WO2004021918A1

WO2004021918A1 - Device system for dental practices

Info

Publication number: WO2004021918A1
Application number: PCT/EP2003/009839
Authority: WO
Inventors: Gabriele Behr
Original assignee: Gabriele Behr
Priority date: 2002-09-04
Filing date: 2003-09-04
Publication date: 2004-03-18
Also published as: AU2003266353A1; DE20213652U1; EP1555951A1

Abstract

The invention relates to a device for receiving dental instruments for different dental treatments and therapies, such as, endodontis, for the prophylaxis of caries, ultrasound treatment, etc. and also for identifying and monitoring the functional ability of dental instruments, such as, drills, files etc. Said inventive device comprises a common housing wherein all devices for monitoring treatment, therapy, and instrumentation in addition to instrument identification are arranged. All devices are connected in terms of data and control, inside the housing by a common network node (PC) and the housing comprises a common power supply for all devices as well as common control elements and a common display device.

Description

Device system for dental practice

The invention relates to a device according to the preamble of claim 1.

State of the art:

The state of the art in dental instrumentation provides for a large number of individual devices, each serving a single therapy / diagnostic task. It is increasingly necessary to network individual instruments in terms of data and control technology, to enable data exchange between the individual devices and to use common control elements (eg "foot switches", etc.). This results in an unclear and unsolved interface problem, that stands in the way of the mentioned need for networking.

The described state of the individual devices and functions requires a greatly increased space requirement in the dentist's area of action, which leads to very confusing treatment scenarios, which additionally (and unnecessarily) complicate the work of the dentists.

In addition, many functional elements are like

Energy supply (power supplies) - operating elements (switches, buttons)

Display elements (displays, signal lamps)

specially designed in each of the individual devices. This leads to an unnecessary technical effort and makes operation of the devices considerably more difficult. In addition, due to a lack of standardization, training medical professionals on the individual devices is tedious and time-consuming.

In order to be able to carry out bookkeeping or counting on the frequency of use of the individual instruments of the overall system, the dentist would also have to make any current use in the overall system. B. display by key or the like. This would be Very cumbersome to use, and would require increased effort and would lead to frequent incorrect operation.

The present invention follows a fundamentally different route:

A device for dental practice is proposed that combines the individual required individual functions in a common unit. In particular, the functions

- endodontics (root canal treatments)

Caries prevention

Instrument identification

Instrument monitoring for fatigue fracture

Root canal monitoring - ultrasound therapy, etc.

integrated into the system.

The important features include the following:

(1) The dental devices mentioned are integrated in a common, preferably mobile housing.

(2) the overall system receives a common energy supply, preferably a powerful battery. This achieves independence from the electricity network, which offers the following advantages:

Significant simplification of the relevant approval procedures for medical devices through potential isolation from the electricity network

significantly improved mobility of the "treatment unit" due to the elimination of many "power cables" and "data"

full functionality, even in the event of a power failure. (3) The overall system contains a common communication and control "node" that regulates the data and control flow between the individual devices. This function is performed by a conventional PC, which controls and data traffic via a standardized interface (eg RS 485) or via a common bus

System ("DENTI-Bus"). The usual "cable salad" is no longer required.

(4) The overall system contains a common control unit, e.g. a keypad, a foot switch, a voice control unit, etc., which is queried via the bus (see (3)) and is therefore available for each individual function.

(5) the overall system contains a common display unit, e.g. a screen and / or a common voice output unit, which is controlled via the bus (see (3)) and is therefore available for each individual function. This concept achieves in particular:

Uniform operator interface Comfortable operator guidance Multi-linguality - convenient malfunction management.

An exemplary embodiment of the invention is explained in more detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Show it:

Figure 1 is a front view of a device according to the invention;

FIG. 2 shows a plan view of a magazine-like arrangement of grid modules;

Figure 3 is an enlarged schematic side view of that shown in Figure 1

Contraption; and FIG. 4 shows the view of the device according to FIG. 3 with the raster module pivoted out.

