Abrading – Machine – Sandblast
Reexamination Certificate
2001-03-20
2001-09-25
Eley, Timothy V. (Department: 3723)
Abrading
Machine
Sandblast
C451S099000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06293856
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates generally to the field of devices for propelling particulate matter, air, and fluid against a surface of target material to rinse, wash, sand-blast, abrade, etch, erase, cut, smooth, clean, polish and harden the surface. More specifically, the present invention relates to a totally disposable, inexpensive particle propelling apparatus serviced by a multi-conduit fluid supply system. The multi-conduit fluid supply system is known and commonly available in dental offices and laboratories. One such multi-flow system provides high-pressure water flow, high-pressure air, low-pressure air, and exhaust. The apparatus provides a means for mixing particulate matter with compressed air; the compressed air enters through a gas delivery port, mixes within the primary chamber, and discharges through a mixture discharge port and directed at the desired object via a particle directing hollow tube. The apparatus further provides a means for incorporating at least one of the additional services provided by the multi-flow system, such as including a water discharge port, an air-flow port, and the like. Further, the design can allow for external mixing of two or more of the additional services such as externally mixing water with the particulate matter.
The apparatus is preferably made of inexpensive plastic and metal, so that the entire unit and contents are cleanly manufactured and sealed and, if necessary, can be sterilized at the place of manufacture, and the entire apparatus is economically replaced rather than re-used.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART
There have long been devices and methods for impacting surfaces of a target material with specific particulate matter. This may be done for a variety of reasons, such as to remove foreign material, clean, roughen or etch the surface to enhance bonding quality, to dull an unsightly shine or and removing material such as drilling into a patient's tooth. As the gas and particulate matter bombard the target material at high speed. The impact of the particles causes layers of the target material to remove each layer, one at a time. This process of material removal is known as etching, drilling and sand-blasting. Devices of many sizes and types are available for this process, and they are powered by many types of compressed gases such as air, nitrogen, oxygen, and others. Large devices have been provided for cutting through, drilling, or any other operations to metals and smoothing surfaces of casting parts, while small ones have been designed for the art industry and dentistry. All of these devices operate on the physical property that gas at higher pressure flows and accelerates toward and into gas at lower pressure. When particulate matter is mixed with gas at higher pressure, it is accelerated with the gas. This technique utilizes kinetic energy (Ek) from particles entrained in a high-velocity stream of gas to remove material structure. The term kinetic energy was coined by Lord Kelvin and is defined mathematically by the equation Ek equals one half the mass times the square of the velocity.
While many devices operating on this principle have been designed specifically for the art industry, construction, general industry, dental, and veterinary services, the Applicant has been awarded U.S. Pat. No. 5,839,946, issued on Nov. 24, 1998 as a known disposable particle matter propelling apparatus. Hertz discloses a particulate matter-propelling device; the device mixes a gas stream with particulate matter disposed within a mixing chamber and is projected towards an object through a discharge conduit and respective port.
The other devices are designed are non-disposable for long-term use and repeated cleaning and maintenance cycles. For example, the devices are designed to be refilled with particulate matter and to operate at high pressures. These functional characteristics require that existing devices have larger overall sizes and bulky nozzles made of expensive carbide alloys. Since these devices are not disposable, individuals must be skilled to maintain, clean, sterilize, refill and re-assemble them. This presents an opportunity for unit malfunction, for contamination of the material and apparatus, and for loading with inappropriate and even dangerous particulate material by mistake.
Examples of these prior devices include that described in Fernwood, U.S. Pat. No. 4,941,298, issued on Jul. 17, 1990. Femwood discloses a rear reservoir micro sandblaster which includes a hollow tubular handle with a nozzle at one end for dispensing a mixture of a solid material and a gaseous medium and a compressed air and solid particulate material receiving member at the other end of the handle. The nozzle section of the apparatus contains a mixing chamber where a vacuum is created by the flowing pressurized gaseous medium, drawing solid material into the chamber from a rear reservoir. Problems with Fernwood are that it is too costly to be disposable; it draws particulate matter from a container using a vacuum rather than by more efficient blow through mixing of as per our invention, and is thus sensitive to variations in material and gas moisture levels, and requires an unclogging mechanism. Fernwood operates at relatively high pressures, 80-100 psi, requiring a special tap into the air-lines and limiting the range of operational pressures. In addition, Fernwood requires special training to set up and use, cannot be cost effectively and completely sterilized between uses, cannot deliver varying sizes of particles, and is contaminated after every use.
The apparatus disclosed in the Microetcher™ brochure is either the same or very similar to that of Fernwood. Another similar device, with a forward material reservoir, is disclosed in the Mirage/Chameleon Dental Products, Inc. brochure and is called the Handiblaster™. Other similar devices are the Microetcher II™ disclosed in brochure headed: “Now With Autoclavable Tip” and the AEC Air Eraser™ revealed in Paasche™ operating instructions.
The delivery of the particulate matter using a stream of gas requires that the particulate matter be dry. Surface tension of moisture can bond multiple particles into a larger particle making the apparatus inoperable. Each of the prior art is limited wherein the application is specific to propelling dry particulate matter.
Multi-conduit compressed systems are currently utilized within the medical and dental industries. One such multi-conduit compressed system provides several medium transfer paths for providing flow paths for low-pressure compressed air, high-pressure compressed air, vacuum, and fluid flow. It could be recognized that the conduits may provide a means for transferring any gas source or flow-able medium.
The multi-conduit flow source systems are designed with various interconnecting means and various means to segregate each of the different flow paths.
Thus what is desired is a low-cost, disposable, multi-port apparatus for propelling particulate matter using compressed air from a single or multi-conduit compressed source, whereby the apparatus utilizes compressed air to propel particulate matter and additionally can transfer other flowing media through the apparatus and optionally mix the media externally while projected towards a object, target, and the like.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention accomplishes the following objectives, as well as others, as may be determined by a fair reading and interpretation of the entire specification.
A first objective of the present invention is to provide a sandblasting type apparatus that delivers a mixture gas and particulate matter against a surface of target material.
A second objective of the present invention is to provide an apparatus from the manufacturer that is pre-loaded with a predetermined quantity of desired particulate matter and which is sealed.
A third objective of the present invention is to provide such an apparatus which accelerates and directs particulate matter through the barrel of a hollow tube, which can be bent to become omni-directional,
Hertz Allen D.
Hertz Reuben
Eley Timothy V.
Nguyen Dung Van
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