Optical: systems and elements – Optical modulator – Light wave directional modulation
Reexamination Certificate
1998-04-27
2001-08-28
Mai, Huy (Department: 2873)
Optical: systems and elements
Optical modulator
Light wave directional modulation
C359S305000, C522S908000, C427S492000, C523S116000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06282013
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
A. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to the use of light sources to cure polymeric materials, particularly those used in dentistry, and through that curing to tailor the post-cure properties of the materials in order to achieve desired physical properties in the materials. The invention includes various modulation schemes for causing polymeric materials to cure in a desired manner.
B. The Background Art
In the prior art, curing dental materials by the use of light was known. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,472,991, which is hereby incorporated by reference, discloses a dental composition that can be polymerized by the use of two curing steps using light of different wavelengths during the two steps. U.S. Pat. No. 5,350,834, which is hereby incorporated by reference, discloses photoinitiated control of inorganic network formations in the sol-gel process. U.S. Pat. No. 4,872,936, which is hereby incorporated by reference, discloses photocuring of mixtures which could be used in dentistry or medicine. Other patents to which the reader may wish to refer to understand the background against which the invention was made are U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,191,622, 4,224,525, 4,273,335, 4,298,005, 5,002,854, 5,002,855, 5,154,861, and 5,175,077, each of which is hereby incorporated by reference.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In the field of dentistry, there is a significant trend away from use of metal materials for repair and reconstruction of teeth and the construction of dental appliances. Dentists and dental technicians are now relying on polymeric materials for applications which in the past required the use of metals. Polymeric materials are preferred by many dentists due to their ease of formation, superior aesthetic results, and avoidance of concerns about release of mercury from amalgams used in other dental restorative materials.
Polymeric dental materials can be very durable if prepared and cured properly. In particular, the polymerization process that the materials undergo should be tailored to provide a hard and durable resulting dental appliance or reconstruction, but should not exhibit brittleness, stress cracking, shrinkage or other undesirable qualities. The particular application of a dental material requires that it has physical characteristics tailored to that application in order to maximize performance.
It is an object of the invention to provide a method and system for curing polymeric dental materials. It is a feature of a preferred embodiment of the invention that various lasers are used to cure polymeric dental materials. It is a consequent advantage of the invention that the dental materials may be cured quickly and to a predetermined physical state.
It is an object of the invention to provide a method and system for tailoring the post-cure properties of dental materials. It is a feature of the invention that light is applied to the dental materials to cause their polymerization and cure.
It is an object of the invention to tailor the post cure properties of dental materials. It is a feature of the invention that light is applied to the dental materials according to various power, wave form and modulation parameters in order to cause the particular dental materials to cure into a final form with desired properties. It is a consequent advantage of the invention that the performance of the dental materials may be optimized for a particular application or environment by curing techniques.
It is an object of the invention to utilize a light power source in order to cure dental materials on an intermittent or sporadic basis so that a single light power source may serially provide power to several physically discrete quantums of dental materials to be cured. It is a feature of the invention that some preferred embodiments of the invention involve applying light to a dental material in a periodic fashion such as on/off, so that while a first dental material is experiencing the off-phase of its cure, the light power source may be used to provide light and power to the on-phase of a second dental material to be cured. It is an advantage of the invention that in a dental office having several dentists or technicians, multiple dental material curing lights could be powered for simultaneous use by a single light power source, reducing the cost of the capital investment in equipment.
It is an object of the invention to affect the growth of polymer chains in polymeric dental materials. It is a feature of the invention that light source power modulation is employed in order to initiate and control the growth of polymer chains in polymeric dental materials so that the resulting materials have chains of a desired length, resulting a cured dental material with desired strength, hardness, lack of brittleness and other properties desired for its particular use.
It is an object of the invention to provide a light source power modulation scheme that minimizes shrinkage of a dental material during cure. It is a feature of the invention that light may be first applied to the dental material at high power level, dropped over time to a lower power level and then maintained at the lower power level. It is an advantage of the invention that such a modulation scheme minimizes shrinkage in a dental material.
It is an object of the invention to provide a light source power modulation scheme that creates a posture dental material that is flexible. It is a feature of the invention that light may be applied to the dental material at a first power level, held constant at that first power level for a period of time, and then increased over time to a second power level. It is an advantage of the invention that such a modulation scheme produces flexibility in a dental material.
It is an object of the invention to provide a light source power modulation scheme that creates a post-cure dental material that has great surface or wear strength. It is a feature of the invention that light may be applied to the dental material at a first high power level, quickly reduced to a lower power level, and then gradually increased to about the first high power level again. It is an advantage of the invention that such a modulation scheme produces significant surface or wear strength in a dental material.
It is an object of the invention to provide a light source power modulation scheme that creates a postcure dental material that is useful as a pit and fissure sealant. It is a feature of the invention that light may be applied to the dental material at a first high power level, decreased to a second lower power level, and then held constant at about that second power level for a period of time. It is an advantage of the invention that such a modulation scheme produces a dental material that has the qualities needed to serve as a pit and fissure sealant.
It is an object of the invention to provide a light source power modulation scheme that creates a posture dental material that is useful as a bonding agent for indirect applications. It is a feature of the invention that light may be applied to the dental material in an increasing and decreasing pattern according to a sine wave, particularly initiating light exposure at a mid-power level on the sine wave. It is an advantage of the invention that such a modulation scheme produces a dental material that has characteristics suitable for use as a bonding agent for indirect applications.
It is an object of the invention to provide a light source power modulation scheme that creates a post-cure dental material that is useful as a bonding agent for direct applications (such as orthodontics). It is a feature of the invention that light may be applied to the dental material according to a discontinuous waveform. For example, the waveform may include initiating power and holding it constant for a period of time at a first low power level, turning power to the light source off for a period of time, and then reinitiating power and holding it constant for a period fo time at a second higher power level. It is an advantage of the invention that such a modul
Kaufman David W.
Ostler Calvin D.
Ostler Kevin D.
LaserMed, Inc.
Mai Huy
McCarthy Daniel
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