FIG. 1 schematically shows a front view of an exemplary embodiment of a device 10 according to the invention for identifying surgical, in particular dental-surgical instruments. The device 10 consists of a base unit 11 and a magazine-like arrangement 12 of individual raster modules 13, in which, in this exemplary embodiment, drills 14 are arranged as dental-surgical instruments.

Each grid module 13 consists of a transparent material and has a receptacle 15 for sterilized drills and a receptacle 16 for used drills. The receptacles 15 and 16 are each arranged in a line due to the magazine-like arrangement of the raster modules 13 in rows.

FIG. 3 schematically shows an enlarged side view of the device 10. The base unit 11 includes a vertical rear wall 18 and a cover 19, which can each consist of transparent material. 20 denotes a grid module section which has a tilt axis 21 in the region of the vertical rear wall 18, which extends parallel to the rear wall 18. The grid module receptacle 20 only serves to hold a single grid module 13 which is attached to it, for example by latching in the floor area.

It is also shown that a used drill 17 is arranged in the receptacle 16 of the raster module 13, the lower half of which projects into a container 22 which is more than three-quarters filled with a sterilizing liquid 23.

In the state shown in FIG. 3, the receivers 15 and 16 and the drills 14 and 17 are not accessible. If a raster module 13 is pivoted out of the arrangement via the tilt axis 21, as shown in FIG. 4, there is access to the instruments 14 and 17. A pushbutton switch 24 can also be seen in FIGS. 3 and 4, which swings out the state of a raster module 13 to electronics, not shown in the

Reports inside the base unit 11, which transmits a signal to a separate evaluation unit, not shown, such as an endo stepper, by radio, by infrared or by cable. In a manner not shown, a mechanical or electronic device can also be provided, which prevents another raster module 13 from being tipped out after the raster module 13 has been tilted. In a manner not shown, the base unit also has an electrical sensor for each instrument holder 15, 16, which reports the respective operational state of the associated instrument holder. Each grid module is preferably accessible by opening a closure cover assigned to the grid module holder. Alternatively, it is provided that each grid module is accessible by partially pulling it out of the grid module arrangement, wherein preferably each grid module can be moved out of the grid module arrangement on an associated slide.

According to a further alternative, each raster module is accessible by partially pivoting it out of the raster module arrangement, each latch module preferably being attachable to an associated pivot part of the base unit.

The grid modules can be arranged interchangeably on the grid module sections and, for example, be releasably fastened by a releasable latching or in some other way.

According to a preferred further embodiment of the invention, the accessible state of each raster module can be detected by means of a sensor, and the detection signal can be transmitted to an evaluation unit. This not only enables identification and retrieval of the instrument in question to be carried out automatically, but also monitoring and registration of the duration and intensity of use of individual instruments. In this context, it is also advantageous if the evaluation unit for monitoring the useful life of the individual instruments is connected to a processor, a memory and a display.

According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the base unit has the evaluation unit and other electronic components, as a result of which the grid modules can advantageously be sterilized without any electronic devices after removal from the base unit.

According to a further embodiment of the invention, it is favorable for locating a specific instrument if the base unit for each raster module has a preferably optical signal transmitter for the operational state of the associated instrument.

The base unit preferably has a device by means of which the other grid modules are kept inaccessible when accessing a grid module. This device can be implemented, for example, in the form of a mechanical lock. Alternatively, too an electronic measure can be provided, according to which it is monitored that only one sensor or switch has the ON state at a time. In this way, incorrect operations can be effectively prevented by multiple accesses from the raster modules arranged side by side like a magazine.

According to a further embodiment of the invention, raster modules are combined as a magazine unit, each magazine unit having a coding that can be detected by the base unit. In this way, in combination with automatic detection, different raster module arrangements can be combined accordingly with the same base unit.

To improve the sterilization conditions for the instruments, according to a further embodiment it is provided that each grid module has a container with sterilization liquid which is assigned to the receptacle for a used instrument and into which the used instrument can be partially immersed.

