hand when the stamp is to be replaced. This exchange occurs when the cartridge is empty or when the form of the present compound of denture is replaced.

The mixer used is usually a dynamic mixer. These mixers are rectangular, cylindrical or conical vessels in which the mixer blades rotate and the components to be mixed are delivered at one end and the mixed compound exits from the other end through the nozzle opening. At the conveying end of the container, the mixer shaft has a coupling portion which, together with the complementary coupling portion of the drive shaft provided in the apparatus, forms a coupling which is completed by attachment of the mixer to the apparatus. Instead of a dynamic mixer with rotary mixer vanes, it is also possible to use a static mixer in which the partition plate is arranged which is connected to the device in the same way and which carries out the mixing of the components as they flow.

Until recently, the production of this compound of dentures used almost exclusively components with similar viscosity. When the components have a viscosity different from those of the conventional components or when the components of the components to be mixed are changed to a compound that is significantly different from each other, a decrease in the mixing quality is observed and the response to this is to use a different mixer. The disadvantage of this is that different mixer nozzles must maintain inventory for different multicomponent compounds and exchange of mixer nozzles can lead to errors. This is not only inconvenient, but also involves the risk of unprocessed material falling into the patient's pharynx due to poor mixing, or the patient being burned due to the punctiform overheating of the material.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to ensure satisfactory mixing results and to simplify overall handling regardless of the type of components to be mixed.

Thus, a method for producing a multicomponent compound, in particular a dental compound, is characterized in that the compression speed of the plunger in the storage cylinder incorporating the components in the compression mode is constantly adjusted to a predetermined value. The load state of the drive mechanism is confirmed. The drive mechanism is driven at a higher return speed or at a feed speed in the absence of a load. Thus, on the one hand, there is no need to manually return the plunger when the cartridge is replaced, and on the other hand, the replacement of the cartridge is made much faster and the handling is generally improved. This is particularly important when the dentist finds that the cartridge is empty before reaching the required position when mixing the present compound of the denture. Changes to the cartridge must then be made very quickly so that a position can be obtained from the new cartridge within the dropping time of the mixture.

Part of the present invention regarding the compression mode is that the different viscosities of the components have an effect not only on the rheological state in the mixer, but also on the internal downtime. By constantly adjusting the forward speed, a constant mixing time is obtained. In this way, the difference in mixing results can be significantly reduced to a degree sufficient for the actual purpose. It also corrects for the differences that contributed to any different friction ratios and different synthetic forward speeds of the plungers in the cartridge so far (the reason for them is unknown). In a mixer of two components of similar configuration (of EP 87029 A1), the absolute forward speed may be receptively variable, but no adjustment is provided to maintain the displacement speed. The described effect achieved by the present invention is particularly noticeable when using a dynamic mixer, but the invariance of the mixing results is also improved when using a static mixer.

For the adjustment of the forward speed, an electronic unit used on the electric motor is available, for example, by adjusting the voltage of a direct current motor or modifying the frequency in the case of an alternating current motor, the rotational speed of which is almost inexpensive in compression mode. It becomes possible to measure and hold. Without any large additional costs, this adjusting unit can also be designed for checking the loading state of the electric motor in accordance with the invention in addition to other duties, in which case the electric motor will run at a higher speed if it is not loaded. . Detection of this loading state can be performed in a simple manner by measuring the current consumption. When the drive mechanism is driven back to return the stamp, the electronic control unit verifies that the drive mechanism is not loaded and ensures that the return movement can occur at high speed. Conversely, after the cartridge has been replaced, the device is again powered and the stamp is advanced, the degree of freedom from the load is rechecked as long as the stamp has not yet reached the plunger, and a fast drive speed is adopted. As a result of this, each of the recovery of the stamp from the plunger before the cartridge change and its forward movement to the plunger after the cartridge change occur quickly.

The return movement of the stamp when the cartridge is completely empty can be automatically initiated by a device with a sensor that detects the position the stamp receives when the cartridge is completely empty. Such a sensor acts on an electronic unit, for example a regulating unit according to the invention, which then conducts the drive mechanism in the return direction.

