Holding device for a dental mouth mirror

Abstract

Holding device (1) for a dental mouth mirror with a housing (2) with a gripping section (3), with a fastening device for a mouth mirror (6) and with an air supply opening (8), characterized in that the fastening device has a laterally open longitudinal slot (5) for receiving the dental mouth mirror (6), and that the holding device (1) has an air extraction opening (10) through which air can be extracted from an oral cavity into or through the holding device (1).

Description

[0001] The invention relates to a holding device for a dental mouth mirror with a housing with a gripping section, with a fastening device for a mouth mirror and with an air supply opening.

[0002] Dental mouth mirrors are inserted into a patient's open mouth before or during dental treatment to provide a better view of the patient's teeth via the reflected image. This allows the dental mouth mirror to capture and visualize views of the backs or spaces between teeth that would otherwise be inaccessible.

[0003] Small mouth mirrors with a diameter of about 2 to 3 cm allow a great freedom of movement for the mouth mirror in the oral cavity and allow the treating doctor to view the individual teeth from different angles.

[0004] To take photographic images of individual teeth or an entire set of teeth, large mouth mirrors are usually used, the dimensions of which are approximately adapted to the size of a set of teeth and can be about 5 to 8 cm in diameter or edge length.

[0005] In practice, holding devices for dental mouth mirrors are known, the housing of which has an insertion opening into which a correspondingly adapted mounting section of the mouth mirror can be inserted and clamped in place. These known holding devices have the disadvantage that the mouth mirrors intended for use with the holding device must have a mounting section whose dimensions are adapted to the insertion opening of the holding device. For this reason, only a few mouth mirrors can be combined and used with a specifically adapted holding device.

[0006] It is known from practice that, due to the moist and warm breath, a dental mouth mirror inserted into the oral cavity can fog up, and the image quality of the fogged mirror surface can be significantly reduced.

[0007] A few holding devices known from practical use therefore have an air supply opening through which compressed air or an airflow generated by a blower can be blown towards the mouth mirror. However, the arrangement and design of the air supply openings often only allow for a slight and insufficient reduction of fogging, so that the overall image quality remains unsatisfactory. An embodiment of such a holding device with an air supply opening is described in patent application KR 10 2009 055 049 A.

[0008] It is therefore considered an object of the present invention to design a holding device of the type mentioned at the outset in such a way as to ensure easy handling and the best possible image quality.

[0009] This problem is solved according to the invention by the fact that the fastening device has a laterally open longitudinal slot for receiving the dental mouth mirror, and that the holding device has an air extraction opening through which air can be drawn from the oral cavity into or through the holding device. It has been found that undesirable fogging of the mouth mirror during its use can be significantly reduced by the holding device having an air extraction opening through which air can be drawn from the oral cavity into or through the holding device.The airflow supplied through the air supply opening can be drawn back out of the oral cavity and discharged by appropriate dimensioning and arrangement of the air extraction opening, so that a continuous airflow with freshly drawn-in air can be maintained, which flows around the mouth mirror and reduces or prevents contact of the mouth mirror with the warm and moist breathing air.

[0010] To minimize and ideally completely prevent fogging of the dental mirror during use through effective ventilation, the air inlet is designed as a slot and positioned parallel to the longitudinal slot that holds the mirror. The air inlet is advantageously positioned relative to the mirror held in the longitudinal slot so that the mirror is exposed to the airflow from above, i.e., from one of its viewing sides.

[0011] Advantageously, the air extraction opening is positioned on the opposite side of the longitudinal slot for the central dental mirror from the air supply opening. This creates an airflow around the mirror, virtually independent of its design and dimensions. A blower integrated into the holding device can be used to draw the air expelled through the air supply opening back in through the extraction opening. This ensures a continuous airflow around the dental mirror held in the longitudinal slot.

[0012] If the portion of a mouth mirror inserted into the longitudinal slot is smaller than the slot itself, this portion will be completely enclosed within the slot. Conversely, if the relevant portion of the mouth mirror is larger than the length of the longitudinal slot or the housing of the holding device in the area surrounding the slot, the mouth mirror can protrude laterally and therefore, despite its larger dimensions, be held and secured in the laterally open slot. By using a laterally open longitudinal slot, a mouth mirror can be inserted into the slot in any orientation and secured to the holding device in that orientation.

[0013] According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the fastening device comprises a first clamping jaw and a pressure element that define the longitudinal slot and whose distance from each other is at least partially variable. The first clamping jaw can be integrally and immovably formed on the housing. The pressure element is advantageously designed to be displaceable, at least partially, in the direction of the first clamping jaw and is arranged on one side of the longitudinal slot opposite the first clamping jaw. In an open position, the pressure element is sufficiently spaced from the first clamping jaw to allow a mouth mirror to be inserted into the longitudinal slot. To reliably secure the mouth mirror in the longitudinal slot and thus to the holding device, the pressure element can be moved towards the first clamping jaw or...be repositioned and fix the mouth mirror located between the first clamping jaw and the pressure element with high clamping force.

[0014] Preferably, the pressure element is a second clamping jaw. The two clamping jaws can each extend over the entire length of the longitudinal slot, enabling a large-area clamping fixation of a mouth mirror positioned between the clamping jaws.

[0015] The clamping element is designed to be repositionable relative to the first clamping jaw by means of at least one clamping screw. The clamping screw(s) may have a knurled or corrugated surface structure to facilitate manual operation. The clamping screws may also be relatively small and feature a recess or a clamping screw head shaped to interact with a tool and allow the clamping screw to be actuated by that tool.

