US1953715A - Stress-breaking dental attachment - Google Patents

Description

April 3, 1934'. P, J FF 1,953,715"

STRESS BREAKING DENTAL ATTACHMENT Filed Sept.- 2 1931 e FngZ.

Fag. 6.

1N VEN TOR.

PETER JOFFE BY M W A TTORNE Patented Apr. 3, 19341 NHTEZ' rates 4 Glaims.

This invention relates to certainimprovements in the art of dental bridgework, and more particularly concerns itself with an attachment to be used for stress-breaking purposes for different types of removable bridge dentures. The attachment forming the basis of this invention would be classified as a stress-breaking attach: ment, and is employed between the removable bridge denture and the clasping or attaching means connecting the denture to the abutment tooth in the mouth.

It has been the object of my invention to provide a dental attachment for the purpose set forth of improved design, simple and rugged in construction. A further object has been to produce an attachment that will provide the bridge denture with a universal movement or play, but only to a limited degree. Too, the provision to readily separate the two members of the attachment after the bridge denture has been in use in the mouth, permitsreplacement of the, parts. Other features of this invention will be apparent in the description following.

A practical embodiment of the device forming the substance of my inventionis represented in the accompanying drawing, in which Figure 1 shows the separate members of my attachment in perspective.

Fig. 2 shows a View of the L-bar member in elevation and section.

. Fig. 3 shows a Viewv of a clasp bridge denture utilizing my attachment in perspective.

Fig. 4 shows a fragmentary view or" the attachment in section.

Fig. 5 shows a plan view of the attachment mounted on a clasp.

Fig. 6 shows an elevational View of the attachment mounted on a clasp.

Fig. 7 shows a perspective view of the L-bar member in conjunction with a removable bridge attachment.

Fig. 8 shows a view of the U-socket member in perspective.

In the drawing my attachment has been shown in the form as would be employed in conjunction with a clasp removable bridge denture. Its position between the clasp and bridge denture, acts to break the masticatory stress and strain that would ordinarily be transmitted directly against the abutment tooth gripped by the clasp.

In Fig. 1 are shown the two main members comprising my device. The L-shaped bar is formed of a vertical arm 1 made integral with a shorter horizontal arm 2. The horizontal arm 2 is oval in section and the vertical arm 1 is semioval in section. The fiat side forms the outer surface of the vertical arm 1, while the inner surface of the L-bar is continuously oval throughout the length of both arms. The clasp is joined, preferably by solder, to the upper extremity of the vertical arm 1, against the flat surface, reference being had to Figures 3 and 5.

The L-shaped bar supporting the clasp is connected to the bridge denture through the U- shaped socket 3. To accomplish this the distance between the two prongs forming the U-shaped socket 3 is made such as to receive the horizontal arm 2 of the L-bar. The socket 3 is permanently mounted upon the bridge denture in a substantially horizontal plane.

There is shown in this instance, reference being, had to Fig. 4-, the screw 4. as the means for holding the arm 2 of the L-bar in engagement within the U-socket 3. This screw 4 is seated in the aligned threaded holes 5, positioned substantially centrally through each prong of the U-socket 3. A correspondingly positioned through hole 6, of slightly larger diameter than that of the screw 4, is provided in the horizontal arm 2 of the L-bar.

The case of a removable denture employing the clasps '7 and 8 as the retaining means for the bridge in the mouth is shown in Fig. 3. The artificial teeth on the denture are indicated by 9 and 10, while the abutment teeth in the mouth to which the bridge is anchored are shown by 11 and 12. It is the purpose of my design of attachment to provide the means for breaking the stress that would ordinarily be transmitted by these clasps 7 and 8 against the respective abutment teeth 11 and 12. The method of application of the attachment, taking the instance of the clasp '7 at the right, would be as follows. The clasp is mounted against the flat surface at the upper end of the arm 1 of the L-bar, preferably by soldering. In this position the L-bar hangs suspended from the clasp, with the horizontal arm 2 pointing in a direction opposite to the plane of the clasp, reference being had to Fig. 3. The U-socket 3 is mounted, preferably too by soldering, on the saddle structure 13 of the bridge denture, in a substantially horizontal plane. The saddle is here assumed fabricated of gold. The relative positions of the L-bar and U-socket when mounted is such that, when the two members of the attachment are connected, the clasp 7 and the saddle 13 will be seated in their proper relationship in the mouth. In this position the horizontal arm 2 will be seated in the U-socket 3, and it is retained so by the locking screw 4. The screw 4 is inserted through the threaded opening in the lower prong of the socket, and this portion of the socket is kept free of the saddle structure, so that the screw may be readily inserted or removed. It is evident, referring to Figures 1 and 4, that too much movement or play between the L-bar and U-socket may be eliminated by tightening the screw 4, thereby drawing up the lower prong of the socket. The technique for the application of my attachment is well understood to those skilled in this art, and has therefore not beengiven in detail herein.