In a known apparatus, the coupling mechanism between the mixer shaft and the mixer drive mechanism provided at the end of the apparatus has a polygonal bore in which the mixer shaft engages with a corresponding polygonal attachment disposed at the end of the drive shaft on the side of the device on the drive side. It is designed to. When attaching the mixer nozzle, care must be taken to ensure that the polygonal attachment fits correctly within the polygonal bore. It is only when the mixer nozzle is guaranteed to be firmly connected to the apparatus. This usually requires some attention, which is considered inconvenient when there are things that are considered more important, such as in the medical field. The invention therefore also seeks a possible way of simplifying the attachment of the mixer nozzle. The present invention achieves this through a combination of the two features. Firstly, one of the two coupling parts can deviate from the other in the longitudinal direction opposite to the spring force and the drive side coupling part is fully recovered with the mixer nozzle replaced. Secondly, when powering the device, the drive shaft should have sufficient time for the drive shaft to detect the relative rotational position provided for the engagement setting with respect to the other coupling and to engage it precisely into that position while being pushed out or under spring force. Is that it moves very slowly. High speed rotation of the mixer during normal compression and mixing mode is not suitable for bonding. However, since the high speed rotation of this mixer is only necessary when the forward stamp reaches the cartridge plunger and the forward drive mechanism is loaded, it is possible to achieve reverse rotation of the rotation speed of the mixer drive shaft, which also depends on the loading state of the forward drive mechanism. Become. Accordingly, the mixer drive mechanism operates at a reduced speed when no load is present. This feature is of value (in claim 8) and therefore needs to be protected regardless of the preceding claims. At the same time, in the case of a rapid reversing movement, the drive mechanism of the mixer shaft can be stopped automatically.

The invention is explained in more detail below with reference to the drawings showing advantageous described embodiments. One figure is a perspective view of the whole apparatus.

1 is a perspective view showing the entire apparatus.

<Description of the code | symbol about the principal part of drawing>

1: donation

2, 3: support plate

4: holder

5: cartridge

6: rear holder plate

7: front holder plate

15: motor

The support plates 2, 3 rise from the base 1. The holder 4 is provided on the end of the cartridge 5 indicated by dashed lines and dashed lines. In this regard, it does not matter whether the cartridge, preferably designed in a cylindrical shape, is filled directly with the components or accommodates any exchangeable tubular sacks containing the components.

The holder 4 comprises a rear retaining plate 6 and a front retaining plate 7 held by each other by an anchor 8. The cartridge 5 can be fitted between them. A holding means (not shown) may also be provided to act upon the lateral positioning of the cartridge 5.

On the front retaining plate 7 there is a unit (not shown) for placing the mixer nozzle 10 indicated by the dashed lines and dashed lines. This unit has two inlets in direct or indirect communication with the outlet of the cartridge 5 in a known manner at the opposite end of the retaining plate 7. The claimed feature, that is, the cartridges are arranged next to each other, is merely to indicate that the cartridges are arranged so that they can be operated simultaneously. Positional limitations beyond this, for example, limitations on parallel placement, are obviously beneficial but not intended.

The cartridge 5 contains a plunger. The plunger can optionally be omitted if the cartridge will contain a thin metal bag. The stamp will then replace the plunger mentioned in the claims. For advancing the rear face of the plunger or bag, the device is provided with a stamp 11 shown in the figure in a state of being retracted into the rear retaining plate 6 for changing the cartridge. The stamp is disposed at the front end of the stamp rod 12, the rear end of which is firmly fixed in the cross bracket 13 which can be advanced by the threaded spindle 14 in the direction of the mixer nozzle or retracted in the opposite direction. The stamp 11 can be arbitrarily changed if cartridges of different diameters are used. The spacing between each other can also vary. When the cartridge 5 is fitted into the device, the stamp 11 is advanced by advancing the cross bracket 13 until it reaches the plunger in the cartridge 5. This forward movement can be initiated automatically by the insertion of the cartridge or can be initiated manually by operating the device.

For the forward and return of the threaded spindle 14, a motor 15 with a gear 16 is provided, the drive movement of which is transmitted to the threaded spindle 14 via the belt transmission device 17. For mounting of the annular disks belonging to the threaded spindle 14 and the belt delivery device 17, another frame plate, which is arranged on the plate 3 and which is firmly connected to the plate 3 via the pillar 21, An apparatus (not shown) disposed on 20 is provided.

Another motor 22 is arranged on the plate 20 and connected to the mixer drive shaft 23 lying between the plates 3, 20 coaxially in the threaded spindle 14 on the drive side, the cartridge 5 It is guided from the rear holding plate 6 to the front holding plate 7, and is mounted in the front holding plate. The motor protrudes from the front retaining plate 7 in the form of a projection 24 of a polygonal design (not shown), for example, for rotational connection to a mixer shaft (not shown). The shaft protrusion 24 can be pushed backwards to the contrary to the spring force until it no longer protrudes from the front retaining plate 7. The axle may also be designed to likewise be retracted into the front retainer plate 7 to make it easier to attach the axle to the new mixer nozzle 10 when the stamp 11 is fully retracted for cartridge replacement.

