Modular template for drilling holes and method of making same

Abstract

A template for use with an instrument to drill a hole in a surface at a desired location. The template includes a body which has a negative impression of the surface, and a guideway having a first end positioned to open onto the desired location when the body is placed in conforming contact with the surface and a second end positioned on an exterior surface of the body. The second end of the guideway is connected to the first end by a passage. The guideway is preferably positioned in a portion of the template which is removable from the remainder thereof. The template also includes a stop for limiting the depth of penetration of the drill bit into the hole, a first fastener for attaching the stop to the body and a second fastener for fastening the removable portion of the template to the remainder of the template.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS[0001]This application is a Reissue of U.S. Pat. No. 9,050,665, which claims priority from U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60 / 683,050 filed May 20, 2005, and is a continuation-in-part of non-provisional patent application Ser. No. 11 / 157,882, filed Jun. 21, 2005 now U.S. Pat. No. 7,513,722, and Ser. No. 10 / 748,338, filed Dec. 30, 2003 now U.S. Pat. No. 7,210,881.1. FIELD OF THE INVENTION[0002]This application is directed to the field of manufacturing processes and, more particularly, to the field of modular manufacturing processes for use in preparing a template for use in drilling.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0003]Drills are used in many fields, from carpentry to dentistry, and must be used with care, lest the drill make a hole which cannot be repaired. This is especially true in medical fields, where the surface to which the drill is applied is that of a living creature, and an improperly drilled hole may have catastrophic and irr...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

The invention provides an improved method for making driding guides that help control the location, trajectory, and depth of drill bit penetration. There is also a modular manufacturing process for making temporary dental implants that can be quickly placed on a surgical template.

Problems solved by technology

This is especially true in medical fields, where the surface to which the drill is applied is that of a living creature, and an improperly drilled hole may have catastrophic and irreparable consequences.

These known systems, while mostly effective, also suffer from some drawbacks.

Even small amounts of scatter may affect the accuracy of the resulting picture of the patient's jaw, and therefore lessen the accuracy of the resulting template.

This resulting surgical template forward from the virtual template, while offering an improvement over the prior art, still suffers from some drawbacks.

For example, it provides no means for limiting the depth of penetration of the drill into the target surface.

Furthermore, the insertion of ferrules of different diameters allows the use of a single surgical template with drill bits of varying diameters, rather than a series of surgical templates with different guide sleeve widths which saves considerable cost.

These patents, however do not disclose any means for producing a drilling template for use in preparing for drilling into a surface.

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