In the application of the attachment just described and as is shown in Fig. 3, it is noted that the bridge denture hangs suspended by the L-bar from the clasps. Suspended so, the denture is capable of a limited rocking and rotatable movement, by virtue of the oval formation of the horizontal arm 2 of the L-bar. The free end of the arm 2 has been shown rounded off to provide a slight up and down movement for the denture. The summation of these movements is equivalent to a universal movement or play for the denture.

In designing the L-bar with the outer surface of the vertical arm fiat, it has been the aim to provide as narrow as practical a width of L-bar at the location where it is employed. The inner surface of the vertical arm 1, lying adjacent to an artificial tooth on the denture, is formed oval in shape that no impediment may be offered against the stress-breaking play. The flat surface of the vertical arm 1 would extend down to merge into the under oval surface of the horizontal arm 2, preferably just above the bend of the L-bar. This portion of the L-bar can readily be positioned free of any tooth surface.

In Fig. 1 the U-shaped socket 3 is assumed milled out of a rectangular block, this being a desired construction. It may however be just as v readily formed by bending a flat sheet of the proper length and width into a U-form as shown in Fig. 8. The material of the different parts of the attachment would be of any of the goldplatinum alloys manufactured for this class of devices. For cases of rubber dentures instead of the gold denture illustrated in Fig. 3, the application of my attachment would prove just as effective, and the technique for its use in that type of denture is too well understood by those skilled in this art.

In the foregoing I have confined the application of my attachment to a removable denture employing clasps as the attaching means in the mouth. This invention may just as readily be used in conjunction with any of the other attachment means as are at present employed for removable bridge dentures, where a stress-breaking movement is required. Instead of soldering the clasp to the vertical arm 1 of the L-bar, any other attachment member may be similarly mounted thereon. In Fig. 7 is shown in simple form the co-operating member of the common T-class of removable bridge attachments. The procedure in this instance would be to join, preferably by soldering, the shank 14 of the attachment to the vertical arm 1 of the L-bar. The remaining part of the technique would be practically the same as outlined hereinbefore for the clasp denture.

Having described the construction and application of the device comprising my invention, what I claim is:

1. In a denture attachment of the character described, an L-bar member comprising a vertical semi-oval arm made integral with an horizontal oval arm provided with an opening therethrough, a U-socket member disposed substantially horizontally to engage with the horizontal arm of the L-bar provided with a threaded opening in each prong thereof and a screw member to engage within the said openings in the L-bar and U-socket.

2. In a denture attachment of the character described, a U-socket member comprising two prongs each provided with a threaded opening adapted to be permanently mounted in a substantially horizontal plane upon the bridge denture, an L-bar member provided with a horizontal oval arm having an opening therethrough adapted to engage between the said prongs of the U-socket in movable relationship and a screw member to be inserted through the said opening of the U-socket and L-bar to lock the said members in movable engagement.

3. In a denture attachment of the character described, an L-bar member comprising a vertical semi-oval arm adapted to permanently mount a clasp against the fiat surface thereof, a U-socket member seated horizontally on the bridge denture adapted to engage the horizontal oval arm of the L-bar to give the said denture a limited universal movement and a screw member inserted from the bottom through co-operative openings in the U-socket and L-bar members.

4. In a denture attachment of the character described, a U-socket member opened at both ends laterally and at the front adapted to be permanently seated on a bridge denture with the open section in a substantially horizontal plane, an L-bar member with a vertical arm permanently supporting a clasp and a horizontal arm of oval section adapted to engage within the open section of the U-socket in a movable relationship and a screw member inserted from the bottom through co-operative openings in the U-socket and L-bar members.

PETER JOFFFL.

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