US3523368A

US3523368A - Dental tool

Info

Publication number: US3523368A
Application number: US698740A
Authority: US
Inventors: Jack H Hammond
Original assignee: JACK H HAMMOND
Current assignee: JACK H HAMMOND
Priority date: 1968-01-18
Filing date: 1968-01-18
Publication date: 1970-08-11
Anticipated expiration: 1987-08-11

Description

Aug. 11 1970 D HAMMOND 3,523,368

DENTAL TOOL Filed Jan. 18, 1968 INVENTOR JACK H. HAMMOND ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,523,368 DENTAL TOOL Jack H. Hammond, 753 W. Ringold, Freeport, Ill.

Filed Jan. 18, 1968, Ser- No. 698,740 Int. Cl. A61c 9/00 US. Cl. 32-70 4 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE This invention relates to improvements in a device for use in dentistry and, more particularly, to a portable tool in which inlay casting wax may be melted and held therein for use during wax-ups by the dentist or a dental laboratory technician of patterns on indirect dies of teeth for making gold restorations. Inlay casting wax will melt very quickly in this tool and remain in a liquid state for a considerable length of time which is very beneficial as a time saver.

In the present practice of dentistry, during the fabrication of gold restorations, the dentist or laboratory technician has available wax in sheet or stick form which may be held by hand or other instrument in the general vicinity of the burner for the purpose of melting the wax so that it may be worked with as needed. However, it can be readily appreciated that since fabrication of gold restorations is very tedious and exacting, it is only natural that the wax, which has previously been melted to make it flow, will often harden again before the fabrication is complete, thus making it necessary to continually reheat the wax, thereby wasting considerable valuable time.

Accordingly, the primary object of the invention is to provide an improved portable waxing tool for use in the field of dentistry and which will make for considerable saving of time of the dentist or technician when fabricating gold restorations.

Another object of the invention is to provide a waxing device, the bowl of which is capable of holding the melted wax for a considerable length of time without the necessity of reheating and also because of its design provides the user with wax in any state desired between liquid and solid.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a waxing tool, the bowl of which is constructed of a metal having high heat retentivity.

Yet another object of the invention is to provide an improved tool, the bowl of which is so arranged that it will prevent the wax, as it gradually solidifies, from rolling over the rim of the bowl.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a handle for a waxing tool, the angle of which is such that it functions as a support for the tool when the device is placed on a flat horizontal surface.

Other objects and advantages will become apparent from a detailed study of the following specification and drawings, in which:

3,523,368 Patented Aug. 11, 1970 FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the improved tool being held over a burner;

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view through the bowl of the receptacle; and

FIG. 3 is an elevational view of the waxing tool when not in use.

Turning now to the drawings, FIG. 1 shows the tool indicated generally at 10 having a relatively small receptacle 11, preferably constructed of brass because of this metals known heat retentivity characteristics. The receptacle is provided with a flat bottom 12 so that the waxing tool may be placed on a generally flat horizontal surface when not in use.

The wall of the receptacle indicated as 13 is provided with a bored area which is later threaded and arranged to receive the threaded portion 15 of the handle 16. The handle 16 is provided at the outwardly extending area with a knurling 17 or other appropriately treated surface area to enhance gripping and handling of the tool during use thereof.

Attention is directed at this time to FIG. 3 where the waxing tool is shown at rest and the extremity of the handle being at a distance from the receptacle thus functions as a foot to prevent the receptacle from overturning when at rest. The positioning of the handle 16 relative to the receptacle 113 to function as a foot means is accomplished by boring and threading the body thereof at an angle of 3 relative to the horizontal. Thus, by so doing the terminal portion of the handle includes an area which lies in a plane with the flat bottom 12 of the receptacle.

It is, of course, to be also noted that by making the knurled area 17 of the handle of a larger circumferential area than the threaded shank portion, it is not necessary to make the handle of such great length as would otherwise be necessary.

Turning at this time to FIG. 2, attention is directed to the construction and particularly the shape of the concave bowl 18. Considerable time was spent in the design of the bowl area of this waxing tool before the present dimensions were finalized since it was found that, due to some phenomena unknown to the applicant, when once the wax had been heated and then had begun to resolidify, it would literally climp out of the concave bowl and then roll across the rim and down the exterior of the receptacle body.

In its final form it was found that for the area of the bowl arrived at it was preferable to have the annular rim 19 of the receptacle provided with a ledge means or portion 20 which overhangs the concave bowl at an angle of about 5. Thus, from the drawing it will be seen that the concave bowl of the receptacle includes an outwardly and upwardly extending area, the annular terminus 21 of which intersects the undercut portion 20 which converges inwardly at an angle of approximately 5 and thus terminates in the flat rim 19.

That which is claimed is:

1. An improved portable tool, particularly for use by dentists, comprising, a receptacle having a flat bottom portion arranged to be supported at rest on a fiat surface and including an upstanding wall terminating in a rim, said receptacle further including a concave bowl area surrounded by the rim, said rim including a ledge overhanging the bowl at an angle of about 5", said bowl area of the receptacle further having a depth less than onehalf the height thereof, foot means associated with the upstanding wall of the receptacle substantially medially thereof and extending radially therefrom at an angle of 3, said foot means terminating at a distance from the receptacle and including a portion thereof which lies in a plane with the bottom of the receptacle.

2. An improved tool as claimed in claim 1, wherein the foot means is threadedly secured to the receptacle.

3. An improved tool as claimed in claim 1, wherein the foot means is constructed of material of lesser weight than the receptacle.

4.An improved tool as claimed in claim 1, wherein the receptacle is brass.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS ROBERT PESHOCK, Primary Examiner U.S. o1. X.R. 222-465