US1030965A - Device for preventing and curing stammering and stuttering. - Google Patents

Description

T. BEATTIE & G. A. PEATE.

BNTING AND CURING STAMMERING AND APPLICATION FILED APR.11, 1911.

S TUTTERING. v

Patented July 2, 1912.

6 Am 6 Z 0 w 67 H w m x G GEORGE A. PEATE AND THOMAS BEATTIE, or MONTREAL, QUEBEC, CANADA.

DEVICE FOR PREVENTING AND CURING STAMMERING AND STUTTERING.

Specification Letters Patent. Application filed April 13;, 1911. Serial No. 620,271.

Patented July 2, 1912.

To all whom'it may concern." Bait known that we, GEORGE A. PEATE; and THoMA's BEATTIE, subjects of the King of Great Britain, residing at Montreal, Province of Quebec, Canada,have inventedj certain new and useful Improvements in Derides for PI'Oy GIItiDg BL iid Curing Stammer ing and Stuttering, of which the following is a specification. i This invention comprehends certain new 1 and useful improvements in surgical appliances and relates particularly to an apparatus designed for use 0n a patient in treatment by experts for the prevention and cure n 1. 5, of starnmering and stuttering. The primaryobject of the invention is to provide an instrument whichwill perform a bloodless surgical operation in the nerve centers of the brain. 2 Instamrnering and stuttering speech, the bulk of the energy, or neural impulse, goes. through habit to some part" of the articulating organis1n, as distinguished from the xvocal "rganism. Hence,'in the first applica= 2.5- tionoivour improved instrument for the cure: {:Qof stammering and stuttering, the instru ment is so arrangedthat it will bind the articulating organs, namely, j aws, tongue, and

. lips, at a Widely separated position and so SOthatthey cannot act at all, even to a slight '1; degree. The purpose ofrendering these organs inactive is primarily to prohibit the nervous energy in the brain from entering the motor nerve centers of the articulating ,asjm-gans at all, and, on the other hand, to turn -such energy entirely into the motor centers of the vocal organism, namely, the larynx hand diaphragm. The sending of such large 'nd abnormal amounts ofenergy through Ao lthese last named motor centers and'neural "processes (under the guidance of one who understauds neurology and the neural nature or; stammermg, stutter ng, and, normal and carry 1 it safely peach) opens up the vocal processes in-the 4 brainto such a degree of prev-iou'snes s that "they will compete s'uccessfully for the bulk.

thefart 'culating ppocesses"'a1jd invention.

Our invention also has for its object a de vice of the character outlined above which is adjustable so that it can be first applied to make all of the articulating organs inactive, its adjustable features, when applied, subsequently allowing some freedom to the less troublesome organ or organs, while keeping the more troublesome organs still. inactive. V 1

With these and other objects in view as will more fullyhppear as the description proceeds, theinventionconsists in certain constructions, arrangements and combinations of the parts that we shall hereinafter fully describe and claim. I

For a full understanding of the invention,

reference is to be had to the following desectional view thereof; and, Fig. 4 is a de-" tail perspective view of a portion of the several parts, Corresponding and like parts are referred organs, which is the primary object of cur to in the following description and indicated in all the views of the drawings by the same reference characters.

Our improved appliance comprises upper and lower curved plates land 2, preferably somewhat angular in cross section and curved to fit snugly wlthin the upper and lower lips of a person being treated, each of. said plates bein provided with an adjust mentfbar 3. ,.T1 ese bars, in the assembled relation of the parts, are-designed to overlap. and they are formed with a plurality of apertures through corresponding ones of which pins or screw bolts 4 may be passed to cut di'stance's apart.

The up )er -p"latc '1 is secured in any (is sired way to'it. d nally extend-mg bar 5, said bar being coni'e"'forwar d end of a longituiiected lit-its rear end and at a point intersecure said plates rigidly together at difiermediate of its ends, to rear end front cross bars (3. These cross bars 6, in the present embodiment of the invention, have downwardly turned extremities T riveted or otherwise secured to the inner sides ol. cup-shaped pad holders 8 made of silver 0- any other desired metal and ha ving their edges clenched into preferably rubber pads S). In connection with these pad holders S and pads 9, we employ companion pad holders and pads, designated S and 9, respectively, arranged underneath the pad holders and pads 8 and 9, these two pairs of upper and lower -pad holders and pads being adapted to fit in between the upper and lower sets of teeth of the patient and arranged to rigidly hold the jaws apart the required distance. In order to effect this result, the pad holders 8 are connected to the lower pad holders 8 in an adjustable manner, as by front and rear slotted plates 10 and set screws 11, as clearly illustrated in the drawing.