[0016] To avoid damage to the surfaces of the dental mouth mirror, which often have a high-quality coating and finish, when clamping it in the longitudinal slot, the first clamping jaw and the pressure element are designed to be elastic on a surface facing the longitudinal slot.

[0017] To facilitate cost-effective manufacturing of the holding device, the first clamping jaw and the pressure element can each be provided with an elastic coating. This elastic coating can be a subsequently applied layer of rubber or a layer of an elastic plastic material. It is also conceivable that the first clamping jaw and the pressure element could be covered with a layer of an elastic material.

[0018] The following section explains an exemplary embodiment, which is illustrated in the drawing. It shows: Fig. 1 a perspective view of a holding device with a laterally open longitudinal slot in which an approximately rectangular dental mouth mirror is clamped, and Fig. 2 an enlarged oblique view of a front section of the in Fig. 1. Holding device shown from below.

[0019] In the Fig. 1 and Fig. Figure 2 shows a holding device 1, which has a housing 2 that is elongated and flat and has a gripping section 3 whose dimensions facilitate secure grasping and handling by a user. The gripping section 3 can have a rough or textured surface to improve its optical properties and facilitate reliable and comfortable handling.

[0020] A laterally open longitudinal slot 5 is formed at a front end 4 of the holding device 1. The width of the longitudinal slot 5 is sufficiently large to allow the insertion of as many commercially available photographic mirrors as possible.

[0021] The figure shows an example of an approximately rectangular dental mouth mirror 6, which can be used as a photographic mirror and is clamped in the longitudinal slot 5. The side edge of the central mouth mirror 6, inserted into the longitudinal slot 5, is longer than the length of the longitudinal slot 5 or the dimension of the housing 2 in the region of the front end 4 around the longitudinal slot 5. The dental mouth mirror 6 therefore projects laterally beyond the laterally open longitudinal slot 5.

[0022] An air supply opening 8, also shaped like a slot, is arranged on an end face 7 at the front end 4 of the housing 2. Through the air supply opening 8, an airflow generated by a blower (not shown) in the holding device 1 can be directed onto a top or viewing side 9 of the dental mouth mirror 6.

[0023] As from Fig.As can be seen in Figure 2, a correspondingly designed air intake opening 10 is arranged on one side of the longitudinal slot 5 opposite the air supply opening 8, through which air can be drawn into or through the housing 2 of the holding device 1. A continuous supply of air through the air supply opening 8 and a corresponding, comparable extraction of the supplied air through the air extraction opening 10 generates and maintains a continuous airflow around the dental mouth mirror 6. This airflow around the dental mouth mirror 6 largely prevents unwanted fogging, particularly on the viewing side 9 of the dental mouth mirror 6, which is used by a user to view or photograph the teeth in the oral cavity.

[0024] The longitudinal slot 5 is bounded by a first clamping jaw 11 and by a pressure element, which is also designed as a second clamping jaw 12. A coating 13 made of an elastic plastic material is bonded to the surface of both the first clamping jaw 11 and the second clamping jaw 12, facing the longitudinal slot. The coating 13 prevents scratching or damage to the typically high-quality surfaces of the dental mouth mirror 6, which is clamped into the longitudinal slot 5.

[0025] By means of two clamping screws 14, the distance of the second clamping jaw 12 relative to the first clamping jaw 11 can be predetermined at least in certain areas, and a sufficiently high clamping force can be generated depending on the thickness of the dental photo mirror 6 used, in order to reliably secure the dental mouth mirror 6 in the longitudinal slot 5.

[0026] Two lighting devices 15 are provided on the front side 7, which can be designed as LEDs, for example, and provide additional lighting for the dental mouth mirror 6.

[0027] The housing 2 has ventilation slots 16 on its underside, through which air can be drawn in or blown out.

Claims

[1] Holding device (1) for a dental mouth mirror with a housing (2) with a gripping section (3), with a fastening device for a mouth mirror (6) and with an air supply opening (8), characterized by , that the fastening device has a laterally open longitudinal slot (5) for receiving the dental mouth mirror (6), and that the holding device (1) has an air extraction opening (10) through which air can be extracted from an oral cavity into or through the holding device (1). [2] Holding device according to claim 1, characterized by , that the air extraction opening (10) is arranged on one side of the longitudinal slot (5) opposite the air supply opening (8) for receiving the dental mouth mirror (6). [3] Holding device according to claim 1, characterized by, that the fastening device has a first clamping jaw (11) and a pressure element which limit the longitudinal slot (5) and whose distance from each other can be changed at least in certain areas. [4] Holding device according to claim 3, characterized by , that the pressure element is a second clamping jaw (12). [5] Holding device according to claim 3 or claim 4, characterized by , that the pressure element can be displaced at least partially relative to the first clamping jaw (11) by means of at least one clamping screw (14). [6] Holding device according to one of claims 3-5, characterized by , that the first clamping jaw (11) and the pressure element are each elastically designed on a surface facing the longitudinal slot (5). [7] Holding device according to claim 6, characterized by that the first clamping jaw (11) and the pressure element have an elastic coating (13). [8] Holding device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by , that the air supply opening (8) is designed in a slot-like shape and is arranged parallel to the longitudinal slot (5) for receiving the dental mouth mirror (6).

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