Dentistry – Apparatus – Having motor or means to transmit motion from motor to tool
Reexamination Certificate
2000-06-23
2001-08-07
Lucchesi, Nicholas D. (Department: 3732)
Dentistry
Apparatus
Having motor or means to transmit motion from motor to tool
Reexamination Certificate
active
06270344
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. The Field of the Invention
This invention relates to dental handpiece tubing couplers. More particularly, this invention relates to couplers for tubing used in dental handpieces, where the tubing has at least one lumen for channeling fluid, and the coupler can be configured for use with multi-lumen dental handpiece tubing.
2. Related Art
One of the primary uses for dental handpieces is drilling cavities in teeth. The drilling mechanism in these handpieces is a turbine-operated drill powered by a supply of fluid. This fluid is delivered through a conduit within the handpiece from a lumen of a tubing. The lumen of the tubing provides the attachment of the dental handpiece to at least the source of the fluid that is needed to power the turbine.
In the simplest handpiece systems, only one conduit and only one lumen run through the handpiece and the tubing, respectively. More typically, the dental handpiece has a plurality of conduits which are in fluid communication with a plurality of corresponding lumens within and along the tubing. These conduits and lumens independently channel fresh air to power the turbine, exhaust air from the turbine, and additional fluid or fluids for cooling the drill. In these more sophisticated systems the tubing establishes a connection between the dental handpiece and the discharge point for the exhaust fluid and the sources of the different fluids.
In even more complex systems, additional conduits through the dental handpiece in communication with corresponding lumens along the tubing are used for housing probing, illuminating and/or imaging elements such as optical fibers. In these more complex systems the tubing establishes a connection between the dental handpiece and the probing, illuminating and/or imaging instruments.
In any case, the tubing that connects the dental handpiece with at least a source of fluid to power the turbine is a flexible tube which in most embodiments has a plurality of lumens. Furthermore, tubing with these characteristics is usually available to practitioners in fixed lengths with their ends properly fitted with attachment elements such as threaded assemblies or assemblies configured for compression fitting.
In some instances, however, practitioners need to lengthen the tubing without disassembling the tubing ends that are provided with attachment elements. Due to the cost of the tubing, it is expensive to replace tubing of insufficient length. In other instances, practitioners might want to force at least one of the fluids to run through an auxiliary device, such as a water filter. Modified tubing that is properly assembled with such an auxiliary device is convenient for its use by practitioners, provided that such modified tubing can easily be connected in a leak-proof fluid communication with existing unmodified tubing.
Whether the goal is to lengthen tubing or to connect unmodified tubing to other tubing that has been assembled with an auxiliary device, the final length of tubing reaching the dental handpiece should effectively provide the necessary leak-proof channels for the proper operation of the dental handpiece. However, the presence of attachment elements at the ends of different pieces of tubing often makes them incompatible for their direct connection, unless the attachment elements are disassembled and replaced, or some tubing is cut and refitted with the appropriate attachment element.
Accordingly, there is a need for a coupler that permits the connection of dental handpiece tubing provided with attachment elements at its ends, such that no disassembling of the attachment elements or cutting of tubing is required.
OBJECTS AND BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention has been developed in response to the present state of the art and, in particular, in response to problems and needs that have not been solved heretofore. It is an object of the present invention to provide detachable couplers for dental handpiece tubing and achieve with such couplers an effective leak-proof fluid communication between the connected pieces of tubing. It is also an object of the present invention to provide a dental handpiece tubing coupler that can be used for extending commercially available dental handpiece tubing. It is an additional object of the present invention to provide a dental handpiece tubing coupler that can be used for connecting auxiliary devices to commercially available dental handpiece tubing.
The present invention can be embodied by couplers of different cross sections and by couplers whose attachment elements have any one among a variety of configurations. The plurality of cross sections can advantageously be used for optimally arranging the lumens within each coupler. Furthermore, a plurality of cross sections can be advantageously used as distinguishing features among couplers that have different numbers of lumens or that have specialized lumens. The variety of attachment element configurations in embodiments of couplers according to this invention advantageously permit the use of couplers with a wide range of commercially available dental handpiece tubing, whether the ends of such tubing are manufactured with threaded or non-threaded attachment elements, and whether the attachment elements are generally circular or have other shapes.
The variety of shapes and configurations of the couplers of the present invention advantageously removes the need for the practitioner to cut tubing or perform involved assembly operations when a dental handpiece tubing is to be extended or some auxiliary device has to be connected to such tubing.
To achieve the foregoing objects, and in accordance with the invention as embodied and broadly described herein, couplers according to the present invention comprise a body with coupling terminals that are configured for detachable engagement with tubing assemblies. In addition, couplers according to the present invention comprise at least one coupler lumen extending through the body. This lumen has connectors at its ends that are configured for detachable leak-proof connection with at least one tubing lumen. When the ends of commercially available dental handpiece tubing are connected with a coupler according to the present invention, leak-proof fluid communication between the tubing lumens is established through the coupler lumen.
These and other objects, features, and advantages of the present invention will become more fully apparent from the following description and appended claims, or may be learned by the practice of the invention as set forth hereinafter.
REFERENCES:
patent: 4303392 (1981-12-01), Rollofson
patent: 4470812 (1984-09-01), Martens et al.
patent: 5039304 (1991-08-01), Heil
patent: 5476379 (1995-12-01), Disel
patent: 5749726 (1998-05-01), Kinsel
Bleiweiss Richard Kim
Fischer Dan E.
McLean Bruce S.
Lucchesi Nicholas D.
Ultradent Products Inc.
Workman & Nydegger & Seeley
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