For the identification of the individual instruments based on the intended fixed position in the given geometric arrangement of grid modules, either an opening mechanism or a sliding mechanism or a tilting mechanism is thus provided according to the invention, which is assigned to the grid module measure of the base unit. The desired grid module position is determined or coded either by opening a cover, by moving a slide or by tilting the grid module using a sensor or a switch group and electronically to a corresponding separate evaluation unit, e.g. an endo stepper, by radio, infrared or transmitted by cable if the evaluation unit is not located in the base unit. For the additional task of monitoring the useful life of the individual instruments, appropriate logic from the processor, memory and display can also be provided, this task also being able to be performed by a separate device according to the invention.

The basic structure of the device according to the invention basically has two main assemblies, on the one hand the base unit and on the other hand the arrangement of grid modules, which is designed in the manner of a magazine and can be placed on the base unit. The necessary electronic components are arranged in the base unit, while the grid module arrangement or the magazine represent the component for the geometric / mechanical arrangement. This separation is favorable with regard to the necessary sterilization of the receptacle for the instruments, since the grid modules are designed without electronics and the base unit provided with electronics is spared the high sterilization temperatures. The magazine for combining several grid modules also has the advantage that several magazines can each be used in conjunction with a base unit, and the magazines can be distinguished by appropriate coding.

In each grid module, two receptacles are provided for each type of instrument, one receptacle for a sterile or fresh instrument, the other receptacle for the already used instrument, with the receptacle being assigned a container that contains a conventional sterilization liquid, such as NaOCl, for Clean used instrument at least partially by immersion.

According to a further exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the overall system or the housing has an optical sensor, i. H. a light barrier, which detects current access to the respective instrument provided in the housing, the light path being guided via an optical waveguide, preferably in the cover 19 of the housing (so-called denty box). The “access trough” or the receiving area 15 of the housing for the individual instruments forms the light barrier path, which the dentist interrupts when accessing a specific instrument by removing the same from the receiving area 15.

According to a further exemplary embodiment, the respective current access to an instrument can be detected by a passive infrared (PIR) sensor, which responds to the movement of the dentist's hand as soon as the dentist enters the corresponding receiving area 15 or the corresponding “access trough” the housing happens when, for example, removing the desired instrument.

The arrangements described above ensure that the electronic components (e.g. send and receive logic) of the sensor or the sensors can be installed outside the sterilizable part of the housing or the denty box and thus not the sterilization temperature ( approx. 140 ° Celsius) are exposed. The data recorded by the sensors can be sent to a central unit via the common network node and evaluated and managed there.

Claims

CLAIMS:

1. Device for receiving dental instruments for various dental treatments and therapies, such as endotomy, caries prophylaxis, ultrasound therapy, etc. and for identifying and monitoring the operational readiness of the dental instruments, such as drills, files, etc., characterized by a common housing in which all devices for treatment, therapy and

Instrument monitoring and instrument identification are arranged, with all devices in the housing being linked in terms of data and control technology via a common network node (PC), and wherein the housing has a common power supply, common controls and a common display device for all devices.

2. Device according to claim 1, characterized in that the entire unit is self-sufficient and mobile and has no cable connection to the outside.

3. Apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that a common user guidance for all individual functions is integrated in the network node (PC).

4. The device according to at least one of the preceding claims, characterized in that a common malfunction management is integrated in the network node (PC).

5. The device according to at least one of the preceding claims, characterized in that a common energy management is integrated in the network node (PC).

Device according to at least one of the preceding claims, characterized in that a standardized bus system is provided to facilitate expansion to additional individual devices / future developments.

Device according to at least one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the common housing has receiving areas for in each case a receptacle of an associated dental instrument.

8. The device according to claim 7, characterized in that an optical sensor is provided for detecting access to a particular instrument, wherein the light path can be guided via an optical waveguide in the cover of the housing and the respective receiving areas of the housing

Form light barrier route, which the user interrupts with the respective access.

9. The device according to claim 7, characterized in that a passive infrared (PIR) sensor is provided for detecting the movement of a hand of the user when passing through the respective receiving area of the housing.

10. The device according to at least one of claims 8 or 9, characterized in that the sensor is installed outside the sterilizable portion of the housing.