Convertible Orthodontic Bracket with Removable Cover
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing convertible buccal tube orthodontic brackets have designs that are either prohibitively expensive, complex, or of poor quality, leading to increased failure modes and difficulties in use, which can cause damage to molar enamel, increase patient chair time, and raise treatment costs.
Innovation Solution
A convertible buccal tube orthodontic bracket with a removable archwire slot cover that is coined onto the base, allowing the bracket to function as both a buccal tube and an open archwire slot bracket without the need for removal and replacement, featuring a nickel-free material and improved design elements like flared ends and double tie wings for easier handling and retention.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional buccal tubes are used and later replaced with open archwire slot brackets, then the bracket can provide anchoring function initially, but it requires removal and replacement of brackets which increases patient chair time and may damage molar enamel
Solution Approach 1:
The bracket is designed with a removable cover that can be taken off to convert the bracket from a closed buccal tube configuration to an open archwire slot configuration. This dynamic transformation allows the same bracket to serve multiple functions throughout treatment, eliminating the need for removal and replacement, thereby reducing patient chair time and preventing enamel damage.
Solution Approach 2:
The bracket incorporates both buccal tube and open archwire slot functionalities within a single device. The removable cover enables the bracket to transition between these two modes, making it a universal component that can accommodate different treatment stages and requirements without needing separate brackets.
2Adaptability or versatility
If existing convertible buccal tube brackets are designed with complex features, then they may provide versatile functionality, but the design becomes prohibitively expensive and complex with increased failure modes
Solution Approach 1:
The bracket is divided into distinct segments: a base bracket body and a separate removable cover. This segmentation allows each component to be simple and robust individually, while their combination provides versatile functionality. The cover can be removed or retained based on treatment needs, providing adaptability without requiring complex integrated designs.
Solution Approach 2:
The cover is designed as a separate, extractable component from the bracket body. This extraction approach simplifies the overall design by separating the conversion functionality into a simple removable piece rather than integrating complex mechanisms into the bracket body itself, reducing failure modes while maintaining versatility.
3Adaptability or versatility
If multiple separate parts are used to create convertible brackets, then the bracket can transform between configurations, but the number of parts increases leading to more failure modes and higher costs
Solution Approach 1:
The bracket base and cover are designed to work together as a unified system with minimal separate components. The cover attaches to the bracket base in a simple manner that provides secure retention while allowing easy removal. This merging approach reduces the total number of separate parts compared to other convertible designs, thereby reducing potential failure modes while maintaining configuration transformability.
4Manufacturing precision
If complex machining operations are required for convertible bracket design, then the bracket may achieve precise geometry, but the manufacturing cost becomes prohibitively expensive
Solution Approach 1:
The cover is pre-formed with the necessary geometry and then attached to the bracket base through a simple process such as welding, bonding, or mechanical retention. This preliminary formation of the cover as a separate component allows for precise geometry to be achieved through simpler manufacturing processes rather than requiring complex machining of the entire assembled bracket, thereby reducing manufacturing costs while maintaining precision.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution reduces the risk of enamel damage, minimizes patient treatment time, and lowers costs by providing a reliable, easy-to-use convertible bracket that can seamlessly transition from buccal tube to open archwire slot configuration without the need for additional parts or complex machining.
Implementation Method 1
The memory or restoring force exerted by the archwire upon the brackets serves to move the teeth into the desired alignment.
Implementation Method 2
A removable archwire slot cover is coined onto the base so as to cover at least a portion of the archwire slot
Data Source
AI summary
An orthodontic bracket having a base attachable to a tooth surface, with the base extending outward away from the tooth surface and forming an archwire slot sized to receive an archwire therewithin, and a removable archwire slot cover coined onto the base so as to cover the archwire slot and enable the bracket to function as a buccal tube when the cover is attached. The cover may be removed from the bracket base without removal of the bracket from the tooth surface so as to provide an open archwire slot for continued orthodontic treatment subsequent to removal of the removable archwire slot cover.