Dental Evacuation Tool with Protective Tip and Screening Device
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Solution Overview
Problem
High volume evacuator (HVE) devices in dental procedures often cause inadvertent traumas, blockages, and contamination due to their design, leading to post-procedure discomfort, complications, and costly delays for dental professionals.
Innovation Solution
The development of dental evacuation devices with protective tips and screening devices that prevent traumas and blockages by using a combination of materials like polypropylene and ethylene propylene diene monomer rubber, featuring a protective tip with a blunted ridge and a screening device with specific openings to filter out larger objects, which are integrated with a suction system to prevent damage and maintain sterility.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If a traditional HVE device is used to evacuate substantial matter from a patient's mouth, then the evacuation capacity is improved, but the risk of inadvertent trauma and blockage increases
Solution Approach 1:
The device is divided into distinct functional segments: a rigid elongated body member for structural integrity and suction delivery, a flexible protective tip for patient safety, and a screening device with specific aperture sizes for filtering. This segmentation allows each component to optimize its function while working together to resolve the contradiction between evacuation capacity and trauma prevention.
Solution Approach 2:
The protective tip acts as an intermediary element between the rigid body member and the patient's oral tissues, providing a flexible interface that prevents direct contact with hard surfaces. The screening device serves as an intermediary filter that allows fluids to pass while blocking larger objects, thus maintaining evacuation efficiency while preventing trauma and blockages.
2Productivity
If a traditional HVE device is used for high volume evacuation, then the evacuation efficiency is improved, but the risk of blockage from larger objects increases
Solution Approach 1:
The screening device with specifically sized openings (between 0.5-4.0 square millimeters) is positioned within the central passageway before matter enters the suction system. This preliminary filtering action blocks larger objects that could cause blockages or damage while allowing fluids and smaller particles to pass through, thus preventing future blockage issues while maintaining evacuation efficiency.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If the protective tip is made from flexible material like thermoplastic elastomer, then the protection against trauma is improved, but the structural strength may be reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The device utilizes composite material construction with the body member made from rigid polypropylene for structural strength and the protective tip made from flexible thermoplastic elastomer for trauma prevention. This composite approach allows each material to contribute its optimal properties, resolving the contradiction between flexibility for protection and rigidity for structural integrity.
4Reliability
If the screening device openings are made smaller to filter out larger objects, then the blockage prevention is improved, but the suction flow may be restricted
Solution Approach 1:
The screening device openings are designed with specific size parameters (between 0.5-4.0 square millimeters) that represent an optimized range. This parameter selection balances the need to block larger objects that could cause blockages while maintaining sufficient aperture size to allow adequate suction flow of fluids and smaller particles, thus resolving the contradiction between blockage prevention and suction efficiency.
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 devices effectively reduce the risk of trauma, prevent blockages, and maintain sterility by allowing the safe evacuation of materials while preventing larger objects from entering the suction system, thus minimizing post-procedure discomfort and reducing operational delays.
Implementation Method 1
coupled with a source of negative pressure, for example, a suction system, to evacuate matter from a patient's mouth
Implementation Method 2
the screening device can include a plurality of openings configured to allow the passage of liquids and gases through the screening device
Data Source
AI summary
Devices for connection to a dental evacuation system and methods of manufacturing the same. In one example, a dental evacuation device for connection to a dental evacuation system includes an elongated body having a central passageway extending through the body, a protective tip disposed over and extending from an end of the body member, and a screening device positioned within the central passageway. The protective tip can define an aperture configured to provide access to the central passageway and can include a blunt ridge circumscribing the defined aperture. In one example, the screening device is offset from the protective tip to form a receiving space within the central passageway therebetween.