Electronic unit 30 is schematically represented by reference numeral 30. The first function of this electronic unit is to constantly adjust the rotational speed of the motor to a predetermined value when the motor is loaded in the compression mode. This is a function to guarantee a constant mixing result.

The second function of the electronic unit 30 is to measure the current consumption of the motor 15 to determine whether the motor is loaded. In the former case, it is assumed that the stamp 11 is a bearing on the cylinder of the cartridge 5 and the compressive resistance of the cartridge results in a high current consumption measured by the unit 30. In this case, the electronic unit 30 ensures that the motor 15 is driven at a predetermined forward speed.

In contrast, if the electronic unit confirms that the current consumption is only below the value normally achieved when the drive is loaded, the electronic unit ensures that the motor 15 is driven at high speed (eg 10 times faster). This applies regardless of the direction of rotation of the motor 15.

In the third case, the electronic unit 30 ensures that the motor 22 is driven at a high mixing speed when the driving unit 15 is loaded. In contrast, the electronic unit ensures that the motor 15 is driven at a real low speed (eg at a mixing speed of 1/10 or 1/12) when the motor 15 is not loaded in the forward mode. In reverse mode, the mixer is automatically stopped.

The sensor (not shown) is arranged to respond when the advance stamp 11 reaches the furthest forward position corresponding to the completely empty state of the cartridge 5. When the sensor responds in this position, the electronic unit 30 inverts the rotational direction of the motor 15 such that the stamp 11 is not loaded at this time and is sucked back from the cartridge with rapid movement. The second sensor (not shown) confirms when the stamp 11 has reached the full retracted position shown in the figure. The second sensor then stops the motor 15. Recovery of the stamp 11 can also be manually initiated with the aid of a switch (not shown) if the cartridge is to be changed before it is empty.

When the stamp 11 is retracted, the cartridge 5 can be changed. The motor 15 is restarted automatically or by manual means after insertion of a new cartridge. Since the stamp 11 is not initially loaded, the stamp advances rapidly until it reaches the plunger of the cartridge 5. The current consumption then increases and the electronic unit 30 switches the motor 15 to a constant low rotational speed.

When the stamp 11 is retracted, the projection 24 of the mixer drive shaft 23 is also preferably retracted so that the mixer nozzle 10 can be easily changed. When the forward movement of the stamp 11 is started after the cartridge is changed, the motor 22 is also initially started at low speed if the electronic unit 30 does not detect any loading state. The shaft projection 24 of the mixer drive shaft 23 then finds a suitable engagement position with respect to the engagement portion of the mixer shaft and has sufficient time to mate to that engagement position as a result of the spring pressure loading it. When only the stamp 11 reaches the plunger of the cartridge 11 and detects that the electronic unit 30 is in a loading state, the motor 22 corresponding to the mixer mode is accelerated with high speed rotation. In the last application step, forward movement is stopped by pressing a button and thus the micro return movement of the motor 15 is simultaneously started to reduce the load on the device.

Claims (8)

In a method for producing a dental multicomponent compound, in particular by compressing the components from a replaceable cartridge which is arranged next to each other by the normal advancement of the plunger with the aid of an electric drive and opened into the mixer. The forward speed in the compression mode is constantly adjusted to a predetermined value, checking the load state of the drive mechanism, and the drive mechanism is driven at a higher return speed or feed speed in the absence of a load. By mixing and compressing the components out of the cartridge 5, which are exchangeably arranged in the equipment comprising the electric motor 15 for the normal advancement of the plunger assigned to the cartridge 5 and opened into the mixer 10, in particular An apparatus for producing a dental multicomponent compound, The electric motor 15 has an adjusting unit 30 for keeping its rotational speed constant at a predetermined value in the compression mode, and the adjusting unit 30 checks the load state and, if there is no load, the electric motor 15. Device for driving at a higher return speed or feed rate. Device according to claim 2, characterized in that the unit (30) for checking the load state is designed for detecting the current consumption of the electric motor (15). Apparatus according to claim 2 or 3, characterized in that the same electronic unit (30) is used for the adjustment of the rotational speed and for the initiation of a larger speed of the motor (15). The device according to any one of claims 2 to 4, characterized in that it has a unit for checking the empty position of the plunger and a unit for reversing the drive of the motor 15 when reaching this position. . Apparatus according to any one of claims 2 to 5, characterized in that the mixer (10) is a dynamic mixer. 6. The apparatus of any of claims 2-5, wherein the mixer is a static mixer. 7. A mixer mechanism is provided according to claim 6, wherein a coupling mechanism is provided between the mixer drive portion 22 and the mixer side coupling portion 24 of the drive side coupling portion and the mixer drive portion, the coupling of which is determined according to the relative rotational position of the coupling portion. And the mixer drive is reduced in speed in the absence of a load.