Dental Lighting System with Position-Adaptive Beam Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current dental lighting systems fail to provide effective, shadow-free illumination of a patient's oral cavity in both upright and lying positions of a treatment chair, limiting their versatility and precision during dental procedures.
Innovation Solution
A dental lighting system comprising at least one monitoring device to determine treatment site characteristics and two lighting units that adjust their beam positions and shapes based on the chair's position, ensuring proper illumination in both upright and lying states by emitting distinct light beams with specific angles and directions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If a single overhead light source is used to illuminate the oral cavity, then the device complexity is reduced, but the illumination precision and shadow-free coverage deteriorate when the treatment chair position changes
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the lighting system into multiple independent lighting units (at least two) positioned at different locations. Each lighting unit can be independently controlled to emit light beams toward the treatment site. This segmentation allows the system to maintain illumination precision across different chair positions without requiring a single complex adjustable light source.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements dynamic control of the lighting units based on the treatment chair's position. The control unit receives position information from sensors and automatically adjusts which lighting units are active and how they are oriented. This dynamic adaptation ensures optimal illumination precision whether the chair is in upright, intermediate, or lying position, resolving the contradiction between simple structure and precise illumination.
2Extent of automation
If manual adjustment of movable supporting arm structure is used, then the automation level is reduced, but the adaptability to different treatment positions is improved
Solution Approach 1:
The patent incorporates sensors that continuously monitor the treatment chair's position and feed this information to the control unit. The control unit processes this feedback and automatically adjusts the lighting units accordingly. This closed-loop feedback system enables high automation while maintaining excellent adaptability to different treatment positions, as the system automatically responds to position changes without manual intervention.
Solution Approach 2:
The lighting system performs self-adjustment based on detected chair position. The control unit automatically determines which lighting units should be active and adjusts their orientation without requiring manual operation. The system serves itself by using sensor data to autonomously optimize illumination, achieving both high automation and position adaptability simultaneously.
3Ease of operation
If fixed overhead lighting is used, then the ease of operation is improved, but the versatility across different treatment procedures and positions deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent designs a universal lighting system with multiple lighting units that can handle various treatment scenarios. The same system provides optimal illumination for both upright and lying positions, as well as intermediate positions, without requiring different lighting setups. This multi-functionality achieves versatility across procedures while maintaining ease of operation through automatic control.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces manual mechanical adjustment of lighting positions with an automated control system that uses sensors and electronic control. Instead of mechanically moving lights to different positions, the system electronically switches between pre-positioned lighting units and adjusts their orientation programmatically. This substitution maintains operational simplicity while dramatically improving versatility across different treatment positions and procedures.
Data Source
AI summary
A dental lighting system (10) for selectively illuminating a treatment site (12) on a patient sitting on a treatment chair (14). The system includes at least one monitoring device (32, 32′) configured to determine characteristics of a treatment site (12) on a patient and at least one lighting unit (22, 24) configured to generate an illuminated area (34) onto the treatment site (12) by emitting a first light beam (36) in an upright state in which the treatment chair (14) is in an upright position and by emitting a second light beam (38) in a lying state in which the treatment chair (14) is in a lying position. The at least one lighting unit (22, 24) is configured to set a shape of the illuminated area (34) based on the characteristics of the treatment site (12).