Underneath the cross bars 6 is a main tongu'edepressing plate 12, preferably formed with openings to lighten it and per niit sound to pass therethrough, said plate '12 having secured to it any desired number of relatively vertical rods 13 which project upwardly therefrom. The lower ends of the rods 13 are preferably rigidly connected with the plate 12. There a re three of these rods in the present instance, two of them passing upwardly through the rear cross bar while the third passes upwardly through tlie front cross bar. They are adjustably connected to these cross bars by nuts as shown, so that the plate it! may be raised or lowered and held in ditterent elevated position relative to the cross bars, the latter, in the practical use of the device extending across the roof of a persons mouth in close proximity thereto.

H designates a secondary t rugue-depress-- ing plate, the same being preferably longitudinally curved, as shown, and being secured to rods or bolts [5 which are adjustably connected to the plate l-l near the front edge thereof. Obviously, the tongue-depressing plate it may be raised or lowered either by adjusting the. bolts 15 or the rods 13, or both.

In the practical use ot' our improved surgical appliance, it will be manifest from the. foregoing description in connection with the accoin mnying drawing, that the device is inserted, after adjustment by one. who understands neurology and the neural nature of stammering and normal speech, within the mouth of the patient, the plates l and 2 lilting well up within the lips and the parts being at first so adjusted that the jaws, tongue, and lips will be held absolutely inactive. It will be understood that after certain surgical results have been ob tained in the speech centers of the patients brain. by using the instrument in work specified for his particular case, the holding means for any organ may be adjusted to a less degree of tension without disturbing the other parts, thereby allowing freedom to any one or more less troublesome organs, while keeping the more troublesome muscles still inactive.

After the device has been under proper guidance a sutlicient time, it is intendedrthat it be succeeded by an apparatus which forms the basis of a companion application for Letters Patent of the United States, filed of even date herewith, Serial No. 620,270.

\Vhat we claim is:

l. A device of the character described, embodying lip-holding menibers, adjustable jaw-s neading pads, and means for extending and retracting said members'and pads independently.

2. A device of the character described, embodying lip-holding members, adjustable jaw-spreading pads, and a tongue depressor, and means for extending and retracting said depressor independently of the jaw-spreading pads.

3. A device of the character described,

embodying lip-holding members, adjustable jaw-spreading pads and a tongue depressor apd means for extending and retracting said members, pads, and depressor independently.

a. A device of the character described, comprising lip-holding members, cross bars connected to said members, a tongue-depressing plate underneath said cross bars and adjustably connected thereto, jaw-spreading pads connected to said cross bars and having an adjustable connection with each other, and a secondary tongue-depressing plate carried by the primarytongue-depressing plate. 7,

A device of the character described, embodying a primary tongue-depressing plate, means for su riporting the same in a person's mouth, and a secondary tongue-dc,-

prcssing plate adjustably connected to the' primary depressing plate.

(3. device of the character described, comprising lip-holdin member's, cross' bars connected to said inem crs, a tongue-depressingplate underneath said cross bars and :uljnslably connected thereto jaw-spreading pads connected to said cross bars and having an adjustable connection with each other, and a secondary tongue-depressing plate adjustahly connected to the primary depressing plate.

7. A device of the character described, comprising upper and lower lip-supporting members, means for adjustably connecting the same together at different distances apart, a longitudinal bar connected at its forward end to the upper lip-supporting member, cross bars connected to the longi-' connection wlth'the upper jaw blocks,-rods I adjust-ably connected to the cross bars and depending therefrom, a dprimary tongue-depressing plate conneete to the lower ends of said rods, a secondary tongue-depressing plate underneath the primary de ressing plate andlrods adjustably' conneete to said nlates.

' In testimony whereof, We afiix-our signatures in presence of two witnesses. 1

GEORGE A. PEATE. [1,. 3.] THOS. BEATTI-E. [L.s.] Witnesses as to the signature of George A. Peate:

, JOHN B. LAYEUX,

GEO. H..Q,U1:LI.IAM. Witnesses as to the signature of Thos. Beattie:

R. J. 'BURKE'rr, F. C. WA LACE.

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