Disposable Dental Prophy Angle Gear Retainer

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing dental prophylaxis angles require extensive care and maintenance to prevent cross-contamination between patients, including autoclaving and thorough cleaning, which is time-consuming and labor-intensive, and there is a need for improved disposable models that offer enhanced advantages over prior configurations.

Innovation Solution

A dental prophylaxis angle design featuring a body with a neck and head that are angularly offset, incorporating a drive gear, driven gear, and a gear retainer with a locking mechanism to secure the gears within the housing, allowing for easy assembly and secure attachment of a dental bit, facilitating efficient cleaning and polishing while minimizing maintenance needs.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Strength

If metal prophy angles are used, then durability and sturdiness are improved, but extensive maintenance including autoclaving and cleaning is required

Engineering Contradiction:

ImprovedurabilityVSAvoidmaintenance effort

Core Design Contradiction:

StrengthVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

The patent applies the disposable principle by designing a prophy angle that is intended for single-use only. The entire unit including the body, drive gear, driven gear, and dental bit is discarded after one use, eliminating the need for autoclaving, cleaning, and lubrication that metal prophy angles require. This resolves the contradiction by sacrificing the durability of reusable metal angles in exchange for eliminating extensive maintenance efforts.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #27Cheap short-living objects (Disposable)

2Strength

If metal prophy angles are used, then structural strength is improved, but risk of cross-contamination increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvestructural strengthVSAvoidcross-contamination risk

Core Design Contradiction:

StrengthVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The disposable design eliminates cross-contamination risk by ensuring the prophy angle is used only once and then discarded. Unlike metal angles that require proper sterilization to prevent disease and germ transfer between patients, this single-use plastic angle guarantees no cross-contamination without requiring any sterilization process.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #27Cheap short-living objects (Disposable)

3Duration of action of stationary object

If metal prophy angles are used, then reusability is improved, but time and labor for sterilization and cleaning increase

Engineering Contradiction:

ImprovereusabilityVSAvoidsterilization time

Core Design Contradiction:

Duration of action of stationary objectVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The patent resolves this contradiction by making the prophy angle disposable rather than reusable. Although this sacrifices the ability to reuse the device multiple times, it completely eliminates the time and labor required for autoclaving and thorough cleaning between uses. The disposable nature means no sterilization process is needed at all.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #27Cheap short-living objects (Disposable)

4Ease of operation

If disposable prophy angles are used, then maintenance needs are reduced, but gear security and assembly precision may be compromised

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvemaintenance needsVSAvoidgear assembly precision

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of operationVSManufacturing precision

Solution Approach 1:

The patent merges the drive gear and driven gear into a single integrated component rather than separate parts. This eliminates potential assembly precision issues between multiple components while maintaining the gear mechanism functionality. The merged design ensures proper gear engagement without requiring precise alignment of separate parts, thus resolving the contradiction between reduced maintenance needs and gear assembly precision.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #5Merging (Combining)

Solution Approach 2:

The prophy angle is designed as a pre-assembled unit where the gears are factory-configured and secured. The user receives a ready-to-use device with no assembly required, eliminating any potential for improper gear assembly. The self-contained design ensures manufacturing precision is maintained without requiring user intervention for assembly or maintenance.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #25Self-service

Data Source

PatentEP2922493B1Disposable prophylaxis angle with improved gear retainer

Publication Date: 2019.03.06 YOUNG DENTAL MFG CO INC

Figure 1~3c
Figure 4a~6b
Figure 7~8b

AI summary

Disclosed are embodiments of a dental prophylaxis angle. One dental prophylaxis angle includes a body having a neck that defines a first axial bore and a head that defines a second axial bore, the first and second axial bores communicating at an intersection and being angularly-offset from each other, a drive gear rotatably mounted in the first axial bore and having a drive gear head and a locking flange axially-offset from the drive gear head, an annular locking groove being defined between the drive gear head and the locking flange, a driven gear rotatably mounted in the second axial bore and operatively coupled to the drive gear, and a gear retainer having an annular body configured to extend about an outer surface of the head, a heel extending from the annular body, an arm extending from the heel, and a wedge extending from the arm.